Medications

Seretonin Support Naturally

Liz James · February 3, 2023 ·

One of the (MANY) reasons I’m so passionate about finding alternative / natural healing methods is because of the fallout that always occurs to some degree within every single person who steps into chronic pharmaceutical use. Sometimes the fallout is slow

. Sometimes it happens quickly

. When it happens slowly, it’s rare that the particular medication gets appropriately blamed. Such is the case with antidepressants (and hundreds of other medications) contributing to the surge in antibiotic resistant bacteria in our culture. The consequences: antibiotics may not work as well as they should when they are used, which leads to hard to treat/ difficult to overcome infections. An estimated 35,000 deaths a year in the USA are attributed to antimicrobial resistant infections. I wonder how many of those who have died were taking medication(s) which promoted antibiotic resistance

Interesting article:

How Antidepressants Help Bacteria Resist Antibiotics https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-00186-y.

I’m not suggesting anyone get off their medication. Have that conversation with a health provider who is not completely influenced by Big Pharma. And in the meantime, utilize natural ways to heal and support your body in a manner that doesn’t require pharmaceuticals.

xoxo~ liz

#byohd #becomingyourownhealthdetective #wearewhatweconsume #ThanksYL #holisticpharmacist #organicfarmgirl #paythefarmerorpaythepharmacist #awakeandaware

Dry Skin Solutions

Liz James · January 10, 2023 ·

Dry skin is something so many of us struggle with in the winter months. We slather on lotions and creams and it can seem like a constant battle. Dry skin does tend to get worse in the winter because our bodies don’t seem to crave water as much and drinks like coffee or hot chocolate (or soda) don’t solve the problem. It’s us to up to be the watchdog and caregiver of ourselves!

Other signs of winter dehydration:

Dark colored urine (it should be light colored to clear)
Sweating or finding you don’t need to visit the bathroom as often.
fatigue (very common symptom of dehydration!)
Dry mouth
Headaches
Sugar cravings (dehydration makes it harder to break down glycogen which releases glucose/energy to the bloodstream. This leads to craving sweet treats)

Unless you have a medical condition, be sure to drink at least half your body weight in fluid ounces daily (ex: 200lb person will need to drink 100 oz of water daily). If drinking plain water isn’t your jam, add in the YL Vitality Drops (electrolytes) for a tasty alternative! (available as Lavender Lemonade or Bergamot Grapefruit).

xoxo~ liz

Ivermectin Safety- Tennessee

Liz James · December 27, 2022 ·

While traveling to teach in Ohio earlier this month, I had a long stop in Tennessee to attend the Rogue Food Conference ( https://roguefoodconference.com/ ). While there, I met and talked to Tennessee State Senator Frank Nicely https://www.facebook.com/SenatorFrankNiceley/ . He is one of us

….. and thankfully working to keep medical freedom for Tennesseeans. He introduced a bill to allow over the counter sales of Ivermectin (ie: available in human form without a prescription) to the good people (or those who travel there) of Tennessee.

I’m not a fan of most medication, but this one is one loaded with merit, and worthy of keeping on hand in case it’s needed.

Is it safe?

Let’s look at some data-

Epoch times article on Ivermectin Safety

Here are the cliff notes version:

1. A study of 63 other studies of ivermectin vs C-19 in humans showed 100% positive results.

2. The 63 studies were from every continent except Antarctica (ie: worldwide data sample)

3. The combined analysis of the 63 studies showed a 69% improvement when Ivermectin was used as early treatment, and an 86% efficacy when used prophylactically.

4. 31 African countries close to the equator have had relatively few issues with the ‘rona. Perhaps this is because they use ivermectin on the regular to prevent a parasite that causes river blindness.

5. Ivermectin, is considered one of the safest of all medications available and there are no known serious drug-related adverse effects.

This is a good one to keep on hand friends. And if you are passing thru Tennessee, find a pharmacy… it’s reasonably priced…. mention Senate Bill 2188 if needed. (here’s a link to the the bill: https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/BillInfo/Default.aspx… )

xoxo~ liz

#caringissharing

#beingpreparedisgoodmedicine

#BYOHD

The Southern Side of the Endocrine System: Diabetes – part 2

Liz James · September 28, 2022 ·

There are times it’s not good to be Number One. This is one of those times. The United States is recognized as being among the nations with the best medical technology and the newest and best drugs. We spend more per person on healthcare than any nation in the entire world, so we should be among the healthiest, right? Yet, for all that we have, the USA has the worst health outcomes.. We are #1 in diabetes, #2 in neurodegenerative diseases, #5 in cancer, and #6 in cardiovascular disease (source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development).

