energy - LiveRight with Dr Irina Schurov

Today I want to talk about Gluten as recently it has become a popular topic for discussion and debate everywhere. Nowadays in every shop and supermarket we can see some variety of gluten-free products. It has become very “trendy” to try a gluten-free diet and, as a result, gluten-free products are a huge business at the moment. It seems to me that the food industry has found a successful replacement for fat-free and low-fat products which are slowly coming out of fashion after creating many health issues and problems. The gluten free food industry is benefiting from $3.4 billion annually and planning to expand up to $24 billion by 2020. Therefore, it is so important to understand properly gluten and to know if you really need to go on a gluten-free diet and what this diet actually means! Otherwise, in a few years’ time, we will face another health crisis such as the one we are facing years of eating fat-free food.

But talking to many people I have realised that the majority of them do not really understand what a gluten-free diet is about and why they may need to follow it. Let’s have a look.

Gluten is a family of proteins that are found mainly in wheat, rye, barley and oats. And, of course, it is present in all baked foods, bread, pasta, many cereals, sauces, salad dressings, soups, beers, food colouring and many others. Due to its ability to glue, gluten has been used in many personal care products as well. But why has gluten become such an issue? And why have people in the past been eating bread and pasta for generations and yet never faced this issue? The reason is that wheat is not the same today as it used to be. Modern wheat is completely different from the wheat people ate back in the past.

First of all, due to mass production, in the 60s wheat with a much greater yield was developed through cross-breeding and genetic manipulations. This changed the nutrient composition and physical properties of the plant.

Additionally, it is processed very differently nowadays as well. After the separation of the nutritious components of the grain (the bran and germ) away from the endosperm (the starchy part), the wheat received by consumers is depleted in nutrients.

Furthermore, the method of food preparation has also been modified dramatically. New technologies allow a huge amount of refined wheat to be created but at a low cost. The process that was used before, which included steps like soaking, sprouting, fermenting and baking with low rise yeasts, are not in use any longer. Now we eat bread that has been bleached and baked with quick rise yeasts.

At the end of the day we are dealing with a completely different protein that is not well recognised by our body and is very difficult to digest. For example, it has been shown that modern wheat contains 19-28% less Zinc, Copper, Iron and Magnesium than the wheat before 1967(Fan MS et al, Evidence of decreasing mineral density in wheat grain over the last 160 years; J Trace Elem Med Biol. 2008).

So, the bottom line is THE WHEAT WE EAT TODAY IS GENETICALLY AND BIOLOGICALLY DIFFERENT AND IS POORLY TOLERATED BY THE HUMAN BODY.

Gluten intolerance used to only be associated with Celiac disease. This autoimmune condition occurs when an immune system doesn’t recognise certain gluten proteins and attack them as viruses or with pathogenic bacteria. At the same time the immune system attacks the gut lining, which causes huge inflammation, leaky gut and many other serious health conditions. About 1% of the population suffers from Celiac disease, but the real number is bigger as many people are misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all. However, another condition called Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity is very much on the rise at the moment with an estimated number of around 8%-10% of the population, and it keeps growing. Interestingly, many people may have certain symptoms of gluten sensitivity and simply do not realise it. So, what are the symptoms of gluten sensitivity that everyone should be aware off. Let’s have a look!

Many different studies have established a profound link between gluten and neurological dysfunctions such as:

Depression and Anxiety
ADHD/ADD
Migraines and headaches
Vertigo
Mood swings

Gluten has also been shown to effect intestinal absorption and also damage other organs that connected to the digestive process. This is causing mineral and vitamin deficiency and causing conditions like:

Leaky gut
Chronic fatigue
Irritable bowel syndrome linked to gas, bloating, constipation, diarrhea
Lactose intolerance and other food intolerances
Acid reflux disease (GERD)

However, there are some symptoms that are less associated with gluten and can easily be missed or misinterpreted. For example:

Fatigue due to malabsorption of essential nutrients.
Joint and muscle pain caused by the inflammation process initiated by gluten.
Hormonal imbalance (irregular menstrual cycles, infertility, weight gain or loss) as gluten effects a neuro-hormonal system.
Frequent colds and viral infections as a result of a low immune system.
Skin rashes and even painful blisters that can appear on the arms, elbows, face and body caused by inflammation under the top layer of skin.
Dental issues due to a low level of Calcium because of a malabsorption issue.

As you can clearly see, GLUTEN SENSITIVITY CAUSES MANY DIFFERENT HEALTH PROBLEMS. The best way to test it is to try a REAL gluten-free diet for at least two weeks. But you need to do it RIGHT! This means stay away from any form or shape of gluten, even in the smallest quantities. Prepare for this experiment, list all the products and foods that may contain gluten including hidden forms like in some sauces and soups. Do your research and have a list of alternative products you can include in your diet like buckwheat and quinoa. Please, be careful when you buy gluten-free products in shops. Gluten-free processed food is not the answer, it is still processed food with many harmful additives and preservatives. Many gluten-free products are made from refined products and do not have many micronutrients that are essential for our body. So, the best solution will be to cook at home from raw gluten-free ingredients. The menu planner can be a very helpful tool during this period of time. If you feel better after two weeks on this diet and perhaps some of your symptoms start to go away, you may want to continue the diet a bit longer to make sure it is a gluten dependent effect.

Many people see some differences in their conditions and try to avoid eating wheat after the experiment or at least reduce the amount of gluten in their diet. But the decision is yours! In any case this experiment will be a very positive experience for you as you will start to listen to your body more carefully, notice some changes and reactions to certain foods or its absence, learn new recipes and upgrade your cooking skills! So, ARE YOU READY FOR AN EXPERIMENT?

