There are few health problems quiet devastating as hair loss. Not only does thinning hair drastically change your appearance, but hair problems can indicate underlying health problems like chronic stress and inflammation, hypothyroid, and more.

For most people; especially men, hair loss is considered an unmanageable fate – if your hair is falling out, there’s nothing you can do about it. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. The fact of the matter is, hair loss of any sorts, even the so-called “genetic” male-patterned baldness is 100% manageable. Truth be told, not only can you stop hair loss, but you can regrow hair and you can do it completely naturally, without drugs, medications, transplants, etc.

All of this happens to be well-known in the science community. However, most of us never hear about what I am going to teach you today because most research around hair loss is either burred in medical literature, or manipulated toward a particular outcome to support Big Pharma’s billions in sales from hair loss drugs.

“According to recent IBIS World Industry Market research, the U.S. hair loss treatment manufacturing industry is expected to earn a revenue of $3.6 billion in 2016. … Data from the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery states that 85.4% of individuals wanted hair loss treatment in 2015.” 1

Although I will not be uncovering every last detail about the truth about hair loss in this particular post (I saved that information for my online course, Forever Healthy Hair), I do want to touch on a very important topic – the connection between ketosis or the keto-diet and hair loss.

With the popularity of ketosis steady on the rise, many people are coming to me in coaching sessions or my email box about hair loss, and to no surprise. This is something I dealt with during my bouts of ketosis during my bodybuilding days, l0w-carb veganism, and experimental ketosis. Fortunately, it was a problem I was able to correct before it ever got chronic. I was also able to figure out the exact reason ketosis and low-carb, sugar-free diets cause hair loss.

Thanks to my background in physiology and the help of a few intelligent mentors, not only was I able to figure how this connection, I discovered the exact physiology behind all hair-loss.

As devastating as hair loss can be, the good news is that once you learn the pathology, you will see that the solutions for hair loss are much simpler than you have previously thought or been told.

Hair Loss And The Keto Diet

As you’ll learn in-depth when you take my Forever Healthy Hair, the major culprit behind hair loss and poor hair health is hypothyroidism. To learn about this is great detail, you will definitely want to check that course out. However, today I would like to briefly discuss the how and why ketogenic diets are a bad idea for hair health. In short, a ketogenic diet, low carb diet or a diet devoid of sugar are all great contributors to hypothyroidism.

Hypothyroidism contributes to hair loss and poor hair health in numerous ways, but here are the main mechanisms:

• Hypothyroidism causes elevations of three stress hormones; estrogen, cortisol, and prolactin with coinciding increase of adrenal activity.
• Hyperadrenal activity causes an increased synthesis of aromatizable steroids (aromatase activity), causing your protective, pro-hair hormones to be converted into estrogen, causing a greater rise in estrogen.
• Decreased androgens = decreased hair growth
• Increased estrogens, cortisol & prolactin ‘suffocates’ the uptake of thyroid hormone into the follicles
• Excess cortisol impairs the cellular utilization of glucose – in other words, it starves the hair follicles of glucose
• The hormonal imbalances here all attribute to inflammation, damaged scalp integrity, the fibrosis of the scalp and therefore the death of the hair follicle
• Decreased production of carbon dioxide = less oxygen to hair follicle

So as you can see, hair loss is a systemic condition, and just like all others, addressing a thyroid deficiency should be a primary goal. However, given the physiology of the thyroid, we come to find out that a #ketogenic diet, low-carb dieting and avoiding sugar all oppose this goal and attribute to hypothyroid.

Here’s how…

First, understand this, the hair follicle needs three basic things to grow and thrive; glucose (sugar), oxygen, and thyroid hormone – these are the basic nutrients that your hair follicles “eat”. In fact, the hair follicle has been referred to by researchers as a thyroid hungry, highly energetically demanding mini-organ that needs a lot glucose. Without adequate glucose (sugar), the mini-organ that is the hair follicle will starve.

So, not only does the low-carb, or carb-devoid nature of ketogenic diet lack sufficient glucose, which directly puts a nutrition stress on your hair follicle, it also attributes to hypothyroidism, further worsening your hair health.

Here’s how…

When your body doesn’t get enough sugar or glucose, which is intentionally inflicted during ketosis (carb-deprivation), then your body gets it fuel sources from the fatty acids and so-called “ketone bodies”. However, these cannot sustain hair growth. This is due to the simple fact that the hair follicle is a glucose dependent organ, it simply cannot “sub-in” free fatty acids for energy. In fact, all of your cells prefer glucose, it is the primary energy source of the body for numerous reasons that I won’t get into in this post. 

Given this fact, in order to make glucose to fuel your hair follicles and other organs and cells, in a glucose deprived state (keto/low carb), your body turns on its backup fuel system, a process called gluconeogenesis. In order to get into a state of ketosis, you have to enter gluconeogenesis.

Gluconeogenesis is basically the process of turning proteins and fats (muscles, tissues, organs, etc.) into glucose for energy. This process occurs when our body is under stress; however, a basic stress of the body is low blood sugar. So this is why ketosis or lipolysis; the utilization of fatty acids for energy, could be considered a metabolic stress.

Basically, when you are carb deprived, your body will use fatty acids for energy where it can, but for the functions it cannot, it turns fatty acids and proteins to glucose. The problem with this is that, although a helpful survival mechanism, gluconeogeneis is initiated by the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol is catabolic, so it can breakdown your tissues to convert them into glucose. Not only is this process destructive; attributing to the loss of skin integrity and wrinkles, but as we’ve learned, elevated cortisol directly impairs the cell ability to utilize glucose.

Furthermore, one of the hallmarks of metabolic stress is exchanging glucose for fatty acids as a main source of fuel; i.e lipolysis and ketosis. Oxidizing fatty acids, instead of glucose, results in less carbon dioxide, restraining the availability of oxygen to hair follicle. An increase in free circulating fatty acids in the scalp and tissues, along with the decrease in carbon dioxide might largely explain why balding scalps are found to be less oxygenated (hypoxia). 2

So what we learn when we study the physiology is why stress of any sorts causes hair loss. We also clearly see that the body doesn’t necessarily consider long, thick hair to be a necessary survival attribute when the body is threatened. As we see, when the body is chronically stressed, it will halt hair growth and breakdown tissues just to keep itself alive.

Keto, Hypothyroid & Hair Loss

Other than depriving the hair follicle of glucose, a low carb, ketogenic diet also causes hair loss by down regulating thyroid function. Remember that gluconeogeneis thing we talked about? Well, ultimately, that process preserves our energy by down-regulating our metabolism and thyroid function.

You see, not only does ketosis and gluconeogensis elevate cortisol and estrogen, which impair thyroid function. The chronic depletion of liver glycogen (energy), from not eating carbs or not enough carbs can also slow thyroid function. That’s because the liver is responsible for converting 70% or more of inactive thyroid hormone (t4) into the active form (t3). Because the liver prefers glucose to make glycogen, limiting your intake causes a rapid depletion of liver glycogen, which not only stimulates the process of gluconeogenesis, but impairs its ability to actively convert thyroid hormone.

A classic signpost of liver impairment is the depletion of glycogen; something self inflicted on a ketogenic diet just to “burn fat”. But what people fail to see is that “burning fat” through this process, is a stressful one, achieved by the catabolic effects of adrenaline, cortisol and others.

Sticking to the point though, the depletion of liver glycogen that occurs on a ketogenic diet results in hair loss by;

• elevating cortisol through gluconeogenesis (or the stimulation of the adrenal/pituitary driven metabolism; i.e. stress metabolism)
• decreasing the liver’s ability and efficiency of converting t4 into t3; resulting in low t3 levels (i.e hypothyroidism)

The True Cause of Hair Loss

I’m not going to debunk all the myths about hair-loss today like I do in my Forever Healthy Hair course. However, consider these facts:

• Most babies are born with “patterned baldness”
• Women commonly lose hair postpartum
• Hair loss is prevalent in menopausal women, PCOS and hypothyroid
• Hair loss is a common side effect of birth control; along with weight gain and other symptoms of hypothyroid
• Baldness is strongly associated with diabetes, cancer, insulin resistance, atherosclerosis, metabolic syndrome, prostate cancer and obesity
• DHT levels drop as we age, but baldness and hair loss increases
• Estrogen rises are we age, as does hair thinning
• Hair loss occurs during chronic stress

These facts alone raise major questioning for me when it comes to the common “genetic” and “androgenic” theories of baldness. What is common amongst all of the various imbalances known to be associated with hair loss or baldness are:

1. Chronically elevated cortisol levels
2. Chronically elevated estrogen levels
3. Chronically elevated prolactin levels
4. Low thyroid function
5. Overactive adrenal function
6. The liberation of fatty acids, further stimulating estrogen
7. Deficiencies in the protective hormones DHEA, pregnenolone, progesterone and testosterone

When looking beyond highly biased, somewhat dogmatic ideas about what causes hair loss, compared to the physiology, a few things become obvious – hair loss is a systemic health problem, therefore, it will not be corrected by some single shot, wonder pill. Correcting hair loss is surprising a simpler problem than conventional media makes it to be, but that doesn’t make it an easier one to solve. Let’s be honest, it would be so much easier to take one pill and never have to change your diet, lifestyle, stress, thought and emotions patterns, all which are causing the problem.

But, the great news is, knowing these causative factors, we gain power. Hair loss is not some ill-inflicted fate, but something that can be corrected through adequate nutrition, stress reduction, and a joyful, wholesome lifestyle.

The ‘Secret’ to Correcting Hair Loss Prevention and Regrowing Hair

Now that you are aware of the true, commonly overlooked cause of hair loss, male pattern baldness, and so-called “androgenic alopecia”, you can take the correct steps.

Here are a few tips on correcting the underlying major imbalances that attribute to hair loss:

1. Lower Estrogen

• Quit drinking (the alcohol producing yeast also produce estradiol, and beer contains phytoestrogens that also increase prolactin)
• Lose excess weight; most stored body fat for American’s is polyunsaturated, which stimulates estrogen production. Word of caution, never do anything to rapidly lose weight, which will cause a liberation in these PUFAs and increase more estrogen. You will want to learn how to lose weight the healthy way.
• Consume more fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K2, all which are highly anti-estrogenic. They are found best in grass-fed organ meats like liver, egg yolks, raw grass-fed dairy, etc. You can also supplement them; this is a great product.
• Reduce exposure of xenoestrogens and phytoestrogens. Major estrogenic mimicking substances in our environment include parabens, phthalates, sterates (all in commercial personal care products). I would suggest switching to natural products like Alitura Naturals.

2. Lower Elevated Cortisol

• Stop chronic cardio and endurance workouts, which double the amount of estrogen and cortisol in the blood. Instead, stick to heavy, resistance training to build lean muscle, which produces anti-stress androgen hormones
• Keep blood sugar normal; cortisol regulates blood sugar, when blood sugar is low (low carb dieting), cortisol spikes. Ditch the stressful keto diet and be sure to get 30% or so of your macros from healthy carbs and sugars. If you’ve taken anything from this post its that carbs and sugar are not unhealthy; if you’re avoiding sugar simply because you cannot proper metabolize or oxidize it, that is not addressing the problem. For more diet tips, be sure to enroll in my Healthy Weight Loss course.
• Do something you love each day. Mental and emotional stress cause cortisol to rise as well, if not more than other stressors. The basic cause for physiological stress is conflict; a force, counter-force. For example, having to do something you don’t want to do is a stress. And in a world full of people doing things they don’t truly want, taking time each day to do something for the pure joy of it is a must for reducing stress.
• Get enough sleep
• Spend time outdoors every day
• Stop being so serious. There is no purpose for seriousness when you can be sincere, earnest and honest instead.

