everywomanover29 blog

Food, Mood and Women's Health – Be your healthiest, look and feel great!

zinc

30 Experts Share Their Best Advice for Brain Health by Jordan Fallis

By Trudy Scott 4 Comments

Jordan Fallis of Optimal Living Dynamics reached out to some of his favorite cutting-edge health practitioners and researchers and asked them one question:

What is the one piece of advice you would offer to people who want to improve and optimize their brain health?

I was thrilled to be one of the people he reached out to. This is my response:

This a tough question and I can think of many things such as eating sardines or other oily fish for the omega-3 benefits; eating pumpkin seeds as a great source of zinc and tryptophan (both great for anxiety and depression); dumping the bread and cookies due to the inflammatory effects of gluten on the brain and body; and eating grass-fed red meat as a great source of zinc, omega-3s and iron, all of which are needed for brain health. 

But if I had to pick only one piece of advice, I would say to optimize gut health because of the very strong gut-brain connection. This means healing a leaky gut with an amino acid like glutamine; improving the microbiome by eating fermented foods like sauerkraut; improving protein digestion with enzymes; cooking and eating quality food at home; chewing our food slowly, and addressing issues like candida, parasites, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and dysbiosis.

In addition to the above, I always trial the use of targeted individual amino acids such as calming GABA, mood-boosting tryptophan and DPA, and addressing nutritional deficiencies with nutrients like zinc, vitamin B6, iron, magnesium and so on. You may need to also address Lyme disease, mold, heavy metals and many of the other possible biochemical causes of anxiety and depression.

Here are some snippets from a few of my favorite quotes:

  • Kelly Brogan: the brain “does not understand modern chemicals, processed foods, and industrial pollutants. It also doesn’t understand chronic stress, poor sleep, minimal movement, and indoor living”
  • Hyla Cass: “don’t follow a low-fat diet! Make sure to get sufficient fats and protein. Avoid trans fats, but eat healthy fats like omega 3’s found in fatty fish, and medium chain triglycerides from coconut oil”
  • Sayer Ji: “Turmeric is one of the most remarkable neuroprotective and neurorestorative agents yet identified”
  • Max Lugavere: “…there’s simply nothing like exercise for the brain.”
  • Gwen Olson: “Do your own due diligence before taking any pharmaceuticals. Put the name of the drug into a search engine followed by the words ‘controversy’ and ‘side effects’”
  • James Greenblatt: “As vitamins and minerals serve as co-factors in almost every enzymatic reaction in the brain, it is important to assess for adequate nutrient levels regularly to ensure that you are optimizing brain health”

You can read all the inspiring and valuable responses on Jordan’s blog: 30 Experts Share Their Best Advice for Brain Health. You’ll see some common themes: stress, the gut, exercise, real food, sleep and nutrients.

When I asked Jordan how he knew of me and my work he shared this:

I found you through Sean Croxton’s Depression Sessions. When that first came out, I was in the middle of my journey, trying to restore my own mental health. It was great timing. So I immediately purchased it and watched all the videos for more solutions.

I already knew about pyroluria, as I had read Dr. William Walsh’s book Nutrient Power at that time. But it was great to see you talk about it and bring it to light! And I believe I was taking just regular B6 before your talk. So then I switched to P-5-P. I continue to take P-5-P and zinc picolinate regularly.

I’m so thankful I’m feeling better and have my life back, so I’m going to work really hard to share everything that helped me. I just feel like I need to do that 🙂

I really appreciate that Jordan wants to share everything that has helped him and this article is a perfect way to do this.

Here are some additional resources for you on pyroluria, the social anxiety condition he mentions above:

I hope you enjoy these resources from me, Jordan and all the experts he reached out to!

I’d love to hear what you have found to be the best brain advice you have received and implemented?  

