Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
RSV-Respiratory Syncytial Virus Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND Cold and flu season may be a common topic of conversation however there is another virus that is a hot topic at this time of year. That is RSV. What even is RSV? Why is it important to …
Cold and Flu Season is Here Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND If you have noticed that it seems like everyone around you, you are coughing or sneezing it’s not just your imagination! Cold and flu season has arrived. What can you do to boost your immunity? …
Blood Sugar 101
By: Noreen Kodula, Certified Natural Health Professional (CNHP)
Blood sugar, also known as blood glucose, is the amount of simple sugar moving through your body at any given time. The main form of energy that your body uses is glucose. Everything that you eat will break down into glucose for your body to utilize. Other forms of glucose are fructose, lactose, sucrose, and starch. Fats and proteins can also be broken down to glucose, via gluconeogenesis. This is the body’s way of breaking down whatever you eat into an energy source it can use.
Our bodies need a continuous supply of glucose in our blood to carry out basic functions. Too little glucose (hypoglycemia) or too much glucose (hyperglycemia) can cause issues in the body. Once inside your body, your blood delivers glucose to all your tissues and stores the excess as glycogen/fat in the liver and muscle tissue. A specific range of glucose needs to always be in your blood for your body to function normally.
The pancreas releases two hormones, glucagon and insulin, to help to balance the blood sugar in your body.
The normal range for fasting blood sugar (when you have not eaten) is between 70mg/dL and 100mg/dL. One is considered pre-diabetic if your fasting blood sugar is between 100mg/dL and 125mg/dL. When your fasting blood sugar is above 126mg/dL on two or more separate tests, you will be likely be classified as diabetic.
Too much or too little glucose in your blood can cause issues. Hypoglycemia can be caused by not eating enough, drinking alcohol on an empty stomach, taking certain medications, or being more active than usual. Symptoms of hypoglycemia are dizziness, sweating, confusion, and fainting.
Hyperglycemia can be caused by overeating carbohydrates or sugars, dehydration, being sedentary, certain medications, illness, and stress. It is more common in conditions that affect insulin regulation like diabetes. Symptoms of hyperglycemia are excessive thirst, frequent urination, fatigue, and blurred vision.
The two primary forms of diabetes are classified according to how they impact blood sugar regulation.
Maintaining blood sugar in the normal range helps prevent complications associated with diabetes and other health conditions. Eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, getting regular physical activity, and taking supplements that may help reduce blood sugar levels and other complications linked to diabetes. Please refer to the list of supplements below for blood sugar support:
Our Gluco Hx is a combination formula, containing many of the above nutrients. Our C-Betics also has ingredients that studies show help with blood sugar regulation. Other tips include:
Overall, you can control your blood sugar through regular monitoring, diet, exercise and supplements to help prevent complications and promote overall well-being.
References:
Blood Sugar Level Chart: What’s Normal, Low, and High?
Blood Sugar: What It Is and How It Works
Manage Blood Sugar | Diabetes | CDC
Diabetes: What It Is, Causes, Symptoms, Treatment & Types
A scientific review: the role of chromium in insulin resistance – PubMed
Noreen Kodula, Certified Natural Health Professional (CNHP) 
Managing Diabetes during the Holidays Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND Managing diabetes during the holiday time may seem to be an insurmountable task. But with a little twist to some classic recipes and a little help from classic invite supplements, eating healthy during the holiday is …
Thyroid and Women’s Health Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND Thyroid health is important for our overall wellbeing. But did you know that it can also affect women’s health concerns? In general women are more likely to be diagnosed with thyroid issues. In fact, up to …
Thyroid Health and the Adrenal Glands
Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND
When it comes to holistic health care 2 of the most common things to talk about are thyroid health and adrenal health. What is interesting about these 2 topics is that they are more closely related than you may expect! But just how do these 2 organs that aren’t close to each other in the body affect each other? Let us get into it, shall we?
Let us start at the very beginning. What are the adrenal glands? Well in a nutshell they are small glands on the top of the kidneys that produce hormones. They look like little hats that live on top of the kidneys. They produce mineralocorticoids for example aldosterone which can control blood pressure, glucocorticoids predominately cortisol which is the hormone in charge of our flight or fight response, and adrenal androgen such as DHEA and testosterone and estrogen. What does all this mean? Well to sum it up the adrenal glands are in charge of our blood pressure, sodium balance in the body, water balance in the body as well as the body’s response to stress or illness. If any of your body’s systems are not working up to par the body sees that as stress and the adrenals will react by making cortisol. The adrenals are also in charge of regulating metabolism for example weight as well as fat metabolism and glucose regulation and even sleep regulation. In fact, when the adrenals are signaled to produce more cortisol (which given it is the main hormone associated with stress it is the main hormone I will talk about) the symptoms include fatigue with a difficulty staying asleep. This can lead to feelings of anxiety as well as weight gain and higher than normal blood pressure. (1)
How does this relate to thyroid? One of the problems with having too much cortisol produced by the adrenals is that they affect the thyroid itself. Cortisol can cause the conversion of T3 from T4 to be reduced hence increasing the likelihood of hypothyroid symptoms! (2) This may be one reason when we see clients with what is called adrenal fatigue, we often are also working with them to address hypothyroid symptoms. Interestingly, in cases of long-term thyroid dysfunction there is also adrenal dysfunction. Now you might say “I know I just read that” but what I mean is that the adrenals can affect the thyroid, but the thyroid can affect the adrenals long term. How is that possible? Because the adrenals will often try and compensate for the reduced thyroid hormones. To produce energy, they will produce cortisol. However, eventually this can cause adrenal fatigue. What exactly is adrenal fatigue? In the normal process your body will produce cortisol in the morning to wake you up, a small amount in the afternoon to keep you going and none at night so you can sleep. When you are under stress the adrenals are constantly forced to produce cortisol. This leads to the adrenals becoming unregulated or fatigued. One such issue is that they produce cortisol at night rather than in the morning. They also tend to produce either too much cortisol or not enough. Symptoms of adrenal fatigue can include trouble with brain fog, sleeping/fatigue, headaches, and digestive issues, changes in weight, and anxiety, brain fog, depression and even joint pain, PMS, Low/High blood pressure, salt cravings, blood sugar fluctuations, sensitivity to cold, infertility and reduced immunity. (3, 4)
What can you do?
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