3. Lower Prolactin

• Ashwagandha extract not only lowers cortisol by 20%, it also decreases prolactin up to 40% while increasing testosterone.
• Vitamin E is anti-estrogenic and greatly lowers prolactin levels. Be sure to get your vitamin E from a wheat germ extract.
• Mucuna is an Ayurvedic herb that increases dopamine, and dopamine is what regulates and opposes prolactin. So by increasing your dopamine you will also lower prolactin. With that in mind, anything that makes you happy (i.e. achieving your goals), will increase dopamine and lower prolactin.
• Increase dietary Zinc. Zinc can cut prolactin levels by 50%! The best sources include oysters, beef liver and polyrachis black ant. 3

4. Improve Thyroid Function

Ultimately; low thyroid is the major cause of hair loss, because under hypothyroid all the stress chemicals that impair hair health rise significantly.

• To restore your thyroid, I would suggest adesiccated thyroid supplement, obtain adequate nutrition (as described in my Forever Healthy Hair course) and adhering to the other tips. Cortisol, estrogen and prolactin all oppose thyroid function; lowering them will greatly help in restoring its function
• Avoid low-carb and ketogenic diets like the plague
• Eat plenty of whole fruits, sucrose, raw honey, maple syrup and well-cooked potatoes for optimal carb intake

If you’ve enjoyed this post and are curious in learning more about the true cause of hair loss and how to correct it, I would strongly suggest my course Forever Healthy Hair. You will learn more about how to identify hypothyroidism, correct it and the associated hormonal imbalances, along with many other effective tips for regrowing your hair.

Perhaps only 10 or so years ago, concerning oneself with a lack of light would not exist. However, something that has become apparent to me recently, is the winter-mimicking effects of the modern world. The average person today is either recommended to “avoid” the sun, or does so habitually, without awareness, spending long periods indoors, under florescent lighting, or in front of a computer screen. Such recommendation and modern habits are creating a society of chronically fatigued, aged, weak and light deficient people.

The Need for Light

It’s no coincidence that the sunniest places on Earth have such large populations (i.e. California, Texas, Florida). There is a primitive draw for most to want to live in sunnier, warmer climates. We do not need scientific reenforcement to get in the Sun – most people enjoy the energizing warmth that sun light provides.

However, the science is well established; exposure  to sun light (and any full-spectrum, natural light) along with warmer temperatures supports the metabolism, improves our mood, strengthens the immune system and de-stresses the body. In essence, the multitude of beneficial effects that quality light provides traces back to its effect on cellular energy production. Sun light activates the enzymes responsible for proper cellular energy production in the mitochondria, improving our body’s ability to handle stress of all sorts.

In comparison, the cumulative effects of our modern-day light deficit not only reduces our cells ability to produce energy, but in a cascade fashion, decreases the strength of our immune system and ability to handle stressors. In this way, darkness is a stress by definition, because it impairs energy production. Anything that interferes with cellular energy production results in oxidative stress and therefore, inflammation and disease.

Symptoms of a Light Deficiency

It’s quiet obvious that summer weather and light motivates people more than winter conditions. There are many factors involved with this; the increased production of cellular energy, higher levels of vitamin D and testosterone, and better circulation, all which motivate people and consequently drive up the functioning of the metabolism and the immune system. On the contrary, in all ways, the opposite can be said regarding the winter months, largely due to lack of light.

Both the winter months, and the average modern lifestyle (which heavily mimics winter) attribute to a light deficiency. During the winter (or under the influence of darkness) the body shifts to stress metabolism; i.e, low pulse rate, low body temperature, sleepiness, fatigue, depression, anxiety, weight gain, PMS, food cravings, low immunity (colds/flus), etc.

While most attribute the “flu season” to the cold (which is an attributing factor, slowing the metabolism), the lack of light additionally slows the metabolism and energy production therefore, accumulatively resulting in weaker immunity.

Specifically speaking, most illness has a strong associated with bacterial endotoxin (lipopolysaccharides), which are defensive toxins made by gut bacteria, along with an excess of stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. All three of these factors tend to increase during chronic exposure to darkness, cold and a lack of bright light. It is well known that these stress chemicals suppress metabolism, weaken immunity, decrease blood flow to the intestines, and attribute to fat storage on the belly and back. Add in the decreased levels of vitamin D during winter months, and together we have a perfect recipe for low immunity and susceptibility to infection.

In addition to chronic stress hormone and endotoxin production, light deprivation can also create a progesterone deficiency. Progesterone is an anti-stress, adaptive hormone, that otherwise blocks the overproduction of cortisol, aldosterone, estrogen, and prolactin. However, when progesterone is low, these hormones are unopposed creating many ill effects like hair loss, PMS symptoms, low sex drive, fatigue, mood imbalances, and weight gain.

Last but not least, a light deficiency or exposure to darkness causes a chronic rises in melatonin and adrenaline as well. Now most people consider melatonin and its derivative serotonin to be healthy neurotransmitters. However, both of these chemicals have the primary functioning of slowing the metabolism and making you sleepy, and are not associated with well-being (you can get quality sleep without them!). The truth is, chronically elevated levels of melatonin inhibit progesterone production and lower thyroid hormone (slowing metabolism). Melatonin and adrenaline also both liberate stored PUFA, which when freely circlating in the body increase the production of cortisol and estrogen, which further inhibit energy production. This chemical condition is that of chronic stress and it directly suppresses the metabolic system, and therefore energy and immunity.

In conclusion, whether as a result of winter, chronic darkness, insufficient time outdoors in the sun (modern life), or chronic exposure to low quality light (blue light, florescence), the results are that of stress and disease. Specifically, low progesterone, low thyroid, and high stress chemicals, leading to inflammation, low energy and weak immunity.

Correcting a Light Deficiency

The good news is that correcting a light deficiency is simple; however, depending on your job, it might not be easy. Our best defense against the stress of darkness is of course, regular exposure sun light (or other natural light). Now, if you work in an office, this might be difficult for you; however, by now you should have some motivation for having your lunch outdoors.

In addition to getting enough exposure to sun light, there are other lifestyle modifications and tools that can help your body regenerate from the stress of a modern light deficiency.

• Quality Sleep: Youthful sleep is one of the most important and restorative activities in the battle against stress. However, the most essential factor in good sleep is not the production of melatonin; rather having a high metabolic rate and optimal body temperature. When the metabolism is working efficiently, the body temperature is ideal and inflammatory mediators (cortisol, adrenaline, etc.) are regulated, which allows the body to fully relax and drift into a deep sleep. In these ways, having a very high metabolic rate allows the body to de-stress, relax, warm up, sleep deeply, and awaken regenerated.This sort of sleep quality is not possible without proper energy production, which can be achieved by reducing stress, and supporting metabolic and thyroid function via diet and lifestyle. However, much of what people are told is “healthy” in regards to diet and supplementation is unfortunately ignorant to this regard. For example, many diets promote a low-carb protocol, calorie restriction, the avoidance of saturated fat and consumption of PUFA (flax oil, fish oil, hemp oil, etc) and the utilization of digestive irritating supplements, all of which counter our goal for improve metabolic function.  Something else, most people supplement with melatonin to improve sleep without knowing its real physiological effects.The truth is, melatonin suppresses the metabolic rate, lowers body temperature, and stimulates she production of other inflammatory mediators like nitric oxide and serotonin. So I strongly recommend avoiding the use of melatonin and instead, improve the functioning of your thyroid, perhaps supplementing with a desiccated thyroid, and consuming a pro-thyroid diet consisting of organic, easy-to-digest, adequate calories, saturated fats (and the avoidance of unsaturated fats), sufficient carbohydrates, anti-inflammatory proteins (gelatin), quality dairy, ripe fruits and quality salt.

  In practice, as discussed in my Healthy Weight Loss course, a pro-metabolic diet would include quality milk, cheese, eggs, shellfish, ripe fruit, ghee, butter and coconut oil, with supplemental vitamin E and real salt, devoid of junk food (PUFA, bad fats, riddled with chemicals, etc.)

  On the topic of diet, here’s a tip; it is known that protein (amino acids), especially in eggs, can stimulate insulin secretion, which in turn causes a rise in cortisol. However, pair your proteins with fruit (or other carbohydrates), along with healthy saturated fat (coconut oil), and salt will decrease this effect. this is the importance of eating a balanced meal! I personally start every morning with two eggs cooked in coconut oil, with salt, fresh berries, fresh orange juice and coffee with added gelatin.

  Another tip on good sleep is supporting proper circadian rhythm by getting plenty of sun light early in the morning and throughout the day will be very helpful for lowering stress chemicals and improving sleep.

• Adequate Nutrition: Continuing the topic of nutrition, let’s explore some specific, therapeutic dietary interventions. Consuming milk, honey and salt before bed helps to improve sleep quality in many ways. First, the nutrients in these foods improve circulation, lowering aldosterone/cortisol/adrenaline, and balance blood sugar, preventing a blood sugar crash in the middle of the night. If you awaken frequently during the night, this can indicate a rise of adrenaline and cortisol in your blood stream, aka, your stressed out! However, this combination can help lower these chemicals and assist your in sleeping through the night. If you find yourself waking up in the middle of the night, try a glass of fresh orange juice with gelatin and salt to put you back to sleep. This will provide anti-stress and pro-thyroid effects that will lower cortisol and improve sleep quality.Another key feature of any “healthy diet” would include the digestibility of said food. Many “diets” overlook this factor; however, the digestibility of food is senior to its nutritional content. So, easy-to-digest foods should pervade the diet and be combined in a way that supports blood sugar. Meaning, all meals should contain a saturated fat, simple carbohydrate, and a anti-inflammatory protein source.Despite controvsery, protein from animals are generally most digestible than plants. Most plant proteins have incomplete amino acid profiles and are surrounded by indigestible plant compounds like phytates and lectins. So, protein intake from animal sources should be a minimum of 70g of protein daily. Carbohydrate intake in the form of monosaccharides (most starches will produce endotoxins), should be 1.5 to 2 time higher than protein intake to energize the body and blunt the stress response and the inflammatory mediators that accompany it. Fats should make up the rest of the diet, and be comprised of saturated fats.
• Avoid Unhealthy Light: A simple tip to protect your body from stress would include the avoidance of fluorescent lights and blue lights. It is well documented that both of these toxic lights cause stress and interfere with mitochondrial energy production. In fact, blue light not only interferes with energy production, it induces DNA damage to the mitochondria. 1 If you work overnight shifts or in an office where you are exposed to these forms of light, then it is important to increase your sun exposure or supplement with incandescent light. Otherwise, all you need during summer months is short bouts of sun light (5-20 minutes at a time), several times daily, which will be incredibly beneficial to your health, will reduce the stress of indoors and poor light. Ideally, get as much sun light as you can while avoiding sunburn.

Red Light Therapy Continued 

For me, it’s a silly thing to think that we could possibly be “light deficient”, then again, most everything about our modern world opposes the necessary exposure to light required for good health. The truth is, most people spend 8 hours of their days indoors, under poor-quality light. With the other 8 hours of the day generally spent sleeping, that leaves only 33% of the day to get sunlight, which is usually long peaked by 5 pm.

Aside from manual labor workers, not many have the freedom to get the consistent sunlight they need to feel and be healthy. So, that is where technology comes to use, specifically the use of red light therapy.

