Sound Integrative Health Blog

In continuation in this series of food items that may help your gut, today we discuss Kimchi. I have to admit I had a Kimchi kick (no pun intended) about 6 months ago and I fell off the wagon. It seems that I personally like Kimchi in the winter but not so much in the summer. Wait. Before I get too far ahead of myself. What is Kimchi? Chances are you have seen it, heard about it, and maybe even tried it. Nonetheless, I will break it down. Kimchi is fermented cabbage and spices that is a traditional condiment in Korean food culture. It is thought to be healthful and is being studied for its effect on boosting the metabolism and also for improving the gut microbiota to a more favorable balance. Typically it is made of fermented cabbage, garlic, ginger, red pepper, and green onion.  (Matthews, 2014) If you can include Kimchi in your diet while you are feeling well then then its likely to build upon your good health and prevent recurrence of digestive problems. I r...

I had the great pleasure of being interviewed on Tap Integrative this week. This is likely going to be featured in the coming months on www.tapintegrative.org  I spoke as an expert in the digestive disorder Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Here is a picture from the set. I look pretty darn serious but mainly super focused! Much to my surprise Dr. Tori Hudson interviewed me. Dr. Hudson has been one of the physicians I have respected the most since I considered joining the profession in 1998.  I ironically interviewed her in 1998 to see if I wanted to join the profession....she convinced me then! I had a lot of fun as well as Dr. Hudson has a great way about her and a clever sense of humor! I also had a great round table conversation with Dr. Joshua Goldenberg a evidence based medicine expert in Natural Medicine and Dr. Mark Davis an expert in Fecal Microbiota Transplant. I felt honored to be there and among so many great minds in my profession. I am inspired to...

Before refrigeration how did we preserve vegetables? Fermentation. Fermentation adds lactobacilli and other helpful probiotic organisms to your food. . Helpful for preserving  food and  helpful for our gut When your digestion is stable and you want to keep it being stable, try adding fermented foods into your diet. Here are a few recipes to consider which  I  learned from Liz Lipski, PhD an expert in nutritional approaches to  address  the  microbiome. She recently spoke on Tap Integrative. Kefir : is fermented milk. What you will need: 1. Purchase a package of Milk Kefir grains (not dehydrated or powdered) at your local health food store.   These are re-usable. Or order from someone like www.culturesforhealth.com 2. 1 quart of pasteurized, raw, skim, 2%, or whole milk (cow goat, coconut, or other milk) How do  make it: 1. mix 1 tablespoon of Kefir "grains" with the one quart of your chosen milk. 2. cover the mixture  wit...

Many of my patients are on a low carb diet. Great for so many things. However it does put them at risk sometimes for constipation and also restless sleep. Likely due to overnight dips in blood sugar or due to reduced serotonin and  melatonin production that is derived from the food amino acid called Tryptophan. Healthy evening serotonin levels are also needed to reduce effects of elevated evening cortisol. There are some ways to help and my favorite way is this bedtime meal that I call "Sawing Oats" as in "Sawing Logs". I digress. Here is the simple recipe: 1/2 cup Oatmeal 3/4  cup Cashew Milk  (oat milk or almond milk is fine) 1 tablespoon of Almond Butter 1 teaspoon of cinnamon 1/8 tsp of poppy seeds Directions: Bring milk and oatmeal to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer  down for 5-10 minutes until mixture is soft , moist, and but not drippy. Remove from stove Add 1 tablespoon of Almond  butter and stir until it blends with the oatm...

Fifty-six names for sugar according to Dr. Robert Lustig. No wonder its so challenging to reduce sugary foods in the diet that are tied with obesity,diabetes, high cholesterol, gout, hypertension, heart disease, steatohepatitis to name a few. This should have been my first class in medical school under the topic “First Do No Harm; watch out for these ingredients”. The 56 names of Sugar Agave nectar* Barbados sugar* Barley malt Beet sugar* Blackstrap molasses* Brown rice syrup* Brown sugar* Buttered syrup* Cane juice crystals* Cane sugar* Caramel* Carob syrup* Castor sugar* Confectioner’s sugar* Corn syrup Corn syrup solids Crystalline fructose* Date sugar* Demerara sugar* Dextran Dextrose Diastatic malt Diatase Ethyl maltol Evaporated cane juice* Florida crystals* Fructose* Fruit juice* Fruit juice concentrate* Galactose Glucose Glucose solids Golden sugar* Golden syrup* Grape sugar* High-fructose corn syrup* Honey* Icing sugar* Invert suga...