How Gluten Can Effect Your Thyroid

 By Chris Kresser

 
In this article we’re going to discuss the connection between autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) and gluten intolerance. Several studies show a strong link between AITD (both Hashimoto’s and Graves’) and gluten intolerance. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] The link is so well-established that researchers suggest all people with AITD be screened for gluten intolerance, and vice versa.

What explains the connection? It’s a case of mistaken identity. The molecular structure of gliadin, the protein portion of gluten, closely resembles that of the thyroid gland. When gliadin breaches the protective barrier of the gut, and enters the bloodstream, the immune system tags it for destruction. These antibodies to gliadin also cause the body to attack thyroid tissue. This means if you have AITD and you eat foods containing gluten, your immune system will attack your thyroid.

Even worse, the immune response to gluten can last up to 6 months each time you eat it. This explains why it is critical to eliminate gluten completely from your diet if you have AITD. There’s no “80/20″ rule when it comes to gluten. Being “mostly” gluten-free isn’t going to cut it. If you’re gluten intolerant, you have to be 100% gluten-free to prevent immune destruction of your thyroid.
So how do you find out if you’re gluten intolerant? Unfortunately, standard lab tests aren’t very accurate. They test for antibodies to gluten in the bloodstream. But antibodies in the blood will only be found in cases where the gut has become so permeable that gluten can pass through. This is a relatively advanced stage of disease. Blood tests will miss the many milder cases of gluten intolerance that haven’t yet progressed to that stage.

Stool analysis is far more sensitive, because it detects antibodies produced in the digestive tract that aren’t yet escaping into the bloodstream. Using this method at Entero Lab, Dr. Kenneth Fine, a pioneer in the field, has found that up to 35% of Americans are gluten intolerant.

In addition to the stool analysis, Dr. Fine’s lab uses a cheek swab to test for the genes connected with gluten intolerance and celiac disease. People with HLA DQ genes are more likely than the general population to have autoimmune disease, celiac disease and gluten intolerance. Dr. Fine’s research shows that more than 80% of Americans have one of these gene types.

When I first read Dr. Fine’s research, I was astounded by the implications. It suggests that 1 in 3 Americans are gluten intolerant, and that 8 in 10 are genetically predisposed to gluten intolerance. This is nothing short of a public health catastrophe in a nation where the #1 source of calories is refined flour. But while most are at least aware of the dangers of sugar, trans-fat and other unhealthy foods, fewer than 1 in 8 people with celiac disease are aware of their condition. I would guess that an even lower proportion of people are aware they are gluten intolerant.

One reason gluten intolerance goes undetected in so many cases is that both doctors and patients mistakenly believe it only causes digestive problems. But gluten intolerance can also present with inflammation in the joints, skin, respiratory tract and brain – without any obvious gut symptoms.
As much improved as Dr. Fine’s methods are, they aren’t perfect. In some patients with autoimmune disease, their immune system is so worn out they can no longer produce many antibodies.

Hashmioto’s, the most common autoimmune thyroid condition, is primarily a Th1 dominant condition. I’ll explain what this means in further detail in a future article. For now, what you need to understand is that in Th1-dominant conditions, the Th2 system is suppressed. The Th2 system is the part of the immune system responsible for producing antibodies. When the Th2 system is severely depressed, the body’s ability to produce antibodies is impaired. The levels may be so low that they won’t show up on a test. So, even if you have gluten intolerance, your test for gluten antibodies may be falsely negative if you have Th1-dominant Hashimoto’s.

This is why I recommend that you avoid gluten if you have AITD, regardless of whether tests show an active antibody response. This is especially true if you have one of the genes (HLA DQ1,2, or 3) that predisposes you to developing gluten intolerance. In my opinion continuing to eat gluten when you have a confirmed autoimmune condition simply isn’t worth risking the immune destruction it could cause.

In fact, the more I learn about gluten and its effects on the body, the more I think we’d all probably be better off not eating it. Mark Sisson has written extensively about the dangers of gluten and gluten-containing grains, so head over there and have a look if this is new to you. The short version: foods that contain gluten (both whole grains and flours) contain substances that inhibit nutrient absorption, damage our intestinal lining, and – as I’ve described in this article – activate a potentially destructive autoimmune response. What’s more, there are no nutrients in gluten-containing foods that you can’t get more easily and efficiently from foods that don’t contain gluten.

The good news is that if you have AITD and are gluten intolerant removing gluten completely from your diet will dramatically improve your health. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it.

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Source:

http://chriskresser.com/the-gluten-thyroid-connection

Detoxifying Your Body from Mercury Exposure

It is likely you are accumulating mercury and other heavy metals at a disturbing rate. This is occurring at a time when your body is already bombarded with multiple chemical assaults, making it harder to keep its natural detoxification system working smoothly and efficiently. The two primary sources of mercury exposure are dental amalgams (mercury-based fillings) and seafood consumption, followed by thimerosal-containing vaccines and mercury pollution from coal-burning power plants.

Other significant environmental offenders are chlor-alkali plants (which make products like chlorine bleach and PVC), trash incinerators, cement kilns, and gold mining¹. These industries are loading our environment with inorganic forms of mercury that are then converted in the soil and water to a type of mercury called methylmercury (MeHg) — which then accumulates in the fish you eat.

Dental amalgams are comprised of 50 percent elemental mercury. This form of mercury evaporates from the surface of the amalgam and is inhaled, absorbed into the blood, and then converted to inorganic mercury, the most toxic form of mercury to cells. Inorganic mercury builds up far more in your organs of elimination — it’s 100 times as high in your kidneys and liver than in your brain. But when it does make its way into your brain, it’s far more damaging than any other form.