 

Nutrition solutions for psychological stress after a natural disaster

By Trudy Scott 8 Comments

There is much that can be done nutritionally in support of psychological stress and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) during and after a natural disaster. I’ve written this blog for you if you’ve been impacted by the recent storm and flooding due to Hurricane Harvey in the Houston area (the pictures of people returning home are so sad), and for everyone impacted by Irma and about to be impacted by Irma. This is for you if

  • you had to be rescued and had to evacuate your home, are displaced and/or saw neighbors in trouble, have lost your belongings and home – and anything else that may have happened during this natural disaster
  • you have been involved in on-the-ground rescue efforts or working online helping with rescue efforts and you have working long hours, not getting enough sleep and likely not eating well
  • you had a loved one in trouble and feared for their lives
  • and if you’re on observer feeling distressed by what you have witnessed

You may be feeling on edge and anxious about the future, fearful about losing your job, worried about expenses and the chemical soup of flood waters you were exposed to, exhausted and yet not able to sleep, feeling overly emotional and weepy, having nightmares and flashbacks and feeling frazzled.

I wasn’t even in Texas and my contribution was a very small one, helping online rescue efforts from Australia via a volunteer rescue group created by McCall McPherson, but I felt really burned out after just a few days and quite distressed by some of the rescues we were trying to facilitate. I have had to really walk my talk and implement some of what I’m sharing here even though I would consider myself resilient because my nutrient balance is good.

B-Complex for everyone

My first recommendation is a B complex and if this is all that can be managed it would be my first choice for everyone. In fact, if you live in an area prone to hurricanes, flood, fires etc. I’d recommend being on a B complex all the time.

My colleagues Bonnie Kaplin and Julia Rucklidge published this paper in 2015: A randomised trial of nutrient supplements to minimise psychological stress after a natural disaster. They share that:

After devastating flooding in southern Alberta in June 2013, we attempted to replicate a New Zealand randomised trial that showed that micronutrient (minerals, vitamins) consumption after the earthquakes of 2010-11 resulted in improved mental health. Residents of southern Alberta were invited to participate in a study on the potential benefit of nutrient supplements following a natural disaster.

Fifty-six adults aged 23-66 were randomised to receive one of the following for 6 weeks:

  1. vitamin D as a single nutrient
  2. a B-Complex formula or a
  3. broad-spectrum mineral/vitamin formula

The study participants monitored changes in depression, anxiety and stress via self-reporting. All of the above 3 groups showed substantial decreases on all measures. However, those consuming the B-Complex and the broad-spectrum mineral/vitamin formula showed significantly greater improvement in stress and anxiety compared with those consuming the vitamin D alone, with the results being similar for the group using the B-Complex and the broad-spectrum mineral/vitamin formula.

The authors report that:

The use of nutrient formulas with multiple minerals and/or vitamins to minimise stress associated with natural disasters is now supported by three studies.

Further research should be carried out to evaluate the potential population benefit that might accrue if such formulas were distributed as a post-disaster public health measure.

I would love to see either a B-Complex or broad-spectrum mineral/vitamin formula be given out to everyone as part of relief efforts for all natural disasters.

The B-Complex used in the study was made by Douglas labs but other similar B-Complex products would be fine too.  I happen to use Designs for Health B Supreme with my clients.

The broad-spectrum mineral/vitamin formula in the study was EmpowerPlus made by TrueHope.

From: A randomised trial of nutrient supplements to minimise psychological stress after a natural disaster

Vitamin D based on levels

In the above study, some participants in the vitamin D group did see benefits and it’s likely to have been those who were low in vitamin D at the time of the flooding since other research supports a connection between low vitamin D and anxiety and depression. I like to see vitamin D results before recommending supplementation.

Serotonin, GABA and endorphin support based on symptoms and a trial

As well as a B-complex and/or vitamin D, I’d also consider the following neurotransmitter support on a case by case basis, and after doing the amino acid questionnaire and a trial of each amino acid:

  • Serotonin support with Lidtke tryptophan or Lidtke Tryptophan Complete or Lidtke Combat Stress (a tryptophan product formulated for stress support) – especially if you’re feeling sad, worried, resolving to try and feel positive, imagining the worst, feeling fearful and having problem sleeping. I blogged about tryptophan products last week.
  • GABA support for physical tension and an increased need to self-medicate with alcohol in order to stay calm. New research shows that reduced plasma levels of GABA observed in PTSD could be considered as a possible biomarker for PTSD severity. This is not something I typically look at but it’s something I will be considering going forward. I blogged about some specific GABA products earlier this week.
  • Endorphin support with Lidtke DPA if you’re feeling especially emotional and weepy.

