Blog - Page 15 of 26 - Dan Hammer Health LTD

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/22/2018

Recently there have been several articles about how caloric restriction can improve the bio-markers that are associated with those who live well into their 90s and 100s.

Many people associate caloric restriction to weight loss and weight maintenance. But over the last 50 years it has become a general strategy for improving a person’s well-being and lifespan.

In fact, some take it to the extreme were they reduce their caloric intake by up to 50%. Just enough calories coming in to be nutritionally sufficient for maintaining overall health.

But do you need to be that aggressive in your caloric restriction to enjoy positive benefits?

And the answer seems to be “No!”

There is a recently published, randomized controlled study that showed how a 15% caloric restriction provided the study participants with significant health benefits.

According to Leanne M. Redman, PhD. the lead author of the study and an associate professor at Pennington Biomedical Research Center at Louisiana State University, “Reducing calorie intake provides health benefits to all people regardless of their current health status.” Read More →

Can Exercise Lower Your Risk for Heart Disease?

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/15/2018

Every since I was in college in the 70s there has been this debate about whether exercise can lower your risk for Lower Your Risk For Heart Disease heart disease. Well the journal Circulation just published a new study that showed

Strength and cardiorespiratory fitness lowers the risk for heart disease across the board for all people!

And it didn’t matter your genetic risk and/or family history of heart disease.

The study followed approximately 500,000 middle-aged people over a 10 year period.

These participants were categorized according to their genetic risk for coronary heart disease.

The results of the study showed that physical activity reduced EVERYONE’S risk for cardiovascular disease.

And for those that were in the highest risk category, but had high levels of fitness, their risk was cut by 49 percent!

The Amount of Exercise Needed to Lower Your Risk for Heart Disease

Are You Bifidobacteria Rich?

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/08/2018

You may have a hard time answering the question, are you bifidobacteria rich since most people have never heard this word before.

Well my suggestion is to learn how to help your gut microbiome become rich in bifidobacteria as they are key to your health.

Your gut microbiome is home to trillions of microorganisms that play a significant role regulating your immune system, endocrine system, digestive system, and your overall metabolism. Plus your gut microbiome is linked to cardiovascular health, cognitive function, mood, and your ability to fight disease.

One of the most important and beneficial bacteria of your entire gut microbiome is a group called bifidobacteria. And the rest of this blog post will help you understand why they’re important to your health. As well as how you can take dietary steps to make sure they dominate your abdominal microbiome.

What are Bifidobacteria?

The Truth About L-Arginine

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/01/2018

The purpose of this blog post titled The Truth About L-Arginine is to counter the misinformation used to negate the benefits of this amino acid to your overall health.

Most of the misinformation comes from the rapidly expanding market for nitric oxide supplements. And this misinformation usually comes from companies that use beet root extract to harness the nitrate/nitrite pathway for the creation of nitric oxide.

The misinformation usually takes two approaches:

“L-arginine is a semi-essential amino acid that can help the body produce nitric oxide but supplementation doesn’t work in all people, especially those over 40.” This is taken from the Berkeley FAQ section of their website and makes it seem that for those over the age of 40 the L-arginine pathway is disfunctional.

The use of nitric oxide test strips to demonstrate improved nitric oxide production. And while there is a correlation, these test strips only measure nitrite levels in the saliva.

To help you better understand how misleading these two approaches are I put together the following video titled

The Truth About L-Arginine Read More →

What Foods Contain L-Arginine and L-Citrulline?

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/22/2018

I’ve written many articles about the need for L-arginine and L-citrulline. How critical they are for nitric oxide production. How your endothelial cells use these two amino acids to create nitric oxide, the master signaling molecule of your cardiovascular system.

Quite frankly, you could not live without nitric oxide. It’s a critical molecule in many biological functions but especially for good cardiovascular health. So, I’m often asked:

What foods can I eat that contain L-arginine and L-citrulline?

To answer that question I went shopping, bought some foods and put together the following video. Enjoy the video and I’ll have some observations to make after you watch it:

Niacin and Cholesterol Reduction!

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/15/2018

Many in the health care profession have forgotten about the positive relationship between niacin and cholesterol. Instead they have promoted statin drugs to control cholesterol levels. That’s unfortunate because niacin can be just as effective.

What is Niacin?

