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Intro

I promised last week that I would go over the supplements this week. I did that at the bottom, but I thought you might be interested in this subject. Sometimes I am asked why I am focusing on blood sugar. Blood sugar is something we can control. However, it is also something that goes beyond just avoiding sugar. There are aspects of our diet that greatly contribute to weight gain and blood sugar issues. Have you or do you know someone who has gone to Europe, eaten more, and lost weight? Have you ever gone on a diet, counted calories, made yourself miserable, and after weeks of torture and tofu, found you only lost 2 pounds? Well, this may be part of the answer. Read on and hopefully, you will find value in this week’s post.

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Understanding Cellular Inflammation: The Hidden Barrier to Your Health

When most people think of inflammation, they picture redness, swelling, and pain – the classic signs of an injury or infection. But there's another type of inflammation that's not so obvious, yet it could be silently affecting your health in profound ways. This is cellular inflammation, and understanding it could be the key to unlocking better health, easier weight management, and improved overall well-being.

What is Cellular Inflammation?

Cellular inflammation occurs at the microscopic level, inside the cells of your body. Unlike acute inflammation, which is a visible and often painful response to injury or infection, cellular inflammation is subtle and chronic. It's like a slow-burning fire inside your cells that, over time, can lead to various health issues.

This type of inflammation doesn't cause obvious symptoms like redness or swelling. Instead, it operates behind the scenes, potentially interfering with your body's normal functions. Think of it as a constant, low-grade irritation within your cells that can cause damage over time without you even feeling it.

The Impact of Cellular Inflammation on Health

Cellular inflammation can affect your health in numerous ways:

1. Weight Management: If you've ever struggled to lose weight despite doing "everything right," cellular inflammation might be the culprit. It can interfere with your body's ability to process and burn fat efficiently. When insulin is present (storage hormone) you will not burn fat for energy. You are in storage mode.

2. Hormone Imbalances: Inflammation can disrupt your body's delicate hormone balance, affecting everything from your mood to your metabolism.

3. Blood Sugar Control: Cellular inflammation can make it harder for your body to regulate blood sugar levels, potentially increasing your risk of diabetes. You may have impaired glucose uptake where inflamed cells can reduce the expression of glucose transportation making it harder for glucose to enter cells. This means that your blood sugar remains higher.

4. Mood and Motivation: Surprisingly, inflammation can even affect your brain, potentially contributing to mood disorders and decreased motivation. There are several pathways that can affect mood. Sugar in general can cause energy fluctuations which effect mood.

5. Men's Health: For men, cellular inflammation can lead to decreased testosterone and increased estrogen levels. This hormonal shift can result in symptoms like erectile dysfunction, muscle loss, and decreased drive – issues often mistakenly attributed solely to aging.

6. Increased Cortisol Production: Chronic stress and inflammation can increase cortisol production, disrupting metabolic function and promoting fat storage and once again reducing fat metabolism or burning.

7. Increased Glucose Production: Inflamed cells can increase the production of glucose through gluconeogenesis, raising blood glucose levels.

Common Causes of Cellular Inflammation

Several factors can contribute to cellular inflammation:

1. Diet: Consuming too much sugar, alcohol, and processed foods can trigger inflammation at the cellular level. These foods can cause a cascade of reactions in your body that ultimately lead to cellular stress and inflammation.

2. Lifestyle Factors: Chronic stress and lack of sleep can both contribute to cellular inflammation. When your body is constantly in a state of stress, it can lead to increased production of inflammatory compounds.

3. Environmental Toxins: Exposure to pollutants, chemicals, and other environmental toxins can trigger inflammatory responses in your cells.

4. Food Sensitivities: Eating foods that you're sensitive to, even if you don't have an immediate allergic reaction, can cause low-grade inflammation. These are often IgG-mediated reactions, which are delayed and can be harder to identify than immediate allergic responses.

