Probiotics can impact more than digestion. July 18, 2013

 

What are Probiotics anyways?? They are the good bacteria living in your intestinal tract that make up about 70% of your immune system, produce serotonin that travels up to your brain, produce vitamin D when you go out into the sunshine without sun blocking agents, and aid in the digestion of your food.

Some other fun facts:

Probiotic imbalances can cause depression, and cause you to become overweight.

Probiotic populations get killed off when you take Antibiotics, even natural ones like oregano oil!

There are 10 TRILLION probiotics in your gut ( or there SHOULD be) and only 1 trillion cells of you in your entire body… The majority rules!

“I get my probiotics from my yogurt” – Not so much… the sugar in the majority of commercially produced (not to mention the chemicals) feeds the bad bacteria in your body and can throw off your balance!

Proper populations of probiotic strains are anti-inflammatory!

Here are just a few signs your good bacteria aren’t in the right numbers or are losing the war against bad bacteria in your body: Fatigue, constipation, allergies, auto-immune disorders, diarrhea, gas, burping,bloating, feeling full hours after eating, depression, weight gain, chronic infections, nutrient deficiencies, chronic disease, inflammation (aka are you in pain?)… the list could go on for days!

It’s easy to get back in balance by supplementing with the right good bacteria and consuming the right foods to keep your populations alive- the health of  your body depends on these little guys for 70%+ of your immune response remember! By keeping your numbers up your body is prepared to fight off infection and colds much easier than a body that has little or no supply.

Please call 630-762-9864 to schedule an appointment with Dr.Kalli or a FREE 15 minute consultation TODAY to learn how easy it can be to get back into good health and well being.

~Dr.Kalli

Most “overweight” people are really malnourished… no really… July 3, 2013

Today I joined the Paleo Physicians Network, you will be able to locate me and other like minded physicians who are all about getting back to the basics! Because I like the “Keep It Simple Stupid” method! There’s no need to get complicated.

Below is a link to a simple 3 minute explanation as to why we get fat, and yes, this is pretty much what happens to most of us, even those who think they’re doing the “right things” and still gaining those pounds while working their tail ends off:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNYlIcXynwE&feature=player_embedded

Most people gain weight because when it comes down to it, they’re not eating real food and their body DEMANDS the proper nutrients to function. Plain and simple. If you supply the body with the proper fuels it is easier to lose weight and you feel better- because you’re body isn’t in starvation mode all the time!

 

Don’t think this is the case?? Next time you feel hungry after you’ve done all your “dieting” I want you to try this…. Replace all your snacks and grain consumption with vegetables. To consume the same amount of calories in vegetables as you do in pasta or a hamburger (eat lean meats those are great) is SO MUCH that you could eat a pound of veggies and still not come close to the amount of calories other Processed Products pack in a single serving (guess what you probably had more than 1 serving too).

 

Getting back to basics and making lifestyle changes REALISTIC and MANAGEABLE is what I’m all about. It isn’t easy but I’m here to make it happen, one small step at a time. You’re not going to change overnight-and if you did you might not make it a WAY OF LIFE, so progress at a slow and steady pace is great. After a while you’ll realize how great you feel and I’ll have to remind you of how far you’ve come and how crappy you felt to keep you motivated, but that’s for me to worry about and not you.

 

In short- I’m here to make the tough stuff easier, make you want to embrace a new lifestyle, and make your quality of life so much better than you ever realized. That’s my passion, that’s my goal, and my driving force.

 

It all starts with a SMALL step in the right direction. Please, call Tranquility Natural Medicine at 630-762-9864 and schedule your appointment today so we can start working on a healthier, happier you!!

Health & Happiness,

Dr. Kalli Prater, DC

The Perpetual Patient…. is this you? June 18, 2013

Join the Perpetual Patient Program

By Dr. Jeffery Scott Sullender

It starts so innocently, so easily, you hardly noticed. You’ve been stressed lately and getting to bed later than normal with all the things on your “To-Do” list. You tell yourself: “It’s only temporary”, but with your recent reliance on pre-prepared and fast foods, you’ve been experiencing some stomach upset, a little gas and burping, even occasional burning. Your physician quickly diagnoses GERD and you receive a prescription for a proton-pump inhibitor to reduce your stomach acid. It seems to work for awhile.

Life is still “crazy-busy” and months later you notice you are unusually tired. After some blood work, your physician informs you that you are anemic again and prescribes an iron supplement. But almost immediately upon taking the iron you find yourself constipated and really uncomfortable so your physician prescribes a stool softener to offset the constipating effects of the iron.

