Tech of the Week: Tellspec

The tech of the week is TellSpec! Which “intends to revolutionize our health by empowering us with knowledge about the food we eat” and it could, in theory, do just that.

What was originally an Indiegogo project and dream of Isabel Hoffman and Dr. Stephen Watson is now a company backed with nearly $400,000 and a public release due in November of 2014 (now pushed to Q1 of 2015).
Possible Pros:

• Knowing how many calories a food has rather than guessing
• Knowing what ingredients and possible allergens are in a food
• App to quickly sync with your phone
• With the planned size that of a hand it’ll be very mobile
• Cool factor (who doesn’t want a spectrometer on their key chain?)

Possible Cons:

• Size, following the newsletter and updates they have been having difficulties getting the product to the desired size
• Battery life. If it is the planned size and it’s running a spectrometer what kind of battery life will it have?
• Price, although the Indiegogo units were as cheap as $150 there is a planned yearly subscription fee for using the service

All and all it’s too soon to tell if TellSpec will live up to its promises but it will definitely be interesting to see what happens in the first quarter of 2015.

Episode 4: Brief History of the Paleo Diet

Probiotics 102

Now I'm going to cover soil based organisms, certain benefits/effects different strains have, and references.

First thing about soil based organisms, there has been some evidence that if you don't have a healthy gut flora already (more good bacteria than bad) soil based probiotics may do more damage and possibly become pathogenic. If you're just starting with a probiotic regimen and have had an arguably unhealthy diet in the past recommend steering clear of these in the beginning simply from the perspective of risk/reward, go more toward the lactic acid probiotics. When you've done a regiment of lactic acid probiotics, not been on antibiotics, and eating a relatively clean diet soil based organisms may have even more benefits than the lactic acid based probiotics.

Strains
Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli (most studied strain families): treatment/improving allergies, lactose intolerance, eczema, acne, improved digestive health
Immune System Support: Bifidobacterium lactis HN019, Lactobacillus reuteri ATCC55730, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium lactis Bb-12
Treatment for Diarrhea: S. cerevisiae (S. boulardii), Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG), Lactobacillus casei DN-114 001, Lactobacillus acidophilus CL1285 plus Lactobicillus casei Lbc80r

References:

1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15106189
2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19584499
3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16313688
4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16126048
5. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23474283
6. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?cmd=Link&dbFrom=PubMed&from_uid=21352578&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m%2Cisrctn
7. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=Probiotics
8. http://nccam.nih.gov/health/probiotics/introduction.htm
9. http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/changing-gut-bacteria-through-245617.aspx
10. http://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg/updates/update0905c.shtml
11. http://cid.oxfordjournals.org/content/46/Supplement_2/S96.full

Image courtesy of bestpricenutrion.com, whom I have no affiliation with.

Probiotics 101

It's almost universally agreed upon that probiotics are beneficial to your gut. Without the tremendous amount of bacteria covering our bodies inside and out, a lot of which is friendly, we would very quickly pass away.

Probiotics is no where near a perfect science yet, but certain cultures have had probiotic foods as staples of their diets for generations with little to no documented negative side affects. Kimchi in many parts of Asia. Raw yogurt, cheese, and milk throughout Europe and raw sauerkraut in the United States.

Health Benefits

Certain strains are showing to have different or complimentary health benefits. Possible health benefits:

• Urinary Tract Health
• Crohn's disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome Improved
• Oral Health
• Strep throat and Tonsillitis Defense
• Emotional Well Being
• Improved Brain Activity (fun fact there's neurons in our guts)
• Diarrhea/Constipation Remedy
• Treatment of Yeast Infection and Bacterial Vaginosis
• Defense from Infection and Pathogens
• Relief from Acne and Eczema
• Improved Allergies
• Anti-Inflammatory and in Effect Anti-Aging

For strains, no matter which strain if the live organisms count isn't in the billions it's most likely not going to be effective. Lactobacillus (the most researched strain) acidophilus and bifidobacteria are the most common types.

Dosage is a question I've been really actively looking into. Some self proclaimed experts suggest to take 10-15 times the recommended dosage (which my spider sense is telling me that's mainly because they sell probiotics! ha). Personally I recommend taking twice the recommended dosage to colonize for the first week or way better take approximately 25 billion organisms of the most diverse strains (while still good quality) you can find for the benefits you're looking for.

