Trudy Scott Anxiety Nutrition Solutions & Every Woman Over 29

Mitomics – genetics of the mitochondria and food based antioxidants like curcumin

August 7, 2017 By Trudy Scott 2 Comments

Dr. David Haase, a functional medicine doctor and a leader in the field of genetics and genomics, covers mitomics in this very interesting interview on the upcoming Interpreting Your Genetics Summit which runs August 21-28, 2017.

Mitomics is the genetics of the mitochondria themselves. The mitochondria have their own set of genes. And that’s often given a lot of importance because we get our mitochondria from our mothers and therefore we inherit this genome from the mother and we get our mother’s energy per se.

But when you step back a little bit, you recognize that the genetics of the mitochondria are not just nuclear. It’s not just thirty-seven genes that hang out in the mitochondria, but rather, there is over a thousand genes that are in the nucleus that control the proteins or make proteins and influence the mitochondria at great levels. I’ve used a company called Courtagen who do whole mitome analysis. And in individuals with chronic fatigue syndrome or bizarre multi-system dysfunction, this is instrumental in giving a new plan of action to address.

He shares the story of a patient who had had chronic pain, fatigue and irritable bowel syndrome (a mitochondrial symptom)

She had tachycardia, palpitations, some dizziness. And so we actually did a whole mitome analysis on her and we found that she had a uniqueness in something called the TRAP1 related disease. I think it’s clever because the acronym is T1RED.

And this TRAP actually codes for a protein, which is a chaperone to the mitochondria and it’s involved in antioxidant defenses. And what’s been shown is that individuals with this TRAP1 related disease will be queasy, they’ll have pain and they’ll be fatigued and highly aggressive.

But when we found that she had this heterozygote for this particular abnormality – and it was associated with her having a lot of oxidative stress and elevation of hydroxyguanidine, which is a marker of genetic damage and oxidative damage, and elevations in her CK [creatine kinase], which was a marker of muscle injury. We went into this very intense antioxidant program with a lot of food-based antioxidants: sulforaphane, curcumin, resveratrol, CoQ10 and alpha-lipoic acid.

We went after this as aggressively as I think I’ve ever gone after this in a single patient with doses that are in excess of what I would typically use. And she had a remarkable recovery.

I share this snippet because with the tachycardia (an abnormally fast resting heart rate of at least 100 beats per minute) and palpitations, you may think it’s anxiety with a root cause such as low GABA or low serotonin or high cortisol or even Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, when in fact these symptoms are caused by mitochondrial TRAP-1 related disease.

I hope you can join us on Interpreting Your Genetics Summit, August 21-28, 2017. You can register here.

Here are some other reasons to attend:

once you register you’ll have immediate access to these interviews: Epigenetic Mastery for Everyone from Andrea Nakayama, CNC, CNE; The Current State of Genetics from Jeffrey Bland, PhD; and Your Genetics and Autoimmune Diseases with Dr. Tom O’Bryan, DC, CCN.
my digital ebook is available to you if you choose to purchase the series: Anxiety, Benzodiazepines and Your Genetics
as part of the lead up to the event, summit host, James Maskell will even be doing three of his own genetic tests and getting them interpreted by speakers from the summit

James Maskell has gathered world-renowned leaders from genetics, genomics and functional medicine and this promises to be a cutting-edge online event. These pioneering experts are on the front lines interpreting genetic data!

Hope to “see you” on the summit.

UPDATE August 11: I just went to the site and see this message today “Courtagen has closed its diagnostic laboratory and will no longer be accepting samples.”

They have a link to this press release of July 18 so it’s a brand new change: “Courtagen Life Sciences Inc. announced today that the company will be shifting the core focus of its business to medicinal cannabis genetics and testing. As the company reorients its business to respond to the growing opportunities in the medicinal cannabis industry, the company has made the decision to wind down its diagnostic neurology testing division.”

GABA: an amino acid supplement for neurotransmitter support and anxiety relief

August 4, 2017 By Trudy Scott 44 Comments

I recently attended the first international meeting of International Society for Nutritional Psychiatry Research and was honored and thrilled to present my poster – GABA: an amino acid supplement for neurotransmitter support and anxiety relief

Because you were not able to be there, here are the contents of my poster word for word.

GABA overview

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is a calming neurotransmitter. Low levels of GABA are associated with anxiety, agitation, stress, panic attacks and poor sleep, with sufficient GABA levels providing feelings of calm and relaxation (1).

GABA is also an amino acid and is available in supplement form. Earlier GABA research suggests that taken orally, it cannot cross the blood-brain barrier and enter the brain in amounts substantial enough to have a calming effect.

However, there is now much clinical evidence indicating that supplemental GABA (especially in a sublingual form), can ease anxiety symptoms (2, 3). There is also more recent evidence to support the effectiveness of oral GABA as a supplement for neurotransmitter support and anxiety relief.

