The November, 2014 issue of the Journal of Functional Foods published a report authored by researchers at England’s Northumbria University that revealed a benefit for tart cherry juice concentrate in reducing factors contributing to painful joints.

Reductions in serum C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of inflammation, and urate, which is elevated during gout attacks, were observed following consumption of either dose of tart cherry juice concentrate.

“We have been investigating Montmorency tart cherries for several years because they’re a unique fruit with a high concentration of anthocyanins,” commented Dr Howatson, of Northumbria University’s Department of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation.

Another Journal of Functional Foods study, which appeared online on September 2, revealed a positive effect for tart cherry intake on the blood’s antioxidant capacity. “Our observations were after a one-time consumption,” stated lead author E. Mitchell Seymour of the University of Michigan Healthy system’s Cardiovascular Center. “It is compelling to think what could occur with more regular consumption of tart cherries, and how that could translate into possible health benefits.”

Is It Time to Detox?

Detoxification is a process that your body undertakes every day to help eliminate toxins and restore a healthy balance. Your body is constantly exposed to toxins from the external world, as well as those created within. The human body is amazing in the way that it has evolved since prehistoric times to adjust to the ever- changing world; but what happens when the toxins in our world are evolving faster than humans? This can increase the body’s toxic burden and impact on its ability to clear toxins.

Do you want your body to effectively and efficiently eliminate toxins you are exposed to?

Or maybe you are interested in detoxing because you want to look and feel even healthier!

Have you noticed any signs or symptoms that indicate your body may be suffering from the burden of toxins and be in need of a good detox?

Signs that indicate you may need to detox:

• Digestive complaints
• Skin problems
• Hormonal imbalances
• Neurological conditions
• Poor energy
• Weight gain or difficulty losing weight
• Food intolerance’s

Factors that increase the need to detox:

• Exposure to pollution and chemicals
• Exposure to new cars and new furniture
• Smoking, alcohol and coffee consumption
• Diets high in saturated fats, refined carbohydrates, processed and packaged foods
• Fertility and pre-conception care
• Overweight or obesity

What’s Involved in Detox?

Your individualised Detoxification Program will involve reducing the toxins that you are exposed to on a daily basis, whilst strengthening the function of your detox organs to process and eliminate toxins stored in your body. This is known as reducing the toxic burden and improving your toxic resistance, thereby enhancing your ability to cope with toxins. Detox can greatly improve your overall health and wellbeing.

Detox and Renew Your Life
When detoxing, it is important to reduce the toxic load that you are encountering in your daily life.  It is recommend to follow a detox diet to encourage clean eating and reduce your exposure to dietary toxins. This diet will be rich in fresh fruit and vegetables, low in animal fats, and contain alkalising and anti-inflammatory foods.
It is just as important to remove other “toxins” from your daily life that may be affecting your health. Stress is a major factor that may need addressing.  It is also important to do an audit of toxic household chemicals by reviewing your personal care items, cleaning products, and plastics  used for food containers and water bottles; encouraging healthier choices.

The New You
Undertaking a regular detox may enhance your health and wellbeing, improving quality of life. Many people schedule a detox every six or twelve months for optimal health to help improve the balance between your body’s toxin burden and its detox capacity. By the end of your Detoxification Program you will be looking good and feeling great.

Are You Feeling Your Best?

Think back to a time to when you were at your healthiest. Doyou still feel the same way?

Can you pinpoint a moment in time when your health started to go downhill?

Many people have not felt 100% since having a virus or other infection. If you have never fully recovered, your condition may progress from being a short-term acute infection into a longer-term chronic health complaint. Chronic infections can leave you feeling tired with muscular aches and pains and lowered immunity, making you more susceptible to catching every bug that goes around. Even a sniffily nose or cough that doesn’t clear can indicate the presence of a low grade infection.

