Category Archives: Blog

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The Roots of Health – Episode 52: Combat ‘Flat & Level’ with the Topo Mat

Kit Perkins of Ergodriven | Topo MatClick here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

I am a student of Nutritious Movement, a course of study designed by biomechanist Katy Bowman that draws an analogy between the nutrient requirements that humans have from food, and the various loads that human beings require from movement. This is no ordinary study… It recognizes movement ‘macronutrients’ like walking – and movement ‘micronutrients’ like walking on varied terrain. In a modern environment that was designed for our comfort, safety, and efficiency, are we overdosing on vitamin ‘flat & level’ ground?

Today I’m chatting with Kit Perkins, CEO of a company called Ergodriven… about a new product that they’ve released into the wild called the Topo mat… it was designed to help you combat the effects of the ‘flat & level’ ground in your environment.

Kit and I chat about what ‘flat & level’ means, and I digress with a trip to see a house called Bioscleave that was intentionally designed NOT to be flat & level, designed to combat the effects of aging by changing one’s environment to change their life, in light of recent shows about how our modern environment shapes us, and about how to get kids out of chairs at school, is the answer to sitting all of the time simply standing all of the time? We talk about a traditional anti-fatigue mat is and how the Topo mat is different, how it was designed, who it is designed for and the health benefits of interacting with it, and why the Topo mat is a superior choice to a treadmill desk.

The Topo mat currently (as of Oct 2015) retails for $119… a small price to pay to get yourself up and moving while you work…. without even realizing it.

Behold, the Topo!

Ergodriven: Topo Mat

Music by audionautix.com

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

 

 

 

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The Roots of Health – Episode 51: Noise Pollution with Dr. Louis Hagler

Louis 52-01Click here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

If it’s one thing that we’re good at doing in our modern environment… it’s not recognizing the effect of noise in our life. I live on a pretty busy road – and I rarely notice the sound of cars driving by. It’s just become part of my environment. At least once a year I get out into the middle of nowhere in southwestern WY… where the absence of modern noise is notable.

Is the noise of our modern environment is negatively impacting on our health without us even knowing it?

My guest today has co-authored a paper entitled: Noise Pollution: A Modern Plague. Dr. Louis Hagler joins me today to discuss noise pollution and the negative health effects of noise.

Louis and I discuss what ‘noise’ is, that we can’t ‘turn off’ our ears, we chat about the evolution of noise pollution over time, the noises of our modern environment, the financial and physical cost of noise pollution, we learn that there used to be a governmental Office of Noise Abatement and Control, the 7 categories of adverse effects of noise on health proposed by the World Health Organization, what a safe level of sound is, how to measure the soundscape in your home and environment, how to protect your child’s hearing and to help them succeed in school, our individual rights when it comes to noise pollution, and how to escape the sounds of our modern environment.

And as always – I want to thank my primary show sponsor Mother Dirt. If you haven’t yet visited their website – give it a view… your ecosystem will thank you (wonder how noise influences your ecosystem? Oh, so many questions).

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

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The Roots of Health – Episode 50: Mercury Toxicity with Dr. Bruce Dooley

Dr. Bruce Dooley MercuryClick here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

To me, heavy metal was my music of choice back in the 80’s. But these days, heavy metal means something entirely different. The term ‘heavy metal’ has become synonymous with metallic elements that are toxic to us in relatively low concentrations – or elements that can build up in our system over time. One particular heavy metal that I’ve been researching lately is mercury.

What does mercury toxicity mean for you? My guest today can help us to answer this question. Dr. Bruce Dooley practices integrative medicine – he’s treated over 30,000 patients for arteriosclerosis, memory problems, fatigue, autoimmune diseases and other chronic diseases, and has become an expert in the diagnosis and treatment of heavy metal toxicity.

We chatted about the World Health Organization’s data on mercury and that despite the EPA, FDA, and OSHA limits, a safe level of mercury has not yet been identified, I learned about an acute mercury exposure at Minamata, Japan, what micromercurialism is, about the bioaccumulation of mercury, how we can get mercury in our bodies, is it necessary to differentiate between elemental mercury, inorganic mercury, and methylmercury, the role of bacteria in creating methylmercury, where mercury is stored in our bodies, what health conditions are related to mercury toxicity, how can we measure our heavy metal load, how we can mobilize it to get it out of our bodies, and what can we do naturally to decrease our heavy metal burden.

For homework this week – go ahead and watch this video about the mercury vapors that come off of silver amalgams. Proceed with caution – proper safety precautions are required to remove those silver amalgams, otherwise you run the risk of contaminating your body with more mercury than you would’ve gotten from the amalgams if they were still in place.

