Welcome to your brain. We like to also think of it as your cerebrum, which represents the physical, your intelligence or mental capacity, and your psyche, or your emotional side.
Weighing in at only 3 pounds, the human brain is unbelievably one of the largest and most complex organs in the human body. It is made up of over 100 billion nerves that communicate with each other through trillions of links, called synapses. Working similar to a computer, it requires specific components and specialized areas that work together to perform optimally. This also includes other important body functions.
Functional medicine, root cause medicine, and integrative medicine show the relationship of all body systems to one another. At Linden & Arc Vitality Institute, the brain is a huge part of the overall wellness process. Learn how it and your gut work symbiotically for your optimal health.
The Linden & Arc Vitality Institute team of functional medicine physicians offers a Collaborative Care Model that is designed to offer the highest level of care. With this model, our practice leaves no stone unturned and minimizes wait times. Dr. Lynne Murfin, Dr. Michelle Van Der Westhuizen, and Dr. Daniel Ruttle, Functional Medicine Physicians, as well as Dr. Ayla Lester and Dr. Trevor Hoffman, Naturopathic Doctors, work closely with one another on patient care at Linden & Arc Vitality Institute.
Contact us for a full assessment of your brain health today and ways we can help to prevent or reverse cognitive decline.
About the author:
Dr. Murfin is wholeheartedly focused on her life’s mission to help people heal and achieve extraordinary outcomes. She believes that health is more than merely the absence of disease. It is a total state of physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and social wellbeing through the creation of a whole and meaningful life. Dr. Murfin leaves no stone unturned to determine the root cause of illness or imbalance.
There is a key to healing that is 100% free and you are consuming it right now!
Autonomic Nervous System
The Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) regulates many of our essential body processes automatically. This saves us from exhausting our mental capacity every day. We try to keep track of the food we’re digesting, remembering to breathe, and other essential bodily processes. As well, it allows us to use our conscious mental effort for higher thinking. We perform simultaneous activities without having to remind our hearts to beat, all thanks to our ANS.
The ANS contains within it the wisdom of life itself. It is a primitive system concerned primarily with survival, not thriving.
Sympathetic Nervous System & the Parasympathetic Nervous System
Two primary subdivisions of the ANS are the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). These act as opposing forces, telling the body either ‘it’s time to react’ (SNS) or ‘you’re safe to heal’ (PNS). You may have heard of this as the ‘fight/flight/freeze’ response (SNS) and the ‘rest and digest’ body state (PNS).
The PNS activity must be dominant for optimal body and brain health, healing, and longevity, repair, growth. In this state, our body’s own repair and renewal mechanisms work better. Plus, any healing therapy implemented such as dietary supplements, nutritional IVs and injections, and ozone therapy, can be more effective. This is because they don’t have to fight against the body’s stress response before doing your body good.
Overstimulation of the Nervous System
The majority of our population sits with SNS dominance as their baseline. This is caused by the overstimulation of the nervous system, toxic exposure, psychological stress, and other perceived and physiological stresses inherent in daily life. Our bodies are stressed out! At any given moment, the average person’s body is preparing for attack, not attending to its own repair and optimization. Survival is the focus. Over time, chronic SNS dominance can lead to imbalance and disease of almost every kind.
The good news is, there is a bridge between your conscious mind and your ANS. With this key to healing, you can willfully shift your operating system from “panic mode” to a healing state.
What is this Key to Healing?
Your breath. While breathing happens automatically every day thanks to your ANS, it can also be regulated consciously by the mind. How the breath moves in the body also happens to be an easy gauge of your subconscious state. The body is in a stressed state when it exhibits shallow breathing, mostly visible in the movement of the upper chest, shoulders, and collarbones. The body tends to breathe in a relaxed state when the lower “belly” breath is initiated by the diaphragm movement. The diaphragm is the barrier between respiratory and digestive organs- found approximately at the level of the low ribs)
Knowing this, the breath can be a diagnostic tool. As well, the mind’s capacity to overturn autonomic breathing patterns can be the key to wiring our system to heal. There are a few more mechanisms by which conscious breathing works to heal your body.
