Tricks and Tips to stimulate nervous system for better health and sleep.  Please check back from time to time as I will be updating and adding tips to this blog over time.

Just before going to sleep hold an ice cube(must be an ice cube) in each palm(must be palm) for 45 seconds. Beware it is painful. Stimulates diving reflex which stimulates deeper level of sleep.

Fully exhale for an empty lung and hold exhaled breath for 15-20 seconds. It is more difficult than you know. Improves sleep quality as it turns on nervous system to improve oxygen absorption.

To eliminate carb cravings place one grain of quality salt(sea or pink) on your tongue and it will eliminate the craving within 15 seconds. You can also smell your wrist for 20 seconds to reduce cravings.

You can turn off chronic pain for about 30 minutes by causing harmless pain on the opposite side of the body.  Examples would be having a rubber band on the opposite wrist and snapping it, or holding an ice cube in you palm, or running very cold water over your opposite wrist.  This technique is based on the Gate theory of pain which says your brain can only process a limited amount of incoming data to the brain.  So by snapping a rubber band on your wrist it forces the brain to accept the message from the wrist and ignore the message from the chronic pain area for a while.

To remember someone new name, right after they tell you their name imagine wrighting their name on their forehead in your favorite color.  It will increase your recall later.

You can trigger sleep by putting something cold on your forehead.  An ice pack or pack of peas.  Lay it on your forehead until it warms up.

Generic Azelastine HCL, brand name Astepro Allergy is an over the counter nose spray at most pharmacies.  There is well done excellent valid research that clearly shows using it prevents transmission and infection of COVID 19.  I don't think anyone knows how it works but factually it clearly works in research.  Clark and I use it 3 times the day before flying or planned exposure to crowds and the morning of.  To my knowledge there are no side effects and it is harmless so something so simple and safe why not use/do it?

Important Lab Tests to Prevent Future Disease Public Service Annoucement

For disease prevention, here are 6 markers that predict disease 10 to 15 years before standard labs can catch it. Your standard yearly physical checks which are basic metabolic panel a lipid panel, and hemoglobin AIC only monitor current disease and do NOT predict future disease. Those labs only catch disease after it's already developing. We need to look upstream at what's driving disease before it shows up.

Your doctor checks fasting glucose, but not Fasting Insulin, this is backwards. Insulin can rise 10 to 15 years before glucose abnormalities show up by the time your glucose is elevated you've already been insulin resistant for almost a decade. Fasting insulin should be under 5. If it's above 10, you're heading towards metabolic disease, even if your fasting glucose looks good.

Standard Cholesterol panels are outdated. Cholesterol doesn't tell you a particle number which is really important for heart disease. Risk. Apo B (Apolipoprotein B) measures the number of atherogenic particles in your blood and the number of Apo B molecule per particle capable of penetrating the arterial wall causing inflammation of the arterial lining and causing plaque formation. This is the single best predictor in my opinion of cardiovascular risk. I am for a lab result under 80 and ideally, under 60.

The High Sensitivity C Reactive Protein measures systemic inflammation. Chronic inflammation drives nearly every chronic disease, heart disease, diabetes, cancer demand dementia. The standard crp only catches acute inflammation, whereas HSCRP catches low-grade chronic inflammation. Most people want it under 1.0 ideally you want it under 0.5.

Elevated homocysteine increases risk for cardiovascular disease stroke and cognitive decline. It's a marker of methylation issues and often indicates B vitamin deficiency, including B6 B12 and folate. Homocysteine results should be under 10 ideally under 7.

Your doctor checks serum magnesium, which is useless for this reason. Serum magnesiums stay normal even when you're severely deficient, because your body pulls it from cells to maintain blood levels. A Red Blood Cell Magnesium shows you what's inside your cells where it matters. Most people are deficient.

Vitamin D isn't just for bone health. It's a hormone that affects immune function, mood, cardiovascular health and cancer risk. Of interest other than skin cancer as populations go away from the equator the incidence of many cancers actually go down and in my opinion demonstrates how Vitamin D most likely helps prevent many cancers( https://1library.net/article/latitude-and-cancer-incidence-or-mortality.y9ro6jwy#google_vignette). Also recall that significant number of people who died from Covid 19 were found to be Vitamin D deficient. The Optimal range depends on different researchers but I like to aim between 60 and 80 ng per milliliter. It only becomes too high by most accounts over 100. I take 50,000 units weekly and my levels are consistently 60.

Here's one problem with our healthcare system. Insurance often doesn't cover these labs. Unless you have a specific diagnosis, doctors are trained to treat disease, not prevent it. These markers catch dysfunction before it becomes a disease which doesn't fit the current medical level. Be your own advocate. Ask your doctor to add these labs if they won't find a functional medicine, doctor or order them yourself for services like lab or request these labs could give you a 10 to 15 year Head Start when preventing disease prevention is much cheaper than treatment. These 6 labs can uncover problems a decade before they become diagnoses and direct you as to what areas to modify in your life to reduce risk. For many of these increased risk issues the key to prevention is a healthy diet, modest exercise, and judicious use of supplements to correct documented deficiency's.

Food and Wine Matching a Comprehensive Review from Wine Spectator

To be clear this is not my original work and is a copy from Wine Spectator last year I found very comprehensive and valuable so I reproduce it here for you with a link to join Wine Spectator if you wish

Good news: When matching food and wine, you don’t have to learn complicated systems for selecting the right bottle to enhance what you're eating. This is not rocket science. A few simple guidelines will help you make successful wine-and-food pairings.

Of course, it’s fun to experiment and fine-tune, and with experience you may be able to create spectacular matches that dramatically improve both the dish and the wine. But save those efforts for special occasions and special wines.
Keep It Simple

The three most important rules when it comes to wine-and-food pairing are:

1. Drink and eat what you like

Choose a wine that you would want to drink by itself, rather than hoping a food match will improve a wine made in a style you don’t like. That way, even if the pairing isn’t perfect, you will still enjoy what you’re drinking; at worst, you might need a sip of water or bite of bread between the dish and the glass. The same holds true for the food: After all, if you detest liver, there is no wine pairing on Earth that will make it work for you.

2. Look for balance

Consider the weight—or body, or richness—of both the food and the wine. The wine and the dish should be equal partners, with neither overwhelming the other. If you balance the two by weight, you raise the odds dramatically that the pairing will succeed. This is the secret behind many classic wine-and-food matches.

There’s a fair amount of instinct to this. Hearty food needs a hearty wine. Cabernet Sauvignon complements grilled steak or lamb chops because they’re equally vigorous; the dish would run roughshod over a crisp white wine. In contrast, a light Soave washes down a subtly flavored poached fish because they are equals in delicacy.

Crisp whites such as Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, made with Sauvignon Blanc, complement fresh herbs and soft cheeses, but light reds and richer whites call for different matches. (Andrew McCaul)

How do you determine weight? For the food, fat—including what comes from the cooking method and the sauce—is the main contributor. (Note how a salad with blue cheese dressing feels heavier than one with citrus vinaigrette, as does fried chicken versus poached.)

For a wine, you can get clues from the color, grape variety and alcohol level, along with the winemaking techniques and the region’s climate. (Wines with less than 12 percent alcohol tend to be lighter-bodied; those with more than 14 percent are heavier.) If you’re not familiar with a wine, consult our lists below.

3. Match the wine to the most prominent element in the dish

This is critical to fine-tuning wine pairings. Identify the dominant character in the dish; often it's the sauce, seasonings or cooking method, rather than the main ingredient. Consider two different chicken dishes: Chicken Marsala, with its browned surface and a sauce of dark wine and mushrooms, versus a chicken breast poached in a creamy lemon sauce. The caramelized, earthy flavors of the former tilt it toward a soft, supple red, while the simplicity and citrus flavors of the latter call for a fresh white.

Getting More Advanced

Once you’ve considered these three important rules, you can get more detailed if you want and consider other subtleties of the wine.

First it’s useful to understand the components from the grapes that make up a wine’s structure: the fruit flavors and sugar, which give wines a soft feel in the mouth, and the acidity and tannins, which give wines a sensation of firmness. And of course, there’s the alcohol, which can feel softer in smaller amounts, harder in higher ones.

Red wines are distinct from whites in two main ways: tannins and flavors. Tannins are compounds that provide structure and texture to a wine; they’re responsible for that astringent sensation you feel on the sides of your cheeks, much like when you drink a strong cup of tea. Many red wines have tannins; few white wines do, unless they have spent extensive time aging in oak barrels.

Rosés can strike a balance between white and red wines for pairings and also serve as a go-to option for difficult-to-match dishes. (Aubrie Pick)

White and red wines share many common aromas and flavors; both can be spicy, earthy, minerally or floral. But the apple, pear and citrus flavors in many white wines seldom show up in reds, and the dark currant, cherry and plum flavors of red grapes usually do not appear in whites.

Here are some other pairing principles to consider:

4. Structure and texture matter

Ideally, a wine’s components are in balance, but you can affect that balance, for better or worse, with the food pairing. Elements in a dish can accentuate or diminish the acidity and sweetness of a wine (and vice versa), as well as the bitterness of its tannins.

High levels of acidic ingredients, such as lemon or vinegar, for example, benefit high-acid wines by making them feel softer and rounder in comparison. On the other hand, tart food can turn balanced wines flabby.