An estimated 1 in 3 American adults have prediabetes or metabolic syndrome (both are precursors to Type II diabetes). It’s a common but flawed thought that Type II diabetes only affects “fluffy” people. It doesn’t. There is a relatively new medical acronym called TOFI, which means “Thin on the Outside, Fat on the Inside”, and TOFI individuals can be just as much at risk as their fluffy counterparts. Lifestyle choices will always be the first line of defense to avoid acquiring a Type II diabetes diagnosis (or succeeding in backwalking out of one).

An astute detective will need some internal monitoring tools to more closely assess clues. Health thieves can be very stealth, and this is a reliable way to monitor gang movement before they leave visible gang “tags” (clues). Forewarned is forearmed! Think of this as another tangible aspect of your body’s security monitoring system.

Here’s what you’ll need:

An at home blood pressure cuff (every home should have one anyway!)
Know your waist circumference (measure at just above the hip bone, level with the belly button)
Know your family history. Remember that though genetics are important, they play less than a 10% role in outcome. Environment, lifestyle choices, and emotional tendencies control the other 90%. It’s important to know family history so that we can each be vigilant for what we suspect may be lurking in the shadows…. Knowing the health thief tendency (genetics) may be awaiting the right opportunity to steal, kill and destroy. I find a great deal of peace knowing that 90% of gene expression is fully under my own control!
Get labwork annually which (at the very least) includes the following pieces of information:
- Complete metabolic panel (CMP)
- A basic lipid panel
- Uric Acid and Homocysteine
- Fasting insulin, fasting glucose, and HbA1c
- The combined total of these tests will run about $250 well spent dollars out of pocket. If you have insurance, these are the tests to ask your doctor for when looking for a metabolic syndrome or prediabetes health thief.
- NOTE: There is more labwork I’d suggest for a comprehensive look at the body from the inside out…. The above recommendation is specific for monitoring both prediabetes and metabolic syndrome.

Signs of metabolic syndrome and prediabetes nearly always predate diabetic symptoms. Once you have your lab work, and have gathered your other tools, you’re ready to take a hard look at the state of the union of your body. Signs of metabolic dysfunction show up in the following ways:

Evidence of fatty liver
High blood pressure
High uric acid and homocysteine levels
High lipids in blood
High fasting insulin, HbA1c, and blood glucose

Monitor your blood pressure. For a week, take it before you go to bed, and again before you get out of bed in the morning. If nighttime and morning blood pressure is higher than it should be, cut out all forms of sugar for a week, and retest. Sugar is highly inflammatory and often drives blood pressure upwards. Normal blood pressure runs 90-120 systolic (top number) and 60-80 diastolic (bottom number). High blood pressure is a symptom, not a root cause!
An increased waist circumference (males should be under 40 inches and females should be under 35) is suggestive of inflammation, probable leaky gut, mitochondrial dysfunction, and insulin resistance.
Uric acid and homocysteine are inflammatory markers. Levels are elevated if uric acid is over 5.5 mg/ml and homocysteine is over 10 umol/ L. High uric acid levels lead to a fatty liver. Sugar is a big contributor to this. High homocysteine levels indicate an increased risk for developing heart disease and vascular inflammation. Methylated B12 and methylated folate, omega 3’s ( OmegaGize3 is a great option), and optimized use of Vit D3 are all helpful tools in supporting healthy homocysteine levels.
Within your CMP, you’ll look for two numbers corresponding to AST and ALT. ALT is a liver enzyme which is fairly accurate for assessing fatty liver. If that number is over 25, more investigation is needed. AST is another liver enzyme. If it’s elevated (over 34) it may also indicate fatty liver (it also elevates when exposed to too much acetaminophen, alcohol, certain meds such as statins, and infection….. So do take that into consideration). If both are elevated, it’s definitely time to take a hard look at sugar and alcohol consumption.
Fasting glucose by itself is not enough, and sadly it’s often the only thing that is tested routinely. HbA1c is a window into the last 3 months of glucose control within the body. Fasting insulin indicates how well the pancreas is actually able to keep up. Optimally, fasting glucose should be 70-85 mg/dL, HbA1c should be less than 5.4%, and fasting insulin should be less than 6 uIU/mL. Once you have those numbers, you’ll plug them into this equation: fasting glucose x fasting insulin divided by 405. Your answer to this equation is your assessed risk for developing diabetes. Less than 2.8 is excellent, 4.3 is average, and anything higher is a flag that mayhem is likely already occurring.
When you are looking at your lipid panel, zero in on 3 different clues. The first is the ratio of triglycerides to HDL. Studies have found that if this number is over 2.5 in the Caucasian population or 1.5 in the African American population, it tends to correlate with metabolic syndrome.

