Blog - Page 24 of 26 - Dan Hammer Health LTD

Posted by Dan Hammer //

05/01/2016

The area of cardiovascular health that confuses people the most are their cholesterol levels. What is low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and why is it bad? What is high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and why is it good? In fact, what is this stuff to begin with? And, can only pharmaceuticals make a difference in your cholesterol levels or are there natural ways to make favorable changes? This post will provide you with answers to these questions.

Cholesterol The Glue That Holds You Together!

Cholesterol is a fascinating molecule because it is used widely throughout your body. To begin with it’s required to build and maintain all cell membranes. Without cholesterol you would be a large puddle on the floor! In addition to providing this structural purpose, it also plays an important role in:

Boost the Nutrient Power of Vegetables

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/22/2016

Spring has sprung and this is an ideal time to learn how to boost the nutrient power of vegetables. I have several tips for you. The question is: what order should I give them to you?

Should I give these tips on how to boost the nutrient power of vegetables based on potency or convenience? I’m going to opt for convenience.

My Top 6 Tips to Boost the Nutrient Power of Vegetables

Tip #1 – The greener the vegetable the more nutritious it will be. This means stop eating iceberg lettuce and instead eat spinach. Dark green leafy vegetables and ones that are vividly colored (purple, red, yellow, and orange) will provide you with a broad range of powerful plant nutrients.

Tip #2 – Juicing provides an easy way to consume a variety of vegetables. Most health experts recommend 2-4 servings of vegetables per day but who has time for this. Instead add them to your morning smoothie. I don’t like carrots raw or cooked but I add them to my morning shake with a cup full of spinach. Sometimes I add kale to the mix. This gives me 2 to 3 servings. And when I add my frozen blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries I have my 5 to 8 servings of fruits and vegetables per day.

What Are The Health Benefits of Vegetables

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/15/2016

While the health benefits of vegetables are tremendous they get lost in the American or Western diet of red meat, dairy products, grains, and dark cola drinks. This kind of food consumption constitutes an acidic diet, which allows diseases the desired environment from which to grow and spread.

Your body is designed to be slightly alkaline and this is one of the primary health benefits of vegetables.

But what really intrigued me to write this post is a study out of Neurology. This study involved 3,718 Chicago area men and women aged 65 and older.

Chicago is the land of deep dish pizza (Giordano’s is the Best) and all beef hot dogs (especially those from Portillo’s). Sometimes the only vegetables consumed are the dark relish added to the hot dog.

These study participants were followed for 6 years and what the researchers found was startling.

Thoughts On Our Whole30 Journey

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/08/2016

In today’s post I want to share some observations about our Whole30 Journey. We completed this journey about 3 weeks ago. My wife and I have continued to apply most of the Whole30 parameters since officially ending this lifestyle.

I asked my wife Sherry to write down the three most significant benefits that she enjoyed while being on the Whole 30 Journey. They are:

Weight Loss

Significantly Reduced Joint Pain and Inflammation

Eliminated Bloating and Abdominal Cramping

Benefits of Dark Chocolate and Nitric Oxide

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/01/2016

Wouldn’t it be great if dark chocolate and nitric oxide could boost your athletic performance.

I’m not sure if I should have a question mark or an exclamation mark after that statement. What I do know is that I want to thank Anna for sending me the following article from the New York Times:

Chocolate Can Boost Your Workout. Really.

This article featured a new sports performance study that was published December 2015 in The Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. Here’s a quick summary of this study:

There were eight male cyclists who agreed to replace one of their normal snacks with 40 grams of chocolate per day. 40 grams is 1.4 ounces or about one and a half squares. They used the Dove brand of dark chocolate. White chocolate was used as a control.

All cyclists were tested before starting their chocolate program. These tests measured their fitness and oxygen uptake during moderate rides and all-out sprints on a stationary bike. Then they were told to eat their chocolate every day for two weeks. After two weeks they returned to the lab for a repeat of these tests.

