The blood brain barrier is formed by the brain's endothelial cell lining and is important in protecting the brain from toxicities floating around. Once something crosses the blood brain barrier, whether toxic or beneficial, it has access to the delicate cells of the brain.
Certain supplements, although beneficial, some may not cross the blood brain barrier. And where we believed that toxic agents were protected in the womb, we are now learning that many toxins still pass through the umbilical chord and cross the blood brain barrier.
Wishing I was on the water but after this week, can’t seem to find my way off the couch. #exhausted #fatigue #lifeofanaturopath #boating
Meditation is a practice where one works to practice to quiet the mind. Practices such as mindfulness, focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, etc as well as training attention and awareness. Mindfulness helps to calm the mind, build awareness, as well as creates clarity and a stable state.
Meditation and mindfulness does help sooth the soul, reclaim emotional health as well as positively impact mental as well as emotional stress. By reducing stress, improving sleep, increasing focus, and improving relationships the benefits of meditation are endless as people practice them consistently.
Yoga has been known to help the brain by releasing chemicals in the brain that help you relax while lowering your stress and anxiety levels. The many chemicals that is releases in the brain include gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins. Each of which functions in its own way to help you calm down and feel better.
There are various forms of yoga to include Hatha, Integral, Kundalini, Hot Yoga, etc. It is important to find a yogic practice that resonates with you and practice consistently to help the brain.
After long hours, phone calls, text messages, conference calls with researchers keeping me up to date I got flowers two days in a row. So grateful and blessed by the love.
The Gut Microbiome and Brain Health. ... otherwise known as the gut-brain axis. In the gut, bacteria make many neuroactive compounds, including 90% of our neurotransmitter serotonin, which helps to regulate our emotions. In turn, the brain can send signals to the gastrointestinal system, for example, to stimulate or suppress digestion.
Keeping a healthy microbiome in turn helps to keep a healthy mental health state. For instance, if blood glucose drops and amino acids are deficient there is a high instance to be irritable as well as anxious. We want to help heal the microbiome so that the brain heals itself.
Mental Health. At some point in everyone's life, we struggle with mental health challenges. WIth the pressures and demands of life, financial stress, marital challenges, parenting struggles many people as a result suffer with feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, frustration, anger, worry, etc.
Because many of us have not been taught healthy coping strategies, and even worse have been traumatized with our emotions. Many people do not have the means to move forward in their lives, being stuck, shut down, and fearful. At Holistic Family Practice, we teach you emotional intelligence, coping strategies, and new perspectives to move forward with your mental health.
Yogic methods emphasis control and suspension of the breath as important components of the path to transcendence. Pranayamas practice is varied and their role improves the physical aspects of breathing and calms the mind. Calming the mind is helpful in the management of many phycosomatic disorders.
Pranyama is used in many yogic practices. Dr Steele teaches a hybrid yogic practice using pranayma, various postures, and meditation to help ease the brain's parasympathetic system.
Doctor in latin means teacher. Our wellness classes are held three times per month. This month we teach about brain health. The standard approach to brain health, mental health, cognitive health is medication. However, the neurotransmitters are extremely sensitive to chemical interference. The brain chemicals change all of the time to internal as well as external stimulus. Maintaining a diverse integrative treatment strategy for brain health is key to long lasting health on all levels.
In this upcoming brain health class, we will teach the role of the brain, the role of the emotions, the role of the physical body and common ailments. We will touch on case strategies, dos and don'ts with brain health as well as ways to maximize memory, function, mood, etc even if someone has genetic predisposition or family history of cognitive impairments as well as mental health disorders.
Craving sugar is a common sign of dysbiosis which is an imbalance in the intestinal flora within the digestive system. Eating an unhealthy diet, developing nutrient deficiencies, and challenges with the digestive as well as assimilation process can create symptoms.
It is important that you get to the root cause of the sugar cravings rather than feeding into them. Mineral deficiencies, digestive imbalances, and high toxic loads within the system are all tell tale signs that their may be dysbiosis within the system. Organic Acids Testing can help to uncover the root causes of imbalances within the digestive system.
Brain fog affects many people, and some do not even now that it is a problem. Brain fog is the inability to have a sharp memory or lack of focus. You often do not feel like yourself, and unable to think clearly. Poor nutritional habits, hormone imbalances, and imbalances in bacteria in our digestive system are some of the causes of brain fog.
