Beating back the creeping crud

Well, it's that time of year. The central heat is on, the sinuses are getting dried out and irritated, the cold air is upon us, and the germs are moving in and taking up residence in those poor mucus membranes.

For the first time in years, I have bronchitis. And why do I think I got sick? Well for starters, just last Wednesday I was boasting about how I never even catch a cold anymore- not in several years. Never do that.

Seriously though, what causes people to fall ill with a cold, or bronchitis, or the flu- anything contagious is the combination of these 2 factors:

1) exposure
2) susceptibility

We can only control #1 to some degree. Unlike the Japanese, people in the US don't wear a face mask when they are ill. And we certainly don't stay home. We go to work and "power through," which sadly just makes the illness last longer. And spreads it to everyone around us. And if someone in your house is ill, it's pretty hard to not be exposed to it. And do you ever think about the fact that you've never seen anyone in a train station or an airport clean things like door knobs and chair handles, which are touched by hundreds of people daily? Yeah, we're going to get exposed to germs. And that's all part of keeping the immune system awake and useful.

But susceptibility, there's something we have some power over. Our daily habits make us weaker or stronger. What we eat, how much we sleep, whether we get enough water and fiber and vitamins, how happy we are, whether we get sufficient exercise.

I actually felt the sore throat coming on last week, but I "powered through" because I had things to do, such as rehearsing for several gigs this week. Now, sadly, I'm canceling those gigs because I'm SICK... because I didn't rest when I knew I should, and I went out in the cold, damp weather multiple times with a sore throat. Stupid. But I own up to my part in this- I've been overworking for 2 years now, hardly ever taking a day off, and that, my friends, was dumb. I made myself very susceptible. In fact I'm lucky it took this long for me to end up with bronchitis.

So, I'd like to share with you what I'm doing to kick it.

1. Ear oil. Make your own ear oil: http://tinyurl.com/5cjbfo
2. Umcka. homeopathic cold cure. i started it last week but forgot to take it Saturday because I was too busy" gigging. This stuff usually works really well for me- if I feel something coming on, I start taking it, and it never becomes a full-blown anything.
3. echinacea
4. vitamin C
5. rest
6. water
7. raw garlic
8. cold-eeze (zinc)

We'll see how fast I can lick this. Meanwhile, the most important lesson I take from this experience is this: If you have to pee, and you also have to blow your nose, pee first. Trust me on that one.

{12/16/11 update: it only took me 3 days to get back on my feet- shortest bout of bronchitis I've ever had! I don't know whether to thank the Umcka or the ear oil, but it's one or both of these, because the other things in my list have always been there before, and those bouts of bronchitis always lasted 10-14 days. I'm back! If I had to get "normal people" sick (as in "just" bronchitis), at least it didn't last- and it didn't make my lungs close up like it did 8 years ago. Onward! We now return you to our regular postings about gum, gluten, and other random topics.}

Carla Ulbrich, The Singing Patient

www.thesingingpatient.com

www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich- funny medical songs

http://tinyurl.com/348hroc - Carla's book

Gum

My gum-chewing days are essentially over. And while that will probably save me from getting TMJ, I do miss having something to chomp on in place of dessert, or while I'm concentrating on writing, literally chewing on an idea. And especially on an airplane, popping my ears.

But I chew gum no more, because I can't find gum that does not contain nutrasweet.

What's wrong with nutrasweet. Let me get the list. Literally.

According to http://www.ethicalinvesting.com/monsanto/aspartame.shtml ,
some of the symptoms of aspartame poisoning include:

Headaches/Migraines, Dizziness, Seizures, Nausea, Numbness, Muscle spasms, Weight gain, Rashes, Depression, Fatigue, Irritability, Tachycardia, Insomnia, Vision Problems, Hearing Loss, Heart palpitations, Breathing difficulties, Anxiety attacks, Slurred Speech, Loss of taste, Tinnitus, Vertigo, Memory loss, Joint Pain. 

 Furthermore, it is implicated in worsening or even triggering these conditions:

Brain tumors, Arthritis, Multiple sclerosis, Epilepsy, Chronic faigue syndrome, Parkinson's Disease, Alzheimer's Disease, Mental retardation, Lymphoma, Birth defects, Fibromyalgia, Diabetes, Thyroid Disorders.

Every single one of these contains nutrasweet. Well, OK, not the batteries.

Nutrasweet, which I used to parttake of daily (mostly in the form of Diet Coke, but also gum), is an excitotoxin, and anyone with autoimmune issues should avoid all excitotoxins. In fact, everyone should avoid them, but those of us with a diagnosis of something serious will be especially better off if we keep them out of our diet.

