1through9

So, there are a few things I will cover that will help you better understand how to view your physical body. There is, what I coin, a Subatomic Defense System along with an Immune System in our body. Towards the end you will learn about Probiotic importance.

About the Subatomic Defense System

Starting from smaller scale. Atoms thrive for an Octet. That is what makes them stable, a sort of thrive for perfection, to be like the noble gases, but in a sense creating communities of matter, working together to shape things. A Free Radical is when an atom is missing an electron on it’s outer shell and it becomes violent, in search for an electron to complete it. It will violently react with any protein, tissue, anything in it’s vicinity.

Free Radicals can be created in a few ways:

• Heating (like in cooking food)
• UV light
• Cell respiration (Mitochondria)
• Neutrophil defense mechanism

Antioxidants are natural complexes that donate electrons, so they are able to neutralize Free Radicals. Antioxidants are ubiquitous in the plant kingdom. Photosynthesis requires electron transporting, and that is the plant cell respiratory mechanism, so the plant requires it’s own innate antioxidant defense system (“Subatomic Defense System”) in order to balance the Free Radicals created in the respiratory process.

Much like our Mitochondria in our cells, it creates energy and there is a mechanism called “Electron Transport Chain” which requires specialized proteins that transport electrons. These same specialized proteins (e.g. CoQ10) act as antioxidants too. For some reason, in western cultural diet CoQ10 declines with age, about from the age of 20, and the culprit is probably fructose (watch on youtube the series “Skinny on Obesity”, they refer to a phenomena called “Mitochondria Meltdown” from fructose consumption).

Anyway, our physical bodies wake up and make a lot of energy depending on the mental mind demands. Brushing our teeth, energy, walking to the car, energy, writing an article, energy. Our system is able to replenish itself, but sooner or later we are depleted from antioxidants and once our innate Subatomic Defense System is impaired... then damage to cell structure occurs, then damage to DNA occurs and consequently cancerous behaviour follows.

There are a few innate antioxidant enzymes in our human cells (Glutathione, Superoxide Dismutase, Catalase), and they require elements like Copper, Zinc and Selenium in adequate amounts in order to function. Those you can find in good amounts in Nuts and Seeds. I soak my nuts every night (haha). All seeds in nature come with defense mechanisms (toxins) that inhibit digestion by animals, insects and bacteria. Soaking them gives them conditions for sprouting, and so the defense melts away and nutrients are enhanced, plus their bioavailability rises.

Moving on, replenishing these antioxidant systems is crucial. The inflammatory response, which can be triggered by cellular damage from excess free radicals, can turn from an acute one to a chronic one. Prolonged inflammation scars tissue and delays the cells return to communal service for the greater good of the multicellular organism. Reducing oxidative stress is key to relieving the cells tension, which is then able to move to a state of repair. The inflammatory response can also be called, the cells “Demolition and Reconstruction” process.

Vitamin E is an antioxidant that is present in all cells membranes. Vitamin C can replenish vitamin E. There is what is called a “Synergistic Effect”, where taking different antioxidants together and they help each other boost one another. That is why making a herbal remedy with dozens of different medicinal herbs can induce a greater effect. Same thing with juicing vegetables. Imagine abundantly flooding your system a few times a day with a cup of fresh organic vegetable juice. It replenishes your Subatomic Defense Systems, thus relieving oxidative stress, thus making way for cell repair and cell proliferation. Imagine a domino effect when drinking vegetable juice. It will replenish all your cells and if you do it enough as a therapy, it can get all the way to your skin.

Now that the importance of the Subatomic Defense System is understood. Let me tell you of a new form of revelation in nutritional science. Free Electrons from the ground! Dr. Sinatra and Dr. Oshman have done much work in the field of energy medicine. The sun charges up the ionosphere, which charges up the earth via lightening, and when we walk barefoot, those Free Electrons replenish our body and neutralize free radicals. We are meant to walk barefoot for our health.

Next in line, I will talk about evolution and nutrition. But first! A question.. what is the number one abused organ in the human body? pineal gland! nah... heart! close.... digestive tract! BINGO!

Something happened approx. 10,000 years ago, we call it the advent of agriculture. It was the beginning of the dark ages for the human physical body. 2.5 milion years of evolution on a hunter and gatherer diet, and suddenly agriculture happened. Some say it was necessary in order to sustain the human population of which was booming at the time. One thing is certain, it consisted of nutrient sources that the human digestive tract was not adapted to handle. What more, only in the last 100 years we have been consuming processed food and vegetable oils, things that are not found in their forms in nature.

Lets start with Cereal grains.

