Dr. Linda Page's Weblog

Ready for your Spring Cleanse?

Time for a Spring Cleanse!

A “spring cleanse" is a wonderful breath of fresh air for your body after a long, closed-in winter. I believe a spring cleanse is an important vitality technique no matter how healthy you are. Even though you may exercise during the winter to keep trim, our bodies still reflect the ancient seasonal need to harbor more fat for warmth and survival during winter. Even in modern times, many days without sunshine and vitamin D mean that our bodies are less able to utilize nutrients properly.

Keys to Spring Cleanse success

Focus on fresh plant foods, herbal broths and juices for 3 days, especially have:
1. High chlorophyll superfoods like chlorella and spirulina for enzymes and blood purification
2. Fruits and vegetables for fiber
3. Cultured foods for probiotics
4.  Eight glasses of water a day.

The evening before your spring cleanse…
1.  Take your choice of gentle herbal laxatives like Herbal Laxa caps.
2.   Have a light salad with plenty of greens.

The next 3 – 5 days…
On rising: take a cleansing and flushing booster product, or 1 heaping teaspoon of a fiber drink in juice or water. Add 1000mg vitamin C with bioflavonoids 3x a day to raise body glutathione levels, an important detox compound.
Breakfast: take your choice of fruit juices.
Mid-morning: take a small glass of potassium broth, or 2 tbsp. aloe juice concentrate in juice or water, or a superfood green drink like Energy Green Renewal; or a cup of green tea or Green Tea Cleanser.
Lunch: a fresh carrot juice; or raw sauerkraut or a seaweed salad (in natural or asian food stores)
Mid-afternoon: take a glass of fresh apple juice; or an herbal cleansing tea.
About 5pm: take another small potassium broth, a fresh carrot or vegetable juice, or a superfood green drink.
Supper: take miso soup with 2 tbsp. dried sea vegetables (dulse, nori, etc.) chopped over the top.
Before Bed: repeat the herbal cleansers that you took on rising, and take a cup of mint tea.

On the last night of your cleanse…
Finish your cleanse with a small green salad with fresh sprouts on the last night.

Warmer weather tends to lower our appetite needs; it prompts more activity and movement, and stimulates cleansing processes. Nature has designed the perfect time for a spring cleanse!

To Life-long health,

Linda

Revitalizing Liver Health

Your liver may be the last thing you’re thinking about right now, but the truth is your life depends on your liver. More than any other organ, the liver enables us to benefit from the food we eat.  The liver is really a wonderful chemical plant that converts everything we eat, breathe and absorb through the skin into life-sustaining substances.

Did you know that the health of your liver is related to your immune strength? The liver is responsible for more than 1500 functions that directly maintain your immune system. It produces interferon, the body’s natural germ killer, which activates white blood cells that destroy and eliminate disease-causing toxins. It’s also intricately involved with hormone balance because it’s the liver’s job to metabolize hormone excesses that lead to disease.

Since the Standard American Diet (SAD) is high in calories, fats, sugars, and alcohol, with unknown amounts of toxic substances from preservatives, pesticides and nitrates, almost everyone has some degree of liver stress.

Look for the following liver exhaustion signs and symptoms: unexplained fatigue, depression; a distended stomach even if the rest of the body is thin; frequent colds and flu; dark circles under the eyes; food and chemical sensitivities; PMS. Anemia, large bruise patches, and jaundiced skin can indicate severe liver exhaustion.

A gentle Liver Detox can revitalize liver health. Sluggish digestion and fatigue usually improve right away. You may notice fewer instances of swollen glands and infections during the cold and flu season. Weight and cellulite control difficulties are often reduced as built-up toxins are released. In many cases, the skin and eyes actually become more radiant!

To Life-long Health,

Linda Page

Weight Loss Success After the Holidays

During the holidays, most of us overindulge in sweets. Sugar cravings are the downfall of many well meaning dieters. I know from experience that once you start binging on sugary foods, it's hard to stop. Overeating sugar can lead to serious consequences such as hypoglycemia and diabetes. Further, sugar raises insulin levels too much, your body’s signal to make fat, bad news for weight loss.

Do you need to control sugar cravings?