Serotonin and GABA play a role in stress resilience and when we have enhanced stress resilience mechanisms we have the ability to adapt more successfully to stressful situations like natural disasters.    

Additional adrenal support if needed

The adrenals are part of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis (HPA) and also need nutritional support after stress and trauma. I recommend a good adrenal support product with rhodiola, Vitamin C, pantothenic acid, eleuthero and ashwagandha. Designs for Health Adrenotone is a good product.

If it’s known that cortisol levels are high then the addition of Seriphos and/or a lactium product (such as Biotics Research De-Stress) helps to lower high cortisol, reduce anxiety and help with insomnia.

Additional pyroluria support if needed

It is well known that pyroluria symptoms are made worse in times of heightened stress. If you are on protocol for pyroluria, additional zinc and vitamin B6/P5P is likely going to be needed short-term too.

Essential oils

Essential oils like lavender and citrus are wonderful for the stress, anxiety and sleepless nights. An animal study reports that passively inhaling orange essential oil could potentially reduce PTSD symptoms in humans

 

Some other considerations include the following once things start to get back to some kind of normal:

I would recommend a similar approach for any natural disaster or in fact for any other traumatic event, always working individually with each person.  

If you have found some approach to be particularly useful for you please do share it.

And if you have any connections for getting this information into the hands of public health officials and non-profits offering aid please let me know. I feel that protocols similar to this one need to be made available to everyone subjected to a natural disaster.

I wish you and your families much healing and a speedy recovery.

Additional resources

I added these additional resources after September 20, 2017:

If you have links to additional useful resources please let me know and I’ll add them.

Low zinc and low GABA contributing to anxiety in children and women

By Trudy Scott 18 Comments

low-zinc-gaba-video

Dr. Nicole Beurkens and I sit down together at the end of the recent Integrative Medicine for Mental Health conference to talk about anxiety and the impact of both low zinc and low GABA. Nicole shares her perspectives on working with children and I share what I see with the adult women I work with. We don’t specifically talk about older adults or men but it’s applicable to everyone.

Dr. Nicole Beurkens PhD, a special educator, clinical psychologist and nutritionist, is author of the new book Life Will Get Better: Simple Solutions for Parents of Children with Attention, Anxiety, Mood and Behavior Challenges

In case you’re new to my community, this is my book: The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood, and End Cravings

Here are some of the highlights from our conversation about zinc:

  • Zinc is a very common deficiency and can be a contributing factor in both anxiety and ADHD
  • Zinc is depleted by sugar consumption, stress and exercise
  • Zinc sulfate used as a zinc challenge is one way to determine your zinc status
  • Nicole’s response to the zinc challenge: fuzzy, strong yukky taste – which means good zinc levels
  • Most people coming to the booth had very little reaction to the zinc challenge – which means low zinc levels
  • Level 1, 2, 3 and 4 are used to figure out your zinc status (you can read about the zinc taste test here)
  • My response to the zinc challenge: metallic, gross, horrible and I got goosebumps – – which means good zinc levels
  • Nicole shares that most of kids and young adults at her clinic have level 1 or level 2 zinc status, and it’s an easy test to do with kids
  • Many people at the conference were on zinc and were surprised they were not tasting the zinc sulfate. Other than sugar consumption, stress and exercise, low HCl (stomach acid) can affect your absorption. I also found that many of these folks were on a gluten-free or Paleo or GAPs diet and eating a lot of nuts or using nut flours. Nuts are high in copper and this can counteract the zinc.
  • We talk about the importance of good quality zinc supplements and finding a zinc product and multi that is copper-free. Here are the products I recommend.

