Is Your Drinking Water Disrupting Your Thyroid?
Your body needs plenty of water each day to function, but chemicals lurking in your tap water could be putting your thyroid health at risk.
A new study found that phthalates, chemicals used in plastics and personal care products, can disrupt thyroid function at levels found in drinking water. Researchers found two phthalate chemicals — diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), used to make plastic more flexible, and dibutyl phthalate (DBP), widely used in personal care products — to be particularly concerning.
The chemicals inhibited thyroid hormone from attaching to a thyroid receptor, which is a necessary step for processes that affect growth, metabolism and development.
Because phthalates are a persistent environmental pollutant, they are common in private and public water supplies. The federal government regulates levels of phthalates in municipal water supplies, but if you have water from a well you will need to have it tested on your own.
Phthalates can also leach from plastic bottles, making them a common contaminant in bottled water as well — and there are no regulatory limits for phthalates in bottled water.
Whether you get your drinking water from a public source or a private well, it’s a good idea to have it independently tested for contaminants. If phthalates or other chemicals of concern are present, installing an appropriate filter can help cut back on your exposure.
You can also be exposed to phthalates in your personal care products, so look for natural, phthalate-free options as much as possible.
Environmental Science & Technology 2010, 44 (17), pp 6863–6868
Even One Soda a Day Increases Your Diabetes Risk
Most of you are probably aware that drinking too much soda is not a healthy choice … but you may not realize how little soda is actually “too much.”
In one of the largest comprehensive studies on the link between soda and diabetes risk to date, researchers reviewed data from 11 studies and more than 300,000 participants. Drinking just one to two sodas or other sugary drinks a day was found to increase the risk of type 2 diabetes by 26 percent.
The risk of metabolic syndrome — a group of risk factors including high blood pressure, high blood sugar levels, high triglycerides and excess fat around your waist — rose by 20 percent. Metabolic syndrome increases your risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease significantly.
Even drinking just one 12-ounce serving of soda a day increased the risk of type 2 diabetes by 15 percent!
So if you regularly drink a soda or two a day, figuring it will have little impact on your health, think again. Nearly 30 percent of students drank a soda each day in 2009, and all of them are increasing their risk of type 2 diabetes significantly — and likely without realizing it.
And for those of you who drink multiple sodas and sweetened beverages each day, you could be destining yourself to develop type 2 diabetes in a matter of months or years.
Swapping out your daily soda for water or green tea is one of the quickest moves you can make to reduce your diabetes and metabolic syndrome risk. Carbonated water, like seltzer water, with a squirt of lemon or lime is also a refreshing and healthy soda substitute.
Remember, too, that soda is not the only culprit. Other sugary beverages like sports drinks, fruit drinks, sweetened tea and other sweetened beverages will also increase your diabetes risk, so keep these drinks to a very limited basis in your diet.
Dietary Changes Improve Subclinical Hypothyroidism
A special thyroid-stimulating diet significantly improved subclinical hypothyroidism in about 40 percent of children who followed it, according to new research from the Netherlands.
The diet included foods rich in iron, vitamin A and iodine, such as butter, whole milk, green vegetables and beef. When followed 50-75 percent of the time for at least three months, children saw improvements in their thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels and had a decrease in symptoms like fatigue and constipation.
When the diet was followed even more closely, more than 75 percent of the time, the likelihood of TSH levels normalizing rose eight-fold.
Up to 10 percent of the U.S. population suffers from subclinical hypothyroidism, a hypothyroid condition that often leads to full-blown hypothyroidism in a matter of months or years. Among the elderly, this level rises to 26 percent.
The condition is typically diagnosed when blood levels of triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) are normal but TSH levels are elevated.
While often said to carry no symptoms, many with subclinical hypothyroidism do suffer from fatigue, dry skin, cold intolerance, memory problems, constipation, muscle cramps and other symptoms of overt hypothyroidism — but many remain undiagnosed. In fact, you could be suffering from a low-functioning thyroid even if your lab tests come back normal!
The earlier you begin to take action against thyroid problems, including at the subclinical level, the better, and as this latest study shows, dietary approaches are often among the most effective.
14th International Thyroid Congress (ITC), Paris, France September 11-16, 2010
Can Fitness Video Games Improve Diabetes?
Sitting in front of a typical video game will obviously not do your health any favors … but what about the new-and-improved versions that promise to get you up and moving, sprinting and jumping across your living room as you play tennis, box, or even complete a full cardio workout?