This bright incandescent light, just like sunlight, helps our cells produce energy, synthesize protective steroid hormones like progesterone, testosterone, DHEA, and others, that help to reduce the stress hormones that result from darkness and low energy production. Since most people cannot get enough sunlight, the convenience of red light provides amazing alternative for the many health benefits natural infrared light from the sun would provide. Best of all, red light therapy isn’t a hoax, it is backed by solid research and science.

For example, research has found that that red light and low-level light therapy (LLLT), can diminish and even reverse the signs of aging. 2

That’s not all, red light exposure to the skin has a long-list of biological benefits, including:

• The ability to repair and regenerate soft connective tissue
• It is highly anti-inflammatory
• Reduces edema and swelling
• Can inhibit the side effects of radiation and chemotherapy
• Increase healing time 3

The Miracle Benefits of Red Light 

1. Fights Photoaging (sun damage).This is a blog post about the benefits of sun light, but just like anything else, too much can be a bad thing. In the case of sun exposure, sun burn is where the benefits of sun light take a turn. The first line of action for fighting photo aging is of course to get out of the sun before you burn. In the event of sun burn, oxidative stress and inflammation can occur, damaging the skin and leading aged skin.Red light therapy; however, can help fight the effects of photo aging. It is capable of stimulating collagen and rejuvenating damaged skin cells, and even lightening age spots. It’s can even help prevent skin cancer by improving the metabolism and fighting oxidative stress. 4
2. Rejuvenates skin, and reduces wrinkles.In addition to hormonal imbalance, inflammation, glycation and oxidative stress, one of the major reasons our skin wrinkles as we age is because of the loss of collagen. However, one study found that Red Light therapy can improve skin complexion, skin tone, texture/feeling, while reducing skin roughness, and signs of wrinkles and fine lines, by increasing the production of collagen. 5In addition to utilizing red light to support your body natural ability to produce more collagen, you can also supplement with collagen, and eat a diet that supports the production of collagen.
3. Reduces puffiness and swelling from edema.Red light therapy supports overall metabolic function, which means it can help with metabolic disorders like edema. In addition to increasing the metabolic rate, red light therapy stimulates the  lymph system, which can help the body eliminate toxins that would otherwise cause the cells to become “water logged”.For most, edema probably doesn’t seem like a problem, that is until you start to see it on your face, manifesting as puffy and swollen under eyes. However, edema is pretty serious issue that is preceded by chronic inflammation, hypothyroid and metabolic dysfunction. If not managed, it can lead to hair loss, heart disease and diabetes. On a positive note, red light therapy’s powerful pro-metabolic and anti-inflammatory effects can help!
4. Heals acne, psoriasis, and eczema.As mentioned, one of the major features of red light is its powerful ability to decrease inflammation. Next to oxidative stress, inflammation is a key part of the development of most skin problems including acne, psoriasis, eczema, and more.Something else, thanks to its ability to reduce edema and inflammation, red light is miraculous for  decreasing the likelihood of scars, which are a result of fibrosis (caused by chronic inflammation).Another fascinating way that red light therapy works to improve these conditions is by its effect on vitamin D production. While not a source of D3 like the sun, it does stimulate the body to produce more vitamin D, which is essential for proper thyroid, metabolic and immune function.Lastly, just like the sun, red light therapy is directly anti-microbial, killing the inflammatory bacteria that are so prevalent in most skin problems.
5. Treats and Prevents Cold and Flu.As discussed, the cold/flu and most illness in general is the result of a compromised immune system, caused by a slow metabolic system that allows bacterial endotoxin to enter the bloodstream. In addition to the cold/flu, other problems of low immunity, like cold sores, herpes, fatigue and viral infections can be cleared up in half the time by regular use of red light therapy or exposure to sun light.
6. Improves Circulation.The metabolism spends 75% of its energy keeping the body temperature normal. It does so by a variety of important chemicals, all which are carried through the body via healthy circulation – another job of the metabolism. The increased circulation from red lights pro-metabolic effects, along with its anti-inflammatory benefits, makes red light a wonder therapy for improving every area of our health, including skin complexion, hair growth, energy, and more.
7. Hair Growth.Hair loss is a complex, yet simple problem. In essence, there are three major hormones that attribute to hair loss in men and women; those are cortisol, estrogen and prolactin, all which shut down the metabolism, circulatory system, and directly starve the hair follicle of oxygen, glucose and growth hormones. This leads to an energy deficiency in the hair follicle, leading to its loss. In time, this can generate inflammation and cause the scalp to become calcified. Red light therapy helps improve hair growth in every important way; it reduces stress hormones, improves circulation and decreases inflammation. 5In fact, there are studies that show that regular use of Red Light therapy can improve hair density and thickness in just a few months. They even sell red light therapy helmets specifically to improve hair growth and thickness.
8. Heal scars, cellulite and stretch marks.Scars are the result of imperfect healing from injuries, generated from chronic inflammation. Under acute inflammatory responses, the tissues tend to regenerate perfectly, especially of the metabolism is working efficiently. However, if the metabolism is compromised, from chronic inflammation, hormonal imbalance, stress, or hypothyroid, scars are more likely to occur.The good news is that scar-tissues, which is essentially fibrosis, can be regenerated, it just takes work. First, you want to address the underlying causes that precede scar-tissue formation (excess prolactin, cortisol, estrogen, increased parathyroid/low thyroid, leading to hormonal imbalance and therefore inflammation.) There are many factors in inflammation, considering they are connected to stress. But one important factor I talk about often is the need for dietary calcium balanced with phosphate. When phosphate is higher than calcium (chronically), it shifts the thyroid to produce parathyroid and increases prolactin, leading to edema and inflammation. I talk about more ways to address causative factors with simple dietary and lifestyle changes in my Healthy Weight Loss course.
   
   In addition to these dietary and lifestyle factors, one of the most effective ways to heal scars (including fibrotic scalp tissue in patterned baldness), fibrosis, cellulite, and scleroderma, is to utilize the potent anti-inflammatory benefits of red light.As discussed, red light or sunlight provides anti-inflammatory effects in a variety of mechanisms, including the reduction of stress hormone, improving cellular energy production, increasing thyroid function, vitamin D and more. However, it is also works to improve skin renewal by its stimulation of lymphatic drainage, which helps escort inflammatory toxins out of the body.
9. Reduces Stress Hormone.The culprit of all disease, stress, is effectively handled by the use of red light therapy.In the “illness field”, there exists a variety of anti-metabolic stress chemicals, the major culprit being cortisol. In essence, when the body undergoes a stress response, be it from psychological or physiological stress, the endocrine system secretes stress hormones.In good health, the stress hormones are produced only in the amount needed, because of negative feedback from other stress inducing factors (PUFA, estrogen, lack of sleep, mental/emotional stress, etc), the stress hormones (ACTH, cortisol, adrenaline, glucagon, and prolactin), tend to increase lipolysis, liberating fatty acids and causing vicious stress cycle.

   When this occurs, it can be difficult to break free from the stress response, at least without helpful intervention. Aside from eating sufficient protein, carbs and saturated fats, relaxing the mind, and getting good quality sleep; exposure to bright sun light or red light can drastically help reduce the stress response. In fact, bright light exposure can significantly reduce plasma cortisol levels by its therapeutic influence the adrenal glands. 7

   Because of the feedback loop between cortisol and other stress hormones, lowering cortisol can also systematically reduce other anti-health hormones like adrenaline, estrogen and prolactin, which are present in most diseases including weight gain, infertility, hair loss and even cancers.

How to Reap the Benefits of Red Light Therapy at Home

In addition to regular (20 mins/daily minimum) sunlight exposure on the bearskin, something I highly recommend and do myself is utilize a red light therapy machine. I personally use the Joovv, which is a high-end natural, full-specktrum light technology that mickics sunlight. Like the sun, it features a combination of the full visible light spectrum (400-700 nm) in addition to ultraviolet (UV; 300-400 nm) and infrared (700-1000 nm) light.

This is the sort of light energy that passes through human tissue with greater easy, compared to other wavelengths,providing the optimal positive biological responses we’ve discuss in this article.  This energy, much like sunlight, is absorbed by the body and stimulates the production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) or cellular energy. In other words, just like sunlight, Joovv can improve cellular energy production, rejuvenating the entire body, proving the anti-aging benefits that depend upon biological energy production.

Of course, you can just use the sun for these benefits. However, for those of you who work in offices, or are too busy to get enough outdoors time during the week, a machine like this can be a life saver. Best of all, Joovv offers a variety of different devices from spot-treatment red light devices, to larger devices that can target a lot of surface area at once.

That being said, I do want to take this opportunity to clear the air…

I think it was easy to assume I was “promoting” a ketogenic diet because of my love and support of Bulletproof Coffee (I still drink it and love it). Also, as an author for PaleoHacks, many might have assumed I consumed a Paleo Diet. And, while I did experiment with a ketogenic diet for over a year, I never promoted it because I do not recommend something that I have not verified myself. And during that time, I was still in the midst of verification.

Also, many of my “dietary philosophies” have commonalities and overlaps with these diets. For example, I strongly avoid the consumption of junk food, PUFA, most grains and legumes, etc. However, my diet has been always more refined than this, which is what I want to discuss with you in this post.

But before we get into what I perceive as pitfalls or overlooked subject matter in these dietary trends, I want to also acknolwedge the small, specific shifts I’ve taken with my diet. Due to my experience with ketosis and supplemental research, the most recent shift I have made in my diet is advocating the consumption of sugar, and strongly avoiding low-carb dieting. I will explain why in more detail later, but in short, this was born from my horrible experience with these specific aspects of ketosis and a Paleo diet. To be brief, my time on a ketogenic diet lead to an awful case of hypothyroidism and accompanying adverse symptoms.

Now, keep in mind that a Paleo diet does not have to be low-carb, that is a specification that can be altered while still adhering to a Paleo-ish diet. Ketosis on the other hand, is defined by remaining in a chronic state of gluconeogenesis, which insists upon the heavy restriction of carbohydrates and glucose. And as I discuss in this earlier post, this is not necessarily a health promoting metabolic state to be in, especially if you suffer from metabolic dysfunction, hypothyroid or any other stress.

The Paleo Diet

For the last few years, the Paleo diet has been the most popular diet in the United States, and it continues to gain popularity. In fact, according to statistics, there are roughly one to three million people hopping on the Paleo bandwagon, and to be honest, I’m not surprised, this diet has many excellent benefits…

For example, the Paleo diet advocates:

• A whole foods diet, devoid of highly processed, industrial junk foods that often contain a variety of allergenic and biologically-disrupting chemicals.
• Focusing on high-quality, local and organic food products (i.e. pastured meats, eggs, and organic fresh veggies and fruits.)
• Eliminating common, digestive irritating foods and substances (i.e. commercial grains, beans and legumes)
• Against the consumption of anti-metabolic, toxic fats like PUFA and vegetable oils, while promoting the consumption of anti-stress saturated fats like ghee, coconut oil and butter.
• Proper digestive function.

These are positive dietary factors that most people could agree to. However, the Paleo diet is in no way complete, it does have its downsides.

Paleo Pitfalls

In my direct experience and as a health consultant, I notice that most people do well on a Paleo diet at first, but then things take a turn for the worse. Depending on the person’s previous dietary habits, they notice an increase in energy and decrease of symptoms as they eliminate common problematic foods, junk food and eat more natural, easier to digest foods. However, in time, many people will face new problems, specifically hypo-metabolic symptoms like lowered body temp (less than 98 degrees, indicating a decrease in metabolic rate), increased food cravings, especially to sugar (an indication of metabolic stress, glucose deficit & the body’s attempt to regain metabolic homeostasis), impaired liver function (due to glucose deficiency, lowered thyroid leading impaired detoxification), blood sugar handling issues (insufficient glycogen stores), and worsened digestive problems (increased food allergies/sensitivities as a result of slowed metabolism, therefore slowing digestive function and the secretion of digestive enzymes and fluids).