The results showed that the cyclists who consumed the dark chocolate performed better in most of their physical tests over those who ate the white chocolate. This improvement was attributed to improved nitric oxide levels. However, this was an assumption since the researchers did not directly measure nitric oxide levels.

Prevent Cardiovascular Complications of Diabetes!

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/22/2016

Diabetes has grown to epidemic proportions and so have the cardiovascular complications of diabetes. According to the most recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 29 million Americans have diabetes. However, what makes this “America’s largest healthcare epidemic” is that 86 million Americans are in a pre-diabetic condition, where their blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

This means that over 115 million Americans are either in a pre-diabetic or diabetic condition. This is creating an enormous health challenge. Even just being pre-diabetic raises a person’s risk for heart disease and stroke. High blood sugar causes oxidative stress or damage to your endothelium resulting in the following cardiovascular complications of diabetes:

Vitamin D3 Benefits Over Vitamin D2!

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/15/2016

Recent research continues to show the importance of Vitamin D but few understand the difference between vitamin D3 benefits over vitamin D2.

Vitamin D deficiency symptoms and diseases

Yes, there are two forms of vitamin D. Vitamin D2 is manufactured by plants or fungus. It is typically used to fortified foods like milk, cereals, and juices. This form of vitamin D is called Ergocalciferol.

Vitamin D3 is called Cholecalciferol. It is synthesized by humans and animals from sunlight. When taken in supplement form it has a longer shelf life and is better for the human body.

In a published study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, vitamin D3 was shown to be 87% more effective in raising vitamin D levels in the blood over vitamin D2. According to the lead researcher Dr. Robert Heaney (Creigton University School of Medicine in Omaha, Nebraska),

“Given its greater potency, D3 should be the preferred treatment option when correcting vitamin D deficiency.”

My Whole30 Chili

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/08/2016

In today’s post I’ve asked Patrick Harms to give you his Whole30 Chili recipe. As I shared in a previous post our family decided to implement the Whole30 lifestyle to improve our overall health and wellness.

One of the food sources that you eliminate are all legumes. One of the meals that our family would enjoy is chili. The old recipe used dark red kidney beans, pinto beans, and chili beans. And while we loved the taste of the old recipe sometimes the aftereffects we’re not ideal. Abdominal discomfort, bloating and extra gas.

As I shared in my previous post, the Whole30 lifestyle requires a lot of preparation work if you’re going to stay on it. My son-in-law Patrick and daughter Sarah have been tremendous is preparing Whole30 meals so that we can stay on track. And they designed this Whole30 Chili recipe.

It is FANTASTIC!

Vitamin D and Diabetes

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/07/2016

Over the last seven years there has been a huge amount of research that has shown a direct link between vitamin D and diabetes. Unfortunately, most diabetics know little about this connection. The purpose of today’s post is to help educate you with current information. Information that will help you use this relationship between vitamin D and diabetes to reverse the diabetic epidemic facing Americans today.

It’s now estimated that 100 million American adults have diabetes or are in a pre-diabetic state. In the book, The Vitamin D Solution, Dr. Michael F. Holick discussed a Finland study. During the 1960s children received 2,000 IU of vitamin D a day during their first year of life. These children were followed for 31 years. For this population group they reduced their risk of developing Type I diabetes by 88%.

My Whole30 Journey – Part 1

Posted by Dan Hammer //

02/22/2016

In October of 2015 I decided to go Gluten Free and eliminated Wheat from my diet. For Lent our family decided to implement the Whole30 program for the next 40 days. I’m halfway through the Whole30 journey and I thought I’d share some observations about this program.

What is Whole30?

The concept behind Melissa and Dallas Hartwig’s Whole30 program is that it takes 30 days to reset your health and change your relationship with food. That by eating non-processed whole foods and eliminating grains, dairy, sugar, legumes, and alcohol from you system, you will: