Thursday, July 22nd, 2010
Last week I started to tell you about a crazy phenomenon that had begun to plague me after a series of intense workouts that I participated in. After taking some time to dig around and stick my nose where it does not belong, I found out a few things of interest and I thought I would share.
Quick Tempered
If histamine was a person, he would be known as a hot head. According to Wiki, histamine is an organic compound found in our cells that sets off an inflammatory response to foreign matter that gets in our bodies through specific muscle tissue. Basically, it opens up our capillaries to white blood cells to allow them to beat up on invading punks. After hooking up with some histamine receptors found in say the nose, for instance, these guys go about releasing a whooping on the invader faster than you can say Kleenex. This explains how you can just be minding your own business having a great workout and then wham! You’re useless.
The whooping that it releases comes in the form of sneezing, itchy, watery eyes, runny nose (rhinorrhea), closed air ways, coughing and congestion and can be intensely severe at the onset. Exercise induced rhinitis (EIR) is described by the medical profession as being non-allergic, so although it manifests itself the same way as seasonal allergies do, it is not considered the same as seasonal allergies. I found this to be problematic in terms of the information available to consumers simply because although they take the time to tell you all that, the means of diagnosis and its subsequent treatment are the same as that of allergic rhinitis. You would still have to submit to a scratch test and take some type of antihistamine to control the reaction so after all that I now know I am going to have to assume there is a greater reason outside of this topic as to why the distinction is so important.
Why Me?
If you do not have seasonal allergies but have been plagued with EIR, chances are you will be developing them soon enough. Those with seasonal allergies are more prone to an EIR attack than those who lack any allergy symptoms at all and it may also be that those who do not have allergies are just not complaining about this so the overall data is lacking. Those who do not have seasonal allergies yet suddenly find themselves with EIR should examine their diet for the allergens mentioned in last week’s post. I could have really gone off on a tangent with this article regarding food and allergies but I will save that for either Heather or myself in another post because it is a lot of information regarding food and histamine release. I would not be surprised if many of you Gatorade, Gu loving folks out there weren’t just setting yourselves up for misery with all the fast acting sugar and junk in those products. This is something to think about if you notice it only happens on long runs or when your mileage gets up there. I am clearly surmising here. I want to make sure that I do not imply that I found any research that says this conclusively, but this is not a far jump in terms of making sense.
The Enemy of the State
Cold weather, pollen, smog, strong smells and air born particles are the nasty buggers responsible for your sudden, personal torment alongside elevated levels of histamine in your system. Cold is the most notable irritant and lo-and-behold, it was winter time when I was at this facility and I did not sneeze until I left the building–not when I finished exercising. Who knew? Both indoor and outdoor exercisers were evaluated for EIR (those who previously showed symptoms—not a random pack of people) and the indoor exercisers experienced EIR more than those who worked out outside BUT both were relatively close in terms of the absolute percentage of those affected. Essentially, if it is going to happen, being indoors will not make it any easier on you. Stay outside if you like.
Too Much Time
In checking all this information out, I realized that the medical profession enjoys giving big names to things that just don’t need one. Rhinorrhea and pruritus for instance which are just a runny nose and itchiness. There is no need for a word like that to say runny nose. Next thing you know, they’ll have a medical term for things like the white film that shows up on the corner of your mouth when you exercise. Or the sweat bead that forms on the stray nose hair in the winter from your warm breath. Let me know if they do exist already and I just missed them because I’ll be happy to use them in another post.
What Does This All Mean?
Bring tissues with you when you workout.
Clean out your diet of the allergens mentioned.
Check out your use of energy drinks and gus.
Be mindful of smoggy areas and note whether you sneeze more outside than inside.
If you have time, diagnose whether you are developing seasonal allergies, as well.
Boost your immune system, it can always use a good kick in the rear.
There truly are a million directions I could go with this topic. I am choosing to keep it short and sweet for this one but now will open it up for the other ones. For instance, food vs allergic reaction vs exercise: are we eating things that are making us prone to allergic reaction right after exercise? Cold vs warm vs indoor vs outdoor: If you lived in an urban environment or out in the country, did you sneeze more? Intensity vs reaction: If your workout was easy, did you sneeze as hard?
I will leave all these questions up in the air for now but just know they have been added to the topic roster so you may seem them soon enough.