Try it yourself: Deep belly breathing
Find a quiet, comfortable spot in your house. Sit on a chair, a cushion, or the floor. Set a timer and spend sixty seconds observing your breath.
Inhale slowly and deeply; exhale slowly; repeat.
Take note: Without changing it, where does your breath go?
Place the palm of your right hand on the area of your torso that moves the most with each breath. If this is not the low belly, use the following steps to help your body relax.
Close your eyes and place your right hand gently on your low belly. Exhale fully through your nose and observe your hand moving in toward your spine as the belly contracts.
Inhale through your nose, and feel the right hand slowly drift away from your spine as you direct your breath into the low belly.
Set a timer for five minutes. Repeat steps 2 & 3, working on making the breath as smooth and full as possible.
Take note: Is there any resistance to deep belly breathing in the body or the mind?
If the breath is choppy or shallow, see if there is tension in your body and let go of it bit by bit on each exhale. You should feel your shoulders, your eyebrows, your jaw, and your glutes relax. Deep belly breathing will become more comfortable as tension is released.
Take note: How do you feel after five minutes of deep belly breathing?
Set a goal to practice deep belly breathing once a day for two weeks by following the above steps. Be sure to journal how you feel before and after each session. Write down any observations you have.
Set the intention to practice deep belly breathing for 40 days and train your body to use the breath to its advantage.
Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO for short) is a condition that affects 60% of people with IBS. It involves the overgrowth/accumulation of bacteria in the small intestine, an area of the intestinal tract which under normal circumstances (unlike the large intestine) hosts hardly any bacteria at all.
SIBO is not only prevalent in patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). 67% of patients with Celiac disease, 81% of patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, up to 88% of patients with Crohn’s disease, 93% of patients with Fibromyalgia and the list goes on:
Diabetes mellitus – 8-44%
Immunodeficiency syndromes – 30-50%
Obesity – 70%
Parkinson’s disease – 54%
Rosacea – 46%
Ulcerative colitis – 81%
Interstitial Cystitis – 81%
If SIBO is so common, why is it rarely talked about?
It is only in the last decade that the importance of our intestinal bacteria and bacteria overgrowth has become fully recognized. The year in which the Human Microbiome Project was launched (2007), knowledge of the human microbiome expanded. Prior to this ‘pro microbiome era,’ western society had an extended love affair with hygiene, cleanliness, and anti-bacterial products. Our germ-aversion fuelled by a growing consumer market for anything anti-bacterial led us to believe all bacteria are bad.
Our Growing Knowledge of the Microbiome
With our growing knowledge of the human microbiome, we now appreciate that certain bacteria are not only beneficial to us, they are essential to our survival and ability to thrive as a human species. A whopping 90% of Serotonin, our happy hormone neurotransmitter, is produced by the bacteria in our gut?
However, it is not only the number of intestinal bacteria that impact our health so dramatically, it is also the diversity, the balance between beneficial and potentially harmful bacteria, and, very importantly, which part of the gut they are colonizing.
This fairly recent understanding has led scientists to recognize SIBO as one of the most common underlying root causes of intestinal dysbiosis, and of irritable bowel syndrome.
Unfortunately, highly sensitive and specific testing to confirm the diagnosis of SIBO has not yet become widely available. As a result, SIBO has been one of the most common but also most underdiagnosed digestive problems.
What are the Signs & Symptoms of Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth?
Abdominal cramps
Bloating
Diarrhea
Constipation
Gas
Floating / greasy stools
Vitamin B12 malabsorption
Weight instability
What to do if you suspect you have SIBO
If you think you have SIBO, talk to your health care provider expressing your intention to gather more information. This small gesture is so beneficial in maintaining a trusting relationship. Who knows, you might encourage your physician to join you in learning more about this common condition!
Learn More About SIBO
Click here to read this article is a good starting point for health care providers who would like to learn more about SIBO. There are some basic principles to follow when treating SIBO. However, it is crucial that the underlying root cause (why you developed SIBO in the first place) is properly identified and addressed in order to prevent a recurrence. This is why it makes sense to seek help from a functional medicine-trained health care provider.
If you suspect you might have SIBO, or struggle with undiagnosed digestive concerns, contact Linden & Arc Vitality Institute, Our collaborative care team can support you in finding the root cause and healing your gut! Email us at [email protected] to schedule an appointment.
