The Daily Prenatal Multi Vitamin is anchored with the superior co-enzyme form of B-vitamins, especially the all-important methyl donors vitamin B6, folic acid, and B12.  These nutrients are required to offset stress and are needed for the healthy development of your child’s nervous system.  Iron is also vital during preparation for pregnancy and pregnancy – but only the finest quality form of iron will do.* 

We use the easy to absorb and easy on your digestive tract form known as iron bisglycinate, a true protein chelate. Cheap iron salts like ferrous sulfate and ferrous gluconate can upset your stomach and even cause nausea and constipation.  We also use fine quality zinc and other needed trace minerals, essential cofactors for optimal growth and development of your child.  A full array of the finest carotenes are also included (natural beta carotene, lutein, and lycopene).  This helps to ensure you are getting your important veggie nutrients even if your diet may not be quite as good as it should be.*

We include a soothing extract of ginger that is helpful too easing a queasy stomach.  And the finest quality form of chlorella is added not only to provide abundant nucleac acid nutrition (RNA/DNA concentration), but also to enhance your ability to clear fat soluble toxins during pregnancy.  Fat soluble toxins, which are ubiquitous in common pollution, can cross the placenta and interfere with the optimal development of your child.  Having this extra protection is a safeguard you have come to expect from Wellness Resources – the company that truly cares about your health.*

The Wellness Resources Daily Prenatal Multi Vitamin is the best choice for you and your child – it covers the majority of basic nutrients needed for optimal health.  It is suggested that you also take are molecularly distilled and mercury free Daily DHA fatty acid to ensure optimal brain and eyesight development.  And if your diet is low in calcium you may also want to add some extra calcium to bring your total daily intake (food plus nutrients) to 1300 mg per day by using a fine-quality calcium product such as Daily Bone Xcel.*

This year’s deep freeze sets the stage for a long and potentially difficult winter. On the eating side, the cold triggers “hibernation metabolism” and the desire to eat more sweet food. This urge is helped along by the holiday season.  Invariably, the lower your energy the more food you will crave.

Additionally, the combination of cold and longer periods of dark causes your body’s internal clock to stress out – otherwise known as the winter blues. Melatonin is the primary hormone that governs your body’s clock. Melatonin does its work at night, synchronizing repair and getting you ready for the next day. During winter months peak levels of melatonin are not produced at the right time of night. Instead, your body can try to keep making more melatonin even after you’ve woken up – all in an effort to reach the “proper level.” This can make your daytime feel like nighttime. It can get so bad it feels like you are dragging a 100 pound lead ball around with you. This is a distinctly different kind of low energy feeling – you just feel as if you are dragging and can’t get in gear.  You will crave sugar to spark your energy (a genetic urge), but eating it produces only a short term benefit before you return to the state of sluggishness (along with weight gain).

Supplemental melatonin can markedly improve this problem.*  I recommend Melatonin in 0.5 mg capsules, as this way you can easily control for the exact amount you need. 3 mg capsules can also be used, especially when the higher amount is needed.  many use a combination of the two sizes to get the exact amount that is just right.

Some people take melatonin all year long (usually 0.5 to 1.5 mg per day), as the proper levels of melatonin decline with age. Many individuals past age 40 are lacking around 0.5 mg of melatonin and notice they sleep much better when taking some before bed, even in the summer.*  Many other people only need melatonin when it is darker and colder.*  In general, the colder and darker it is the higher the dose that is needed. The right dose of melatonin helps you to go to sleep better and wake up feeling more refreshed – as well as not having that dragging feeling during the day. A dose that is too high gives a mild headache or groggy feeling, more or less producing the symptoms that it is supposed to be getting rid of.

Melatonin is normally taken before bed.  Start out with lower amounts and work your way up as needed until you find the right amount for you. The number may change if the temperature drops 20-30 degrees and stays there for a while. A small percentage of people have the symptoms of needing melatonin but it either doesn’t seem to help or doesn’t seem to feel right on any dose. These people should try taking melatonin first thing in the morning. Doing so may signal to the brain that levels are now adequate; the brain stops trying to make more – thus the “sleep hormone” will no longer be produced in the day. 

The energy of the sun is poorly understood by modern science and Western medicine. In fact, the industry of surgery-promoting cosmetic specialists want you to think that being in the sun will kill you unless you have toxic sunscreens on.  The sun’s interaction with your skin produces vitamin D, a nutrient woefully lacking in the winter in northern climates. Vitamin D is vital to calcium metabolism, proper immunity, good mood, and breast or prostate health.*  During the winter at least 2,000 IU of vitamin D should be consumed in the form of dietary supplements. This level can be reached by taking our common levels of bone support nutrition (5 Daily Bone Xcel and 3 Bone Helper per day).  We also have 1000 IU of plain vitamin D.

