FEATURED SUPPLEMENT
|
 | | UltraClear Renew |
| |
UltraClear Renew is an oligoantigenic medical food to support metabolic detoxification. It is vegan, gluten-free, and contains protein, carbohydrate, fat, fiber, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and plant extracts designed to support optimal detoxification. A recent pilot study using this medical food found that after just a few weeks, even individuals with severe fibromyalgia showed significant improvement in pain, stiffness, quality of life, and a reduction in body burden of mercury.
Contact my office if you are interested in UltraClear Renew.
|
DR. DEBÉ DOES
E-CONSULTS
| |
| |
For patients unable to go to Dr. Debé in person, Dr. Debé can "come to you" by way of online consultations.
|
FEATURED LAB TEST
|
Porphyrins
Profile
 | |
Porphyrins
are biochemicals that are produced in the body. Environmental chemicals cause a build-up of specific porphyrins. An individual can have a given (including high) level of a heavy metal or other chemical in the body but that does not translate into a specific effect. Porphyrin elevation is confirmation
that the toxin is having an adverse effect. The downside of porphyrins testing is that some factors other than toxins can cause elevations in these biochemicals.
The value in porphyrins is most notable when they are normal - ruling out a toxic effect of the involved chemical. Although routine commercial labs do some porphyrins tests (LabCorp has the best profile, in my opinion), a more comprehensive test can be done with a specialty functional medicine laboratory. I prefer Metametrix Clinical Laboratory. One of the porphyrins Metametrix measures is very specific for mercury toxicity.
|
DR. DEBÉ'S UPCOMING LECTURE:
|
"What Your Doctor Hasn't Told You About Osteoporosis"
|
at Wild By Nature Market
2709 W. Long Beach Road
Oceanside, N.Y.
Tuesday June 11th
at 7:00 pm
Please reserve a seat:
(516) 764-3580
|
DR. DEBÉ'S UPCOMING LECTURE:
|
"Improve Your Memory with Tailored Nutrition"
|
at Wild By Nature Market
369 West Main Street Huntington, N.Y.
Thursday June 13th
at 7:00 pm
Please reserve a seat:
(631) 424-6480
|
DR. DEBÉ'S UPCOMING LECTURE:
|
"What's Going On In Your Belly?"
|
at Wild By Nature Market
2709 W. Long Beach Road
Oceanside, N.Y.
Tuesday July 9th
at 7:00 pm
Please reserve a seat:
(516) 764-3580
|
"THE DIRTY DOZEN"
|
|
The following foods have been found to have the highest levels of pesticides. Do your best to only consume "organic" versions of these:
Celery
Peaches
Strawberries
Apples
Blueberries
Nectarines
Bell Peppers
Spinach
Kale
Cherries
Potatoes
Grapes (Imported)
|
|
|
Greetings!
Welcome to the May, 2013 issue of NUTRITIOUS BYTES where we ask: |
|
Should You Fast?
|
 | |
There is no doubt fasting can produce many beneficial changes in the body but I don't think it is the best approach for improving health or producing weight loss. This is probably the perfect time for me to acknowledge that although I try to be well informed, I am not all-knowing. Some of my beliefs may be incorrect. After all, Jesus fasted for forty days!
I don't think there is much concern with occasional short-term fasting. However, I do believe that the same goals can be accomplished in most cases with other, less extreme approaches - and with less side effects. (And with less deprivation!)
First of all, what physiological effects does fasting have? Here are a few:
1. Creates a caloric deficit, which leads to weight loss
2. Autophagy up-regulation. Autophagy is the process of cellular housekeeping whereby old damaged components are digested and recycled.
3. Survival and longevity genes are up-regulated, stress genes are down-regulated.
4. Antigen exposure is reduced. Along with nutrition, food supplies damaging substances, including antigens or allergens.
5. Advanced Glycation Endproducts (AGEs) are reduced. Food contains AGEs, which are sugar-damaged proteins and fats. These have negative health effects, which are under-appreciated. (For more on AGEs, see the July 2011 Nutritious Bytes)
6. Environmental pollution is reduced. Again, the "dark side" of food.
7. Intestinal bacterial and yeast activity is reduced. This is not simply good or bad. Depending on the type of food consumed and the composition of the intestinal flora, the end result of eating may be a positive or negative one for health. If fasting means you're cutting out soda for example, that's a good thing: intestinal yeast (which can cause a lot of ill-health effects) are being starved.
These effects from fasting can do a lot of good. However, there are other approaches that can impact all of these processes in a similar way. For example, autophagy may be induced by ingestion of resveratrol, EGCg (green tea extract), curcumin, and quercetin. An elimination diet or one tailored based on the results of a food sensitivity lab test will reduce antigen exposure. And when it comes to modulation of genetic expression, one study found that longevity genes were switched on and stress genes switched off by restricting calories 12.5% and increasing activity 12.5%; not very extreme modifications at all.