Monday, January 25th, 2010
Got milk? I’d pitch it, here’s why…
By Heather Morgan
I’ve avoided this topic for a while. In print at least. I talk about it passionately, but writing it down just seems like an invitation to the National Dairy Council (NDC) to have me locked up. If so, I’m putting it out there that Jodi and I have had several clandestine quiet-voiced conversations about dairy and what we don’t like about it. There, I said it. Now I have a cellmate. I call bottom bunk! Luckily, much more famous and easier-to-find folks have put their anti or notso-pro dairy opinions out there, so I think I’m probably okay. Too bad. Jodi and I could have used the break to do nothing but read, work out, make each other laugh, and then tell you about it. All the same, here are some thoughts to get you re-thinking the white stuff and whether or not it’s “nature’s perfect food”, as the dairy industry would have you believe.
24/24: A sketchy weight loss promo at best
Have any of you reading this actually met anyone who has had success with “milking their diet” (adding more dairy to their diets and losing weight)? “Sally Sue, I just have to tell you… I started banging down milk like there was no tomorrow and my belly pooch and thigh flubber just fell off in the middle of the street during my run! It was amazing.” If you’ve had this conversation with a Dairy Diva, then I can tell you this: she reduced her caloric intake while slugging down the cow’s milk. You see, that ad campaign was based largely (completely?) on a study by one scientist, Michael Zemel, PhD. He had high (RE: amount) dairy eaters and low dairy eaters in the study, and the results showed that the high dairy eaters lost an average of 5% more weight than the low dairy eaters over a period of time. What the geniuses behind the *“24/24” campaign fail to highlight—or even mention—is that all of the subjects who lost weight were on a reduced calorie diet. More studies by the same researcher followed showing similar results. Before you contemplate that, consider also that Zemel is funded by the dairy industry, and he holds the patent to this “method” of weight loss using dairy. A little bit of a financial gain to be made by demonstrating the wonders of milk for weight loss, n’est-ce pas?
I won’t list them here, but there is a whole body of scientific studies revealing that dairy intake has either no effect on body fat levels or weight or that it can actually cause weight gain. (see references) Any of us who’ve dated Ben and Jerry for any length of time can attest to that. Perhaps more relevant is that fact that NO ONE has been able to replicate Zemel’s results. Go look that up, I’ll wait. But we can logic that one out. Cow’s milk. From a cow. For a baby cow. A baby cow that will double its weight at four times the rate a baby human will. The take home message: Cow’s milk is designed for rapid growth. I don’t have one single female athlete acquaintance seeking rapid growth of any sort, particularly in fat mass. Just sayin’. Alright, so milk marketers are big jerks, yadda yadda, we could go on all day about that. Let’s not, let’s consider…
Commercial dairy: Would Louis Pasteur even drink it?
If the subtitle above means nothing to you, Louis Pasteur is the guy who developed pasteurization, a process that started being used with cow’s milk in the early 1900’s when diseases were spreading like wildfire through the milk supply. This method is still being used in commercially produced dairy today, allegedly to prevent disease. This seems a little nonsensical considering the fact that the bacteria naturally found in raw milk produce lactic acid which then protects it from wayward pathogens. This self-defense mechanism is destroyed completely by pasteurization. In fact, it’s the definition of it considering something is deemed “pasteurized” once all of these little defenders are DOA, along with enzymes (like the ones that help you digest milk… hello?!), and other beneficial components (vitamins, amino acids, so forth). This is why folks who are lactose intolerant or dairy sensitive can often well-tolerate raw milk and its products. Same deal with yogurt. While often touted for being chock full of friendly bacteria, even the stuff Jamie Lee Curtis is pimping for pooping is really too low in the good intestinal critters and too high in sugar. Your first clue that that product ain’t right is the fact that they name the “specially created” bacteria “bifidus regularis”. Come on! You are admitting to having to add something back in (because you killed it during processing) and call it something that refers to my morning constitutional? BWAHAHAHAHAHA…! (sorry, digressing…) The real point is that the Mother Nature-engineered bacteria in a food are uniquely qualified to increase the absorption and bioavailability of the nutrients in it. I say don’t fool with it. And certainly don’t add sugar or high fructose corn syrup to it (among other things). Whoo, that’s a whole other blogpost there. So staying on topic…
Want some rBGH with that shake?
A lot (not all, but a LARGE portion) of commercially produced milk comes from industrialized farms where the cows are injected with rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone), a genetically modified growth hormone that keeps them producing milk well beyond that timeframe which is natural for them after giving birth to their offspring. Not only is this cruel because it is very physiologically stressful to the animal, but it makes them more susceptible to infection such as mastitis (aka. inflamed udders). Again, not only very unkind to the udder-owner, but that can mean some pus in your milk. Delish. The FDA has approved the use of rBGH in the US because short-term research on rats indicated that there was no difference between milk from rBGH treated cows and non-treated cows. It should interest you to know that this research was done by the company who created rGBH (heck, I’ll name names: Monsanto, the lovely folks that brought us aspartame and genetically modified crops). What’s shocking is the larger number of studies showing that rGBH animal research subjects develop cancer across the board. Likewise, rBGH is known to increase insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1). This can make existing cancers grow and spread. What’s a nourishment-seeking athlete to do…
Panic, puke, or progress?
Personally I say do the latter. Do the best with the knowledge you have, the ability to access your own logic and intuition, and the budget with which you are operating. And for goodness sakes, don’t take my word for it! Be your own investigator. In fact, most of the information that I had banging around in my noggin, or that I referenced, is decidedly one-sided. These folks don’t like dairy and they want the world to know why. Or, they like it okay, but with conditions. Many of the references are by people who in-fight as well—some think soy is an acceptable alternative to dairy, while others think such advice is straight out of h-e-double-hockey-sticks, for example. The one thing I can say is that I don’t think any of them have anything to gain by you questioning your use and source of milk and milk products. No matter what, my intention is not to scare the ying-yang out of you, but, rather, to get you thinking and researching what you nourish yourself with, dairy or otherwise. In the meantime, to properly fuel your endeavors—athletic or otherwise—here are some tips:
Good luck and great health!
*If you were away from all forms of media in the mid-2000’s, this was the ad campaign where it was recommended that you drink 24 ounces of milk (3 x 8oz. servings/day) to lose weight. Remember the glass that got skinny in the middle like an hourglass? And women drinking a glass while shunning some decadent treat? Ironic, considering the whole “got milk” campaign hinged on making sure you had some milk handy in case a plate of cookies came a-knockin’.
References:
http://www.pcrm.org/news/Virginia%20complaint%20Law%20FINAL.pdf (this is actually a somewhat odd complaint filed against the dairy marketers of Virginia, but it has a lot of great study references in it if that’s your thing)
http://www.nealhendrickson.com/mcdougall/030400pudairyproductsfalsepromises.htm (false promises about dairy consumption, John A. McDougall, MD)
http://www.nealhendrickson.com/mcdougall/030500pudairyanddisease.htm (more from John A. McDougall, purely for those who want to have their hair stand on end with regard to marketing tactics, especially those aimed at children, or, rather, the parents who feed them)
“How to Eat, Move, and Be Healthy” by Paul Chek (book)
Resources:
“Milk the Deadly Poison” by Robert Cohen (book)
“Nourishing Traditions” by Sally Fallon (book)
www.price-pottenger.org
Where you can find raw dairy:
www.realmilk.com
www.localharvest.org (resource for local organic food)
http://www.organicvalley.coop/products/cheese/cheddar/raw-mild-8-oz/ (most of this company’s products are pasteurized, they are at least organic, this is the link to their raw mild cheddar, they have sharp too, can be found in some regular chain groceries)
Monday, January 18th, 2010
A Look at Food Intolerances and Their Effect on Your Training
By Heather Morgan
Around “the office” I’m known as the one to freely chat about poop, gas, and other things most consider inappropriate in mixed company. And I’ll do it over lunch. What can I say? If it’s a normal body process, I’m cool with it whether I have a meal in front of me or not. I’d stop (maybe) but for the fact that I find my earthiness (my mother’s term: “Oh Heather, you’re just so earrrrrthy!”) to be a handy tool in putting my patients and trainees at ease with themselves. That and it opens the door for dialogue about health issues they are experiencing that they might have been too embarrassed to ask. I’m from New Jersey, but I live in the South now, and there’s a definite tendency for those born South of the Mason-Dixon to keep their personal hygiene problems personal. So I consider it my professional duty to bring all things internal into the light.
While there will no doubt be more blog posts to come regarding our innards and how they affect our aging, performance, and overall quality of life, right now I’d like to address food intolerances. Most of us are familiar with the term “food allergy”. By now you’ve undoubtedly come across someone with one or more of them, such as the kid in elementary school who couldn’t sit next to you if you were eating a peanut butter sandwich, or a current friend who makes sure the pesto in the meal s/he’s ordering is pine nut-free. Sort of annoying at first until you realize that a dietary slip-up can mean a trip to the emergency room for your buddy. Another reason not to be all judgy and impatient with it? You could very well be a sufferer of a similar ailment, albeit a milder and harder to detect form of it. All the same, food intolerances can affect your health, sometimes to a devastating point. Read on.
You’re probably wondering what the difference is between a food allergy and a food intolerance, so let’s clear that up before moving on to how it can mess up your next workout. An allergy, food or otherwise, causes an IgE antibody mediated reaction. This is the immune response that causes anaphylaxis, a life-threatening situation characterized by a sudden or fairly sudden (usually within 15-30 minutes at the most) flushing of the skin, swelling of the tongue, sneezing, itching, rapid and erratic pulse, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps, difficulty breathing or swallowing, and sometimes drops in blood pressure leading to lightheadedness or even fainting. Later on signs can also develop, such as eczema. As you can see, if you have a food allergy, you most likely know by now and have the Epipen to prove it. Food intolerances, on the other hand, are IgG antibody mediated reactions. They don’t involve histamine, so the signs and symptoms are usually milder with less specific complaints along with a delayed onset. All of this makes them more difficult to pinpoint, not to mention harder to connect with the intake of a certain food. The common ground food allergies and intolerances share is that they are an immune system over-reaction to a food protein recognized as foreign. So while an intolerance to something in last night’s dinner is tough to diagnose, it is a possibility worth investigating further if you regularly suffer from some of the following without any other explanation:
Most food intolerance sufferers have “their thing”, meaning their tendency to experience one or two of the above fairly chronically, and they have accepted them as their lot in life. And it’s obvious just scanning the list that any of these are attributable to a myriad of reasons, stress and poor diet being just two very common ones. Many, many folks are so used to feeling crappy all of the time, it’s not a stretch to imagine that more food intolerances go undetected than detected. That’s one advantage to being an athlete: You are more connected to your body—how it feels and performs—and you are much less apt to put up with it functioning suboptimally. Likewise, you are even more motivated than a couch jockey to get to the root of a problem. Ever had to cut a run short because you haven’t had a good poop in days? Find yourself timing your training schedule to avoid crowds at the gym because of your gas? Miss your cycling group’s workout because you were doubled over with stomach cramps after eating your pre-ride sport bar? Your body is telling you something and it’s time to listen.
First you need to find out if you indeed have a food intolerance. While there are probably dozens of at-home tests you can buy online by now, we strongly recommend that you consult with a health care practitioner for testing and analysis. They can choose the right testing protocol as some tests only detect allergies, not intolerances, and so forth. That said and emphasized, if you decided to go rogue and order a test (see resources below), at least take your results to a professional for review. [Heads up!: Most of these require mailing a sample of your poop to a lab. Suck it up, it’s worth it.] Also, a health care professional who specializes in gastrointestinal disorders can determine if your problem stems from other, often related, issues, such as Increased Intestinal Permeability (aka. “Leaky Gut Syndrome”), Candida (yeast) Overgrowth, Dysbiosis, or something even more serious. Better safe than sorry. No matter what, be prepared for an elimination diet where the most likely culprits will be taken from your diet for a period of time and then introduced to see if you react or not. As an athlete, you should already be tracking your nutrition. In fact, if you are noting the timing and content of your meals, a lot of your detective work has already been done. Start including notes about when you have adverse reactions—even if you’ve never previously tied them to something you ate or drank.
To motivate you beyond wanting to feel better and rock your training harder, there’s some good news to being slapped with a diagnosis of food intolerance. A) The cause of your issues may no longer be a mystery; B) The intestinal tract is home to some of the quickest healing tissue in the body. (Over-achievers rejoice!) While your healthcare professional will undoubtedly set a dietary course of action for you, here are some supplements that they may recommend to help speed up the pace of gut repair: glutamine; quercitin; zinc; omega-3 fatty acids; probiotics. We recommend seeking out whole food sources of these nutrients (see below), but higher concentrations may very well be prescribed by your healthcare practitioner via appropriate supplement dosages taken at specific times. Nothing says you can’t get a head start on healthy guts by regularly including many of these nutrient-dense foods below, assuming they agree with you, of course!
So, was it the gluten-rich pasta you were banging down the night before that caused you to frequent the Port-o-lets during your 10K? Or was it the soy in your pre-race sport bar? But doesn’t that happen after ice cream too? Oh, and there was that course of antibiotics you took last month for yet-another sinus infection. Come to think of it though, wasn’t it just last week you had nothing but headaches, itchy arms, and a jammed up colon? Stop guessing! Athletic endeavors aside, your long-term health and successful aging depend on it.
References:
Doyle, Marek. The basics of food intolerance. http://www.ei-resource.org/articles/allergy-articles/the-basics-of-food-intolerance/
Melina, Vesanto, MS, RD, Stepaniak, Jo, MSEd & Aronson, Dina, MS, RD. (2004). Food allergy survival guide: Delicious recipes & complete nutrition. Summertown, TN: Healthy Living Publications.
Resources (testing and practitioner location):