The second thing to look at is HDL, the type of cholesterol that is considered “healthy” cholesterol. If it’s between 60-85, it’s generally a sign of good cardiovascular health. If the number is under 40 in men or under 50 for women, there is a greater chance of developing heart disease (a component of both metabolic syndrome and cohort of Type II diabetes). If the number is over 85, there’s a distinct possibility that HDL has a dysfunctional component.

The third thing to evaluate is your LDL cholesterol. If it’s between 100 and 300, look at your triglycerides. “If triglycerides are over 150, metabolic syndrome may be assumed until proven otherwise. “ (Those wise words are from Dr. Robert Lustig MD and his brilliant book Metabolical)

Isn’t it prudent to avoid dark alleys and always lock your car? The same can be said for paying attention to these health clues. If the numbers above look like a dark avenue you’re not wanting to go down, here are some tips and tricks for avoiding shady areas!

Cut back on carbs and sugar. Eat a low sugar high fiber diet. If you are not getting enough fiber in your diet, add YL’s ICP Daily, Balance Complete, or Power Meal to your nutrition world. Fiber helps regulate blood sugar levels by slowing down the release of glucose into the bloodstream.
Avoid high fructose corn syrup like it’s the plague….. Because it is! It is a strong inducer of insulin resistance. When you start reading labels, you’ll be surprised at how many places it hides in plain sight.
Avoid energy drinks that combine caffeine with fructose. That combination can aggravate insulin resistance and glucose intolerance. Use NingXia Nitro for a cleaner energy boost option. Try pairing Nitro with diffusing or wearing the essential oil blend En-R-Gee.
Exercise! Many studies have shown that weight loss and exercise can increase the body’s sensitivity to insulin.
Diet matters just as much as exercise. A person will never be able to out run, out supplement, or out medicate a bad diet!
Consider intermittent fasting. (If you are already on medication for diabetes treatment, you’ll want to talk to your holistically minded health professional before incorporating intermittent fasting into your routine). At the very least, stop eating 3-4 hours before your head hits the pillow at night.
Know your labs, and don’t be afraid to ask for them by name!
Watch your commercial dairy intake. There is a big difference between commercial pasteurized and homogenized dairy and raw dairy. The former is well known for the amount of inflammation it can cause within the body.
Work towards decreasing inflammation within the body. Sulfurzyme not only helps support normal metabolic function within the body, it also helps regulate a more normal inflammatory response. It is one of my top five Young Living Supplements that I cannot imagine life without.
Take an excellent highly bioavailable multivitamin such as Master Formula. Not all vitamins sold are bioavailable to the body.
Incorporate insulin modulating foods into your diet. Cinnamon, oat bran, fiber, ginger, barley grass (found in Multigreens), spirulina (found in Multigreens and NingXia Greens), chaga mushrooms, rosemary, green tea, cranberries, blueberries, lemon balm (Melissa), holy basil (tulsi), carrots, broccoli, asparagus, cauliflower, cucumbers, cabbage and salad greens. Healthy whole grain foods such as YL Einkorn products, quinoa, whole oats or oatmeal, and brown rice are also helpful, as are avocados, olive oil, and nuts and seeds. Cacao (natural chocolate) may also help regulate blood sugar levels according to a 2017 study.
Regular cold exposure also appears to help improve insulin sensitivity. Interestingly, Type II diabetes is positively associated with living in ambient temperature climates. Get your health care professional’s blessing if you have a medical condition (ex: high blood pressure or heart disease) that is being actively treated before partaking in cold showers, cold plunging, or cryotherapy.
Know your iron and ferritin lab values: According to a few studies, it would appear that iron levels that are too high have been positively associated with insulin resistance.
Take a closer look at adding turmeric to your routine. It has been found to be a helpful supplement to those who are taking the medication Metformin, and has supportive effects on blood glucose, oxidative stress and inflammation. (YL’s Golden Turmeric is my go to for a turmeric supplement!)
Vitamin B12 in the form of methylcobalamin to support a healthy homocysteine levels.
Antioxidants! (NingXia Red and Super C)- A 2007 study in the Journal of Hypertension found that people who took adequate levels of Vitamin C had a 13% lower risk of developing diabetes.
Approximately 75-80% of US residents are deficient in magnesium. A deficiency in magnesium sets the body up for both insulin resistance and gout (the official diagnosis for the painful symptoms of high uric acid levels in the body).
While it’s important to avoid as many toxins in daily living as possible, make a special effort to avoid atrazine (an herbicide commonly used on corn) and pesticides in general. Eat organically to avoid these.
Give up the night owl tendencies. Research has found that those who stay up late have a reduced ability to use fat for energy. When fat isn’t used appropriately in the body, it becomes fodder for health thieves. Work towards being in bed by 10pm.

