Category Archives: Integrative Medicine

Joel Fuhrman, M.D.

The leading cause of death for male gorillas in zoos is heart disease. Sadly, animals that live in close contact with (and fed by) humans end up with human chronic diseases.
Gorillas are the largest of the primates, and they are one of the four species of great apes (great apes make up the Hominidae superfamily, which includes chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans, and gorillas). Following chimpanzees, gorillas are the closest living relatives to humans, differing in only about 3% of our genetic makeup.
Gorillas are herbivores that live in the forests of central Africa, where they can eat up to 50 pounds of vegetation each day, mostly leaves and fruit. Although most gorillas have a preference for fruit, they also eat large amounts of leaves, plus herbs and bamboo, and occasionally insects. In the wild, gorillas spend most of their day foraging and eating.1
In the wild, gorillas eat an extremely high fiber diet, and derive a significant proportion of caloric energy from the fermentation of fiber by bacteria in the colon, producing short-chain fatty acids. The approximate proportions of macronutrients in a wild gorilla’s diet is 2.5% of calories from fat, 24.3% from protein, 15.8% (non-fiber) carbohydrate, and up to 57.3% from short chain fatty acids derived from bacterial fermentation of fiber.2
In contrast, the standard diet for gorillas in captivity is usually not made up of natural leaves, herbs, and fruits – it is a diet of nutrient-fortified, high-sugar, high-starch processed food. Read more...

Immunice for Immune Support

Opposite to good carbohydrate (= "Slow Carbs”), bad carbohydrates – in neo-German also known as “Fast Carbs“ – cause the blood sugar level to rise quickly.
The faster – and thus the higher concentrated – carbohydrates are, the more insulin our body will produce in order to lower the blood sugar level.

As a consequence thereof, the blood sugar level will drop below normal, the appetite – in particular for sweets – will increase, and fat burning will be restricted during this «insulin fattening».

Therefore, GI and GL were invented, to facilitate distinction between «bad» and «good» carbohydrates.

Glycemic Index (GI)
The glycemic index – in short GI – is exclusively applied to foods containing carbohydrates. The GI does not rate foodstuffs with respect to their carbohydrate content but provides figures on their respective blood sugar level increasing effects. Read more...

Immunice for Immune Support

Deana Ferreri, Ph.D.

It is becoming more widely known that obesity can lead to a premature death – but what about those who fall in between healthy weight and obese? A new study suggests that even “a few extra pounds” can be dangerous.

This comes just a few months after a large study that concluded that waist circumference was associated with risk of death from all causes. These two studies used different methods of measurement, but they agree on a very important point – even a small amount of excess weight increases the risk of death. In the waist circumference study, even people who had a normal body mass index (BMI; calculated based on height and weight) were at greater risk of death if they had a 4-inch larger waist compared to others in their BMI category – that four extra inches of abdominal fat translated into a 16% (men) and 25% (women) increase in mortality risk over a nine year period. Read more...

Ayurtox for Body Detoxification

Deana Ferreri, Ph.D.

It is becoming more widely known that obesity can lead to a premature death – but what about those who fall in between healthy weight and obese? A new study suggests that even “a few extra pounds” can be dangerous.

This comes just a few months after a large study that concluded that waist circumference was associated with risk of death from all causes. These two studies used different methods of measurement, but they agree on a very important point – even a small amount of excess weight increases the risk of death. In the waist circumference study, even people who had a normal body mass index (BMI; calculated based on height and weight) were at greater risk of death if they had a 4-inch larger waist compared to others in their BMI category – that four extra inches of abdominal fat translated into a 16% (men) and 25% (women) increase in mortality risk over a nine year period. Read more...

Ayurtox for Body Detoxification

A recent ABC News investigation has identified a connection between the use of the popular denture cream Fixodent and permanent neurological disorders. Some Fixodent users allege that regular use of the cream has caused them to develop serious, debilitating nerve damage, which has sparked a class-action lawsuit against Proctor and Gamble (P&G), the maker of Fixodent.

"I started getting tingling in my fingertips," said Mark Jacoby, a Fixodent victim, to ABC News' 20/20 anchor Chris Cuomo. "I started getting weaker and, you know, I couldn't walk right, off balance and I'm at this point now."

The Fixodent ingredient in question is zinc, which unless taken along with copper, can rob the body of the necessary mineral over time and cause irreversible nerve damage. And since denture users affix zinc-containing creams to their gums every single day, their long-term absorption rates of zinc are much higher than normal than an average person's. Read more...

Ayurtox for Body Detoxification

A recent ABC News investigation has identified a connection between the use of the popular denture cream Fixodent and permanent neurological disorders. Some Fixodent users allege that regular use of the cream has caused them to develop serious, debilitating nerve damage, which has sparked a class-action lawsuit against Proctor and Gamble (P&G), the maker of Fixodent.

"I started getting tingling in my fingertips," said Mark Jacoby, a Fixodent victim, to ABC News' 20/20 anchor Chris Cuomo. "I started getting weaker and, you know, I couldn't walk right, off balance and I'm at this point now."

The Fixodent ingredient in question is zinc, which unless taken along with copper, can rob the body of the necessary mineral over time and cause irreversible nerve damage. And since denture users affix zinc-containing creams to their gums every single day, their long-term absorption rates of zinc are much higher than normal than an average person's. Read more...

Ayurtox for Body Detoxification