Sweetness on the plate can make a dry wine taste sour, but pairs well with a bit of sweetness in the wine; as long as a wine balances its sugar with enough natural acidity (such as German Rieslings and demi-sec Champagnes), it can work very well with many dishes.

Tannic, structured red wines such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Nebbiolo and Syrah counterbalance the fat in a well-marbled steak. (Lisovskaya/Getty Images)

Tannins interact with fats, salt and spicy flavors. Rich, fatty dishes such as steak diminish the perception of tannins, making a robust wine such as a Cabernet seem smoother, as do lightly salty foods like Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. However, very salty foods increase the perception of tannins and can make a red wine seem harsh and astringent; salt likewise accentuates the heat of a high-alcohol wine. Very spicy flavors also tend to react badly with tannins and high alcohol, making the wines feel hotter; such dishes fare better with fruity or lightly sweet wines.

5. Look for flavor links

This is where pairing can be endless fun. The aromatics of wine often remind us of foods such as fruits, herbs, spices and butter. You can create a good match by including ingredients in a dish that echo—and therefore emphasize—the aromas and flavors in a wine. For a Cabernet, for example, currants in a dish may bring out the wine’s characteristic dark fruit flavors, while a pinch of sage could highlight hints of herbs.

On the other hand, similar flavors can have a “cancellation effect”—balancing each other out so that other aspects of a wine come out more strongly. Serving earthy mushrooms with an earthy red might end up giving more prominence to the wine’s fruit character.
6. Give consideration to age

Aged wines present a different set of textures and flavors. As a wine matures, the power of youth eventually subsides; the tannins soften, and the wine may become more delicate and graceful. Fresh fruit flavors may give way to earthy and savory notes, as the wine takes on more complex, secondary characteristics. When choosing dishes for older wines, tone down the richness and big flavors and look for simpler fare that allows the nuances to shine through. For example, rather than a grilled, spice-rubbed steak with an older Cabernet, try lamb braised for hours in stock.

Entire books have been written on the subject of food-and-wine pairing, and you can have a lifetime of fun experimenting with different combinations. If you’d like to learn more, become a WineSpectator.com member.

A refreshing glass of sparkling wine cuts through fatty and salty dishes—from soft cheeses to fried chicken—to cleanse the palate for the next bite. (Lucy Schaeffer Photography)
Weighing Your Options: Lists of Wines by Body

Matching by weight is the foundation of the old rule about white wine with fish and red wine with meat. That made perfect sense in the days when white wines were mostly light and fruity and red wines were mostly tannic and weighty. But today, color-coding does not always work.

Like human beings, wines come in all dimensions. To match them with food, it’s useful to know where they fit in a spectrum, with the lightest wines at one end and fuller-bodied wines toward the other end. For perspective, we offer the following lists of commonly encountered wines.

OK, purists, you’re right: Some Champagnes are more delicate than some Rieslings, and some Sauvignon Blancs are bigger than some Chardonnays, but we’re painting with broad strokes here. When you’re searching for a light wine to go with dinner, pick one from a category at the top of the list. When you want a bigger wine, look toward the end.

To make your own classic matches, start off on the traditional paths and then deviate a little. Don’t get stuck on Cabernet with red meats—look up and down the list and try Zinfandel or Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Instead of Burgundy or Pinot Noir with sautéed mushrooms, try a Barbera or a red Bordeaux. That’s the way to put a little variety into your wine life without straying too far from the original purpose.
Selected dry and off-dry white wines, lightest to weightiest:

High-acid white wines stand up well to many vegetable-based dishes, including acidic ones like a fresh tomato gazpacho. (Joe St. Pierre)

  

 These links will take you to Wine Spectator Articles:  Click blue link then click on link that appears and click on link on redirect page.
 
Which Wines Pair Best with Pasta?
What should you drink with spaghetti and tomato sauce, or pasta Alfredo? We share our red and white wine picks, plus top chefs’ recipes for how to make these dishes and more pasta variations.

Which Wines Pair Best with Salmon?

 White and red with fish? Here are two top grape varieties to enjoy with versatile salmon, delicious recipes and other suggested matches.

Which Wines Pair Best with Steak?
Get our expert pairing tips, tasty sauce recipes for summer grilling, our red wine matches and 9 top wine picks.

Which Wines Pair Best with Ham?
What should you drink with your holiday meal? We share red and white wine picks, plus recipes for honey-glazed ham and a Bourbon–brown sugar glaze.

ABCs of Pairing Wine and Chocolate
Matching up this odd couple doesn’t have to be challenging, and there are delicious rewards for getting it right.

Wine and Food Pairing Tool
Our handy search tool recommends a range of wines and foods that are likely to work well together, based on their typical weight and style.

Recipe Search   https://www.winespectator.com/recipes/search.
Search hundreds of wine-friendly recipes by type of wine you'll be drinking, type of dish you want to make or ingredients you have on hand.

