Tips for Healthy Living

We’ve partnered with Dr. Doug Husbands of Holistic Health Bay Area to bring you a new set of Tips for Healthy Living. Dr. Husbands is a functional medicine doctor, clinical nutritionist, anti-aging health practitioner and doctor of chiropractic. I appreciate that he encourages visiting the doctor to focus on staying healthy instead of only visiting when you’re sick.– Carmelo Sigona

The Secret to Resolving a Debilitating Health Condition

By Dr. Douglas Husbands

Chronic inflammation is one of the most common, debilitating health conditions in our society today. Arthritis, high blood pressure and high cholesterol are among the chronic conditions resulting from inflammation. Most importantly, inflammation is the real culprit in heart disease. Millions of people are taking anti-inflammatory drugs for these conditions. But did you know that using food as medicine is a very powerful solution?

Anti-inflammatory foods are those which have the effect of being less acidic and more alkaline. Examples of foods that are highly alkaline are: pumpkin seeds, lentils, broccoflower, sea vegetables, sweet potatoes, yams, garlic, asparagus, kale, mustard greens nectarines and limes.  Yes, limes are also highly alkaline.

Here are some powerful anti-inflammatory concentrated nutrients:

• Herbs and nutrient compounds such as Devil’s Claw (Harpagophytum procumbens), Willow bark (Salixspecies), Boswellia (Boswellia serrata), Turmeric (Curcuma longa) and proteolytic enzymes
• Cartilage-nourishing nutrients such as glucosamine sulfate, chondroitin sulfate and MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane)
• Fish oil – It has powerful anti-inflammatory properties, and therefore, pain decreasing effects.
• Rho-iso-alpha acids (RIAA) – It has been found to be a very effective anti-inflammatory and a safer alternative to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). RIAA is a modified extract of Humulus lupulus, which is more popularly known as hops, an ingredient used in beer-making.

For general health and healthy aging purposes, eat foods containing these nutrients. To resolve existing chronic inflammation, consult a health professional who can prescribe therapeutic dosages of the above nutrients in both nutritional supplements and in your daily diet.

For further reading, I recommend reading about some other food-based anti-inflammatory options in my past Sigona’s “Tips For Healthy Living” article (October 19, 2011 issue).  A nice “side-effect” of these anti-inflammatory foods is weight loss.

About Dr. Doug:
Dr. Douglas Husbands is a Functional Medicine Doctor, Clinical Nutritionist, Anti-Aging Health Practitioner, and Doctor of Chiropractic. As a health advocate and coach, he is dedicated to achieving optimal health through resolving the underlying disease processes through diet, nutrition and lifestyle modification. To contact Dr. Doug, call 650-394-7470 or visit http://www.HolisticHealthBayArea.com

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