GABA mechanisms and the blood brain barrier

The blood brain barrier is more dynamic than assumed in the past:

… and some passage of solutes can occur by transcytosis, carrier-mediated transport, or simple diffusion of hydrophobic substances (4)

Neurotransmitters as food supplements – the effects of GABA on brain and behavior:

We suggest that any veridical effects of GABA food supplements on brain and cognition might be exerted through blood brain barrier passage or, more indirectly, via an effect on the enteric nervous system. (5)

Client feedback on GABA’s calming effects

I have taken Xanax in the past for panic attacks. My functional medicine doctor suggested [GABA]. I was amazed how it works just like Xanax – instant calm feeling within 10 mins of taking 2 capsules. I use them as needed when I am having heightened stress and anxiety.

[GABA] helps lower my overall anxious feeling all day (anxiety for no reason).

I usually take [GABA] at night when I know I need it, to quiet my mind and relax my body so I can sleep better.”

I did something I thought I would never be able to do – I drove further than I have in over 5 years (not solo yet), which gives me a lot of hope of regaining my independence. I’ve had no panic attacks and so many improvements since I started taking the amino acids. I take the GABA before I’m in any of the situations (like driving) that might trigger anxiety and its working! I couldn’t be happier!

[GABA] changed my life in minutes! I take it every day now. No more hopelessness! (6)

Effective forms of GABA

The author has found the following to be effective:

125mg of GABA combined with 25 mg tyrosine, 50mg glycine, 20 mg taurine, as a sublingual lozenge – this is the most effective form the author uses with clients
300mg GABA, 150mg l-theanine – a capsule opened and used sublingually is more effective than swallowed
200mg PharmaGABA chewable – this form is preferred by some individuals

Dosages of the above are determined via a trial with the client and individualized to their unique needs and biochemistry.

If GABA is low, the client knows within 5 -10 minutes if the GABA supplement is helping to reduce anxiety symptoms, provided the trial is done with a sublingual form.

GABA is frequently used with other nutrient support and always in addition to dietary changes.

Phenibut is not used by the author due to concerns about dependence, tolerance and withdrawal. (7)

Conclusion

The ISNPR (International Society for Nutritional Psychiatry Research) consensus position statement on nutritional medicine in modern psychiatry, supports dietary modification and recognizes the need for nutrient-based support that may include amino acids. (8)

GABA is clinically effective for anxiety, and new theories have been suggested with regards to the mechanism of action. However, we still have much to learn about the behavioral effects of supplemental GABA for neurotransmitter support and anxiety relief. (5)

References

Lydiard, R. B. 2003. The role of GABA in anxiety disorders. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 64(3):21-27.
Ross, J. 2004. The Mood Cure: The 4-Step Program to Take Charge of Your Emotions – Today. New York: Penguin.
Scott, T. 2011. The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood, and End Cravings. Oakland: New Harbinger
Steenbergen, L. et al. 2015. γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) administration improves action selection processes: a randomised controlled trial. Scientific Reports. 5: 12770.
Boonstra, E. et al. 2015. Neurotransmitters as food supplements: the effects of GABA on brain and behavior. Frontiers in Psychology. 6:1520.
GABA, the calming amino acid: products and results (accessed July, 25, 2017)
Samokhvalov, A. V. et al. 2013. Phenibut dependence. BMJ Case Reports. doi: 10.1136/bcr-2012-008381.
Sarris, J. et al. 2015. International Society for Nutritional Psychiatry Research consensus position statement: nutritional medicine in modern psychiatry. World Psychiatry. DOI: 10. 1002/wps.20223

It was very encouraging to see the interest in my poster and this topic of GABA for anxiety! I shared how I use GABA with a number of psychiatrists, some dietitians, a psychiatric nurse practitioner, a number of researchers, and a number of nutritionists and health coaches.

I’m really pleased to have had the opportunity to meet so many amazing researchers and hope to be able to collaborate on research.

Please let me know if you have questions and do share if you use GABA personally or use it with clients/patients.

Electromagnetic frequency pollution and wireless: a significant risk factor for disease

July 23, 2017 By Trudy Scott 23 Comments

…it’s my deepest belief that electromagnetic frequency pollution, especially coming from most of the wireless devices used today, is a significant risk factor for disease”
~ Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt, during his interview on the Immune Defense Summit

Dr. Klinghardt is founder of the Klinghardt Academy, the American Academy of Neural Therapy, medical director of the Institute of Neural Biology, and lead clinician at the Sophia Health Institute shares this:

All the research points to the fact that it’s the cumulative effect of all the sources of Wi-Fi. We have the Wi-Fi router in the home; unfortunately, most of the cordless phones that are used in the US are also based on Wi-Fi technology. And they use 900 MHz, and they’re broadcasting 24/7 into the rooms in the home. Then we have the baby monitors, a huge source. And then the alarm systems in the house. And the new source, of course, the new kid on the block, is the smart meters…which create devastating amounts of radiation in the home, usually in a sheet that kind of goes horizontally through the house on the level where the smart meter is.