• Do you binge on junk foods, especially fatty and sugary foods?
• Do you eat all of your calories at one meal?
• Do you have second and third helpings at a meal but still feel hungry?
• Do you experience a wired feeling that is only relieved by eating sweets?
• Are you easily frustrated, and moody with frequent crying spells?

If you answered yes to 3 of the 5 questions above, then a sugar craver's weight loss program may be right for you. First, add 2 apples to your diet every day for stabilizing fiber. Second, drink more water to get over diet plateaus. Dehydration slows resting metabolic rate (RMR) and can cause waste products like ketones to build up.

Featured products

 Weight Loss Kit #2- Sugar Craver's Control: herbal weight loss program to help your body overcome your greatest weight loss obstacle: the need to control your sugar cravings.

Green Tea Cleanser: A cleansing, energizing tea that revitalizes and refreshes your body. Possesses broad range anti-oxidant activity and boosts metabolism.

For the best results, use sugar sparingly, on special occasions for longevity and better health.

To Lifelong health,

Linda Page

Menopause- Taking Control Of Your Life Change

By 2015, almost half of all American women will be in menopause. Will the temperature of the planet rise from all the hot flashes?! Menopause is intended by Nature to be a gradual reduction of estrogen by the ovaries with few side effects. In a well-nourished, vibrant woman, the adrenals and other glands pick up the job of estrogen secretion to keep her active and attractive after menopause. While almost 90% of women experience some menopausal body changes and hormonal fluctuations, most only last a year or two and are not severe enough to interrupt their lives. Still, our modern stressful lifestyles and poor eating habits mean that many women reach their menopausal years with prematurely worn out adrenals and poor liver function where estrogen is not being processed correctly, so hormone fluctuations are magnified.

Hormone Replacement Therapy

There’s a firestorm of controversy about synthetic hormone replacement. Premarin, an estrogen replacement drug for menopausal women made from pregnant mare’s urine, is one of the top selling drugs in the U.S.  The threat of breast and uterine cancer is dramatically increased with HRT, and the risk increases as a woman ages. In an action that received wide media attention, U.S. government scientists halted a July 2002 study on hormone replacement because it was such a threat to the participants’ health. Increased risk of invasive breast cancer, heart disease, stroke and pulmonary embolism (blood clots in the lungs) were all cited as reasons for halting the study. The drugs being tested included Premarin, Prempro and Provera. In hopeful news, some research finds that the higher risk for breast cancer diminishes, even largely disappears when a woman is off HRT treatment for five years.

What’s The HRT Connection To Osteoporosis?

HRT is still strongly promoted for osteoporosis prevention. Many menopausal women are so afraid of osteoporosis that with a little coaxing from their physicians they begin taking hormone drugs right away. Of those, about 60% discontinue the therapy because of side effects or fear of cancer! There is no question that hormones are involved in bone-building and bone loss, but declining estrogen levels after menopause do not by themselves cause osteoporosis. Although some studies show estrogen inhibits bone cell death, the newest tests reveal that as many as 15% of women on estrogen therapy continue to lose bone! Moreover, estrogen isn’t the only hormone involved in bone building. The hormone progesterone actually increases bone density in clinical tests. Low androgen levels of DHEA and testosterone also play a role in bone loss.

All About BHRT (Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy)

With celebrity endorsements from Suzanne Somers and Oprah Winfrey, today bioidentical hormones are an incredibly popular approach to relieve menopausal symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats and low libido. One reason is bioidentical hormones avoid high doses of estrogen common to conventional HRT drugs like Prempro. Early research suggests they may even be safer with less breast/uterine cancer risk than traditional drugs. Common side effects like weight gain and mood swings are often reduced, too.

How Are Bioidentical Hormones Unique?

Bioidentical hormones are synthesized from plant sources and are chemically identical to what is produced in the body. Estradiol, estrone, estriol, DHEA, progesterone and testosterone are all available. Some bioidenticals are FDA approved and sold in a standardized dosage. However, most are produced on a case-by-case basis. Your physician tests your blood or saliva in order  (sometimes at different times of day) to develop the formula for you to reach a targeted level of hormones. A compounding pharmacist then produces a customized hormone Rx in the exact proportions that your body needs.  