I will be very happy to hear the results of your experiment with a gluten-free diet and I would be happy to assist you in any way.

As usual, I look forward to receiving your ever valuable questions, comments and feedback: irina@liveright.eu

Dear ladies,

Today I want to talk about us and our “girl power”!

March is the month of love, spring, new beginnings and hope. Through this time, we are more open to new projects and new ideas; we want to achieve great professional results and wish to look stunningly beautiful! At the same time, we are preoccupied worrying about everybody around us and trying to “save the world”! Does this sound familiar to you?

The question is WHERE TO FIND THE ENERGY FOR ALL OF THESE THINGS? How do you cope with nurturing others, managing everything on time and not wearing yourself out? What is your secrete to “unlimited girl power”? Please, let me know! Meanwhile, I want to share with you my opinion to the phenomenon that is a woman’s energy.

Many of us do not take the logical route of taking enough care of ourselves. Because very often our female upbringing tells us that self-care is wrong and selfish. Nevertheless, it is the most important thing we can do for ourselves, even if it is the easiest things to forget about. Therefore, practising self-love and self-care is essential to boosting our self-esteem and the physical resources of our body.

So, let’s see how we can actually boost our energy level to be that effective and healthy!

We can restore our strength through different ways and means. Our energy can be effected on physical, emotional and spiritual levels. These are all very important and deeply interconnected! However, I would like to focus on nutrition, which affects us directly on a physical level by supplying energy via food to our body, as well as emotionally via the esthetical presentation of our food and the surrounding atmosphere when we consume it; and even spiritually via mindful eating, appreciation and a loving consciousness.

Before we focus on food I would like to share with you a few useful, general tips which definitely help me to control my energy and therefore my happiness level:

Be wise and sleep enough to allow your body time to detox and restore itself during quality night rest.
Give yourself a break, breath deeply, stand and stretch. Practice a moment of peace or meditation on a regular basis.
Find time to indulge yourself once a week: a hot bath, a sauna, a manicure, a massage or something else that works for you.
Lower your standards and expectations. Who cares if you do not clean the floor in your apartment every other day? Find a way to cut down on the time you take doing routine boring, “necessary” things.
Read a good book!
Meet interesting and inspiring people!

Now, let’s focus more on food related points and pay attention to what we eat, when we eat and how we eat!

All living creatures, including humans, draw their energy from the sun. We do it by eating “live” plant-based foods that are able to accumulate “sun energy” within them. In other words, eating fruits, seeds, nuts and vegetables is essential for us to top up our energy level!

Another thing that we need to be aware of is the quality of food! It has dramatically dropped during recent years and this has become an incredibly crucial factor for our energy and health level in our modern lives! The way our foods are grown and produced has changed so much during the last 50 years that our body struggles to recognise it as a nourishing substance rather than as a big stressor. We chronically experience a lack of trace elements and micronutrients, but, at the same time, we are overdosed with macronutrients such as unhealthy modified fats, sugar and easy carbohydrates. The closer a product is to its natural state, the higher its nutritional value! Therefore, consider eating more organic food and less processed products as much as possible!

We also constantly abandon our natural rhythm of eating. Previously, when people did not have any fridges and freezers, some days they would eat some days a lot and hardly anything. Humans also used to experience seasonal changes in food intake. So, we used to experience natural fasting periods and we did not eat lots of sugary foods all year around. Research shows that people who follow their individual natural eating pattern, have a more balanced level of metabolism and optimal weight. Or, alternatively, you could have a fasting day every 3-4 month, for example, every last day of a season. But never forget to drink water!

In some cases, we may spend too much energy on the digestion of certain food or its combinations. Do you ever feel tired after eating your dinner or lunch? Thus could be due to a few reasons, such as a lack of enzymes, a lack of certain bacteria in your gut or simply, too much food in the wrong combination. If, for instance, we eat meat or fish with vegetables, this combination will be digested faster then the same portion of meat in combination with pasta. Eating raw vegetables with each meal helps to bring enzymes in your system alive and therefore improve your digestion cycle.

We need to make sure that our digestive system is working properly! Consuming fermented foods that are full of probiotics essential for our health is vital! Natural yogurt, kefir, kombucha, miso, sauerkraut, fermented vegetables and fish, all these products will diversify and enrich your diet!

So, to sum up, here are some key points worth considering including in your every day life to enhance your feminine radiance, vitality and wellbeing:

Drink more water! Start your day with a glass of not cold lemon water that will activate the nervous and hormonal reactions in your liver and stimulate digestion.
Carefully choose your foods, read labels, avoid artificial additives. Bio products are much better value for your money as they contain less toxic chemicals and much more nutrients.
Eat more “live” foods, raw plant-based products that bring “sun energy” to your body and micronutrients and enzymes that are vital for your health.
Use spices, diversify the taste of your meals. Include curcuma, ginger, cumin and curry that will help reduce inflammation and improve digestion.
Eat foods that are essential for a healthy gut, foods enriched with fibres and fermented foods.
Listen to your body carefully and find your own optimal rhythm for consuming food.
Remember that no one diet works for everyone! If you want to change the way you eat, then carefully try a new approach and listen to your body, introduce any changes step by step and watch your body’s response. You will feel whether it works for you or not. Consult a specialist.

Let me finish by saying – NOURISH YOURSELF PROPERLY AND YOU WILL HAVE MORE ENERGY TO GIVE TO YOURSELF AND TO OTHERS!

As usual, I look forward to receiving your ever valuable questions, comments and feedback: irina@liveright.eu

Is GLUTEN Really Everybody’s Bad Guy?

Boost Your Unlimited “Girl Power” and Energy Level!