Then we talk about GABA Calm, a calming amino acid that we both love! Here are some of the highlights from this section:

  • It’s a lozenge/sublingual, is easy to take and helps in situations where the anxiety can quickly escalate into panic attacks. Nicole likes the peppermint flavor and finds many of the children and young adults she works with prefer the orange flavor. Personally I also prefer the orange flavor.
  • For adults, if you use wine at the end of the day to de-stress, you may be low in GABA and self-medicating, and using something like GABA-Calm often helps.
  • Moms will take their GABA Calm with them and use as needed and give to their kids if needed too.  
  • I share how effective it is for Lyme anxiety and how it can be used instead of benzodiazepines (I interviewed Trish about this on the recent Anxiety Summit)
  • GABA Calm can help when you’re on a benzodiazepine and even very severe anxiety or depression can be alleviated with diet and nutrients.
  • Nicole shares how common benzodiazepine prescriptions are in teens and young adults; and the issues with dependence and wanting to quit but not being able to. It can sometimes take years to reduce the medications.
  • I share about the first World Benzo Awareness Day on July 11 – so many people are in trouble and are not cautioned.

We were both so encouraged being at this conference and seeing so many physicians, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, psychiatric nurse practitioners and others practitioners who are really interested in learning more about these approaches. They are seeing the same issues we see with some of the medications (and not getting to the root cause of anxiety) and they are excited to expand their knowledge base. It’s just so exciting to see the pendulum swinging!

We both really appreciate the Integrative Medicine for Mental Health conference. If you’re a practitioner and haven’t attended it’s a must-attend event. If you were there you know what I mean. It was also super to meet so many of you after my talk and at my booth. If you’re not a practitioner do tell your doctor about it. Save the date for 2017: September 28 – October 1 in Orange County, California.

We did this as a live video feed on Facebook hence the references to posting questions and Facebook. It was also the end of the event and the people next to us were packing boxes and using a lot of tape so apologies for the weird noises.  

Feel free to share your results with zinc and GABA Calm and any questions you may have.

Zinc deficiency alters chick gut bacteria makeup and function

By Trudy Scott 11 Comments

chick-gut-mulfunction

A press release published by Cornell University shares research that has found that zinc deficiency alters gut bacteria makeup and function:

The researchers used broiler chickens in the study, partly due to their omnivorous appetites – which allowed the researchers to feed them purified diets – and because of their fatty acids and genetic similarities to humans.

There is a great diagram in the actual study: Chronic Zinc Deficiency Alters Chick Gut Microbiota Composition and Function. It explains the proposed mechanisms by which a zinc-deficient gut microbiome may perpetuate a zinc-deficient state.

zinc-chick-diagram

Figure 8. Schematic diagram depicting proposed mechanisms by which a Zn [zinc] deficient gut microbiome may worsen a Zn deficient phenotype. Zn deficiency (1), caused by insufficient dietary Zn (2), induces a decrease in gut microbial diversity (3), and an outgrowth of bacteria particularly suited to low Zn conditions, leading to dysbiosis [3A–C]. Lack of dietary Zn also leads to alterations in the functional capacity of the microflora (4), causing multiple effects including decreased expression of pathways related to mineral (i.e., Zn) absorption (4A) and carbohydrate digestion and fermentation (4B). A decrease in the latter pathway may also cause a depression in the production of SCFAs [short chain fatty acids] (5), compounds responsible for improving the bioavailability of Zn. Altogether, these microbial effects may decrease Zn absorbability (6A) and disturb GI health (6B), thereby perpetuating a Zn deficient state. Red arrows and orange–lined boxes denote observations of this study, and dashed arrows and black–lined boxes describe published findings.

The above is shared here under the Creative Commons Attribution License and can be found here: Reed, S.; Neuman, H.; Moscovich, S.; Glahn, R.P.; Koren, O.; Tako, E. Chronic Zinc Deficiency Alters Chick Gut Microbiota Composition and Function. Nutrients 2015, 7, 9768-9784.

Zinc status is notoriously difficult to assess so I am fascinated by the findings of this Cornell University study suggesting

a simple new way to test for zinc deficiency by analyzing a patient’s fecal sample and seeing if the profile of gut bacteria matches the makeup one would expect in a zinc-deficient individual.

The authors suggest that with additional research this zinc stool test could become a noninvasive biomarker for zinc deficiency.