Additionally, the sun also produces photon energy.  Photon energy is stored in cell membranes. Your ability to do so is based on the amount of omega 3 fatty acids in your diet.  For example, along the equator there is plenty of sun and very little omega 3 fatty acids in the food. There is no winter blues. In the north, the traditional Eskimo diet was very high in omega 3 oils all year long (whale blubber and other deep sea fatty fish).  There was no winter blues until Eskimos started eating the omega 3-lacking Western diet.  In the traditional Eskimo diet the high concentration of omega 3 oils in summer months would store up photon energy of the sun adequately to get them through the winter months. This is of course why every person likes a winter vacation in the sun – to get some photon energy back into the brain.

Knowing this information, I routinely tell my clients who I know are prone to the winter blues to increase their essential fatty acid intake during the fall, so as to prepare for the winter.*  This would mean taking 6 of our DHA capsules a day or 3 Leptinal capsules per day. Boosting up these essential fatty acids in the winter is also a good idea and will generally help boost mood.*

The fastest way to get photon energy back into your brain in the winter months is with an oil called squalene.*  Squalene is an ideal winter-time supplement.  It is the very best product for reducing dry or cracking skin.* A dose for this purpose is 3-6 per day.  It is undesirable to have cracking skin in the winter – as germs can simply march right on in to one’s body.  Squalene is also one of the best supplements to help a person warm up, especially in the extremities.*  A person whose hands are always cold or whose extremities react poorly when exposed to cold typically notices dramatic improvement on 3-6 Squalene per day.*

The unique structure of squalene enables it to hold and deliver oxygen and photon energy.*  Like an essential fatty acid, squalene has many unsaturated bonds. However, unlike an essential fatty acid, these unsaturated bonds form 3 stable rings of 6 isoprenoid units that are not prone to oxidation.  This means that squalene can carry oxygen and photon energy without being damaged.  This unique “transporter property” of squalene enables it to deliver lacking nutrients vital to brain function.*  Not only does squalene help skin and circulation, I have seen it routinely boost mood in the winter months.*  The common dose is 3-6 per day.

Many nutrients help your body make energy and any of these can be boosted up in the winter, as needed, to support a better energy level. A better energy level will invariably produce a better mood, since your brain uses energy as a communication molecule to produce neurotransmitters.  The above energetic suggestions are based on the unique stress that colder and darker days pose to your mood and metabolism.*  Enjoy the winter!

Mold spores form under the leaves, enter the air, and transfer on water molecules directly into your sinuses causing stuffiness.  Such mold spores are not infectious organisms in and of themselves.  However, they are cousins of Candida albicans.  While such dampness-related stress is not a problem for many people, it is for others.  Those more likely to notice the issue have a history of Candida imbalance, are prone to congested sinuses in general, have sensitivity to molds, hate the smell of a damp basement, etc.

This form of weather stress is a factor that puts pressure on optimal immune function.  Any time one of the protective barrier surfaces of your body is challenged by anything, it involves an immune response so as to help sort out the issue.  This is all natural and normal function of your immune system doing its routine work.  However, the more sneezing that is involved the greater the irritation and histamine release.  Like emotional stress, it is just one more thing for your immune system to deal with.

To have optimal immune function available to deal with other issues, it is best to have clear sinuses as a baseline of healthy function.  Clear sinuses also reflect better overall lymphatic function, as described in my article, A Healthy Lymph System is Vital for Flu Fighting Immunity.

While this issue starts out as sinus stuffiness and pressures, it can develop into extra sinus mucous and a drop in energy.  It often leads to cravings for sugar – another factor that is highly stressful to healthy immune system function.

The moral of the story is do what you can to keep your sinuses clear during damper weather in the fall season.  Many nutrients can help.  Plant extracts like oregano oil or noni are popular nutritional support for sinus health. Quercetin helps to stabilize the immune cells that line your sinuses, assisting your body to deal with this type of stress.  And arabinogalactan is a popular lymph support compound that can assist with the sensation of pressure build-up.

Just as you must eat well and get adequate sleep for optimal immune function, so it is that you want to minimize any form of stress.  Sinus stress is just one on a long list of possible stressors, but it is an important one for many people at this time of the year.

The traditional understanding of bone as primarily a structural material has been transformed to the new understanding of bone as a vitally important endocrine organ – with leptin sitting right in the middle of everything.  This new information yields immediate practical applications not only for improved metabolism but also for better bone health and strength.

In a nutshell the new science shows that bone formation and bone strength are managed by the efficient function of leptin and thyroid.  Problems with either topic, such as overweight-related leptin resistance or sub-clinical hypothyroid (elevating TSH) directly impair healthy bones – making them weaker and more at risk for fracture.  A new metabolic role for bone has also been discovered, indicating that healthy bone function has a primary impact on blood sugar levels, insulin function, and body weight.  This newly identified role of bone as a metabolic endocrine organ is of primary importance in metabolism, not a secondary role of limited importance.  Bone health and metabolic health are highly integrated, in a chicken and egg manner, and mastering them is central to healthy aging and longevity.

