Ross Walter Nutritionist and Naturopath health articles and blog

sunglasses are not good or healthy for you!

29/10/2017

Sunglasses are a modern fashion item, but as is the case with many things in our modern lives, they aren't actually good or healthy for you!

In many published research articles, sunglasses have been shown to affect your sleep, cause depression and other mental health conditions (and maintain them), cause more severe sunburn (compared to not wearing them for the same duration in the sun), and contribute to many other health issues.

Sometimes something so minor and trivial as a nutrient deficiency, or just wearing sunglasses for a prolonged period, can have profound implications on your health and wellbeing! I personally had health issues from wearing sunglasses every day for years. It took me 6 months to figure out the cause of the issue - my new sunglasses. Within 3 days of not wearing sunglasses, my health issues disappeared and I've not had the problem since (as I've not worn sunglasses again)! I have helped many others with this same advice.

I'm not suggesting that you should go "cold turkey" as I did, as your eyes can be very sensitive to bright sunlight after years of frequent use of sunglasses. Gradually increase your "sunglass-free" time so your eyes get used to the brightness again and your sensitivity will decrease.

If you experience sleep issues or have mental health concerns, there's usually more than one cause of these issues, and while sunglasses can be a factor, other causes also need to be investigated and addressed - which is what I can help you with!

0 Comments

juicing vs blending - which is better for your health?

29/10/2017

2 Comments

There’s no doubt that most people need more and better quality nutrients in their diets, to improve their health. Juicing vegetables and fruits is one way to do get a high concentration of nutrients into you!

A lot of people I have seen have spent many hundreds or even thousands of dollars on juicers – which turn a lot of vegetables and fruit into a fairly small amount of highly concentrated nutrients. Juicing proponents say it’s the best way to get a lot of nutrients in a meal, to help all sorts of health issues, especially for cancer (where I see people recommending juicing the most).

But is juicing really as good as people think it is?

I’ve been saying for ages that it is NOT the best idea...

There are a couple of issues with juicing, as many cheaper juicers rip open the fruit or vegetables with fast and sharp grating mechanisms. This can damage the nutrients, partly from the grating, and also from the heat this produces. More expensive juicers use cold pressure mechanisms which do not damage the nutrients as much.

Juicers remove most of the fibre in the fruit or vegetables. Juicing proponents say this is a good thing, as fibre fills you up, and you can’t get as much of the nutrients into you if you leave the fibre in. While that is true, you NEED the fibre for many benefits – to form bowel motions properly, to feed your digestive bacteria (who turn it into other essential nutrients which you need!), and it’s your digestive bacteria which make most of your immune system proteins and neurotransmitters too. Your digestive bacteria are critical for those with cancer or any chronic health condition.

Lastly, the fibre in the fruit and vegetables prevents a large amount of fructose (a sugar found in fruit and vegetables) being absorbed into the body. Fructose in small amounts can be ok and will be converted into glucose in the body to feed your cells for energy and growth. Fructose in high amounts, such as in juices, gets mostly converted by the liver into fat for storage. This is not what you want if you have cancer, diabetes or weight issues.

People who do have cancer, diabetes or weight issues should actually restrict their intake of high-fructose food sources, including juices, because of the risk of progressing the disease or health issues further.

So what should you do instead? Use a blender!

Blenders are cheap, effective in keeping all the fibre in (and thus filling you up more, and providing all the benefits without the risks of high fructose), and keeping all the nutrients in too!

A new study published just released a few days ago (9th Oct 2017, in the “Nutrition and Diabetes Journal”) confirms the above. The study compared the GI (Glycaemic Index, or glucose forming effect in your body) of whole fruit compared to blended fruit, with a control group drinking glucose in water (similar to a juiced drink without fibre). It confirmed that commercial fruit juices are associated with an increased risk of diabetes, because of the higher GI effect. However eating whole fruit actually reduced the risk of diabetes. The study also found that blending fruit caused a much lower post-meal blood sugar response than even eating whole fruit! Those who drank the glucose drink, similar to a juice, had the highest blood sugar response. Those who had whole fruit had a lower blood glucose (because of the fibre), and those who had the blended fruit and a lower blood glucose response again, which they didn’t investigate the mechanism for. The study also concluded that increased fruit intake can result in a reduced risk of chronic disease, but as I mentioned above, in some situations, less is better!

In summary, having a high concentration of nutrients in a meal is a great idea for general health as well as for preventing or reducing chronic health issues. But juicing is NOT the way to do it – use a blender instead to keep in the fibre, and get additional benefits of this without the health issues of too much fructose!

In addition, any blended meal such as a smoothie should contain some protein and healthy fats too for additional nutrients, for filling you up more, and providing a longer lasting energy. Fruit or veg blends alone will not provide a long-lasting energy and will quickly cause hunger and cravings for more carbohydrates.

2 Comments

WHAT IS CANCER?