Pairings sweet-wines Red Wines White Wines Sparkling Wines How To

Three Days of the Bourgogne, Cote de Beaune and Cote de Nuit, Day 1

We are back in Paris completely exhausted and overcome with rhinitis from some of the worst pollen counts in Bourgogne in history.  Without exaggeration, I went to the rental car and there was a measurable 1 inch of pollen on top of the car.  Even without allergies, it was miserable just from the irritation.   But like all good soldiers, we slugged it out and made it through an epic 3 days of tastings, food, wine, and cooking imaginable.  

Arriving on the first day at noon, our friend and agent Stevie Bobes of wineambasseur.com met us at the train, packed our luggage in the car, and then did a walking tour of Dijon stopping at the original store that made Dijon mustard famous,  Moutarde Maille founded 1747.  Satisfied with our selections to ship home we proceeded to 1-star Michelin CIBO presented by Angelo Ferrigno who is the youngest Chef in France to receive a Michelin star.  Chef Ferrigno presented a 4-course wine-paired luncheon that was spectacular, featuring Domaine Bachey Legros 2021 Santenay En Charron Chardonnay.  

Buying Dijon Mustard

Wine for Lunch

A Treat for Lunch

After lunch, it was off to the Vosne Tasting Club where we tasted the following exceptional wines purchasing numbers 2 and 3. 

1.  Domaine Jomain Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes 2015

2.  Domaine BxikotPuligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatieres 2015, vineyard is adjacent to the full Montrachet vineyard and one of the best.

3.  Domaine Marc Morey Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Referts 2016, the best of the tasting by a highly regarded and famous winemaker.

4.  Domaine Michel Caillot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles 2010 fading

5.  Buisson-Charles Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Caillerets 2015

Then off to pick up the rental car and check in at the hotel in time for dinner at Le Bistro de L'Hotel just off the Parc Canot in the center of town where we had the famous blue foot chicken with a great red Grand Cru Clos de Vougeot from American Expat Alex Gambel.  Then we passed out sleeping until the next marathon day.  Basically stuffed.

Update on Vitamin D Dosing and Use

 I recently reviewed and some of you have contacted me regarding an article illustrating that too much Vitamin D can be harmful and to be cognizant and aware of the dose you are taking and to be again aware of Vitamin D toxicity.  The problem with these news articles is they like to have this big headline that grabs your attention in order to sell the paper but all you remember is the headline because it was so scary and then you either don't read the article or you read it and don't pay attention because you are now scared.

Let us be clear.  This article was regarding ONE and only ONE person who was taking 50,000 IU of Vitamin D 3X PER DAY.  Not one, not two but 3X per day!!!   Of course, he was going to be toxic.  I have said over and over all drugs have a therapeutic window and any drug can be toxic and just because a little helps does not mean more helps more.  It does NOT!  The correct dosage of 50,000 IU for someone who is severly Vitamin deficient is one capsule weekly for about 4 weeks and then ONE PER MONTH.

The correct dose today of Vitamin D that has been shown to help prevent or reduce cancer incidence and Covid infection is 4000 IU once a day or 50,000 once or twice a month.  Even with these lower doses you periodically want to have your doctor check your serum Vitamin D level and Calcium level.  Your Vitamin D level needs to be over 40 and your Calcium level needs to be around 10.  Previous recommendations as a "normal" Vitamin level of 20-30 in my opinion are too low.

Vitamin D has a decent therapeutic level.  But if you take 50,000 IU 3X a day you will get sick.

Covid Update for Travelers

I have always been a kind of bottom-line kind of guy.  So here it is, despite any and all precautions anyone takes, every human being on the face of the earth will catch Covid-19.  It is just a matter of time.  That is the bad news.  The good news is that for 99.9% of those who are fully vaccinated with boosters, at least one, and preferably two, you will have a mild illness not requiring any medical care and you will not die from the disease.  Clark and I just returned from 2 weeks in Canada and despite wearing a mask, taking Vitamin D, wearing a negative ion generator, etc., etc. we still caught the damn thing.  But, no fever, no breathing problem, just a very mild cold with a mild cough, running nose, and sore throat for about 3 days.  A nonevent.  To date Covid is one of the most contagious and transmittable viruses ever known to man.  Remember this during the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic people living in the Mariannis island in the South Pacific all caught Spanish Flu and 1/2 of the population died.  This occured even though they never had any visitors.  Not one ship or airplane landed and despite no contact with the outside world they all got it anyway.  The reason's the mandates for masks for example have not worked is they only have a chance of working if 100% of the population wears a mask 100% of the time and does NOT remove it to eat or drink which is basically impossible.  In addition have you ever tried to get 100% of human beings to do anything??  Just look at China who with their draconian totalitarian system have again completely locked down Shanghai and yet the virus is still spreading there.  I doubt anyone knows why you cannot stop the spread of Covid.  I suspect the wind, birds, whatever help it spead.  The bottom line is I truly believe most humans will eventually catch it.  BUT!  If you have your shots and booster the evidence is clear, your symptoms should be mild and you should not die.  Elderly folks with mutiple high risk factors will still have some risk of hospitalization and death.  Colin Powell is a good example here.  He had all his shots and boosters, but still he caught Covid and died from it.  But he was under active treatement for not one but two cancers so the deck was stacked against him no matter what.  Don't forget every year in America 50,000 die in car accidents and 35 people die yearly falling out of bed and breaking their neck.  Life is a risk factor.  All we can do is mitigate and reduce the risk which we can do with Covid by getting all shots and boosters.

