Earth Day

Courtesy of the "My Yoga Sadhana" blog (http://myyogasadhana.blogspot.com/2011/04/earth-day.html) I too encourage everyone to go over to www.envirosax.com and get yourself a handy-dandy grocery bag.  Unlike the bags you get at Trader Joe's or Safeway, these bags fold up into itty bitty tubes of polyester that you can stuff into your purse/backpack/laptop bag and still have room for everything else you carry. I got to use, and refold, one a few weeks ago and today I finally made it over to the website to purchase two of my very own. They have terrific designs for the fashionistas, the animal lovers, even the Sesame Street crowd. I picked up these two:
   

And I'm looking forward to putting them to good use. So in celebration of earth day, let's just use the junky plastic bags for picking up dog poo. (Better yet, get some biodegradable bags... another topic for another day).

PMS

Premenstrual Syndrome is simultaneously a familiar issue and a complicated one.  Over 150 symptoms have been attributed to PMS, most commonly anxiety, but also sadness, lethargy, irritability, bloating, headache, breast pain, food cravings, the list goes on and on.  The common thread with PMS is its association with the menstrual cycle. The symptoms of PMS resolve when the menses begins.

Women who experience PMS typically have a diet consuming increased amounts of dairy products and refined sugar[i] and increasing their intake of fats, carbohydrates and simple sugars while decreasing their protein intake[ii].  There has been research linking the cravings for carbohydrates with a decrease of serotonin in the brain. (Serotonin is a “feel-good” neurotransmitter.) Eating carbohydrates increases the amount of tryptophan and creation of serotonin in the brain, temporarily improving the person’s mood and energy[iii].  By eating high-quality carbohydrates, a woman might be able to decrease her PMS symptoms.  Pro-inflammatory foods are also important to avoid, but good anti-inflammatory foods include fresh foods and vegetables, fish, grass-fed beef, nuts, seeds, curry powder, garlic and onions. 

Other ways to increase serotonin is to participate in feel-good activities. Exercise! Just taking a 20 minute walk with a friend will not only help boost your serotonin, but it just plan feels good too. Oxytocin, another feel-good hormone, is released when we spend quality time with loved ones, it’s sometimes called the “cuddle” hormone, so snuggling up with your sweetie actually does make you feel better[iv].

Research is controversial on the dietary impact with breast tenderness, but many women have found reducing their caffeine intake helps.  Reduce coffee intake (both caffeinated and decaffeinated… decaf still has caffeine), black tea, chocolate and sodas.

What about soy?

Soy contains “phytoestrogens”.  Phytoestrogens are a kind of weak-estrogen that bind to estrogen receptors. If you have a problem with high estrogens (more common in PMS cases) then soy would be beneficial, by getting in the way of your full-strength estrogens.  In cases of low estrogen (eg. menopause) then the phytoestrogens can act to boost the overall effect of estrogen[v].

---

[i] J Reprod Med. 1983 Jul;28(7):446-64.

Nutritional factors in the etiology of the premenstrual tension syndromes.

Abraham GE.

[ii] Br J Nutr. 2001 Apr;85(4):475-82.

Changes in nutrient intake during the menstrual cycle of overweight women with premenstrual syndrome.

Cross GB, Marley J, Miles H, Willson K.

[iii] Pharmacol Toxicol. 1992;71 Suppl 1:61-71.

Serotonin, carbohydrates, and atypical depression.

Møller SE.

[iv] Psychosom Med. 2008 Nov;70(9):976-85. Epub 2008 Oct 8.

Influence of a "warm touch" support enhancement intervention among married couples on ambulatory blood pressure, oxytocin, alpha amylase, and cortisol.

Holt-Lunstad J, Birmingham WA, Light KC.

[v] The Clinician’s Handbook of Natural Medicine. Pizzorno, Murray, Joiner-Bey. 

to sleep perchance to dream

I'm guilty of it too - up too late, or waking up with a million things on my mind, or forcing myself awake before the sun comes up to get a little bit more done. Sleep is so important to living a healthy happy life. When you are well-rested you handle the daily stress in your life better and your immune system can do a better job of fighting off bad guys.


Sleep hygiene is similar to dental hygiene - something you do to keep your (mouth and teeth) (mind and body) healthy. 


This is a hand-out I give my patients experiencing problems sleeping. This is not the be all and end all of insomnia cures, but I suggest going through this list and cleaning up your habits.

Personal Habits

·         Fix a bedtime and an awakening time. Do not be one of those people who allows bedtime and awakening time to drift. The body gets used to falling asleep at a certain time, but only if this is relatively fixed. Even if you are retired or not working, this is an essential component of good sleeping habits.