This is an in-depth interview and one of the best I’ve heard on the topic of EMFs and wireless technology and the dangers! He covers mercury containing compact fluorescent lights; Wi-Fi in schools; the responsible use of the cell phone; the impacts of this wireless technology on autism and insomnia, GABA and anxiety levels; how mold becomes more virulent in the presence of Wi-Fi; and how heavy metals in the brain can make you much more susceptible to microwave and wireless technology; how moisture contained in your mattress makes it a microwave receiver and more.

He doesn’t expand on the insomnia mechanisms but because he mentions GABA I would assume using GABA as a supplement would help with both anxiety and sleep issues, in a similar way GABA helps with Lyme anxiety and GABA protects against fluoride-induced hypothyroidism. This is an area I’m going to be researching further but clearly we want to be removing the source of exposure and not use GABA as a band-aid but rather as a tool to address the low GABA levels and anxiety/insomnia in the interim.

Dr. Klinghardt shares so much about how to protect yourself on the Immune Defense Summit. Here is some advice on how to protect your home from the incoming radio waves from the cell phone towers nearby, and from the neighbors:

We recommend the German system building biology. They have developed wall paints that can be applied to outside the home or inside the home with a graphite paint that’s electroconductive. It creates a faraday cage, basically, that needs to be grounded into the ground wire of your electric system, and shielding curtains that are made from silver coated cloth that deflect the incoming radio waves. That’s pretty much what we do with all of our clients.

He also offers the following tips for reducing exposure:

a sleep sanctuary that looks like a mosquito net that’s put over the bed that reduces the radiation to one-ten thousandths on the inside of it
only switch it on the Wi-Fi router if you need it – if you’re actually doing something with it
Stetzer filters

and much much more.

I was surprised that Dr. Klinghardt didn’t mention the Blushield devices which I learned about recently at the Sydney MINDD conference. I’m going to be following up with him to find out what results he has seen with these protective devices and will report back.

I do hope you can join us! Click here to register. The summit runs July 24-31

Be prepared – this interview is not for the faint of heart – Dr. Klinghardt is direct and to the point and doesn’t hold back.

Feel free to post questions and share your tips and experiences with EMFs and wireless in the comments.

Trudy’s coconut seed bread recipe (modified from The Real Meal Revolution)

July 21, 2017 By Trudy Scott 27 Comments

My favorite “bread” and the only one that I can actually eat right now is a coconut seed bread that I bake myself. I adapted a recipe from Tim Noake’s wonderful book The Real Meal Revolution, a recipe book from where I grew up – South Africa.

Why I modified the recipe

I opted to leave out the sunflower seeds and almond flour because of the higher levels of oxalates in these seeds and nuts. I have an oxalate issue right now but I’m also concerned with all the nuts that I see in Paleo recipes. Another possible issue for someone with anxiety and low zinc is the high copper levels in nut flours.
I typically don’t add sugar or anything sweet to baked goods so just left out the stevia/xylitol
I love coconut anything so why not try all coconut flour – it worked out great!

The ingredients and recipe for my version

0.5 cup ground flax seeds (freshly ground)
1.5 cups coconut flour
2 tablespoons psyllium husk
250g / 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
6 organic or pastured eggs
10ml /2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
0.5 teaspoon sea salt

Grind the seeds and mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl.
Mix the wet ingredients and combine with the dry ingredients using a wooden spoon.
Pour into a loaf pan that has been greased with butter.

Bake at 350 F/ 175 C for 50 minutes. I check it at 40 minutes and then take it out at 50 minutes once it starts to look brown on top and on the sides (I use a glass/pyrex loaf pan).

How to enjoy it?

It’s lovely eaten right away, warm and with loads of butter. I slice it thinly and keep a few slices in the fridge and freeze the rest in batches to use as needed through the next few weeks. It freezes really well and needs about 30 minutes to thaw at room temperature.

A few days a week I’ll have a slice with butter (I love butter!) and soft-boiled eggs, topped with whatever fermented vegetables we have on hand, and a side of avocado and left over vegetables from dinner the night before.

In case you’re curious, on this particular day, I used Kehoe’s Kitchen Fermented Paleo Mustard Pickles (it has a lot of cauliflower) and Kehoe’s Kitchen Beetroot & Ginger Sauerkraut. Both of these products are firm favorites in this household!

Similar products in the USA are made by The Brinery or FireFly Kitchens (just search online for “organic fermented vegetables”). Or make your own!