It also needs to be noted that the current requirement of the US Government to reenter the USA from abroad requires a negative COVID test exactly 24 hours prior to the exact departure time of your flight, or if the test is positive a letter from a licensed physician that you had an active COVID infection and have recovered and are safe to travel.  It is somewhat difficult to accomplish this.  All COVID testing sites are not always obvious.  The ones we found all required appointments and prepayment with no provision for walk in's.  Their appointment times where usually 9 to 5 and not conveinent to match your flight times, and resulted in having delays getting an appointment that in our case at least caused us to miss our flights.  One example that can impact you is your flight is delayed a couple of hours and your COVID test is now over 24 hours from the new flight time and you have to go through the entire process again with no guarantee you can get an appointment and result in time.  For us it was a nightmare.  Be sure and consider all of this and have a back up plan in place just in case.  We also had trouble finding a hotel room last minute for even a day or two until we could get everthing fixed.

Protection from Covid, Cancer, and other Infections using Vitamin D, Zinc, and Magnesium

When I started practice in 1981 within a short time frame I started recommending to my patients take a daily supplement that had Calcium(Ca), Magnesium(Mg), and Zinc(Zn) along with me and my family. That combination was readily available at drug stores and I remember researching it because I found it strange that they were selling that particular combination? I wondered why? Why not take a pill with Chromium, Manganese, and Chloride for example. Who came up with the idea for that combination? What I discovered was there were hundreds of well-done research articles in the medical literature going back decades that clearly demonstrated that those 2 of those minerals boosted your immune system and for most of us that is a good thing. It was felt the Ca was needed for bone health. A few years later I discovered the benefits of Vitamin D again in regards to bone health as well as being demonstrated to cut the number of falls in a nursing home by ½. Back then there was not a lot of information or consensus as to what the correct or best dose might be as well as the concern it might be different for men and women. The Government had their recommended daily allowance(RDA) so that is what we went with for the time. I should mention that other than pregnant or menopausal women and children and adolescents I generally do not recommend Calcium supplementation as our diet provides what we need and I rarely see a low calcium level on blood work, in fact, more often than not the calcium levels are high. In addition where I live in South Georgia and Northeast Florida, we are known as the Kidney Stone capital of the world in that our water supply and groundwater is high in calcium leading to an increased incidence of kidney stones here.

Covid has focused a lot of research over the past 2 years and as they told us in medical school the exam questions never change but the answers do. We now know that we have been taking too little of those supplements and we now have a better idea as to what the correct therapeutic window is. What is a therapeutic window you ask? Each drug and/or supplement has a therapeutic window which is the minimum dose/concentration in your bloodstream where the substance actually effectively does what it is supposed to and the maximum dose/concentration in your bloodstream where the substance is toxic or poisonous to you. Good examples here are Tylenol and Aspirin. In general two(2) pills twice a day works fine and does the job. A bottle full(actually in Tylenol’s case over 6 extra-strength tablets a day) can cause organ damage and even death. This is important as in the case of zinc the therapeutic window is narrow. The articles cited, the most recent from Israel this past week, clearly document that zinc supplementation daily provides a significant boost to your immunity and can present Covid, cancer, and other infections. But the dose is 25 mg a day and no more. When you buy it at the drug store they sell it at 50 mg a pill and that is too high and can cause harm. So you must break the pill in half to take it and I don’t think they tell you that on the bottle as they obviously want you to buy more. But you can’t. Stick with the 25 mg once a day and you will do fine. Have your doctor check your serum blood level of zinc a couple times a year. You want the result to be around 1 mcg/ml. My recent level was 0.92 mcg/ml which is close enough. Labs report normal at 0.66 to 1.10 mcg/ml.

