Quantifying Your Health with Personalized Blood Tests

Good health websites cite their sources and make testable predictions.

Sources are important so that you can do your own research and keep track of the (often conflicting) opinions of actual scientists.  Testable predictions matter so that you can test whether you actually have a particular disease.

For example, let's say a website is promoting the idea that many Americans are vitamin B12 deficient.  The symptoms are inflamed joints, weakness, fatigue, etc... you know the drill.  Maybe your case of the "blehs" is actually vitamin B12 deficiency!

But hold on a minute.  Before you start chugging B vitamins, go ahead and test the hypothesis.  With a blood test.

Ordering blood tests is easy online, and actually cheaper and faster than trying to go through your doctor and the insurance maze.

We recommend heading straight to Private MD Labs .... great customer service, prompt turnaround, good selection and great prices!

Select the test(s) you're interested in, and you'll be ready to head over to a local phlebotomist in about an hour.  (Some tests require fasting for 12 hours.)  We recommend selecting one test or "panel" at a time, because many panels are composed of the same basic tests. If you select panels with overlapping tests the lab will only perform each test once; its much better to order repeat measurements separately to get a better "average" picture of your blood chemistry.

Once you get your lab results, feel free to post your questions to a website like Healthtap where doctors can help diagnose any health issues online.  For example, you can peruse the doctors' responses to patients with low TIBC.

And be careful to note the limitations of comparing your test results with standard ranges, which vary from state to state.

Now you can take control of your own health!

Good luck!

A Catch 22: the Role of Dietary Methionine

Source.

Methionine is the only essential amino acid that contains sulfur.  (Cysteine also contains sulfur but is semi-essential because it can be synthesized from serine and methionine.)  The ratio of methionine to glycine within your body is crucial since glycine acts primarily as an antioxidant (it is converted to glutathione), whereas methionine generally has an oxidizing effect.  A number of scientific studies have observed methionine-restriction diets to confer life-extending effects upon various animals including rats, mice, and fruit flies.  Given the abundant variability in studies of methionine restriction diets, however, we decided to summarize some of the relevant scientific literature to see if there are any general discernable patterns that may be applicable to humans.

Key Research Findings:

• Studies conducted so far indicate rats, mice, and fruit flies have benefited from a low-methione diet.  An almost-zero-methionine diet causes disease and ultimately death; (complete removal of methionine is almost impossible, as it is an integral component in nearly all proteins).  It has been observed, however that reducing dietary methionine intake by half of "normal" levels confers significant anti-aging benefits via reduction in the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in rats.  2008.  

• A well-written review article of caloric-restriction (CR) diets found that methionine appears to be a key culprit in aging; restriction of fat, carbohydrates or any other isolated amino acids apparently has no effect on lifespan of both humans and animals studied in laboratory settings.  2011.

• Interestingly, many cancers rely upon gross intakes of methionine because their regeneration pathways are mutated; they also need to synthesize lots of new proteins for cellular growth.  2011.  Note this is an important paper for cancer treatment because it clearly demonstrates that diet can influence cancer growth.  While this is not surprising for us, many oncologists (and other doctors) don't quite recognize the importance of diet in relation to disease... yet.

• It's further interesting to note cancerous tumors create a sulfurous stench that appears to help them grow and mutate.  The sulfurous compounds are creating by reacting excess glucose with methionine; knowing such may provide us with good reason to limit dietary intake of both compounds.  2012.

• Apparently the "bad boy" status of methioinine is attributable to its generation of ROS in mitochondria...but as always, there's a catch: some ROS generation appears to be a good thing!  2014.

The information presented above provides ample evidence indicating methionine intake beyond that which is required for daily cellular function can possibly instigate or worsen diseases such as cancer in humans.  However it's important to remember that nutrition science is an ongoing process; with all we think we do know, there's at least ten times as much that we don't.  (For example, another study conducted in 2011 observed dietary glycine supplementation confers the same health benefits as those associated with methionine restriction in laboratory rats.)  It's clear our understanding of physiological processes at the cellular level is continually developing.  However the above information may be beneficial to you in developing a diet that energizes you, and helps you live a long and content life.

For additional reading on this subject, and others, refer to Do High-Protein Diets Cause Kidney Disease and Cancer? by Chris Kresser and 5 Reasons Why Even Vegetarians Should Eat Gelatin by Laura Schoenfeld.

Pizza Soup!

