Drugs like Ozempic are increasingly used for weight loss purposes. While calories in vs. calories out do matter and most of us are simply too sedentary, the cause of obesity is complex. Obesity is one of the biggest challenges we face today for various reasons - only some of which we are in control of. Some of us suffer from emotional overeating/ binge eating disorder that requires a completely different treatment approach than conventional dieting advice offers. Some of us have loads of environmental toxins in our body i.e. microplastics messing with our hormones. Some of us are not sleeping properly - poor sleep is directly linked to insulin resistance and weight gain. We really need to get better at understanding our own body and which things we can control. We also need to get better as practitioners in the health care system at working cross disciplinary together and understand the interplay of various factors to better help the client. Calorie counting is simply not cutting it anymore.
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Supplement focus: how PQQ might help better your sleep!
PQQ is an antioxidant and based on recent research, it shows to be more powerful at fighting free radicals than vitamin C - this directly impacts and lowers inflammation and stress in our body.
A small, 8-week study in 17 people found that taking 20 mg of PQQ daily resulted in significant self-reported improvements in sleep quality and fatigue. This is thought to be mainly due to its effect on normalizing cortisol levels.
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Lessons from 15 years in clinical practice: 4 Key Things That Cause Migraines
Headaches are almost as commonly accepted as the flu these days. And while there are many reasons why we suffer from headaches in our modern sedentary lifestyle, it is not something we should accept - it is a sign the something is off and painkillers alone is not going to bring our body back in balance even if they temporarily can help calm the pain.
Many of the same triggers that causes a simple headache are involved in the more severe migraine attacks. Migraines are not the same as regular headaches that most people experience occasionally. During a migraine attack, you may feel sharp, stabbing pain, typically on one side of the head. Migraines are much more intense than regular headaches and often come with other symptoms like visual disturbances, nausea and vomiting.
Headaches, especially migraines, can greatly affect your quality of life.
Prolonged migraines may result in a combination of chronic migraines and tension headaches.
While every body and biochemistry is unique, I have found some or all of factors to be the root causes of migraines in most cases:
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STUDY FINDS: ALARMING LEVEL OF CHEMICALS FROM YOUR REUSABLE PLASTIC WATER BOTTLE!
hours in the bottles. There were hundreds of substances in the water -- including substances never before found in plastic, as well as substances that are potentially harmful to health. After a dishwasher cycle, there were several thousand," says Jan H. Christensen, Professor of Environmental Analytical Chemistry at the University of Copenhagen's Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences.
Read the full article here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220211102618.htm
Take-away? STOP using reusable plastic anything in contact with liquids or foods. Choose glass og stainless steel instead.
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ARTICLE FEATURE: Why we struggle with weightloss resistance (DANISH ONLY)
This is part 2 out of 3 of a series I’ve written for Danish health magazine LNS about why we struggle with weightloss resistance.
Read the full article here (p 18-22): click here.
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How cold therapy is RUINING your nervous system!
Now admittedly I’ve been winter swimming in icy waters in Scandinavia since I was 3 years old (voluntarily following my mom in the ocean, mind you). I’ve always been keen on the benefits of cold-and-heat alternating therapies and how it can tone our vagus nerve and thereby help alleviate stress and build resilience.
However, right now this cold therapy trend is getting out of control.
This trend is being pushed by influencers with no health education or people without an understanding of the nervous system - yes, even researches focusing on one aspect only i.e. how cold therapy can change our fat tissue. However, this is ONLY one aspect of how cold therapy is affecting us. We need to understand the bigger picture of how something is affecting us LONG-TERM and our body as a whole, before we dive in. Most importantly we need to understand how our own nervous system is wired and what therapies is best matched to that. Too many lack the understanding of doing things in short bursts or in moderation to stress the body short-term in order to build resilience long-term - instead they are pushing the body beyond capacity, staying in ice water for 5-20 minutes with the mantra “more is better” or just being solely focused on changing fat tissue without understanding what large doses of adrenaline release does to the nervous system.