Niacin is a member of the vitamin B family. Specifically it is vitamin B3 or nicotinic acid. Because it’s a water soluble vitamin it needs to be replenished on a daily basis. The recommended daily allowance (RDA) of niacin is 2-12 mg/day for children, 14 mg/day for women and 16 mg/day for men. This RDA is the minimum required to prevent niacin deficiency which can be characterized by the following conditions:

Slow metabolism
Decreased tolerance to the cold
Irritability
Poor concentration
Anxiety
Fatigue
Restlessness
Depression
Dementia

What are Obesogens?

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/08/2018

Obesity is at an all time high in America. New research over the last 12 years shows that obesogens are a contributing factor.

The term obeseogens was coined in 2006. The first initial studies were on children and how exposure to specific chemicals disrupted their metabolism to increase their susceptibility to weight gain.

Over 80,000 chemicals are officially registered for use in the United States. And while some chemicals are toxic, and restricted in their use, there are many chemicals that disrupt your endocrine system. And are linked to a variety of diseases.

Plus they’re commonly used in many commercial products. Below is an anecdotal example:

“Rebecca is a 5 yr old girl who has gained 20 lbs in one year and is referred to us for premature breast development. An MRI of her head rules out a brain tumor. A pituitary evaluation to look for onset of puberty is unrevealing and tests show no estrogen in the blood. A more detailed history reveals Rebecca’s mother has recently taken to bathing her daughter in Victoria Secret’s bath gel. The assumption is that the bath gel contains plant estrogen. The mother is counseled to stop the bath gel and subsequently Rebecca’s weight gain and breast development cease.”

(Excerpt from the book Fat Chance by Robert Lustig, Chapter 15 Environmental Obesogesn)

I was not able to find the ingredient list for the product example used in the above anecdotal quote to help identify the specific obesogen but here are the most common ones. Read More →

Lipoic Acid and Cardiovascular Health!

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/01/2018

In researching information about endothelial cell health and function I stumbled across information regarding lipoic acid and cardiovascular health. Sometimes referred to as alpha lipoic acid this vital “co-factor” for enzymatic reactions is critically important for optimizing energy conversion in your mitochondria.

What are Mitochondria?

These are the energy factories of your cells and play a huge role in the aging process. At least in theory. First proposed in 1972 by Denman Harman, the mitochondrial theory on aging centers on accumulated damage to the DNA of mitochondria. This leads to increased free radical stress coupled with a decrease in cellular energy production.

So how does this relate to lipoic acid and cardiovascular health? Read More →

Heart Disease in Women

Posted by Dan Hammer //

02/22/2018

Every year February is Go Red for Women to help our female population understand that heart disease in women is real. In fact it’s the number one killer of women. And depending on whose statistics you use that’s either:

1 in 3 deaths each year

or

1 in 4 deaths each year

Either way that’s approximately one woman every minute who is experiencing a heart attack that can lead to their death.

This is not just a “man’s disease” anymore. Heart disease now kills more women than men each year.

And while there is a tremendous emphasis place on breast cancer (and rightfully so) 5 times more women are going to die from heart disease than from breast cancer.

It’s estimated that two-thirds (64%) of women who die from heart disease have no previous symptoms.

This makes heart disease in women a real health issue for them and their families.

Because no one can replace a mom or wife, and the hole they leave in the fabric of their family and community, when they are needlessly lost to heart disease.

So the question is why? Read More →

Heart Disease in Black Americans!

Posted by Dan Hammer //

02/15/2018

February is Black History month and unfortunately heart disease in Black Americans is part of their history. Here’s the reality in numbers:

African American women in the age range of 25-44 have a 2.5 times greater risk of coronary heart disease and African American men have a 1.5 times greater risk than the Caucasian community.

And when you look at the contributing factors it’s even worse:

High Blood Pressure – 1 out of every 3 African Americans suffers from high blood pressure. The American Heart Association estimates that 28% of African American adults and more than two-thirds of African Americans over the age of 60 have high blood pressure.

Diabetes – The African American community has a two-fold higher rate for diabetes than the Caucasian community. Most diabetes-related deaths are due to cardiovascular disease.

High Cholesterol Levels – High blood cholesterol is a large risk factor for heart disease. Unfortunately 50% of African American men and 54% of women have too much cholesterol circulating in the blood stream.

And when you add in other factors like overweight and obesity, heart disease in Black Americans is historically higher than in any other ethnic community.

So the question is why? Read More →