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

 

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The Roots of Health – Episode 49: Cholesterol Clarity with Jimmy Moore

Cholesterol Clarity with Jimmy MooreClick here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

1 in 4 people over the age of 45 in the US are on cholesterol lowering drugs to prevent heart disease, thought to be caused by high cholesterol in our blood. The National Institutes for Health want to increase that number by decreasing the threshold by which physicians would prescribe cholesterol lowering medications. At the same time, the FDA recognizes some serious side effects associated with taking these drugs, more commonly known as ‘statins’. They recognize neurological and muscular complications associated with the use of statin drugs, as well as an increase in the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Cholesterol has become a bad word in modern times, and by the current NIH guidelines, I SHOULD be medicated for ‘high cholesterol’ despite the fact that since I adopted an ancestral diet, I’ve weaned myself off of a number of prescription medications as I’ve gained health.

Would it surprise you to learn that according to the World Health Organization, the lowest all-cause mortality is associated with a total cholesterol number of 210-240?

Well, turns out total cholesterol may actually be a pretty meaningless metric – completely divorced from the system that is your body. My guest today is Jimmy Moore – host of the Livin’ La Vida Low Carb show… and author of the book Cholesterol Clarity.

Jimmy and I discuss what our cholesterol numbers really mean, how they are reported, how they are calculated, we chat about what cholesterol is, and how it’s guilty by association, what Jimmy thinks is the real cause of heart disease, and what you can do naturally to shift your cholesterol numbers toward a healthier profile of high HDL, low triglycerides, and the appropriate amount of ‘good – large fluffy’ LDL. Jimmy recommends a specific type of cholesterol test called the NMR lipoprofile test to get some real information about your health (see what your LDL particles actually look like). We talk about what statin drugs do, who they help (hint: maybe 1-2 out of every 100 people taking them), and the side effects of taking them.

As of late 2015, cholesterol is no longer considered a ‘nutrient of concern’ by the USDA. That’s right, it’s a nutrient, and your body makes it on its own to create a healthy body.

If you’ve been told that you have high cholesterol, find out the details about what that means. The total number is meaningless, if you have low triglycerides, your calculated LDL numbers will be incorrect, if you have high LDL, you need to know the particle number and type, and remember, that you want your HDL to be high. Odds are, statin drugs will not benefit you. For more information, check out Jimmy’s book, Cholesterol Clarity.

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

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The Roots of Health – Episode 48: Stand Up Kids with Juliet Starrett

Juliet 48-01Click here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

Picture a classroom. What do you see? Brightly colored walls, books everywhere, buckets of school supplies, a teacher or two, and15-25 kids sitting at tables or desks. Most of us send our kids to school for at least 13 years of their lives and the bulk of their time at school (and at home for that matter) is spent in a seated position. While the intention of school is to challenge their minds and to get them to practice some life skills, are we actually changing the shape of their bodies and setting them up for a lifetime of health issues?

My guest today sees a great opportunity here. Juliet Starrett and her husband have started a non-profit called Stand Up Kids – whose mission is to outfit all classrooms around the country with stand up desks in the next 10 years to give them a movement-rich environment and an opportunity to stay healthy from the beginning of their lives.

Juliet and I talk about the moment she was inspired to start Stand Up Kids, the orthopedic problems associated with remaining in a seated position, how sedentary are kids are today and how nobody can out-exercise a sitting habit, how our current classroom design is not conducive to kids with attention disorders and the gender inequality it creates, about how much more energy you expend when you stand, about Juliet’s experience turning her daughter’s school into the worlds first elementary school outfitted with standing desks, and how we can facilitate that change in our own school districts.

 

Go to StandUpKids.org to see how you can influence this change in your child’s school!

Juliet’s Bio:

Juliet Starrett is an attorney and entrepreneur. She is co-founder and CEO of San Francisco Crossfit, one of the first 50 Crossfit affiliates, and MobilityWOD.com, which has revolutionized how athletes think about human movement and athletic performance. Before turning her attention to MobilityWOD and San Francisco CrossFit full-time, Juliet had a successful career as an attorney, practicing complex commercial litigation at Reed Smith for nearly eight years.
A lifelong athlete, Juliet rowed in high-school, was on the U.C. Berkeley crew team, and went on to paddle for the US Women’s Extreme Whitewater Team from 1997-2000, winning two World Championships and five national titles.
In 2007, Juliet won the prestigious Jefferson Award for public service in connection with her work with GirlVentures, a girls empowerment organization, and as a co-founder of Liquid, a kayaking camp for kids with HIV.
When she is not busy running two businesses and StandUpKids.org, Juliet enjoys hanging out with her husband Kelly and their two daughters, Georgia and Caroline, reading, listening to music, Crossfitting, mountain biking, paddling, skiing, camping, and playing outdoors.

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

 

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The Roots of Health – Episode 47: Our Modern Shape with Scott Robison

Scott 47-01Click here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

The human species today is captive in a modern environment of its making. It’s like we created a zoo for ourselves by building structures and moving indoors. The bulk of human evolution took place in nature – under a certain set of environment pressures that literally shaped our species.

And our modern environment and social constructs continue to shape our species… often creating painful conditions for us.

Scott Robison is here to talk with me about how your modern environment continues to shape you today – and what you can do to reverse this trend. Scott practices structural bodywork at the Therapeutic Massage Center of Middleton, in Middleton, WI. Structural bodywork is a manual therapy practice focused on the manipulation of the body’s fascial system to achieve balance and ease in gravity.

Scott and I chat about how chairs, shoes, & screens put us into unnatural positions that our bodies adapt to – so much so that when we stand, move, take our shoes off, and put the screen down, our bodies are no longer adapted to the positions that they were designed to be in. We provide awareness around these positions – so that you can catch yourself in them and correct them on your own, and we chat about the support of ‘structural bodyworker’ to help facilitate your return to your natural position.

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

 

 

 

 

 

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The Roots of Health – Episode 46: Herbs with Jane Hawley Stevens

Herbals with Jane Hawley StevensClick here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

If you asked me what an herb was, I’d tell you that I use them to add flavor to my meals and that my favorites are cilantro, parsley, rosemary, basil, thyme, & bay leaf. I’d actually never think to use them to treat a headache or to breathe better or to soothe my skin.

But I do understand that herbs are the original medicinals, and I’ve read that somewhere around ~1/3 of Americans use herbs for medicine. My guest today is in a great position talk about all things herbs with me.

Jane Stevens owns Four Elements Organic Herbals. Her herbal wellness products are grown, created and packaged from her farm in the Baraboo Hills of Wisconsin.

Jane and I talk about what herbs are, the tradition of herbs as medicine, about the herbal roots of the modern pharmaceutical industry, what some common herbal remedies are, the naming convention of the first medicinal herbs, how people can use herbs for their health, some references/resources that Jane recommends that you look into to learn more, we touch a bit on why they aren’t regulated as drugs, if there are any dangers to using herbs and why you should always disclose the herbal supplements that you use to your doctor, and Jane’s recommendation for herbs that you might want to cultivate for your own personal use.

Herbs have a long tradition of healing, they are the original medicinals… and should be recognized & respected for their impact on our health.

In this show, Jane recommends that you check out these authors;

David Hoffman, Rosemary Gladstar, and Matthew Wood.

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

 

 

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The Roots of Health – Episode 45: Removal of Amalgams & Detoxing from Mercury with Dr. Alvin Danenberg

Mercury Detox with Dr. Alvin Danenberg | Meredith Rhodes Carson, Health CoachClick here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

Are you walking around with a mouthful of silver amalgams? Would it surprise you to learn that 50% of that material is elemental mercury? Over the years, we’ve been taught to avoid handling mercury – mercury thermometers have been replaced with digital ones, pregnant women & children have been warned against eating too many fish – because they bioconcentrate organic mercury… even that red antiseptic that I so fondly remember from my youth has been banned… remember mercurochrome? So why do our fillings continue to be filled with mercury? And what can we do if we want it out of our mouths? And furthermore… if it’s out of our mouth, is it out of our body?

Back with me today is Dr. Alvin Danenberg – a periodontist who had his mercury fillings removed years ago. He is in the process of detoxing from mercury & other heavy metals and he’s agreed to talk to me about his experience.

Al and I chat about how dental practitioners were trained to handle mercury amalgam, how elemental mercury vapor is toxic to us, the things to consider when & if you opt to have the mercury removed from your mouth, how do you know how much mercury you have in your system, how can you detox from mercury and other heavy metals, and what that process looks like.

The EPA has some resources online about elemental mercury (the kind of mercury in amalgam). Of note are the following quotes:

‘Dental amalgam fillings contain elemental mercury combined with other metals, and mercury exposure for pregnant women and children who have amalgam fillings have been studied. The number of amalgam fillings in women during pregnancy was significantly associated with mercury concentrations in neonatal hair, but not amniotic fluid.’

‘Dental amalgam fillings that contain mercury are used by dentists for dental caries, although non-mercury alternatives are available. The American Dental Association advocates use of amalgam fillings, citing safety evaluations by several US agencies. Information about the safety of amalgam fillings has been reviewed and presented by the US EPA, US Center for Disease Control, and the US FDA. A US FDA Advisory Panel in 2006 expressed concern about a lack of knowledge concerning effects of amalgam use in pregnant women and children. Consult your dentist for more information and to discuss treatment options.’

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

 

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The Roots of Health – Episode 44: Trauma & Somatic Experiencing with Dr. Cathy Shehorn

Dr. Cathy ShehornClick here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

Trauma is not a modern issue at all. You can imagine that for as long as humans have roamed this planet, they’ve experienced traumatic situations (although they may not be the same sorts of situations as we face in modern times). In fact, in today’s world, you might even be walking around without recognizing the effects of trauma in your own life, and there’s a distinct possibility that it’s taking a toll on your health.

And even if you are diagnosed with the symptoms of trauma, conventional treatments might be more stressful than the disorder itself.

Here with me to talk about recognizing the symptoms of trauma, and an alternative method of treating it called somatic experiencing, is licensed clinical psychologist Dr. Cathy Shehorn.

Dr. Shehorn and I talk about what trauma is, how it has changed in modern times, how to know if you’re symptoms are trauma-related, the long-term health effects of trauma, how the human animal is hard-wired to survive in traumatic situations, the conventional treatments for trauma, what somatic experiencing is and how it’s different from conventional treatments. She also gives us an example of what somatic experiencing is all about.

If you’re suffering from trauma, or just realizing that you might be, somatic experiencing is a way to heal that works with your body… not counter to it.

Cathy A. Shehorn, Ph.D. has been a licensed psychologist since 1998. She specializes in the treatment of trauma and uses a body-based trauma treatment technique called Somatic Experiencing.

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.

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The Roots of Health – Episode 43: The Experience of Eating Bugs with David George Gordon

The Roots of Health - Episode 43: The Experience of Eating Bugs with David George Gordon a.k.a. The Bug Chef| Meredith Rhodes Carson, PhD, HHC | Forward Health Coach | forwardhealthcoach.comClick here to go right to the show in iTunes or on WebTalkRadio.net.

Bugs. You might even call them creepy crawlies. On one hand we freak out when we see a cock roach scurry across the floor. On the other hand, we might be fascinated with them, particularly when we’re protected from them, when they are behind glass. We’ve invented bug spray and pesticides to keep them wholly separate from what we consider to be OUR environment. This is entirely a first world experience. The bulk of humanity has a different relationship with insects, and has even welcomed them into their diet – on purpose.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations released a 200 page report in 2013 called, “Edible insects: future prospects for food and feed security” where they assess the potential of insects as a food source by reviewing existing information on the role of insects in a traditional diet, as a part of various global cultures, insects as a natural resource, environmental opportunities for adding insects to our diets, insect nutrition, insect farming, insects as animal feed, insect processing & food safety, insect farming as a livelihood, for economic development, as it pertains to legislation and communication. It’s a report worth knowing about.

With this in mind, my guest today is doing his part to reintroduce us to the delectable bug. David George Gordon – otherwise known as the bug chef is busy making insects a staple in kitchens across the country, out to convince us that we should view insects as a food source, and not a pest. David recently cooked an insect feast for the “Explorer’s Club” – hosted at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

David and I chat about how in the Unites States, we’re in the minority because we don’t eat insects on purpose, we learn about the sensory experience of eating insects – from sight, to taste, to texture, to smell – how to cook insects, sourcing them, whether or not they are cost prohibitive, and a couple of interesting insect facts as they relate to our current food system.

You can learn more about The Bug Chef and all of his resources at David’s website, http://davidgeorgegordon.com/.

David’s Bio:

David George Gordon is the award-wining author of The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook. As The Bug Chef, he’s been featured in The Wall Street Journal and USA Today, Time magazine and National Geographic online and has appeared on Conan O’Brien, ABC Nightline, The Late Late Show With James Corden, The Wil Wheaton Project and The View.

He’s shared his exotic cuisine with visitors to the Smithsonian Institution, San Francisco Botanical Garden, Yale University, The Explorers Club Annual Dinner and Ripley’s Believe It or Not! museums in San Francisco, Hollywood and Times Square.

“Oh, Jiminy Cricket, you’ve never looked more scrumptious,” proclaimed National Public Radio’s food blog, The Salt.

Chef Gordon and his illustrator/wife Karen Luke Fildes live in Seattle.

You can subscribe to The Roots of Health at WebTalkRadio.net and also on iTunes.