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Sunlight for weightloss works better than Ozempic
As humans we struggle with the concept of balance. Yet science shows that nature wants balance. And instead of completely staying out of the sun, we would benefit greatly from understanding how to reap the health benefits from daily sun exposure while protecting especially our face and décolleté from damage.
Sunlight has several health benefitting aspects - one being: it actually helps us stay lean!
When skin and the eye are exposed to UVR there is a release of α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) which naturally lowers our appetite and increases our energy expenditure.
For those who want the chemical breakdown of exactly how this happens here goes:
In the central nervous system, α-MSH is cleaved from proopiomelanocortin and then released into different hypothalamic regions to act on melanocortin 3/4 receptor-expressing neurons, lowering food intake, and raising energy expenditure via appetite suppression and sympathetic nervous system.
Most of us know this intuitively, as we tend to lose weight without struggle, when we go on summer-vacation. And this is the reason for it.
In the study they found following:
“In our animal studies, ongoing exposure to low dose ultraviolet radiation (UVR, found in sunlight) reduced weight gain and the development of signs of cardiometabolic dysfunction in mice fed a high fat diet. These observations suggest that regular exposure to safe levels of sunlight could be an effective means of reducing the burden of obesity.”
Read the full study here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5086738/ And feel free to share.
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Glyphosate found in high levels in almost everyone
Many of us turn to clean skin care products - it has almost become a gimmick at this point in time. Especially as many of the so-called clean beauty products do nothing good for the skin - they don’t contain actually skin benefitting ingredients, but can get a label touting “clean” simply by avoiding the main allergy-triggers.
Although it is a good idea to focus on the health-damaging chemicals around us, it is even more important that we understand how to prioritize our efforts to not get overwhelmed with insignificant details. I.e. it doesn’t matter if a little perfume has been added to a soap (unless we are hyper allergic), but it does matter how clean our drinking and bathing water is and whether we cook and store food in contact with plastic (heat/ acid effect primarily). It is most often from such boring everyday sources that the majority of the chemicals we get back on the lab tests done on clients are derived from. Chemicals related to increased disease risk incl. cancer.
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Did you know that figs actually contain compounds that help the body detoxify from fake estrogens (xenoestrogens from chemicals and mold etc.) in the body?
If you struggle with hormone imbalance don't treat the hormones!
8 out of 10 people struggling with hormone imbalance is due to hormone disruptors present in the body - chemicals, mold and/ or certain heavy metals.
If you fail to test for the causes of the hormonal imbalance, you will be stuck taking often very high dosages of bioidentical hormones. Hormones - regardless of being bioidentical or not, are never without risk. While they can be an absolute game changer for treating issues related to menopause (female hormone decline) and andropause (male hormone decline), what I’ve found in 80% of cases is that you can get the body back to balance with either no hormone therapy or with the bare minimum IF you first treat hormone disruption issues.
This is because mold and various hormone disrupting chemicals often attach themselves to our hormone receptors, blocking bioidentical hormones from attaching.
So treating hormone imbalance with hormone therapy is the wrong way to go in 8 out of 10 cases.
You can read more on how various toxins from mold cause dangerous high estrogen levels here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/nursing-and-health-professions/zearalenone
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Magnesium is the no. 1 most commonly found deficiency today
It would be optimal if we could eat enough of all the vitamins and minerals, because food is more recognizable to the body and it is easier to absorb. The sources of magnesium in our food products include whole grains, nuts, sprouts, legumes, cocoa, meat and vegetables. However, what I see when I test, is that many lack it - in 9 out of 10 cases, we see a deficit of magnesium. Magnesium is, together with zinc and silica, among the minerals we commonly find is difficult to obtain an optimal level of through our food because the soil is so depleted and our demands for these minerals have increased due to various stressors in modern life.