29/10/2017

0 Comments

What actually is cancer?

The typical definition is that “Cancer is a disease caused by an uncontrolled division of abnormal cells in a part of the body”. This is not entirely correct or a complete enough definition.

My definition is better (IMHO) and is “Cancer is a SYMPTOM of chronic and systemic dysfunction, toxicity and disease, which causes the cells to lack the ability to perform normal functions such as metabolism, growth and programmed cell death.”

Cancer is not a disease, but a symptom of whole body disease. Tumours are a symptom of cancer, not the disease itself!
Despite what various cancer charities tell us, there are many known causes of cancer, many of which we are exposed to on a daily basis. When we know what the causes are (which we actually do know), prevention becomes very simple.
I have put together a 1-hour introductory presentation on cancer, which explains what cancer is, how it starts in the body, what causes it, and how you can prevent it. Follow-up or advanced presentations are available on cancer treatments, both medical and alternative. These presentations also make up a cancer workshop which Ross is presenting in person and online soon!

More information on this will come soon in further articles on this topic!

0 Comments

More LOW FAT GUIDELINES PROVEN WRONG

29/10/2017

0 Comments

I love looking at how nutrition affects your health, in positive healthy ways as well as the negative effects of some foods or nutrients. Heart disease is, well... close to my heart, as it runs in my family. Despite the "heart health" food guidelines of low fat, and low salt over the past few decades, heart disease is still the largest killer of men and women in Western countries. Have the government food guidelines since the 1970s caused this? I say it has...

A very recent new study was published in The Lancet (one of the world's most prestigious medical journals) on 29th Aug 2017, finding that a higher intake of carbohydrates was associated with a higher risk of earlier death, whereas a higher intake of healthy fats, including saturated fat, actually reduced the risks and incidences of heart disease and other conditions.

The study was admittedly not of a high quality, being based on questionnaires about food intake (carbs vs proteins vs fats), body measurements, lifestyle choices, medicines, and medical history including cardiovascular events (heart attacks, stroke, and other symptoms) and other non-heart related conditions. As such, there is an element of possible inaccuracies about what people may answer in the questionnaires compared to their truth. But the number of people investigated was high - over 135,000 adults from 35-70 years, from low, middle and high income groups in many countries on five continents. Respondents were followed up at 3, 6 and 9 years later, with repeated measurements and questionnaires to assess changes, nutrition, health, deaths and other factors.

People in some countries obtained most of their energy from a very high carbohydrate intake, even up to 70% or more, which is higher than Australia's food guidelines of 45%-65% carbohydrate intake, and certainly higher than what I see in my clients at 50-60% carbohydrate intake. Another issue with the study is that there was no differentiation between "good" carbohydrates of vegetables and fruit, compared to the "bad" carbs of sugar, grain products, alcohol etc. This is a huge flaw in the study, as some people in rural Asian countries eating mostly a plant-based diet with some animal protein and healthy fats (and thus being very healthy) are being seen the same as people in modern Western towns eating a truckload of sugar, bread and alcohol, with massive grain-fed steaks.

Another flaw of the study was the implied assumption that all people from many different countries, cultures, and ethnicities, are somehow all the same and should eat exactly the same foods! Different ethnicities have different genetics, and as such, have different nutritional needs due to different biochemical and metabolic physiologies.

While the attention-grabbing news headlines of the study suggests that eating more carbs and less fats contributes to increased heart disease and death, or that eating more healthy fats leads to less heart disease, the truth (in this study at least) wasn't so exciting.

Some of the findings were:
- Higher carbohydrate intake was linked to increased risk of mortality
- Higher carbohydrate intake was NOT linked to an increased risk of heart disease
- Total fat intake was associated with lower risk of mortality
- Higher saturated fat intake was associated with a lower risk of stroke, but not other heart disease conditions.

Another interesting result from the study was that a higher animal protein intake was associated with a lower risk of mortality, but no association was found with regard to plant protein.

The study concluded with: "Global dietary guidelines should be reconsidered in light of these findings.". No, they shouldn't! As much as I would love to see the dietary guidelines changed, away from their current food industry sponsored/biased advice, to more current scientific evidence as seen in many other better quality published studies, the guidelines shouldn't be changed based on this poor quality and flawed study!

What is my message from this study? Ignore the sensationalist news headlines or articles for this study, as it doesn't tell the full story! There are much better studies showing the association between eating "bad" refined/processed carbs and heart disease, or saturated fat intake not being associated with heart disease.

And for the best nutrition and health advice, see your Nutritionist or Naturopath, who can tailor a nutrition plan specifically for you, taking into account your health history and your health goals!

0 Comments

sunglasses are not good or healthy for you!

juicing vs blending - which is better for your health?

WHAT IS CANCER?

More LOW FAT GUIDELINES PROVEN WRONG

COPYRIGHT

Archives

Categories