The Ketogenic (keto) diet has become somewhat trendy. There is a ton of information floating around the internet about it. What’s missing is a fundamental explanation of why it is so powerful and the more advanced techniques that take it to the next level.
Benefits of the Ketogenic Diet
It can reduce inflammation, clear the skin and mind, give bountiful energy, burn fat, squelch cravings, and more. Fasting is a large part of the diet. It’s important to follow the method properly to achieve those proven results.
The best layout we’ve seen for following the keto diet is on Dr. Jocker’s website. He covers the benefits and breaks down the science of how to follow a cyclic ketogenic diet in a way that is best for your body. You’ll find the philosophy behind it, the different methods, the process, and the program levels.
Functional Medicine uses the ketogenic diet for its specific health benefits in treating certain conditions. We’ll help you create a personal plan that is at a level you are comfortable with. There is a beginner, intermediate, and advanced plan and you can work your way up.
To learn more about how it can promote better health, book an initial consultation with our team. Contact us or email [email protected].
Why are DHEA & Testosterone Important?
Testosterone is a male hormone, right? True, but females need it just as much as males do, just in smaller amounts. Not only is necessary for a healthy libido and sexual satisfaction, but it is also essential for bone health, brain health, muscle health, and heart health. It needs to be in balance with the other female hormones, estrogen, and progesterone (sex steroids), thyroid hormones, as well as our major stress hormone, cortisol, in order to function optimally. The Androgen DHEA is a feel-good hormone. It gives one a feeling of well being, libido, good sleep, muscle strength, and exercise tolerance.
What are the common symptoms of DHEA deficiency?
Common symptoms of DHEA deficiency include reduced sex drive, reduced sexual sensitivity, difficulty achieving orgasm, painful intercourse, low mood and excessive anxiety, poor coping ability, reduced muscle tone and strength, joint pain, back pain, dry skin, poor memory or concentration and urinary incontinence. The symptoms can overlap with hormonal and other medical conditions. Thus, androgen deficiency often goes under-diagnosed and is not often thought to be relevant in females.
Cortisol Steal
So where does it all go wrong and why are we seeing so many women, young and old, with deficiency these days? Cortisol steal. This is exactly what it sounds like. Cortisol is stealing the substrates that our sex steroids and DHEA need to be formed because it is being produced in excess. DHEA becomes depleted and because this is upstream from testosterone (and estrogen), these downstream hormones also become depleted. So it’s the stressed women that get more hormonal issues. It is not the hormones’ fault. They are just responding appropriately to other imbalances in the body. Why would you need to reproduce or have sex for that matter, if you are running away from a lion?
Stress and Hormones
The body interprets internal and external stress as the same thing. It doesn’t know the difference between having a fight with someone vs candida overgrowth in the gut, for example. It responds by releasing cortisol and other stress hormones and neurotransmitters from the adrenal glands. When cortisol is produced in excess, the hypothalamus in the brain perceives a threat. It switches off signals to the adrenals and cortisol is no longer produced. Alongside this, high cortisol triggers DHEA release, which tries to balance the high cortisol. With DHEA and cortisol levels low, the patient experiences stage 3 adrenal fatigue. The new term for this is HPA axis dysfunction/ dysregulation.
Replacing DHEA and Testosterone in Women
DHEA and testosterone can be replaced alone, or alongside each other in women. It should be ensured that the other female hormones are also optimal. In our practice, we prescribe bioidentical hormones, which are hormones that behave in an exact way as our own hormones. They are still laboratory-made but are chemically identical to our hormones. The bad rap that hormone replacement has is from synthetic hormones, which confuse our hormonal systems – like putting the wrong key into a lock. Testosterone is most often prescribed topically, or in certain cases intramuscularly/ subcutaneous. DHEA is most often prescribed sublingually or by mouth, but can also be given topically.
The key to safe hormone replacement is testing your levels (24 hour urine hormone is the best test for this, but blood levels can be used when resources are limited). Once on the treatment, levels should be monitored by an experienced health care professional in order to find the dose that is right for you. This can vary tremendously between women, depending on genetics, underlying factors that caused the hormone deficit and lifestyle (a very active woman requires more DHEA or testosterone, often). You can find your optimum dose by looking at your levels alongside your symptoms.