Menopause The Natural Way

80 percent of postmenopausal women in the U.S. do not use any form of HRT at all! Beyond increased cancer risk, HRT can have many unpleasant side effects. Women taking hormone drugs report weight gain (especially fatty deposits on the hips and thighs), heavy bleeding (worse than former menstrual periods), PMS-like pain, severe leg cramps, migraine headaches, uterine and breast fibroids, and low libido.

 Unless you have specific, extenuating circumstances (only about 6% of American women do), a natural menopause may be the best. Even women who don’t have a symptom-free menopause say they feel younger and more energetic when they address menopausal changes, naturally. If you are about to be confronted with the great HRT choice, consider carefully before you agree. Symptoms that accompany menopause are due to the body’s difficulty in adapting to its new hormone functions. Many are positively influenced with natural approaches like whole herb formulas and bodywork therapies. If you’re experiencing a hormone roller coaster, with hot flashes, mood swings, vaginal dryness and low libido, check out my newest book release, Healthy Healing 14^th Edition for much more information on the natural way to “keep the change!”

To Life-long health,

Linda Page

Food Allergy Solutions

Food allergies and sensitivities are one of the fastest growing forms of allergic reactions in the U.S. today. Well over 35 million Americans suffer from food allergies. The numbers of people who suffer from sensitivities to wheat or gluten-containing products are even higher.

Wheat/gluten sensitivity symptoms to watch for:

• constipation/diarrhea/abdominal pain
• hypoglycemia
• skin flushing (especially in children)
• swollen stomach
• fatigue or unexplained weight gain
• congestion or frequent infections

The increase of gluten sensitivity is believed to be related to many things: an aging population; an increase in consumption of treated, refined grains; low Hcl (hydrochloric acid); and an overload of prescription and over-the counter drugs that damage the digestive tract.

The effects of undigested or partially digested food in the gut is devastating. The gut wall becomes more permeable and undigested proteins begin leaking out into the bloodstream. The immune system sees the protein particles as invaders, causing inflammation and the food allergy response. Gluten proteins (found in wheat) are especially difficult to process and are a main factor in Celiac disease, a type of malabsorption that causes intestinal problems.

What's Left After You've Eliminated Wheat?

Eliminating wheat or gluten may seem like an impossible task, but there are many healthy options available at any health food store to ease the transition. A few options are: rice (red, brown, wild), chickpea, amaranth, corn, millet, oats (not tolerated by all celiacs), and quinoa.

Herbal Digestive Helpers for People Sensitive to Grains

• For gluten intolerance: Candida Detox caps--especially if there is unexplained weight gain.
• Cleanse the G.I. tract: Bitters & Lemon extract before meals; BWL-Tone I.B.S. caps to soothe irritated bowel; or aloe vera juice each morning.
• Produce antihistamines: Anti-HST caps, good for seasonal allergies as well.
• Add a proteolytic enzyme formula: Use a high protease formula between meals like Dr. Enzyme with Protease & Bromelain or Papaya enzyme chewables.

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Real whole grains offer important health benefits. They're a good source of complex carbohydrates for slow calorie burning and increased energy. Their protective fiber, antioxidants and plant chemicals may even help deter cancer and heart disease. To reap the benefits, switch to organic, real whole grains from the health food store. It may help correct a wheat sensitivity and is certainly a better answer for health.

-Linda

Brown Rice Cleanse

A brown rice cleanse is especially useful for dropping a few quick pounds, and it’s a great way to transition from an unhealthy diet into a better diet. A brown rice cleanse is based on macrobiotic principles for body balance. It’s cleansing, yet filling. You don’t feel like you’re on a cleanse at all, yet it does the trick. It’s a diet that uses rice as a nutrient building food, and vegetables and vegetable juices as concentrated cleansing supplements. A brown rice cleanse is high in potassium, natural iodine, and other minerals, so most people notice improvement in their hair, skin texture and nail growth

A brown rice diet is the best cleansing diet for colder times of the year. Brown rice adds a building, warming factor to a cleanse, making your meals more satisfying, ensuring that you get plenty of fiber and minerals. It’s an effective option to a juice cleanse and much easier to fit into your lifestyle.

