elderberry supplement for cold and flu season

Missing Minerals: 5 Common Deficiencies

Missing Minerals: 5 Common Deficiencies.

If you didn’t think vitamins and minerals were overwhelming, just walk down the nutrition aisle at Meijer or Wal-Mart and try to make some sense of it. Although we should get all our vitamins and minerals from our food, some essential nutrients are still lacking in a healthy diet and can contribute to chronic illness. Here is a list of what we’ve found to be the top 5 vitamin deficiencies, food sources to add and the best vitamins to supplement with that we know of:

  1. Fish Oil– the omega fatty acids in fish oils help with joint health and cellular repair. Wild Alaskan salmon is one of the best sources but is often very pricy. A more cost-effective alternative are canned sardines. When choosing a supplement, buyer beware! The jumbo bottle at Costco may not good quality and have little positive effect on your health. The best source of fish oil I know of is Rosita’s. It’s super fishy tasting and expensive. But, it works! For a better tasting oil, less expensive fish oil, try liquid Omegavail (capsule) or even the Lemon Drop Smoothie for kids.
  2. Vit D– sunshine, fatty fish (tuna, sardines & salmon), cheese and egg yolks all contain Vitamin D to help with many biological processes in the body like immune support, bone health and autoimmune disorders. Emulsi-D is a great supplement to easily get your 2,000-4,000 IU’s in per day. Bio-D mulsion is another source that may absorb better depending on the individual.
  3. Probiotics– probiotics are the good bacteria that live in your body to help with digestion and immune function and are found in fermented foods like sauerkraut, kombucha, natto, yogurt, apple cider vinegar, tempeh and kefir. Probiotic Synergy is available in both tablet and powder Probiotic Supreme offers the same number of strains but in triple the concentration. For variety, Ther-biotic complete offers more total strains per capsule and their children’s chewable is perfect for kids! They also have an infant formula that is great for babies.
  4. Magnesium-magnesium helps with tissue repair, protein synthesis and over 300 biomechanical functions in the body. It is most commonly found in spinach, pumpkin seeds, almonds, black beans, and avocado. Magnesium Malate provides a simple tablet at 180 mg each while Natural Calm makes a pleasant tasting drink with 155mg per teaspoon.
  5. Iodine– According to Dr. David Brownstein and many other healthcare professionals, living in the Midwest makes us significantly deficient in Iodine since it’s mostly found in seaweed, kelp and seafood. This significantly impairs thyroid function! A few great supplements are Iodoral, Liquid Iodine Forte and Iodine Synergy support your daily needs.

Pregnancy Complications: 5 Common Triggers

Pregnancy Complications: 5 Common Triggers (And What To Do About Them!)

Pregnancy is a stressful time of life, both in positive and negative ways.  With so much to celebrate it’s unfortunate that the negative stresses can get in the way of enjoying the moment. These stresses can cause complications in each phase of pregnancy, labor and delivery. Fortunately, for over 10 years we’ve helped many women overcome these stresses and enjoy a more positive outcome for both mother and baby. Here are the top 5 triggers that we’ve seen cause problems and solutions to each.

  1. You’re Not Squatting Enough. Sitting, old injuries and lack of movement inhibits pelvic function, diminishes your ability to squat and can impair labor and delivery. Midwife Ina May Gaskin  recommends that all pregnant women squat about 300 times a day to improve birth outcomes. If you’re having trouble squatting, try these versions of modified squats. Also, taking a class in The Bradley Method will show you additional stretches and exercises to optimize pregnancy, labor and delivery.
  2. You’re exposed to too many toxins and radiation. Mercury from fish and flu shots can cause negative effects to both mom and baby. Tylenol also adds a major chemical insult that can cause neurological damage to the baby and also diminishes glutathione (important antioxidant) levels. Finally, each ultrasound puts some stress on the unborn child. It’s important to talk to your birth provider about which, if any of these, are necessary or can be omitted from your prenatal plan.
  3. You’re missing crucial nutrients. Poor diet can lead to low birth weight in the baby, inhibit pelvic ligament stretch during labor, cause the mom to be dehydrated and increases the likelihood of postpartum bleeding. The Brewer Pregnancy Diet is a great starting point for nutritional needs during pregnancy (additional article on Brewer Diet). Magnesium (and also Natural Calm) is a great supplement during pregnancy because it helps with constipation and muscle tension. Both Bradley Method and Hypnobirthing classes also discuss dietary needs during pregnancy.
  4. You Don’t Have A Plan. If you’ve ever ran a marathon, or thought about running one, you put together a plan first. Same goes for driving across the country or traveling abroad. Well, labor and delivery is harder than all of those yet few sit down to plan it out. Do you want to deliver upright (which is easier) or while laying on your back (much harder)? Who is allowed in the room? Is water birth an option? Vit K shot? Hep B? Circumcision? Sit down with your significant other and make decisions on these when you have a clear mind and not in the thick of things. Here’s a Sample birth plan to get you started.
  5. You’re Stressed Out. Emotional stress can cause undue muscle tension that may inhibit baby positioning, not to mention cause discomfort and pain. Try listening to relaxing music while taking an Epsom salt bath each night, download a stress management app (here’s another option and more relaxation methods) or even consider taking a hypnobirthing class.

*Bonus Tip! Get Adjusted.  Misalignments of the pelvis, sacrum and lumbar spine can affect supporting muscles and ligaments. In turn, these can prevent the baby from dropping into proper position, not to mention causing pain and discomfort for mom. Chiropractors trained in the Webster technique can help these alignment issues through gentle adjustments and improve birth outcomes. One published study found that pregnant women under regular chiropractic care had 25-31% shorter labors (Cara L. Borggren, 2007)!