Newtown Naturopathic Centre

Importance of Fish Oil in the Diet

newtownnaturopathiccentre — Tue, 22 May 2007 11:27:16 +0000

What can high dose fish oil do for you? It can:

Prevent heart disease

Reverse cancer

Reduce pain and inflammation

Treat neurological disease

Reverse the aging process

Make you smarter

Make you thinner

Improve your physical performance

Improve your relationship with others

Fish oils are rich in long-chain omega-3 fats called eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA). EPA is the key fat for health, whereas DHA is the key fat for the brain. Fish oil is rich in both.

DHA is the essential long chain omega-3 fatty acid required for the building of neural tissue. It also appears that growth of nerve cells can only be stimulated by DHA. Hence its importance in any neurological disease. During pregnancy DHA is preferentially transported across the placenta into the foetal circulation for maximum impact on brain development.

EPA, the other long-chain omega-3 that impacts on our health by modulating the balance of “good” and “bad” eicosanoids . You need a balance of “good” and “bad” eicosanoids for optimal health. Too many “bad” eicosanoids can result in a heart attack, stroke, hypertension, arthritis, cancer, chronic infection, depression, Alzhemir’s disease.

The “good” eicosanoids are important for the following reasons:

Prevent blood clots
Dilate blood vessels
Reduce pain
Decrease cell division
Enhance the immune system
Improve brain function

However, the “bad” eicosanoids are important for the following reaons:

Promote blood clots (so you don’t bleed to death)
Constrict blood vessels
Promote pain
Promote cell divisio
Depress the immune system

Depress brain function

One of the best ways to keep your body moving towards wellness is by decreasing inflammation, the underlying reason for chronic disease.. This can only be achieved by increasing the production of “good” eicosanoids” and decreasing the production of “bad” eicosanoids. High dose fish oil primarily influences eicosanoid levels.

A simple way to tell if your body is on the path to wellness by taking a basic blood test that measures your levels of triglycerides and HDL (good) cholesterol. Your brain is in a state of wellness only if your thinking is at peak efficiency. Is your brain in a state of wellness?

Do you find it difficult to concentrate on your daily tasks?
Do you find it difficult to complete one task before starting another?
Do you find it difficult to get organised or remember things?
Are you feeling down more often than feeling good?
Do you get impatient with others easily?

If you answer “yes” to any of these questions, then your brain may be in a state of sub chronic illness.

When taking high doses of fish oil it is important to use pharmaceutical grade concentrated fish oil. These deliver a concentrated amount of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids without unwanted by-products like chemical contaminants or harmful fatty acids.

Always consult a qualified practitioner before taking high dose fish oil.

Concentrated fish oils are available from the clinic. To find out more make an appointment on (02) 9550 5949.

Also important for good health is the zone diet. Tune in next month to find out more about it.

From Disease Care to Health Care

newtownnaturopathiccentre — Thu, 10 May 2007 02:10:47 +0000

Our existing “health–care” system is really a “disease-care” system. It focuses on intervention instead of prevention. It does not teach us how to live so we can achieve optimum health and the highest quality of life that we are capable of. Instead, it teaches us to manipulate ourselves from the outside, resulting in many of us left numb to the signals our bodies constantly send out to keep us in balance. We can become so out of touch with our bodies that we may fail to notice when we need to exercise, stop eating, change body positions, take a deep breath, take time out for ourselves or rest. We often ignore fatigue, hunger and discomfort to the point of harming ourselves. We stay in jobs, relationships and lifestyles that are killing us and refuse to listen to our bodies crying out in distress.

Many of us really don’t know how to take care of ourselves or how to keep ourselves well. Many believe that a healthy diet is based on white bread, white rice, pasta, instant foods, dairy, lots of meat and soft drinks. This high fat, low fibre diet creates problems that even the most expensive medical technology cannot repair. Most adults and many children suffer from headaches, allergies, digestive problems, back ache, stiff joints, lack of energy, insomnia, anxiety, depression and so on. The majority often don’t feel all that wonderful, yet consider it “normal” because that is how the majority of people we know feel – all equally lacking in vitality. Many industries profit enormously from our ever increasing over reliance on drugs and following unhealthy lifestyles that results in an ever increasing demand for their services and products.

Our health care system teaches people to suppress their symptoms with no attempt to understand what they are trying to tell us. Merely suppressing symptoms can sometimes even cause the disease process to take on new and more virulent forms. Many when they become ill all too easily slip into passivity and helplessness, believing they are dependant on the doctor to make them well, disconnected from the incredible creative power that lies within each one of us.

There are alternatives. Alternative medicine or traditional medicine approaches healing by honouring the wisdom and capability of the human body. Its aim is to support and strengthen the body’s own powerful healing forces working to bring balance to the person. Some of these amazing natural alternatives are Naturopathy, Homoeopathy, Kinesiology, Bowen Therapy, and Massage. Call the clinic today to find out the best way to help you achieve health & wellbeing. (02) 9550 5949

Homoeopathy and Emotional traumas as the root cause of dis-ease

newtownnaturopathiccentre — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 02:09:36 +0000

Emotional traumas can have a huge impact, affecting our lives and creating our diseases. We may not even be aware of events that have traumatised us in the past. An incident that occurred when we were very young may still affect our behaviour today.

Traumas are the patterns behind suffering that come from feeling hurt. When a situation becomes too much for us to process, the trauma is stored up inside of us. For example, if someone close to us dies, we need to grieve; but if we cannot grieve or choose not too, we will start hurting. If later we develop symptoms such as fatigue, hayfever or headaches we may not associate such symptoms with stuck grief. This is the rule of cause and effect. Whenever anyone becomes ill, it is very useful to ask what was going on before it happened – as long as a year beforehand or a week or even just a minute. This will give you the cause and the illness will be the effect.

Trauma can be either gross or subtle. What may be gross for one may be subtle for another depending on their life experiences. Gross trauma can be sudden and overwhelming. Eg a death, divorce, broken love affair, a rape or violent assault, cancer, job loss. Subtle trauma can take place subtly and insidiously during growing up. It can be inflicted by a parent who is in trauma or who is reflecting their trauma onto you by being abusive, withdrawn, sarcastic, etc, by family members, teachers, children at school, etc. A slap to a sensitive child, being punished, being left to cry, and not being cuddled; if repeated can become a major trauma for an infant or a child. It results in the child unconsciously taking up a defensive posture to cope with feeling unloved or uncared for.

Trauma can also be caused by repressed feelings of grief, anger, resentment, hate, betrayal or rejection. They can arise at work, home or in school. Other situations like moving to a new home, going off to uni, changing schools, a bad holiday can also be traumatic for some.

A consultation with a homoeopath can be life changing in itself, as a homoeopathic consultation often gets right to the Achilles’ heal of the trauma or drama of a life. The person becomes aware of their inappropriate responses allowing the body to heal itself. The classical homoeopath is a bit like a detective as he vigilantly searches for clues in the client’s life history that could lead to a successful prescription. Homoeopathic medicines prescribed for the whole person are capable of producing profound physiological and psychological changes in their clients.

Mind Body Bowen Therapy works in a similar way to homoeopathic medicines, helping to release old traumas and wounds, balancing the body and allowing the person to feel at one with themselves.

Call the clinic to find out how homoeopathic medicine or Mind Body Bowen may help you or a family member (02) 9550 5949.