EXERCISE Intensity

At ALETRIS, we often see women who want to lose weight and stay slim as they age. One obstacle we face as naturopathic physicians is changing women’s perceptions of how vigorous their exercise regimes need to be to truly see results. The 20 minute walk with the dogs or the laid-back weight lifting program twice a week is a nice start, but is never the end goal.

In support, new research conducted by Berkeley Lab followed 6,119 men and 2,221 women who maintained their weekly running mileage (to within three miles per week) over a seven-year period. In summary, the men and women who ran over 30 miles per week gained half the weight of those who ran less than 15 miles per week as they aged. It seems that individuals that engage in more vigorous exercise regimes keep weight off better than those who engage in only moderate exercise programs.

For all of our patients, helping them work towards higher and higher levels of exercise intensity is the goal at ALETRIS. We help them understand the amount of hard work required to change their bodies.

ALETRIS Center of Integrative Medicine is a Scottsdale, AZ wellness center serving Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Phoenix, Glendale, Arrowhead, Peoria, Sun City, Chandler, Tempe, Ahwatukee, and Mesa, AZ with specialties in naturopathic medicine, natural hormone therapy, women's health, acupuncture, colon hydrotherapy, natural skincare and sugar hair removal.

The contents of this blog, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please seek the counsel of an ALETRIS physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.

Type II DIABETES

In the United States, over 18 million people, representing 6% of the total population, have diabetes mellitus. Out of those with diabetes, 5 million remain undiagnosed and about 90% have type II diabetes.

It is estimated that 85% of people diagnosed with type II diabetes are overweight. In addition, it is considered inevitable that individuals who are 30+% overweight will become diabetic. Type II diabetes is caused by an impaired ability of the body to utilize insulin. Insulin resistance and deficiency causes a dangerous rise in blood sugar, which can lead to serious complications including heart disease, peripheral neuropathy, blindness, limb amputations and kidney failure.

Western and naturopathic doctors include diabetes in their differential diagnoses if any of the following symptoms are present: excess urination, excess thirst, excess hunger, weight loss, vision changes, peripheral numbness or tingling, fatigue, slow healing sores, and/or an increase in infections.

Risk factors for type II diabetes include obesity, impaired glucose tolerance, family history of diabetes, sedentary lifestyle and ethnicity. Western doctors treat type II diabetes with diet, exercise, oral hypoglycemic drugs, and insulin when necessary.

In contrast, naturopaths emphasize diet, nutrition and exercise and use oral hypoglycemic drugs and insulin when necessary. Additionally, naturopaths prescribe vitamins, minerals and herbs to help the body utilize insulin and protect vital organs. Type II diabetes is preventable and treatable when patients are invested in their own health care and well being.

ALETRIS Center of Integrative Medicine is a Scottsdale, AZ wellness center serving Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Phoenix, Glendale, Arrowhead, Peoria, Sun City, Chandler, Tempe, Ahwatukee, and Mesa, AZ with specialties in naturopathic medicine, natural hormone therapy, women's health, acupuncture, colon hydrotherapy, natural skincare and sugar hair removal.

The contents of this blog, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please seek the counsel of an ALETRIS physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.

Healthy Weight for FERTILITY

According to recent research published in Human Reproduction, as a woman’s BMI (or body mass index) increases, her fertility decreases. The study found that for every BMI unit over 29 kg/m2, the probability of pregnancy was reduced by 4 percent. Very obese women with a BMI between 35 and 40 had a pregnancy probability that was 26-43% lower than those with a BMI below 29.

The researchers postulate that being obese disrupts the endocrine system. One hormone which is produced by fat cells called leptin may be the culprit, as evidence shows that leptin may influence sex hormone production directly from the ovaries.

A healthy weight is essential for having an easy pregnancy and birthing experience, and weight loss is a key component of naturopathic fertility treatment in women with elevated BMI levels. Regular moderate exercise, diet modification and customized supplementation is still the healthiest way to lose weight for long term results.

Want to know your BMI? Use this handy tool from the Department of Health and Human Services. BMI CALCULATOR

ALETRIS Center of Integrative Medicine is a Scottsdale, AZ wellness center serving Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Phoenix, Glendale, Arrowhead, Peoria, Sun City, Chandler, Tempe, Ahwatukee, and Mesa, AZ with specialties in naturopathic medicine, natural hormone therapy, women's health, acupuncture, colon hydrotherapy, natural skincare and sugar hair removal.

The contents of this blog, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please seek the counsel of an ALETRIS physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.

Phentermine & Long Term Weight Gain

Physician-guided weight loss centers are popping up on street corners across the nation, and were even featured in a recent Oprah magazine. Many of these clinics are making claims of rapid and extreme weight loss in very short amounts of time by prescribing restricted diets that may include low calorie foods, meal replacement drinks and supplements. At one Arizona weight loss center, practitioners advocate a cup of tomato soup for lunch and a cup of chicken soup for dinner. You may be wondering how people survive on such meager calories and limited nutrition....The answer comes in a pill.

