Category: Motivational

Dive into the essential world of fats with Dr. McDougall as he unravels the truth about what your body needs to thrive. This enlightening video highlights the critical difference between essential fats and free oils, emphasizing the importance of sourcing fats from plants. Dr McDougall expertly guides us through the science behind fats, revealing why plant-based sources like omega-3 and omega-6 are indispensable to our health and the significant risks associated with consuming free oils.

The body uses fat primarily for energy storage when no food or other immediate source of fuel is available, and cholesterol is needed for many critical cellular functions, so both are part of a normal, healthy body. Having said that, the body produces all the cholesterol it needs; and as for fat, plants already contain adequate amounts and only plants make the essential fatty acids your body needs to function. What’s more, plant foods never contain cholesterol.

Animal foods, on the other hand, provide too much fat, especially the most harmful kind (saturated fat), which damages the arteries and causes heart disease and stroke. Beef derives 60% – 80% of its calories from fat; pork, 80% – 95%; chicken, 30% – 50%; and fish, 5% – 60% percent. Meat is also rich in cholesterol. A 3 1/2 ounce serving of beef contains 85 mg of cholesterol; pork contains 90 mg; mackerel fish contains 95 mg; turkey, 83 mg; tuna, 63 mg; and chicken (skinned-white), 85 mg.

Vegetable Oils Are Not Health Foods

Even poly and monounsaturated fats – found in large amounts in vegetable oils and fish – have been shown to depress the immune system, increase bleeding and promote cancers, especially those of the colon, prostate and breast. Because all fats are easily stored by the body, too much dietary fat makes people overweight and lays the foundation for a host of other problems like heart disease, cancer and type 2 diabetes.

https://www.drmcdougall.com/education/free-mcdougall-program/fat-cholesterol/

• Free oils are processed- extracted & refined from their fibrous source
• Bound oils (fats) are intact within their original, whole plant food source.
• Naturally occurring in whole plants like nuts, seeds, avocados, bound fats are acceptable within restricted moderation for healthy individuals.

* mouthwash is not good, it kills beneficial oral bacteria responsible for promoting the nitrate-nitrite-nitric oxide pathway (users have higher blood pressure)
* flouride [in toothpaste] reduces favorable gut bacteria
* protein pump inhibitors (meds) restricts nitric oxide production
* eating late at night also negatively effects stomach acid production
* foods that increase nitric oxide are green leafy veggies, beets, veggies grown in sunny parts of the world are best
* breathing through your nose & humming also help
* walking outdoors
* sunlight
* vinegar consumption helps

ADVICE FROM CALDWELL ESSELSTYN, MD

Nix these from your grocery list:

* Anything with a face (no meat, poultry, or fish)

* Dairy products

* Oils of any kind (yes, devotees of the Mediterranean diet, that includes olive oil)

* Generally, no nuts or avocados [particularly if you have cardio-vascular issues]

Add this wonderful variety of delicious, nutrient-dense foods:

* All vegetables.

* Leafy green vegetables, root
vegetables, veggies that are red, green, purple, orange, and yellow and everything in between

* Allegumes–beans, peas, and lentils of all varieties

* All whole grains and products, such as bread and pasta, that are made from them-as long as they do
not contain added fats

* All fruits except high fat ones [coconut, avocado]

Breakdown of the specific rules regarding these foods:

* For individuals with heart disease: Anyone with established heart disease is advised to completely avoid avocados, coconuts, and all oils. This is the strictest version of the diet, where even healthy plant fats are restricted.

* For individuals without heart disease: If you do not have diagnosed heart disease and maintain very low cholesterol (total cholesterol under 150 mg/dL), you may be able to consume some avocados and nuts in moderation.

Why these foods are excluded

* Avocados: While often considered a “healthy fat,” Esselstyn’s strict protocol for patients with heart disease views high-fat foods as inappropriate, regardless of the fat source.

* Coconuts: All coconut products, including coconut oil and coconut water, are explicitly disallowed because they are high in saturated fat. Coconut oil, in particular, is noted as having more saturated fat per gram than butter or lard.

* Oils (including plant-based): Esselstyn’s diet prohibits all added oils, including olive and canola oil, because they injure the endothelium, or the innermost lining of the artery.

Source – Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease, by
Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr. M.D.

https://impactmagazine.ca/health/heart-to-heart-with-dr-caldwell-esselstyn/

Online, when you hear ads about “a simple trick to be done at bedtime to restore the brain”— it is likely referring to a well-known sleep-related technique called cognitive shuffling (also referred to as the serial diverse imagining task).

What Is Cognitive Shuffling?

Cognitive shuffling is a mental technique designed to quiet racing thoughts and help you fall asleep faster. It was developed by cognitive scientist Dr. Luc Beaudoin.

How it works: Instead of trying to force your mind to relax or replay your day, you think of random, neutral words, preferably ones that bear no emotional weight. For example, take the word “Piano” and break it down:

P: pear, parachute, pen, pine

I: igloo, idea, insect, image

A: apple, anchor, apron, arc

N: needle, nectar, notion, nova

O: ocean, orbit, olive, onion

You spend 5–8 seconds per letter listing associated words, then move on. This distracts the brain from anxious or emotionally charged thoughts and nudges it into a more dreamlike, sleep-ready state.