I understand these are large claims and that not everyone experiences these problems – they can be avoided while adhering to a diet very close to Paleo. Nevertheless, these are issues I have personally faced and have helped thousands of others with over the last few years.

At this point, you’re probably wondering where Paleo goes wrong exactly, and how these imbalances occur.

Here’s how…

1) Paleo & Low Carb: It seems that most people in the Paleo community automatically lean toward ketosis and low carb dieting. However, it is this specific condition that can lead to the many problems previously mentioned. Low carb dieting can slow the metabolism by many mechanisms, all of which are interrelated. First off, many argue that sugar is non-essential, and this is true. But just because it isn’t essential to survive, doesn’t mean it isn’t incredibly helpful for thriving. Glucose (derived of the substrates of carbs and sugar) is the primary (not essential but important) fuel source for the liver. Yes, the liver can manufacture some glucose and store as glycogen to survive, but not enough for things like hair growth, skin regeneration and fighting other stressors like environmental estrogens. When you eat low carb, you starve the liver of its major fuel source, forcing it to go into a survival condition called gluconeogenesis, where it breaks down proteins (your muscles and organs), and fat (ketosis) to create glucose for energy. However, this is done very poorly, and has other negative side effects. First, to initiate gluconeogenesis, the body must be in a state of stress (marked by elevated levels of cortisol, a catabolic hormone that leads to muscle wasting, hair loss, and wrinkles when chronically elevated). This in of itself will slow the metabolism, leading to a hypo-metabolic state like hypothyroid. Also, because the liver provides up to 70% of our active thyroid hormone to the cells (by converting T4 to T3), a starved liver that doesn’t get adequate glucose will poorly convert thyroid hormone. This will lead to all the problems of a slowed metabolism, including:

• Decreased hormone synthesis (the liver secretes the enzymes that methylates and synthesizes hormones)
• Impaired detoxification (slow metabolism = slow detoxification)
• Decreased digestive function (slowed bowel motility aka constipation, low HCL production, causing bloat, SIBO, leaky gut and essentially all digestive problems)
• Makes the body reliant on stress hormones (stress metabolism, i.e the need for cortisol to stay in gluconeogenesis)
• Decreased appetite (due to slowed metabolism) resulting in nutritional deficiencies and increased stress.

2) Imbalance of Amino Acids: While the Paleo Diet advocates foods like bone broth, gelatin and collagen, many make the mistake of consuming too many muscle meats, which generates inflammation. Something not many people are aware of is the importance of amino acid balance. Meat gets a bad rap, but it’s not meat itself that causes inflamamtion and cancer, it is the overconsumption of muscle meat, without a focus on balancing it with the other half of the animal (gelatinous cuts of meat like oxtail, shanks, gelatin, cartilage and broth), along with other anti-inflammatory proteins like quality dairy, fish, and shellfish.

The fact of the matter is, not all meat is the same, different cuts and types contain different amino acids. For example, most muscle meat contains a higher amount of the amino acid methionine, which if is chronically higher than glycine, creates inflammation. 1

So, not only do we want to keep methionine lower than glycine, glycine in of itself has many anti-inflammatory, anti-stress, health promoting effects on the body (hair growth, improved skin health, lower cortisol) that are overlooked unless once is consuming bone broth, gelatin or collagen.

3) Too Many Nuts/Seeds: To satisfy sugar cravings (a result of glucose deficiency and slowed thyroid function), many people on a Paleo diet will load up on an unnatural amount of nuts. There are two major issues here; first, nuts contain phytates and lectins, which can be goitrogenic (anti-thyroid), and difficult to digest leading to gut irritation. Secondly, nuts are high in inflammatory polyunsaturated fats (PUFA). As I discuss in this earlier post, PUFA are estrogenic, increase cortisol and directly impair the functioning of the mitochondria. 2

4) No Dairy: Most of the time, those on a Paleo diet will greatly restrict dairy, which is a highly controversial but nutritional powerhouse. The argue against dairy is generally that humans cannot digest it, industrial farming is evil and factory farmed milk is pumped with chemicals and estrogen. Please note that these claims do not provide a sound argument against all dairy, just factory farmed diary. Expanding the picture though, here are two things many people are not aware of…

One of the major underlying imbalances that leads to chronic inflammation is an imbalance or influx of dietary calcium to phosphate. When dietary phosphate is chronically higher than the dietary calcium, there is an increased functioning of parathyroid hormone and prolactin and those tend to overload the cells with calcium increasing inflammatory chemicals like nitric oxide. This impairs cellular respiration, leading to the loss of energy and therefore the generation of inflammation. And quality dairy happens to be the best source of bioavailable calcium we can get. It comes with all the important co-factors (vitamin D, K2, etc.) to utilize calcium properly. So, the truth is, quality dairy provides an incredible source of pro-thyroid, pro-metabolic nutrition.

It’s not true that humans cannot tolerate dairy. This comes from the idea that we lose the ability to produce the enzyme lactase after birth and therefore, it\s unnatural for us to continue consuming dairy. However, this is not a natural occurrence but the result of increased bacterial endotoxin in the small intestine. Bacterial endotoxin overgrowth (SIBO), decreases the small intestines ability to secrete lactase. So, oftentimes those who used to tolerate dairy, but cannot later in life, just have an overgrowth of endotoxin in their guts. I talk about how to correct this imbalance in my Perfect Digestion course, using a few simple foods and supplements, along with other helpful lifestyle factors.

5)Promoting Fat Metabolism: The Paleo diet seems to favor lipolysis (fat metabolism) for energy over glycolysis (glucose metabolism). In other words, the Paleo community often leans towards “burning fat” for fuel or using fat for energy (i.e. ketosis and lipolysis).

What they don’t tell you though is the all science behind these metabolic conditions. For most, just hearing the words “burning fat”, is enough to get them on the band wagon. However, what many do not realize is the stress of excessive fat burning. When you “burn fat” for energy, the body has to shift from glycolysis to lipolysis and then ketosis. Now, in the most simplest of terms, to enter either ketosis of lipolysis is a metabolic stress. To put it to perspective, this is what our bodies do when we are starving…

To enter lipolysis, the body must use up all its glucose stores (be in an energy deficit), which places a stress on the liver, and elevates stress hormone cortisol. In the most basic sense, being in ketosis or lipolysis activates the stress response, which is why it feels so good (you’re on an adrenaline and cortisol high). But this also decreases carbon dioxide production in the body, which accelerates the aging process. Also, when we liberate fat from our tissues, we have an increase in free circulating fatty acids in the blood (a diabetic condition), which increases the production of estrogen and cortisol.

Glycolysis is the more natural metabolic state we can be in, which is activated under a parasympathetic (relaxed, non-stressed) state, where our bodies effectively metabolize sugar for energy. This explains the correlation between chronic stress, cortisol, impaired sugar metabolism and diabetes. It also explains how sugar can safeguard us from stress (sugar regulates cortisol, as cortisol rises, sugar decreases vice versa). So in this way, the utilization of sugar for energy is actually going to keep us out of stress metabolism, increasing our resistance to stress, and providing many anti-aging benefits.

6) Anti-Sugar: This leads us to our last pitfall, which is that Paleo tends to demonize sugar consumption.

However, as we just learned, this simply is not the case. But to further explain why, consider the fact that all carbohydrates: starches, fruits, grains, etc. are broken down into single sugars (monosaccharides) in the body in the form of glucose. Additionally, even in ketosis, the body is breaking down fat and protein to make glucose. So, if glucose was so awful for us, why would our bodies go as far as breaking down our muscles, fat and organs just to make it?

Furthermore, when the metabolism breakdown fats for energy, free fatty acids and glycerols are liberated but only the glycerol backbones can reenter the Kreb cycle at the pyruvate state to be converted to glucose. Meaning, the remaining free fatty acids will circulate in the bloodstream. In other words, fats are ineffectively converted into glucose and therefore have to be used for energy. However, many glands and organs, like the hair follicles, cannot “sub-in” these free fatty acids for energy, which could explain the strong correlation between ketosis, low carb dieting and hair loss.

Lastly, I think in order to be truly healthy, we need a healthy level of communication with our bodies. And the way the body communicates is not words, but feelings, cravings, etc. In fact, cravings are one of our bodies many, built-in mechanisms for helping us restore homeostasis. So if we ignore these cravings, we are essentially saying we know better than our bodies, which to me is incredibly unwise.

With sugar cravings being so prevalent in the Paleo community, and with cravings being a powerful biological mechanism for correcting nutritional deficiencies and imbalances, I would suggest at the very least, we set aside what we “think” it healthy for us, and start listening to what our bodies are telling us. But also consider this, if you’re craving sugar, your either not consuming enough for the body’s needs, or something is interfering with your body’s ability to use sugar. Therefore, you crave it because if you don’t eat it you will waste protein to make it, something your body is trying to help you avoid with its cravings. So ultimately, sugar isn’t the problem, what matters more is your body’s ability to metabolize and utilize sugar correctly.

Signs That Your Diet NEEDS Tweaking

To close, I want to remind you that this is not an “anti-paleo” post. This post was intended to bring your attention to more refined details you may be overlooking in your diet. I do think a Paleo Diet can be done correctly, with a few tweaks.

So, if you are adhering to a Paleo diet, and experiencing any issues at all, here are a few signs you may need to make some adjustments:

• Intense sugar cravings (paleo desserts anyone?)
• Strong cravings for chocolate and salt (this indicates your body is likely in gluconeogenesis, or that your body is under heavy stress. Elevated levels of cortisol, adrenaline and aldosterone can lead to a loss of salt and magnesium)
• Your waking body temperature is below 97.8 F
• Your resting pulse rate is low (below 77-88 bmp)
• Your intolerant to cold (poor circulation)
• Poor digestion, bloating, constipation, bloat, etc. (as the metabolism slows, so does the secretion of digestive enzymes and fluids, you’ll want to correct your digestion, as well as improve your metabolic rate)
• Low energy and chronic fatigue (this indicates hypothyroid – the cells need thyroid hormone to produce cellular energy, and this is interfered with by cortisol, which is elevated under ketosis.)
• Problems losing or gaining weight (impaired metabolism from excess stress hormone and low thyroid)
• Edema (water retention)

Conclusion

Personally, I eat what I would call a “modified Paleo” diet. The only differences are that I consume a moderate carb diet (200 grams/daily) to avoid going into ketosis, I consume generous supplies of quality dairy to keep the calcium:phosphate ratio in check, and at the end of the day, I do not fuss over food. As much of a “foodie” as I am, I understand the paramount effects that physiological stress has on our health. So, I keep my diet simple, and focus more on maintaining my happiness.

For some final tips, I would definitely utilize the additional resources below:

• For those interested in getting a handle on their mental and emotional health, be sure to check out my book The Fundamentals of Success.
• To learn more about revitalizing your metabolism, be sure to check out my online course, Healthy Weight Loss.
• Also, because of the strong influence digestion has on metabolic function, it is imperative to correct digestive issues like chronic gas, bloating and constipation. Be sure to check out my best-selling online course, Perfect Digestion.