What else can you do to improve your levels besides taking hormones?
Hormone replacement is not the only answer but in every case, should be done alongside root cause treatment and lifestyle changes. Hormone replacement does not fix the adrenals and other hormones. It is just another patch if done alone. Some women even feel worse on hormones, which tells us we need to work on these root causes.
Other Lifestyle Improvements
So what can you do to help these hormones in your day to day life? Your overall aim is to decrease inflammation and stress on the HPA axis.
Diet
An anti-inflammatory diet is a good place to start. Many hormone disturbances start in the gut, because of a constant onslaught of foods that increase inflammation, upregulate our immune system, change our microbiome, and impact our gut-brain connection. Sugar, carbohydrates, and dairy are big contributors to poor hormone health.
Exercise
Make sure you are getting exercise that is appropriate for your condition. Don’t run a marathon when your adrenals are shot.
Sleep
Make sure you get at least 7-8 hours of sleep each night. Good sleep hygiene is essential and your health care professional may recommend supplements and medications for this.
Stress Management
Make sure you are identifying and managing stress – we cannot always change our stressful circumstances but we can change how we perceive them and what we do every day to find our calm.
We recommend 2 books to find out more: The Hormone Handbook by Dr. Thierry Hertoghe; and, What You Must Know About Women’s Hormones: Your Guide to Natural Hormone Treatments for PMS, Menopause, Osteoporis, PCOS, and More by Dr. Pamela Wartian Smith.
About the author:
One of Dr. Michelle’s greatest passions in life is to help people help themselves. She understands that your current health tells a story and that when you have symptoms of disease, your body is already out of balance. She believes that we should not have to settle for anything other than our most vital self and that her job is to figure out how to put you back on track.To book an appointment with Dr. Michelle, contact [email protected]
One vital component of your health that you might be neglecting is precious sleep. It is absolutely critical for both your short and long term health, and in our modern society, millions of people don’t get sufficient sleep. It’s well known that the ideal amount for optimal health is eight hours. Truthfully, the amount needed varies from person to person. Everybody is different and individual factors like age, overall health, stress level, and activity level can heavily influence how much you actually need.
Sleep Quality & Circadian Rhythm
When it comes to sleep, quality is just as, if not more, important than quantity. Spending nine hours tossing and turning without ever entering deep sleep will not leave you refreshed and ready to go in the morning. What you need is an adequate amount of REM (rapid eye movement) each night. This is one of the deepest sleep phases where you experience your most vivid dreams.
Circadian rhythm or individual internal clock controls the sleep cycle. They developed in our ancestors in response to the natural day/night and seasonal cycles of the earth. It’s the reason why humans aren’t innately nocturnal and tend to be active during the day. These modern times can throw off your circadian rhythm. Artificial lighting, days spent working indoors, an unnatural diet, and night shift work may all contribute to a disordered internal clock. A variety of consequences – ranging from mild fatigue and depression to seasonal affective disorder (SAD) to even worse – can result from living with an out of balance circadian rhythm (1).
Even breaking your sleep cycle by frequently getting up to urinate during the night may cause depression (2). However, there are several steps you can take to get high-quality sleep and maintain a balanced circadian rhythm.
Tip 1: Be Careful with Caffeine
Chances are that you consume at least some caffeine almost every day. While coffee is the most obvious culprit, caffeine is also present in many sodas, teas, and chocolate products. It’s no big deal to enjoy a morning java, but try to limit your intake. Even more importantly, avoid consuming caffeine past about mid-morning. The effects of caffeine can last seven hours or more, so it’s important that it’s all out of your system by bedtime. In fact, a 2014 study reinforced what we pretty much already knew, caffeine can significantly disturb your sleep (3).
Tip 2: Eat Dinner About 4 Hours Before Bed
You certainly don’t have to grab the early bird buffet special at 4 pm, but neither should you eat dinner at 10 pm and hit the sack one hour later. That’s because your body breaks down carbohydrates, or sugars, over time. You don’t need a sugar spike for energy while you’re sleeping, and an increase in blood glucose can actually cause you to have fitful, shallow sleep. Your best bet is to eat a dinner containing complex carbohydrates, like starch, about four hours before going to sleep. This will allow your body time to breakdown the carbs, giving you adequate energy for your remaining time awake while avoiding the middle of the night glucose spike.