Mercury Marches into Your Body and Takes Prisoners

Mercury’s toxicity is related to inappropriate binding — it’s never a “free agent.” Instead, mercury is always paired with a ligand, a molecule or group of molecules that binds to other molecules to form a larger complex. Mercury’s favorite ligand is sulfur, especially a reduced form called a thiol. Thiols are found throughout your body for example, cysteine and the super-antioxidant glutathione. Enzymes use beneficial metals for their activity and hold those metals in place with thiol groups. But mercury has a far higher affinity for the thiols than do beneficial metals like zinc. How much greater?

In the case of zinc, a billion times! This means mercury fiercely grabs onto these groups and refuses to let go, depriving you of the good metals and stopping your normal biological processes in their tracks. Mercury will also grab onto cell membranes, which leads to shattering of the membranes, vascular leakage, and subsequent “spackling” of the damage with cholesterol.

A Two-Headed Dragon: Toxicity and Inflammation

It’s an interesting fact that some people with high mercury exposure don’t become toxic, yet others with relatively low exposure do. Why is this? Why does one person get really sick from her amalgams while another is perfectly fine?
The difference lies in your ability to detoxify naturally. You already have a system in place for removing mercury and other heavy metals from your body. Mercury’s half-life can range from 40 to 120 days, and the faster you can clear it out, the less you’ll be affected.

It’s important to realize that people are either slow detoxifiers or fast detoxifiers, and a small genetic subset are super slow detoxifiers. If you are in the super slow group, your detox system is significantly impaired and the result can be mercury overload. How quickly you detoxify on your own depends on a several factors, such as your exposure level, genetic makeup, genetic expression, and overall health. For example, if your progesterone levels are low, you can’t detoxify as well, and unfortunately, decreased progesterone levels are common today.

Additionally, people who are hypersensitive to metals will have toxic effects at much lower levels than other people. When it comes to the buildup of heavy metals in your body, the news is all bad. Heavy metal toxicity produces a wide range of adverse biological effects.² Your brain is a primary target for heavy metals, which results in many neurological symptoms,    including depression and anxiety, irritability and memory loss. Mercury overload can even lead to major neurological conditions like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease.

Heavy metals also target your kidneys, liver, heart, pituitary and thyroid glands, and increase your risk for developing type 2 diabetes. In fact, a mercury detoxification protocol can significantly improve insulin sensitivity and metabolic syndrome. Mercury, especially from dental amalgams, can accumulate heavily in your digestive tract where it attaches to your gut epithelium.

Amalgams BATHE Your Brain and Digestive Tract in Mercury

Besides creating a significant environmental burden, the biological damage from amalgams is two-fold. Mercury vapor emitted from amalgams passes readily through your cell membranes, across your blood-brain barrier, and into your central nervous system where it causes immunological, neurological, and psychological problems.
At the same time, mercury is leaching into your saliva and being swallowed, making its way down your digestive tract where it causes inflammation and damages your immune system — because the frontline of your immune system is in your gut. This blocks one of your body’s major detoxification pathways: passage out of your GI tract.

Additionally, mercury shuts off the ability of your liver and kidneys to move mercury into your gut for elimination. So, if you have amalgams in your mouth, you are bathing your digestive tract AND your brain in mercury every day, poisoning your brain while at the same time blocking its route out of the body... the perfect recipe for mercury poisoning.

How do you know if mercury toxicity is a problem for you? Well, if you have a mouthful of amalgams and a laundry list of health challenges, chances are mercury is a factor. According to Dr. Shade, there is 2,000 times more mercury coating the inside of the mouth (and thus the whole GI tract) of people who have amalgams than in those who don’t. The only way to know for sure whether you are accumulating mercury is to have yourself tested. But before you do this, there are some important items you need to know.

What You Need to Know about Mercury Testing

Traditional mercury testing involves testing either your hair, blood, urine, or stool. Challenge tests that implement a chelating chemical, such as DMPS or DMSA, are also commonly used. However, all of these tests have drawbacks. They primarily measure total mercury load — and inaccurately at that. But most importantly they don’t give you any information about the forms of mercury in your system or how efficiently you are getting rid of them.

Traditional mercury tests don’t answer questions like, how much of your mercury load is from the seafood you eat? How much from amalgams? How well are your kidneys and liver eliminating it? The two principal forms of mercury accumulate differently in your body, and are eliminated by different pathways. For example, mercury levels in your hair only reflect the mercury from the fish you eat. But mercury levels in your urine reflect the mercury coming from your dental fillings (plus some of the fish-based methylmercury that has broken down into inorganic mercury). The only way to determine if there is a problem is to compare your hair and urine levels with levels in your blood. So, if mercury testing is to be meaningful, it must measure both of the following:

1. Exposure level: Overall mercury level for each of the two main forms of mercury (methylmercury, related to your fish/seafood consumption, and inorganic mercury, related to dental amalgam exposure)
2. Excretion ability: How well your body is getting rid of each kind of mercury, regardless of your overall mercury level

A newer testing method called “mercury speciation ”does just this — it measures both of these factors. This test uses blood, urine and hair to give you a more comprehensive picture of how your body is eliminating mercury and where the process may be blocked. This information can be immensely helpful in preparing a successful detoxification plan.

Your Body's Natural Detoxification System: The Glutathione Machine

Toxicity is not just the level of a toxin — it’s your body’s response to a toxin, which depends on the strength of your natural detoxification system. Many people don’t understand that your body comes with its own built-in detoxification system. It’s a common myth that once you ingest mercury, it stays in your body forever.
Your body has a system to efficiently remove mercury and other heavy metals, as long as your detoxification system is working properly. The problem is, many of you have one that’s broken, and one of the principal causes is inflammation. Your genetic makeup is another factor. As Dr. Shade says:

“Your genes load the gun, and the environment pulls the trigger.”

The glutathione “supersystem” is your body’s main detoxification system. Glutathione binds to heavy metals, but it doesn’t do it alone — it requires the assistance of enzymes, antioxidants, and transport proteins. Old age, impaired genetics, poor diet, and toxic exposures of all kinds — aflatoxin, chloroform, DDT, organic nitrates, radiation, and others — impair your glutathione system. Some people try to supplement with glutathione or its precursors and expect the system to jump up to speed but for the most part this doesn’t work very well as typically this is done orally with non-liposomal forms or done with IV glutathione, which is very expensive, inconvenient, and only marginally more effective.

