Nutrition Dude

Quel Surprise - National Newspaper Slags Off Complementary Therapy

Every so often, in a slow news week, one of the national papers decides to do an expose on some aspect of medicine or complementary therapy. Yesterday it was the turn of food intolerance testing, with the Daily Mail sticking the boot in to kinesiology, biodermal screening and blood tests for food intolerance.

As is so often the case, allergies and intolerances are treated as the same thing when in reality they are different. An allergy will produce an immediate reaction as soon as you touch a food, while an intolerance shows symptoms as you digest the food up to 3 days after eating it.

We use bio-dermal screening, a technique with a 30 year track record. Not only are our results validated by our highly qualified nutritional therapists when they carry out in-depth consultations with patients, but they are invariably proved accurate if the patient is asked to undergo any laboratory tests based on saliva, blood or stool samples. We use the screening as a quick way to assess the likely causes of symptoms from mild bloating to severe IBS, then refer the patient to one of our nutritional therapists if there are sufficient grounds to do so.

We have testimonials from patients whose quality of life has improved dramatically after a screening, so to discourage people from taking such tests is in no one's best interests. But of course, it makes a good story so let's publish it anyway...

Warm regards

Graham

www.nationalnutritionclinic.com    

Ostrich Or Expert? You decide...

Don't you just love government experts?

In the same week that they finally admit that, er, global warming may be worse than previously thought and Greenland is about to melt, we now have the admission from the Food Commission that nutritional values of meat and dairy products have plummeted since the 1940s.

Every time we screen people at the clinic for vitamins, minerals and nutrients we find shortfalls - even when they seem to be eating a healthy, balanced diet. (see www.nationalnutritionclinic.com/food-intolerance-zone ) We have been saying for years that the reason is simple - the nutrients are simply not present in food. Why? Because they are not present in the soil. Why? Because of intensive farming which relies on man-made fertilisers to replenish soil rather than allowing it more time to replenish naturally and fully. We have literally reaped what we have sown.

And still some 'experts' refuse to recognise the truth. Losses of 62% of calcium in milk, or 79% of iron in chicken are put down to changes in measuring technology. Yeah, right. Give it five or ten years and they'll quietly accept the findings and claim they said so all along.

These are the same people backing the mind-numbingly stupid EU plans to prevent us buying high quality supplements that we patently need as the only source of vital nutrients. Your life in their hands? Scary, but true.

Warm regards

Graham

Practice Director, National Nutrition Clinic

Because Nutrition Is Personal...

www.nationalnutritionclinic.com         

Next Time You Meet An 11 Stone Belly Dancer...

I think by now there must be a website to answer every question known to mankind.

Some make you wonder a little bit about the sanity of the people who painstakingly build these 'niche' sites - how about illustrations of famous scenes from the bible - all made from lego? Before you ask, the url is www.thebricktestament.com

However, you are much more likely to be asked 'How many calories would I burn if I did an hour of belly dancing?' The answer? As many as an hour of line dancing, but fewer than an hour of jive or ceroc. But, perhaps surprisingly, more than an hour of light rowing. Whatever your favourite exertion, go to www.caloriesperhour.com to see how much energy you are burning. 

What is the most obscure nutrition or wellbeing site you have come across?

Look forward to your suggestions.

Warm regards

Graham

www.nationalnutritionclinic.com

How To Surprise Your GP...

According to the latest Norwich Union Health of the Nation survey, 94% of GPs believe that their patients do not know the difference between a Food Allergy and a Food Intolerance.

Are they right?

Next time you see your GP, why not bring this up in the conversation, and see if he/she knows the difference!

A Food Allergy involves an immediate reaction by your immune system to the cuplrit food. As soon as it touches your skin, you may experience anything from itchiness to a life-threatening anaphylactic shock.  Note that you don't even have to eat the food - if you touch it, or rub your eyes after handling it, that may be enough to spark an allergic reaction.

A Food Intolerance is a set of symptoms which occur after eating a particular food, but which does not involve a reaction from your immune system. Typical symptoms include stomach bloating, fatigue and headaches. They may start an hour after eating the culprit food, or you may experience a delayed reaction 48 hours or more later as the food works its way through your digestive system.

Food Sensitivity is sometimes used as an umbrella term covering both conditions, though it is of little help since they require different tests and different approaches to treatment.

At the clinic we focus on food intolerances using biodermal screening as this gives immediate results and costs about a third as much as a blood test. Full details at www.nationalnutritionclinic.com/food-intolerance-zone.htm

January 23rd to 26th is National Food Allergy & Intolerance Week - I'm already lined up to do some radio interviews and will be making a series of posts to the blog during the week on the subject.

We often find that food intolerance is a major cause of irritable bowel syndrome, so even though intolerances are still not given much credence in traditional medicine, they are causing an awful lot of pain and discomfort to an awful lot of people. Yet, with a screening and some follow-up action, they can usually be overcome and the culprit foods re-introduced later.

Warm regards

Graham

The scientist, the nutritionist and the BBC news team...

Yesterday was a little crazy.

First day back after the holidays, and the phone goes at 9:15. BBC 1 o clock News are doing a piece on the effectiveness of detox programmes after some scientists slagged them off as worthless.  Can they come and film our new Easy Detox programme in action, err, now please?  A few phone calls and within 45 minutes the reporter and cameraman arrived. Much moving of furniture to get the right angles. then a shot of Yours Truly putting my feet in the ionic spa. Isabelle did a great interview which was edited down to one sentence, while Daphne screened the reporter for toxicity as she spoke to the camera. It went out nationwide so even my mum in Whitley Bay saw it...

