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Eliminating Heart Disease Naturally Thru Nitric Oxide Therapy

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L-Arginine and Nitric Oxide Helps Diabetic Health Issues

Posted by Dan Hammer //

05/22/2021

L-Arginine and Nitric Oxide Helps Diabetic Health Issues

From the research it’s clear that diabetics produce less nitric oxide, which may be a contributing factor in the following health concerns:

High Blood Pressure
Increased Risk for Heart Disease
Increased Risk for Stroke
Poor Kidney Function
Poor Wound Healing
Nephropathy
And Atherosclerosis

Today’s post is going to examine the question, “Can L-arginine and Nitric Oxide Address Multiple Health Issues in Diabetics?”

Now before we get started let’s get a clear picture on nitric oxide and L-arginine.

Nitric oxide is a signaling molecule created in your vascular system to help regulate circulation. It is a vasodilator, which relaxes the smooth muscle of the vascular wall.

This action improves blood flow. Improved blood flow helps to:

Bring blood pressure back into the normal range.

Reduces your risk for strokes and heart attacks.

And improves blood flow to the kidneys to help them function better.

Already three diabetic concerns have been addressed.

(If you would prefer to view this information in a video format, then please click on my YouTube video below:)

L-arginine is a key amino acid that helps regulate 7 different metabolic pathways in your body. One pathway is the creation of nitric oxide. This means it’s a critical component for good cardiovascular health.

L-arginine is also needed for proper elimination of urea. And plays a key role in kidney function.

Here is a link to a PubMed article titled “L-arginine as a therapeutic tool in kidney disease.”

The proper combination of both L-arginine and nitric oxide helps to improve kidney function. Read More →

2 Natural Ways to Lower A1C

Posted by Dan Hammer //

05/15/2021

In today’s post we’re going to examine 2 natural ways to lower your A1C. These two ways are not normally discussed by the medical community. In fact, I just read an article from WebMD titled “9 Tips to Lower Your A1c Level” and neither of these two natural ways were discussed.

Yet, these 2 ways can be an extremely effective method to improve glucose metabolism to lower your A1C.

If you’re interested in the WebMD article, then click here. Plus I provide a link to the following article that actually discusses these 2 natural ways to improve your blood sugar levels.

In 2001 the American Diabetes Association published a study titled “Long-Term Oral l-Arginine Administration Improves Peripheral and Hepatic Insulin Sensitivity in Type 2 Diabetic Patients”

Here is the stated conclusion from the authors of this study,

“l-Arginine treatment significantly improves but does not completely normalize peripheral and hepatic insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetic patients.”

(If you would prefer to view this information in a video format, then please click on my YouTube video below:)

When people hear the term “diabetes” they usually associated it with blood sugar issues. And while this is true, the main problem centers on insulin resistance.

Your body uses insulin to move sugar out of the blood stream into your cells. It is a key component in what is called glucose metabolism, which is your ability to use glucose or blood sugar as an energy source.

This is where L-arginine and nitric oxide can make a significant difference in your A1C levels.

First, nitric oxide helps to normalize glucose metabolism by increasing glucose transport.

Second, nitric oxide facilitates the uptake of glucose into cells.

Third, L-arginine regulates insulin release, which is needed for proper glucose metabolism.

Fourth, both l-arginine and nitric oxide work together to enhance insulin sensitivity for improved glucose metabolism.

To help you understand how critically important these two natural ways are I did the following Google search: Read More →

Omega 3 Fights Metabolic Syndrome

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/01/2021

New research shows how omega 3 fights metabolic syndrome.

Why is this important?

Because metabolic syndrome increases your risk for the following illnesses:

Type II Diabetes
Cardiovascular Disease
Dementia
Cataracts
Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver

(If you would prefer to view this information in a video format, then please click on my YouTube video below:)

If you’re over 60 years old and live in the United States, then you’re 50% more likely to have metabolic syndrome, which increases your risk for these illnesses.

The term “Metabolic Syndrome” applies to anyone who has at least three of the following five metabolic disorders: Read More →

Top 5 Health Benefits of Pistachios

Posted by Dan Hammer //

03/22/2021

Of all the consumable nuts available, my favorite is pistachios. Because of this I thought I would examine the top 5 health benefits of pistachios.

Ancient history records the consumption of pistachios as far back as 7,000 BC. Both the Queen of Sheba and Nebuchadnessar, the king of ancient Babylon, considered this nut a royal food. And when you examine its nutritional profile you can see why.