Signs and Symptoms of Cellular Inflammation

Because cellular inflammation operates at such a microscopic level, it can be hard to detect. However, there are some signs you can look out for:

1. Elevated Heart Rate: An unexplained increase in your resting heart rate could be a sign of cellular inflammation.

2. Fatigue: If you're constantly feeling tired despite getting enough sleep, inflammation could be to blame.

3. Joint Pain or Stiffness: Unexplained aches and pains, especially in your joints, could be a result of cellular inflammation.

4. Difficulty Losing Weight: If you're eating well and exercising but still struggling to lose weight, cellular inflammation might be interfering with your body's metabolic processes.

Case Study: The Weight Loss Struggle

Here's a real-life example that illustrates the impact of cellular inflammation:

A patient was struggling to lose weight despite making significant dietary changes. He had eliminated alcohol, processed foods, and sugars, but after almost six weeks, there was very little change in his weight. One interesting observation was that his heart rate was consistently elevated, hovering in the mid-80s.

Despite the lack of visible results (the scale may have fluctuated 1-2 pounds), the patient persisted with his dietary changes. Eventually, his pulse rate began to drop, settling into the mid to lower 70s. Interestingly, it was around this time that the patient suddenly began to lose weight rapidly, eventually stabilizing at a healthy weight.

This case demonstrates how cellular inflammation (indicated by the elevated heart rate) can act as a barrier to weight loss. As the inflammation reduced (shown by the lowering heart rate), the body was finally able to respond to the healthier diet and shed excess weight.

How Cellular Inflammation Affects Your Body

Cellular inflammation can impact your body in several ways:

1. Insulin Resistance and Weight Gain: Inflammation can make your cells less responsive to insulin, leading to increased blood sugar levels and difficulty losing weight. When insulin is high, or present, you are in storage mode. You can not and will not utilize your fat storage for energy.

2. Hormonal Disruptions: Inflammation can interfere with hormone production and signaling. For men, this can lead to decreased testosterone and increased estrogen, potentially causing issues like erectile dysfunction, muscle loss, and decreased drive.

3. Metabolism and Energy Production: Inflamed cells are less efficient at producing energy, which can lead to fatigue and a slower metabolism.

Fighting Cellular Inflammation

The good news is that there are several steps you can take to combat cellular inflammation:

1. Dietary Changes: Adopting an anti-inflammatory diet, such as the Mediterranean diet, can be highly effective. Focus on whole foods, plenty of fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats like those found in olive oil and fatty fish. Deep-fried doesn’t count as a healthy fat. why is that? I will tell you down below

2. Lifestyle Modifications: Managing stress through techniques like meditation or yoga, and ensuring you get adequate sleep, can help reduce inflammation.

3. Supplements: Certain supplements can help fight inflammation. Omega-3 fatty acids, turmeric, and high-quality extra virgin olive oil are all known for their anti-inflammatory properties. I will address more of these below.

4. Address Food Sensitivities: Consider working with a healthcare professional to identify and eliminate foods that may be causing low-grade inflammation in your body.

The Importance of Addressing Cellular Inflammation

Tackling cellular inflammation can have far-reaching benefits for your health:

1. Improved Weight Management: As inflammation decreases, your body may become more responsive to diet and exercise efforts.

2. Hormonal Balance: Reducing inflammation can help restore hormonal balance, potentially alleviating issues like decreased testosterone in men without the need for hormone replacement therapy.

3. Better Overall Health: By reducing cellular inflammation, you may lower your risk of various chronic diseases and improve your overall well-being.

4. Cost-Effective Health Management: Addressing cellular inflammation through diet and lifestyle changes is often more cost-effective and has fewer side effects than medications or hormone therapies.

Conclusion

Cellular inflammation may be invisible, but its effects on your health can be significant. Understanding this hidden process and taking steps to combat it can potentially unlock improvements in your weight, energy levels, hormone balance, and overall health.

Remember, the journey to reducing cellular inflammation is a gradual one. It takes time for inflammation to build up in your body and time to reduce it. But with consistency and patience, you can make meaningful changes to your health at the cellular level.

Whether you're struggling with weight loss, dealing with unexplained fatigue, or a man experiencing symptoms of low testosterone, consider cellular inflammation as a potential root cause. By addressing this underlying issue, you may find the key to unlocking better health and vitality.