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NEW TALK (ZOOM WEBINAR DANISH ONLY) 7th of September: Health dangers of EMF and how to navigate
Did you know that the Health Authorities actually recommend reducing our use of mobile phones? Smartphones, wi-fi, etc. have become important components of daily life. Their harmful effects on the body, especially on the nervous system, have gradually become quite well studied. According to a lot of research, unnatural EMF can affect our body's nervous system and cause damage to cells. Cancer and unusual growths can be a symptom of very high EMF exposure. Several studies have reported that exposure to EMF results in oxidative stress in many tissues of the body. Exposure to EMF is known to increase concentrations of free radicals. This results in increased oxidative stress and chronic inflammation as the antioxidant defense system is unable to prevent the damaging effects of free radicals. The World Health Organization initially considered these sources of non-ionizing EMF radiation to be safe because they were only assessed based on their thermal effects - and that, quite correctly, is not harmful to health. However, it turns out that cell damage has not been taken into account in these conclusions. To participate go here: https://tidslerne.nemtilmeld.dk/296/ Please share
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Study confirms: limit cell phone exposure during pregnancy
"Many studies have shown that electromagnetic fields can have destructive effects on sex hormones, gonadal function, fetal development, and pregnancy. So people must be aware of the negative effects of EMFs. Although the impact of the waves varied at different frequencies, it is better to stay as far away as possible from their origin because of the risks associated with exposures to these waves. In addition, people can use natural antioxidants to help reduce the effects of these waves."
A review on Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and the reproductive system: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5014506/
In short: stop carrying your phone on your body especially during pregnancy or when wanting to become pregnant as it may affect both your own fertility as well as your offspring’s development (autism is a big worry right now that seems to be linked to excessive EMF exposure).
Keep your phone 3 meters away from your body to limit EMF exposure when not using it, and stop scrolling on it like it is your best friend, cos it is not. We are all wasting our lives scrolling non-stop on these smart phones and all these smart devices are under suspicion for wrecking our health big time.
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ARTICLE feature: Women’s Health - 7 Essential Supplements to Keep You Healthy
“As a woman, you have unique nutritional needs when compared to men. And in a perfect world, you’d meet all those requirements through a balanced diet. But in reality, eating healthy isn’t enough.
“A key thing I see a lot of women struggling with is being undernourished–in large part, due to depleted soil which results in our fruit and veggies only containing a fraction of nutrients compared to what they did 50 years ago,” says Christina Santini, clinical nutritionist and owner of The Nutrition Clinic in Los Angeles, CA. “This is easily a recipe for disaster because both our overall health and hormones along with our appetite control center is tightly regulated by how nutrient dense our diet is.”
So even if you eat a wholesome, balanced diet, proper supplementation is key–especially during the winter. Here are the best women’s supplements to keep you healthy and vital all season long–and for years to come.”
I am interviewed for an article on women’s health in alternative medicine read on here:
https://alternativemedicine.com/vitamins-supplements/irreplaceable-supplements-for-women-in-the-midseason/ and feel free to share it.
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ARTICLE: Recovering from mold illness
I’ve written an article based on my 10 years experience working with mold illness cases - part two of the series is out now (Danish only): Click here to read it on p 20. This article is written for the non-profit organization LNS for clients and therapists wishing to integrate conventional and holistic medicine and better transparency in health care. I recommend joining the benefits of this organization by becoming a member. You can read more about it here (Danish only): https://lns.dk/ and feel free to share.
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Mold - when your home is making you sick! NEW TALK (Zoom webinar - Danish only) 13th of April
Christina Santini has been the first therapist in Europe to treat mold exposure since 2013. Did you know that 25% af astma is linked to mold exposure? How about we treated the cause instead of the symptom! It is important to get a handle on our basic needs for healthy air and clean water before we embark on more advanced dietary trends - especially since diet does not help much if our water and air are highly polluted. Gain insight into whether this is a problem for you and possibly related to your symptoms and get help to find out how it can be best managed.
To sign up for webinar click here: https://tidslerne.nemtilmeld.dk/295/
Please share.