Zinc deficiency is common, affecting 25 percent of the world’s population, especially in the developing world.

Zinc deficiency plays a major role in anxiety and depression. Here is a recent paper on the connection between low serum zinc, high CRP (a marker of inflammation) and pre- and post-natal anxiety and depression: Lower Serum Zinc and Higher CRP Strongly Predict Prenatal Depression and Physio-somatic Symptoms, Which All Together Predict Postnatal Depressive Symptoms.

New research, soon to be published by the Journal of Neuroscience by researchers at the University of Auckland, shows the importance of zinc in autism. The study looks at how zinc can affect brain cell communication that is altered at the cellular level.

The researchers suggest this research may have applications for psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia (and presumably anxiety and depression too).

I feel that we have an under-recognized opportunity to have a bigger impact on mental and physical health if we take zinc deficiency more seriously.

Have you had your zinc status assessed and do you supplement accordingly?

If you’re a practitioner, do you regularly check the zinc status of all your patients/clients?

Tryptophan, red meat and baby steps for anxiety: the Brain Summit

By Trudy Scott 18 Comments

Just a quick reminder that the Brain Summit starts tomorrow, Monday, May 2nd.

brainsummit-trudy

Here are some snippets from my anxiety interview with host Erin Matlock. We started out talking about diet and grass-fed red meat and why it’s so beneficial if you have anxiety (and other mood problems):

…there’s a lot of research showing now that [a Western diet] diet is not good for so many conditions, and mental health is now coming into the research. And we know this, but to see it in the research is really beneficial. Dr. Felice Jacka did a great study in Australia that was one of the first studies that looked at anxiety and depression in women and found that the Western diet was associated with a higher risk for anxiety and depression. And this whole foods, traditional diet, that actually included grass-fed red meat, was more beneficial for anxiety and depression. And in her thesis, they actually looked at red meat thinking that they would find that red meat was actually detrimental. And, lo and behold, they found that grass-fed red meat was one of the most important predictors for good mental health. So a lot of people say, “I don’t eat red meat any more. I’m being healthy.” And in actual fact, not eating it is doing them harm.

So red meat is wonderful! And it needs to be grass fed because then you’re getting the good levels of the Omega-3s. The Omega-3 three profile of grass fed red meat is very similar to what you would find in salmon. Obviously, fish is great, so while fish like salmon or sardines are great as well, the reason I like the red meat is it’s something that most people enjoy eating. And as well as the Omega-3s, we’re getting the iron, and iron is a co-factor for making serotonin and making GABA, and it’s needed for energy and so many other functions in the body.

It’s also got zinc, and zinc is a common deficiency, way more common than we realize. And when you are anxious, you may have high copper level, and low zinc level. So getting those zinc levels up will push the copper down, and that can help with your anxiety, as well.

We also had a long discussion on serotonin and tryptophan/5-HTP:

…we often associate serotonin with depression. And a lot of people don’t realize that it’s very closely tied to anxiety, as well.  So we’ve got two types of anxiety when it comes to the brain chemicals. One is the low-serotonin type, and this is the anxiety in the head, where you’ve got the ruminating thoughts, and the busy mind, and the negative self-talk, and just this monkey mind that you can’t switch off — this worry, and sort of reprocessing things. And then we have the low-GABA kind of anxiety, where it’s in your physical body and you’re feeling stiff and tense, and you can feel it in your body, and you may feel it in your gut….

I have people do a questionnaire, and depending on how you score on that questionnaire, that’s a clue as to whether serotonin may be a factor. So all of those symptoms I’ve just mentioned, you would rate yourself on a scale of one to ten.  And then I use individual, targeted amino acids. So it’s a supplement, and the other things that obviously have an impact are food, and diet, and everything we just talked about. Getting exercise, getting outside in the light, all of those are factors.

But for quick, immediate results, and pretty profound results – people just say to me, “Could this really be happening so quickly?” that’s how quickly we get results, you know, within 30 seconds to two minutes they’re getting results – is to use these individual amino acids as supplements. And the reason they’re called “targeted” is because it’s targeted to your unique needs. Like when you do the questionnaire and it says, yes, you need some serotonin support, and then you would use either tryptophan or 5-HTP as a supplement. And again, targeted, because you need it, but also targeted to your unique biochemistry.