I mentioned supplements last week that I wanted to expand on this week. I will put links to each if you want to see which companies I recommend. You have an account through fullscript with 10% if you choose to buy any.

Berberine

Stabilizes blood sugar, improves insulin sensitivity, and reduces glucose production in the liver. Some studies have shown it is more effective than Metformin at stabilizing blood sugar. Possibly due to effects on the gut biome.

Dosage: studies show a range between 1000-1500mg per day.

Milk Thistle

This is essential for helping restore liver function. In fact, it’s not a bad idea to take this during the holidays if you are caught up in the holiday season and making too much merry.

Dosage: range is 200-400 taken 2-3 times per day (totaling 200-400mg). I prefer milk thistle over just taking the active ingredient silymarin.

Creatine (local health store)

This one is interesting. There is a lot of research coming out that creatine is helpful in so many ways. Especially energy. It helps with hepatic triglyceride accumulation (fatty liver), supports the liver, and improves energy metabolism. The studies are interesting. Here are a few more reasons to consider taking creatine: Increases brain creatine levels, potentially improving cognitive function, especially in older adults

• May help with mood and depression in some cases

• Potential therapeutic applications:

• May benefit those with muscular dystrophy by improving muscle strength

• Could help manage symptoms in Parkinson's disease and ALS, though more research is needed

• Might support heart health by lowering triglycerides and homocysteine levels

• General health:

• Acts as an antioxidant

• May improve glucose control

• Could support bone health and reduce bone loss

There is more. Not bad for an inexpensive supplement.

Dosage range: 3-5g

Carnitine (local health store)

most people get enough, especially if you eat meat. However, if you have a fatty liver studies have shown, you may be up to 30% deficient. What does it do? It enhances fatty acid oxidation, supports mitochondrial function, and improves metabolism. This is another inexpensive one.

The dosage is 1-3 g

Choline

I don’t think most people need this one but if you are deficient you may have trouble with fat metabolism. It is essential for fat metabolism and transport. It also reduces fat accumulation in the liver. Studies show that people with a fatty liver often have a deficiency of choline but it’s not known which came first.

Dosage: 500-1000 mg daily an egg, which is a great source of choline has about 147mg. Although there is almost none in the egg whites

Turmeric

excellent anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. Also supports the liver. This one is great for overall longevity. This one, you need to be careful about the company you choose. There is a lot that comes from China and contains lead. Not to mention it’s a difficult one to absorb and should be combined with other herbs that improve its absorption.

Dosage 500-1000 daily. I prefer the whole herb over just taking curcumin (the active ingredient)

Black Cumin Seed Oil

antioxidant properties, improve lipid profiles and support overall metabolic health. That doesn’t sound too exciting so let me add this. In traditional medicine, it was said that black cumin seed oils cure everything but death.

Dosage: 500- 1000mg daily. One word of caution. I once tried the liquid. I couldn’t get it down. It was bad. I will show you wish one I choose instead.

Ashwagandha

Reduces cortisol levels, manages stress, and may support testosterone levels. This one is a regulator. It balances.

Dosage: 300-600 daily

Magnesium

most people are deficient in Mg. It supports muscle function, energy production, and hormone balance. Magnesium is essential for a wide range of bodily functions, participating in over 300 biochemical reactions. Here are some of the key functions that require magnesium:

1. Muscle and Nerve Function: Magnesium helps maintain normal muscle and nerve function, including the relaxation and contraction of muscles

• Blood Pressure Regulation: It plays a role in regulating blood pressure by helping blood vessels relax

• Blood Sugar Control: Magnesium aids in maintaining normal blood glucose levels

• Energy Production: It is crucial for the production of energy at the cellular level

• Protein Synthesis: Magnesium is involved in the synthesis of proteins

• Bone Health: It helps maintain bone density and supports the metabolism of calcium and vitamin D, which are vital for bone health

• DNA Repair and Synthesis: Magnesium is necessary for the synthesis and repair of DNA

