Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
ORGANIC, GMO/NON-GMO, CONVENTIONAL~ UNDERSTANDING THESE DIETARY TERMS By: Allie Might, FMC, INHC, ATT There are so many different terms when deciding what to eat that it can be confusing. There are also many different opinions on what is good for you and what to …
From A Naturopaths Point of View Part 3 Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND Self-diagnosis? One of the most integral parts of a consult with an Invite nutritionist t is knowing exactly what is going on in your body. In other words it’s important to see …
Alcar with ALA Capsules
Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND
One of the most popular products here at Invite Health has always been our Alcar with ALA formula. If you have been using Invite’s Alcar with ALA you may notice some changes to it! Now the first change that you may notice is that it went from a tablet form to a capsule form. But why have we made this change? Well to start with Alcar with ALA has always been what most would consider to be a very large tablet. This can be difficult for anyone who has trouble with large pills. I know many people either cut the tablets or even crush them. However both of these in my experience can be a pain to do all the time. Most people will tell us that they find capsules easier to swallow. From my personal experience, as a person who has trouble swallowing pill in general capsules are easier to swallow than tablets. In addition to being easier to swallow capsules have no medicinal taste. This is especially noticeable if you have trouble with the large size of the tablets and try to cut them in half. Another benefit to having capsules rather than tablets is the rate of absorption. In general capsules are easier to breakdown and even digest. This means that they tend to “go to work” faster than tablets and you see the benefits faster. Since capsules can have a better bioavailability than tablets this basically means more of the medicine enters your blood stream. This means they have more of an effect than tablets. (1) Another benefit is that Alcar with ALA in capsules can be taken with or without food. As a person who loves to snack not having to worry about having an empty stomach is just the icing on the cake!
Another benefit is that tablets are more likely to irritate the gastrointestinal tract. This means that capsules are better for anyone with a sensitive stomach. Another possible concern with tablets is that they are more likely to breakdown inconstantly. This can decrease the medicines effectiveness and absorption. This is more likely to occur in tablets and is thus a benefit to using capsules. Capsules are also harder to split and are considered more tamper resistant than tablets. (2)
In addition to the change in format you may notice a change in the number of capsules. Rather than the usual 60 tablets there are now 120 capsules in a bottle! This because capsules in general can’t fit as much as a tablet. If you compare the tablets and capsules you will find that 2 capsules is the same as 1 tablet. So if you were doing 2 tablets a day you would do 3 or 4 of the capsules a day. (1)
What are the benefits of Alcar with ALA? Well the benefits to using Alcar with ALA in capsules are the same as the tablets! So feel free to take o look at our blogs on Alcar with ALA!
So how do you use Alcar with ALA? Well to start with you can take it at any time with food or on an empty stomach! You can also mix it into recipes! For example you can make Memory in a cup! This is a fantastic hot chocolate idea. You heat 1 cup of milk of choice and add 1 – 2 scoops of Cocoa Hx. Then open 2 Alcar with ALA and mix! Feel free to top with Marshmallows.
Our next topic will be a Naturopath’s view on “self-diagnosis” and why it’s not always a good idea.
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From a Naturopaths Point of View Part 2 Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND Third Party Consultations One of the things we almost always mention is how you can call Invite for a consultation with a qualified nutritionist. You can even go to the website and …
From a Naturopathic Point of View
Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND
Throughout this series I will be reviewing certain health topics that I find tend to be the least well understood. I especially want to focus on a holistic point of view. The fist topic that I want to address starts simply with 1 word, control. What in the world do I mean by that? Well one of the most important things you can do for your overall health is to keep control of any chronic disease that you may have.
One example of a chronic disease that it is important to keep control of is diabetes. In my clinical experience having diabetes that is not well controlled is one of the biggest risk factors for complications. I’m going to be rather blunt here but honest. If you’re having complications from uncontrolled diabetes you have to address the underlying cause, the uncontrolled diabetes to really see results. For example a common complication of diabetes is neuropathy. To really control neuropathy it is critical that blood sugar be controlled. One way I describe the situation is as follows. If you have neuropathy with uncontrolled diabetes it’s like trying to fill a bucket that has a small hole in it. You may make some progress but until you fix the hole it will never be filled. In this case until you get the blood sugar controlled there is a limit to how much progress you can have with the symptoms of neuropathy. There are many possible complications to having diabetes. The most common complications include heart disease, kidney disease and neuropathy. Additionally complications can include diabetic retinopathy or damage to the eyes. Type 2 diabetes can also increase the risk of dementia and depression. Having trouble with hearing is also more common in diabetics. Lastly diabetes can also affect our skin and mouth. Unfortunately the less controlled your blood sugar the higher the risk of these complications. How do you know if your diabetes is well controlled? One of the best things you can do is to do any blood tests your doctor may recommend. For example A1C is a common test used to monitor your blood sugar. (1)
Another chronic disease that can have dangerous complications if not well controlled is blood pressure. There’s a good reason why high blood pressure is called the silent killer. Uncontrolled blood pressure is frankly very dangerous. It is often asymptomatic. Having uncontrolled blood pressure is a huge risk for a heart attack or stroke. (2) If you have high blood pressure it is imperative that you listen to any recommendations form your doctor. While I understand the concerns that medications can generate having uncontrolled blood pressure can cause complications that are life changing. I am not going to sugar coat this. Having a heart attack or stroke can lead to life changing complications that often times permanently change your life due to the damage that results.
Another concern that people seem to brush off is cholesterol. For some reason lately there’s been a rumor that having high cholesterol isn’t all that bad or dangerous. However this is not the case. Having high cholesterol greatly increases your risk of heart attack or stroke. (3)
Overall in my Clinical experience having uncontrolled diabetes, blood pressure and cholesterol all increase the risk of very dangerous complications. So what can you do? Well it’s important to talk to your doctor and ask an Invite Nutritionist if the following are right for you:
Our next product highlight will be Gluco Hx!
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