Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
Daily Detox- The Power to Cleanse your Cells Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND Anyone who knows me can tell you how much I like Invite Health powders! In this blog I will be talking about one of my absolute favorites, Daily Detox powder! This powder is …
PRIMARY FOOD, LIFESTYLE AND OUR HEALTH~HEALTH By: Allie Might, FMC, INHC, ATT HEALTH seems like a no brainer when discussing wellness and lifestyle. However, what does it really mean? Let’s break this down and I’ll go over what this means to me as it …
PRIMARY FOOD, LIFESTYLE AND OUR HEALTH~SOCIAL LIFE
By: Allie Might, FMC, INHC, ATT
Many people don’t think of having a social life as being part of a healthy lifestyle. I didn’t either for a long time. However, like many of us, my mind was changed during the COVID pandemic and lock down. I can to realize how much I missed being out and interacting with old and new friends alike. So, is the idea of a social life a product of COVID, or is it really a wellness essential?
Believe it or not, socializing or having an active social life, is not only an important part of one heath, but it’s also been the subject of studies in support of this theory. Social interactions have been shown to be helpful in supporting our cognitive functions. An article from Harvard Health Publishing/Harvard Medical School titled ‘Get Back Your Social Life to Boost Thinking, Memory and Health’ discusses how any form of socializing can decrease risk of cognitive decline and improve memory. It can also help to lower the risk of depression. It seems as though it doesn’t matter the type of socializing you partake in, as long as there is some form that you enjoy. As humans, we are social by nature, so we can have a natural craving and need for socialization. It can be as simple as a weekly call with a friend, a monthly meal “date”, a shopping trip or a ball game. Some feel more comfortable in more group social gatherings as parties, BBQs, picnics or happy hours. These can be one-on-one, small groups, community activities or even volunteer work. Find your comfort level and make it part of your monthly routine. How will you make socialization a priority in your wellness plan?
I can tell you from person experience that I never realized how important socialization was to my own well-being until the COVID pandemic hit and caused lengthy shutdowns. I always felt fortunate being an “essential worker” which allowed me to get out of my home, go to work and be around people, even though we were following social distancing guidelines. I even had standing weekly get-together with a friend, still following guidelines, when we sat outside, got fresh air, had something to drink or a snack (at our usual place we licked to visit) and took the time to chat and check in with each other. This was important to us because we always did this and we found that finding a way to keep this routine helped keep things as normal as possible. I often said that this helped me to have “sanity” during such a difficult, stressful and uncertain time. Little did I know that this has actually been shown to be essential?
There are a couple of nutrients that I like to help aid in keeping healthy when increasing social activities. I have always found that adding B-vitamins and supporting the immune system is always important.
B-COMPLEX 100 can be an absolute must-have for many people that have an active social life. One of the things that can often be part of socializing is the incorporation of cocktails. Whether you are someone who only drinks on occasion or someone who is a little more experienced, it can sometimes be easy to over indulge, especially when conversing with friends. The consumption of alcohol can often contribute to some dehydration, as well as deplete the B-vitamins in the body. The result of these deletions is often the “hangover” feeling that some may experience.
IMMUNITY HX is a formula which contains a combination of Vitamin C, Vitamin D and Zinc. While most people are familiar with Vitamin C and Zinc for the immune system, they are often surprised having Vitamin D also recommended. This is because Vitamin D helps to regulate the immune system for proper and health function.
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-clinic-minute-the-benefits-of-being-socially-connected/
www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/get-back-your-social-life-to-boost-thinking-memory-and-health
www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/social-life?msockid=102ffcee009769fa30f8f11d011f685e
www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/7-steps-to-cure-your-hangover
www.buoyhealth.com/health/best-hangover-vitamins
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7281985
Deep Dive into Fatty Liver Disease: NAFLD and NASH Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND One of the most common concerns that people call about is fatty liver. Since NASH is a progression, or worsening of NAFLD I wanted to talk about them both in one …
Glutathione-The Antioxidant for Liver Health Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND Glutathione drips or in other words IV glutathione is a well-known treatment in holistic medicine. However many people are afraid of needles. Invite Health’s Glutathione Lozenges are an easy to use form of glutathione. You may …
Liver Function Tests
Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND
The Liver Basics!
As an Invite health nutritionist one of the most important parts of my job is to help people understand their blood work. In general I find that when it comes to blood work liver function tests tend to be some of the most confusing. But just what are the markers on your blood work that test for liver health? In other words what even is a liver function test? Well let’s get into this important topic, shall we?
Liver function’s tests are tests that are used to help monitor the health and function of the liver. The first test is ALT. This is an enzyme that is found in the liver. When the liver cell is damaged this enzyme is released and blood levels will increase. Another enzyme that is found in the liver is AST. AST is also found in muscle cells. If the levels are elevated it can indicate possible damage to either the liver or muscles. ALP is an enzyme found in both the liver and bones. If it is elevated in the blood it may indicate liver damage or disease. It may also indicate bone disease. In addition to testing enzymes that are active in the liver the liver blood tests also look at enzymes that are made by the liver. For example Albumin is a protein that helps to fight infection. Lower levels of albumin and even total protein may mean your liver isn’t healthy enough to produce them. Another job of the liver is to process Bilirubin. Normally this is passed through the liver and excreted in the stool. In certain types of liver disease this process is disrupted and bilirubin levels can increase in the blood. PT is a marker of how fast your blood is able to clot. Increased PT can indicate liver damage. However I just want to mention that certain medications can affect PT. Other tests can include GGT and LD. (1)
In addition to blood tests there are certain imaging tests that can help look for liver damage or disease. Imaging tests can include ultrasounds, CT scans or even getting an MRI. One test that can be important in monitoring liver health is a liver biopsy. (2)
These liver function tests may be abnormal for a number of reasons. For example you may have a virus, tumor, diabetes or other liver disease. (2) Throughout this series will be reviewing a number of these conditions. For example we will be reviewing disorders such as NASH, NAFLD, cirrhosis, and even hepatitis. We will also be talking about the gall bladder since it is so closely linked to the liver. Additionally in this series will be talking about how and when to detox. Lastly we will be talking about another important organ, our kidneys!
But what does the liver even do for our health? Well the liver has a number of important jobs. I’ve attached a picture detailing all the functions of the liver! Please take a look the attached picture. (3)
Since the liver is important for so many aspects of our overall health there are many studies on supplements that can help with liver health and function. Throughout this series we will be reviewing many of these nutrients. These nutrients include NAC (4), Milk Thistle (5), Dandelion (6), and even Catalase. (7) Other supplements that help fight infections that will be included will be nutrients such as Olive Leaf (8) and even Probiotics! (9) All of these important nutrients are available from Invite Health. I hope you find this topic as important as I do.
Our product highlight will be Glutathione lozenges!
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