A far more effective strategy is to upregulate the expression of the genes that produce the enzymes and transport proteins that assist glutathione in doing its job.
Efficient detoxification depends on a series of seamless reactions that bind toxins to shuttle molecules and “escort” them out through a series of doors. Specifically, in order for your glutathione detoxification system to operate well, it requires the following three elements. If you have a shortage of any one of these three key elements, your cells lose their resistance to mercury, so it can accumulate and make you sick:

1. Glutathione in your cells: Your body has to manufacture most of its own glutathione (biosynthesis), so it needs adequate building blocks
2. Glutathione s-transferase (GST): An enzyme responsible for prying the mercury OFF the cellular proteins, then linking it TO the glutathione in the cell
3. Transport proteins: A series of transport proteins (multi drug resistant proteins, or MRPs) are responsible for getting the conjugated mercury out of your cells and into your blood, as well as from your blood into your liver and small intestine, and into other places so it can be eliminated

Before You Do Anything Else, Optimize Your Diet

As with nearly every other health challenge, your diet is a critical factor in supporting your body’s detoxification system. In fact, consider dietary optimization the “pretoxification” phase, which should last for two to six weeks before starting the full detoxification phase.

Your goal is to remove inflammatory and allergenic foods such as sugar (especially fructose/HFCS), processed and packaged foods, fast foods, most starch and grain. Your diet should be low in carbohydrates, moderate-to-low in protein, and high in beneficial fats (as high as 50-70 percent). Proteins repair mangled protein molecules and supply sulfur, and fats repair your cell membranes. This type of diet not only prepares your body for detoxification but also has the additional benefit of improving your insulin sensitivity and reversing type 2 diabetes.

Overall CAUTION

It is important to realize that mercury detoxification is a marathon and NOT a sprint. You do NOT want to do this quickly. Even if you believe you are healthy you want to start this process SLOWLY as you could easily cause severe flare ups. I am one of the healthiest people I know and when I did my program I did it over six months. Some people may need to do it far more slowly and may need a few years to effectively eliminate the mercury safely.

Your Most Important Goal: Removing the Source of Exposure

Now that you understand what’s required to eliminate mercury, we can start discussing how to support and augment your body’s natural detoxification apparatus. That is really what “mercury detoxification” is all about — simply helping your own natural detox system to function better. In other words, you must “upregulate” this system.

The very first goal is to plug the hole in your leaking ship. You must remove your source of mercury exposure, whether it’s primarily from the seafood you eat or from amalgams (or both). Mercury speciation testing, as described above, can help you identify which source is problematic. There is little point in embarking on a major detox mission if you continue exposing yourself to the offender... that’s like trying to bail water out of a sinking boat. Avoid the consumption of contaminated fish and seafood. Most fish and seafood are now contaminated, unfortunately, but some types are worse than others. Avoiding fish is relatively easy, but having your amalgams removed is more involved and costly and must be done with great care. You should do this ONLY with the help of a qualified biological dentist as you can become quite ill if your amalgams are extracted incorrectly.

However, if you have a mouthful of amalgams it is no mystery that you have exposure that ideally needs to be addressed. Just be very careful about jumping from the frying pan into the fire and have your mercury amalgam fillings removed by a non-biological dentist like I did. That mistake caused very serious damage to my kidneys that still troubles me 20 years later. You can find a trained and qualified dentist from the following list:

• International Academy of Oral Medicine & Toxicology (IAOMT)
• International Academy of Biological Dentistry and Medicine (IABDM)
• ToxicTeeth.org
• Holistic Dental Association
• Dental Amalgam Mercury Solutions (DAMS)
• Huggins Applied Healing

  Boosting Your Glutathione Production

The first requirement for effective mercury detoxification is boosting your glutathione levels. Most forms of oral glutathione are not effective because they are destroyed in the digestive process. But you can consume foods that contain the precursors of glutathione so that your body can make more of it — specifically, cysteine-rich foods. The absolute best source is high quality whey protein. This whey must come from the “clean” milk of organically raised cows, and not have been overly processed, which denatures the fragile proteins.

Just be careful not to consume too much of the whey. For more information on whey, please refer to my interview with Ori Hofmekler, an expert on the health benefits of whey protein. Additionally, you may want to try liposomal glutathione. Liposomal glutathione is a relatively new form of oral glutathione that is actually well absorbed and eliminates nearly all the concerns previously mentioned with oral glutathione. It’s encapsulated into extremely tiny phospholipid particles, which increase its bioavailability 100-fold.

Mobilizing Mercury by Boosting Enzymes and Transport Proteins

Now that your glutathione levels are up, you can work on building up the other parts of your glutathione system — specifically, enzymes and transport proteins. Your natural production of these factors can be augmented with superfoods.
Plants contain thousands of natural chemicals (phytochemicals) that help your body to work properly, including production of enzymes and antioxidants. One group of phytochemicals is the polyphenol group, which actually helps activate health-promoting genes.³ Polyphenols are abundant in a wide range of fruits and vegetables.

Sulfur-based phytonutrients are particularly important in supporting your glutathione system, since glutathione is a sulfur-based molecule.⁴ Therefore, you should consume vegetables from the cruciferous family (cabbage, garlic, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, collards, radishes, wasabi, etc.), which are rich in sulfur. Fermenting these vegetables is the most nutritious way to consume them.