On the day we finally see a "wanted" poster in the post office for aspartame, underneath its photo will be these known aliases: Nutrasweet, Amino Sweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Sweet One. Like a wanted murderer, perhaps they are changing the name again to avoid the bad press that nutrasweet is getting. This "food" should never have been allowed into the food supply, but if you've got deep pockets and know the right people, I do believe you can get the FDA to approve cyanide as safe for infant formula.

Don't just take my word for it. Read some of the many articles on wellsphere.com about aspartame poisoning:
http://www.wellsphere.com/wellpage/aspartame-banned

Or read this webpage:
http://sweetpoison.com/

Or this one:
http://www.naturalnews.com/034320_aspartame_sweetener_side_effects.html

Don't count on the government to protect you from unsafe foods. Take on that responsibility yourself. And if you're looking for hidden nutrasweet in food, just know this- if the label says "attention phenylketonurics: contains phenylalanine" then it contains nutrasweet. And for me, that means it's not going in my mouth.

Nutrasweet for me means migraines and/ or diarrhea. Yeah, I just typed that publicly. I get diarrhea. TMI! Well, I don't, now. Because I don't poison myself anymore with soda and gum containing nutrasweet. I accidentally ate some nutrasweet recently when I bought some *regular* lifesavers (*not* sugarfree). I ate 3, then- 100-yard dash to the bathroom! WTH? The only unusual thing I had eaten that day was lifesavers. So, I went and read the package, and even though they were *not* sugar-free, they contained nutrasweet.

Why would they do that? Because nutrasweet is 16 times sweeter than sugar, and cheaper to manufacture. So, they can use less sugar and increase their profits.

Apparently, nutrasweet (aspartame) is also an effective preservative, which I assume is why they use it in that stuff they give people before a colonoscopy, and in prescriptions like cellcept. (Which may be why I couldn't tolerate high doses of cellcept. Boy was I mad when I read the pamphlet and saw nutrasweet in the ingredient list- I gave up Diet Coke, my favorite drink, and I also gave up chewing gum, because of the nutrasweet, and now my prescriptions were sneaking it into my system - and I didn't even get the enjoyment of a gut-rotting fizzy treat?).

 So, if you are avoiding nutrasweet, assume nothing and read all labels. Simply look for the warning (always in bold letters) "attention phenylketonurics: contains phenylalanine." If you're looking for a gum without nutrasweet, I'll save you some time: there isn't any. It ALL has nutrasweet in it, unless you go find some natural gum at the health food store (like "Glee" gum).

Looks innocent, right? Big Red! I chewed that as a kid, nothing but sugar and whatever gum is made of (rubber?).

Not health food by any stretch, but also not something that was going to cause migraines and diarrhea. (Oh, that's that word again. How many times can I put that disgusting thought into one article? Hopefully as many as it takes to  make nutrasweet seem like the non-food that it is).
And now, chew on this (actually, don't chew on this):

Always read the label!

Read the labels and if you're having health problems, consider eliminating this "food" from your diet.

Well wishes, my friends.

Carla Ubrich, The Singing Patient and Health Coach

www.thesingingpatient.com

www.bestpossibleme.com - health coaching- visit this site to get a free e book on nutrition!

www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich- funny medical songs

http://tinyurl.com/348hroc - Carla's book

Inflammation

Inflammation. It is the hallmark of many diseases (perhaps *all* diseases), including lupus.

We have an epidemic of inflammation in this country, and it's killing us. There is a direct link between inflammation and obesity, inflammation and cancer, inflammation and diabetes, inflammation and lupus, and certainly inflammation and pain.

From what I can tell, anything with the suffix "itis" is inflammation.
bronchitis= inflammation of the bronchial tubes
nephritis= inflammation of the kidneys
pancreatitis= inflammation of the pancreas.
Etc., etc. etc.

So what causes inflammation and how can we get rid of it?

Inflammation is like a fire. There is always heat associated with inflammation. It can range from simmering smoldering embers to a full-on 4-alarm blaze. When I've experienced joint swelling and pain from lupus, those joints are always hot, like they are literally burning. The fire, or irritation, is "the bringing of a bodily part or organ to an abnormally excited or sensitive condition." And what would cause this- what would ignite such an internal fire in a human body? The human body is inflamed by stress, toxins, allergens, and food additives.