Almost everybody loses some weight during this cleanse. Many people experience a 2 to 5 pound weight drop. Most people notice an improvement in vitality and energy levels right away, too. People with heart problems regularly notice a more stable heartbeat and better circulation. A fiber-rich cleansing diet with sea veggies, that eliminates meat and dairy protein, almost invariably lowers the risk of cardiovascular problems.

 Is your body showing signs that a brown rice cleanse would help you?

—Is your immune response low?

—Do you feel like you need to clear cobwebs from your brain? Are you feeling logy and out-of-sorts?

—Do you need to lose about 10 pounds?

7-Day Brown Rice Detox Plan

            The night before your brown rice cleanse....

            A green leafy salad for dinner sweeps your bowels.

            The next day....

            —On rising: take a glass of 2 fresh squeezed lemons, 1 tbsp. maple syrup and 8-oz. of pure water.  

            —Breakfast: have an energy green drink: 6 carrots, 1 beet, 8 spinach leaves and ¼ cup fresh parsley. 

            —Mid-morning: take a cup Cleansing & Purifying tea or burdock tea. 

            —Lunch: have a veggie juice like Super V-7: 2 carrots, 2 tomatoes, a handful of spinach leaves and parsley, 2 celery ribs, ½ cucumber, ½ green bell pepper. Add 1 tbsp. green superfood, like spirulina or chlorella.

            —Mid-afternoon: have a glass of carrot juice.

            —Dinner: have steamed brown rice and mixed steamed vegetables. Sprinkle with sea veggies like dulse or kelp, easily purchased in flakes or granules. Use 1 tbsp. flax or olive oil, and 1 tbsp. Bragg’s Liquid Aminos.

            —Before Bed: have a cup of herbal tea such as peppermint, spearmint or chamomile.

            —The next 6 days: have 2 to 3 glasses of mixed vegetable juices throughout the day. Don’t eat any solid food during the day. Have steamed brown rice and mixed vegetables for an early dinner each evening.

.  7-day brown rice cleanse supplement suggestions: Choose 2 or 3 cleansing boosters.

          …Cleansing boosters: Herbal Laxa caps stimulate rapid waste elimination.

          …Cleansing teas: Green Tea Cleanser or Cleansing & Purifying tea, both gentle enough to take on a daily basis.

          …Enzymes, a detox’s best friend: Dr. Enzyme with Protease & Bromelain.

1 to 3 Day Intense Fat and Sugar Cleanse

For 1-3 days:

—Upon rising: have a cup of Green Tea Cleanser to cut through and eliminate fatty wastes. For maximum results, add drops of ginseng extract to control sugar cravings, or licorice extract for maximum sugar stabilizing.

—Breakfast: have a Fat Melt Down Juice: juice 2 apples, 2 pears, 1 slice of fresh ginger to help reduce fat from places where it is stored in cellulite. The ginger stimulates better blood circulation.

—Mid-morning: have a daily superfood drink like Energy Green drink mix. Green superfoods help cleanse the body of fatty build-up.

 —Lunch: enjoy a mixed vegetable juice, like Knudsen’s Very Veggie. Even regular, low sodium V-8 juice works fine.

—Mid-afternoon: Enzymes are a dieter’s best friend! Take a glass of papaya-pineapple juice, or green tea. Add Dr. Enzyme caps for extra enzyme activity. 

 —Dinner: Have some miso soup with chopped seaweed. Seaweeds add minerals and improve sluggish metabolism. Add spices like cinnamon, cayenne, mustard and ginger to speed up the fat burning process.

 —Before bed: have apple juice, or licorice or peppermint tea to rebalance and restore normal body pH.

  Watchwords:

 

  •Add more fiber from whole grains and vegetables to get rid of excess sugar. High fiber foods improve glucose metabolism, promote weight loss and reduce sugar cravings.

  •A 15 minute dry sauna 3x a week really helps balance sugar levels. When I worked at a European spa, we used this technique for weight loss and blood sugar problems with great results!

  •Expert dieters drink 8 glasses of water a day. Water naturally suppresses appetite and helps a high metabolic rate. Water is the most important catalyst for increased fat burning. It enhances the liver’s ability to detox and metabolize so it can process more fats. Don’t worry about fluid retention; high water intake decreases bloating, because it flushes out sodium and toxins.            

 1-3 Day Intense Fat and Sugar Cleanse supplement suggestions:

  …Essential fatty acids:  Without essential fatty acids (EFA’s), poor fat metabolism is certain. Control excess fluid retention with EFA’s. Flax Oil -1 or 2 tbsp. over a salad; Evening Primrose Oil, 2000mg daily; CLA, an Omega-6 fatty acid with fat-burning properties, 1800mg daily.

  …Appetite suppressants: Fat & Sugar Detox formula especially helps prevent overeating fatty and sugary foods while your body releases the excess it has.

 

Intense Fat and Sugar cleanse bodywork suggestions:

Enema: Take an enema the first day of your excess fat cleanse to help release toxins out of the body.

 

Exercise: Exercise promotes an “afterburn” effect, raising metabolic rates for up to 24 hours. Exercise before a meal raises blood sugar levels and decreases appetite for several hours. Exercise for women with the little tummy bulge that appears at menopause? 100 hard tummy sucks each morning. It works!

Dry brushing: Fatty wastes get trapped beneath the skin’s surface easily (especially in women) when the liver or lymphatic systems are sluggish. Use a natural bristle brush - brush vigorously 5 to 10 minutes in a rotary motion and massage in this order: feet and legs, hands and arms, back and abdomen, chest and neck.

 

Massage: Have a massage therapy treatment at the end of your cleanse to move excess fluid wastes and unattached fats into elimination systems, and to stimulate skin circulation.

Bathe away excess fats: Hot Seaweed Bath; or a sea salt bath: add 1 cup Dead Sea salts, 1 cup Epsom salts, ½ cup regular sea salt and ¼ baking soda to a tub; swish in 3 drops lavender oil, 2 geranium drops  oil, 2 drops sandalwood oil and 1 drop neroli oil.

To Life-long health,

Linda Page

 

Thermogenesis is critical to weight loss after 40.

Thermogenesis is about fat burning. About 75% of the calories you eat work to keep you alive and support your resting metabolic rate. The rest are stored as white fat, or burned up by brown adipose tissue, (BAT), your fat-burning factory. Brown fat is the body’s chief regulator of thermogenesis, so the more active your brown fat is, the easier it is to maintain a desirable weight. Dieters who rely solely on restricting their calorie intake usually end up disappointed, because extreme calorie restriction lowers the rate of thermogenesis. Your body actually burns less fat than it did before you started dieting.  People who yo-yo on and off low calorie diets have even more problems. When a yo-yo dieter begins to increase calorie intake after dieting, their metabolic rate does not return to pre-diet levels, so they store more calories as fat than they did before they started!

Middle-aged spread means you’re not burning enough calories after you eat. Everybody increases metabolism after eating, but the amounts of heat (thermogenesis) vary widely. Lean people experience a 40% increase in heat production after a meal. Overweight people may have only an increase of 10%. Obesity occurs primarily when brown fat isn’t working properly, only a little thermogenesis takes place, and the body deals with the excess calories by storing them as fat. During mid-life years, starting in our early 40s, a genetic timer shuts down the thermogenic mechanism. Turning this timer back on is the secret to re-activating thermogenesis and a more youthful metabolism.

Here’s how brown fat works to stimulate thermogenesis: A protein, called uncoupling protein, breaks down, or uncouples, the train of biochemical events that the cells use to turn calories into energy. Brown fat cells continue to convert calories into heat as long as they are stimulated, and as long as there is white fat for them to work on. Brown fat activity is also self-perpetuating, because it energizes more uncoupling proteins, produces more brown fat cells, and results in substantially more excess calories being burned off as heat through thermogenesis.

Research into the genetics of obesity shows that some people are not born with enough brown fat. People who eat lightly but still can’t lose weight, gain more weight in middle age because the little brown fat they did have is reduced even further. Thermogenesis research demonstrates that it is possible to reverse this aberration. Thermogenic herbs have been successful at reactivating brown fat in middle age. They can increase calorie burning without additional diet changes or exercise, although these things offer added benefits.

