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Prescription for Happiness: How Understanding Your Body Can Help Improve Your Mental Health

The AHA! Team — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 05:45:48 +0000

Dr. Caroline Leaf – In this podcast (episode #585) and blog, I talk to internist, bestselling author and speaker Dr. Robin Berzin about the relationship between GI health and the mind, why so many people feel gaslit by traditional medicine, the power of functional medicine, what is wrong with women’s health, why we need to change the way we manage our mental and physical health, and so much more! Dr. Berzin is the Founder and CEO of Parsley Health, the nation’s leading holistic medical practice designed to help people overcome chronic conditions. Dr. Berzin attended medical school at Columbia University and trained in Internal Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. She has been named as one of the 100 most innovative women in business by Inc. Magazine and praised by Fast Company for founding one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies. She founded Parsley Health to address the rising tide of chronic disease in America through personalized holistic medicine that puts food, lifestyle, and proactive diagnostic testing on the prescription pad next to medications. Since founding Parsley in 2016, Dr. Berzin has seen 80% of patients improve or resolve their chronic conditions within their first year of care, demonstrating the life-changing value of making modern holistic medicine accessible to everyone, anywhere. Dr. Berzin is incredibly passionate about educating people and teaching them how to advocate for their own mental and physical health. Many people feel gaslit by our current medical system, whose focus is often on specific symptoms or issues they are having in the moment rather than their whole person or life story. But 99% of our health is happening in our lives, not at the doctor’s office! How we live has incredible power over how healthy or sick we are, which is actually great news. It means that we can be proactive when it comes to our own wellbeing. Indeed, contrary to what many people believe, we don’t have to wait till we are sick or for the “wheels to come off” to start improving our health. We can learn how to create and generate health and wellbeing in our minds, regardless of our genetics and environment, which is both empowering and liberating. This is why Dr. Berzin wrote her amazing new book, State Change: End Anxiety, Beat Burnout, And Ignite A New Baseline Of Energy And Flow. A state change is a metamorphosis of your emotional and mental health triggered by a change in your physical health. All too often, our mental and physical health are seen as separate—the former treated by a psychiatrist, the latter by your regular doctor. In this book, Dr. Berzin presents a different approach, one that acknowledges the intricate relationship between our bodies and our minds and how our physical health impacts our mental health. She shows us how taking care of our bodies and understanding our physical triggers can help us rejuvenate and energize our minds. Dr. Berzin’s book is based off her own research and work at Parsley Health, where they do not just treat people’s issues as a one-off thing. Rather, they focus on the whole person, teaching patients how to understand their own bodies, how their environment impacts their wellbeing, and how to advocate for their own health on a day-to-day basis. She is especially passionate about helping women find their voice when it comes to their mental and physical health needs. Even though women play such a large role in our healthcare system, both as professionals and patients, it is estimated that 8 in 10 women delay care until their symptoms worsen or affect their daily lives. Many women find they do not have time to seek medical care for their needs as they are so busy taking care of others, and, when they do seek care, they often feel gaslit by medical professionals, who overlook what they say, are told that it is “all in their heads”, or just offer them another pill for their issues rather than truly listening to what they are experiencing and what they need. This is why taking a functional, rather than just reductive, approach to medicine is so important. We need to focus on the whole person: what they are experiencing, who they are, their environment and so on, because the mind, brain and body are intricately connected. When medical professionals are trained to look at root causes and the whole person, and when they take the time to listen to what their patients are really telling them (which is what Dr. Berzin’s team does at Parsley Health), they are able to connect the dots between different parts of a patient’s brain and body as well as their life, get to the root cause, and give them a roadmap to better mental and physical health. A big part of this process is looking at the gut-brain connection. Our mouth is an opening to the outside world, and our gut has to break down everything we consume for energy and information. The gut also has its own nervous system: the enteric nervous system, which is why the gut is often called our “second brain”. This is why what we eat, what medications we take, what we drink and other environmental factors can have a tremendous impact on both our mental and physical wellbeing. For more on the relationship between your physical and mental health, listen to my podcast with Dr. Berzin (episode #585) and check out her incredible work. Podcast Highlights 1:50 Dr. Berzin’s amazing work 3:20 The power of advocating for your own wellbeing 4:30 The importance of looking at the whole person when it comes to health & wellness 5:45 What is wrong with women’s healthcare 10:45 How our current medical system fails us 14:53, 22:50 Why Dr. Berzin wrote her book State Change 16:00 The relationship between our body & mental health 17:42 How medicine is changing for the better 27:32 The relationship between our gut health & mind 32:13 Metabolism, blood sugar & mental health Switch On Your Brain LLC. is providing this podcast as a public service. Reference to any specific viewpoint or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by our organization. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. If you have any questions about this disclaimer, please contact info@drleaf.com. This podcast and blog are for educational purposes only and are not intended as medical advice. We always encourage each person to make the decision that seems best for their situation with the guidance of a medical professional. To read the original article click here.