References

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5350494/
2. Bruning, P.F., and Bonfrèr, J.M. Free fatty acid concentrations correlated with the available fraction of estradiol in human plasma. Cancer Res. 1986 May;46(5):2606-9. “A physiological in vivo increase of plasma free fatty acid concentration after an overnight fast was found to be accompanied by a rise of the non-protein bound estradiol fraction.” “…was markedly dissociated by oleate and even more by linoleate, linolenate, or arachidonate.” “These results suggest that physiological diurnal elevations in plasma free fatty acids which are amplified by high fat consumption, obesity, and stress may imply major proportional increases of available estradiol, exerting a promotional effect on breast and endometrial cancer over the years.”

While obesity gets most of the attention, being underweight poses another potential biomarker for early on health problems. Muscle wasting and the inability to gain healthy mass can indicate chronic stress, liver impairment, malnutrition, and poor digestion. In worse cases, muscle wasting and catabolism of the muscle tissue is often associated with diabetes and even cancer.

While statistically, only 2% of people are “underweight”, I would imagine there are equally as many people trying to put on healthy weight  as there are those trying to lose weight.  So, for those of you looking to put on some healthy weight, this article is for you.

The Benefits of Muscle Mass

Whether you are carrying too much body fat, or not enough, there are many plus sides to putting on muscle mass.

First and foremost, there is the aesthetic benefit; a muscular physique is often more proportioned and therefore easier on the eyes. Additionally, muscle mass acts as a buffer toward stress by being source of adaptive hormone production like testosterone and HGH. Lastly, muscle can naturally secrete fat from the body and people with more muscle mass burn more calories.

So, whatever your reasoning for putting on muscle might be, know that it is not a very easy feat. If you’ve been trying to put on muscle mass with no avail, this article will help you assess what you may potentially be doing wrong, so that way you can make the appropriate changes and achieve your goals.

Why Can’t I Put On Muscle? 

Most people consider any and all exercise as something healthy to do. However, a common “no pain, no gain” mentality regularly interferes with reaping any of the health benefits exercise might provide.  Too often, people wake up early, skimp on sleep and go to the gym fatigued, undernourished and proceed to workout vigorously.  This compound stress results in hypo-metabolism, an inability to recover, digestive problems (chronic bloat), difficulty building muscle mass and many other stress related problems.

Focusing only on weight loss alone can lead one to overlook their overall health. As a result, many new health problems are created along the path of most people “weight loss journeys.” Many people fail to realize that exercise is a stress, certain types more than others (as you will learn later). And unfortunately, most people of our modern society are already incredibly stressed out; sleep deprived, financially stressed, bombarded by environmental toxins, poor quality food, and more – forced gym sessions that further push their bodies beyond their limits just adds to the stress equation, making their weight loss goals that much more difficult to reach.

So what is happening here? A whole lot of stress.

While stress comes in many different forms and our personal resilience to it is based on personal experience, will and ability; when it comes to most exercise (especially when combined with an already overburdened body), it is physical stress that is highly catabolic.

Now, under normal biological circumstances, efficient cellular respiration enables the body to handle stress. Unfortunately, given our highly demanding social structure and generally toxic environment, most people’s stress load is high, while metabolic rate and cellular respiration, low.

Hypometabolism, Stress & Exercise

A sluggish or slow metabolism is what physiologists or biologists call a hypometabolic state. In this state, the body is unable to adequately utilize cellular glucose and store glycogen in the liver, which causes many problems. The fist problem we run into is that the liver becomes energy deprived. Without its major source of energy (glycogen), the liver cannot properly convert T4 (inactive thyroid hormone) into T3 (active thyroid).

Because the thyroid gland is essential for mitigating the effects of stress (thyroid hormone is an adaptive hormone that inhibits the overproduction of cortisol), when it is not functioning properly (hypothyroid), the body becomes chronically stress.  As this vicious cycle of chronic and mismanaged stress begins, the body switches to back up energy production systems through a process called gluconeogenesis.

Gluconeogenesis is the conversion of non-carbohydrates substances (protein/fat) into glucose.

Now, this is a normal biological process, but ideally serves only to handle acute, short-term stress. However, as discussed, these days most people are chronically stressed, and gluconeogeneis has become the primary system of energy production over normal cellular respiration under glycolysis (cellular utilization of glucose).  This otherwise, chronic energy deficiency is accompanied by chronically evaluated levels of cortisol, adrenaline, prolactin, estrogen and other highly catabolic hormones, which leads to chronic inflammation and the rapid degradation of muscle tissue, organs, and cells.

How does this fit into exercise and muscle gain?

Well, intense, aerobic exercise (cardio) or any work outs that have you gasping for breath greatly perpetuates the vicious cycle by adding to the production of stress hormones. During this sort of exercise your cells and metabolism act a lot differently than normal.

During normal metabolic conditions, your body produces CO2, oxygen and ATP. However, during intense cardio exercise, it is common for your body to shift from normal glycolysis to aerobic glycolysis, which is the process of converting glucose to lactic acid even in the presence of oxygen. Or, when your body really starts to be stressed, and your gasping for air, your body will enter anaerobic glycolysis, which is the increased conversion of glucose to lactic acid when the supply of oxygen isn’t sufficient.

The problem here is that lactate increases blood viscosity, mimics stress, causes inflammation, and contributes to shock. Where CO2 (the byproduct of normal metabolism), promotes immunity, healing and regeneration.

Needless to say, intense cardio or any exercise that leaves you winded and interferes with normal respiration, also leaves your cells deprived of oxygen and stressed. This sort of exercise, and the chronic production of cortisol, and things like lactate does weakens your body, mostly by down-regulating the metabolism and immune system, while increasing the deficiencies created by chronic stress.

The problems do not stop here either, there other negative side effects that are generated by chronic stress, and overexercising:

• Low biological energy production; fatigue & weakness
• Impaired digestion
• Weak immunity
• Poor detoxification
• Elevated glucocorticoids (when chronically elevated suppress HPA-axis)
• Suppression of the thyroid (from glucocorticoids and stress hormones)
• Impairs the cellular utilization of glucose
• Inhibits liver’s ability to store and use glycogen
• Decreased CO2 production (one of the major biomarkers of youthfulness is high levels of CO2)
• Suppressed steroid hormones synthesis
• Muscle wasting
• AGEs (cross-linking of proteins that leads to joint deterioration and wrinkles)

How can I exercise in a healthy way then?

At this point, it’s possible you are confused, “I thought exercise was healthy? now you’re saying it’s not?!”. Yes, exercise can be a beneficial way to improve your health, eliminate excess stress hormones, promote digestion, build muscle and increase your metabolic rate, but only in the right amount and way.

Remember, all I’ve really said up to this point is that exercise is a stress, and like anything else, it must be moderated. In other words, too much of even a good thing can be harmful, especially if you’re already pushing your body’s limits.

That being said, the best way to reap the benefits of exercise without hitting the point of diminishing returns is by monitoring your basal body temperature and pulse rate. This is perhaps the simplest way to communicate with your body, identify hormonal patterns and determine exactly how your metabolic health is being effect by your choices.

Tip: Upon rising, before eating, take your body temperature and pulse rate. If you notice you are consistently running below 97.8 in body temperature and have a pulse between 50-70bpm, this might strongly indicate hypothyroid and a hypo-metabolic state. If this is the case, you are going to want to address dietary and lifestyle changes to improve your thyroid function. I talk all about that in my Healthy Weight Loss course. But specific to exercise, you may want to reconsider your workouts, everything from the types of exercises, intensity, frequency, recovery time, length, etc. Though it might seem counter-productive, if you are overweight and struggling to lose that weight, it is likely you have a sluggish thyroid and metabolism, and therefore, I would strongly advise avoiding intense exercise, cardio, and strenuous exercise. Instead, opt for exercises that decrease stress, such as a simple walk, yoga or qi gong. These light exercises, especially when done outdoors in nature, are known to decrease stress hormone and inflammation. 3 4

To be honest, this is exactly the route I took. After 10 + years of football practice to the point of throwing up, starving myself wrestling and bodybuilding, once my thyroid shut down, I gave up “working out”. For a few years, all I did was walk, through my neighborhood and through trails in the woods. Then, I got into yoga and Qi Gong to improve my flexibility and regain some of my lost muscle mass. Just about anyone can walk regularly, but if you like me, love to exercise, but know your body needs. rest, I suggest getting into some gentle yoga. If you are interested you are new to yoga but are interested in getting started, I highly recommend taking an online course (like this one) or visiting some of your local studios for guidance.

STRESS HORMONES & EXERCISE 

In a hypometabolic state, the body is unable to store adequate glycogen in the liver. This energy deficiency inhibits the conversion of inactive thyroid hormone (T4) into active (T3), further exaggerating the energy deficiency. When this condition on going; from dietary stress (low carb, nutrient deficiencies, poor digestion), psychological and other physiological stress, the body activates its back up energy production systems through a process called gluconeogenesis. Gluconeogenesis is the conversion of non-carbohydrates substances (protein/fat) into glucose, such as ketosis or lipolysis (using fat for fuel).

This is a normal, survival process but becomes a problem when favored over normal cellular respiration and glycolysis. The problems that arise are the liberation of free fatty acids into the blood, which raise cortisol and estrogen. These two stress hormones have a feedback loop, trigger the production one another in a vicious cycle. In short, both of these adaptive stress hormones aRe catabolic, which atrophy the organs and tissues to create glucose (energy). This catabolic process leads to the breaking down of tissue and inflammation, among other problems such as the influx of calcium.

Add exercise onto this metabolic stress; i.e. fasted cardio or fasted workouts, or working on in a state of lipolysis or energy deficiency, and the matter gets worse. Working out in this state perpetuates the vicious cycle, by further increasing the production of cortisol, estrogen and prolactin, which temporarily weaken the immunity/resilience of the body while exacerbating the energy deficiencies generated by stress.

In conclusion, depleting liver glycogen is a metabolic stress, exercise is a stress and combining these two on top of a likely already previous psychological stress load = catabolism and dis-ease.

PRO-METABOLIC TIPS FOR GAINING MUSCLE

Avoid Fasting: Since fat has a very low rate of metabolism, people who lose muscle by fasting are going to have increasing difficulty in losing weight, since they will have less active tissue to consume fat. Building up muscle and lymph tissue for optimal health – even if it initially causes a slight weight gain – will make reducing easier by increasing mass of metabolically active tissue.

Support Your Thyroid: Besides fasting, or chronic protein deficiency, the common causes of hypothyroidism are excessive stress or “aerobic” (i.e. anaerobic) exercise, and diets containing beans, lentils, nuts, unsaturated fats (including carotene), and undercooked broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and mustard greens. Many health conscious people become hypothyroid with a synergistic program of undercooked vegetables, legumes instead of animal proteins, oils instead of butter, carotene instead of vitamin A, and breathless exercise instead of stimulating life. For more tips on supporting optimal thyroid health, check out my Healthy Weight Loss Course.

Pre-Workout Nutrition: Support the body with the appropriate energy (nutrients) before your workouts. Fresh oj, gelatin, saturated fats and salt are very effective for regulating hormones. These nutrients help to down regulate adrenaline, while supporting anabolic hormones like testosterone.

Post-Workout Nutrition: Replenish energy stores (nitrogen and glycogen) with an appropriate post workout meal. A protein shake with a base of organic, grass-fed milk, whey protein, collagen protein, frozen berries and raw honey will provide both essential protein for nitrogen balance and carbohydrates for glycogen replenishment.