Garlic is especially powerful, but it’s the oil of the garlic that supports detoxification, not the allicin (which is the compound known for its antimicrobial effect). And you want the smelly kind of garlic — deodorized garlic is useless for detox! Either eat the garlic raw (yes, you have to chew it up), or purchase a garlic oil supplement. Some of the other compounds recommended by Dr. Shade include:

• Haritaki (Terminalia chebula) extract⁵: An Ayurvedic fruit used extensively in Tibetan medicine, called the “King of Herbs;” it has potent effects on your glutathione system and on expression of other intracellular antioxidants, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD)

• Sodium R-lipoic Acid ⁶ : The most bioavailable and active form of alpha-lipoic acid; also good for increasing insulin sensitivity and treating type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, liver disease, and mitochondrial dysfunction

• Lumbrokinase⁷: a enzyme derived from earthworms

• Pine Bark Extract⁸: One of the most potent polyphenolic antioxidants; has been found to prolong the activity of vitamin C in your body; good as an adjunct to vitamins C, E and lipoic acid

Your approach with these agents should be to gradually titrate the dose upward to a high therapeutic level, then back it down. It’s best to “pulse” the treatments because your body can’t sustain upregulation for very long. You will be more productive with shorter bursts at an appropriately stout therapeutic dose. This means taking the treatments for a few days, followed by a few days off. Dr. Shade suggests cycling your treatments on the schedule of five days on, two days off (to start), working up to 10 days on, four days off. He instructs, never go more than 10 days on when upregulating your detoxification system.

Ideally, this should be done with the assistance of a healthcare professional trained in heavy metal detoxification who can help you decide on an optimal dose and schedule. If you begin to feel worse, you may be titrating up too quickly.

Capturing and Eliminating Mercury with Intestinal Binders

You do NOT want to mobilize mercury without making sure it has an escape route out of your body!
Once the mercury is in your intestine, you need something to bind it and pull it away from your intestinal wall, and for this we use something called an intestinal binder. Intestinal binders help carry the mobilized toxins out, which prevents them from building up in your bloodstream where they can end up making you sicker.

Binders prevent you from absorbing or reabsorbing the toxic agent, but they also help prevent intestinal inflammation. If your intestine becomes inflamed, the traffic stops because the transport proteins are shut off. That causes toxins to back up into your liver and kidneys, and blood. Removing mercury from your gut will also help prevent dysbiosis, which is at the root of a mind-blowing array of health problems.

Thiol Resins
There are several types of intestinal binders, but only a couple of them work well for grabbing mercury. Dr. Shade’s favorite binder is thiol resin, because it’s the most specific to heavy metals (mercury, lead and arsenic) and produces high rates of excretion. Thiol resins have a powerful attraction for mercury.

Chlorella
Another good binder for heavy metals is chlorella. Dr. Shade suggests working up to 50 to 70 tablets per day, which is a lot of chlorella. Please work up to that level gradually. Other binders you’ll hear about are clay/zeolites, and pectin. For mercury, these bind very weakly, and you would have to take enormous quantities for many years to see any benefit so I don’t recommend them.

If you haven’t yet had your amalgams removed, you may find rinsing with a binding agent helpful. Chlorella, activated charcoal, or N-acetyl cysteine can be prepared as a mouthwash where it binds to the mercury coating your oral epithelium. Levels of mercury can be very high in this rinse — make sure you don’t swallow it.

Beneficial Bacteria
Dr. Natasha Campbell McBride believes that one of the most potent detoxifiers of mercury and heavy metals are beneficial bacteria. Their cell membranes tend to bind very effectively to the metals and they are typically excreted in the stool. One of the best ways to provide your body with this resource is with fermented vegetables

Other Factors to Consider Adding to Your Regimen

In addition to a healthful diet as discussed earlier, the following supplements and other measures will enhance and support your body’s detoxification ability:

A good whole food multivitamin that includes the full spectrum of B vitamins	A good mineral supplement (consider Thorne Citramins II, citrated minerals without copper or iron)	Fermented foods and probiotics
Astaxanthin, to protect your cell membranes from free radical damage	Cilantro9	Vitamin C, a powerful detox agent
Plenty of fresh, pure water daily	Flax seeds (ground) to keep intestines moving	Regular exercise
Infrared sauna	Address your emotional issues (I recommend EFT)	Address malocclusions and cranial trauma

 

Additional methods of Detoxing from Heavy Metals and Mercury

Heavy metals, such as mercury, lead and aluminum, accumulate in the body over time and are suspected of triggering dangerous conditions like heart disease, thyroid problems, dementia, neurological conditions, autism, infertility and birth defects. The good news is that a heavy metal detox can remove these contaminants from your body and minimize their impact on your health.
Chelation, a controversial metal detox procedure in which metals are purged from the body, usually by way of an intravenous administration of certain drugs, has been touted as a miracle cure for many ailments. Its effectiveness as a treatment, however, has come under much scrutiny. It may be harmful, so it's a good idea to talk with your doctor if you are considering it.
In the meantime, there are some less extreme steps you can take to reduce the amount of these heavy metals in your body.

Step 1: Be finicky about fish

Fish, especially ones that live for a long time, absorb mercury from the water they live in. Larger fish, such as tuna and swordfish, tend to have higher levels of mercury. Since an important step in mercury detoxification is reducing the amount you take in, it's a good idea to limit your consumption of certain fish.

Step 2: Consider your dental work

Silver-colored fillings are usually made with a mercury amalgam, which may break down over time. If you have a lot of these fillings, you may want to talk with your dentist about a mercury detox — replacing them with tooth-colored resin fillings.

Step 3: Ask for mercury-free vaccines

While the mercury-based preservative thimerosal has been removed from most vaccines, there are still some that contain the controversial chemical, such as flu shots. But there are usually thimerosal-free alternatives available; you just have to ask for them.

Step 4: Look out for pollution

Pollution in our water and air can be a major source of harmful heavy metals. Steer clear of industrial areas when possible, and drink filtered water.

Step 5: Beware of old paint

As recently as the 1970s, paint was made with lead. So, if you live or work in an older structure, there's a good chance there is lead-based paint somewhere beneath the most recent layer. Be mindful of places where paint might be chipping, and definitely keep small children from putting paint chips in their mouths. If you are worried about lead exposure, see your doctor for a lead test. He or she can guide you to more specific metal detox treatments, if warranted.