We now know Vitamin D is more critical than we previously knew to support the immune system and the highest death rates from Covid were in patients with Vitamin D levels under 25 ng/dl but labs today still report normal as 20 ng/dl to 40 ng/dl. Trust me you want your Vitamin D level above 40 ng/dl and my family is now consistently above 60 ng/dl which I believe we all should be. To get that level you need to take 4000 IU a day, not the recommended dose of 1000 to 2000 which is ½ what you should take. Another way to do it is take a 50,000 pill 3 or 4 times a month and again follow with measuring your serum levels. In general Vitamin D has a large or substantial therapeutic window so it is hard to overdose on Vitamin D and super high doses at least over short periods of time don’t hurt you. The best example here is a study done in Norway where they gave people 2 million IU of Vitamin D at one time once a year and followed them. There was no harm but it didn’t work and it didn’t boost the immune system. This means it is important to take Vitamin D on a regular basis to get the benefit. Trust me taking one pill a year is very appealing as opposed to having to take one a day. No one likes taking pills every day but if it doesn’t work it is what it is.

In the list of articles to check out we now know Magnesium is important for immune health. There are multiple formulations of Magnesium in Chloride, Citrate, Oxide, and other forms. In general, Chloride and Citrate have fewer side effects. Currently, the proper dose seems to be 400 mg a day and you want your level to be 1.7 mg/dl to 2.2 mg/dl with above 2.4 mg/dl considered too high, so again what we would consider a narrow therapeutic window. Also taking too much will cause diarrhea. That is why Milk of Magnesia treats constipation.

The bottom line is we know unequivocally that Vitamin D 4000 IU a day, Zinc 25 mg a day, and Magnesium 400 mg a day for most people significantly boosts their immunity and reduces the chance and incidence of many infections, especially Covid, and in the long run prevent many cancers. My family currently takes all three as described. If you are into the research minutia I have links below to some current articles that support the above information.

https://www.saintlukeskc.org/about/news/new-research-suggests-magnesium-and-vitamin-d-can-help-reduce-covid-19-infections

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7861592/

https://www.naturalproductsinsider.com/ingredients/covid-study-finds-zinc-effective

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmed.2021.756707/full

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-study-offers-strongest-proof-yet-of-vitamin-ds-power-to-fight-covid/

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10477041/Does-Vitamin-D-work-Covid-Israeli-study-finds-nutrient-big-indicator-severity.html

https://www.businessinsider.com/study-identifies-link-between-vitamin-d-levels-and-covid-19-severity-2022-2

Eating a Healthy Diet Part 2

For years I have known that most diseases are caused by an over abundant inflammatory response by our immune system. Over the past million or so years human beings have developed a highly sophisticated immune system allowing most of us to long and healthy lives. Our bodies live with a balance of some bacteria, e. coli in the colon, and viruses, herpes zoster in the spinal canal, which is called a symbiotic relationship. Sort of like the birds you see on the backs of cattle. Both organisms benefit from being together. But over the course of evolution, our immune systems have also developed the capacity to kill us while trying to save us. As our behavior developed and created the "fight or flight phenonomen", our immune system did the same, unfortunately when our immune system decides to fight to the death it is our own death it causes. I am convinced with the current Coronovirus pandemic the many younger people who are dying is because of what is termed Cytokine Storm which simply their immune system going into overdrive to kill the virus but in the process kills all the internal organs. But without Coronovirus humans over the years have killed themselves off by eating foods that increase the inflammatory response to a fault. And for the most part all chronic diseases have at some point as their basis inflammation. The best example is coronary heart disease. Decades ago I joined the American Lipid Society and went to all of their annual meetings. I went to learn all about the best and current medication to reduce cholesterol and lipids in the blood because a build up of cholesterol plaques in the coronary arteries caused heart attacks. Right? No, wrong and was I surprised. Turns out the medical field has understood for decades that what causes heart attacks is artery endothelial inflammation. Yes cholesterol builds up in the lining of the artery over years but that build up is met by an inflammatory response by the body trying to get rid of those plaques. Eventually what happens is there is so much inflammation that the inflammation breaks open the plaque causing platelets to swarm around the area and in the end blocks off the artery causing said heart attack. So yes reducing cholesterol is needed and helps but the real problem is the inflammation which we will see is caused by our poor diet. 

This food article today is an update to my previous blog on eating a healthy diet with some new recommendations. With a lot of time on my hands I spent a large amount of time researching inflammation and diets and can offer additional information. Spoiler alert my research again confirmed the BEST diet for low inflammation is the Mediterranean Diet. Go figure. To maybe simplify this concept I found this listing of foods you want to eat. So an anti-inflammatory diet should include lots of these foods: 

Tomatoes 

Avocados, their anti-inflammatory properties are very strong 

Extra Virgin Olive Oil in place of butter 

Green leafy vegetables, spinach, kale, collards, Swiss Chard 

Almonds and Walnuts 

Fatty fish like Salmon, Mackerel, Tuna, and Sardines and Anchovies 

Fruits like strawberries, blueberries, cherries, and oranges 

If you just ate the above foods for all of your meals you would go a long way to reduce overall inflammation. 

