Can’t fall asleep, stay asleep or wake-up refreshed?😩 Addressing “sleep hygiene” is often enough to improve or fully remedy poor sleep. We fall asleep thanks to the pineal gland; a tiny ant-sized lobe near the middle of our skull that secretes a neurotransmitter and hormone called melatonin.🤓 Ideally there should be a steady rise in melatonin and rock-bottom cortisol (our “stress” hormone) at bedtime.😴 But in reality, our lifestyle choices often block these natural pro-sleep chemical shifts.👎🏻 Instead of winding down in the evening, we turn on bright lights, watch TV, send emails, play video games, get on our phones and tablets, finish off our to-do lists, and confuse the heck out of our brain with all of these full-spectrum lights, loud noises and stressful activities.🙃 The pineal gland in our brain produces melatonin as a result of 2 things; plenty of natural sunlight exposure during the day and complete darkness at night! 🌓 The good news is that simple changes can be quite powerful: . ✔️Get at least 15 minutes of sun exposure daily. Eat lunch outdoors.☀️ ✔️No caffeine after 12pm. Caffeine has a half-life of about 5 hours.☕️ ✔️Do more calming activities & dim the lights (i.e. read a book, take a bath, go for a slow walk)🧘♀️ ✔️Get off electronics 1-2 hours before bed. Or as a minimum, switch your screen color to amber or invest in blue-light blocking glasses.😎 ✔️Turn off Wi-Fi before bed and keep all electronic devices at least 3 feet away from bed (i.e. alarm clock)📱 ✔️Use blackout curtains ✔️Cool room temperature🥶 ✔️Use a fan for white noise ✔️Quiet digestion! Have dinner at least 2-3 hours before bed. ✔️Mouth taping.🤭Sounds weird, but breathing through your nose helps increase nitric oxide production in the sinuses which helps improve sleep. Questions/comments?👇🏻Please share ❤️ 
What do headaches, constipation, insomnia, high blood pressure, anxiety, asthma, spasms, muscle cramps, low vitamin D and low energy have in common?🤔 Hint: it starts with ‘Mag’ and ends with ‘Nesium’. (I know – lame joke)🙄 But seriously, we have an epidemic of magnesium deficiency and it’s needed in over a gazillion (yes that’s a real number) functions in the body. Think of magnesium as our most powerful relaxation mineral.🧘♀ It’s the Yin to our Yang so to speak. Our hearts contract, then relax. Our bowels contract and then relax. But thanks to soil erosion and modern-day farming practices, even “healthy” foods have become less nutritious today. Add to that the effects of certain medications and chronic diseases, and an increase in consumption of sugar and processed foods et voila! Magnesium deficiency!👎🏻 What can you do? ✔️For starters, eat more magnesium-rich foods; spinach, swiss chard, beet and turnip greens, pumpkin & sesame seeds, etc. ✔️ Limit or avoid foods that rob your body of magnesium like coffee, sodas, sugar and alcohol. ✔️ Consider magnesium supplements but remember - form matters (see post image & swipe for some sample brand recommendations): 💊For general relaxation, tightness and headaches, I recommend magnesium glycinate. 💊For cramps and spasms, an Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate) bath or magnesium oil sprayed directly onto the affected area can really help too. Warning – it may sting so dilute oil with water if it does. 💊For attention deficit, mood issues & cognitive function, magnesium threonate is better. (Discount code: BERN10) 💊For strong pain & chronic fatigue, magnesium malate can help since malic acid is a key component of several energy-making chemical reactions in the body. 💊Taurine & magnesium combined together have special properties for the heart. 💊Citric acid is a mild laxative, therefore combined with magnesium offers constipation relief in adequate doses. Comments/questions?👇🏻 Please share❤️ 
Who else loves riddles?🙋♀️Here’s a nerdy one for you. What is a common root cause for tiny bumps on the back of arms (keratosis pilaris), acne, weak immunity, hair loss, poor night vision, and low sex hormones? Who guessed Vitamin A insufficiency?🤓 This vitamin is not praised enough in the health world so first, some facts: Vitamin A: ✔️was the first vitamin to be discovered. Hence vitamin “A”💁♀️ ✔️is the name of a group of fat-soluble retinoids ✔️comes in 2 forms from our diet (swipe left for examples): 1️⃣Active vitamin A (aka retinol, which results in retinyl esters) from animal sources like dairy, fish and meat – especially liver!🥩 👉🏻This “preformed” vitamin A can be directly used by the body. 2️⃣Provitamin carotenoids (aka beta-carotene and other mixed carotenes) from plants like sweet potato, spinach, carrots & butternut squash.🌱 👉🏻This type needs to be converted to retinol, the active form, in order to be used by the body. What can cause insufficiency besides a low vitamin A-diet? 📍Poor conversion: Insulin resistance, diabetes and/or hypothyroidism can make it difficult to convert plant-based vitamin A into the active form. 👉🏻Getting in retinol from animal sources or supplementing with the “palmitate” form can help. 📍Zinc deficiency: Once vitamin A is absorbed, it needs a carrier protein RBP (retinol binding protein) made out of zinc to be shuttled to cells. So zinc deficiency = vitamin A deficiency. 📍High dose vitamin D supplementation can deplete vitamin A! 📍Since it is a fat-soluble vitamin, we need good liver/gallbladder health to emulsify & absorb it. Some roles of vitamin A? ✅Epithelial tissue integrity: skin, urinary tract, lungs, GI lining, blood brain barrier ✅Immunity & tissue repair: without it can get chronic infections like UTI’s & slow healing ✅Mucus formation in lungs, sinus cavities & mouth preventing infections ✅Protects eye health ✅Sex hormone formation ✅Thyroid function Out of space!😅 Comments/questions?👇🏻 Please re-share❤️ 