Step 6: Order a side of cilantro

The herb cilantro, also known as coriander, has been found to be a natural chelating agent — and one that doesn't have to be administered intravenously. "Cilantro chelation" typically calls for a small amount of fresh cilantro, which can be made into a pesto sauce and eaten over pasta or toast, consumed each day for a few weeks. But you may want to discuss it with your doctor first, especially if you take medications or have a health condition.

Detox diets

There are more dietary steps you can take to rid yourself not only of heavy metals but other toxins as well. Detox diets and detox recipes are more popular than ever, thanks to celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Beyonce. Sure, most detox recipes lead to drastic weight loss, but healthy detox focuses on the long-lasting benefits, both mental and physical, of cleansing your body. But with so many detox diets out there, how do you know which is best for you? Here are some basic ways to naturally detox your diet.

Step 1: Eliminate toxins

Whether your reason for beginning a detox diet has to do with bad eating habits or a condition such as arthritis, you should always consult your doctor if you plan to make drastic changes to your diet. That said, the best way to begin a natural detox is to simply stop consuming toxins such as alcohol and tobacco. According to the National Institutes of Health, both are extremely harmful to your health and cause cancers and other diseases. Also consume less caffeine and less nonorganic produce.

Step 2: Cleanse your body

Many natural body cleanses include one to three days of fasting to remove any undigested food from your system. Before making the decision to fast, consult your physician or a medical professional. Fasting can be dangerous, especially for certain groups of people. The Mayo Clinic warns that if your body receives too few calories, you may develop life-threatening conditions, such as an irregular heartbeat.
Even with a medical professional's go-ahead, fasting should not be considered a permanent weight-loss solution. Think of it as a natural way to cleanse the body before beginning a healthier lifestyle.

Step 3: Drink water

Water is a natural body cleanser. Ask your doctor how much water you should drink and how you can maintain a healthy electrolyte balance while fasting. You don't want to become dehydrated, but you also don't want to drink too much water, as that can be life threatening as well.
If you get tired of drinking plain water, add a few drops of fresh-squeezed lemon or a couple of slices of cucumber. Another great source of water is tea, especially antioxidant-rich green tea.

Step 4: Change your diet

For natural detox, you don't have to be limited to raw fruits and veggies. It may be easier to simply cut out specific foods that are not healthy for you. A good way to start is to cut out dairy foods, grains with gluten, meat and shellfish. Also avoid artificial sweeteners, sugars and processed foods that are high in saturated fats. Eat as much organic food as possible because it is more likely to be pesticide-free.

Step 5: Get the right amount of vitamins and minerals

Natural detox is not just about eliminating toxins and harmful foods; you also want to focus on getting the vitamins and minerals your body needs to function at its best. According to the USDA, these fruits and vegetables are great sources of vitamins and minerals: carrots, broccoli, avocado, orange-colored fruits, citrus, bananas and leafy greens. If you're worried that you may not be getting the vitamins you need in your detox recipes, consider taking a multivitamin supplement.

Step 6: Don't forget about herbs and spices

Herbs and spices can help your body remove toxins and digest food properly. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has shown that certain herbs and spices, such as milk thistle (Silybum marianum), cloves (Eugenia aromatica), garlic (Allium sativum) and turmeric (Curcuma longa), have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Garlic may help reduce blood pressure and alleviate ulcers, for example, while turmeric may protect against some cancers.

Step 7: Make it permanent

Your liver, kidneys and gastrointestinal system are designed to remove toxins, but pollution, pesticides and other harmful chemicals can eventually overwhelm the body. A natural detox — nothing drastic! — will go a long way toward giving you more energy and making you feel better about yourself. Make your detox diet your permanent diet, and your body will thank you.

Here are a few food tips to help you detox heavy metals

(1) Drink lots of purified water through reverse osmosis and carbon filtration or a portable Berkey purifier or similar purifier. Fluoride is rocket fuel for getting aluminum through the blood-brain barrier. Chlorine in tap water can mix with lead in piping to create dangerous lead/chlorine compounds.

(2) Don't underestimate garlic. It's not just an antibiotic. In the 1970s, before lead was banned from paint, Robert I. Lin, president of Nutritional International in Irvine, California, successfully used garlic to detox lead from children.

Dr. Al Sears, MD, also cites raw garlic as an excellent detox food for other heavy metals as well. It's easy to add three to five fresh cloves to your daily diet.

(3) Cilantro is excellent for extracting mercury from your body's organs. Use chopped, organic cilantro as a garnishment for your food or make a pesto out of it. It mobilizes mercury so well, it could overwhelm your liver if you don't use one to five grams of chlorella daily to help flush the mercury out.

(4) This one may surprise you: Studies have demonstrated that probiotics from fermented foods such as sauerkraut, other fermented veggies, and kefirs help detox heavy metals. Commercial yogurt isn't good enough. (http://www.naturalnews.com)

(5) Grapefruit helps eliminate heavy metals. Lemons and limes also help. The pectin in rinds from all citrus fruits is used to create the powerful supplement known as modified citrus pectin, which has demonstrated dramatic heavy metal detox capacity in clinical trials.

Chlorella, by the way, is an intensely concentrated chlorophyl food. So eating lots of dark greens daily adds to your overall heavy metal detox capacity. Veggies also contain fiber to help eliminate heavy metals flushed out of organs and lingering in the lower GI tract.