There is so much more to prediabetes, Type II diabetes, and metabolic syndrome…..more than I could possibly write here. Hopefully though, I’ve given you food for thought and a desire to learn more. If so, do some digging and think outside the box! The more you know, the more health empowered you’ll be. We have full control of this part of our health story. How will you choose to write yours?

xoxo~ liz

#becomingyourownhealthdetective

#BYOHD

#thebestdefenseisagoodoffense

#theapplicationofknowledgeisgoodmedicine

#goodmedicine

Pancreas – part 2

Liz James · September 13, 2022 ·

The Southern Side of the Endocrine System: Pancreas Part II – A front porch chat about Type II Diabetes medications

One of the most frustrating (recurring) experiences in my pharmacy

career is watching the slow motion “arson”

crime scene that is Type II Diabetes, and not being able to carve out the time (within the crazy busy demands of a pharmacist’s job) to properly educate those who desired a way out. I loved my pharmacy clients, and it’s never pleasant watching the decline of someone you care about, especially when the decline was, in most cases, 100% preventable.

Here are a few facts to chew on:

Type II Diabetes is a lifestyle disease, yet many (dare I say most) clients did not alter their eating habits or increase exercise in an effort to change the outcome of their diagnosis. Perhaps they just didn’t know…. or didn’t care. Either way, the evidence was in their grocery shopping carts as they picked up their prescriptions! Diabetic medications tend to give a false sense of security…. “If I just take my medication, I can still eat what I want.” It doesn’t work that way! …. While blood glucose may appear to stay marginally managed, insulin producing pancreatic cells continue to die off and free radicals are produced at a crazy rate causing even more inflammation…. THE VERY THING THAT ADDS GASOLINE TO THE DIABETES FIRE AND DESTRUCTION within the body.
Type II Diabetes is a multibillion dollar industry with the clear winners being Big Pharma and the Medical Industrial Complex….NOT the patient (despite this being a completely overcomeable disorder) . Type II diabetes is a $237 BILLION (and rising!) annual jackpot to these entities. Thinking about it a little differently…… it would be a huge loss financially to the industry if people actually recovered from their unwell ways and became healthy again.
Once someone gets started on the slippery slope of Type II diabetic medication use, it’s often very difficult to find a prescriber who will spend the time to help their patient backwalk out of Type II diabetes. Many doctors now work for corporations, and like pharmacists who do the same, they have daily quotas to meet. That means dialogue is typically limited to just a few minutes before the next patient/client must be seen. I suspect it is a rare conversation that a doctor says…. “You can reverse this now with some effort. Would you like to know how?” At least that would give the patient the opportunity to make a choice to alter their trajectory in a positive way, instead of believing they were on an unstoppable path of disease with no way out.
The side effects of blood glucose lowering medications are responsible for over 100,000 ER visits in the US per year (not counting the other visits related to diabetes aggravated cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, kidney damage, vision problems, gastroparesis, strokes, neuropathy, foot ulcers, dementia, hard to treat infections, and more).
It’s not uncommon to have a conversation with a Type II diabetic where I hear something that goes like this: “I can’t afford to eat healthy or use any supplements outside of what my insurance will pay for.” While this may be their belief, it’s certainly not true. People diagnosed with diabetes spend (on average) $16,752.00 per year OUT OF POCKET for medical expenses, which is much much higher than modifying diet and lifestyle habits! Besides, can you put an actual price tag on health? I will always maintain that where there is a will, there’s a way!
While all of the medications commonly used in Type II Diabetes are prone to side effects, a little known fact is that many of them actually make the health situation of a diabetic worse instead of better.

Did that last point startle you? Let me explain.