A focus by the medical profession on the issue of bone density, as “proven” to the patient with two-dimensional pictures that prove little, leads to the widespread abuse of highly toxic bone drugs that directly interfere with bone metabolism and fly in the face of the new science.  These drugs cause swollen bone, like a sprained ankle, so of course it appears that bone density has improved when in reality the micro-architecture of the bone has been grossly disturbed and bones have been weakened.  It is now proven that taking these drugs for a number of years, a good patient just following doctor’s orders, results in seriously compromised bone health and increased fractures. 

Bone drugs can also cause life-threatening atrial fibrillation.  I have already covered this issue in detail in my feature article, “The Delusion of Bone Drugs,” so it will not be the focus of this current article.  I might point out that other commonly used drugs, such as antidepressants and diabetes medication directly induce bone loss as a side effect – not only compromising bone integrity but disturbing metabolism in fundamental ways.  The disgusting practice of putting seniors on a cocktail of toxic medications to manage numbers on paper is a primary reason for poor quality of health in the elderly population.

Those who wish to take advantage of the new science will focus on bone strength, and not just bone density.  A picture showing you that bone is there does not in any way show if that bone is metabolically healthy or strong, true predictors of fracture risk.  There is no shortcut to healthy bones.  There are no drugs that make them strong or metabolically fit.  To the contrary, the majority of drugs work in the unhealthy direction for bones, including the majority of drugs taken for other reasons than bones.  Western medicine likes everything to be very simple, so they can give you a questionable test and put you on a drug.  Bones are not simple and understanding them is not a simple subject.  Here is a basic overview, in English, that I hope you find useful.

Bone 101

Bones are in a constant state of regeneration, involving the breakdown of old or stressed bone and the replacement of it with new bone.  Keeping this process going throughout your life is vital for bone strength and healthy metabolism.  Anything that interferes with this process is stressful to optimal bone health.  Common stressors include malnutrition during high growth (teenage years), malnutrition at any time, high emotional stress, a lack of stimulation (mechanical force such as strength training), chemical exposure (especially the common PCBs), chronic inflammation, chronic illness, the drop in estrogen at menopause, and, unfortunately, bone drugs themselves.

A variety of primary nutrients are required for normal bone rejuvenation including protein, calcium, vitamin D, and magnesium (like plywood and 2 x 4s).  In addition to these primary basic nutrients, many other co-factor nutrients participate in the integrity of bone including zinc, boron, silica, manganese, vitamin C, vitamin K, and strontium (like nails and screws).  And nutrients that build connective tissue matrix, such as hyaluronic acid and glucosamine, have now been proven as vital in the bone building process (forming the blueprint to follow and linking it all together).

There are many options to support bone health with nutrition as part of an overall health program that offsets the stressors in your life.  A diet adequate in protein and rich in fruits and vegetables is fundamental.  Exercise, or at least lots of physical activity, is required, as is adequate sleep. In the final equation your bone regeneration checkbook must balance.  It is a reflection of your entire life.  No shortcuts.  No quick fixes.  Success is based on consistently doing the right things.  It is never too late to get started; bone health can be improved at any age.

Bone Carpenters: Osteoblasts and Osteoclasts

Bones are constantly remodeling themselves.  This requires coordination between the demolition crew (osteoclasts) and the new construction crew (osteoblasts).  Osteoclasts and osteoblasts are the carpenters of bone.

In healthy function, osteoclasts survey the existing bone looking for small micro-cracks (as induced from exercise).  Once they find a crack they clean it out by drilling a little hole through it, making room for new bone.  Then osteoblasts come along and use raw materials (like calcium, hyaluronic acid, and protein) to fill in the hole with new bone, attaching new bone crystals into their proper place within the existing bone matrix.

During childhood the activity of osteoclasts and osteoblasts is set to a very high pace of both – governed by higher levels of growth hormone active in bones.  Once you have finished growing, growth hormone activity declines and osteoclasts and osteoblasts work together to maintain the current size and strength of your bones for the duration of your life.  The normal activity of both osteoclasts and osteoblasts is vital to maintaining strong and healthy bones.

In women, the hormone progesterone favors osteoblast activity and the hormone estrogen helps balance or slow down osteoclast activity.

Whey protein is a bone superfood, proven to activate osteoblasts as well as provide important proteins that prevent bone loss during weight loss.

A novel herb, cissus quadrangularis, has been in traditional use for a thousand years as part of Ayurvedic medicine.  The Sanskrit name for this herb is Hadjod which translates literally to bone-union.  It is now available as an organically grown standardized extract.  Modern science confirms that it supports the bone building process, helping to activate one of the osteoblast’s key enzymes that triggers bone building, alkaline phosphatase.  Cissus quadrangularis has been shown to prevent osteoporosis in female rats that have had their ovaries removed.  Interestingly, the nutrient has been shown to assist in healthy weight loss (more on the relationship of bones and metabolism later in this article).

A Startling Bone Breakthrough

It has long been known that bone exists as a matrix of protein mainly in the form of collagen to which minerals are attached.  The protein matrix is responsible for the toughness and the minerals are responsible for the stiffness of bone.  In order to have strong bones it is vital to have a healthy relationship between the protein matrix and the attached minerals.