Exercise Smart: Exercise, along with aging, obesity, and diabetes, increases the levels of circulating free fatty acids and lactate in the blood. This stimulates a nasty vicious cycle, chronically stimulating the production of stress hormone cortisol and estrogen, leading to the degeneration of the body.

Exercises that have been realized as destructive to the mitochondria and cellular respiration (oxidative energy production) are things like chronic cardio and other high-intensity forms of training that lead to hyperventilation and fatigue. On the other hand, normal, daily activities like walking, cleaning, gardening, dancing, cooking, grocery shopping, etc. activates the metabolic system in an stress-free and organized way, that increases carbon dioxide production, ATP, and circulation.

Additionally, “concentric” strength training exercise is restorative to the mitochondria. This refers to exercise where you have a weighted contraction (load) followed by a period of relaxation without a load. Your heart and breath will follow suit, contracting with you and resting with you.  So in conclusion, avoid wasting your time with tiresome, breathless exercise, which further increases the bodies demand for glucose and oxygen, and stress the body.

Regular Nutrition: This subject requires a post in of itself, so for more information be sure to check out earlier blog posts, reference my Instagram and ideally, enroll in my Healthy Weight Loss course. In short, regular nutrition would involve frequently balanced meals of quality, non-inflammatory and digestible animal proteins (meat, eggs, milk, cheese, etc), well-cooked starches (potatoes, white rice) and ripe fruits.

Regulate Blood Sugar: As I discuss in greater detail in my Healthy Weight Loss course, glucose and cortisol have a strong relationship. After workouts, cortisol (stress hormone) is high, which suppresses blood sugar. This is the importance of having healthy sugars after a workout, to avoid a sugar crash and to bring down stress hormone. Also, sugars are more effective then protein in the prevention of protein tissue catabolism (gluconeogenesis). If your nutrition is good throughout the day (keeping blood sugar regular), then you don’t necessarily need a post-workout protein shake, because you are already down regulating the catabolic effects on muscle tissue by keeping blood sugar normal and cortisol low. For more on proper nutrition for blood sugar balance and weight loss, be sure to check out my online course, Healthy Weight Loss.

Avoid Polyunsaturated Fats: These fats are highly anti-metabolic and can lead to catabolism, muscle wasting and metabolic stress. They are best avoided; however, you can learn more about those in my online course or by reading this blog post.

Don’t Fast (or do fasted workouts): In a fasted state, you are in gluconeogenesis, using non-carbohydrate sources for energy, like fat. However, fat has a low rate of metabolism, so people who lose weight by fasting generally have weaker metabolisms considering they are in gluconeogenesis and using fat for energy. Also, it is common for people who chronically fast to also burn muscle for energy. These people are going to have a much more difficult time losing weight due to less active muscle tissue, which would normally burn up fat. Building up muscle and lymph tissue for optimal health, even if it initially causes a slight weight gain will make reducing easier by increasing the mass of metabolically active tissue. In resting states the muscles consume mainly fat, so maintaining relatively large muscle mass is important for preventing the accumulation of fats.

5 Overlooked Benefits of Juicing

1. NUTRIENT-RICH CALORIES:  Your body has a high affinity to calories, especially nutrient-dense calories. While calories seem to be more demonized than admired, the fact of the matter is, calories are energy and our bodies need energy to perform all of its cellular functions. Calories support the metabolism and therefore assist in the healthy development, regeneration, and renewal of cells and tissues. Calories provide the basic energy your body needs to do all that it does!A lack of calories; on the other hand, creates an energy deficit, which is very harmful for your health. An energy deficit will cause your body to down regulate  its energy output, also known as, hypothyroid or a hypo-metabolic state. A lack of calories, especially in combination with stress will put your body into a hypo-metabolic condition, lowing your  body temperature (cold intolerance), down regulating the thyroid (fatigue and low energy), weaken digestion, slow hormone synthesis and methylation, and decrease sex hormone production, all in as a survival mechanism, in attempt to keep your alive longer on less energy.In conclusion, restricting calories or dieting is not part of a healthy lifestyle or smart strategy for longevity, optimal health or happiness. Calories are your friend, especially nutrient dense calories, which are easily obtainable in delicious, fresh juice, best achieved with the help of a high-quality masticating juicer. I personally use the Champion 4000 and I love it.
2. BETTER THAN SUPPLEMENTS: As briefly mentioned, fresh juice is a rich source of micro-nutrients, something most everyone can benefit from. Most people seek to fill these nutritional gaps with supplements. However, most supplements do more harm than good, many of them are known gut allergens and irritants, and few supplements are actually bioavailable. Rather than running the risk of taking a possibly wasting money on a supplement that does little good,  you can gather those missing nutrients from real fruit and vegetable juices. Fresh squeezed orange juice, for example, is a very refreshing and delicious way to acquire the vitamin C necessary to support the adrenals and collagen production. It is also rich in magnesium, folate, potassium and carotenoid vitamin A. Fresh fruit juices are high in salicylates, an organic aspirin like substances with potent anti-inflammatory action in the body. Orange juice specifically is also rich in apigenin, a powerful anti-cancerous, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammation flavonoid. The micro-nutrients, calories, healthy sugars and other compounds in fresh juice make them great for supporting the thyroid, metabolism and healthy weight loss.
3. EASY-TO-DIGEST: Digestive impairment is at the root of most healthy problems. Poor digestion directly leads to hypo-metabolic states, considering we need to be able to breakdown our macronutrients to provide the basic substrates for metabolism. When digestive function is weak, there is a decrease in enzyme activity in the small intestines, which leads to bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), chronic bloat, discomfort & fatigue. When digestive juices are insufficient, complex carbohydrates are poorly broken down, leading to the aforementioned issues. Therefore, it is especially smart to eat very easy-to-digest foods while your gut is being repaired. Fresh fruit juice provides incredibly easiy-to-digest carbohydrates, which are essential for liver function and thyroid function. Other complex carbs (disaccharides and polysaccharide) have difficult to break down chemical bonds. Monosaccharides; on the other hand, require little digestive enzyme activity and are absorbed very easily in the small intestines.
4. HEALTHY FAST-FOOD: One of the major reasons people opt-out of “healthy eating” is because of the time it takes to learn what to eat, how to make it and actually eat it. However, fresh juice can be easily prepared ahead of time with a good juicer and is so incredibly easy to drink on the go! You can even make a meal of your juice by adding some pastured egg yolks, MCT oil, collagen, and blending it. It is actually quiet delicious, very easy to digest and supports healthy blood sugar levels!
5. RICH IN “CLEAN PROTEIN”: Something not many people know, is that many fruits and even potatoes contain “clean proteins” known as keto acids. Keto acids or ketoacids are organic compounds that contain a carboxylic acid group and a ketone group. These compounds can recycle nitrogen and are easily converted into amino acids. While they cannot necessarily replace proteins, they do provide easily metabolized amino acids, without the metabolic wastes of protein digestion (i.e. ammonia). Also, keto acids are helpful in eliminating excess ammonia from the body, which is directly related to aging. Fresh potato juice is especially rich in keto acids and can be easily made with a Champion Juicer. 

Fun Fact: Did you know that fructose (fruit sugar) stimulates the detoxification of the ethyl alcohol from the body? Perhaps that is why fresh orange juice is so satisfying after a night of drinking!

PRO TIPS ON JUICING

Before you hit the juice, keep in mind that not all juice is created equally. Here are a few pro juicing tips to get you started in the right direction…

• When you juice fruit or veggies, you are concentrating the nutrients, but also, any potential pesticides, herbicides or other “toxins”. So, always go with organic produce when making your own, and/or 100% juice without added vitamins and chemicals.
• Juice your own! When you juice produce, you run the risk of oxidation and heat damage. Because of this, most store bought juices are likely to contain less enzymes and other nutrients, so its really best to juice your own. Also, while on the subject, this is why I chose the Champion 4000, it is a slow masticating juicer that produces very little heat and therefore most of the nutrients and enzymes are fully intact. These particular juicers also have a high yield, they really squeeze the last drop out. Not to mention, nothing tastes better than fresh juice!
• For weak digestion, remove the pulp and citrus. Food sensitivities are common in those with digestive weakness, and citrus commonly triggers histamine release in those with poor digestion. While you work on optimizing your digestive system, opt for fresh pineapple, apple juice or raw coconut water for less allergenic options.

In this post, we will cover the incredible importance of the thyroid in relationship to a healthy metabolism and weight loss.

WHAT IS THE THYROID?

The thyroid is an endocrine gland and important part of the endocrine system, which regulates the rate at which the body utilizes oxygen and energy to regulate organs function. This is a massive role in the metabolism that is responsible for regulating:

• Breathing
• Heart rate
• Central and peripheral nervous systems
• Body weight
• Muscle growth and development
• Hair growth
• Skin
• Menstrual cycles›
• Body temperature
• Cholesterol levels
• And more

Without a healthy, functioning thyroid these crucial physiological functions begin to fail. Because the thyroid is intimately connected to the adrenals, hypothalamus, pituitary and other organs, such as the liver, when it fails, these other glands and organs cannot perform their jobs. Looking at the liver and thyroid connection specifically, these two play the main roles in weight loss or gain. Together they govern metabolic function, the secretion of fat from the body and the regulation of the various hormones that effect our weight.

Therefore, if your thyroid (or your liver) is sluggish and impaired you’re likely to run into not just weight problems, but a lot of other health problems, including:

• Edema
• Depression
• PMS
• Dry skin
• Thinning hair, hair loss
• Fatigue, always tired
• Chronic constipation
• Poor digestion
• SAD (Seasonal affectiveness disorder)
• Poor circulation (cold hands and feet)
• Hormonal imbalance
• High cholesterol

STRESS HORMONES & THYROID

Perhaps the most common cause of low thyroid function is the chronic secretion of stress hormone. The stress can occur from pyschological stress, aging, hormone imbalance, infection, trauma, fever, poor nutrition, lack of sleep, over exercising or other factors. Really, any activity that throws the body out of equillibrium too strongly will cause an increase production of stress hormone. And the various stress hormones suppress real thyroid function.

For example, cortisol inhibits the conversion of T4 to T3, which is responsible for cellular respiration, energy production and carbon dioxide. Adrenaline, increases the production of cortisol but is also lipolytic, meaning it releases fatty acids which, if are polyunsaturated (and usually are if you grew up eating a processed foods diet), inhibit the production and movement of thyroid hormone, and directly inhibit mitochondrial respiration. Adrenaline, another stress hormone, also decreases the conversion of T4 to T3.

SUGAR FOR THYROID FUNCTION

Sugar consumption (sucrose and fructose) assists thyroid function and due to the interrelatedness of glucose and cortisol, sugar directly suppresses cortisol. As blood glucose drops, cortisol rises, so consuming appropriate amounts of sugar is actually protective against the inflammatory effets of cortisol. And since excessive cortisol causes blood sugar to drop, this leads to a more dramatic release of hunger hormones, making a person more likely to overeat. Not to mention, cortisol directly inhibits proper thyroid and metabolic function, decreasing the rate at which a person metabolizes their food, in other words, they burn calories less efficiently.

Furthermore, sugar and its ability to lower cortisol can directly protect against the breakdown of muscle tissue (catabolism). This is great news for those looking to lose weight, because muscle tissue improves metabolic efficiency (more muscle = more calories burned).

Learn more about the best type of sugars, carbohydrates and other foods/nutrients to consume and which ones to avoid for optimal thyroid function in my Healthy Weight Loss course.

VITAMIN A FOR THYROID

Another simple, dietary change you can make if you’re dealing with weight gain and hypothyroidism, is to get in more vitamin A.