This recipe was derived from Susan Powers' blog Rawmazing.  Take one glance at her blog and you'll quickly notice her cuisine is indeed amazing; many of her recipes are delicious, aesthetically pleasing, and cater to raw foodists across the world.  Pizza Soup is adapted from Susan's original recipe entitled "Raw Stuffed Mushrooms with Rosemary 'Cream.'"  Our version below is cooked, not raw, and modified with respect to the flavor palate.

Pizza Soup:

Main Dish
4 large portabella mushrooms, stems removed
1 c sweet or yellow onion, diced
4-6 cloves garlic, diced finely
2 T agave syrup or sweetener of choice
1-2 c tomatoes, diced (Roma tomatoes work quite well)
1 large bunch rainbow Swiss chard, chopped OR 4 c fresh spinach leaves
6 T Tamari
1/2 c sprouted walnuts*, diced finely
salt & pepper to taste

Cashew Cream Sauce
1 c raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours
1/2 c water
1 clove garlic
1-2 tsp dried rosemary
salt & pepper to taste

*Sprouted walnuts are an easy modification of your traditional walnuts.  Sprouting has the effect of removing tannins from walnuts; it is the tannins that typically give walnuts a bitter flavor, make them astringent and somewhat difficult to digest.  To sprout: simply cover your walnuts in water (providing them with a bit extra water and room to expand) in a covered bowl or jar.  Soak walnuts in the refrigerator for 2-3 days, changing the water every eight hours or so.  Your walnuts should definitely be ready after 3 days and will store in the refrigerator for at least 10 days.

**We recommend use of organic ingredients where possible.

To Prepare the Main Dish:
Steam the portabella mushrooms in 1) a separate pan with a 1/4 - 1/2" water at the bottom, or 2) a double boiler until cooked to your desired toughness.  Meanwhile add a bit of water to a large frying pan.  Add onions and garlic to the pan, steam on medium heat for at leat 5 minutes.  Add Swiss chard OR spinach and continue steaming vegetables until mostly cooked through.  Once vegetables are near desired toughness, add in tomatoes, sweetener, Tamari, and salt & pepper.  Turn off heat and toss sprouted walnuts on top.

To Prepare the Cashew Cream Sauce:
Combine cashews, water, garlic, and 1 tsp dried rosemary in blender.  Blend all ingredients together until smooth.  Taste sauce to determine if you would like to add more rosemary and adjust accordingly.  Add salt & pepper to taste.

Final Preparation:
Place one steamed portabella mushroom cap into a bowl, top with mixed vegetables and broth.  Add a dollop of cashew cream sauce on top and enjoy!!

Blueberry Banana Cinnamon Almond Muffins

Today is a happy day!  We've been tinkering in the kitchen for quite a while now, toiling and roiling our culinary cauldron in search of the perfect muffin recipe.  As with all things the search for a perfect muffin recipe is a continuously evolving adventure, but today we're celebrating with some inspirational success!

This recipe was derived from the Paleo Bread recipe found on Elana's Pantry - a foodie's fantastic haven we're slightly addicted to at the moment.  Elana has got all sorts of low-carb/paleo recipes on her site that are definitely worth paying substantial attention.  You'll notice our version is vegan-friendly; our 4 flax eggs can be substituted for 4 chicken eggs if you like.

Blueberry Banana Cinnamon Almond Muffins:

Dry Ingredients
2 c almond meal
2 T coconut flour
1/4 c buckwheat flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1.5 tsp ground cinnamon

Wet Ingredients
4 flax eggs*
1 ripe banana, mashed
1 T coconut oil
1 T granulated sugar or agave syrup or honey
1 T apple cider vinegar
1/2 c frozen blueberries

*(1 flax egg = 1 T flax meal + 3 T warm water allowed to stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes so the flax meal can expand)

**We recommend use of organic ingredients where possible.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line muffin tin with 12 paper muffin cups.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.  Combine all the wet ingredients except the blueberries together in a separate medium-sized bowl.  Combine wet- and dry ingredients together, mixing thoroughly.  Add blueberries in at the end; stir the batter lightly so as to keep the blueberries intact, ensuring not to mash them in the process.  Transfer batter to muffin cups and place in oven.  Bake your muffins for 30 minutes.  Yum!