Up until the end of 2007 it was taught in all bone biology classes that the minerals were directly attached to protein molecules.  U.K. researchers from the University of Cambridge have quietly shocked the entire bone world and opened up a treasure-trove of natural options for individuals to strengthen bone. 

In a recent study they showed that it was actually sugar molecules that linked the minerals to the collagen-protein matrix.  These sugar molecules form the structural blueprint and the adhesive connections that make bone strength possible.  This is a dramatic new discovery.

Specifically, the sugar molecules identified by the researchers are called glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), which means many sugars strung together in repeating units – a type of complex carbohydrate.  Using advanced imaging technology, the researchers proved, for the very first time, that these sugar molecules are responsible for the linking attachments between proteins and minerals that enable bone to form.  In fact, they are directly responsible for the symmetrical formation of bone that enables bone strength.  GAGs are directly responsible for modulating mineral size and crystalline structure.

The most important GAG is called Hyaluronic Acid (HA).  It is a combination of two sugars (D-Glucoronic Acid and N-Acetyl-Glucosamine) that form one unit referred to as a disaccharide.  One molecule of HA has as many as 10,000 disaccharide units, making it a very large and long molecule.  For many years scientists thought this simple long molecule didn’t do much of anything except fill space and provide joint lubrication.  Now scientists understand that HA acts as a template to assist in the formation of new body structure, like a blueprint for the construction workers to follow.  In other words, HA is to the human body what soil is to a crop. 

HA is the fundamental GAG, but it is used as a building block to form other types of GAGs that play unique and important roles in different body structures.  These other GAGs have an HA spine, and then use sulfur to form more specific GAG structures such as chondroitin sulfate (cartilage), keratin sulfate (cartilage and bone), dermatin sulfate (skin and blood vessels), and heparin sulfate (cell membranes).  GAGs are the fundamental alphabet that enables any kind of body tissue to form and have shape.

The new research is groundbreaking as it proves that GAG molecules are the essential glue that not only holds bone together but also guides the formation of a bone’s proper three dimensional integrity and crystalline shape.  Without enough GAGs bone crystals form in an unregulated manner resulting in weaker bones. 

One newly identified risk factor for bone loss is a high homocysteine level, as it has been found that elevated homocysteine directly interacts with the collagen matrix of bone and disturbs the bone integrity.  This problems is readily prevented by taking B vitamins, especially folic acid, B12, and B6.

Another Profound Discovery

One of the major problems in maintaining healthy bones over the course of a lifetime is keeping a proper balance between osteoclasts (the demo crew) and osteoblasts (the new construction crew).  Both must act in harmony.  In cases of bone-related stress or wear and tear it appears osteoclasts get carried away and osteoblasts take a nap.

An answer to this problem has emerged from the new field of osteoimmunology.  The data shows that excess inflammation, i.e., excessively turning on the NF-kappaB gene signal, is the direct cause of too many osteoclasts forming which results in excessive bone loss. 

This new science shows that macrophages (immune cells) and osteoclasts (the demo crew) come from the same parent cell.  Thus, as cells begin to take form from basic stem cells there are options as to what they might become.  A key switch has been identified called NF-kappaB.  If the NF-kappaB switch is too active, then too many osteoclasts are made.  If the NF-kappaB switch is in more normal operation, then osteoclasts are produced at a healthier level, likely in better balance with its companion, osteoblasts. 

The NF-kappaB switch is actually part of the intelligence of a cell.  When it is on too often it means the cell is overheating or inflamed.  Stress is a major factor that causes excessive NF-kappaB activation.  Numerous nutrients interact with the NF-kappaB switch, and many have now been documented to interact specifically in bone to modulate healthy bone function by suppressing the excessive activity of osteoclasts. 

One of the top nutrients in this regard is boswella serrata.  This herbal extract is clearly shown to reduce excess osteoclasts formation by turning off NF-kappaB in bone (the source of the problem).  Other nutrients proven to lend support in this way are quercetin, curcumin, guggul, DHA, tocotrienols (special vitamin E), R-alpha lipoic acid, green tea catechins, zinc, and of course magnesium.  A diet rich in fruits and vegetables is conducive to supporting this principle of bone health.

Many of these nutrients help bones in multiple ways.  For example, tocotrienols help calcium attach to bones as well as helping to prevent stress induced (high cortisol) bone loss - even bone loss induced by steroids.

A nutrient like lactoferrin has been shown to partly work by inhibiting osteoclasts, yet also work by other mechanisms to significantly help boost the architectural integrity of the bone leading to better bone strength.  A nutrient like vitamin K does not seem to slow down osteoclasts, but it does directly enhance the quality of bone once again leading to better bone strength (synergistic with the GAGs mentioned earlier).

Thyroid Health and Your Bones

A fundamental question arises: Who is managing the construction crew of osteoblasts and osteoclasts?  Herein the plot thickens and the complexity of the issue increases by many orders of magnitude.  I will try to keep this as easy to understand as possible, so that you can get the basic gist of what is going on and an understanding of where new science is taking us – as well as how you can use this information to your advantage. 

TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone) is generally thought of as a message going from your pituitary gland to your thyroid gland, telling your thyroid to get going.  As TSH levels rise (subclinical hypothyroidism), it means your pituitary is yelling at your thyroid to get going, and your thyroid may or may not be responding. 

In addition to this primary function of TSH, the new science shows that TSH is directly talking to the osteoblasts in bone (the bone building carpenters), which have TSH receptors on them.  In fact, osteoblasts are listening for TSH instructions in order to pick up their hammers and go to work – while at the same time telling osteoclasts not to work too hard.

A number of studies, both animal and human, prove that a lack of TSH results in bone loss.  On the other hand, too much TSH also shuts down osteoblasts, a problem we might call TSH resistance (similar to leptin resistance or insulin resistance).  This problem has now been clearly demonstrated in postmenopausal women.

This means that it is absolutely vital to have a correct amount of TSH signaling to your thyroid as well as to your bone, as a basic need for healthy bone rejuvenation.

It has also been proven that the presence of adequate T3 (active thyroid hormone) is needed for osteoblasts to perform.  In this context think of TSH as the order to get to work and T3 as the signal the provides the energy to do a full day’s work.

Because individuals with hypothyroid, subclinical hypothyroid, or just plain sluggish thyroid function tend to have too much TSH and not enough T3, it is a double-negative bone-stressing situation that directly causes poor bone strength.

Prior to this new understanding it was simply thought that hyper thyroid induced bone loss due to an excessive metabolic state that “burned up” bone as an undesirable consequence (which is true).  Now we see that virtually every shade of gray in terms of hypothyroid proneness is adverse to bone.  This means fixing even small thyroid glitches is important for maintaining healthy bones.

Leptin is in Command

The overall function of thyroid hormone in your body is occurring with permission from the big hormone boss, leptin.  Not surprisingly, leptin regulation of bone is even more important than thyroid regulation of bone.  We now understand that leptin regulates bone in two primary ways:

1) Leptin signals your subconscious brain (hypothalamus) to turn on sympathetic nerves that directly regulate the activity of osteoblasts.
2) Leptin circulating in your blood goes into your bone and directly manages the behavior of osteoclasts and osteoblasts.  Leptin can also be produced in your bone by fat cells that are a normal part of bone structure.

This may be one of the most complex regulatory systems in your body.  The leptin-permitted message from your brain via your nerves actually slows down osteoblasts (meaning less bone formation).  On the other hand, leptin simultaneously allows the increase in TSH that tells osteoblasts to get going.  In health, this is some sort of a fitness system in signaling, a form or management flexibility to go either direction and to have a system of feedback that keeps the carpentry crew nimble yet under control.

In fact, it appears that leptin wants to make sure everything is working properly, so much so that leptin itself acts locally in bone, primarily to ensure bone building takes place. Thus, if you are normal body weight and have a normal appetite, then leptin will enter your brain in a normal amount and trigger complex signals that directly regulate your bone formation – as your body’s primary signal for doing such.  You will also have leptin, in a normal amount, acting locally within your bones to ensure bone regeneration.

Leptin enables the human race to withstand starvation.  Thus, situations that are similar to real starvation (malnutrition, anorexia, excessive exercise, malabsorption of food, etc.) lower leptin levels to withstand the withering effect of not enough nutrition.  Bone loss always accompanies this problem, and is always accompanied by low leptin activity within bone.  Bone regeneration is energy intense and cannot proceed in times of true malnutrition, so leptin controls the process and puts bone regeneration on hold until more nutrition is available.

However, when a person is overweight bone metabolism starts to go haywire.  An overweight person is leptin resistant, meaning there is too much leptin in their blood coming from the extra pounds of fat, yet that leptin isn’t getting into the brain (a false state of perceived starvation).  This causes central nervous system and thyroid signals to behave as if starvation is going on, while local leptin within bone is excessive.  This problem causes bone chaos with consequent bone weakening and disruption of overall body metabolism (discussed in the next section), even if bone density appears “normal” in a two-dimensional picture.

I mentioned previously that the parent cells of osteoclasts could either become macrophages or osteoclasts. If there is too much inflammation in bone then excessive osteoclasts are made that break down bone.  Well, the parent cells of osteoblasts can either become osteoblasts or new fat cells.  As a person gains weight then excess fat cells are formed within bone, depressing the formation of osteoblasts.  Furthermore, inflammatory immune cell activity takes place as a result of the extra fat cells, in turn stimulating the formation of too many osteoclasts.  This is how leptin problems damage bone health.

Believe it or not, this is a simple explanation of the complexity involved.  While leptin is the primary signal in your brain regulating healthy bone regeneration, numerous related brain signals also modulate bone health.  One in particular is worth mentioning, and that is the elevation of NPY (neuropeptide Y) which is invariably associated with excessive cravings for carbohydrates.  NPY slows down osteoblasts and increases osteoclasts.  Said another way, if you are overweight and craving food too often, especially carbohydrates, you are likely losing bone density and bone strength.