No sooner had the dust settled than I get a call asking me to take part in a live discussion on London Tonight, the BBC local news programme for the South East. I did this with a lady from You Are What You Eat magazine. I argued that we are eating, breathing and rubbing onto our skin more toxins nowadays than ever before, so its not surprising that our liver needs a bit of help. The important point is that you can't buy wellbeing in a box - we are all unique at a biochemical level so detox programmes need to be personalised to be effective.   

Of course I've had lots of phone calls from people about my new status as a media star, so forgive me going on about it - seems like it has an effect as we had a record number of hits on www.nationalnutritionclinic.com yesterday.

I'm sure you are sick of being wished Happy New Year by everyone who emails or speaks to you, but it would be rude of me not to add my best wishes. May it be the year you achieve everything you want to in ensuring a long and healthy life and looking and feeling great - nutrition plays a much bigger role in all these things than most people imagine.

Warm regards

Graham   

Scary News About Obesity

OK, we all know that overweight and obesity are getting worse. But the figures released in this week's Health Survey for England show just how bad things have got.

One in four of us, men and women, is now obese. That is double the number from just ten years ago. The only glimmer of light from the 10,000 people interviewed by the Health & Social Care Information Centre is a slight increase in awareness of the importance of nutrition and exercise.

However, as we see all the time in the clinics, awareness is one thing, taking action is another. We've been aware that smoking causes lung cancer since the 1950s, but look how many people still stand on the street outside shops and offices in the freezing cold to drag on a furtive ciggie.

Will it take a change in how the NHS responds to these 'lifestyle choice' illnesses to make people eat more sensibly? How bad will the problem get if it takes as long as smoking before people take action? You don't have to be Einstein to extrapolate these growth figures. Two more decades and every single one of us will be obese.

Strangest of all, why is this not headline news? What effective action has been announced to turn this trend around?  The size of the EU rebate and the pensions crisis will pale into insignificance next to the future cost of obesity/syndrome X/type 2 diabetes when it affects more than half the population.

Sorry about the un-festive tone, but the scariest aspect of the obesity epidemic is the apparent indifference to it from those who could make a difference. If you know anyone who is obese, please refer them to our site at www.nationalnutritionclinic.com where they can sign up to receive our free report on The 10 Secrets of Healthy Eating.

Warm regards

Graham

   

Where Is Sarah Beeny When You Need Her?

Have you ever laughed at the naive property developers on Property Ladder who can't manage their way out of a paper bag?

Well, this week I got a taste of what it's like to manage multiple tradesmen on site at the same time. The carpenter making a new frame for our sign missed his first deadline, then his second, then his absolutely guaranteed third deadline. He finally appeared a few hours before the new sign was due to arrive. But fortunately, the signs company missed their deadline as well! Then the shopfitters refurbishing the entrance to the clinic arrived with a new front door. It looked fantastic, except for being 2 inches too short. They are coming back this week, hopefully with the right door.

Then I went to the printer to collect 2000 copies of our Good Living newsletter, only to find they had been printed the wrong colour. Delay mailshot by 2 days...

The good news is - when it's all finished it will look great! And my course of counselling should help me return to my normal blood pressure in a few months.

Warm regards

Graham 

   

Drug and Supplement Interaction

The vendetta against nutritional supplements continues...

Not content with the EU's attempts to stop us having access to high quality supplements from reputable suppliers simply because they cannot afford the clinical trials typical of the big pharmaceuticals companies, now a group of 250 GPs have joined in.

41% of them think some of their patients are overdosing on vitamins, particularly A, B6, C and E.

The reality is that most people's diets do not give them anything like enough of the vitamins and minerals needed for a healthy body. However, the GPs are correct in one critical area. Supplements do interact with some medications and can reduce their effectiveness or cause further side effects.

This is one of the areas in which our Nutritional Therapists spend much of their time. When they see a patient who is on medication they always research interactions before recommending supplements. It can be amazingly complex and time consuming work, but is another example of just how personal nutrition is. What works brilliantly for me may not work for you, simply because you are already taking medication for another condition. Sometimes it does pay to get some expert help.

Warm regards

Graham   

Watch Your Waist!

New research reinforces the importance of your waist circumference as a major risk factor in determing your likelihood to develop cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

The International Diabetes Federation states that risk factors increase from a waist of 80cm in women and 94cm in men. Abdominal obesity will effect one third of the UK population within 10 years, and is one of the most common causes of type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

The point at which risk factors increase has been reduced from 88cm to 80cm (31.5") for women and from 102cm to 94cm (37") for men. This is based on increased recognition of the higher risks associated with visceral fat around your middle.

Check your own waist - you may be surprised to find yourself in this range or very close to it. 

Warm regards

Graham

Are You a NIMBY or a BANANA?

If you are worried about that pretty little house next door being demolished and replaced with 33 'luxury' flats, you are probably aware that you would be called a NIMBY (not in my back yard).

Yesterday, I read about a new breed of objector - the BANANA. It's a much better idea for those of us worried about the increasingly lax attitude of local councils to their own planning rules. It stands for Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anybody.

Impractical perhaps, but fun.

Warm regards

Graham