Phentermine is a prescription weight loss medication that is similar to an amphetamine. It acts by stimulating the central nervous system and increasing the neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine. Phentermine increases heart rate and blood pressure and causes appetite suppression. Side effects of this drug include chest pain, heart palpitations, restlessness, elevated blood pressure, nervousness, bowel changes, headaches, insomnia, and dry mouth.

Phentermine also has a significant effect on an individual’s metabolism. Although Phentermine initially increases metabolism, we find that patients have a considerable decrease in metabolism after discontinuing the medication. Patients who have taken Phentermine in the past almost always regain the weight lost while on the drug, and have a much harder time losing weight for the rest of their lives.

ALETRIS naturopaths do not recommend rapid weight loss or the use of stimulant drugs to assist with weight loss. Naturopathic physicians advocate a whole foods diet combined with weight training and cardiovascular exercise to encourage maintainable, long-term weight loss and enhance general health and natural beauty.

To further investigate the cause of weight-loss difficulties, naturopathic physicians will evaluate labwork to find and treat the root cause of a patient’s inability to lose pounds. Common causes of weight gain and difficulty losing weight include hormone imbalance, adrenal fatigue, insulin resistance and thyroid disorder.

SLEEP to Keep the Pounds Off

New evidence demonstrates a hormonal correlation between weight gain and sleep deprivation. According to the American Journal of Epidemiology, women sleeping 5 hours or less per night gain more weight over time than those sleeping 7 or more hours per night.

At first glance, one might think that less sleep simply translates into more time to eat! However, there appears to be many more pieces to the puzzle.

Researchers are investigating sleep deprivation and its effect on two hormones, leptin and grehlin. These protein hormones are important regulators of metabolism and behaviors relating to satiation and hunger. Leptin is a hormone that signals our brain when we are full, causing satiation. On the other hand, grehlin is expressed when we are hungry, and signals our brain when it’s time to eat. Sleep restriction has been shown to reduce levels of leptin while increasing amounts of grehlin, which leads to excess hunger and overeating. Additionally, sleep restricted individuals in this study subjectively reported increased hunger than those sleeping 7 hours or more.

So will sleeping more make you lose weight? There's no easy answer to that question since the only way to lose weight is to expend more calories than you consume. However, sleeping less does have a correlation with weight gain, so to help keep the pounds off you'll need to get a good night's sleep.

The contents of this blog, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please seek the counsel of an ALETRIS physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.

Where's the MOTIVATION?

The holiday season is over and the new year's mantra is repeated over and over again, "I'll start exercising again this week... I'll start exercising again this month... I'll start exercising again next month...". While it's certainly true that many of us have extra obligations during the last two months of the year, it's time to recognize that exercising isn't an option.

For many women, choosing an outfit, applying skincare products, applying makeup and styling hair for 30 minutes every morning is part of their daily routine...it's MANDATORY to do these things to feel and look good throughout the day. Exercise should be the same.

Unfortunately, too many of us view exercise as a luxury, something we make time for if we have the time to give. What many of us do not take into consideration is that starting with just 20 minutes of exercise a day can make a big impact in our health and wellness. Walk out the front door and make a loop around your neighborhood, drive to the gym at lunch for a quick workout, or get off the couch and onto a treadmill while watching the evening news.

We encourage you to examine your relationship with exercise, and make the decision to change your mindset. Regular exercise will improve your physical and mental health. You don't have to enjoy it every time, you just have to do it! It's simply not an option.

The contents of this blog, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please seek the counsel of an ALETRIS physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.

Alli® Is Not Your Ally

After hearing a lot of talk regarding the new over the counter weight-loss pill, Alli®, we have decided to address one the pill's negative side effects: Vitamin Deficiency.

To understand the risks involved in taking Alli®, one must first understand how it works. Alli® is simply a lesser amount of the prescription weight-loss drug Orlistat (trade name Xenical®). Like Orlistat, Alli® works by inhibiting the action of lipase, an enzyme needed to break down fats so that they may be absorbed through the gut wall. With the inhibition of this enzyme in the intestinal tract, unabsorbed fat moves through the gastrointestinal tract and is eliminated in a bowel movement. Weight-loss occurs through this action because the body never has the opportunity to process the calories contained in the unabsorbed fat.

In addition to decreasing fat absorbtion, research has shown that Alli® also decreases the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins including beta-carotone and vitamins A, D, E, and K. Beta-carotene and vitamin E are major anti-oxidants in the body, while vitamin K is needed for proper blood clotting functions. Vitamin D is one of the most widely researched vitamins at this moment in history, due to its major implecations in reducing the 4 major cancers in the United States: breast, colon, skin, and prostate. Additionally, Vitamin D has been shown to play a major role in increasing bone density.

From a naturopathic perspective, many illnesses are created or exacerbated by vitamin deficiencies. Getting adequate amounts of all vitamins and minerals on a daily basis is a big enough challenge with our American diets, and consuming drugs like Alli® that inhibit their absorption is not something ALETRIS advocates.

The contents of this blog, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please seek the counsel of an ALETRIS physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.