Studies have shown that all grains contain storage proteins called “Prolamins”. In wheat we got Gliadin, in rye we have Secalin etc. What studies have revealed is that these storage proteins stimulate secretion of a protein in the gut that regulates the tight junctions between the absorption cells (called Enterocytes). The term is called “Leaky Gut”, when gaps or “holes” are created in the gut lining, allowing partially digested proteins and more to seep through the filtration barrier. The regulatory protein that controls these tight junctions is called “Zonulin” and it regulates the tight junctions in the Blood-Brain Barrier as well. Studies have revealed that gliadin in many cases is partially digested to a 7 amino-acid chain called “Gliadorphin”, which has opioid properties (like morphine) and it activates about 3 opioid receptors in the brain. But, lets compare it to casein, the storage protein in milk. There is two types of casein, type A1 and type A2. Studies suggest that about 5000 years ago there was a mutation in the casein protein and one amino acid changed. It appears that casein A1 breaks down in digestion to a 7 amino acid protein called “β-casomorphin 7” of which (somehow) finds it’s way up to the brain and stimulates 45 opioid receptors. 15 times more potent than gliadorphin! No study has delved into the possibility of casein being able to stimulate secretion of zonulin, thus making gaps in the gut lining, but common sense helps. Milk is a superfood. Babies need milk, because their digestive tract is not fully functional... so nature was smart enough to add in a mechanism that will help their guts bypass digestion and open the gates for nutrients into the bloodstream. Makes sense? I’d think so.

So, I covered cereal grains and milk. Now to Vegetable oils!

It all comes down to long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids - Omega 6 and Omega 3. Both very sensitive to oxidation, but both very important for the cells innate inflammatory response. It has been found that they both have anti-inflammatory pathways (also Omega 6), only Omega 6 does have a pro-inflammatory pathway. They are found to be materials that are used to create proteins, of which affect inflammatory expression down to the transcription of DNA. However, it appears that excess Omega 6 in the diet can create a more prolonged inflammatory environment, that which has to be balanced back by consuming Omega 3 rich foods. Scientific evidence has proven that our brains developed from consuming fish. Our ratio of Omega 3 to 6 in our body, and particularly in our brain, is identical to that found in fish.

Vegetable oils are packed with omega 6. Creating an imbalance in our bodies.

Consuming too many omega fats at all can compete with other fats for space in cell membranes. Those fats are sensitive to oxidation, and thus a cell membrane with too much omega fats is prone to setting off inflammatory responses. They should be taken, but our bodies prefer to run on saturated fat.

Now, Sugar! Addictive and deadly. Dr. Robert Lustig has done tremendous work on that issue (worth watching the youtube series “The Skinny on Obesity”). I will talk about it and it will lead us into the issue of probiotics. Sugar is toxic in the blood. Insulin protects our system from sugar toxicity by helping it go into cells, but also converting it into fats for later use. Refined sugar or digested complex carbohydrates, both stimulate insulin. Sugar nourishes pathogen bacteria. Those bacteria find a substrate to thrive on, and sooner or later they gain momentum and launch an attack on the host. Call it the flu, call it infection.. it’s termed Dysbiosis. A condition of imbalance of bacteria in the gut. Certain bacteria thrive on certain food, digesting it and making it more bioavailable for us to absorb. It is a symbiotic relationship and once the Human Microbiome Project will be complete in 2013, we will all have a broader understanding of probiotic relationship and importance for human health.

Before citrus fruit was discovered as a remedy for scurvy on long sea voyages, sailors used sauerkraut. Even Captain James Cook ordered once 25,000 barrels of sauerkraut on one of his voyages. The process of fermentation produces lactic acid bacteria called Lactobacillus, that improve digestion. They consume complex carbs and proteins, and secrete lactic acid, which creates a beneficial environment for immune cells to thrive. 85% of our immune system is in our guts, so something like that is important. Furthermore, they make many vitamins and minerals more available for us, and some strains help break down fats, and create anti-inflammatory fatty acids. They also have been found to neutralize toxins and remove heavy metals. They are considered a forgotten organelle... they complete us.

Another thing to know is that certain vegetables strengthen probiotic bacteria. These are vegetables containing polysaccharides called “Inulin”. They are found in Onions, Garlic, Leeks, Cauliflower, Mushrooms and more. A study found that consuming probiotics with Inulin on a high fat diet provided protection for the probiotic bacteria from the bile acids, and helped it grow.

This is all for now. Of course there is so much more, but if you’re interested I am here to talk. Leave me a comment and I will reply.

Cheers,

Joel Jacobson

As published here: 1through9.doc