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Early science: How your Smartphone may impact your pregnancy
We already know that men shouldn’t be carrying the phone in their pocket, if they want their guys to work. However, it is not a far fetch to think “huh - how about women? how might our excessive smartgadget use be affecting pregnancy amongst women?”
Well, here you go:
“The findings of this review showed that EMF radiation exposure is associated with hormonal, thermal, and cardiovascular changes among adults. However, the reviewed studies did not consider the impacts of EMF radiation exposure on pregnancy outcomes specifically, which makes it difficult to draw conclusions from this review. Only four of the reviewed studies were conducted among pregnant women. These studies reported that EMF radiation exposure during pregnancy is associated with miscarriages and fluctuations in the fetal temperature and heart rate variability, as well as infant anthropometric measures.”
Read full article here: click here. And feel free to share.
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Interview feature in VOGUE Scandinavia
I’m interviewed in Vogue Scandinavia about the benefits of D-vitamin for our skin health. Did you know this sun-vitamin (actually hormone) not only helps to boost our immune system against viruses and cancer, but also linked to anti-aging properties and smoother skin due to its collagen boosting effect? Click here to read it. Feel free to share.
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Toxic and obesogenic BPA most common route is from receipts NOT food!
“A study published July 11 by Swiss scientists found that BPA transfers readily from receipts to skin and can penetrate the skin to such a depth that it cannot be washed off (Biedermann 2010). This raises the possibility that the chemical infiltrates the skin's lower layers to enter the bloodstream directly. BPA has also been shown to penetrate skin in laboratory studies (Kaddar 2008). EWG collected 36 receipts and commissioned the University of Missouri Division of Biological Sciences laboratory to investigate their BPA content. This laboratory is considered one of the world's foremost research facilities in its capability to detect environmentally relevant BPA concentrations. The Missouri scientists found that the total mass of BPA on a receipt is 250 to 1,000 times greater than the amount of BPA typically found in a can of food or a can of baby formula, or that which leaches from a BPA-based plastic baby bottle into its contents. These data should not be interpreted to suggest that policymakers shift their focus from BPA contamination of food, which is widespread, to receipts. BPA exposure from food sources is ubiquitous and should remain the first priority of U.S. policymakers. However, a significant portion of the public may also be exposed to BPA by handling receipts. Since many retailers do not use BPA-laden thermal paper, this particular route of exposure is easy to correct.” Read the full report on Environmental Working Group site here: https://www.ewg.org/research/bpa-in-store-receipts
Read MoreARTICLE feature in NATURHELSE (Danish only)
Did you know that EMF from wifi and our cell phones has been linked to everything from brain and heart tumours in rats to chronic fatigue, migraines, insomnia and stress in humans?
I’ve written an extensive article with 100+ scientific references on EMF and where the science stands regarding its health implications. This article is part of a series of 3 which will be released in upcoming issues. Read it by clicking here. Feel free to share.
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Why athletes thrive on a plant-based diet (and why you likely won't long-term!)
There has been a lot of buzz surrounding going all-in vegan aka plant-based. A popular Netflix doc was made showing how athletes reported greater endurance, performance and so forth when switching over to a plant-based diet.
And this totally makes sense.
However, this led non-athletes to believe that they should copy the eating pattern of athletes, because “obviously“ this was showing to be the ideal way to eat.
Now this totally does not make sense.
Athletes typically have an energy demand of around 8000-10000 calories daily and require 1-1.5g of protein pr. kg. bodyweight. An average Joe might have an energy demand of around 2000-3000 calories daily and still require 1-1.5g of protein for optimal appetite control, bone health and muscle growth.
The athlete is thus needing to eat 3-5 x as many calories to meet their energy demand, yet their protein demand is about the same as your average Joe. This means the athlete is going to benefit from eating more plant-based food because they can easily reach their protein requirements from plants alone due to the high volume they are taking in daily.
Now if you downsize that food to about a quarter which meets the energy demand for the average Joe, you’re going to have great difficulty meeting your protein needs. And this will affect your overall health negatively: often weightloss resistance, cravings, muscle-loss, bone-loss and sagging skin even.
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