Community and Immunity
Announcements
Well, I have finally done it. I have been updating my website and it now has a feature where you can make your own patient portal and book your own appointments. It is a bit scary, I will admit, but for those with busy schedules, it is easier when you can see all the choices rather than a whole lot of texting between us. Still, if you want to do it the old-fashioned way, that is fine too. But I hope you’ll at least check it out. You will find a section called “Notes and Resources” on the first page, where I will post these newsletters you are getting by email, should you ever want to find them again. Here’s the link: https://www.CamdenAcupuncture.me/
I am also thinking about how to create a community resource place. The first question is, would that be helpful for folks? Perhaps a private Facebook page where people could ask questions and share ideas and information about what is working in this unusual winter season. Let me know if you have interest in something like that and I am happy to set it up.
Immune Support
A teacher friend asked me about a protocol for immune support to help optimize her family’s health this coming school year. With stress and anxiety running high, it is helpful to know what we can do on a day-to-day basis to stay healthy.
It is a complicated question because the immune “system,” as we say, is made up of a multiplicity of interconnected organs and functions within the body. This means that there are lots of factors that go into immune strength and resilience.
In addition to Chinese Herbs, from time to time I also recommend some supplements to help people support their best health. I have found that it is important to ensure quality in the supplements as that can vary widely across manufacturers. The company that I use provides the service of a patient portal where you can find the highest-quality products at a discount. If I haven’t set this up for you, let me know and I can do that for you. Also, I am available to work with you by phone or Zoom if it would be helpful to personalize all the information presented here.
Stress Reduction
What are the things that help you feel happy and relaxed? Hiking, meditating, yoga, listening to music, journaling, connecting with friends and family… it does not really matter what it is. Just make time to do it daily. One of the few silver linings of COVID is that we are not running around so busy anymore. And for many of us, this is a good thing.
For me, early morning exercise outdoors and meditation are part of my daily routine. I also have a breathing practice which I love because it can be done anywhere, anytime even for just a few breaths. Tonglen, a Buddhist practice, is a great way to get started on a breathing practice. Here’s a short video of Pema Chodron talking about how to do it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwqlurCvXuM. Basically, you are breathing in the suffering of others and breathing out comfort and love to them. Be it the planet, people, plants, animals, air or water, this practice expands your heart from your own tight anxious place to one of compassion.
News
Next, be incredibly careful of your exposure to News. In Chinese medicine, we have the understanding that everything we take in must somehow be transformed and made into us or it must be eliminated. This is true on physical, emotional, and spiritual levels. Obviously, the food we eat is processed as it’s transformed into something nourishing to us, and the unusable bits are eliminated. At the level of the emotion and spirit, a book you read, interactions with friends, family and co-workers, or the news you hear on the radio, all must be processed and transformed. The issue currently is that most of the news is so disturbing it is undigestible. And rather than having any nourishing content, it is consistently quite toxic. It is like food poisoning at the level of the Heart/Mind.
The tragic events of 9/11 brought this notion into view for me. I noticed I was turning off the television or radio whenever my kids (then 9) were present. Then it occurred to me that if I did not feel like it was healthy for my kids, why would it be healthy for me? I decided that if there was something I really needed to know about, someone would tell me and that has held true for almost 20 years. My suggestion is that you find a way to balance your need to be informed with your capacity to have it be nourishing. Notice how you feel when you hear something disturbing and how it puts you into fight/flight/survival mode. You are, in that moment, awash in brain/body chemistry that is not supportive of your immunity and too much of that is taxing to your system. Repeated doses can increase stress, making you feel fatigued, anxious or depressed. Your immune system is like a bank account. It has a positive balance in it, and when you use it up, you are in overdraft mode and you get sick. You can spend your immune “coin” on processing world events or bank it for when you need it most. Many of us do not have the resources to do both.
Loving Kindness Practice
Practicing acts of loving kindness helps you in so many ways, and, as a bonus, it benefits the recipients. It is truly the gift that keeps on giving. When you are in your primal fight/flight brain, awash with all that stressful, immunity gobbling body/brain chemistry, your front brain, higher order, creative intelligence, is actually inaccessible. We are seeing this phenomenon in action regularly in the political arena when angry rhetoric proceeds a complete absence of common sense. The reverse is also true. You can get yourself out of the fight/flight state by using a practice of loving kindness. What can you do for someone else today? Send a card, make soup to leave on the doorstep, check in on your neighbors, volunteer, a kind word... It will do you a world of good and make the world a gentler place for someone else.
Stay Warm
In Chinese medicine we have the understanding that the system that governs our outermost, defensive qi runs along the back, neck and head. Most of that channel is covered by clothes except the back of the neck and head. Keep your head and neck covered in that cold wind to protect your defensive qi.