1. Thermogenic herbs increase blood flow to lean muscle tissue, so it works faster and longer.

2. Thermogenic herbs suppress appetite. You eat less with less effort. 

3. The longer you take thermogenic herb formulas, the more effective they tend to become, because they help your body produce enough thermogenic activity to make a difference.

Thermo Thinner caps activate your calorie burning energy, burn fats and help curb your appetite. If you put on pounds from poor assimilation, add Dr. Enzyme with Protease & Bromelain.

To Life-long health,

Linda Page

 

Update on H1N1 (Swine flu)- Should You Vaccinate?

In the last few weeks, my inbox has been flooded with your questions on H1N1 and whether getting the H1N1 vaccine is a good idea. While the choice to vaccinate is clearly a personal one, here is some information to help arm you in making the right choice for you and your family.

The threat of a H1N1 outbreak is real. Experts predict that the H1N1 (swine flu) could infect 30-50% of the population. Still, it is important to remember that most cases in the U.S. so far have not been serious. Normal seasonal flu kills as many as 36,000 people a year, compared to 556 U.S. deaths currently linked to H1N1.

Yet, the CDC is recommending vaccination for all high risk groups like: health care workers; pregnant women; children and young adults 6 months to 24 years old; parents of babies under 6 months old; and adults with underlying medical conditions like diabetes, asthma, and lung disease. The first doses of the nasal spray vaccine will be available in early October 2009. While we still have much to learn about the swine flu vaccine, there are some concerns with its usage.

Known reactions to the H1N1 vaccine
Flu-like symptoms
Guillain Barre syndrome (a nerve disorder causing muscle weakness and paralysis)
Dangerous for those allergic to eggs
The H1N1 vaccine may contain toxic adjuvants like squalene, linked to inflammatory disorders.

A strong immune system is your really your best defense against any flu. You can use your diet and whole herbs to supercharge your defenses without great risks or side effects. Even if you do choose to vaccinate, a healthy lifestyle is still critical for seasonal flu defense.

To Life-long Health,
Linda Page

Featured products:
Anti-Bio caps: First-aid responder, now with anti-viral support.
Virex caps: Stimulates lymph system to remove pathogens.
Dr. Enzyme with Protease and Bromelain- This potent blend of proteolytic enzymes helps reduce inflammation and purify the bloodstream so the body can get better--naturally.

Do you have a cold or flu? Take this self-test.

Colds and flu are distinct and separate upper respiratory infections, triggered by different viruses. The flu is more serious, because it can spread to the lungs, and cause severe bronchitis or pneumonia. In the beginning stages, the symptoms of colds and flu can be similar. Nose, eyes and mouth are usually the sites of invasion from cold viruses. The most likely target for the flu virus is the respiratory tract.

A Cold Profile looks like this:

• Slow onset. No prostration.

• Body aches—largely due to the release of interferon (an

immune stimulator).

• Rarely accompanied by fever and headache.

• Localized symptoms such as sore throat, sinus congestion,

listlessness, runny nose and sneezing.

• Mild to moderate chest discomfort.

• Sore or burning throat common.

A Flu Profile looks like this:

• Swift and severe onset.

• Early and prominent prostration with flushed, hot, moist skin.

• Usually accompanied by high (102° -104°) fever,

headache and sore eyes.

• General symptoms like chills, depression and body aches.

• Extreme fatigue, sometimes lasting 2-3 weeks.

• Acute chest discomfort, with severe hacking cough.

• Sore throat occasionally.

If you have a lingering cold that you can’t seem to get over. Try this tried and true method used for over 2 decades.

For 3 days:

Drink 3 cups of Cleansing and Purifying tea or dandelion root tea to release congestion. Take 6 capsules daily of Herbal Laxa caps to eliminate the excess mucous that keeps harboring the infection. This method removes the bacteria that keep seeping back into your body from your colon and bowel, and reinfecting you.

If you’re feeling under the weather, please make sure to get plenty of rest. Light exercise is better than intense exercise during a cold or flu.

To Life-long health,

Linda Page