The bottom line is to keep leptin in good working order by following the Leptin Diet and you’ll be doing your bones a favor.  This is especially important if you are trying to lose weight, as you can lose significant bone density by losing weight improperly.  Any nutrients you use to help yourself stay on the Leptin Diet towards a successful outcome will be synergistically helping your bones even if you don’t think of such nutrients in the traditional bone-support category.  If you would like to read a comprehensive scientific article explaining bones and leptin, click here.

The Emerging Metabolic Picture

There is far more to this story.  So far we have been discussing this issue from the perspective of making your bones strong and healthy.  The new science shows that healthy bones play a major role in determining healthy metabolism.

It has been found that osteoblasts secrete a protein called osteocalcin that is not only involved in the formation of bone but acts as a hormone, communicating to stored fat and increasing the production of adiponectin. Adiponectin is a vital hormone that enables your liver to be sensitive to insulin so that you do not become glucose intolerant and eventually type II diabetic.  At the same time, ostecalcin also communicates to your pancreas and helps it make insulin in the first place, so that you have improved ability to transport sugar to places it needs to go. 

On the other side of the coin is research showing that extra osteoclasts, the cells that drive inappropriate bone loss, make too much of a specific enzyme called tartrate resistant acid phosphatase or TRAP.  They bred a strain of mice to generate excessive TRAP so they could study exactly what it did to bones – and much to their surprise it made the mice fat.

The research was able to show that macrophages (immune cells) acting within white adipose tissue (stored fat) used TRAP to generate new fat cells. Overweight people make 400% more TRAP than normal weight people. This lends novel proof to the existing body of science that the process which drives an expanding waistline is an inflammatory process, in no small part caused by immune cells operating within stored fat.  It is also likely that excess TRAP production within bone helps fuel the production of fat cells within bone, at the expense of osteoblast formation and consequent osteocalcin production – though this hasn’t been demonstrated yet.  It has been shown that the mineral boron lowers TRAP production by osteoclasts.

This problem of abnormally weak bones due to obesity has now been documented in children and teens.  Considering the obesity epidemic in these young people, we can expect serious bone health issues in their later years.  Messing up bones while you are growing is a huge problem that causes a failure to reach genetic potential – ground that will be very difficult, if not impossible, to make up later.  It is also important to lose weight in a healthy way so that bone density is not lost while weight is lost.

The bottom line is that too many osteoclasts tilt metabolism towards bone loss, obesity, inflammation, and impaired insulin function.  On the other hand, adequate osteoblasts help guard against obesity, excess inflammation, and help improve the function of insulin in multiple ways while at the same time building new bone.

This data means that anything you do to improve your bone health will have a profound effect on improving your overall metabolism.  For example, by lifting weights you can stimulate osteoblasts to repair bone that you are now using more.  As you stimulate osteoblasts, then osteocalcin levels will rise, in turn boosting adiponectin and helping to correct insulin resistance or reverse type II diabetes.
 
Any nutritional strategy that helps osteoblasts while reducing osteoclasts will directly improve your blood sugar metabolism.  We have known for a long time that proper blood sugar metabolism is a key to longevity.  We have also known for a long time that healthy bones are present in people who live longer.  Now the dots are connected.

Our bodies are used to fighting infection and we have very advanced weaponry or we as a race would not have survived earlier battles.  Your body is the superpower, not the virus.  Do you know how to unleash your potential?

Fundamental to any aspect of health is energy.  You must have energy to do anything and you must have lots of energy to effectively prevent an infection or to mount an efficient immune response.  Your immune system in a time of need is an energy intense operation.

Your brain coordinates your deployment of energetic resources during a time of infection, as commander and chief.  The language it uses is heavily reliant on a system of short-lived immune system signals called cytokines.  Cytokines are communication molecules that share connections between your nervous system, your immune system, your thyroid function, and your adrenals. 

Cytokines are involved in inflammation and anti-inflammation.  Those who have so far died from this new Swine flu have suffered from a “cytokine storm” leading to mortality – meaning that this critical system of natural function was unable to keep up with the demands of the infection.  Why?

Intruder Alert

Just as you would be somewhat panicked by a stranger entering your home, your body sends out 911 signals to the command and control center of your brain (hypothalamus gland) once an infection has been identified.  In essence, your body is preparing for battle and is going on high alert.  This initial process is highly inflammatory and is a vital part of ramping up your defense system.  It is initiated by cytokine signals cross-talking between immune cells and your hypothalamus gland.

Because this process is highly inflammatory your brain knows that it will need an extra supply of anti-inflammatory lubrication to keep things cooled off, like making sure you have enough oil in your car engine to keep it running faster without overheating.  In your body, this function is performed by your adrenal glands.  Thus, cytokines directly talk to your hypothalamic/pituitary/adrenal axis and tell it to ramp up production of inflammation-quenching lubricant (cortisol). 