Getting the Right Support

It takes a strong immune system to overcome persistent infections. The following herbs and nutrients help boost immunity and support your recovery:

• Medicinal mushrooms such as cordyceps, coriolus, reishi and shiitake are potent immune enhancers for chronic or recurrent infections.

•Astragalus possesses anti-viral activity and assists in the prevention and treatment of chronic infections.

•Zinc helps reduce the severity and duration of colds and flus; however zinc deficiency can compromise immunity. Ensure you have adequate zinc levels to help your immune system fight against infection.

• Vitamin D plays an important role in regulating the immune system. Surprisingly high numbers of adults have inadequate vitamin D levels, so have your levels checked regularly.

• Vitamins A, C, and E are all beneficial for supporting healthy immunity.

The Gut – Immune Connection

In order to have a healthy, thriving immune system, you need to ensure your digestive system is also healthy. With 70% of your immune system in the gut, the microflora or friendly bacteria play an important role.  Probiotics are beneficial strains of friendly bacteria that can boost your immune system function.

The Journey to Wellness

A chronic condition was once acute. If your body is unable to successfully recover from an acute infection, it may develop into a chronic health concern that your immune system can’t get the better of. Allowing your body to heal from a chronic infection can take time; the longer you have been sick, the longer you may need to get well again. Whilst you may feel relief in the short term, persisting with herbs and nutrients can provide long term relief from the nagging symptoms you have grown accustomed to. Remember how great it feels to be 100% healthy again

• The leaves of the rhubarb plant are potentially fatal! They contains oxalic acid, a kidney-damaging compound also found in bleach and anti-corrosive products.
•  Pineapples stop ripening the minute they are picked. So if you buy one, eat it right away…no reason to wait!
•  One stalk of celery contains a mere six calories.
•  Avocados contain twice as much potassium as bananas.
•  Turns out, bell peppers are male and female—you just have to turn them over to figure out which is which. The male peppers have three “bumps” on the bottom, while female peppers have four.
•  Four of the top 10 leading causes of disability in the U.S. are mental health issues—bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
•  Worldwide, depression is the leading cause of disability.
•  The average American drinks 500 cans of soda a year. That’s more than 42 cans a month, more than nine cans a week and 1.3 cans a day!
•  People who smoke risk losing as much as one-third of their everyday memory.
•  Brisk walking for at least three hours a week can decrease your risk of heart disease by 65 percent.
•  That know-it-all may actually suffer from Dunning-Kruger Effect. The hallmark of the phenomenon is the less people know, the more they think they know.
•  It takes you 12 hours to fully digest a meal.

Mothers-to-be who eat a diet rich in fatty acids such as those found in fish, walnuts and flaxseed can reduce the baby’s chances of developing food allergies, researchers say. The research found that if a mother’s diet contains a certain group of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), the baby’s gut develops differently. The PUFAs are thought to improve how gut immune cells respond to bacteria and foreign substances, making the baby less likely to suffer from allergies.

“There is intense research interest in maternal diet during pregnancy. In the western diet, the group of polyunsaturated fatty acids that we have shown to help gut function are actually disappearing – our dietary intake of fish and nut oils is being replaced by corn oils which contain a different kind of fatty acid”. Said Dr Gaelle Boudry, of the INRA research institute in Rennes, France. “Our study identifies that a certain group of polyunsaturated fatty acids – known as n-3PUFAs – causes a change in how a baby’s gut develops, which in turn might change how the gut immune system develops. These changes are likely to reduce the risk of developing allergies in later life.” The team found that supplementing a mother’s diet with n-3PUFA caused the newborn’s gut to become more permeable.

A more permeable gut enables bacteria and new substances to pass through the lining of the gut into the bloodstream more easily. These new substances then trigger the baby’s immune response and the production of antibodies. “The end result is that the baby’s immune system may develop and mature faster – leading to better immune function and less likelihood of suffering allergies,” added Dr Boudry. The study has been published in The Journal of Physiology.