Vitamin A is essential for the production and synthesis of T3 (thyroid hormone) and therefore is a must for healthy thyroid function. Also, because the thyroid governs metabolism, vitamin A is essential for healthy weight loss, a strong immune system, good vision,  and overall cellular communication. Just a subtle deficiency in vitamin A can result in the symptoms of hypothyroidism.

Another reason vitamin A is so helpful for the thyroid is because we need vitamin A to produce testosterone (to balance the testosterone:estrogen), to produce progesterone and to metabolize estrogen. If estrogen is chronically higher than testosterone and progesterone, this will block the production of thyroid hormone.

In fact, according to Dr. Ray Peat, “Estrogen blocks the release of hormone from the thyroid gland, and progesterone facilitates the release. Estrogen excess or progesterone deficiency tends to cause enlargement of the thyroid gland, in association with a hypothyroid state.”

One final thing to understand is that not all vitamin A is the same. Plant-based vitamin A is a carotenoid and must be metabolized by the liver, and even if the liver is healthy enough to do this, it does so poorly. What we want is retinol forms of vitamin A. This is the bioavailable or active form of vitamin A, which comes from animal foods that have already converted the carotenoids. The best sources include grass-fed, organic butter, eggs, whole milk, cream, and liver. I highly suggest consuming liver once per week, it is hands down the best source of vitamin A, as well as other important, pro-metabolic nutrients that support thyroid and weight loss. If you cannot tolerate eating liver, then I suggest at least taking liver supplements.

CONCLUSION

As I talk about in great depth in my online course Healthy Weight Loss, trouble with your weight is ultimately caused by poor digestion, sluggish thyroid function, slow metabolism, hormonal imbalance, and stress. Focusing solely on “weight loss” is therefore a futile goal that usually generates other problems. Ideally, if you wish to achieve true, healthy weight loss, you want to take a systemic approach that addresses the body as a whole.

To learn more, enroll in my online course Healthy Weight Loss!

Below I want to cover some of the more or less uncommon and overlooked reasons you’re struggling to achieve your ideal body weight.

4 SURPRISING REASON’S YOU CAN’T LOSE WEIGHT

1. Your Not Eating Enough:  Yes, you read that correctly, you might not be losing weight if you’re not eating enough. You see, our bodies need a certain amont of calories (energy) and glucose (energy) to carry out its functions and perform at its peak.  If you’re chronically restricting calories and carbohydrates through dieting, it is easy to put your body in an energy deficit. In the most basic sense, without enough energy, your body cannot perform. Just think, how do you function when you haven’t eaten or slept enough? While will power is a great thing, forcing your body into accepting fewer calories than it’s comfortable with will eventually cause metabolic damage. When you diet, restrict food/calories and chronically cut carbs (ketosis), your body starts to think food and enerhy is scarce. While you think you’re doing a good thing by following your diet, your body perceives this scarcity as a stress. And in order to protect itself and survive the famine,  it will down regulate the metabolism and hold onto fat as a way to perserve energy. This is a basic survival technique, just like if you were to lose your job, you would turn down the heat and minimize eletricity to save. When your body isn’t getting enough energy/calories, it saves its energy by downregulating the metabolism, slowing the production of digestive juices/enzymes (digestive requires A LOT of energy), reducing body temperature, and slowing thyroid function, all in order to make sure it survives on less food.  The problem with this is now the body is fucntioning with less energy, which means it’s going to have a more difficult time “burning fat” because the liver will not have enough energy to properly eliminate fat from the body. Not to mention, with a sluggiest thyroid and digestive system, your body will have a harder time digesting, metabolizing and eliminting food, which can lead to further fat accumulation.
2. Your Digestive System is Impaired: If you are either eating food that exceeds your body’s digestive abilities, or if your digestive system is weak from stress, calorie restriction, or some other factor, then you’re going to have a hard time losing weight.  Digestion requires a lot of energy, and if you eat food that is too diffiuclt to breakdown, this creates a biological stress. As food is improperly digested, it ferments, leading to lactic acid production and the overgrowth of bacteria in the gut (SIBO). This not only leads to many digestive problems like bloating, chronic gas and cramping/pain, but also, the endotoxins and lactic acid produced by the bacteria lead to the increase of stress hormones and serotonin.  Serotonin can reduce the production of energy by inhibiting mitochondrial respiratory enzymes and reducing of oxygen delivery to tissues (less energy). It also interferes with your body’s ability to use glucose, which means that sugar is going to be turned into fat and stored in the body. Additionally, intestinal irriation is a major factor of promoting excess cortisol, and as I discuss in my Healthy Weight Loss Course, cortisol and stress hormones directly lead to weight gain by inhibiting proper glucose metabolism. Be sure to check out my online course to learn about the more difficult to digest foods that lead promote intestinal irritation.
3. You’re Too Low Carb & Sugar-Free: For a long time, I thought sugar was the devil, turns out a lot of the hype was just bad science. Once I started to really study biology, I learned sugar isn’t the problem, but the inability to metabolize and oxidize sugar it, which is usually the result of poor digestion, hypothyroid, liver impairment, PUFA, and other stress. While I still do not promote the consumption of junk foods, I still recommend strongly avoiding PUFA, most grains, and a lot of the foods that are commonly paired with sugar. However, I learned first handedly the dangers of a chronically low-carb and sugar-free diet. You see, while the cells can use fat for fuel (lipolysis & ketosis), it’s an inefficient and secondary source of energy. While the liver can produce its own glucose, it is usually not enough to perform at its peak. For example, hair follicies are a mini-organ that cannot “sub-in” fatty acids for energy, which is why it is common to lose hair when you go low carb, develop hypothyroid or diabetes (your body isn’t utilizing glucose properly). Also, when you’re not eating enough of the right carbohydrates, your metabolism and thyroid shut down. The liver needs glucose to stimulate metabolism and to convert inactive thyroid hormone (T4) to active thyroid hormone (T3). If the liver doesn’t have this energy, the thyroid downregulates by at least 60% (hypothyroid) and weight loss is not likely. If you’re chronically cutting carbs and sugar, and still having trouble losing weight, I highly suggest enrolling in my online course to learn an easy way to self-check your thyroid and for a complete list of the healthiest carbohydates and sugar sources.
4. You Have Hypothyroid & Don’t Know It: Thyroid hormone is essential for normal metabolic function.If your thyroid is underactive, a lot of issues can occur. Not only will your body struggle to metabolize glucose leading to fat accumulation, but water/mineral balance is thrown off, leading to a “puffy” apperance from water rention. Thyroid hormone stimulates the liver to metabolize estrogen for elimination, so if the thyroid isn’t working right, estrogen dominance can occur, which creates a viscous circle, in which estrogen blocks thyroid secretion, causing the liver to accumulate more estrogen, further slowing total metabolic function. And estrogen can directly inhibit gluocse metabolism and increase the storage of fat cells. In my Healthy Weight Loss course, I talk more about the importance of thyroid health and how hypothyroid can be controlled with the use of supplements, diet and other practices.

WHAT TO DO?

If you didn’t notice, a lot of these causative factors are actually promoted in popular quick-fix weight loss strategies. I suspect that is why so many people end up “yo-yo dieting” and struggle to achieve their ideal body weight. The best solution is a more rational, slower paced weight loss program. In general, the quicker you lose weight, the more irrational approaches you’ll likely try and the problems you’ll run into in the end. But this is true for anything in life, the faster you try to do something, the faster it is to fall apart. However, if you take your time, and build a stable foundation for health, it will last. This is why I designed my Healthy Weight Loss Course, to help you get your body and metabolism into good shape so you can achieve your weight loss goals in a HEALTHY way, free of pain, struggle, restrictive dieting and future problems.

If you’re interested in the course, join the others who have pre-enrolled for a 50% discount!

The aim of this post is to provide the basic science about ketosis so rather than being sold on the idea of ketosis, you can make informed decisions. So without further-ado, let’s get into the science of ketosis.

HOW KETOSIS WORKS

Ketosis is a secondary form of lipolysis – you can’t be in ketosis without being in lipolysis. Lipolysis is the breakdown of fat in the body into its usable form. Fat oxidation is the burning of fat for energy.

While this sounds good from a glance, the fact of the matter is lipolysis is associated with the stress hormones, which mobilize fat stores when glucose/energy is low, but are associated with other deleterious effects as well. In other words, to enter ketosis, cortisol and stress hormone must be chronically elevated. And chronically elevated levels of cortisol can damage the adrenals and hypothalamus and suppress the thyroid. Cortisol is a catabolic stress hormone that can degenerate and damage tissues in the body, leading to wrinkles, joint problems and degenerative aging.

Looking to the Randal Cycle (also known as the glucose fatty-acid cycle); this is a metabolic process involving the competition of glucose and fatty acids for substrates. In general, fat oxidation is less desirable than carbohydrate oxidation, for a few simple reasons. One, fat oxidative is a metabolic stress that is initiated by stress hormone section. Two, during lipolysis less CO2 is produced, and CO2 has a variety of beneficial effects (and low CO2 some negative ones).

Since fat competes with carbohydrates via the randle cycle, elevated fat can have negative implications whether it is exogenous (from food), or doubly so when endogenous through lipolysis.

KETOSIS, STRESS METABOLISM & THE DAMAGING EFFECTS

So, what does it mean physiologically to be in ketosis? To get into ketosis, you dramatically cut down carbs and expend your liver glycogen (energy). As a result, your body will produce an increase of adaptive stress hormones, which will trigger lipolysis. This is what it means to be a “fat burner”.

Additionally, through this process of using fat for fuel, fatty acids and ammonia are liberated from the tissues and lactic acid is produced (rather than CO2). This poses a few problems; these are similar conditions of stress metabolism, which typically involves an excess of the adaptive hormones, lactic acid, and decreased CO2.

As the shift from glucose for energy to fat for energy occurs, the depletion of glucose increases the production of lactic acid, which causes cortisol to increase. Increased cortisol and free fatty acid levels activates the Randle effect, which inhibits  glucose oxidation. This accelerates the breakdown of protein into amino acids, and activates the enzyme fatty acid synthase, which produces fatty acids from amino acids and pyruvate, to be oxidized in a “futile cycle,” producing heat, and therefore increases the liberation of ammonia from the amino acids. Ammonia and lactic acid are very aging in the body, they suppress respiration and are present in rosacea, arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, neurological diseases and cancer.

GLUCONEOGENESIS, CORTISOL AND THYROID

Something not many people realize is how important glucose is. Our bodies have an absolute need for glucose to support glycolysis, so much so, that it has a very well designed system for ensuring it always has enough glucose (even under conditions of dietary carbohydrate deprivation like ketosis).

This process is referred to as gluconeogenesis, which is the process of producing of glucose from non-carbohydrate precursors. Gluconeogenesis is primarily supported by protein but is also supported to a minor degree by fat.

In the case of ketosis (extremely low-carbohydrate intake), a person is coming close to suffering from a deficiency of total glucose. As a result, the body will naturally do everything in they can to conserve its glucose through this process.

