Are You Taking Medication for Acid Reflux? If so, you may be deficient in vitamins B12

One of the most common types of over-the-counter medications my patients take are medications for reducing acid reflux. Unfortunately, over time, this can lead to some health challenges which include, difficulty digesting food, malabsorption, and nutritional deficiencies. This is because without adequate stomach acid it becomes impossible to digest our food properly.

Our stomach usually produces stomach acid via Parietal cells. Medications that block the release of stomach acid from Parietal cells also block something else called “intrinsic factor.” Intrinsic factor is a carrier protein that the parietal cells release into the stomach when we eat foods that contain B12 (such as animal products). However, when people take acid-blockers they can also block the parietal cells from releasing intrinsic factor; making it impossible to absorb vitamin B!2. Consequently, long-term use of acid blockers can result in B12 deficiency and I advice my patients who are unable to get off acid blockers to supplement with B12.

If your doctor has placed you on an acid blocker, speak to him/her about B12. B12 is a very important vitamin that is vital for several processes in the body. B12 gives us energy, helps in DNA synthesis, and protects our nerve cells. B12 is also helpful in red blood cell division. People with low levels of B12 often experience a medical condition called “neuropathy”, or pain in the nerves (often in the feet and hands). they may also experience a form of anemia where red blood cells continue to grow but do not divide called “megaloblastic anemia.”

If you are concerned about getting enough B12, and you are taking an acid-blocker, I recommend taking a sublingual B12. This is a B12 that you can take under the tongue bypassing the stomach so that it can be absorbed more easily. B12 sublingual is sold in 500mcg, 1mg and 5mg dosages. I also advice taking the form methylcobalamine as it is of higher quality than the cheaper quality cyanocobalamine.

Feeling Depressed? Try Taking Niacin

Feeling a bit blue lately? You might want to think about adding an inexpensive supplement to your diet everyday. Niacin (also known as B3) is a readily available over-the-counter supplement that has been found to improve mood in some people.

In fact, one of the first signs of vitamin B3 deficiency is anxiety and depression. Why would that be? Simple really, when we aren’t getting enough B3, our bodies may become deficient in an important neuro-transmitter called “serotonin.” Serotonin helps relieve stress and anxiety—so when we are low— we can become overly anxious and depressed.

More recently, taking high dosages of niacin has become popular; due to the fact that niacin has a lipid lowering effect and has been shown to be effective in helping to increase HDL (good cholesterol).

Niacin deficiency has been noted in people who suffer from alcoholism and in cultures that rely heavily on a corn-based diet (where the niacin is not easily digested unless the corn has been specially treated). Extreme deficiency of niacin causes a medical condition known as “pellagra.” pellagra is characterized by dermatitis, scaling of the skin, diarrhea, a swollen beefy red tongue, emotionally erratic behavior, and mental confusion.

Niacin can be purchased in 100 mg tablets. However, if taking this much niacin causes you to have side effects, like hot flushes, you may try 250 mg-500 mg Slo-Niacin or no-flush niacin currently on the market.

Another option, that I prefer, is to have people simply start taking a B-Complex that includes niacin; as well as other important B vitamins, like B12 and folic acid, also found to improve mood.

Foods high in niacin include lean meats, legumes, like peanuts and lentils. Niacin is also found in small quantities in grains, vegetables and fruit.

The simplest and easiest changes to our diets can have the most amazing impact on our moods and well-being. We sometimes see young people, after they go away to college, become depressed. And I believe part of that change in mood may be due to bad dietary choices. By educating our children early on about the importance of diet to our health and well-being, hopefully, these deficiencies can be avoided.

Type II Diabetes Can Be Reversed with Diet

In a recent article I read in the BBC, it was pointed out that Diabetes type II can be reversed in people, who have only had the disease for a short amount of time, if they go on a restricted diet of 600Kcals a day.
While this may be good news for many people, I have found that similar benefits can be attained by putting people on a whole food based diet (80 percent vegan 20 percent lean animal protein), on a restricted diet of between 1400 and 1700 calories a day with moderate exercise,
I do not feel that treating obesity, or type II diabetes, is very complicated.
What I find is difficult for people, is learning to change the patterns of diet and lifestyle that they have established for years that lead to the disease itself.
One of the things that I learned when I received my Anthropology degree is the importance of community and ritual in peoples lives. These rituals become patterns that comfort us and give us a sense of who we are in the world.
For a person with a drinking problem, for example, the ritual might be sitting on a bar stool talking to the same group of people and having the same drinks over the course of several years. The bar, and the people, become the community and environment that the person has come to feel safe in, even if the activity they have chosen is ultimately unhealthy, the familiarity of the environment has made it both a safe zone and a source of comfort and community. The ritual of drinking may be comforting for its own sake, but it is also an addiction that is harmful to ones health.
I do not think that we can address real change in a person's life if we do not address the fact that we are asking a person to find a new set of rituals and give up old ones that are not longer healthy for them.
In the case of the alcoholic, we are also asking a person to give up the only community they may have. However, once we are able to help a person see the extent to which they may have to change their life's patterns and habits in order to heal it. People become far more realistic about what they need to do in order to change their lives. And begin to seek out new rituals and a new community that better mirrors the type of life they wish to live.

Trying to Stay Healthy? Try drinking coffee

For those people who truly love coffee, as I do, the idea that coffee could actually be good for you is a welcome relief. Among the many benefits attributed to coffee include, possible reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, diabetes type II, cirrhosis of the liver, and gout.

There are several different species of coffee. The most common, Coffea canephora, commonly referred to as “Robusta,” is the form we most often see in common brands available at your local supermarket. This type of coffee is often high in caffeine and fairly inexpensive to produce. A more prized form of coffee is the C. arabica. Originally found in the highlands of Ethiopia, and the Sudan, this is the form most often used to make espresso. C. arabica is lower in caffeine and considered more flavorful and more expensive. Because we are fairly serious about coffee in our house—we only buy the C. arabica variety. And while it is thought that unfiltered coffee contains ingredients, called diterpenes, thought to slightly elevate LDL cholesterol, we use a French Press and never filter our coffee with a paper filter. This is because, in addition to removing diterpenes, paper filters also remove beneficial antioxidants thought to have numerous health benefits.

Studies have shown that people who consume a moderate amount of coffee everyday, around 3-5 cups a day, are at decreased risk for developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease type II diabetes and prostate cancer.

A few cups of coffee a day can also be helpful in alleviating mild depression and can act as a “pick me up,” when you are having trouble starting your day.

Coffee is also high in antioxidents. These are substances that help repair cell damage. In fact, coffee has more anti-oxidants in it per cup that just about any drink on the market.

The greatest health risk associated with drinking coffee appears to be acid reflux. A condition that may be alleviated by choosing coffee that has a lower acidity level.

If you are a naturally nervous person and easily stressed, you may try switching to decaffeinated coffee. However, decaffeinated coffee does not hold that same health benefits.

So if you are someone who loves coffee as much as I do—enjoy your 2-4 cups a day there are many health benefits you can enjoy without giving up one of the worlds favorite beverages.