Treatment TakeawayOn awakening cortisol should increase about 50% in the first 30 minutes then begin to progressively drop the remainder of the day. Three, rather than one, early morning collections are what is needed to accurately assess the CAR; one immediately on waking, one 30 minutes later, and another at 1 hour. Thirty minutes after awakening from a good…
Tags: Stress, Cortisol Awakening Response, Saliva Testing, HPA Axis, Adrenal and Cortisol
Did you know there are 5 places in the world where your odds of living to 100 are greater than anywhere else on the planet? These regions are called "Blue Zones" and include Sardinia (Italy), Okinawa (Japan), Loma Linda (California, Seventh-day Adventists), Nicoya (Costa Rica), and Ikaria (Greece). Based on the research and writings of Dan Buettner, people are studying these communities to try to…
It would not be an exaggeration to say that this book covers everything you need to know about the stress response system and how it affects our health. Dr. Guilliams reminds us that only 80 years ago the concept of stress as a biological process, and how the stress response is regulated by the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, was yet to be elucidated. He takes us back to the pioneering…
Tags: Stress, HPA Axis, Adrenal and Cortisol
On Nov. 24, the sun set in the tiny Greenlandic town of Ittoqqortoormiit. For the next three months, the Inuit inhabitants of this isolated, icebound landscape will take their children to school in the dark, work in the dark, and pick them up in the dark. And though townspeople admit that, "it can get depressing for people who weren't born here, especially in December," the local mindset is that…
Tags: Hormone Balance, Vitamin D, Melatonin
Many residents were surprised to learn that high levels of arsenic and cadmium are being detected at an air monitoring station in Southeast Portland, Oregon according to the state Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Watch the News: Dr. Zava comments on toxin exposure in SE PortlandThe state began monitoring air quality after moss samples taken from the area last October were found to be…
Tags: Cancer, Toxins, Heavy Metals, Arsenic, Cadmium
From the time menses begins, to the time it ceases, a woman must make decisions that affect her fertility. Whether it's viewed as a gift, a curse or just a responsibility, a woman’s right to choose when, how and if a pregnancy occurs is a relatively new experience. Over the last 50 years a woman's access to birth control methods, whether oral, patch, or IUD, has greatly increased. However, such a…
Tags: Contraceptives, Patient Education
Many times when I am talking to a practitioner about a patient with PCOS and/or weight issues, I commonly get the response – "His/her blood sugar is normal." However, when we are looking at the health of PCOS and weight-challenged patients, their insulin response is of primary importance, and not just their blood sugar. When we are fasting, both blood sugar and insulin levels should be at a steady…
Tags: Obesity, PCOS, Metabolic Health
As we roll into 2016 what is it that YOU hope to change, reinvent, reconsider, move towards or away from in the coming year? New Year’s resolutions are often among the most noble of ideas, centered on self-improvement, education, health, lifestyle and relationships. Yet statistics show that only eight percent of us successfully reach our aspirations. Experts tell us that the more specific the goal,…
Tags: Hormone Balance, Weight Management, Sleep, Stress, Patient Education
During this holiday season, the docs at ZRT Laboratory have whipped up some healthy hormone eating options from their favorite recipes. Try out these scrumptious dishes for your family and tell us what you think! Before you dig in, you may be tempted to ask how it is that the humble Brussels sprout et al., are empowered with such healthy purpose? The…
Tags: Recipes
This article is republished courtesy of The Official Website of John R. Lee, M.D. If you missed part one of the article, read it here. A Recipe for Beating (and Preventing) Breast CancerThe latest research on natural progesterone and breast cancer clearly indicates how important it is for women to maintain healthy, normal levels of progesterone that are in proper balance with estrogen. Doing so…
Tags: Hormone Balance, Breast Cancer, BHRT, Estrogen, Estrogen Dominance, Progesterone
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