Diet
Mostly this is just plain common sense. Do not eat the things you know are bad for you: processed foods, white flour/sugar, alcohol. Whenever you put those things in your body, there is a significant dip in your immune system’s ability to fight external invaders, basically because it is dealing with the internal “invaders” that you just ingested.
This time of year, it is especially important to eat warm, cooked foods. If you think about it, the year round access to frozen food is a very recent phenomenon in human evolution. The first thing your body must do to digest something frozen is to warm it up to your internal body temp of 105 degrees which burns a fair amount of qi. When you are young, and it is hot out, a smoothie is more doable, but in winter, it is taxing for everyone. Do eat lots of darkly pigmented vegetables and a little bit of fruit (it is a sugar), berries, lean proteins, legumes (they are mostly carb, so great if you are someone who is happy with their current weight). For many people, dairy produces dampness (phlegm), which is again an immune response to what you have ingested having a level of toxicity for you.
I really like the Whole 30 Diet because it is an anti-inflammatory diet. An anti-inflammatory diet is a system of eating that does not provoke an immune response every time you eat. All disease processes are inflammatory. You know this because when you get a cold, your nasal passages feel all stuffed up even though there may be nothing to blow out. Again, do you want to spend your immune “coin” protecting yourself from what you just ate, or bank it for outside invaders.
The Whole 30 website has tons of free info and recipes. It was developed by a couple of nutritionists as a baseline to support healing from any disease process, especially those that include obesity. With the Whole 30, you are eating basically a moderate amount of lean protein, lots of veggies and a little fruit. A good way to calculate your protein requirement is 1/3 your ideal body weight in grams. So, if your ideal weight is 120 lbs., then you need 40 grams of protein a day to support that. If you are happy with your weight, and would like to add more carb, look to the pseudo grains like quinoa and buckwheat kasha, sweet potato, root vegetables (caution with white potato), winter squash and beans. Incorporating bone broth in winter soups and stews or using it as the cooking liquid is a great way to nourish your deep reserves.
Whole 30 may be a long way to go from where you are starting. The important thing is to start. Take the aspects of it that are easy for you first and keep the rest of it in mind as you go along. You will find that over the course of a couple of months you will be able to maintain healthier choices more and more. That is progress! It is all to the good.
The Blues
Winter in Maine can be hard for many people in terms of keeping their spirits up. SAD or Seasonal Affected Disorder manifests as symptoms of depression and/or anxiety with irritability, depression, low energy, sleep disruptions, carb cravings, weight gain, etc. This year, I am imagining that intensifying for many people. Getting out in the sun when it is shining, using a Happy Light, and exercise all help. 5HTP is a supplement that raises serotonin and can be really helpful for many people. You can get it in a blend with other neurotransmitters to balance it. I like “Emotional Wellness” by Pure Encapsulations[KM1] . 5HTP is not for those already taking an SSRI like Prozac or Lexapro because it works on the same pathways.
Exercise
Try to incorporate exercise into your life at a rate of 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week plus strength training twice a week. If possible, get outside. It is good for you to be in nature in so many ways. I found an online strength training class that Betsy Kingsley at Balanced Body Studio in Camden is offering. It’s at 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday and Thursday for all you early risers.
Sleep
Adults need 7-9 hours of sleep daily. That is the bottom line. The U.S. is a chronically sleep-deprived, over-worked culture and most of us do not get enough rest to support optimum health. Many people are experiencing some sleep disturbance amidst the current stresses. If anxiety is increased during the day, it can manifest as sleeplessness during the night. There are things that can help, and it is important not to become overly fatigued due to lack of quality rest.
One of those things that helps is Melatonin. Melatonin is showing some promising results in studies as a therapy to improve outcomes for COVID-19 patients because it is an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, and it modulates immune activity. A dosage of 3 milograms at bedtime will help with sleep and give you the added protection. Phosphatidylserine can be used when you are feeling kind of racy, can’t fall asleep, wake a lot in the night, or generally feel unrested even if you think you have slept. It helps lower cortisol levels, our flight/fight hormone, which for everyone is up at least a bit right now. With all that is going on the world, our nervous system is, well, nervous about our survival.
Humidity
In ancient Chinese medicine texts there is a statement that says, “The Lung abhors dryness.” That is true, of course. It is part of the reason humidifiers are so helpful. You know how our skin dries out, especially once the heat goes on? Guess what? The skin is part of the lung. You breathe through your skin. Since you can not put moisturizer in your lungs, it is very helpful to drink plenty of liquids and run humidifiers. I like the inexpensive, old-fashioned steam ones. You do not have to worry about them growing mold and cleaning them all the time. They have them at the pharmacy for about $25. We have one in our main living area as well as our bedroom.