Don’t Sleep at the Screen!
Tip 3: Limit Your Screen Time
If you fall asleep with a laptop or smartphone, you’re certainly not alone. Still, this type of screen time is a habit worth breaking. Computer monitors, televisions, and phone screens give off blue light, which interferes with the action of melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone that promotes sleepiness and helps you actually get to sleep. Blue light tricks your body into believing it’s still daylight outside and not yet time for sleep. Remember, your body’s systems haven’t caught up with modern technology. Do yourself a favour by discontinuing screen time at least two hours before bed.
Tip 4: Make Your Bedroom Sleep Hygienic
Just like you practice oral hygiene by brushing your teeth before bed, you need to observe sleep hygiene for a good night’s sleep. This means dedicating your bedroom to sleep and limiting distractions. Keep it nice and dark, as studies have shown a connection between melatonin levels and more light exposure, and don’t let the temperature get higher than about 21 degrees C– not a problem during the Albertan winters (4). Finally, try to insulate yourself from any unnecessary noise so that you’re not prematurely roused from restful sleep.
Tip 5: See Your Functional Medicine Doctor
Dr. Lynne Murfin treats all sorts of sleep disorders and can help discover the cause of your issue. Her training and experience are extensive. While there are many different things that can upset your circadian rhythm, there are also many treatments available, many of them natural.
For example, the stress response (“fight or flight”) has a huge effect on sleep quality, but this can be addressed in a variety of ways. Mind-body exercises guided by Dr. Murfin or her lifestyle educator can help reduce the stress and anxiety, and supplements.
Supplements for Sleep
Taking supplements for sleep is another option your functional medicine doctor may recommend. Supplemental B12 taken upon arising in the mornings may “reset” your stress response mechanism. In fact, vitamin B12 shows to have an effect on stress hormones in lab rats (5).
Another supplement that has shown promising results is valproic acid. This compound, in low doses, demonstrated an ability to reduce depression and restore circadian rhythm in a patient with an associated disorder (6).
Hormones for Sleep
Additionally, the use of hormones under Dr. Murfin’s direction can aid you in getting consistent, good sleep. If you’re not producing enough melatonin, small doses of this hormone could help in reducing your sleep latency, or the time it takes you to fall asleep. Melatonin is vital to the circadian rhythm. A study published in the journal Sleep Science even showed a correlation between low melatonin and the development of dementia in elderly patients (7).
Other substances that can have a positive effect include serotonin, gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA), and the female sex hormone progesterone. These compounds all frequently become imbalanced by a number of factors and need correction. For example, progesterone may protect against developing obstructive sleep apnea, a common sleep disorder (8).
GABA is a neurotransmitter involved in sleep maintenance. Low amounts of GABA have an association with insomnia, but fortunately, GABA supplements are available (11). Progesterone levels may drop during menopause, but research has shown that hormone therapy can result in better sleep (9).
Serotonin also plays its part in sleep, specifically maintenance. This neurotransmitter makes sure that you stay asleep long enough to truly rest. Serotonin has long been recognized to have a role in depression, with low levels contributing to depressive symptoms. It’s now known that serotonin can also directly affect the adrenal glands, crucial components in the stress response (10).
Controlling your stress response is a vital part of getting good sleep.
Consult a Qualified Physician
All neurotransmitters and hormonal supplements should be taken under the close monitoring of a qualified physician. Dr. Murfin can assist you in getting the best sleep possible. Lifestyle changes, nutrition support, and supplements may all contain the answers to your difficulties. Just remember – the road to good, and continued health – starts with you.
Dr. Murfin is wholeheartedly focused on her life’s mission to help people heal and achieve extraordinary outcomes. She believes that health is more than merely the absence of disease. It is a total state of physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and social wellbeing through the creation of a whole and meaningful life. Dr. Murfin leaves no stone unturned to determine the root cause of illness or imbalance.