There’s a standard starting dose for tryptophan, which is 500 mg, while 5-HTP is 50 mg.

Be sure to tune into the interview with Debbie Hampton. She is the survivor of an acquired brain injury (from a pill overdose when trying to commit suicide) and the author of the upcoming book, Sex, Suicide, and Serotonin.  Her story and resilience is inspiring!  Here is Debbie’s wonderful answer to Erin’s question: “What advice would you give to someone who feels like it’s too late to do what they want to do? I’m already so deep in, there’s no way that I could possibly have the life that I wanted or do the work that I really wanted to do.”

debbie-hampton

It’s never too late. And those limitations, you’re putting on yourself. Those limitations are in your mind. If you think you can’t, and you think it’s too late, then it is. You’ve got to change your mind first and if your mind thinks you can, you’re halfway there.

My advice would be to start small … I’m not big on long-term plans. I’m big on a long-term bigger goal. But what you’ve got to do is you’ve got to take a little step in the right direction towards that goal, and when you get there, you look around and you say, “Okay, what is my next best step?” And when you get to that next step, there may be opportunities that you can see that you couldn’t even see back here.

So you’ve got to take it one step at a time and get there and assess your opportunities. And then figure out the next best step, and then get there and figure out the next one. And it may be a zigzag path, and you may even have to go back sometimes, regress, but as long as you just keep moving forward and keep positive momentum and positive thoughts and be your own cheerleader, and encourager, and supporter— be your own friend—that is the most important thing.

I could not agree more – there is an answer, you can do whatever you set out to do and just take baby steps!

You can register for the Brain Summit here:
http://www.brainsummit.com?orid=45505&opid=12

 

Zinc/copper balance in autism/pyroluria: Dr. Usman

By Trudy Scott 23 Comments

This is such a great segment on zinc/copper balance in pyroluria and autism so I really want to share it. Dr. Usman was one of many excellent speakers on the Autism Intensive online event.

An excerpt from Dr. Usman’s interview: Optimizing Metabolic-Immune Communication and Function

Dr. Usman: …. In the 70s, they were breaking down individuals with schizophrenia into three phenotypes: low histamine, high histamine and pyrolurics. At the time this phenotype of pyroluria in schizophrenia was manifest as a B6, zinc deficiency and when they were given high doses of B6 or zinc, their schizophrenia improved.

Dr. Schwartz: So that was kind of your first exposure to nutritional vitamins.

Dr. Usman: Yeah. I was treating patients with depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, mental illness with these various protocols that Carl Pfeiffer had developed. I started doing research in copper/zinc imbalances. We had over 500 patients with autism involved in a study that we look at there. We look at plasma zinc and serum copper ratios. When you ratio plasma zinc to serum copper what you’re looking for is a ratio of 1 to 1.

Dr. Schwartz: Balance is more important than the absolute number.

Dr. Usman: Correct.

Dr. Schwartz: Another concept that takes us outside the traditional lab values?

Dr. Usman: Exactly. You’re not looking at a lab number, but you’re looking at a ratio.

Dr. Schwartz: So both zinc and copper could be in the normal range, but the ratio can be way off. That’s something I’ve certainly seen in my patients.

Dr. Usman: Correct. When the ratio of copper and zinc is off, we want that ratio to be one-to-one. And patients with inflammatory issues and patients with various autoimmune issues and sick patients in general, their ratio ends up being disturbed. We found out in the autistic population was that 99% of them, which is a very low P value in statistics.

Dr. Schwartz: Zero, zero, zero, zero.

Dr. Usman: Zero, zero, zero, zero. 99% of them had low zinc, high copper and they had a high ratio of copper to zinc – of over 1.2.

Dr. Schwartz: So very dramatic.

Dr. Usman: Yeah. Then Dr. Walsh, who headed the Pfeiffer treatment center, had a theory that this was due to defect in a protein called metallothionein. Metallothionein is a protein that, in a way, transports copper and zinc through the body.