What happens if you are already low on adrenal lubricant?  In other words, what if you are already stressed out, tired, fatigued, anxious, irritable, and in a general trend of wear and tear?  Answer – there is no way you will make lubricant in the proper amount because your system is either out of shape or already running on a credit card that is overdrawn.

This problem is what would set you up for being more at risk for a cytokine storm.  During an intense infection your body must balance the need to make highly inflammatory compounds with the need to protect your body from the inflammation.  If the infection is intense, you must make a lot of inflammatory compounds.  If you don’t have an adequate supply of relaxation reserves because you have already spent them on day-to-day living, you could be in trouble.

This may be a wake up call for many people to find better balance in their lives, especially at the time of a potential pandemic flu.  Depleting yourself from stress or pushing it too hard in general, especially when combined with a lack of quality sleep, puts your immune system at a significant disadvantage.

The best way to test the health of this system is to do some aerobic exercise.  In this case the stress of the exercise actually activates the same higher need for anti-inflammatory reserves – raising your cortisol up to five times normal resting value.  Cortisol at this level then activates endorphins and you get a runner’s high (or at least feel refreshed).  Too much exercise will tire you out and those who aren’t fit enough to exercise are also of questionable fitness to fight an infection.

By the way, if you feel on the verge of fighting a bug, cut back on intensity or eliminate aerobics until you are done fighting the infection.  This is because the aerobics demand is too intense when your body needs to also activate an immune response.

There are many nutrients you can use to boost adrenals, including a high protein breakfast, pantethine, Q10, magnesium, B complex, and vitamin C.  There are also numerous nutrients that can help your adrenals quench inflammation, including quercetin, bromelain, and curcumin – to name a few.  Of course, there is no making up for a lack of sleep. 

Energetic Competence

The next issue of great importance is the function of your thyroid system, as it facilitates the pace at which energy can be produced by your body.  Many individuals struggle with poorly functioning thyroid and this is a clear weakness that can handicap available energy, especially during a time of increased energy need such as fighting an infection.

Relatively new science has pinpointed how the toxins coming from infections are a major challenge to your thyroid function.  This information shows that when toxic infectious particles are sensed by your hypothalamus gland, thyroid function is progressively turned down in response to the initial inflammatory gene signals that are needed to fight the infection.  This is most likely a survival system in and of itself, as energy needs to be diverted to immune function and away from general metabolic needs.  However, it appears a line can be crossed where too much toxicity can simply crash your thyroid function – creating a major problem for immune function.  Additionally, infections directly inflame the thyroid gland itself.

This inflammatory problem will be magnified by pre-existing thyroid problems, especially in those with pre-existing elevated thyroid autoantibodies.  Even sluggish thyroid issues are a problem, as they will handicap general energy production.  By the time a person has elevated thyroid autoantibodies (5% of the population), it means that the anti-inflammatory reserves of the adrenals are also already lacking. 

Leptin resistance causes a similar thyroid problem in your brain, as your body gets the false notion you are starving and so turns down your metabolism by deactivating TRH (thyrotropin releasing hormone).  This means that following the Leptin Diet is a really good idea so as not to be placing your thyroid function in a state of pre-existing stress based on how you are eating. 

The infection anti-thyroid response targets the same TRH signal in your hypothalamus, but is orchestrated by non-food signal inputs.  There are special glial cells called tanycytes that line key areas within your hypothalamus gland.  These cells sense the infection particles and actually producing extra T3 within your hypothalamus gland only, which makes your brain think your body has enough T3, at which point your brain turns down TRH production and consequently reduces thyroid output for the rest of your body.  Interestingly, this is one reason why people with sub-clinical or chronic low grade viral infections typically have sluggish thyroid problems.

Another significant thyroid stress is the toxicity of the drugs used to fight viral infections.  While no specific studies exist on Tamiflu and thyroid, the fact that Tamiflu causes mental derangement in a percentage of children is evidence that it interferes with normal adrenal and thyroid function.  We know that other viral therapies, as applied to HIV or hepatitis, can be very toxic to the thyroid.

This means that viral drug treatment is likely to take a toll on the thyroid anyway, so it is a good idea to ideally have your system working so well that you don’t get sick and if you should have to battle the flu you want to keep your thyroid as functional as possible.

Strength training exercise helps to condition your thyroid to work better, as one final end point of thyroid metabolism is to combine smoothly with growth hormone to rejuvenate muscle recovery.  It is an especially good idea to have fit muscles going into any potential flu pandemic, as your muscles act as a bank account of protein that your body will use in a time of need to make antibodies.  The more muscle you have, the better chance of survival.  I have noticed for many years that when people keep their muscles fit they are much less prone to getting sick.

Summary

Your immune systems need to activate various germ-killing troops in order to defend you. Fundamental to this task is having energy on demand, much like having money in savings for a time of need.  You help promote this savings by living in harmony with your hormonal systems.