This seems great, but again, is an adaptive stress response by the body in attempt to survive. To understand this, consider the fact that gluconeogenesis is primarily stimulated by the adrenal hormone cortisol. Through this process, cortisol antagonizes thyroid hormone and as result, metabolism down regulates, circulation and respiration become poor and the immune system becomes impaired.

so, as we move away from burning glucose and toward greater reliance on fat, free fatty acids elevate. Cortisol augments this rise even further by causing us to release free fatty acids from adipose tissue. Lactic acid, cortisol, and free fatty acids impair thyroid hormone’s ability to carry out its many physiological functions and consequently, a person can suffer from hypothyroid and the many symptoms, which include:

• chronic fatigue
• cold intolerance
• brittle nails
• constipation
• dry skin
• high cholesterol
• irritability
• sensitivity to cold
• infertility/sexual dysfunction
• slow heart rate,
• weight gain & trouble losing weight

IN CONCLUSION

To summarize, entering a state of ketosis is nothing smelling our ancestors did intentionally, if anything, they desperately attempted to avoid it. In the simplest of words, ketosis is a biological and metabolic stress that would ideally be avoided if one wishes to be healthy and have a balanced healthy weight.

If you’ve enjoyed this information and would like to learn more about the science of weight loss, be sure to check out my online course Healthy Weight Loss.

Your Metabolism on Fasting 

During the first stages of fasting, the metabolic system is high at first, but overtime as the body enters lipolysis, the metabolic system slows down dramatically. As free fatty and amino acids rise in the blood, they stimulate the production of estrogen and cortisol, which turns down thyroid function, reproductive function, brain function, digestive and immune function.

This is because; in time, fasting shifts the metabolism from glucose oxidation to fat oxidation (glycolysis to lipolysis), which impairs the liver’s ability to detoxify. Additionally, lipolysis results in the increased production of estrogen and cortisol, which directly inhibit cellular glucose utilization.  This is the opposite to what most people think (that fasting is helpful for detoxification). However, next to the inhibitor effects of cortisol and estrogen on the metabolism, there is another way that gluconeogenesis inhibits detoxification, which is by depriving the liver of the amino acids and glycogen it needs to detoxify. 1

The truth is, while you will inevitably lose weight or “burn fat” while fasting, this short-term fat loss comes at the expense of suppressing the resting metabolism long term. This ultimately down regulates thyroid function, weakens the immune and digestive system, while putting the body in a catabolic state (destroying the body’s tissues), depleting liver glycogen and burdening the liver, while stressing every cell in the body.

The Cost of Fasting

A low carb diet or fasting seem to be a good way to increase fat loss in the short-term. However, this is only true in the absence of a complete biological picture.

Something to be understood is that to initiate ketosis or lipolysis, adrenaline and cortisol must be chronically elevated. Gluconeogenesis works in conjunction with lipolysis, and is an inefficient energy production process, where adrenal stress hormone, cortisol, attempts to raise blood sugar and flight inflammation. This is done by converting the body’s own tissues (namely the thymus, liver, muscle, and skin) to make glucose to feed the cells – a conversion that occurs in the liver. In other words, gluconeogensis is a survival energy production system that breaksdown protein, muscle tissues, organs or fat to convert into glucose to be utilized for energy.

There are many problems that arise from this other than the basic catabolic stress. For example, consider the effects that long-term gluconeogensis can have on the health of the hair follicle. Hair follicles are one of the most hormone-sensitive tissues in the body and are specifically thyroid hormone-sensitive.  While hair follicles have the ability to store glycogen to utilize for energy, they are nevertheless glucose dependent, meaning they cannot utilize free fatty acids for energy. So, a diet that mimics ketosis or greatly restricts carbohydrates and glucose not only deprives the liver of energy for cellular function, it also starves the hair follicles.

Furthermore, gluconeogenesis. is preceded by the chronically elevated production stress hormone cortisol, which antagonizes thyroid hormone. This chronic deficiency of thyroid hormone (hypothyroid), has not just metabolic consequences (weak metabolism), but also explains the high rate of pattern baldness in both men and women with hypothyroid. It might also explain why many people who are diabetic, cancerous or on a chronically low carb diet also lose their hair.

Additionally, under lipolysis, or “burning fat for energy”, for fats to be turned into glucose (energy), they must broken down into two substrates; glycerols and fatty acids. However, only glycerols can be converted back into pyruvate and eventually into glucose and then glycogen. This means that the “burning of fat” results in the liberation of  free fatty acids into the blood,  which are usually polyunsaturated. These polyunsaturated fast (PUFA) stimulate a stress response, increasing the production of estrogen and cortisol, which suppress the thyroid and ultimately slows down the metabolism. Not to mention, the increase of stress hormone and free circulating PUFA brings water into cells causing edema (water retention), which gives a person a puffy appearance.

In other words, as fat is liberated from the tissues, you will have the seemingly good sign of weight loss. However, as you rapidly lose weight, your body is undergoing suffering and stress leading to hypothyroid (cortisol and lipolysis in general suppress thyroid hormone), hypo-metabolism, possible hair loss, muscle wasting, cellular energy deficiency and accelerated aging. This might explains why bodybuilders, yoyo dieters, and die-hard “fasters” often look older and more “inflamed” than normal.

A Better Weight Loss Strategy: What to Do Instead 

In general, I think most problems in life could be avoided with patience and a long-term strategy. Not to get too far off topic, but I know for myself, in the past I often rushed into relationships, and many problems occurred that didn’t have to as a result of not taking my time, gathering enough information and going slow. However, it wasn’t until recently that I’ve approached a relationship with patience and a long-term intention. And as a result, I’ve been able to develop a stable foundation of trust, friendship, and love.

I think this concept can be applied to all areas of our lives, so rather than taking an extreme approach to weight loss, such as crash dieting or fasting, I suggest the rational long-term approach. What does that look like exactly in terms of weight loss?

Here are a few suggestions:

• Stop Dieting: Rather than “dieting” focus on eliminating the obvious junk; this includes fast-foods, heavily processed foods, excessive alcohol consumption, and particularly foods rich in PUFA, chemicals, preservatives  other unnatural additives. These foods are in the most basic terms, difficult to digest and metabolize, and contain gut irritating substances. PUFA specifically are highly anti-metabolic, so be sure to read up on those and keep an optimal ratio of saturated fats to unsaturated to ensure a high metabolism. Instead of dogmatic dieting that requires endless will-power and restriction, focus on foods that truly make you feel good and energized. To learn more about what to eat exactly to support long-term metabolic health, be sure to check out my new online course Healthy Weight Loss.
• Improve Digestion: Since the digestive function precedes metabolic function, digestive dysfunction can obviously lead to metabolic problems. Digestion is the process of breaking down food into smaller substrates (carbs into glucose, fats into fatty acids and glycerols, proteins into amino acids). Without these substrates, the metabolism won’t fire. Also, digestive diseases like leaky gut, and SIBO can increase the likelihood of endotoxins, inflammation and stress hormone, all which negatively effect healthy metabolism and detoxification. A simple place to start is with eating a simpler diet, you know, fruits, veggies, meats, eggs, cheeses and herbs. You can also supplement with digestive enzymes if you have a sluggish digestive system. I would highly recommend enrolling in my best-selling online course Perfect Digestion to learn exactly how to fix your digestive issues.
• Care for your Thyroid: Your thyroid is the gland that rules your metabolism, determines pulse rate, body temperature and keeps stress hormone in check. When the thyroid is sluggish, metabolism down regulates and this makes maintaining a healthy weight very difficult. Keep in mind that your liver converts 60% of thyroid hormone into its active form, so you want to also care for that liver. LivaMend is a simple herbal formula that can help with your liver. Great foods for both the liver and thyroid include actual liver (you can make a pate), oysters, and citrus fruits like fresh orange juice.

If you’ve enjoyed this information and would like to learn more be sure to enroll in my online Healthy Weight Loss course while spots are available!

• Converting the nutrients in our diets into substances that the body can use
• Stores nutrients (b12, vitamin K2) and energy, and supplies cells with them when needed.
• Detoxification (takes toxic substances and converts them into harmless substances to be released from the body.)
• Releases bile to breakdown and digest fats and neutralize stomach acid.
• Produces glycogen (the body’s primary fuel source; fatty acids being the secondary fuel source. Most organs, sub-organs and the cells cannot sub-in or poorly utilize fatty acids for energy).
• Manufactures immune substances such as interferon and interleukin.
• Makes antioxidants glutathione and SOD.
• Synthesizes and metabolizes hormones

If you would like to lose weight, healing the liver is critical.

OXIDATIVE STRESS & WEIGHT GAIN

Oxidative stress is a type of biochemical stress that occurs at the cellular level. Oxidative stress is a term that describes the chemical reactions that occur as a result of insufficient oxidative metabolism, which damages the cells and DNA, ultimately aging the body.

Oxidative stress comes from:

• Reactive Oxygen Species (Free radicals)
• Environmental toxins (including poor diet, PUFA, air pollutants, heavy metals, pathogens, etc.)
• Poor Digestion (leaky gut and SIBO especially)
• Metabolic wastes from sluggish metabolism
• Inflammation Byproducts

All of these things can generate oxidative stress, which leads to cellular damage, disease and aging. When oxidative stress occurs, it down regulates liver function, specifically the enzymatic activity. This can cause the liver to become insulin resistant, fatty and impaired, leading to many other problems of metabolism. Excessive oxidative stress in the liver can lead to fatty liver disease and even the development of obesity and type 2 diabetes.

In fact, 80% of people with type 2 diabetes are also obese, while 75% of people who are obese or type 2 diabetes also have fatty liver disease.

WHERE TO DO: MITIGATING OXIDATIVE STRESS 

If your goal is weight loss, you have to understand that losing weight isn’t just about counting calories or avoiding certain foods. As you can see, oxidative stress is a major underlying factor that leads to poor metabolism and weight problems. And there are many factors involved with oxidative stress.

Therefore, an effective, healthy weight loss program will depend on several interconnected factors, including:

• A stress-free liver
• Healthy digestion
• A healthy gut
• Hormonal balance

AS mentioned, these systems are interrelated, so we can help the body achieve balance in all of these areas simultaneously.

We can promote hormonal balance by minimizing our exposure to oxidative stress. We can minimize our exposure to oxidative stress by caring for our gut and liver. The health of the liver relies on the health of the gut, vice versa. An impaired liver can weaken digestion but poor digestion can congest the liver.

The liver receives about 70 percent of its blood supply from the intestine. After the intestinal wall, the liver is the next line of defense against food irritants, environmental toxins, and harmful microbes. So, if the gut becomes permeable or “leaky,” this puts more pressure than ever on the liver to filter toxins and leads to oxidative stress.

So, what can be done about it? Here’s a short list of things you can do:

• Antioxidants – One way to inhibit or reduce oxidative stress is with the use of specific antioxidants. Now the term anti-oxidant is quiet backwards, as we want oxidation to occur. However, certain “anti-oxidants” are able to promote cellular oxidation at the forefront, and limit inflammation. Antioxidants are molecules that fight free radicals and protect against oxidative stress. You’ll find antioxidants in bright ripe fruits and vegetables; and herbs like milk thistle, reishi, nettle, parsley and cilantro. Fresh orange juice is also a great source of a powerful antioxidant known as naringenin. 

• Promote Digestion – Curating a healthy gut relies on many factors, including getting a handle on mental and emotional stress, eating an easy to digest diet, sufficient digestive enzymes,  cultivate a healthy intestinal landscape by eliminating endotoxins. You might also consider going on a “detox” by eliminating harsh environmental toxins and promoting digestive function. If your digestive system is working, detoxification will occur naturally. I recommend checking out my online course Perfect Digestion to learn more. For the short term, I recommend the Digestive Care Multi, which helps to gentle cleanse the liver, eliminating toxins, replenishing beneficial bacteria and yeast, and improving digestion. 

If you’ve enjoyed this information, this is just a taste of what’s to come from my new course Healthy Weight Loss. Be sure to check it out while it is on pre-sale for a discount!