·         Avoid napping during the day. If you nap throughout the day, it is no wonder that you will not be able to sleep at night. The late afternoon for most people is a "sleepy time." Many people will take a nap at that time. This is generally not a bad thing to do, provided you limit the nap to 30-45 minutes and can sleep well at night.

·         Avoid alcohol 4-6 hours before bedtime. Many people believe that alcohol helps them sleep. While alcohol has an immediate sleep-inducing effect, a few hours later as the alcohol levels in your blood start to fall, there is a stimulant or wake-up effect.

·         Avoid caffeine 4-6 hours before bedtime. This includes caffeinated beverages such as coffee, tea and many sodas, as well as chocolate, so be careful. Some people are really quite sensitive to caffeine, so stay in tune with yourself and try and resist that Thai Iced Tea with dinner (yum)

·         Avoid heavy, spicy, or sugary foods 4-6 hours before bedtime. These can affect your ability to stay asleep.

·         Do not go to bed hungry, but don’t eat a big meal near bedtime either. 

·         Exercise regularly, but not right before bed. Regular exercise, particularly in the afternoon, can help deepen sleep. Strenuous exercise within the 2 hours before bedtime, however, can decrease your ability to fall asleep.

·         Don’t go to bed unless you are sleepy. If you are not sleepy at bedtime, then do something else. Read a book, listen to soft music or browse through a magazine. Find something relaxing, but not stimulating, to take your mind off of worries about sleep. This will relax your body and distract your mind.

Sleeping Environment

·         Use comfortable bedding. Uncomfortable bedding can prevent good sleep. Evaluate whether or not this is a source of your problem, and make appropriate changes.

·         Make your bedroom quiet, dark, and a little bit cool. An easy way to remember this: it should remind you of a cave. While this may not sound romantic, it seems to work for bats. Bats are champion sleepers. They get about 16 hours of sleep each day. Maybe it’s because they sleep in dark, cool caves.

·         Block out all distracting noise, and eliminate as much light as possible.

·         Reserve the bed for sleep and sex. Don't use the bed as an office, workroom or recreation room. Let your body "know" that the bed is associated with sleeping.

Getting Ready For Bed

·         Try a light snack before bed. Warm milk and foods high in the amino acid tryptophan, such as bananas, may help you to sleep.

·         Practice relaxation techniques before bed. Relaxation techniques such as yoga, deep breathing and others may help relieve anxiety and reduce muscle tension. 

·         Don't take your worries to bed. Leave your worries about job, school, daily life, etc., behind when you go to bed. Some people find it useful to assign a "worry period" during the evening or late afternoon to deal with these issues. If your mind is cycling through a list of things to do tomorrow try writing them down. Keep a notebook near your bed to scribble down those last minute to-do's.

·         Establish a pre-sleep ritual. Pre-sleep rituals, such as a warm bath or a few minutes of reading, can help you sleep.

·         Get into your favorite sleeping position. If you don't fall asleep within 15-30 minutes, get up, go into another room. Find something else to do that will make you feel relaxed. If you can, do this in another room. Your bedroom should be where you go to sleep. It is not a place to go when you are bored. Once you feel sleepy again, go back to bed.

Getting Up in the Middle of the Night

·         Most people wake up one or two times a night for various reasons. If you find that you get up in the middle of night and cannot get back to sleep within 15-20 minutes, then do not remain in the bed "trying hard" to sleep. Get out of bed. Leave the bedroom. Read, have a light snack, do some quiet activity, or take a bath. You will generally find that you can get back to sleep 20 minutes or so later. Do not perform challenging or engaging activity such as office work, housework, etc. Do not watch television or play on the computer.

A Word About Television

·         Many people fall asleep with the television on in their room. Watching television before bedtime is often a bad idea. Television is a very engaging medium that tends to keep people up. I generally recommend that the television not be in the bedroom. At the appropriate bedtime, the TV should be turned off and you should go to bed. Some people find that the radio helps them go to sleep. Since radio is a less engaging medium than TV, this might work for you.

Sources:

http://www.sleepfoundation.org

http://www.sleepeducation.com/Hygiene.aspx

http://www.umm.edu/sleep

Welcome to Dr. Potter's Blog!

Welcome to this space.

I hope it will be one of learning, sharing and perhaps healing. I anticipate exploring notions of health, tips for you to take along the journey, interesting things I've learned or are learning about, thoughts on what we think of as health and generally things that ramble around inside my head.

Please join me in this exploration.