Though there is at times conflicting research a glass of any wine once a day provides some Resveratrol which you also find in the dark-skinned fruits above.  All wine has some but red wine has more of course.  For most of us, one glass a day is most likely ideal and an entire bottle everyday maybe not such a good idea!

I also have read for years benefits of drinking a glass of lemon water every day and my current research confirmed that. A simple recipe is: 

1/2 Cup Lemon Juice 

4 Cups of water 

1/2 tsp liquid stevia or small amount of maple syrup for sweetness 

May also add some ground Ginger 

Many recipes call for the addition of some turmeric but I recommend turmeric in a different form so I don't add it to the lemon water. 

I continue to recommend from my original blog that we all continue to take zinc, Vitamin D, B12, and optimized Folate. In addition to those supplements I now recommend adding SLCP Longvida Optimized Curcumin and L Glutamine. Almost since the beginning of time in India Ayurvedic medicine has recommended taking Curcumin or Turmeric. But research out of NIH clearly shows anti-inflammatory benefits of Curcumin and a recent paper shows significant survival of ICU patients given IV Curcumin. The problem is that regular over the counter Curcumin is not absorbed orally that well, hence the need to IV administration in the ICU. But other research at NIH has shown a different formulation of Curcumin, SLCP Longvida Optimized Curcumin is much better absorbed orally. A recent study of this better compound showed a dose of 160 mgs a day for 90 days significantly improved function and pain for knee osteoarthritis. I was only able to find online at Amazon in a 400 mgs vegetable capsule so my wife and I plan to take one of those daily. One additional supplement to take is L Glutamine 1000 mgs tablets. The literature talks about taking over 30 grams a day which to me is too much. One article says the maximum recommended safe dose is 14 grams a day. I plan on taking 2-3 grams a day. 

So to improve your health through diet try the above recommendations and see how they work for you. Don't forget nothing is a 100% and those recommendations hopefully will help most people.  Unfortunately, there are not treatments or foods best for everyone as we all can react differently.

Eating a Healthy Diet

As many are aware I am a physician. I spent the majority of my career in primary care and thus a focus on preventive medicine. I can state unequivocally the three main contributors to health and long life are genetics, diet, and not smoking. Say what you will but if you came from a healthy long living gene pool, eat a healthy balanced diet, and don't smoke you should have a long healthy life and even if you don't have the best gene pool a healthy diet and not smoking will overcome some of the bad genes. So what actually works? Over the past 50 years or so the pendulum has gone back and forth on low fat, Adkins, Paleo, on and on you name it. There has been every fad you can imagine all basically trying to get you to spend your money on their products to move your hard-earned dollars into their pockets and out of yours. 

After 30 years of practice, I have seen what actually works and I have spent a lot of time reviewing the extensive research that is available and can pass on to you what you need to actually do and best to spend your money so here goes. 

The absolute best diet for pretty much anything is the Mediterranean diet which means more fish, poultry, vegetables, and vegetable-based oils and less red meat. As an example, I had extensive oral surgery a few years ago and completely lost my appetite for red meat and did not eat any red meat for over 3 years. I had stopped taking statins due to side effects and during those 3 years my cholesterol was under 200 and my "bad" cholesterol was under 100. The minute I went back to eating red meat my cholesterol went back up. Personally, I find the Mediterranean diet very palatable and satisfying. Some details to pay attention to are as follows. Increase your intake of olive oil, some research says 4 tablespoons daily will significantly improve your cholesterol profile in the blood. I now substitute olive oil for butter and find it works. I use olive oil on baked potatoes and it tastes just fine. You want to eat more salmon, halibut, anchovies, and mackerel as these fish have a higher concentration of Omega 3 oils. We need both Omega 6 and Omega 3 oils in our diet but to get the Omega 3 oils we need to eat more of the above fish. I recommend eating these fish at least 3 or 4 times a week. In the Mediterranean diet, you eat more vegetables, fruit, and nuts. Actually, research has shown if you eat about 1 to 3 ounces of almonds, pecans, and walnuts per day it helps with longevity. Eat more avocado's. There are very, very healthy. Personally, I love them and I now have a whole one for every breakfast. 

Want to control your weight? Then learn about portion control and the best way to accomplish this is to eat off a smaller plate. I know it sounds like snake oil but research has clearly shown eating off a small plate with every meal helps control weight and I had dozens of patients who lost weight with this magic trick. It has something to do with psychology that I do not understand but the facts are it works. Recently you have heard about eating in a 6 or 8-hour window and have a 16 hour fast every day. Current research seems to support this idea but I think the jury may still be out. I know portion control works. I have seen it work. 