Canadian researchers are planning to find out. In an upcoming study they’re going to set up women recently diagnosed with gestational diabetes — a form of diabetes during pregnancy — with a Nintendo Wii and two active games, Wii Sport and Wii Fit Plus. They’re then going to track whether the games prompt women to exercise more and help them lower their blood glucose levels while decreasing their need for insulin.
It’s a novel idea, especially if you have trouble getting out to a gym for regular workout sessions or need help staying motivated. Activity-promoting video games are designed to keep you coming back for more, which means you may be lured into an exercise session just for the fun of it.
So if you’re a technology buff or a video-game addict, adding a few fitness games to your arsenal is a smart move.
Already a study by Mayo Clinic researchers found that kids who played active video games like the popular “Dance Dance Revolution’ burned more than double the calories as kids who played conventional video games — so it’s likely only a matter of time before even more benefits are discovered.
Of course, the real benefit comes not from the video game but from getting your body moving. If you have diabetes, a regular exercise program can be crucial. It will help your body to improve its use of insulin while helping you control your weight, which in turn may help improve insulin sensitivity even more. Staying active may also boost your blood circulation and energy levels and help you ward off heart disease and stress.
The benefits of exercise are truly endless, so take advantage of it in all its forms — from aerobics and strength training to yoga and, yes, even active video games — for best results.
As always consult your health care provider before starting any exercise program. Exercise is not right for every person.
“Sunshine Vitamin” Crucial for Thyroid Health
Many Americans are deficient in vitamin D, dubbed the “sunshine vitamin” because your skin produces it in response to sun exposure. With winter fast approaching here in Colorado, there’s a good chance you will not be getting nearly the sun exposure you’ll need to keep your levels optimized, and this could spell disaster for your thyroid health.
Vitamin D is no ordinary vitamin. It’s actually a “pre-hormone” necessary to produce calcitriol, or “activated vitamin D,” a secosteroid hormone that influences numerous body functions — one being your thyroid function.
In a recent interview, Mary Shomon, About.com’s Thyroid Disease Guide, interviewed thyroid coach Richard Shames, MD, who explained that “the variability of thyroid to work or not work in your body is dependent upon the presence of Vitamin D, making it not just of benefit, but absolutely essential.”
In fact, in order for the thyroid hormone to act on your cells, you must have sufficient levels of vitamin D. Current government recommendations suggest you get between 200-400 IU of vitamin D a day … but it’s not uncommon for people to need 10 times that amount, or more, to maintain optimal vitamin D status.
Scientists from Britain and Canada recently revealed that vitamin D influences more than 200 genes, including some related to autoimmune diseases.
So if you currently have hypothyroidism, including the autoimmune disease Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, it’s very important to have your vitamin D levels tested and optimized — and this is just one of the many ways we can help you to recover your thyroid function at the Functional Endocrinology Center of Colorado.
Corn Syrup May Soon be Disguised on Ingredient Labels
All the research linking high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) to the epidemic rates of diabetes and obesity, not to mention metabolic syndrome, in the U.S. has many Americans ditching the sweetener in favor of healthier alternatives. Now, with consumption of the corn sweetener at a 20-year low, the Corn Refiners Association (CRA) is taking action to revamp their prized glory’s tarnished image.
Last month, CRA petitioned the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to allow manufacturers the option of calling high-fructose corn syrup “corn sugar” on labels. The current name is “confusing to American consumers,” according to CRA, and labeling the sweetener as corn sugar “succinctly and accurately describes what this natural ingredient is and where it comes from — corn,” they noted.
But make no mistake, whether high-fructose corn syrup is rebranded as “corn sugar” or not, the fact still remains that it’s a substance you’re better off without.
Any type of sweetener can lead to insulin resistance, and later diabetes, when used in excess, which is why you should strive to keep high-fructose corn syrup, or corn sugar — or any sugar — to a minimum in your diet.
The FDA has six months to decide whether the term corn sugar will be allowed to stick around, and it could be another year or more after that before the term actually appears on food labels. The Corn Refiners Association, however, is not holding their breath … they’ve already started using the term in their extensive advertising campaigns.
PRNewsWire.com September 14, 2010
LiveScience.com September 14, 2010
This Healthy Mineral May Cut Your Diabetes Risk in Half …
Making sure your diet is rich in magnesium is a simple strategy that may offer a valuable payoff in the form of your diabetes risk … or lack thereof.