Supplements
Mushrooms
Our Mushroom friends are a big help with immunity. North Spore has a really nice blend and it is local! You are looking for shitake and maitake specifically. You can also buy dried mushrooms and make your own tinctures… it is a double-extraction method for mushrooms.
Go to: https://northspore.com/products/immunity-tincture
Elderberry
Elderberries help reduce inflammation and stress and treat/prevent cold and flu. I enjoy a splash of the syrup in a mug of hot water to make an elder tea. You can make your own elderberry tincture with dried organic berries you can order online. Making your own can be satisfying and economical.
Here are some local providers of elderberry tinctures and syrups: https://www.mainemedicinals.com/products/anthoimmune
https://www.avenabotanicals.com/products/immune-boost
Echinacea
Echinacea is great to have on hand in the event that you do get sick. It is not something to take all the time. Again, you can make your own. If you happen to have an extra echinacea plant in your garden, you can use yours, or buy it from an online source.
Or our friends at Avena Botanicals make beautiful plant medicine: https://www.avenabotanicals.com/collections/all-herbal-extracts/products/extra-echinacea
Garlic
You can simply mince up a clove and wash it back with a gulp of water or you can get it in capsules which are de-scented if you don’t like the odor of garlic. 600-1200 milograms daily. Avoid if you are already on blood thinners as it will have an additive effect. It is also good for cardiovascular health, as it lowers blood pressure and reduces blood viscosity.
Probiotics
Our guts are responsible for about 60 percent of our immune system, which tends to be overlooked. Many people have less than optimal gut function and flora because of the use of antibiotics, medications, stress, chronic digestive issues, too much alcohol and poor diet. This creates inflammation and an imbalance in the gut flora. The surface area of your intestines is about that of a tennis court. All this surface area is where the nutrients are absorbed from food. There is only a thin cell wall between the contents of your intestines and your blood stream (a scary thought). If this surface is damaged in any way (i.e., inflammation), you are then at risk of exposure to the bacteria and food particles entering the blood stream, which then trigger immune response, allergies, and irritates your enteric nervous system. When the enteric nervous system is compromised, we see more systemic issues like irritable bowel, autoimmune and mood disorder. This is all just to say, take care of your guts! Amazingly, you have about 3 pounds and 500 species of gut flora if you are lucky. You can support this amazing system by eating fermented foods and taking a probiotic. Fermented foods like kimchi and sauerkraut are available locally at Hannaford or the Co-Op and are also easy to make.
Here is a recipe for lacto-fermented veggies as a way to get started: https://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-lactofermented-mixed-pickles-recipes-from-the-kitchn-194011
Honestly, the variations are endless. You can lacto-ferment just about anything. I did my garlic scapes this year and they now get chopped up and added to things where a hint of garlic would be tasty.
You can also use a product like “Lactoprime” from Klaire Labs daily.
Melatonin
Mentioned above under sleep, studies are finding that Melatonin is helpful with this virus and may be the reason that kids are not as affected by it. 3 milograms at bedtime.
Vitamins
Vitamin C 3000 milograms/day in divided doses.
Zinc 25-30 milograms/day.
Vitamin D 2000-5000 IU/day. 5000 IU is a good winter dose and you need a little less in the summer months. Get your levels tested whenever you get bloodwork done just to see where you are starting. Most of us are deficient due to short summers here in the North, and when we are out, we are wearing sunscreen. You want your level to be between 50 and 80 ng/ml.
Vitamin A. Most people can safely take up to 2500-3000 IU daily. It is sometimes in a combo with other fat-soluble vitamins like D and E. Just be sure you add up all your sources, so you don’t exceed the recommendation. Also, all those orange veggies (carotenoids) are a good source of vitamin A.
Vitamin B complex as directed as it depends on the brand, helps with stress[KM2] . B complex is best taken in the morning with food. It can make some people a bit nauseous on an empty stomach. It will also give you an energy boost, so best not in the evening when you are trying to wind down.
Phew!
That is a lot of information! It may seem overwhelming, but just pick out a few things you can easily incorporate to get you started. After you feel settled with those, add a few more. Remember, I am available to help you sort through all this. If you don’t already have one, I can set you up with an online portal to the pharmacy that I use which offers a 15% discount and free shipping with a $50 minimum.
Let me know if I can help and please, feel free to share it with anyone who might have interest.
[KM1]I also always tell people not to take 5-HTP if they are already on an SSRI like Prozac or Lexapro because it works on the same pathway, might be good to include that here.
[KM2]I always tell people to make sure to take this in the morning with food since it’ll make you nauseated on an empty stomach and will usually give a boost of energy, which you don’t want before bed.