Glucomannan Fiber and Green Coffee Bean Extract - Evolutionary!

Back in 2010 my blood sugar numbers were borderline - but I resolved that with a big change in my eating habits. This was not easy to do, it took a lot of discipline. I want to share specifically two new products Arbonne came out with two weeks ago that have ingredients to help control blood sugar, insulin production, and increase metabolism.

A brochure is available which I would be happy to email details and ingredient list - feel free to contact me!

The new Evolution product line are listed in the new catalog for weight management. Arbonne paid the Mayo Clinic to test both products in clinical trials on patients...and Dr. Brent Bauer of the Mayo Holistic & Alternative Medicine Department reported positive benefits to the patients that tried these products, when I attended the training conference in Vegas May 7-9.

The first product is Evolution ThermoBooster. It promotes THERMOGENESIS - which the Mayo Clinic refers to in this non-Arbonne related article, as NEAT (non-excercise activity thermogenesis). Simply put, from my understanding, thermogenesis increases heat in the body to promote an increase in metabolism and the body's ability to burn fat.  

The Evolution Full Control product contains the fiber glucomannan - and in this article blood sugar expert, Dr. Mark Hyman, writes, "soluble fiber can help lower cholesterol, blood sugar, and insulin, prevent cancer, balance hormone levels, remove excess estrogen and reduce the risk of breast cancer, make vitamins and minerals, provide food for the colon cells, and more. So it’s easy to see just how crucial soluble fiber is to good heath!"

"Glucomannan is an ancient fiber source that can help you lose weight, lower your cholesterol, reduce your appetite, and lower your blood sugar more effectively than ANY other fiber."

If you, or anyone you know, is struggling with maintaining blood sugar levels at acceptable, healthy levels - please feel free to pass along the information on these two new products. I encourage anyone to scrutinize and discern for themselves, the information provided in the linked articles and this blog. 

Many people have already been reaping the benefits of weight loss, lowering cholesterol,and reversing type 2 diabetes with Arbonne Essentials...and Arbonne has raised the bar in health and wellness by provoiding these new EVOLUTIONary pure, safe and beneficial products.

If you want to work on lowering blood sugar on your own - my biggest tip, that worked for me, is to CUT THE GLUTEN/WHEAT and eat lots of green plant based foods! Eliminating most processed foods from your diet is also key to reestablishing healthy blood sugar numbers.  

Wishing you the best of health so you can feel great, look great and live great!

Rita S.

Irony of Endorsements

Marketing is everything. Here in the U.S. - we have put our trust into American icons, such as the American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association - believing that our best interest is truly "at heart".
Yet both Dr. Russel Blaylock and Dr. Chris Kressler, and others, divulge in their publications the irony that both organizations put their seal of approval on food products that contribute to both heart disease and diabetes. Have we as Americans bought into this? You bet we do!
For years I thought eating Cheerios was a smart choice - because the heart association said it helps lower cholesterol? Really?  Refined processed flours, simple carbs - contribute more to high cholesterol numbers than a fat, juicy steak!
It boils down to glucose and insulin - simple carbs are treated like table sugar in our body (I learned this from Dr. John Lee in hish book, "What your doctor may not tell you about breast cancer".) To learn more about insulin resistance visit http://insulinresistanceguide.com
I won't get too technical here, but we all know what too much sugar does to our body, right? Well, if simple carbs from refined, processed flours are treated just as table sugar ....big revelation, don't you think? Well, it was for me and this realization is what made me turn my lifestyle around.
The number one food toxin, per Dr Kressler, is cereal grains - especially that made with refined flours. Which is pretty much ALL! In minute amounts its not going to cause sickness and disease, but we as a population eat a greater percentage of cereal grains than all other foods. Kresser titles "Cereal grains - the unhealthiest "health food" on the planet". Wheat, corn, rice, barley, sorghum, oats, eye and millet have become staples in our diet. They have also become, as he puts it, "poster children" of the low fat, high carbohydrate diet promoted by organizations like the American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association. Grains with gluten are the worst as it damages the intestine and makes it leaky - per Kressler. Blaylock concurs in his newsletters as well.
Leaky guts cause things to enter the bloodstream that should not, to put it simply, including undigested gluten proteins. This causes an immune system response that can lead to auto immune disease, allergies and more.
Interesting, don't you think? This certainly helps explain why so many adults develop allergies, Celiac's disease and more. Researchers now believe that one of the major predisposing factors for conditions like obesity, diabetes and even heart disease.
Does this mean give up grains forever? No, not necessarily - I guess that depends on your health and symptoms. For myself, my health turned around when I gave up cereal grains (other than organic quinoa and brown rice) 50%, then 75%, working up to 90% - not missing the breads and such much at all. I have "indulgent days" - such as Friday morning with my daughter at the local coffeehouse and I enjoy a  bakery treat, or maybe a pastry with my family on Sunday after worship.
The real message today - don't believe everything you see on labels at the grocery store. The job of the manufactuer is to MAKE YOU WANT to buy it. What about trusting the AHA and ADA? Food for thought...if we did not eat the same foods they promote, we might put them out of business. The head haunch of the American Cancer Society makes multiple millions a year, no doubt the counterparts in these other organizations do as well.
The bottom line is money, the bottom line is not conceren for our well being, although we trust these endorsements because marketing is such a driving force in our world.
All that I continue to learn certainly has made me take a good look at my charitable giving these past two years. The veil has been lifted and the curtain torn in two, as far as I am concerned.