To reduce inflammation, we can use 2 approaches: 

1. stop feeding the fire. Remove the offending irritants by reducing stress, identifying and removing allergens and toxins, and avoiding processed foods.
2. douse the fire with anti-inflammatory substances. This includes either:

• drugs (anti-inflammatory drugs, which include NSAIDs - nonsteroidal inflammatory drugs such as Advil, Aleve, aspirin, etc. as well as more heavy duty anti-inflammatories, such as corticosteroids and chemotherapy).
• more natural means. and we have 2 choices here:

1. eat an anti-inflammatory diet. This would involve no sugar, no dairy, little meat, few grains, lots of vegetables.
2. take supplements. Specifically fish oil. More specifically, high-grade pharmaceutical, clean fish oil, such as Barlean's, every single day.

Approach #1 (stop feeding the fire) is a great first step for anyone and everyone, and for some people might be enough- especially if they learn of food allergies and sensitivities and take those foods out of their diet. For example, if you learn you have Celiac disease and remove all gluten (and for some people, dairy as well), you will have no more Celiac problems. Do what you can to remove toxins from your environment and allergens and "fake foods" from your diet. For me, removing aspartame and MSG meant no more migraines, and removing gluten meant no more joint pain, and much better digestion.

Other folks, especially those with chronic inflammation, will need to do more. So which of these options is best?

The problem with taking anti-inflammatory drugs long-term is that these drugs, though effective at relieving pain, are hazardous to your health. An anti-inflammatory diet is a wonderful choice, though it can be hard to implement at times (especially when eating out). In general, I believe everyone should try to move their diet towards being less inflammatory. Less sugar, less meat, no artificial sweeteners, lots more veggies.

One thing I believe we can all do every day is to take high-grade fish oil daily. Douse the inflammation. Put out the fire! My current favorite brand is Barlean's. It was recommended to me by an MD. He believes anyone with lupus should take fish oil daily. So do I.

If you or someone you know would like to talk to me about reaching your health goals, send me an email. I am a holistic health coach. E mail me for a free one-hour health consultation, whether it's about implementing an anti-inflammatory diet, losing a few pounds, or finding life balance- anyone who wants to achieve their health goals, big or small- e mail me at carla@thesingingpatient.com .

'til next time, be well, my little fishies!

Carla

Carla Ubrich, The Singing Patient and Health Coach

www.thesingingpatient.com

www.bestpossibleme.com - health coaching- visit this site to get a free e book on nutrition!

www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich- funny medical songs

http://tinyurl.com/348hroc - Carla's book

a breath of not so fresh air

Hello faithful readers!

Today's topic: fresh air.
I just returned from a music conference where a friend of mine (Angela) is fighting an uphill battle to make people aware of MCS (Multiple chemical sensitivity). She has been crippled by it. She lost her job because of mold exposure (at the job!) and, if I remember correctly, she traces her MCS onset to the mold exposure.

I understand it to a small degree, because I have sensitivities to smoke and perfumes, and can end up either sneezing or getting a headache from a short exposure. Her consequences are far more serious. And the reason for her attempts at increasing awareness is not to garner sympathy, but to get people to reduce the amount of chemicals they spray on themselves before going into a confined crowded space to interact with others.

"The right to swing my fist ends where the other man's nose begins." - attributed to Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.   Perhaps, too, your right to perfume the air with toxic chemicals ends where my nose begins.

Every year Angela brings organic healthy liquid soap and lotion and stocks the lobby bathrooms of the hotel with them, to reduce the chemical fragrance load at the conference. Still, in order to participate, she has to wear a gas mask most of the time at the conference (partly because the hotel is a little moldy). Still, small changes like changing the soap and lotion mean that (unlike previous years) she can now occasionally remove the mask and have a conversation.






Much better than the typical nasty pink soap, which i must say, suspiciously resembles (in both color and fragrance) the pink urinal cakes. Not that I use the men's room (except in desperate gas station situations)- but I once had a job cleaning toilets. Yes, the glamorous life of show biz, I know. Well, hey, I could only go up from there.

Where were we? Oh, yes, fragrance. I'm baffled that so many people "freshen" the air in their homes with chemicals- plugins, stickups, sprays, perfumes- I can just feel my lungs closing up. When we were discussing the public overload of cologne and perfume before the conference (often just walking down the street I have to cover my face to avoid inhaling a gallon of cologne-saturated air)- knowing the amount of neurotransmitter interruption caused by these chemicals, it starts to make me miss good old fashioned B.O.  Maybe that's what my dog likes about sniffing another dog's butt- at least it's organic.