(If you would prefer to view this information in a video format, then please click on my YouTube video below:)

One ounce of pistachios contains the following:

159 Calories
8 grams of Carbohydrate
3 grams of Fiber
6 grams of Protein
13 grams of Fat of which 90% are unsaturated
6% of the RDA for Potassium
28% of the RDA for Vitamin B6
21% of the RDA for Thiamine or Vitamin B1
41% of the RDA for Copper

This nutritional profile fuels the following 5 health benefits of pistachios. Read More →

Vitamin K Improves Glucose Metabolism

Posted by Dan Hammer //

12/01/2019

As I was searching for my next health article the title Vitamin K Improves Glucose Metabolism caught my attention. And as I researched this topic I discovered that both forms of vitamin K improves glucose metabolism.

Yes, there are two main forms of this vitamin. Each form has a different overall function in your body.

Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) helps to keep blood platelet cells from sticking together. Because of this, if you are on blood thinning medication, then your physicians will usually caution you about limiting your intake of this vitamin.

Vitamin K1 is found in green leafy vegetables like kale, spinach, collards, Swiss chard, turnip greens, mustard greens, parsley, romaine, and green leaf lettuce. You will also find this vitamin in Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage.

Vitamin K2 (menaquinone) is used by your body to regulate calcium levels in the blood stream. This vitamin helps to keep calcium in the bones where it belongs. And prevents the calcification of your soft tissues like your arteries, heart, lungs, and kidneys.

Vitamin K2 comes from animal and protein sources like natto, fermented soy, liver, cheese, egg yolks, dark chicken meat, grass feed beef, and butter.

In summary, vitamin K plays an important role in proper blood clotting, maintaining bone density, and preventing vascular calcification.

Certain drugs like statins actually lower vitamin K levels in your system. Which now makes sense to me since one of the side effects of statin drug usage is an increased risk of diabetes. Read More →

Can Drinking Water Lower Your A1C

Posted by Dan Hammer //

11/01/2019

One of my clients prompted me to research this question: Can drinking water lower your A1C?

Now before I let you know what I found let’s set the stage by defining the term “A1C.”

Your A1C is determined by a blood test that provides an estimated average of what your blood sugar level has been over the past 2-3 months. In the medical community this term A1C is also referred to has Hemoglobin A1C, HbA1C, or glycated hemoglobin.

Hemoglobin is the protein in your red blood cell that carries oxygen.

Glycated means that sugar in your blood stream has attached itself to the hemoglobin of your red blood cell.

This means that your A1C measures how much of your red blood cells have sugar attached to them. If your A1C test result is 7%, then 7% of your red blood cells have sugar attached to them.

And this score become a baseline measurement in helping to determine if you have diabetes, which is having too much sugar in your blood stream.

There are other blood tests and methods to determine if your blood sugar levels are too high. The following chart provides context to these measurements and methods and how they are reflected in determining if you have diabetes:

As you can see by the above chart you would want your A1C score to be as close to 5 as possible. Once you’re above 6 you’re considered to be prediabetic and 6.5 or higher diabetic.

Which now brings us back to my client’s question: Can Drinking Water Lower Your A1C? Read More →

5 Key Health Benefits of Bell Peppers

Posted by Dan Hammer //

07/01/2019

The health benefits of bell peppers have taken a back seat to other nutritionally dense foods. Yet when you examine the health benefits of bell peppers I think you’ll see how this fruit is an ideal companion to your food plate.

Yes, I labeled the bell pepper a fruit.

Most think of it as a vegetable but in reality it is a fruit. In fact, one of the health benefits of bell peppers is that they contain twice the amount of vitamin C found in an average orange. Which brings us to its first health benefit.

Anti-Inflammatory Properties

As I’ve shared in other articles, inflammation is the root cause of almost all diseases. And eating foods that help protect you from inflammation is a key factor in preventing all types of diseases.

Vitamin C is a key nutrient in helping to prevent inflammation. In a study published in the American Journal of Nutrition they showed that men who consumed a diet that had a higher intake of vitamin C had lower levels of C-reactive protein. C-reactive protein is an inflammatory marker. The greater your levels of this marker, the greater the level of inflammation in your vascular system.

Inflammation of the vascular system leads to plaque formation, which leads to atherosclerosis. This then leads to an increased risk for strokes and heart attacks.

One of the other benefits of vitamin C is that it’s a plasminogen activator. This is a protein that your body naturally produces to dissolve clots inside the arteries.

This means that vitamin C does double duty in both protecting you from inflammation but also helping to protect you from unwanted blood clots.

And as I stated earlier, bell peppers contain twice the amount of vitamin C found in the average orange.