The Next Stage

A couple of years go by and you begin to experience heart palpitations, leg cramps and more irritability than normal. Your physician refers you to the cardiologist and after 30 days on a Holter monitor and some blood work, you are told no “organic” cause for your palpitations was found. However, your cholesterol is “up” a bit and you receive a prescription for both a calcium-channel blocker for the heart irregularities and a statin to lower your cholesterol. With your palpitations abated and your cholesterol 20 points lower, your physician is pleased with your treatment. But the stress in your life hasn’t diminished with all the changes at work and the divorce. At your next annual physical, you mention that you are having difficultly sleeping. “If I could just sleep!” you say and you receive a prescription for a sleep medication. Two weeks later, your physician’s office calls saying that your bone scan shows the early stages of osteoporosis. Fortunately, it was detected early and you receive a prescription for a bisphosphonate to “slow the bone loss”.

Although you fill the prescription, you find yourself increasingly concerned about your persistent fatigue, forgetfulness, and periodic brain-fog. Feeling a little “down” about it you mention it to your closest friends, who quickly reassure you its all “normal” and just “part of getting older!” After sharing these concerns with your physician, you receive a prescription for an SSRI to deal with what is now diagnosed as “depression”. Now you have a handful of medications to swallow each day and you still don’t feel “well”. But, you are too busy to figure it all out and your physician is not particularly concerned, since this is all “normal for your age”. Twenty years later, you are diagnosed with dementia.

The Slippery Slope

Now let’s keep track. You started with being stressed, over-tired, eating poorly and the resulting effects on your digestion. Your physician prescribed one of those ever-popular “acid-blockers”, (Rx #1). By impairing the production of stomach acid necessary for the ionization and absorption of essential minerals, including iron, the anemia you had previously corrected, returned. The iron supplement your physician prescribed was unfortunately a poorly absorbed inorganic form, such as iron sulfate, (Rx #2), which gave you constipation.

While the stool softener helped your bowels, you remain tired and prone to brain fog as your iron stores remained low. After years of silent mineral-malabsorption from these two drugs, your tissue stores of magnesium became depleted, resulting in muscle spasms, irregularities in heart rate, increased fatigue, irritability, easily-aroused anger and other signs of low magnesium. The cardiologist prescribed a calcium-channel blocker, (Rx #4), to deal with the cardiac symptoms and a statin drug, (Rx #5), to reduce your body’s production of cholesterol. You were not told to take Co-enzyme Q10 to offset the inevitable negative impact of the statin drug on mitochondrial function.

Your fatigue, moodiness and irritability continued. You received a prescription to help your sleep, (Rx #6), and a bisphosphonate drug, (Rx #7) to “help your osteoporosis” which resulted from the severe demineralization. Your physician didn’t check your magnesium level properly, so you were then prescribed an SSRI to treat “your depression”, (Rx #8). After years of relying on fast foods laced with aspartame, MSG and other excitotoxins, the signs of dementia eventually began to appear. At this stage “aggressive treatment” was recommended and two drugs were prescribed to help offset the cognitive decline, (Rx #9 and #10). What a way to begin your retirement.

You Joined!

Like millions of Americans, you joined the Perpetual Patient Program. There were no application forms to complete, no minimum age requirements and you didn’t even have to be of “legal age” to take part. All you needed was a symptom, a diagnosis and a desire for a quick fix. It is a program borne of the unrealistic desire to live out of sync with our biology and genetic predispositions and simultaneously silence the expression of the consequences.

It is the ultimate “buy now and pay later” program, where you pay nothing up front but it will cost you everything in the end! It is the “default” outcome when we fail to listen to our biology and address causes rather than treat symptoms.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.rxlist.com

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/magnesium-000313.html

http://www.naturalnews.com/020550_excitotoxins_MSG.html

About the Author:

Jeffery Scott, PhD, CCN is a author, researcher and health educator. He is author of “Mind Myths” and “Wisdom from Machu Picchu: 3 Words to Change Your Life” published by www.ClinicalNutritionPress.com

How can Tranquility Spa & Wellness Help?

Tranquility has a variety of practitioners to educate, guide and support you through your Wellness journey.  Find the one, two or many that work for you to get well, stay well and be well!

Dr. Kalli Prater,Chiropractic Internist, specializes in internal disorders from seasonal allergies, hormone imbalances, infertility to auto-immune diseases.  She offers laboratory testing, gynecological exams and the opportunity to heal through nutrition.

Dr. Susan Sterling, Acupuncturist, utilizes Traditional Chinese Medicine to allow the body to heal naturally.

Dr. Emily Loveland, Chiropractic Physician, focuses on the outer body helping patients manage and overcome musculoskeletal pain through chiropractic care, massage therapy and acupuncture.