OK, maybe we don't want stinky homes- or armpits- but there are plenty of natural non-toxic effective ways to de-stink.

For the pits: Burt's bees or tom's deodorant. As a major bonus, they also do not contain aluminum, which is linked to Alzheimer's. And anti-perspirant may be linked to breast cancer. (Think about it: our bodies want to sweat and we won't allow it? This can't end well.) Here's my favorite:




For the home: house plants clean the air. I've had peace lilies in the living room for years, and I also just got a snake plant, which is commonly used in the bedroom because it gives off lots of oxygen at night.




For the home: Moso bags are charcoal, which absorb toxins. You set them in the sun outdoors for an hour once a month so they can offgas (release) all the toxins. They last for 2 years. 500g size is for one normal sized room.




And for the car (Dear God, if I have to ride in another taxi that smells like a pink-pine-tree-cigarette...): Mosu bags also come in small sizes for the car!



Happy breathing~

Carla Ubrich, The Singing Patient and Health Coach

www.thesingingpatient.com

www.bestpossibleme.com - health coaching

www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich- funny medical songs

http://tinyurl.com/348hroc - Carla's book

Lupus and Diet

Today I spoke/ sang for a support group at the SLE Foundation in NY City. What a great group of people.
Lots of great energy and ideas bouncing around, and I was heartened and inspired by the open-mindedness, strength, willingness and ease of communication. Right near Penn Station, too- really easy to get to!

I've mentioned this before, but I'll mention it again. Support groups for lupus have come a long, long way in 20 years. When I first became ill with lupus, support groups had 2 allowed topics: prednisone and lawyers. Any talk of alternative medicine or emotional stuff was shut down. So happy to say that is no longer the case. I watched today as a patient brought up her concerns about cellcept and placquenil to the rest of us, and we were all able to inform her of our experiences, helping to ease some of her anxiety and sort things out so she could make a decision. Beautiful.

From their wall (if this were a bumper sticker, it would be like "baby on board!"):

Typically when I talk, I tell my story and how humor, creativity, alternative medicine and diet helped me get my health back. When speaking to this group today, the focus was really about how I got to be in a drug-free remission, with all my hair and enough energy to do what I want to do in life. And we talked a LOT about diet. People interjected with comments and questions, which was great- I love an interactive dialogue, versus a monologue (90% of my gigs are a "performance" and all the audience does is clap and occasionally sing along when invited to do so). I learn things too. (For example, I did not know that 1/3 of lupus patients have RA and 1/3 of RA patients have lupus. Explains why the "purple jewelry" charm bracelet I have has both an RA blue ribbon and a purple lupus ribbon).

I was surprised how very interested- not just receptive, but really interested- these patients were in hearing about diet. And that is what we talked about most.

There are 2 diets I've seen out there which both claim to heal/ help/ even cure lupus patients:
Paleo Diet ("caveman" diet that is meat and veggies- and lots of raw food)
Lowfat Raw Vegan (no meat! but all raw food, both fruits and veggies).

Seems confusing- all meat, no meat- what's better?
Perhaps a better question is: what do these 2 effective anti-lupus diets have in common? And from what I can tell, it's a lack of dairy and a lack of grains, particularly gluten. This diet is known as the GFCF diet (gluten free, casein free- a.k.a. dairy free) and has been used effectively with numerous autoimmune diseases and autism.

My hope and dream in going to speak to lupus (and MS and myositis and RA) patients is to one day hear back from some of them that they tried a GFCF  diet, and it helped to reduce or eliminate symptoms, and helped them to reduce or eliminate their need for immune suppressants. And for those who have trouble learnign this diet on their own, I offer reduced rates for patients as a health coach, where I also support and educate people so they can relearn to eat in this somewhat counter-cultural way. It isn't easy at first, but it gets easier after you adjust. And even when it's at its hardest, it's easier than being on prednisone. I have my life back. My desire is to give this gift to others suffering from lupus.

If you or someone you know would like to have a free one-hour health consultation with me, whether it's about gluten-free or not- anyone who wants to achieve their health goals, big or small- please e mail me at healthcoach@bestpossibleme.com .

On another post I'll talk again (I have before) about the other 2 bugaboos I eliminated:
MSG and nutrasweet. Happy trails 'til next posting~

Carla Ubrich, The Singing Patient

www.thesingingpatient.com

www.bestpossibleme.com - health coaching

www.youtube.com/user/carlaulbrich- funny medical songs

get the book! http://tinyurl.com/348hroc