Cancer Prevention

It is estimated by the World Health Organization that 80% of all cancers are tied to food and lifestyle choices. The health benefits of bell peppers are tied to key nutritional components. Here’s a list of the nutritional facts for one cup of this fruit:

Nutrients	Amount	DV%
Vitamin C	190 mg	317.00%
Vitamin A	4666 IU	93.00%
Vitamin B6	0.4 mg	22.00%
Folate	68.5 mcg	17.00%
Vitamin E	2.4 mg	12.00%
Potassium	3.14 mg	9.00%
Vitamin K	7.3 mcg	9.00%
Manganese	0.2 mg	8.00%
Niacin	1.5 mg	7.00%
Dietary Fiber	3.1 g	13.00%

There are several studies that show how key nutrients in bells peppers also posses strong anti-cancer benefits. Especially as it applies to prostate, breast, and lung cancer.

Two of these nutrients are lycopene and vitamin E. In a Dutch study done on mice with human prostate cancer, those that were feed both lycopene and vitamin E experienced a 73% reduction on tumor growth. It’s important to note that when these two nutrients were give separately there was no effect of tumor size. This means that it is the synergistic combination of these two nutrients that are key to the potential health benefits of bell peppers.

Another key ingredient in bell peppers is called apigenin. For women who use hormone replacement therapy, there is an increased risk for breast cancer. Apigenin seams to help reduce this increased risk for breast cancer.

As it applies to lung cancer, there is a French study of 519,000 people that showed a strong correlation between vitamin B6 and lung cancer risk. For those with the highest plasma levels of vitamin B6 there was a 56% reduction in the risk for lung cancer.

Cardiovascular Benefits

Most of the medical community targets LDL cholesterol as bad for you. Unfortunately this is not the complete picture. What is bad for you is oxidized LDL cholesterol.

Oxidized LDL cholesterol is now clearly associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease. And the reason why is oxidized LDL cholesterol leads to plaque formation, which leads to atherosclerosis.

Contained in bell peppers are quercetin and luteolin. In a Japanese study of ten flavonoids, they found that luteolin ranked first and quercetin ranked fourth in their ability to inhibit LDL oxidation.

Folate is also a key ingredient in reducing the risk for heart attacks. In the Kuopio Ischemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study of 1,980 men, they found that those with the highest folate intake were 55% less likely to have a heart attack when compared to those with minimal intake of this nutrient.

Diabetes Protection

According to the journal Diabetes Care, those that consume less than 20 grams of dietary fiber per day had a significant increase in type 2 diabetes. As you can see from the table above one cup of bell peppers has 3.1 grams of dietary fiber. By itself this is not enough but when combined with other good dietary fiber sources, it can be a significant help in diabetes protection.

Especially when you factor in the antioxidants vitamin E and cryptoxanthin, which are both found in bell peppers. In a Finland study of 4,000 people those that had a diet rich in vitamin E had a 31% decreased risk for type 2 diabetes. And for those whose diet was rich in cryptoxanthin at was a 42% lower risk for this disease.

Eye Health

There are two key carotenoids that have been associated with protection from cataracts and age-related macular degeneration. They are lutein and zeaxanthin. Both of these nutrients are found in bell pepper.

The British Journal of Nutrition published a study of 1,600 men and women. This study showed that those who had a higher intake of both lutein and zeaxanthin had a lower risk for cataracts.

And in a study done at the University of Sydney, when these two dietary nutrients were combined there was a 65% reduction in age-related macular degeneration.

Conclusion for the Health Benefits of Bell Peppers

Bell peppers are a key food that can be added to your food plate. They come in several colors from green to red to orange. They contain a power combination of vitamins, carotenoids, antioxidants, and fiber that can be a power tool in reducing your risk for cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and inflammation. As well as helping to protect your eyes.

Blessing Lives Through Nitric Oxide Therapy!

Dan Hammer

Health Benefits of Fiber

Posted by Dan Hammer //

04/08/2019

Earlier this year the health benefits of fiber became more than just a talking point when the results of the World Health Organization (WHO) released their study in The Lancet.

This study was a meta-analysis of 40 years’ worth of research on the health benefits of fiber. Specifically it was an attempt to determine the ideal amount of fiber you need to consume daily to prevent chronic disease and premature death.

The chronic diseases were:

Cardiovascular Disease

Cancer

Chronic Respiratory Diseases

Diabetes

This study included 185 observational studies that accounted for 135 million person-years as well as 58 clinical trials that recruited over 4600 people. And the result was this:

Daily Intake of 25 – 29 Grams of Fiber is Ideal

The researchers found the following statistical advantage to those who consumed this level of fiber on a daily basis:

15 – 30% less likely to die prematurely from any cause or a cardiovascular condition
16 – 24% lower incidence of coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and colon cancer.