Currently experimenting with different types/brands of probiotics and I'll go into more depth on the benefits for each strain and a few good brands in the near future.

Let me know which brands you use and what your favorite strains are that you've had success with in the comments!

Reasons Why Being Better and Eating Wheat Doesn't Mix

Wheat. The big trend that I hear a lot of right now is gluten. Yes, gluten can be *extremely* bad for you physically and mentally and that's fairly easily quantified. That said, gluten is in wheat. Gluten free wheat should be better, and I'm not going to get into whole grain wheat right now but believe me that the science doesn't follow the idea that eating most of your diet from whole grains or any wheat will be good for you (unless you're starving to death). Also, wheat is a subclass of grains and I will not dive into all grains right now.

Let's run through some reasons wheat isn't making you better:

• Cancer cells fall in love with simple carbohydrates
• Stomach fat (lovingly referred to as the "American Gut")
• Inflammation
• Mental fog
• Mycotoxins
• Mold
• Gut damage
• Damage to the gall bladder and bile production
• Less than optimal bone health
• Less energy
• Lowered immune system

Possible long terms effects:

• Infertility
• Type 2 diabetes
• Multiple sclerosis
• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Lupus
• Vitiligo
• Narcolepsy
• Schizophrenia
• Autism
• Depression
• Huntington’s
• Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Hypothyroidism
• Porphyria

I've always loved cereal, there are quite extensive studies coming out that grains and sugary foods in particular can be as addictive, because it hits a lot of the same receptors, as cocaine. If that sounds crazy try mentioning to somebody that they go a week without it and see the kind of responses you'll typically get. One alternative to wheat I enjoy is rather than not having sandwiches get a head of good cabbage and use that to hold everything together. Some studies show that if fermented there may be specialized benefits. Yes french toast is delicious, sadly for most humans it's also slowly killing you.

Resources, studies and further reading:

http://rawfoodsos.com/2010/12/15/new-china-study-links-wheat-with-weight-gai/

http://www.bulletproofexec.com/another-reason-wheat-destroys-your-performance/

http://www.naturalnews.com/034040_grains_weight_gain.html

http://www.bulletproofexec.com/podcast-25-wheat-belly-with-dr-william-davis-md/

http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2010/09/19/paleo-diet-solution/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22237879

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16126993

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/wheat-gluten_b_1274872.html

MCT/Coconut Oil and Why it Can Make You Better

Can honestly say without feeling like I am over exaggerating that good quality MCT oil is quite possibly not just the healthiest oil but one of the healthiest foods on this planet. MCT oil is generally concentrated coconut oil, it can also be made from palm oil (seems good) and canola oil (avoid canola for many reasons). MCT stands for Medium Chain Triglycerides also known as fatty acids. The majority of foods are either short or long chain.

Although you can find what seems like endless anecdotal evidence of benefits, especially on coconut oil, the scientific studies are spotty at best. I will list many of the possible and individual benefits then go over my own personal benefits:

• Weight loss
• Muslce/mass gain
• Belly fat "spare tire" reduced
• Increased energy
• Improved mood
• Improved brain function
• Alzheimer's prevention/cure
• Cancer prevention/cure
• Skin care
• Scar treatment
• Assisting in putting the body in ketosis (explain more on ketones late)
• Bone and dental health
• Diabetes prevention/cure
• Improving allergies
• Improving immune system
• Pneumonia cure
• Improved cholesterol levels

I know, right? That's a lot.

My personal results:

• Improved skin
• Bone and dental health
• Improving allergies
• Improving immune system
• Improved mood/energy
• Belly fat reduced
• Muscle/mass gain
• Improved brain function
• Quicker entry into ketosis

Those are the benefits I was able to quantify using things like a journal, brain exercises, physical exercises, fasting, and a Elimination diet to add validity to it being the coconut and MCT oil rather than something else I was ingesting. Also though it's flu season I have not been sick in about half a year although I work in public areas and travel semi frequently.

Dosage I was using is 2-4 tbsp daily. Using two with coffee then with dinner. Only side effect I've heard of from upping the dosage specifically on an empty stomach is GI issues such as diarrhea. I never had this issue, but I wasn't trying to cure cancer or Alzheimers. 

There's lots of ways to get MCTs. I'd recommend staying away from the cheap processed stuff and get either organic extra virgin coconut oil or good quality MCT oils derived coconut and (but not only) palm oil if you can afford it to get all the benefits.