Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine ● Longevity Nutrition

telomere length

I just wanted to let eveyone know that I´m traveling in Ecuador with the amazing organization, Acupuncturists Without Borders.  http://acuwithoutborders.org.  I´m in Quito today, but communications may be very challenging over the next couple of weeks.  I may not have the opportunity to post.  Our group has hired an ethnobotanist as a guide so in addition to treating people with acupuncture in the smaller villages,we will be doing lots of hiking in the Andes and the Amazon and learning about local ecology and medicinal plants.  Very rough life for me.

If anyone would like to see photos I´ll try to post come on flickr.com under the name Darwingirl1.

I´ve been receiving so many great comments and would like to thank everyone for taking the time.  A special thanks to http://crazyerniescopybarn.com.

I wanted to leave you with an interesting article that

was published in JAMA in January discussing the effects of marine lipids, EPA and DHA on telomere length.  Here is a good assessment of the study.

Hopefully this link works…http://theheart.org/article/1041013.do

With several fish populations declining from a combination of overfishing and sea water acidification, krill oil may be a better alternative omega 3 fatty acid source.  At least it´s lower on the food chain.

By the way, in areas like off the coast of Somalia fish populations along with the entire ecosystem are thriving as a result of pirate activity leading to reduced fishing.  Very reassuring that by removing the human factor, ecosystems recover well.

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Beans With Kale, Eggs and Salsa

Since my entry on “Promoting Longevity and Maximizing Telomere Length by Reducing Cell Turnover in Bone with Alkalizing Foods”, I’ve had requests for recipes to achieve this.  I will use the following breakfast recipe to demonstrate not only how to alter your diet to make it more alkalizing but an entire ethos on assembling food to promote longevity.

 Just Add Kale

Any vegetable that can be left in the fridge for weeks and still be in its pristine state is obviously full of antioxidants.  Unlike spinach and chard, kale is very alkalizing.  Being from the cruciferous family, kale is high in indoles.  This phyto-nutrient quells the effects of estrogen and helps to prevent and slow the growth of cancers of the prostate, colon, uterus and breasts.  Their estrogen-quelling effects also make them powerful for reducing the PSA by slowing or reversing prostate growth.  Indoles also help your body neutralize the effects of all those estrogen-like plastic chemicals and pesticides that are ubiquitous in our environment. Being a very hearty plant, it can be grown in harsher climates making it easier to obtain from closer sources thereby reducing its carbon load.  If you have a vegetable garden, kale is easy to grow organically in the cooler seasons.

Tear up two or three kale leaves and add them to any cooked dish or salad to help make your meal more alkalizing and increase your antioxidants.

If you enjoy making fresh vegetable juice, kale is a powerful addition.  Some people find its pungent bitterness objectionable but you only need a leaf or two to get benefits.

Super-Easy Healthy Breakfast Recipe

  • Heat Great Northern beans or Adzuki beans in a little water and add 2-3 leaves of kale torn into bite-sized pieces.  Allow these to steam together until the beans are warm and the kale is lightly steamed to a vibrant green color.  (3-5 minutes)
  • While beans and kale are cooking, add a fresh egg to butter on medium-high heat. (yes, you can eat butter)  When the yolk just begins to whiten, add 1-2 Tbsp of water.  Cover and steam for about 45 seconds depending on how cooked you like your egg.
  • Serve egg on top of beans and kale and add a little sea salt, salsa, and pepper.

Great Northern Beans – Beans are one of the best sources of low-glycemic carbohydrates balanced out with protein.  This balance reduces inflammation throughout the whole body to slow the aging process. It also reduces the survivability of cancer cells.  As I mentioned, pretty much any food that is a protein source is acidifying.  White beans, kidney beans and adzuki beans are all only mildly acidifying so they’re a better choice than animal protein.

Chicken eggs – Little more protein to reduce inflammation and meet one’s minimum daily requirement.  Chicken eggs are only a mildly acidifying protein source BUT it’s important to note that the alkalizing effect comes from the yolk.  The whites are actually acidifying.  In addition to being alkalizing, the egg yolks are one of the few foods that contain a substantial amount of the essential nutrient, phosphatidyl choline, which helps your liver distribute and emulsify fats.  The yolk also contain lots of other fat-soluable vitamins.  It’s also IMPORTANT not to destroy the health-giving nutrients by overcooking the yolk.  If it’s still a little runny all the nutritional benefits are retained.

Sea Salt – a good source of extra minerals and electrolytes makes sea salt incredibly alkalizing.

Salsa or fresh chopped tomato with lime, garlic and cilantro– most of the additional ingredients in salsa, neutralize the acidifying effect of the tomatoes.  In addition, garlic is anti-inflammatory and stimulates the immune system.  Cilantro helps to chelate various heavy metals from the body, especially mercury.

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