Eating in harmony with leptin helps your adrenals, thyroid, and immunity.  If you aren’t aerobically fit or muscularly fit, then there is no better time to get started.  Even if the U.S. is spared the Swine flu this summer, there is a high probability it will be back next fall.  This might give you a little extra time to be better prepared.

Maintaining optimal function of your adrenals and thyroid are key to many aspects of health, including immunity.

The whole flu process gets going by breathing it in and then swallowing, or coming into contact and then touching your face and eventually swallowing the virus.  From there it goes to your digestive tract – where your first line of defense is death by hydrochloric acid.  This is not a good time to be on any acid-suppressing medication – which is clearly known to double your chances of getting whatever flu comes around.

A great deal of immune system activity is constantly going on in and around your digestive tract.  Half of your lymph system is located around your digestive tract to deal with “foreigner issues.”  You actually have more foreign cells in your digestive tract than cells that make up your body.  Your relationship with these non-self entities plays a large role in your immune competence.

For example, if you have too much Candida albicans and too much of a hostile bacteria, these issues have already strained immune function within your gut.  In many cases these foreign gangs of thugs are communicating to your front line troops and telling them not to work properly.  This makes it more likely that some other type of problem, such as the new Swine flu, can get a toehold in your digestive tract and begin multiplying.

During a potential pandemic you should avoid all junk food, snacking on sugar, excess alcohol, or anything else that interferes with your digestive processes.  It is a top priority to maintain your digestive tract in excellent working condition.

First, let’s put what we do know in perspective.  Many of the Mexicans who have died are lower income individuals living in unsanitary and crowded conditions which are ideal breeding grounds for germs.  It has been reported that they cannot afford to take time off work to seek medical care.  Their diets are often lacking in key nutrients that would help the immune system behave normally.  Nevertheless, there is still serious and legitimate concern that young adults can be killed by this flu.

The first death in the U.S. occurred in a 23-month-old Mexican infant who was in Texas at the time of outbreak.  What has concerned health authorities here is that they were unable to save the child despite the use of anti-viral drugs, breathing assistance, and the best care that could be mustered.

The flu pandemic of 1918, also a swine flu, struck many young adults.  Only recently did scientists figure out that this earlier swine flu was able to hijack the host’s own immune response and ramp up the inflammatory aspect of that immune response and thereby increase its level of attack in a healthy person.

It is important to understand that your immune system is not just one type of response, it is many.  If you get the flu you absolutely must have the energy and nutrition to be able to make antibodies.  The speed and efficiency you can do this will determine the severity of infection and your odds of survival.

For example, in cases where humans contracted the bird flu in Asia, if they began making enough antibodies to the infection by day 7 they lived, if they didn’t start mounting an effective response by day 9 they died.  This pattern appears similar to the current reports of people dying in Mexico – by the 9th day of a significant battle it is too late unless your own immune system has kicked into gear.  In this context you must have the nutritional horsepower to fuel antibody production or you could be in for a very unpleasant experience.

Another aspect of your immune response is its initial inflammatory reaction – which is of course normal.  This is one aspect of immunity that occurs before antibodies are made, and is part of the process that leads to antibodies being made.  It is possible for a younger or healthier person to have a more exaggerated inflammation response than an elderly person, infant, or person with compromised immunity.  In this scenario, inflammatory cytokines may become their own problem – think of this as a “cytokine storm.”  This was the case with the similar flu in 1918.

This problem does not mean that you should not attempt to naturally boost your immune system.  It does mean that you should use nutrients as part of your immune support protocol that reduce inflammation so as to help “put a lid” on how much inflammation is generated.  The single best nutrient for this is quercetin, which has been proven to help prevent the flu.  However, there are many nutrients that are anti-inflammatory in nature and any of them would be helpful, including the fresh fruit and vegetables that should be part of your diet.

It is also important to understand that a younger adult who is stressed out, not sleeping enough, eating poorly, is too anxious or wound up, and is in a general trend of wear and tear has already primed the inflammatory pump.  This means that a flu entering into such a person is much more likely to have a magnified inflammatory response because this person’s anti-inflammatory and relaxation reserves are already running on empty.

During the time of a potential flu pandemic the last thing you want to do is let yourself get worn down.  Besides lifestyle management, any nutrients that help you sleep better, feel calmer, or manage stress better will also help your immune system not hyper-react to a problem.

While this may seem like common sense, there are many people out there who are generally healthy but are running their bodies into the ground trying to get things done.  This is definitely a time to re-evaluate your priorities as doing so can put you into a high risk category if this flu begins to spread.

This study should come as no surprise, as nutrients are obviously needed to facilitate millions and millions of healthy chemistry reactions on a daily basis.  Any young child is in the rapid growth mode and being short on needed nutrients has an adverse effect on optimizing genetic potential during this crucial growth time.

I formulated Super Mini Multi to meet these levels of nutrients with the finest forms of the nutrients available.  I know of no other multi vitamin for children that uses the superior co-enzyme forms of B vitamins along with natural carotenes, lycopene, lutein, and the best form of iron for health as well as not inducing digestive distress (iron glycinate).*