On to the Elephant in the room, supplements. Truth be told if you eat a balanced Mediterranean diet you should not need vitamins or supplements. The majority of vitamins and supplements are eliminated as waste almost as soon as you take them. However, there are a few that research has clearly shown are beneficial and help prolong life and prevent disease. They are as follows. Zinc at 25 mg a day helps to enhance your immune system. It usually comes as 50 mg which is too much per day so break them in half and only take 25 mg a day. Fish oil has been shown to improve your cholesterol levels and control your Triglycerides levels. But you have to take higher doses than are usually recommended. The best dose is around 6000 international units. I find fish oil to cause a fishy taste in my mount that is not pleasant so I choose to get my fish oil by eating more fish and increasing my intake of olive oil to obtain the same result. Vitamin D has been known for years to be highly beneficial and to help prevent certain types of cancer. Again you have to take higher doses than usually recommended. You should take either 4000 international units a day or at the vitamin stores, you can purchase 50,000 international units you can take once a month. Folate is good for you but due to genetics, many people do not metabolize it properly. It is easy to get around that by taking 1000 mcg every other day of "Optimized" Folate which you can purchase, most likely online. Along with Folate take Vitamin B12 1000 mcg a day. Even if you don't need Vitamin B12 good research has shown it can improve mood if your blood levels are over 400. Most of the time when we check B12 levels they are a little over 200 and considered normal but the fact is blood levels over 400 clearly are associated with a reduction in depressive symptoms. A word of caution here be sure and check with your physician if you choose to take B12 as some people have a disease from not being able to absorb B12 so you should have your blood checked if you want to take B12 first. Most of us do not get enough magnesium. Turns out most diabetics are significantly deficient in magnesium. I recommend two 400 mcg pills a day, again higher than what is usually recommended. For most people, men, and women, as we age we benefit from a baby aspirin every night. There is a small risk of increased stomach bleeding, especially if we are approaching or over 80 but research is clear low dose aspirin use prevents stroke, heart attack, and colon cancer in most people. You take baby aspirin at bedtime as most heart attacks occur around 2 AM due to the adrenal glands surging at that time getting us ready to wake up and face the day. Other than aspirin I recommend vitamins and supplements listed above be taken with a meal as they are better absorbed with a meal. 

Now you know what to eat what do you not eat other than red meat. Very easy. Eliminate sugar from your diet. Research clearly shows humans should not eat over 20 grams of sugar in 24 hours. Have you ever read the label on grape or orange soda or orange juice? Grape soda has over 80 GRAMS of sugar in one 12 ounce bottle. No wonder we all have diabetes. All fruit juice are high in sugar and many have extra sugar added. You need more fruit in moderation but it needs to be the actual fruit. A whole orange is much better for you but you can't eat unlimited amounts. Get rid of the sugar in coffee. Read every label. You will be shocked by how much sugar is added to our food. If you must eat red meat then restrict it to once maybe twice in a week and eat grass-fed red meat. 

And finally, we need more exercise but it does not have to be aggressive. For the older crowd 30 minutes of walking is plenty. Also, some strength training is helpful but again it does not have to aggressive. Lightweights work fine for most of us. 

So I again wish everyone a happy New Year and hope the above recommendations are something you can use in your own quest for a long and healthy life.

Homemade Italian Dinner

Homemade Italian Dinner

The blog is about wine, food, and travel so let's talk about food today.  Clark and I generally agree that well prepared tasty and yes gourmet dinners should be made with 5 ingredients or even less.  Too many ingredients lead to a clash of flavors.  Keep it simple so to speak.  We found a great pasta sauce recipe and decided to try it and it was great!  Simple, quick, and tasty.  The entire meal took one hour to prepare.  Of course, you want to use high-quality ingredients.  Pictured below is the canned tomatoes we used which are basically high-quality Italian tomatoes.  In addition to the basic recipe, we threw in a couple of additions.  We love anchovies but went a little overboard.  Would only recommend 2 or 3 filets at most.  We also added a clove of garlic and decorated the sauce to with a few Morel mushrooms and chopped fresh basil.  The salad was a basic wedge salad with lettuce, blue cheese dressing, and blue cheese crumbs, chopped bacon, and avocado.  Overall the food was wonderful and again simple and quick to make.  Give it a try in your home.  Please look forward to my article on an upcoming French Bourgogne dinner featuring Epoisse cheese and Grand Cru Bourgogne wines that has been in the planning stages for over 4 years.

High Quality Italian Tomatoes peeled and whole in can

Blue Cheese Wedge Salad

Marcella Hazan's Pasta Sauce with Fettuccine, Morels, and Basil

https://www.rd.com/food/recipes-cooking/add-butter-to-pasta-sauce/