What's more, besides potentially mimicking the benefits of fasting with less unpleasant measures, there is the issue of side effects of fasting to consider. Some of the potential negative effects of fasting include:
1. Insufficient calories impairs biotransformation; detoxification is highly energy dependent. In other words, thorough complete detoxification of harmful chemicals may be compromised by not consuming sufficient calories.
2. Lack of fiber intake impedes fecal excretion and increases entero-hepatic recirculation: re-absorption of toxins and waste products from the intestinal tract.
3. Over-stimulation of what are called phase1 detoxification enzymes, which results in excessive production of toxic intermediates. To explain a bit, phase 1 is when the body changes the physical structure of toxins in the initial step of detoxification. The transformed toxin is more damaging than the initial substance. What's more, free radicals are a byproduct of phase 1 reactions. Too much phase1 activity is damaging.
4. After 24 hours of fasting, glutathione levels are reduced by half. Glutathione is the most important intracellular antioxidant and an important phase 2 nutrient.
5. Other phase 2 nutrients like the amino acids methionine, glycine, taurine, and sulfate are not consumed. Phase 2 is how the body makes the partially-transformed toxins from phase 1 water-soluble. When phase 2 is not adequate, toxins are not excreted.
6. Lack of dietary antioxidants makes the body more susceptible to free-radical damage.
7. Body protein is "auto-cannibalized" for energy and other bodily functions. This results in a loss of muscle mass, intestinal tissue, and possibly other organ protein. Loss of muscle slows the metabolic rate. Breakdown of intestinal protein can contribute to auto-intoxication and inflammation from leaky gut syndrome.
A study published in International Journal of Obesity in 2010 examined changes in body composition in obese men who either fasted, followed a low calorie diet, or a very low calorie diet. After 5% of body weight was lost, measurements were taken to determine what type of tissue was lost. Only the group that fasted had a decrease in intracellular water and an increase in extracelluar water. These are unhealthy changes. Compared with the other two diet groups, the fasting group lost more body cell mass (BCM), which is muscle and other organ tissue. This is obviously a negative finding. Perhaps surprisingly, fasting resulted in less fat loss than did the low calorie and very low calorie diets.
What about juice fasting? Juice fasting does supply calories and many valuable nutrients. However, juice fasting is not nutritionally complete. For one thing it lacks protein. To quote from Laboratory Evaluations For Integrative And Functional Medicine: "Low-protein diets cause increased mortality of laboratory animals from exposure to pesticides, chlorinated hydrocarbons and organophosphates." Juice fasts lack the critical phase 2 detoxifying nutrients: amino acids, the building blocks of protein.
Below are bioimpedance analysis (body composition) test results on a patient of mine. Between the first time I saw the patient and the second visit, he, on his own, radically changed his fairly well-balanced diet to simply juice, nuts and seeds. The gold line on the graph represents fat, the red is body cell mass, and the green is extracellular mass. Although the patient had a desirable 5.4 pound fat reduction, he also lost 6.5 pounds of body cell mass (muscle and other organ tissue). It is not desirable or healthy to lose so much body cell mass.
 | | Inadequate diet - Unhealthy changes |
We also tested this patient's phase angle. Phase Angle is an indication of cellular health. A change in phase angle of 0.2 is significant. This patient had a drop of 1.0 in his phase angle, indicating declining health.
The patient also had a drop in his estimated basal metabolic rate (BMR)-
the number of calories required to maintain body weight over a 24 hour
period without any activity factored in. With a drop in BMR, weight is more easily regained.
 | | Basal metabolic rate slowed by 117 calories |
The Clear Change™ Metabolic Detoxification Program - A Better Approach
The Clear Change™ Program is a scientifically designed detoxification program that takes just 10 days and supports the body's natural cleansing processes to remove toxins. The program combines a simple eating plan and targeted nutritional support, including AdvaClear® capsules and a medical food drink-mix called Ultra Clear Renew™. This approach provides the nutrients that the liver uses to help remove toxins and increases the body's natural chelating agent that binds to metals and allows for their elimination. These ingredients have demonstrated safety even for long-term use. It's easier to follow than a "fasting" plan, especially since there are no restrictions on calories or servings of recommended foods. After this short program, most people feel re-energized with fewer bothersome symptoms. (A 28-day program may also be recommended depending on your needs, and it's just as easy to follow!)
Want to get an idea of your need for detoxification? Take the test on my website: Are You Toxic?
Contact the office if you are interested in the Clear Change™ program.
|
|
|
Sincerely,
Joseph Debé, DC, DACBN, CDN
Board Certified Nutritionist
38 Great Neck Road
Great Neck, N.Y. 11021
(516) 829-1515
www.drdebe.com
|
|
|