It's important to understand that using conventionally grown veggies recycles toxicity back into your system. So try to consume all organic or at least use the following list to avoid the most heavily sprayed crops. (http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/guide/)

True Herbal Blends

Organic Kidney & Liver Detox Tea on Etsy

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/039338_mercury_heavy_metals_detox.html#ixzz3OupMKl7F

http://life.gaiam.com/article/how-remove-heavy-metals-your-body

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/01/13/mercury-detoxification-protocol.aspx

My Body Can Not Absorb Vitamin B-12

by Jordan Reasoner

Conventional medicine usually works like this…
I have a problem, the doctor figures out what the problem is, and gives me a conventional prescription generally supported by Doctors, researchers, and the FDA.
This prescription is supposed to be relatively safe and effective in accordance with the laws in the United States and most modern countries.
But what if the conventional prescription doesn’t work?
Like people with Celiac Disease that follow a strict gluten-free diet and don’t get better…

Does that Mean the Gluten-Free Diet is the Wrong Prescription for Celiac Disease?

 

Earlier in this series, I showed you that gluten is the toxic invader that causes Celiac Disease. Logically, removing the intruder is the first step towards treatment. That’s why anyone diagnosed with this autoimmune condition gets the conventional Celiac Disease prescription: follow a strict gluten-free diet for life. But the latest Celiac Disease research is painting a very different picture.

The University of Chicago has one of the leading treatment and research centers for Celiac Disease in the U.S., so my jaw dropped when they posted this:

“While healing may take up to 2 years for many older adults, new research shows that the small intestines of up to 60% of adults never completely heal, especially when adherence to the diet is less than optimal.”^[1].  

60% odds are worse than flipping a coin…
It would be easy to read that and think, “So it’s the people that don’t follow a strict gluten-free diet that don’t heal.” But to be honest, I don’t think they said it as strongly as they should have. Here’s a recent study that paints a much darker picture of the Gluten-Free Diet’s success rate.

Only 8% of Adult Patients Healed on a Gluten-Free Diet…

 

A 2009 study in The Journal of Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics looked at 465 Celiac Disease patients and found only 8% of adult patients reached “histological normalization” after following a gluten-free diet for 16 months, meaning their gut tissue completely recovered to that of a healthy person. The authors stated:

“Complete normalization of duodenal lesions is exceptionally rare in adult coeliac patients despite adherence to GFD” ^[2]

These people followed a strict gluten-free diet for 16 months and most didn’t heal their gut. The success rate of the conventional Celiac Disease prescription isn’t working… and the research is exploding the truth.

Another 2010 study in the American Journal of Gastroenterology looked at 381 adults with biopsy-proven Celiac Disease. The authors found small intestine mucosal recovery occurred in only 34% of participants following a gluten-free diet for 2 years. They concluded:

“Mucosal recovery was absent in a substantial portion of adults with CD after treatment with a GFD.”^[3]

The Conventional Merck Manual definition for diagnosing Celiac Disease provides that: “The diagnosis is confirmed by an initial microscopic examination of a biopsy specimen revealing flattened villi of the small intestine and by a subsequent improvement in the lining after the person stops eating foods containing gluten.”

These studies clearly show that when a Celiac stops eating foods containing gluten, the intestinal lining isn’t healing. But that’s only scratching the surface of what’s going on…

65% of Gluten-Free Celiacs Still Have a Raging Fire in Their Gut

 

The same 2009 study in The Journal of Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics of 465 Celiac Disease patients 16 months gluten-free found that 65% still had “persistent intraepithelial lymphocytosis,” a.k.a. inflammation in the gut.^[4]

Their intestines are on fire with inflammation even after 16 months gluten-free. Why is that important? We know gut inflammation is associated with a laundry list of health issues, including cancer and early death. That’s bad news for the conventional Celiac prescription and even worse news for the people not getting better on a gluten-free diet. Want more evidence gluten-free doesn’t put the fire out?

A 2008 study in the Journal of Inflammation looked at 18 symptom-free Celiac Disease (SFCD) patients and found they still had elevated markers of gut inflammation even after 2 years on a gluten-free diet. The authors reported:

“Faeces of both active CD and SFCD (symptom-free 1-2 years on a GFD) patients, representing an imbalanced microbiota, significantly increased TNF-alpha production and CD86 expression in PBMCs, while decreased IL-10 cytokine production and CD4 expression compared with control samples.” ^[5]

In another 2009 study from the American Journal of Gastroenterology, researchers looked at small intestine biopsies from 45 children with Celiac Disease and 18 clinical controls. The authors found an increased presence of T cells (inflammatory marker) in well-treated CD patients:

“The long-lasting presence of high frequencies of T cells in the epithelial compartment in well-treated CD indicates that the epithelium is stressed possibly because of constant attack.”^[6]

Both of these studies looked at patients that are supposed to be “healed”… supposedly “well-treated.” Even though they appeared to be symptom-free, the medical tests paint a much different picture. These asymptomatic adults and kids still had inflammatory fires raging in their gut… promoting further disease development (like Cancer). So far this research has only reviewed patients following a gluten-free diet for 1-2 years… but what about long-term? Does the body just need more time to heal and get back to normal?

56% Have Poor Vitamin Status After 10 Years Gluten-Free

 

A 2002 study in the of Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics looked at the vitamin status of 30 adults with Celiac Disease showing “biopsy-proven remission,” after following a gluten-free diet for 8-12 years. They found that 56% had poor vitamin status, suggesting that proper nutrient uptake is not occurring. The authors concluded that:“It is generally assumed that coeliac patients adhering to a strict gluten-free diet for years will consume a diet that is nutritionally adequate. This is supported by the demonstration of a normal bone mineral density up to 10 years of dietary treatment. Our results may indicate otherwise. We found signs indicative of a poor vitamin status in 56% of treated adult coeliac patients.” ^[7]

Even after following the conventional Celiac prescription for 10 years, 56% still showed signs of poor nutrient uptake – meaning their digestive system still isn’t working like it’s designed to.