Type II diabetes is a completely different beast than Type I. Type I is only treatable with injected insulin, while Type II has many oral medications which are typically used as a first line of treatment. If lifestyle changes and diet are not addressed in the process, there is a high likelihood that the ultimate result will be destruction of the beta cells of the pancreas and insulin will eventually be added.

Unlike Type I diabetes, with Type II, the pancreatic beta cells ARE churning out insulin like crazy….. at least in the early years of Type II. The cells are just not able to recognize and utilize it because their sensitivity has been deadened by chronic and caustic glucose overload. Typically, there are many “early years” in the story of the average Type II diabetic. If the pancreatic cells haven’t burned themselves out yet, there is a significant opportunity for full recovery. (Labwork would reveal if this is the case…. more on that later.)

Medications such as Metformin, Glyburide, Glipizide, Glimepiride, Rosiglitazone and Pioglitazone all carry the ability for causing deficiencies of coQ10, folate, vitamin B12, and significant damage to the gut microbiome. You hopefully know by now, that if the gut ain’t happy, the rest of the body is in for a rocky ride.

When those deficiencies gain speed, brain fog, depression, neuropathy, muscle cramping, liver damage, digestive issues, yeast infections, fatigue, high blood pressure, and increased risk for cardiovascular disease start showing up for the (not so fun) party. Each one of these symptoms is at risk for being medicated unless your favorite health professional has the wherewithal to get you on supplements to mediate those deficiency risks.

Additionally, these medications don’t just magically change sugar into something friendlier to the body. They instead turn the excess sugar into fat, making it harder to lose weight, padding the liver with fat (fatty liver disease), and contributing to inflammation

along the way.

What if insulin shots have already entered into the picture? I have met Type II diabetic patients who have been able to reverse their need for insulin with diet, exercise, and close supervision of a trusted health professional, so it is most assuredly doable unless countless years have already gone by and it is determined by your (willing to help) health professional that too much damage has been done. Long term lantus (probably one of the most commonly used insulins in use today) carries an increased risk of cancer, and it does not play well with pre-existing kidney or liver disease. That’s interesting, because someone with Type II diabetes who has “graduated” to insulin will have already developed fatty liver disease and compromised kidneys because of the sugar load. This is akin to giving an arsonist

a book of matches

Injectables Byetta and Victoza do help improve insulin sensitivity, but at the risk of thyroid cancer (Victoza), GI issues, dizziness, hair loss, weakness, drug induced pancreatitis, kidney damage, gastroparesis, serious infections, anemia, and weight gain. The literature on this class of drugs states that these medications are to be used as an adjunct to diet modification and exercise and with those two will come weight loss. Unfortunately, that often gets lost in translation, and people instead gain weight instead of losing weight as they mentally give the medication the responsibility of doing the work while lifestyle habits remain unchanged.

Drugs such as Januvia, Janumet, and Onglyza are used to drop HbA1c (a 3 month panoramic view of blood sugar levels) by 1-2% of the current HbA1c. For example, if you have a high HbA1c of 8, this would suggest that these medications may drop your HbA1c to 7.84…. A whopping total of 0.16 points. A concerted effort to change diet and exercise habits would drop that number much lower AND wouldn’t give the added “gift” of an increased risk of pancreatic and thyroid cancers, pancreatitis, generalized inflammation, skin reactions, runny nose or congestion, upset stomach, or dangerous lack of urine production.

In December 2008, well known New England Journal of Medicine published what is now known as the “ACCORD” study, which showed that the more aggressive the attempt to control Type II Diabetes pharmacologically, the greater the risk of death to the Type II patient.

Is it worth the risk to manage Type II diabetes simply by taking a pill instead of addressing the root cause? I am in no way implying that anyone should cold turkey stop taking their medication. Heavens no! Diabetic meds are very serious medications and you’ll want to have a chat with your prescribing professional about what your personal desires are.

This is a tough topic, and it makes me uncomfortable addressing it, because I know that it may make many of you uncomfortable too. We can’t dance around this topic though, because the truth is what we need in health and wellcare….and after all, there IS good news!

Not every disease and dysfunction has a relatively simple and inexpensive repair process like Type II diabetes does. Diet, exercise, adequate nutritional supplementation when deficiencies are identified, and partnering with a knowledgeable professional or two to help you along the way will improve both your quality and quantity of life! I can just about guarantee that.

Next up? Tips and tricks to both avoid and shed the Type II diagnosis

xoxo~ liz

#becomingyourownhealthdetective

#BYOHD

#goodfoodisgoodmedicine

#theapplicationofknowledgeisgoodmedicine

#goodmedicine