Remember if you buy fermented vegetables make sure to get them in the refrigerated section of the store. They need to be RAW in order to get all the benefits of the good bacteria for gut health and balancing your microbiome, and ultimately helping with reducing anxiety and depression.

The original recipe

Here is the original recipe from Tim Noake’s book (I don’t have the recipe book in hand right now as it’s still packed away with our move but I think this is the original)

0.5 cup ground flax seeds (freshly ground)
0.5 cup ground sunflower
1 cup almond flour or coconut flour
2 tablespoons psyllium husk
250g / 1 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
6 organic or pastured eggs
10ml /2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
0.5 teaspoon sea salt
Pinch stevia or teaspoon xylitol

Optional: Cinnamon, caraway seeds, pumpkin seeds, various chopped nuts and/or cranberries/raisins

Tim Noakes and anxiety and depression success stories

Here is some additional information about The Real Meal Revolution. It started out as a Banting recipe book and has grown into a movement in South Africa. Banting is similar to Paleo but does include dairy. My darling sister gave me a copy of this very popular book on one of my trips back to visit family and I really like it! It is fastest selling cook book in South African history with over 200,000 copies sold and is now available internationally in the UK, Australia and New Zealand.

In this blog post about anxiety and depression success stories when eating Paleo and grain-free, Alice shared this about her change to a Banting way of eating:

Three days after I stopped eating grains, my chronic depression lifted and has never returned (it’s three years later now). I had been a vegetarian most of my life, discovered in my early 50s that I was gluten intolerant, went off grains, started banting (Cape Town craze!) and have never felt better. Gut, mood, bones, energy, skin … all better!

Let us know if you try this recipe and enjoy it and do share some of your favorite fermented vegetable companies or recipe books.

And do let us know if you do better on a grain-free diet.

International Society for Nutritional Psychiatry Research: 2017 conference

July 21, 2017 By Trudy Scott Leave a Comment

This is the first major international meeting of the International Society for Nutritional Psychiatry Research and will be held July 30 – August 2, in Bethesda, MD, USA. The conference will comprise:

Plenary presentations from leading international researchers
State of the art symposia and free oral presentations from researchers and clinicians
Multidisciplinary workshops for psychiatrists, psychologists, dietitians, nutritionists and other health professionals
An exciting social program

This meeting will reflect the broad spectrum of research, from the sub-cellular to translation and implementation science. There will also be a strong focus on basic science and the biological processes and factors that underpin the links between diet, nutrition and mental health, including the brain-gut-microbe axis, immunology and metabolic processes and molecular science. The program will cater to the interests of researchers and clinicians from the fields of public health, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity and dietetics, as well as psychiatry and psychology.

I’m excited to have the opportunity to hear and meet so many amazing food/nutrient and mental health researchers, many of whom I’ve referenced in my book and shared on my blog and in presentations:

Food mood /microbiome researcher, Professor Felice Jacka, President, International Society for Nutritional Psychiatry Research
Microbiome researcher, Professor John F. Cryan
Micronutrient researcher, Julia Rucklidge
Sugar and trans fats researcher, Professor Almudena Sánchez-Villegas, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
Nutraceuticals researcher, Professor Jerome Sarris;
Hypoglycemia/anxiety researcher, Monique Aucoin ND and so many more!

I’ve been accepted to do a rapid fire presentation on gluten-free/Paleo diet for anxiety and will also be presenting a poster on GABA/amino acids for anxiety. What an honor!

You can find the program information here.

This is a conference for health professionals but I’m pleased to announce that the Sunday sessions are OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

More information and registration for INSPR 2017 here.

The Antianxiety Food Solution: This Book Is a Total Game Changer!!

July 21, 2017 By Trudy Scott 7 Comments

I write multiple blogs each week and the website is a wealth of information (be sure to check the comments too – I love the community feedback and questions and learn so much from you!) BUT the foundation of all that I teach and how I work with my anxious clients is outlined in great detail in my book The Antianxiety Food Solution, so I recommend this essential reading to make the basic food changes (for some people that’s all they need to do), and before using any of the nutrients, and especially before using targeted individual amino acids.

Valerie Gangason posted this wonderful review on Amazon recently: This Book Is a Total Game Changer!!

If you have anxiety, panic attacks or phobias, read this book. It’s an eye opener and a complete game changer. It pushed me to re-evaluate the way I eat and to make some serious shifts in my life. FYI-sugar is the devil

I love the comment about sugar being the devil and commend her for re-evaluating how she eats and for making those serious shifts. It’s how you get results and I ever get tired of feedback like this.

Grab your copy from Amazon here if you don’t yet have it. If you already have a copy I’d love a review on Amazon please! And if you have an older copy with no index you can grab a copy of the index here

Feel free to share your great results or ask questions in the comments.