So how does this ideal daily intake of 25 -29 grams of fiber compare to the average American adult?

Well, here in America the average adult consumes 15 grams of fiber daily. This is about 40 to 48% less than the ideal about of fiber.

Professor Jim Mann, the lead author of the study, made this comment,

“Our findings provide convincing evidence for nutrition guidelines to focus on increasing dietary fiber and on replacing refined grains with whole grains. This reduces incidence risk and mortality from a broad range of important diseases.”

Health Benefits of Fiber – The Basics

Dietary fiber is found only in plant foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole-grain breads and cereals, nuts, and legumes (dried beans, lentils and peas). Although there are several forms of fiber, they are usually classified into two groups:

Soluble fiber can dissolve in water to form a gel-like substance in the digestive tract. This soluble fiber is beneficial in lowering the “BAD” cholesterol. Clinical studies have shown that diets containing 10 to 25 grams of soluble fiber per day can lower LDL cholesterol by 18%. Sources of good soluble fiber include oats, peas, beans, apples, and citrus fruits. Typically one serving of any of these foods will provide about one to three grams of soluble fiber.
Insoluble fiber cannot dissolve in water so it passes through the digestive tract relatively unchanged. This insoluble fiber helps to make your stools softer and bulkier and speeds elimination. Sources of insoluble fiber would include whole-grain foods, wheat bran, most vegetables and fruit with skin.

Typically, canned and frozen fruits and vegetables contain just as much fiber as raw ones. However, some types of refining processes may reduce the fiber content.

Current food labeling requires the amount of dietary fiber to be listed. It’s listed just below the “Total Carbohydrate” portion of the Nutrition Facts section of the product label. For a manufacturer to make fiber claims it must meet the following guidelines:

High Fiber: 5 grams or more per serving

Good Source of Fiber: 2.5 – 4.9 grams per serving

More or Added Fiber: At least 2.5 grams more per serving than the reference food

Health Benefits of Fiber – According to the Mayo Clinic

The Mayo Clinic has a healthy amount of material as it regards the health benefits of fiber. Here is their list:

Normalizes Bowel Movements
Helps Maintain Bowel Health
Lowers Cholesterol Levels
Helps Control Blood Sugar Levels
Aids in Achieving Healthy Weight
Helps You Live Longer

They especially note that increasing your dietary fiber intake “is associated with a reduced risk of dying from cardiovascular disease and all cancers.”

Now if you want to take steps to increase your fiber intake, then I would suggest reading my blog post titled “Fiber Intake and Cholesterol Reduction Part 2” as it contains 3 simple steps to increasing your fiber intake.

Your goal is to make sure you’re consuming 25 – 29 grams of fiber each day. If you do, then you can enjoy the health benefits of fiber while decreasing your risk for cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes.

Blessing Lives Through Nitric Oxide Therapy!

Dan Hammer

Damaging Effects of Sugar

Posted by Dan Hammer //

12/01/2018

This blog post is all about the damaging effects of sugar. Most people acknowledge that too much sugar is bad for you. Unfortunately most people don’t understand the following:

How much sugar they consume each day!

How the damaging effects of sugar are slowly and consistently compromising their health!

Let’s look at the first question to help you understand how much sugar you consume each day.

When I tell people that the average American is consuming a 4 pound bag of sugar every 2 to 3 weeks, the reaction I get is:

“No Way!”

Well, I produced a video 7 years ago titled “A Simple Dietary Change” that helps you understand how much sugar you consume each day. The information that I shared back then is still true today.

At minimum, watch the first 5 minutes to see how 4 foods items, that many people consume each day, are causing them to consume a 4 pound bag of sugar every 2 to 3 weeks. Read More →

Nitric Oxide Therapy Videos

Posted by Dan Hammer //

01/22/2018

To help you understand the power of nitric oxide therapy I’ve updated my nitric oxide therapy videos on YouTube. These videos focus on the Master Signaling Molecule of your entire cardiovascular system.

What the medical community has labeled “The Miracle Molecule” because of how it can naturally improve your cardiovascular health to prevent strokes and heart attacks.

Below you will find the following nitric oxide therapy videos and how this miracle molecule naturally addresses:

High Blood Pressure
Diabetic Complications
Cognitive Function
Sexual Function
Wound Healing
Cardiovascular Health for Black Americans
Athletic Performance

If you find these videos helpful, then please share them with others.