• Immune System Support: It supports a healthy immune system

• Heart Health: Magnesium helps maintain a steady heartbeat and is involved in preventing arrhythmias

• Enzyme Reactions: It is a cofactor in more than 300 enzyme systems that regulate diverse biochemical reactions in the body, including those involved in protein synthesis, muscle and nerve function, blood glucose control, and blood pressure regulation

If you are taking Mg now, go check your bottle. Make sure you are not taking magnesium oxide. If yours has magnesium oxide, toss it. It’s not worth taking unless you have constipation. I can’t overstate how important Mg is. If you are a smoothie type of person, you can try Dr Ronda’s recipe

Dosage: 300-400 mg daily as a reference: 1 oz of pumpkin seeds has 156mg and 1 cup of cooked spinach has 157. Dark Chocolate(85% cocoa) has 65 mg per 1oz

Vitamin D

first.. more is not always better. Vitamin D is a vitamin but acts more like a hormone. You can take too much. Your skin makes vitamin D but that diminishes with age. It is important in brain health, mood, muscle function, weight management, immune system, bone health, blood pressure regulation, heart health, cognitive function, and more.

Dosage: well that is tricky. I have seen ranges from 600 IU to 4000 IU. Daily exposure, without sunscreen, does produce vitamin D. It’s difficult to know how much is needed, so I would make this suggestion instead. Most labs give you a reference range between 30-100. For functional medicine that is a bit too wide. I like to see it between 35-50. Also, keep in mind, that foods like salmon have up to 900 IU per 3.5 grams. Supplements are not always needed but if your numbers are low, it can be more convenient to add it in with foods rich in vitamin D.

Honorable Mention: Taurine

There has been a lot of research lately about taurine and its ability to improve health across the board. It has been shown to increase the life span in mice and improve health in almost every way. Taurine decreases as we age and it is being looked at as a possible cause for aging. As it relates to our subject of inflammation, blood sugar, and liver health: Liver health and fatty liver:
Taurine has shown protective effects against both chronic and acute liver injury. It can help preserve liver function and prevent hyperammonemia, a harmful consequence of liver damage. Studies indicate that taurine supplementation can reduce hepatic fatty deposition and regulate hepatic fat metabolism

Cellular inflammation:
Taurine has demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects in the liver. In animal studies, taurine supplementation significantly lowered inflammatory markers. It also reduced C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, another marker of inflammation

Blood sugar regulation:
While not explicitly mentioned in the search results, one study noted that lower taurine levels in humans have been associated with an increased prevalence of type 2 diabetes This suggests that taurine may play a role in blood sugar regulation, which might possibly explain why blood sugar regulation problems increase with age.

Antioxidant properties:
Taurine has been shown to enhance antioxidant enzyme activities in the liver, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and catalase (CAT). This antioxidant effect can help protect liver cells from oxidative stress and damage.

Metabolic benefits:
Taurine plays an essential role in metabolism and digestion by helping the liver create bile salts, which are crucial for breaking down fatty acids in the small intestine

Dosage: the range is between 500-1000mg/daily. for reference, Scallops have 827 mg per 3.5 oz.

I am not suggesting you take all of these. Hopefully, you don’t need all of these. I am only presenting them so you know what you can do and how to improve your health. I would prefer that you get your vitamins and minerals from food. The better you eat, the less you need to supplement. Unfortunately, as we age, absorption is often a limiting factor. I don’t care how you get it in, but get it in. Take Mg as an example. if you eat foods rich in Mg, it’s not needed as a supplement, but if you are dealing with blood sugar issues and your diet is not the best. It might be wise to supplement while trying to add in foods rich in Mg.

why are fried foods not counted as healthy fats? Remember oils don’t like heat or pressure. That is why olive oil doesn’t come in clear glass containers. That oil is that fragile. McDonald’s uses and reuses its oil over and over. It uses a combination of oils. Canola oil, Corn oil, Soybean oil, and Hydrogenated soybean oil. If you saw Canola oil before they deodorized it and chemically washed it, you would not eat it. Damaged oil increases inflammation

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