Often times people will crave sugar, uncontrollably, have blood sugar imbalances with no obvious cause. It can be very frustrating for many people to have brain fog, especially when allopathic medicine often does not recognize treatment for this symptom.
Tyrosine is an amino acid used to improve alertness, attention, as well as focus and concentration. The brain chemicals help the nerve cells which allows to regulate mood. Tyrosine can increase dopamine levels within the brain. Increased dopamaine can help improve memory and deep thinking.
Safety data on long term supplementation of Tyrosine has not been studied. Care and attention must be taken when working with this amino acid, especially with taking medications, herbs, etc. It is critical to speak with your natural health care professional to monitor and understand the current neurotransmitters in the brain and the impact of dosing.
Tryptophan is an amino acid that helps make niacin, melatonin, and serotonin which helps regulate sleep and stabilize mood. Tryptophan helps the body make proteins and certain brain signaling chemicals.
Care must be taken if you are ingesting this amino acid in terms of quality, dosage, and interactions with other medications. Typical intake is approximately 900 to 1000 mg daily. Some common food sources are oats, bananas, dried prunes chicken, turkey, and tuna fish.
Genetics plays a role in the infrastrucutre of the nervous system. Genetic Variants such as MAO, COMT, and DHFR all are variants that effect the neurotransmitters in the brain. However, we are not a victim to our genes. It is the environment to which we put the Genes in that make a difference.
If we have unhealthy lifestyle patterns such as unhealthy foods, heavy metal toxicity, etc this can exacerbate the unhealthy effects of the above genetic variants. Understanding these variants, supporting them and applying a healthy environment will create an epigenetic environment that is healthy.
Heavy Metals from the environment affect the brain in various ways. The nervous system is the principal target for a number of metals. Inorganic compounds of aluminum, arsenic, lead, lithium, manganese, mercury, and thallium are well known for their neurological and behavioral effects in humans. Concern over human exposure and in some cases, outbreaks of poisoning, have stimulated research into the toxic action of these metals.
Toxic heavy metals can have a significant impact on the system by creating neurological symptoms such as depression, anxiety, confusion, brain fog, memory issues, etc. Toxic metals can create much cognitive impairment as well as mental and emotional upsets within the person that can be easily misdiagnosed and overlooked. Having a toxic metal assessment and regularly detoxifying your body is key to helping a person heal if a person is suffering from neurological based symptoms.
Your mind is always thinking. Thinking about this, thinking about that, always busy, always thinking. Your mind was not made for storage, your mind was made for decision making. Quick decision making. Not rumenating, judging, criticizing, figuring out... Just quick decision making.
If you allow your mind to run around the block wihtout permission, not only will you burn yourself out but your hromones and neurotransmitter will be running, running, running. Meditation, the use of mantra, mindfulness, yoga are all tools to help you get out of all the thinking of the mind. It will assist you in becoming more present, more still, and more at peace. This month I will be teaching yoga and mediation classes for the mind at the Reiki Wellness & Meditation Center. If you would like to come please register in advance.
Many times people do not reflect on the role our emotions play on our overall health and well being. If we do not recognize our emotions when they come up we are shut down. Furthermore, if we are highly reactive to our emotions we tend to self sabotage our relationships around us.
Even still, our emotions can paralize us, making us afraid, stuck, and unwilling to move forward. Our emotions can also allow us to stay inspired, motivated, and moving forward. At Holistic Family Practice, we work to liberate you from the unwillingness to move forward, while also teaching you how to self regulate and process your emotions in a healthy manner. Emotional Intelligence is necessary in the new age of healing, and critical to you manifesting your desires.
All set up for the McDonalds Garden Show this weekend. Come by and see us! This years theme is story book!! So cool. #healthyself #physicianhealthyself #holisticfamilypractice #mcdonaldsgardencenter #lifeofanaturopath
Behavior plays a major role in changing ones lifestyle. Eating saturated fats, placing stress on the liver, building toxins, combined with inactivity leads to many metabolic health conditions.
All of these things negatively impact the brain. There has also been this thought process that the mind is separate from the brain and there is no link between our mind and our body. At Holistic Family Practice, we recognize the link between the mind and the body, while also helping you to expand your consciousness to heal the behaviors that are making you sick.
In our practice, we use Neurolinguistic Programming to reframe perceptions from the past to transform behaviors and help people reach their goals. Many people know what they need to do but they continue to sabotage themselves and are unable to move forward with their healing because of old patterns of beliefs. At HFP, we are changing things up by helping you to be aware of the impact of your thoughts, your emotions, and your actions.
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