Kelly Brubaker, Holistic Nutritionist and Wellness Coach.  Kelly helps patients “Make Wellness Their Reality” by making new habits, eating for health, incorporating Green Smoothies and offering ongoing support to achieve your goals.

Sally Strosahl is a licensed clinical professional counselor providing individual, couple and family therapy with a compassionate, spiritually based approach.

Donna Burg, Yoga Therapist.  Donna brings movement, flexibility and mindfulness back into our lives through class work  and individual yoga sessions.

Call Tranquility Spa & Wellness center at 630-762-9864 to schedule.  Your journey toward beauty, health and wellness begins at Tranquility.

www.relaxattranquility.com

You are what you eat….and drink. June 17, 2013

 

You are what you eat… yup it really is that simple. Eating includes drinking in this case as well… so drop the sugary pro-inflammatory (aka pro-disease) drinks too please. Most people have the hardest time changing their diet. Note I didn’t say “going on a diet”. Healthy eating is a way of life… not something you do for a short period of time. Food is the fuel for our bodies. We need to stop and take a minute and examine what we are fueling up with and think about the effects what we consume will have down the road. When you know and realize that you are either feeding your body for proper function, or feeding disease processes, it isn’t as hard to make the right choices. It comes down to caring about yourself and making a conscience decision to be healthier. I’m not saying you have to be perfect, nobody is and you can’t be too hard on yourself when you make “less than desirable” choices, but at least make it a conscience one.

Dr. Kalli Prater, Chiropractic Internist

Tranquility Spa & Wellness Center.  Call 630.762.9864 to schedule a FREE consultation with Dr. Kalli.  Find how Tranquility Natural Medicine can work for you.

Safe Travels, Healthy Tummy March 25, 2013

Beautiful beaches.  World-class cities. Rustic retreats.  Travel takes us beyond our everyday experiences, and that’s a wonderful thing-except when the result is an upset stomach.  Stomach woes can affect travelers due to changes in climate, stress level, altitude, diet and exercise.  Maintaining a healthy, stable diet can be a major challenge when you’re away from home.  Sometimes fast food is the most convenient option, making it appealing to the busy traveler.  And many of us eat richer foods when we’re dining out.  Trying new foods, eating at irregular times, drinking less water, and eating less fiber can also contribute to constipation and other tummy trouble.  Even if you are bound for a relaxing vacation. The logistics of getting there and back can be stressful, which doesn’t do your digestive system any favors.

Here are some travel tips for a healthy tummy from the Tranquility Staff:

• “Stay hydrated” – We hear this often from our nutritionist, Kelly Brubaker.  Drink extra water to keep the digestive system moving, and steer of alcohol at least the day before significant travel.  Bring a BPA-free bottle and refill it at the airport.  Sip throughout your journey, especially if you’re flying; the air at 30,000-plus feet is dehydrating. Take an herbal tea break.
• Pack healthy – Pack simple snacks for easy access to something healthy when you’re hungry,  Small bags of nuts and dried fruit.
• Eat smart – Eat 3 meals a day and two snacks a day instead of grazing nonstop.  “Be aware that if you eat smaller portions overall, the fat, calories, sodium, sugar, and potential for digestive upset goes down too.”  Once you arrive, include fresh fruits and vegetable in your meals which contain water, fiber, and nutrients.  Bring along some ginger chews/candies for nausea, upset stomach, or motion sickness.
• “Get moving” – One of Beverly Millers (Esthetician and owner of Tranquility), favorite quotes!  After sitting for hours en route, take a brisk walk around the block for 15 minutes or more.  Your breathing will open up your circulation, delivering oxygen to your cells and gut.  The gentle twisting of the trunk that occurs with walking also wakes up the digestive tract by giving it an internal massage.
• “Take a deep breath” – We hear this often from Donna Burg, ( Yoga instructor at Tranquility).  Meditation or deep-breathing may stave off or alleviate digestive discomfort,  The gut is a regional immune system in the body and it’s also sometimes called the ‘second brain’.  According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, (ask our acupuncturist, Dr Susan Sterling), emotions are tried to the digestive organs, so worry, anxiety and stress can aggravate it.  Even a few minutes of deep breathing in a quiet space is beneficial.
• “Heal your gut” – Words of wisdom from Dr Emily Loveland, everyone’s favorite Chiropractor!  Enzymes and Probiotics – Enzymes help break food down into smaller particles so we can assimilate nutrients.  They also encourage healthy elimination, as do probiotics, which maintain healthy bacteria in the gut and can alleviate gas, bloating, and constipation.  Tranquility sells the highest quality physician grade probiotics and digestive enzymes. 

Have a Safe and Healthy Spring Break!

Loreta, Tranquility owner and manager

 

PS. If you are staying home for Spring Break, come relax at Tranquility with great Stay-Cation specials. The more your relax the more you save!  Call 630.762.9864 to schedule your Stay-Cation!

Salad in a Jar…. Make Wellness Your Reality March 19, 2013

Make Wellness Your Reality.  A 12 week journey to achieving Optimal Health, hosted by Tranquility Spa & Wellness Center.  The 12 week program includes:  12 – 90 minute group sessions broken down into 45 minutes of Wellness Coaching and 45 minutes of Acupuncture.  The sessions are led by Kelly Brubaker (Wellness Coach) and Dr. Susan Sterling (Licensed Acupuncturist).  Each week the class of “students” will be educated and challenged with “Baby Steps” for changing bad habits, moving more, making better food choices…

Week one:

On Wednesday, March 13, 2013  week one began with 8 ladies looking to make personal, physical and spiritual changes in their lives.  And to be clear the objective of this program is  not weight loss (although hopefully a side effect for some, including myself) but to become a healthier, more active person.  Our first task was to create a personalized wellness wheel that highlighted 8 aspects of life’s importances, ie. diet, exercise, stress, digestion….  We all rated individually on a scale from 1 – 10 how we are addressing these importances in our own CURRENT life.  We then picked one piece of the wheel to focus on for the week and set a “baby step” for ourselves.  Mine was to not eat fast food. That’s it! Totally attainable. I said it out loud to the class to make it official. Each person set their goal of “walking on the treadmill for 20 minutes 3x/week” or “rebounding on the trampoline for 10 minutes/day”….. doesn’t seem like much but when you are in the habit of not doing anything, this is alot. Setting small goals that can be repeated week after week is the foundation of creating new habits.

In addition to the weekly meetings and acupuncture, Kelly and Dr. Susan have started an online support group where we talk to each other and tell about our struggles and successes.  Salad was a big talking point this week, which got my wheels turning about being prepared with food to avoid grabbing the wrong things. So here you go…. Salad in a Jar. You can make these tasty creations on Sunday and they will stay fresh all week long in the refrigerator.  Each morning just grab and go….. the new fast food!

How to Put a Mason Jar Salad Together

The key to mason jar salads is in the assembly of the ingredients.

To keep the lettuce crisp you have to keep it separate from the dressing or other liquid. Also, you need to make sure the jar is completely dry before you start filling them. I add this tip because more than likely you will wash your jars or ingredients prior to using so there might be a chance of moisture. Give the jar a quick wipe with a paper towel and completely dry all ingredients before you start to assembly.

Layers should go like this.

1. Bottom layer is dressing or other wet ingredient. Again, this is key. You need to keep the dressing away from the lettuce to keep it from getting soggy.
2. Second layer needs to be a hearty vegetable like tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, etc. Think about veggies that would taste good marinated in dressing. You will need a good amount of these vegetables to keep the dressing and lettuce separate.
3. Third layer is proteins or grains. This could be eggs, beans, rice, quinoa, gluten-free pasta, etc. Next add the lettuce or greens.
4. Last you would add seeds or nuts. I would also add crumbled bacon to the last layer.

Mix and match for a variety of flavors. Remember to chose organic ingredients when possible and stay away from dressing that are loaded with fats and sugars. Hmmmm….. a post about making your own salad dressings….. to be continued!

Dr. Emily Loveland, DC

Tzatziki Dip December 27, 2012

2 cups Greek Yogurt
1 large Hothouse or English Cucumber (or 2 medium cukes)
1 tbs. and 1/2 tsp. (Kosher) Salt
Pinch (1/4 tsp.) Fresh Ground Black Pepper
2 tsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp. White Wine Vinegar
2 ounces (tbs.) Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice (reconstituted is OK in a pinch)
2 Garlic Cloves, Finely Minced
2 tsp. Minced Fresh Dill Weed (no stalks)
2 tsp. Minced Fresh Mint Leaves (optional and Instead of Dill)

Peel cucumber(s). Cut in half lengthwise. If not English/hothouse, use a small spoon to scrape out and discard seeds. Grate the cukes, toss with 1 tbsp.

Kosher salt

, put it in a strainer, set it over a bowl, and refrigerate for at least one hour, so a lot of the cukes’ water drains out.

Put yogurt in a large bowl. Squeeze as much liquid from the cukes as you can; pat dry lightly in a couple of pieces of paper towel to remove more liquid; add it to a small bowl and whisk in vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, dill (or mint), 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt, and pepper. Mix together well. Add to yogurt. Mix well. This can be served immediately; however, it is traditionally served after having chilled well and allowing a few hours for the flavors to blend. Dip in or stuff veggies, use chips, pita bread, be creative and enjoy! Serves about 12 (2 tbsp. per serving).