To your health,
Rita S.

Curbing Insulin Overproduction

My last post addressed insulin, a hormone that when over produced, causes obesity and numerous other diseases. Today I want to share how you can combat the over production of insulin, which many of us over produce daily by age 30 or so. With the current culture of processed foods, junk foods and sweets – I suspect insulin is over produced in many grade school students as well.
Insulin production can be reduced with two primary resources: an obvious one, is food choice. A not so obvious resource that can help in the “battle of the bulge”, is natural, or bio-identical progesterone cream. Progesterone is the only hormone produced by the body that can help reduce the production of insulin, per Dr. Michael E. Platt. Platt, in his book, “The Miracle of Bio-Identical Hormones”, states that progesterone is the only natural hormone that is harmless while being substantially beneficially. (Do not confuse natural progesterone with synthetic, harmful progestin. The media is very misleading and confused by the two.) Platt has helped 1000s of people, who come to him for weight loss, by balancing their hormones and putting them on his low-carb, or carb-free diet (catering to each individuals needs).
Personally, when I began incorporating Prolief natural progesterone cream into my daily journey to regain health, the pounds came off effortlessly. I have said this before, but I lost 80 lbs. without exercise. Now that the weight is off, a bit of exertion feels great instead of painful!

In addition to reducing insulin, a huge benefit of progesterone is that it counters the estrogen. Estrogen LOVES fat cells and not only wants to store itself and retain fat, when over proliferated it can mutate and become cancerous. It all causes inflammation throughout the body - which can manifest into a host of problems. I am a huge advocate for the use of natural progesterone supplementation, for both men and women. As I read Platt's book and chapter on prostrate cancer while on our recent vacation, my husband is interested in using progesterone, even though he has no belly to speak of. Since all men who live past age 70 are bound to have prostrate cancer cells – he figures why even give estrogen the chance to produce those cells when you can combat it early on with progesterone and stay ahead of cancer. It makes sense – we all have cancer cells within us; but it is what we do to and how we counter those cells that will affect how cancer affects us. At age 50 men start to produce less and less progesterone, about 10-15 years later they start to produce less testosterone, and estrogen reaches an all time high. That is not good news! When my husband hits that 50 mark, adding progesterone to his daily routine makes sense.
But I digress – I definitely want to address prostrate cancer as a wholly devoted post in the near future.
Returning to insulin – food choices also control the production of insulin. Carbohydrates are the culprit – so if you want to either lose weight or get off your diabetes and cholesterol meds – cut the carbs! When I changed my food choices I did not turn my life upside down overnight. Again, it is not willpower, but education, that will lead to successful weight loss, or I should say, permanent weight loss, and healthful living.
Start with the obvious – processed foods and junk food. I actually just learned that two of my favorite low-fat snacks, pretzels and popcorn, are actually two of the highest carbohydrate foods! I am not sure what to do about this new found knowledge yet, as I love hot air popped corn. We may have to start snacking on steak bites! (LOL)
Shop around the outer edges of the grocery, but again, watch the frozen foods for breading, read the labels for MSG, and beware of soy additives, which also have estrogenic properties.
Next, limit sweets. Assess how often you enjoy sweets each week…and gradually cut back so it is only once a week, as a reward for making good choices the rest of the week. Keep in mind that fruits high in sugar are also high in carbs. Choose berries as much as possible, which offer a host of other health benefits. Choose Braeburn apples instead of Red Delicious, and choose Granny Smith instead of Braeburn…wean yourself gradually off the sugar. Grapes are extremely high in sugar, but I admit I enjoy red grapes in my salad now and then. I am not telling you to cut sweets 100%, but be aware and reduce. Eating strawberries or grapes is a whole lot more beneficial than a cookie or a muffin, or a candy bar for a mid-afternoon pick up!
Checking off processed foods, junk foods, deep fried an sweets…now comes the one that is most difficult for many – white breads!! When I hear, “I can’t give up my white bread” that tells me the person is more interested in immediate satisfaction than living a healthier life. Quality of life is up to you – and it IS based on the foods you choose, don’t be fooled into thinking it is not. If you don't care enough about yourself to change, consider your family members and what a severe illness would put them through. After seeing a dear friend in the end stages of prostrate cancer last year, it gave me resolve to not put my family through such trials if it can possibly be avoided.
Beyond bread…simple carbs include white potatoes, rice, PASTA and a multitude of breads such as bagels, English muffins. All carbs produce insulin, but simple carbs produce more than complex carbs, such as brown rice, quinoa, and other vegetables. Complex carbs take longer to digest and process within the body, and therefore the insulin release is more graduall than a spike you get with simple carbs. Reducing breads is often the most challenging – ease in to it. Substitute. The “brown” or multi-grain varieties that you “abhorred” previously will actually grow on your tastebuds, as soon as your brain, programmed to crave the simple carbs and sugars, weans itself off the chemicals that trigger the cravings for unhealthful, past choices. Nowadays, if I indulge in a pastry or such, it is distasteful as my brain no longer craves it. Often it tastes like lard - yuck!
Want a taste of how delicious eating to lower insulin can be? Check out this recipe for grilled kabobs!

Bon appetite!
Rita S.