That means after 10 years of being gluten-free, HALF of all Celiacs are likely starving for the critical nutrients required for health and longevity. It’s no wonder we have a 77X increased risk for lymphoma.^[8]

The Gluten-Free Diet Doesn’t Fix Leaky Gut

Earlier in this series, we discovered that gliadin initiates leaky gut by increasing the zonulin protein in people with Celiac Disease.  And later, we learned that fixing leaky gut is absolutely essential to reversing the damage from Celiac Disease…
But the gluten-free diet doesn’t fix leaky gut…

As it turns out, when Celiac Disease patients follow a strict gluten-free diet, their zonulin levels do fall (which is good). But research shows that they still have elevated levels of zonulin compared to non-Celiacs. And when the zonulin levels are still high… the Tight Junctions can’t restore normal function and the leaky gut remains.
Chris Masterjohn found the same thing reviewing a study by researcher Allessio Fasano,^[9]

 Remarkably, they found that celiacs produce 30 times as much zonulin as non-celiacs, even though the non-celiacs were not eating gluten-free diets while the celiacs had been off gluten for over two years!
Here’s a graph of their data:

 

This is remarkable because even though the point of the study was to show that gluten increases zonulin production, the controls were eating gluten yet had infinitesimal levels of zonulin production, while the celiacs had not eaten gluten for at least two years yet still had very high levels of zonulin production. This suggests that something besides gluten may be causing zonulin production in celiacs.

Chris also pointed out the same study looked at Leaky Gut in Celiac Disease patients following a gluten-free diet for more than two years:
[NOTE: in the graph below, the smaller the bar, the leakier the gut is]

Here they measured trans-epithelial electrical resistance (TEER) of intestinal tissue taken from gluten-free celiacs and gluten-eating controls. TEER is an estimation of the leakiness of the gut, where a lower value indicates a greater level of leakiness or permeability. They found that tissues taken from controls who had been eating gluten had three-fold less leakiness compared to celiacs who had been off gluten for over two years. This, again, suggests that something besides gluten may be contributing to leaky gut in people with celiac.

So, in summary Chris pointed out:

• Celiacs produce 30 times as much zonulin as non-celiacs, even though the celiacs had been off gluten for over two years!
• Intestinal tissues taken from controls who had been eating gluten had three-fold less leakiness compared to Celiacs who had been off gluten for over two years (so Celiacs had a much leakier gut, even while eating gluten-free).

But the evidence doesn’t stop there…
A 2008 study in the Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research tested for leaky gut in 22 Celiac disease patients who were on a gluten-free diet for 1 year. They found these patients following a gluten-free diet still had a much leakier gut compared to healthy controls eating gluten (0.013 vs 0.003, P = 0.001). The authors concluded:

“This means that, at some time, complete recovery of intestinal villous may not have occurred and an inflammatory process may have persisted.”^[10]

 

This is crazy! All this research shows the gluten-free diet doesn’t heal Celiac disease. In fact, the evidence suggests that in many cases, leaky gut and inflammation remain high for years on a gluten-free diet. This spells bad news for anyone with Celiac disease relying on a gluten-free diet as the only treatment protocol…

It breaks down like this… high inflammation, poor vitamin status, and leaky gut persist on a gluten-free diet which leads to one thing: untreated Celiac disease…

 

And Untreated Celiac Disease Will Kill You… Fast

If you don’t completely heal from Celiac Disease, you’re going to die much sooner than healthy people. In fact, one of the largest cohort studies on Celiac disease patients and mortality published in the Journal of The American Medical Association found that:

• Those with Celiac disease (villous atrophy) had a 2.80-fold increased risk of death the first year after diagnosis and a 39% increased risk of death over the study period

But the authors didn’t stop there… they also looked at people with intestinal inflammation. Remember the two studies on “well-treated” (asymptomatic) patients that still had inflammation? The authors found:

• Those with intestinal inflammation (and not villous atrophy) had a 4.66-fold increased risk of death the first year after diagnosis and a 72% increased risk of death over the study period^[11]

A 72% increased risk of death! 
In other words, if you’re a symptom-free Celiac and your labs show signs of gut inflammation… you’re going to die much sooner than you think. 

 

So, Should Celiacs Eat a Gluten-Free Diet?

Yes… gluten is still the kryptonite in Celiac Disease, don’t ever eat it. Following a gluten-free diet is a requirement for treating this autoimmune condition… but you can’t stop there.
This evidence clearly shows that only following a gluten-free diet doesn’t fix leaky gut, gut inflammation, or a damaged gut lining. That means the gluten-free diet isn’t enough to treat Celiac Disease patients and anyone using it as the only protocol is at risk for dying much sooner than they should…
The conventional Celiac prescription is incomplete and not working. There needs to be more. 

When Does Your Body Not Absorb Vitamin B-12

Vitamins are organic compounds vital to life. You can meet your daily recommended intake of each vitamin by eating a healthy well-balanced diet that includes a variety of different foods. Your body absorbs vitamins through the lining of the small intestine. Conditions that affect the digestive tract or the breakdown of food can cause your body to not absorb vitamins.

 Presence of Pernicious Anemia

The body absorbs vitamin B-12, a water-soluble vitamin, through the lining of the small intestine, but this vitamin must first bind to a protein produced by cells in the stomach lining known as intrinsic factor. Enzymes in the gastric acid free vitamin B-12 from the food particles, which allows it to bind to intrinsic factor. The combination of intrinsic factor with B-12 binds to and gets absorbed by receptors lining the small intestine. Pernicious anemia usually occurs due to an autoimmune response in which the cells of the immune system attack and destroy the cells in the lining of the stomach. This results in a decrease in stomach acid and enzymes, allowing vitamin B-12 to remain attached to the food. In addition, antibodies of the immune system bind to intrinsic factor, interfering with the ability of intrinsic factor to bind with vitamin-12, which inhibits the absorption of vitamin B-12.

Gluten Intolerance

Gluten is the protein found in wheat, rye and barley. Approximately 1 in every 133 people in the U.S. develops an intolerance to gluten, a medical condition known as celiac disease, according to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse. For those people, when they consume foods containing gluten, their immune system reacts by attacking the villi, small finger-like projections, in the small intestines. The villi allow the absorption of vitamins and other nutrients through the lining of the small intestine. Over time, the destruction of the villi inhibits the absorption of vitamins.