Nutritional Breakdown (approximate values for each of 12 muffins):
Fats - 12.21 g, of which 1.92 g are saturated
Protein - 5.71 g
Carbohydrates - 6.58 g

Carrots & Almond Butter

Ever get a hankering for a snack enriched with both fat and crunchiness?  "Yes!" you say?  Typically us Americans love to resort to potato chips when we're laden with such cravings.  While potato chips aren't awfully evil, health gurus can list a variety of reasons why one may want to avoid indulging in chips in large quantities.  (Such reasons include the fried nature of most potato chips (unless you select a baked variety) and the related oxidizing effect that fried nature can have upon your body's cells; the fat-to-carbohydrate ratio with essentially no protein which can exacerbate health conditions such as being overweight and obesity; and high sodium content which can promote high blood pressure and related mood/health complications.)

So we have a happy surprise for you!  We've discovered that fresh-ground, roasted (or raw) unsalted almond butter is a great treat to enjoy with raw vegetables - particularly carrots!  Fresh-ground, unsalted almond butter is noteworthy for serving as a healthy source of both unsaturated fats and proteins, and is void of added sugars, salts, and extra unnecessary fats such as vegetable oils (e.g. palm, sunflower, canola) that are typically added to canned/jarred nut butters and peanut butter.  With their high protein content almonds are full of amino acids.  Additionally almonds are noted for their vitamins and trace metal content; signature vitamins include E, A, and a suite of B vitamins.  Trace minerals include iron, calcium, manganese, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, and zinc.

Carrots & Almond Butter:
1 c baby carrots, peeled & washed (you can buy these in a bag pre-peeled and washed for you)
1/4 - 1/2 c almond butter

*We recommend use of organic ingredients where possible.

Take one baby carrot, dunk it in almond butter and much happily!

NOTE: If you find you enjoy this healthy snack as much as we do, feel free to sample the almond butter with other veggies and decide what combination you like best!

Coconut Mango Lassi

Lassis are scrumptious drinks native to Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan.  Traditionally they are made with yogurt (a good source of probiotics), sugar or spices (depending upon whether the intent is to make them sweet or savory), a bit of water and some fruit.  They may be topped with cream as a final touch to their preparation; this, of course, enhances their rich fatty flavor.  Common sweet flavors include mango, rose, strawberry, and lemon.  Savory lassis are often made with saffron, various spices, and/or butter.

Here at Happy Food Living we LOVE mango lassis.  With time we've developed a dairy-free alternative to traditional lassis that is nutrient rich, filling, and sates our appetites.  With mangoes as an essential ingredient (and also the national fruit of India...aren't Indians smart? ;-), these lassis are enriched with carotenoids noted for their cancer-fighting and antioxidant potential.

Coconut Mango Lassi:

1 c light coconut milk

1/2 - 1 c frozen mango chunks OR 1 whole ripe red mango

2-3 ice cubes

*We recommend use of organic ingredients where possible.

Mix all ingredients in a blender, power up and enjoy!

Amaranth and Quinoa: Two Plants with Great Protein Content

Traditional Medicinal's Everyday Detox - Dandelion

This is a great tea for the evening, especially after a heavy meal.  Another awesome offering from Traditional Medicinals...

(NOTE: It may be too strong for you to drink on an empty stomach.)

Best Sugar for the Planet, for You

So many kinds of sweetener!  Some people say all sweeteners are all the same, while others say This One or That One is the best.

After voluminous research we've concluded that high-fructose sweeteners (like corn syrup, agave nectar, & honey) can be harmful, especially if they are cooked at high temperatures. (source).  Scientific research indicates fructose has a lower immediate effect on blood sugar level as the majority of it is first processed by the liver...but in high amounts it may eventually damage the liver (and lead to fatty liver disease), contribute to glucose intolerance, and help cancer cells metastasize.  Research indicates glucose can also have damaging effects upon your body; it can contribute to the initiation of various forms of cancer and type II diabetes.

Ultimately it appears that sugar in excess is just plain hard on our bodies.  Therefore in tune with our holistic approach to mind- and body wellness, we here at Happy Food Living aim to indulge in low amounts of sugar (most of which are derived from fruits), exercise regularly (which is believed to be associated with a variety of health benefits including blood sugar moderation and mitigation of cancer development), and generally adhere to a low-carbohydrate, grain-free diet (grain-based diets are believed to be associated with type II diabetes and cancer as well).

Therefore it seems the best approach to meet our goals of sustained health and well-being is a low-sugar, low carb diet (link to perfect diet discussion, ie create another post on this blog).  With this, however, we acknowledge that as long as we're going to be baking we need to use some sugar, so why not choose the cheapest, most environmentally sustainable kind?  We found Florida Crystals cane sugar to be a high-quality product, produced sustainably using energy from sugar cane biomass.  Florida Crystals sugar is also Fair Trade certified.

NOTE: You may find this sugar reasonably priced at Walmart.