Who is this post for? It’s for the person who wants to: ✔️reduce gluten ✔️reduce grains and flour in their diet ✔️regulate blood sugar levels ✔️add more fiber ✔️add variety and try something different 👉🏻Autoimmunity is becoming epidemic, and avoiding glutenous grains is usually one of the main dietary modifications needed for remission. Why? Because gluten can promote intestinal permeability (aka leaky gut) which is a precursor for all autoimmune disease activation – regardless of the diagnosis!!😮 Those who struggle with chronic depression will also likely benefit from gluten removal as there is evidence that it can mediate changes in brain chemistry. 📍A 2-month elimination trial followed by a reintroduction can help identify its impact. 👉🏻Those with insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes or obesity should be cautious consuming refined grains like white rice, pasta and anything made from flour due to their higher glycemic load which spikes glucose and insulin. 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻? If you have to be on a restrictive diet, finding health swaps can make your health journey a lot more sustainable: 👉🏻Can’t have gluten? Get a spiralizer and make zoodles (zucchini), swoodles (sweet potato), sqoodles (squash) and many others. You may also find pre-made “foodles” in the refrigerated section of supermarkets. 👉🏻Can’t have rice? Try cauliflower “rice”. It’s easy to make and you may find some pre-made in the frozen section. I also share a simple recipe in my upcoming book UJUNK. 👉🏻Watching your sugar intake and miss pasta? Miracle noodles are convenient and made from konjac root, a resistant starch and prebiotic for the microbiome. It’s more gelatinous and stickier in texture but softens once cooked in a sauce. Would love to hear from you. What are your favorite food swaps?👇🏻 Please share ❤️ 
After my last 2 posts on mercury toxicity and how to detox, many of you were asking me about the safest types of fish. Here’s a helpful start.🤗 In general, choose smaller fish because of their lower concentration of pollutants and heavy metals.🦐🐙🦀 The acronym “SMASH” is an easy way to remember the list.💁♀ Other helpful seafood tips: ✔️Choose wild caught over farmed fish since these fish are overcrowded, overfed & sickly – therefore given antibiotics.🙅♀ Ask your waiter! ✔️The Environmental Working Group (EWG.org) offers a consumer guide to seafood based on the amount of omega-3 fatty acids and level of mercury contained in fish. ✔️The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA.gov) also shares a comprehensive list of fish ranked by the level of mercury toxicity. In my upcoming book UNJUNK, I get into more details about the nuances of eating fish these days as it has a big question mark. Luckily I see hope with land-based certified organic fish farms in the future. Fish is a great source of omega-3 fatty acids (EPA & DHA) and studies have shown that people with higher omega-3 levels are at a decreased risk for a variety of conditions like: 👉🏻heart disease, loss of cognitive function, depression and anxiety, macular degeneration, and a longer life.🙌🏻 Swipe left for a list of lower mercury fish and their associated levels of EPA & DHA. 👉🏻In general, 1,000-3,000mg of total EPA & DHA per day is recommended, either through food or in combination with O-3 supplementation. As always, would love to hear from you.👇🏻 
In Part 1, I discussed the dangers of mercury (silver) dental fillings and their proper removal. Now let’s tackle mercury detoxification as requested.🤗 1️⃣Remove the source (swipe left for common sources of mercury exposure): If you have amalgam fillings, make sure steps 2, 3 & 5 👇🏻 are in order before rushing to have them removed (safely) by a BIOLOGICAL dentist (find one via IAOMT.org. In Dubai 👉🏻 @drrozedentalclinic ). ⚠️Delay targeted detox until they are out. 2️⃣Ensure detox pathways are open: This means you need to be pooping, peeing and sweating effectively on a daily basis to ensure toxins are being excreted from the body. Optimize your gut, kidney, lymph systems first.💩💧 3️⃣Support the liver: Lessen liver burden. For example, eliminate alcohol, processed foods, pesticides, high fructose sugar, and filter your air & water.🙅♀ Your practitioner may also advise liver supporting herbs like milk thistle, dandelion and burdock root, plus foods like beets and dandelion greens (swipe left for more).💪🏼 4️⃣Bind/chelate: Mercury will only be excreted from the body if it is “bound” like a handcuffed criminal.👮♀ A practitioner might use more aggressive chelation therapy e.g. DMSA or gentle binders like modified citrus pectin, chlorella, activated charcoal and zeolite clay. Fresh cilantro in the diet can also provide gentle chelation support.🙌 5️⃣Support glutathione: Glutathione allows mercury (once bound) to be excreted from the body. This deserves another post, but here are some quick tips to help boost it: ✅Exercise ✅Foods such as cruciferous vegetables, alliums, avocado, turmeric, vitamin C rich foods, B vitamins, adequate amino acid proteins like cysteine, glycine, glutamine, etc.🙃 ⚠️Note, ineffective detoxification can cause released mercury to be redeposited in tissues elsewhere in the body, possibly causing new and even worse symptoms. So please work with a naturopath or functional medicine practitioner for targeted heavy metal detox support. Always more to add but I hope this was a helpful start.🤗 Comments/questions?👇🏻 Please share ❤️