A new study from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers revealed that people who consumed the most magnesium, from foods and supplements, were 47 percent less likely to develop diabetes in the next two decades compared to those who consumed the least.
Magnesium, a mineral that your body cannot make on its own, is required for the proper functioning of hundreds of enzymes — including several that help you to process glucose. It appears that ample magnesium intake may improve insulin sensitivity and reduce inflammation, thereby lowering your diabetes risk.
This is good news for you fall-season fanatics, as pumpkin seeds are an excellent source of this essential mineral. Pumpkins are now in season, so you can eat to your heart’s content.
Not a fan of pumpkin seeds? No worries, you can also add magnesium to your diet by eating spinach, Swiss chard, broccoli, mustard and turnip greens, sunflower seeds, almonds, and black beans.
“Too Tired to Cook” Dinner
I always have salad greens in my salad spinner, which keeps the greens really crisp. I add what ever other vegetables, fried bacon or prosciutto bits and the following dressing with a poached or fried egg on top, yum!
Poached Eggs
In a deep sauce pan or skillet, bring 4 quarts of water to a simmer. Add ¼ cup of white vinegar. Crack eggs into a small bowl. Swirl water with a spoon and add eggs one at a time. Bring back to a simmer. Cook eggs for 2 -3 minutes while spooning whites on top of the yolk. Remove the eggs from the water with a slotted spoon and rinse under hot water to remove any vinegar taste. You can cook several eggs and store them in cold water in the refrigerator for up to three days. To reheat add the refrigerated eggs to simmering water for 1 ½ to 2 minutes.
Dressing
¼ cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
½ teaspoon sea salt
Make the dressing in a small bowl, whisking all of the ingredients
Toss the greens with the dressing and place a hot poached egg on top. Garnish with sliced fried bacon bits or fried prosciutto bits.
-Chris Stewart
What You Need to Know About Avandia
The New York Times headline has just crossed my desk, “FDA to Severely Restrict the Diabetes Drug Avandia.” Citing risks for heart attacks, the government of Europe is taking the drug off the shelf and the United States is limiting access to those who do not have another alternative prescription.
The point I want to make is that if you suffer from Type II Diabetes, then chances are if you do the right things you may not need a prescription. Through my work at The Functional Endocrinology Center of Colorado in Denver, patients are improving their health to the point that they do not need insulin or other associated drugs any longer. The point is if you treat the cause of the disease then you don’t have to worry about the side effects of all the drugs. Avandia is just the one we know about that is causing so many problems. How many more diabetic drugs are causing harm that we don’t know about?
Many leading medical and health experts agree that Type II Diabetes can be reversed. Every day in my office we have yet another patient who is giving up prescription drugs and heading down a path to health and success. Many of our patients are becoming non-diabetic.
To find out if you are a good candidate for our treatment approach call my office at 303-302-0930.
Dr. Brandon Credeur, DC
The Functional Endocrinology Center of Coloardo
Denver, CO
Finding a path (finally) for my Hashimoto’s Disease (hypothyroidism)
On June 23, 2007 I woke up at 4:30 am and my brain felt like something was moving inside it. I laid it bed frozen and distraught that yet another health problem could be plaguing me. After a trip to the emergency room, I learned that I was experiencing vertigo. Another health problem!
For a year I had been battling weight gain, fatigue, sore joints. For six months I had tracked everything I ate and my exercise and became exasperated when I kept gaining weight, not losing. Most importantly, I was fed up with medical doctors telling me I was “getting old,” ‘just going through menopause,’ and “had to just learn to live with these issues.” The more I heard this the more determined I became not to give up.
As the saying goes, “when the student is ready, the teacher will show up,” and through my perseverance, I started finding help. I started energy work, yoga, journaling. But most importantly, I found Dr. Credeur. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Disease, a complication of hypothyroidism. While my medical doctor told me nothing could be done, Dr. Credeur put me on a path to better health.
This program has changed my life. I’ve lost weight and many inches. I love shopping for clothes again and even bought a skirt. I wake up with energy and can stay awake through late-night movies or baseball games with my family. I’m biking and walking. And I’ve even set a goal to ride my bike around Lake Dillon, outside of Denver, CO.
Now I also work at Dr. Credeur’s office as interim CEO. And every day I get to meet patients who are having similar positive results. We have all learned that your health is never ‘hopeless.’ If your intuition says that you can get better, then follow it right to Dr. Credeur. You will not regret it.
Pam Watson Korbel
Interim CEO
Functional Endocrinology Center of Colorado
Denver, CO
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