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Cordyceps Kill Cancer Cells and Boost Immunity, Studies Suggest

AHA Publisher — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 07:00:30 +0000

Karen Sanders via NaturalHealth365 – In a development that sounds almost as far-fetched as a plot twist penned by a Hollywood screenwriter, some medical researchers are hopeful that a parasitic fungus (cordyceps) found on Tibetan caterpillars may hold the key to ending the cancer epidemic. Today, we’ll take a closer look at how an ancient remedy can help you to reduce the risk of cancer cell growth by improving immune system function. Cordyceps Offer Many Powerful Health Benefits Cordyceps, scientifically known as Cordyceps sinensis, is one of the most important and revered herbal treatments in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) – where it is known as semitake, aweto, yartsu gunbu, and Dong Chong Xia. The first recorded use of cordyceps took place in the 15th century; it was likely used for many centuries before that. Usually prescribed to restore energy, boost the immune system, promote longevity, and improve quality of life, cordyceps has also been used in TCM to treat serious ailments, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney failure. Cordyceps is produced by a strange pairing between insect and fungus. The substance grows from the mummified remains of insect larvae found on the heads of a subterranean caterpillar that lives at high altitudes in the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau. Unfortunately, most commercial varieties have been artificially cultivated due to the expense and difficulty of harvesting natural cordyceps. Major Hospital Recognize the Anti-Cancer Properties of Cordyceps According to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), cordyceps have antitumor, radioprotective, and antidiabetic effects. In addition, MSKCC cites a study in which cordyceps made the cancer medication cisplatin more toxic to lung cancer cells and confirms that cordyceps can also help infection-fighting lymphocytes live longer, increase levels of T helper cells, reduce tumor cell proliferation, and boost the activity of natural killer cells. And, finally, the medical center reports that some studies have shown that cordyceps have caused cancer symptoms to improve, in addition to helping patients better tolerate the rigors of chemotherapy. What Exactly Is in Cordyceps? Despite its bizarre provenance, cordyceps is not only non-toxic but safe and even nutritious to consume. According to the International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms, the fungus contains essential amino acids, several essential B-complex vitamins, and the vitamins E and K. Beneficial fatty acids – including oleic acid, the same healthful monounsaturated fatty acid found in olives – are also present. However, cordyceps’ most significant feature may be its nucleosides. Researchers believe that nucleosides, key signaling molecules in the body, help fight cancer; nucleoside analogs are medically used as anticancer and antiviral agents. In addition, cordyceps contains many nucleosides, including guanidine and guanosine; the most potent – and most studied – of these seems to be 3-deoxyadenosine, which researchers have dubbed cordycepin. Is There Any Proof That Cordyceps Kill Cancer Cells? Although human studies are limited, animal and test-tube research have shown time and time again that cordyceps has the capacity to destroy cancer cells, help normalize low white blood cell count occurring as a result of chemotherapy, and even make certain medications more toxic to cancer cells. In a study published in 2008 in Experimental Biology and Medicine, researchers explored the effects of cordyceps on mice that had low counts of infection-fighting white blood cells in their bone marrow as a result of being given the chemotherapy drug Taxol. Mice given cordyceps daily – for three weeks – had their white blood cell counts restored to normal ranges; the white blood cell counts in the non-cordyceps group were dramatically lower, sometimes by as much as 50 percent. Concluding that cordyceps enhance recovery from clinically-induced leucopenia, the team remarked that the substance positively affects osteoblast differentiation – an essential factor in new bone formation – by acting on proteins and core binding factors that are needed to produce new bone cells. In a cell study published in Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology in 2007, cordycepin extracted from cordyceps had an apoptotic effect on human oral cancer cells – causing them to self-destruct. Researchers used flow cytometry and viability assays to show that the survival of cancer cells significantly decreased with the administration of cordyceps and noted that the effects became more dramatic as the dose and duration of cordyceps increased. Scientists Continue to Identify and Isolate New Beneficial Constituents In yet another test-tube study published in 2009 in Cell Proliferation, scientists isolated two new anticancer constituents from cordyceps and named them gliocladicillins A and B. These inhibited the growth of tumor cells, causing cell self-destruction through extrinsic and intrinsic pathways. Calling the gliocladicillins “effective antitumor agents,” the team called for more study to explore the pair’s use in treating cancer in humans. What Do Natural Healthcare Practitioners Recommend? Cordyceps is currently marketed as a health food supplement and nutraceutical and can be found in health food stores or online. Most practitioners recommend taking between 2 to 3 grams a day with food. Cordyceps is generally considered safe. Of course, you should consult your doctor before taking it, especially if you take blood thinners or medication for diabetes. Don’t use cordyceps to treat cancer unless under the guidance of a well-trained physician. And, of course, make sure you obtain cordyceps from a reputable supplier – as some samples are contaminated with lead. Although a parasitic fungus may seem an unlikely ally in the road to recovering from a cancer diagnosis, cordyceps could turn out to be a very important – and even a lifesaving player. Once again, Mother Nature has supplied a beneficial substance well worth attention and further study. Sources for this article include: NIH.gov MSKCC.org NIH.gov NIH.gov NIH.gov To read the original article click here.

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