Cold? Flu? Tummy troubles? I know that I don’t have time to be sick, and I’m sure you don’t either. Luckily I don’t get sick very often anymore, but back in my competitive athlete days, it felt like I was constantly battling one cold, cough, or sinus infection after another.
Not to toot my own horn, but I chalk up my current good health to my Primal lifestyle. I know for sure that there is a marked before and after—before Primal, when I had a medicine cabinet full of OTC remedies, and after, when I rarely take a sick day. On those occasions when I do detect a tickle in my throat or the first signs of sour stomach, my first course of action is to double down on those aspects of my lifestyle that support a robust immune system, particularly nutrient-dense foods, sleep, and time in the sun.
The food piece is what we’re going to talk about today. Everybody has an opinion about what to eat, or not, when you’re under the weather. I’m not claiming that certain foods can cure the flu or prevent you from coming down with that cold even after your sick kid coughs in your face. But once you’re sick, the name of the game is supporting your immune system by providing it with beneficial nutrients and compounds that could aid it in fighting off the viruses or bacteria that are making you sick in the first place. Some foods will also provide welcome comfort, which is nothing to sneeze at, pun intended.
Read MoreNo one likes a cold, and various colds of one origin or another are going around this winter season. One of the worst parts of the common cold is that it’s unpleasant enough to make daily life annoying but mild enough to force you to still go out into the world and maintain a normal schedule.
But you don’t want to have to do that. You don’t want to get anyone else sick, and you want to feel better—fast. How do you do it? How can you speed up your clearance of a cold, whether through actually expelling the virus from your body, getting rid of the symptoms, or both?
Let’s talk about that.
Read MoreWe Primal folks love our giant omelets, guacamole burgers, and dark chocolate smeared with coconut butter — but what about when those foods don’t love us back? Over the years, I’ve heard from countless readers with food allergies, food restrictions, and simple food preferences who worry that Primal might not be for them.
These folks are interested in giving the Primal Blueprint lifestyle an honest shot, but they can’t eat certain foods, many of which enjoy an exalted place (real or imagined) in our community. So what’s the verdict? Can you go Primal without eating red meat? Coconut products? Avocado? Can it be done as a vegetarian? Are almonds essential?
Food allergies and intolerances frequently represent nothing more than minor speed bumps in your path, but some are more tedious than others. How hard will it be for you to eat Primally with your specific dietary needs? Let’s find out. Then scroll to the bottom for some general food allergy FAQs.
Read MoreFor today’s edition of Dear Mark, I’m answering more COVID-19 (coronavirus) questions. If you’re getting tired of coronavirus content, I understand, but I also owe it to my readers to give them my take on the research—and the questions have been pouring in. Information is coming out at a rapid pace and there are a lot of wild claims and recommendations flying around. With any luck, we’ll all be able to focus on something else in the near future. Thanks for your understanding.
Let’s go:
Read MoreWhen viruses and bacterial infections swirl around us, and especially during the winter and early spring months when the weather can seesaw between sunny and pleasant, and thundering and soggy, warm soups, bone broths, and teas can fortify and evoke warm fuzzy feelings (even if they’re fleeting until the next bowl or mug). These soup, bone broth, and tea recipes can help soothe when you’re feeling worn out or ill, and warm you up when the weather won’t.
Read MoreFor today’s edition of Dear Mark, I’m answering one question from a reader. It’s all about synthetic peptides, small chains of amino acids with potentially huge effects on your health and physiological function. In most cases, these synthetic peptides are based on naturally-occurring compounds found in the human body. Scientists isolate the “active component” of the compound and whip it up in a lab by stringing together the right amino acids. Many of these peptides are available for purchase online, strictly “for research purposes.” But people are using them.
Are these safe for humans? Are they effective?
Read MoreFor today’s edition of Dear Mark, I’m answering a bunch of questions from readers. The first one concerns another inflammatory marker, homocysteine. How could CRP be low but homocysteine be high? What could cause that? Next, I answer a barrage of kefir questions, including ones on kefir carb counts, pasteurized kefir, and water and coconut kefir. Finally, I address the elephant in the room: stressing out about your diet.
Let’s go:
Read MoreCold season is upon us. Vitamin D levels are down. People are cloistered indoors. Kids are walking petri dishes. Drug stores are advertising free flu shots. It’s that time of year. I’m sure a few of you are even sniffling as you read this, or maybe trying to ignore the pain of swallowing with a sore throat.
Colds seem like an inevitability, maybe not so much since you’ve cleaned up your diet, but nothing is 100% fool-proof. You will get sick. You will catch a cold. Or someone close to you will. What can you do for yourself? For your sick kid or partner? Are there any natural cold remedies that actually work?
Let’s look at them.
Read MoreInflammation gets a bad rap in the alternative health world: “Inflammation causes heart disease, cancer, and autoimmune disease! It’s at the root of depression.” These are all true—to some extent.
Name a disease, and inflammation is involved.
Crohn’s disease is inflammatory.
Major depression is inflammatory.
Heart disease is inflammatory.
Autoimmune diseases, which involve an inflammatory response directed at your own tissues, are inflammatory.
Arthritis is inflammatory.
Even obesity is inflammatory, with fat cells literally secreting inflammatory cytokines.
Yes, but the story is more complicated than that. Inflammation, after all, is a natural process developed through millions of years of evolution. It can’t be wholly negative. Just like our bodies didn’t evolve to manufacture cholesterol to give us heart disease, inflammation isn’t there to give us degenerative diseases.
Read MoreThe ketogenic diet has exploded in popularity over the last few years. Hordes of people are using it to lose body fat, overcome metabolic diseases, improve their endurance performance, attain steady energy levels, make their brain work better, and control seizures. And increasing numbers of researchers and personal experimenters are even exploring the utility of ketogenic diets in preventing and/or treating cancer. After all, back in the early part of the 20th century, Warburg discovered an important characteristic of most cancer cells: they generate their energy by burning glucose. If a particular cancer loves glucose, what happens if you reduce its presence in your body and start burning fat and ketones instead?
It’s taken a while, but the research community is finally beginning to take a few swings at this and similar questions.
Read More
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