Lessons from the Blue Zones

April 27, 2020 Lisa Malin

If you haven’t heard the term Blue Zone before, Blue Zones refer to areas around the globe where people live longer, healthier lives than anywhere else on the planet. It’s no surprise that these regions are also home to the the lowest levels of chronic disease.

I was curious…

What could Blue Zones teach us about longevity and healthy aging? More importantly, was it possible to take the lessons of Blue Zone longevity and apply them to my own life, here in New York. Below is an excerpt from an article I wrote on Blue Zones for Wonderlust Travel where I explore that very question…

“ I first heard about Blue Zones, distinct geographic regions where people live much longer and healthier lives than anywhere else on the planet, I was more than intrigued.

The first Blue Zone was discovered in 2000 by demographer Dr. Michel Poulain and Dr. Gianni Pes. While recording the number of centenarians living in Sardinia, Italy, they noticed that Sardinia’s oldest residents were all clustered together in the remote, mountainous area of Barbagia, rather than scattered across the Island. The story goes that Poulain, excited by this finding and what it may tell us about longevity, circled the area on the map in bright blue ink, and called it a Blue Zone.

Shortly after, National Geographic writer Dan Buettner and his team of researchers added four more regions of exceptional longevity to the list, including Okinawa, Japan; Ikaria, Greece; Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica; and the Seventh Day Adventist Community of Loma Linda, California, bringing the total number to five. Although not a geographic region, the Seven Day Adventists of Lomo Linda, California follow a strict faith-based lifestyle, and outlive the rest of Americans by nearly a decade. Clearly, they know something we don’t.”

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Supplementing For COVID-19 - The Dos And Dont's

March 23, 2020 Lisa Malin

As the days turn into weeks, we are learning more and more about how this virus behaves, and what we might do to support our immune system to better protect ourselves. From a Functional/Integrative medicine perspective, thus far we have been focusing on nutrients and herbs that have been well studied, in general, for their ability to support, modify or boost the immune system. We have been talking and writing extensively on helping people to choose the right supplements.

Today, there is new information that we want to share with you. Based on what we have learned about the behavior of this novel coronavirus, and in consultation with our team at Blum Center for Health, we are changing a few of our recommendations.

Here is your update on supplements:

ACE receptors: We have learned that this virus uses the ACE receptor on cells to gain entry. We believe that one of the many actions of Vitamins A and D are to increase the number of ACE receptors on the cells, and therefore, out of an abundance of caution, we are recommending not taking extra vitamin A or D during this time. Whatever you are already taking, or whatever you have in your multi is perfectly fine, just don’t take extra supplementation.

Cytokine storm: When the virus gets going in your body, it can create something called a cytokine storm, which is when your immune system reacts vigorously and releases an enormous amount of chemicals (cytokines) and free radicals to destroy the virus. This is a good thing. However, there is concern that in some people, the coronavirus triggers an extreme cytokine storm causing among other things, the lung damage that we hear about. Even without human clinical studies to prove this, we have been studying the possibility that some immune boosting vitamins might make the cytokine storm worse.

The Arizona University Department of Integrative medicine has made the recommendation to stop these vitamins and supplements if you develop symptoms of infection or a positive test. Symptoms would include a cough, shortness of breath with a fever (100 or over), which are the first signs that you might have COVID-19, the illness caused by this coronavirus.

Avoid these vitamins if you get sick:

Elderberry
Echinacea
Larch Arabinogalactan
Extra Vitamin D (as described above)

Considered safe to take these vitamins:

Zinc
Vitamin C
Astragalus
Andrographis
NAC (no mention of concern so it stays on the list)

Mushroom extracts:

We are having a debate about mushroom extracts because in general we recommend them for their support of the immune system and there really is no evidence that they would be harmful if you got the coronavirus.
Out of an abundance of caution, while we still recommend mushroom supplements, choose only those that have the name of the mushrooms themselves on the ingredient list.

PUTTING THIS TOGETHER

Supplements:

Stick with Zinc (30 mg), Vitamin C (3 grams), and a probiotic, which you can continue even if you get sick. There are reports from China about using high dose Vitamin C for treatment, and it seems reasonable to continue to recommend going up to 6 grams daily or more if you get sick (and can tolerate it, can cause loose stools).
Stop the extra Vitamin A and D. And if you are taking Vitamin A and D to correct a deficiency with your doctor then you can continue but consider stopping this if you do have signs of the virus.
If you have any of the other supplements at home on the “avoid if you get sick” list above, you can take them and stop if you get sick.
One more note: if you develop a fever, take Tylenol instead of ibuprofen (Advil). It appears to make things worse. This is another area that is rapidly evolving, and if you can’t find tylenol in the stores, you should speak to your doctor about other options.
Here are the things you should STILL DO for risk reduction:
Good gut health: which means lots of beneficial bacteria. Take a probiotic every day with at least 20 billion cfu of mixed strains of lactobacillus and bifidus species.
Balanced stress hormones: Get a good night’s sleep and don't overwork yourself during flu season. Stress harms your ability to fight viruses. Practice some form of mediation daily. Melissa, Blum Center’s Health Coach, wrote a great blog with tips for managing stress during this time.
Eat foods that are good for your immune system: Avoid processed foods and focus on fruits and veggies that are rich in antioxidants and vitamins. Support the removal of toxins by eating lots of cruciferous veggies, which boost the detox system in your liver.

Sending prayers and good wishes for you and all of us to stay safe and well during this difficult time. Dr. Blum will be having a weekly LIVE webinar every Friday at 11 am EST to answer questions. Sign up here.

The Three Smart Habits my Clients Practice to Reach and Maintain their Wellness Goals

January 29, 2020 Ellie Voci

You drank too much over the holidays, enjoyed way too many heavy meals, and back burnered your workouts. But hey, no problem! That’s what January 1st is for: Hitting the reset button, setting new goals, and committing to healthier habits.

New body. New life. New you.

Sounds great, right? Unfortunately, as most of us know, it’s not nearly that simple. Research shows that only a mere 4% of us actually follow through on our resolutions, and that by Valentine’s day, a whopping 80% of us have already abandoned our goals and returned to old ways of operating, feeling defeated, ashamed, and unworthy of the change we eagerly set out to create just a month earlier. We give up, making some vague promise to ourselves that we’ll start up again when the time is “right”.

Sound familiar? It doesn’t have to. Here are three powerful resolution hacks I practice everyday with clients to help them reach and maintain their wellness goals:

1:

Understand and connect to your “WHY”: Understanding your “why” means getting clear on why you want to reach your goal. Many of us want to lose weight, but weight loss can mean different things to different people. For example, losing weight, for you, may mean feeling desirable and confident enough to ask for a promotion, start your own business or go out on a date. For someone else, it may mean feeling in control of their life and optimistic about their future, which translates into being a better partner. And, for someone else, it may mean modeling healthy habits for their growing daughters. Knowing your “why” and envisioning how your life will look and feel once you reach your goals is your mission statement, the glowy orb that lights the path and keeps you on track and inspired even when hurdles get in your way. Your “why” also infuses your goals with richly textured meaning, allowing you to connect with them more deeply and feel invested in doing the work to reach them.

2:

Map it out: Identifying the steps that will allow you to reach your goal is as important as the goal itself. For example, if you want to lose 15 pounds and keep it off, fad dieting probably isn't the answer. While you may drop some weight, chances are you will gain it right back because you haven’t created sustainable, healthy habits to keep the weight off. You would be better off starting with something small and easy, such as drinking eight glasses of water a day to keep you hydrated, regular and able to tell the difference between your hunger and your thirst. Once you get that habit down, you might want to commit to beginning each day with a nutrient dense breakfast smoothie, filled with greens , protein, fiber and healthy fats to balance your blood sugar, hormones, and hunger. Once you master those two healthy behaviors, you can then layer in others, such as meal prep or daily movement. It’s important to understand that small shifts, practiced consistently over time, become healthy, sustainable habits that propel you forward and allow you to reach and maintian your wellness goals. It may not be sexy, but it sure is effective!

3:

Find your community. If your goal is to start a meditation practice, but you haven’t been able to do it on your own, gather up some friends and do it together: Sign up for a free, online meditation challenge; take a meditation class; or find a teacher to work with privately. Having a community helps keep you on track and makes the whole process of goal keeping more enjoyable, helping to boost the odds of making good on your resolutions.

Last thoughts:

It’s important to remember that it takes time, work, discipline, patience and a good deal of inspiration to create meaningful, lasting lifestyle shifts. New habits aren’t forged in 21 days and goals aren’t reached just because we set a strong intention to achieve them. Getting in touch with your “why”, envisioning the life you want to live and constructing a sensible, actionable plan to get there is simply the best approach I know to reaching your goals and creating the life you desire.

If this resonates with you, but you still believe you would benefit from the added support and guidance of a health coach, you can reach out to me here and set up a complimentary 30 minute discovery call to see if health coaching is right for you.

Wishing you all a beautiful New Year, filled with health, happiness and everything your heart desires.

Martha+Kaplin — Looking for more fitness inspiration?

In 2019, we interviewed Martha Kaplan, the Community Marketing Manager at Athleta, and a seasoned SoulCycle instructor.

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