Intestinal Inflammation

Conditions that cause inflammation of the intestines make your body unable to absorb vitamins. Crohn’s disease, one type of inflammatory bowel disease, or IBS, causes inflammation anywhere in the digestive tract, but most commonly affects the lower portion of the small intestine. The cause of inflammation in Crohn’s disease continues to be an area of study, but one theory suggests the cells of the immune system misinterprets both food and bacteria as foreign invaders, causing the inflammation. Vitamin deficiency due to inhibited absorption is a common complication of Crohn’s disease.

Interruption in Fat Digestion

Some vitamins are fat-soluble, including vitamins A, D, E and K, meaning they bind to or dissolve in fat. Conditions that affect the absorption of fat inhibit the absorption of vitamins. The liver produces bile, a substance consisting of cholesterol, salts and water, vital to the breakdown and absorption of fat. Liver disease reduces bile production, inhibits fat absorption and prevents the absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins. The pancreas secretes digestive enzymes that join with the bile in the intestines. These enzymes aid in the breakdown of foods such as fat. Pancreatitis, a condition characterized by inflammation of the pancreas, reduces the amount of pancreatic enzymes, which inhibits the breakdown and absorption of fat, leaving the body unable to absorb fat-soluble vitamins.

Source:

http://scdlifestyle.com/2012/03/the-gluten-free-lie-why-most-celiacs-are-slowly-dying/ 

http://livewell.jillianmichaels.com/body-not-absorb-vitamins-5353.html

Causes of Fibromyalgia

 
It's estimated that fibromyalgia affects approximately 10 million people in the United States. Fibromyalgia is classically characterized by chronic pain, particularly muscle pain, fatigue, sleep disturbances, brain fog or cognitive impairment, depression and painful tender points throughout the body.

Conventional medicine has yet to uncover the cause of fibromyalgia and only offers management of symptoms through pain medications and antidepressants.
Functional medicine, on the other hand, looks to find the root cause of fibromyalgia and other chronic diseases, treating the problem at the root level to restore the patient to health. As a functional medicine physician, I've helped many patients recover from fibromyalgia.  Below are the top ten root causes of fibromyalgia I see in my clinic.

1. Gluten intolerance 
Gluten has been liked to more than 55 diseases and is often called the "big masquerader." The reason for this is that the majority of gluten intolerance symptoms are not digestive in nature, but are instead neurological, such as pain, cognitive impairment, sleep disturbances, behavioral issues, fatigue and depression.

2. Candida overgrowth
Candida is a fungus, or yeast, and a very small amount of it lives in your intestines. When overproduced, Candida breaks down the wall of the intestines and penetrates the bloodstream, releasing toxic byproducts into your body and causing a host of unpleasant symptoms such as brain fog, fatigue, digestive issues and pain. Virtually every one of my patients with fibromyalgia has had Candida overgrowth.

3. Thyroid
It's vital that your doctor check all six blood markers to accurately measure your thyroid gland’s function. It’s also imperative that your doctor use the optimal levels rather than the standard reference range when assessing and diagnosing thyroid disorders. Getting my patient’s thyroid levels into an optimal range typically alleviates their fatigue, brain fog, sleep disturbances and depression.

4. Vitamin deficiencies
Magnesium, vitamin D and B12 deficiency are the most common vitamin deficiencies I see in those who have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I've had several patients completely reverse their fibromyalgia symptoms with magnesium alone. The best way to measure magnesium is a red blood cell (RBC) magnesium level, which can be tested through any conventional lab.

5. Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) and Leaky gut
There are more bacteria in us and on us then there are of our own cells. When these bacteria get out of balance through use of antibiotics or a sugar-rich diet, we can lose our ability to digest and absorb nutrients, particularly B12. Gluten can cause SIBO and leaky gut and SIBO and leaky gut can lead gluten and other food intolerances. It’s a catch-22 and a vicious cycle. You must "fix the gut" first in anyone with fibromyalgia.

6. Mycotoxins
Mycotoxins are very toxic substances produced by molds. Conventional environmental mold testing only tests for levels of mold spores and does not test for mycotoxins. I use a urine mycotoxin test in my clinic to determine if someone has been exposed to toxic molds.

7. Mercury toxicity
I recommend that all my patients find a biological dentist and have their mercury amalgam fillings removed. Mercury is toxic to our bodies and can be one piece of the puzzle for those with fibromyalgia. I then recommend heavy metal testing using a pre- and post-DMPS urine challenge test.

8. Adrenal fatigue
Adrenal fatigue is a result of the chronic stress. Chronic pain is a stress to the adrenal glands, though it's typically not the initial adrenal stressor. The initial stressor is usually something such as food intolerances, Candida, mercury toxicity, vitamin deficiencies or mycotoxins. My goal is to support the adrenals with adaptogenic herbs while we search for the root cause of the stress and correct it.

9. MTHFR mutations
This is a genetic test you can get though any conventional lab. The more mutations you have to the MTHFR gene the less able you are to methylate and detoxify toxins, such as mercury and lead. The more mutations you have at this gene the higher your requirements for methyl-B6, methyl-B12 and folinic acid in order to keep your detoxification pathways working properly.

10. Glutathione deficiency
Glutathione is the most critical part of our body’s detoxification system. Glutathione gets recycled in our body — unless our toxic burden gets too high, or we lack GSTM1 and GSTP1, the enzymes needed to recycle and produce glutathione. Taking glutathione or the precursors (NAC, alpha lipoic acid, milk thistle) often help dramatically with fatigue.

As you can see from the above list, many of these causes are interrelated, and often there's no single root cause of fibromyalgia. Because getting to the root can be complex, I recommend that you find a functional medicine physician in your area to help uncover the root cause for you. You don't need to suffer needlessly or mask your symptoms with pain medications and antidepressants. There are doctors likes myself who can help you!

Source:

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-10103/10-causes-of-fibromyalgia-your-doctor-doesnt-know-about.html