SUPERFOODS OR SUPER HYPE?

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superfoods

LET’S TALK TURKEY

If ever there was a time to talk food, this is it. But considering the food that’s on our minds is a virtual bacchanalia of greasy, crisp turkey skin, stuffing, sweet potatoes with those teeny gooey marshmallows, gobs of green bean casserole and every kind of pie possible…it might seem ironic to talk about superfoods.

WHO PUT THE “SUPER” IN SUPERFOODS?

The word “superfood” hit the nutritional scene somewhere around the 1990s, quickly becoming a buzzword in the language of food and health. A simple internet search for the word reveals close to 10 million results — predominantly from health and nutrition blogs, online newspapers and magazines. But the fact is, that there is no accepted definition, and definitely no scientific way of classifying foods into superfoods. And the term “superfood” is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. And yet, when it comes down to the concept of it, people are eating it up.

MMMM…MARINE PHYTOPLANKTON, YUMMY

You can walk down the fruit and vegetable aisles in the store, and pretty much everywhere you look, you’re looking at foods that are really good for you. Dark greens, avocados, berries…they all pack a healthy punch. But when it comes to what a lot of people think are superfoods, it can get somewhat exotic, not to mention expensive. Quinoa, chia, hemp seeds, kaniwa, teff, maca powder mangosteens, turmeric, dulse, hijiki, kombu, wakame, rambutan, jackfruit, carambola, kiwano, arame, dragon fruit, cherimoya, oca, raw cocoa, wheat grass, spirulina, camu camu, lucuma. Gets to sound a little loco. And not exactly appetizing, either. But oh, the wonderful ways they can heal your body and mind. Supposedly.

CLAIMS TO SUPER POWER

All right, we’re just going to go with a list here which will point out how just how ludicrous it seems for any foods, super or not to say they can do:

  • Reduce risk of heart attacks
  • Prevent blood clots
  • Protect against stroke
  • Improve fine motor skills
  • Relive tension headaches
  • Unstuff stuffy noses
  • Prevent nausea
  • Promote brain health
  • Detoxify your liver
  • Clear your skin
  • Undo diabetes
  • Fight and suppress urinary tract infections
  • Stimulate bone-building cells
  • Assist digestive system, relieve cramping, gas and muscles aches
  • Improve memory and coordination
  • Combat cancel and detoxify
  • Boost antioxidants
  • Prevent ulcers and yeast infections
  • Improve oral health
  • Protect bones
  • Ward off PMS symptoms
  • Unclot blood clots
  • Build bones
  • Build muscle
  • Convert food to energy
  • Boost your immune system
  • Lower cholesterol
  • Reduce inflammation
  • Reduce asthma-related wheezing
  • Help arteries stay relaxed and pliable
  • Fight infection
  • Lower blood pressure
  • Improve vision
  • Detoxify the body
  • Prevent hardening of arteries
  • Improve mood
  • Keep blood vessels healthy
  • Boost communication between blood cells
  • Neutralize free radicals that cause aging and cell damage
  • Reduce effects of age-related conditions like Alzheimer’s or dementia
  • Enhance libido to improve sex
  • And for the purposes of our discussion here, balance hormones.
  • All this from kimchee? Are you kidding?

WILL HEAPS OF HEMP REALLY BALANCE YOUR HORMONES?

If you Google (and the world is Googling 24/7), you’ll see tons of “10 Hormone Balancing Superfoods”, “Superfoods that Balance Hormones Naturally”, “The Superfood Solution to Balancing Your Hormones”, “40 Superfoods to Restore Hormone Balance”. Articles like these even turn up on Pinterest. Pinterest?  Sorry, but superfoods have no magical powers. They could be perfectly healthy, but they are not enchanted. Will a daily dandelion and goji berry smoothie smooth the way to extended life? Raise your hands if you believe it. Good. No hands. And thinking that any single superfood can make a dent in what hormones need to function, can be dangerous thinking.

SUPERFOODS AREN’T SCIENCE

Hormones control nearly every aspect of how we feel. Insulin, serotonin, cortisol and dopamine, not to mention estrogen and testosterone, can all be thrown off balance by a number of things from excess sugar, caffeine or alcohol, to aging, medications, stress, lack of exercise and even toxins in the environment such as solvents and pesticides. Because hormones are involved in so many aspects of our functioning, hormonal imbalances can have wide-ranging effects. Balancing them is a complex medical puzzle not to be solved by any so-called superfood on the planet. And not to be self-diagnosed as to what your body really needs.

REAL FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Treating hormone imbalances starts by determining exactly which hormones might be out of balance and causing symptoms you might not have attributed to hormones. At Denver Hormone Health, they know everything about every hormone in your body. And considering there are about 50 of them, you can trust them to help you more than mountains of any acai bowls. The medical hormone experts at DHH determine your hormone levels with advanced blood tests. That allows them to determine what might be out of balance, allowing them to create a unique treatment plan tailored to your needs. Incorporating superfoods into your diet can’t hurt, but it’s no substitute for making overall healthy lifestyle choices, one of which is calling Denver Hormone Health for an appointment now.

HORMONES AND HEART DISEASE; GETTING TO THE HEART OF THE MATTER

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HEART DISEASE; ENOUGH TO GET ANYONE’S TICKER TICKING FASTER

Sorry, but it’s a fact:

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men women and people of most racial and ethnic groups in the United States. One person dies every 37 seconds in the U.S. from cardiovascular disease. But no one has to tell you how scary heart disease is. No one is immune. At almost any age.

IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT BEING HEALTHY

With the threat of heart disease ever looming, people are trying to become more informed about what they can do to avoid it. They think they get it, but do they? Yes, more fruits and veggies, fish, skinless poultry (but the skin’s the good part) lean meat, (wait, burgers are a national pastime) nuts, legumes (how many of you actually do legumes?). Yes, more fiber (who’s actually comfortable even discussing it?) No, not a lot of sugar. (But Ben and Jerry are like family). Not too much caffeine. (Name a decaf that has real taste). 30 minutes of exercise. Both aerobics and strength training. That ought to do it. Right? It’s a good start. (So start, already.)

PUMPING SOME NEW INFORMATION INTO IT          

No matter how well you eat and how much you exercise, heart attacks can attack from a number of outside influences:

  • Heavy physical exertion
  • Furious arguments or gut-churning anger
  • Weather
  • Air pollution
  • Infections
  • Sexual activity
  • Overeating
  • Grief
  • Lack of sleep
  • Mental and work-related stress
  • The use of cocaine and other “recreational” drugs
  • Even the World Cup if you’re seriously into it and lose. (Oh nooooo….)

No joke. But then absolutely nothing is funny about a heart attack.

THE LOWDOWN ON HORMONES AND HEART HEALTH

Wait. Heart? Hormones? What else don’t I know? When it comes to heart health, hormones play a leading role. The way they’re functioning in the body directly impacts the cardiovascular system, the heart and the blood vessels. What does this mean? When they’re working properly, hormones can help prevent heart disease. When they’re out of balance, they can cause it. We’ve got some 50 or so hormones coursing through our bloodstreams signaling every cell and organ as to what they’re supposed to do to keep them all doing what they’re supposed to. And many of these hormones affect how the heart functions.

DAMAGE IN A HEARTBEAT

There are hormones you’ve never-ever heard of (unless you’re a hormone expert) like catecholamines, endothelins, glucocorticosteroids, leptin and PTHrP, that when appearing in excess can increase heart rate. Then there are hormones you’ve most likely heard of like cortisol and adrenaline (fight or flight) that have confirmed ties to abnormal heart rhythms, and can contribute to vessel and structure-related conditions. Thyroid hormones which you probably think have to do with weight, also have direct effects on the heart. Hyperthyroidism increases heart rate and can cause palpitations as well as abnormal heart rhythms. One such abnormal heart rhythm is atrial fibrillation, which is an irregular beating of the heart and can lead to heart failure and stroke. Another example is insulin which too much of can cause type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular problems — like high cholesterol, high blood pressure and heart disease. Stop! Well, fortunately, you can do something about it.

TAKE HEART

Before your left arm shoots up clutching your heart in a death (ironic) squeeze, fear not. There is someone who has years of experience in the heart-hormone connection; Denver Hormone Health. They have infinite knowledge in the intricate balance between hormones and head-to-toe health, including the heart. Every hormone expert at DHH understands which hormones can be a contributing factor to heart disease. They also know that hormones might not be an issue with you. It could be genetics. Lifestyle. A combination of many things. But it could be hormones. DHH is the place to find out. And do something about it. With simple tests, they can tell which hormone imbalances can be problematic when it comes to heart health. And those tests also let them create a unique treatment plan. So stop stressing (which isn’t good for anyone’s heart) and call DHH for an appointment now. Be still your heart.

New Year. New Start. New Goals.

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Oh, boy, it’s that time of the year when making resolutions settle over people like dark clouds. Resolutions that set you up because they aren’t really realistic.

I resolve to:

  • Give up 3a.m. Netflix binge watching
  • Stop adding ad infinitum to online shopping carts
  • Swipe right more than left
  • Learn Urdu
  • Love myself as much as the Kardashians love themselves
  • Stop losing hair
  • Go cold emoji
  • Get organized
  • Never go to sleep without doing the dishes
  • Do 100 pushups every night before bed
  • Floss more

Never going to happen.

Less than 25% of people actually stay committed to their resolutions after just 30 days, and only 8% accomplish them.

Making resolutions shouldn’t be about looking back and lamenting last year’s failures. It should be about looking forward with unequivocal confidence.

The Army said it best: Be all that you can be. Be the best you. In the best shape. Feel your best ever. Feel stronger. More vibrant. Healthier. Younger.

Think nothing but positive. Like The Little Engine That Could, you can.

Right now, you probably feel a lot less than your best. The holidays, while filled with joy and cheer, can take a toll. But it’s a good chance you should be looking at your hormones as the culprit to your creeping malaise. There are more than 50 hormones swimming throughout your body affecting every cell and organ. These hormones tell your body what it’s supposed to do, but when they are out of balance, you could be out of luck. If there is one resolution to keep, it’s finding out what hormones could be whacked out and get them back in balance.

Need a few reasons to convince you? How about these:

  • Increased lean muscle mass
  • Increased energy
  • Increased sex drive and sexual response
  • Decreased depression
  • Decreased fatigue,
  • Decrease anxiety, mood swings, hot flashes
  • Relieved menopausal symptoms
  • Better sleep

You get the idea.

So how do you get the help you need? This is the easiest of all New Year’s plans; Denver Hormone Health. Like our name says, we’re all about hormones. Our specialists have years of experience and unmatched expertise in anything and everything that has to do with hormones With the simplest of tests, they can get the total picture of where your hormone levels stand. (Or droop.) This then allows them to create a unique treatment plan tailored to your needs. A plan that could get your sex drive back on track. A plan that could help you lose weight and keep it off. A plan that could even include anti-aging treatments. You want to feel your best? Get the best.

At Denver Hormone Health, you get help head to toe.

Don’t make improbable goals your New Year’s resolutions. Make an appointment at Denver Hormone Health now.  And plan on making 2020 your best year ever.