Why it works:

The mind, as it drifts into sleep, naturally has fragmented, microdream-like thought patterns.

By engaging in intentional, random, and neutral thinking, you mimic this presleep mental state—making sleep onset easier.

Effectiveness:

A study with around 154 participants found that practicing this technique (referred to in a formal study as SDIT) improved sleep quality, reduced time to fall asleep, and helped with presleep arousal — and the effects lasted over several weeks.

How to Practice It Tonight:

Get into bed and settle in.

Choose any simple word—doesn’t have to make sense (e.g., “chair,” “window,” “cloud”).

Go letter by letter:

For each letter, think of as many neutral words as possible for about 5–8 seconds.

Avoid emotionally charged or self-referential words.

If you fall asleep in the process—awesome!

If you’re still awake after ~20 minutes or feel frustrated, get up, do something relaxing in another room, then return to bed when sleepy again.

Why This Might Be What Is Being  Referred to Online:

It’s indeed a simple bedtime fix that targets your brain’s thought processes, helping you drift into restful sleep. That matches the phrasing of “a trick… to restore the brain.”

Summary:

Cognitive shuffling is a brain-friendly, easy-to-apply pre-sleep mental tool. It works by replacing anxiety-inducing thoughts with random, neutral imagery—often helping you fall asleep within minutes.

*******

PS: I tried this last night when I awoke mid-sleep. It worked! It put me right back into dreamland 👍

AUG 20, 2025

Israel is preparing to perform the world’s first-ever human spinal cord implant using a patient’s own cells, a medical breakthrough that could allow paralyzed patients to stand and walk again, Tel Aviv University announced on Wednesday. The surgery, expected in the coming months, will take place in Israel and marks a historic milestone in regenerative medicine.

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-864808

by Pam Popper, President of Wellness Forum Health:

---

Summary Bullet Points

• Historical Clarity on Junk Food:
  Junk foods (cookies, candy, chips) were once clearly recognized as unhealthy, and people generally understood they should eat less of them and more whole plant foods.
• Modern Confusion:
  Today’s debate on ultra-processed foods focuses more on tweaking ingredients (e.g., seed oils, coloring agents) rather than reducing consumption—an approach Popper criticizes as misguided.
• Dietary Guidelines Stance:
  Popper, typically critical of the USDA, supports the 2024 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s decision not to blame ultra-processed foods broadly for chronic disease.
• Misplaced Blame:
  Popper argues that chronic diseases like type-2 diabetes and heart disease are primarily caused by dietary fat, not candy, pasta, or cereals.
• Scientific Support:
  • Intramyocellular fat (fat within muscle cells) is a key cause of insulin resistance.
  • Reducing dietary fat (e.g., cheese, oils, French fries) leads to dramatic improvements in insulin sensitivity—even before significant weight loss.
• Misinterpretation of Studies:
  Popper criticizes lazy or AI-generated summaries of studies. A 2023 study linking ultra-processed foods to diabetes actually found:
  • Higher risk from ultra-processed animal products and “heat and eat” meals.
  • Lower risk from processed cereals, sweet snacks, and fruit-based processed foods.
  • A plant-rich diet was associated with reduced risk of type-2 diabetes.
• Main Takeaway:
  The overall dietary pattern—favoring whole plant foods and minimizing fats—is far more important than focusing narrowly on specific additives like seed oils or food dyes.
• Call to Action:
  Wellness Forum Health promotes teaching people to read and interpret scientific information independently, making them less susceptible to misinformation or trendy health narratives.

Symptoms of Valley fever can vary in type and severity, but they tend to mimic those seen in patients with COVID-19, experts say.

“Some [people] may have a fever, chills or fatigue, or just feel generally unwell,” Thompson of UC Davis Health said.

Since the fungus that causes Valley fever lives in the soil, infection is often “hobby-related,” Thompson said. He said he sees many cases among people who are in archeology or who spend a lot of time outdoors.

For those in high-risk groups [people 60 years of age and older, those who have weakened immune systems as a result of certain diseases or medical conditions, pregnant women, people with diabetes, and people who are Black or Filipino], the doctor recommends avoiding construction sites or areas where soil is often stirred up into the air.

https://www.foxnews.com/health/valley-fever-cases-spike-record-levels-west-coast-state-health-officials-warn

UPFs include microwave meals, sodas, potato chips and packaged cookies, among others.

Read more here.

Peter Rogers says:

Bone can gradually grow
stronger. Good habits = exercise,
sleep, avoid unecessary
psychological stress + Good diet =
low fat vegan, no caffeine ->-and
bones-will-get-stronger. There’s
no-short-cut. There’s no-do
something for a-week, and then
you’re set for life. Just-have
good-habits-and-good-diet-every
day. The-fastest way-to-put
muscle-on the human-body-is to
do-squats. One-begins-with
stretching, then-air squats, then
high-reps-with-the bar alone, then
with-weights. Look at the Bantu
women. Look at Buettner’s blue zone centenarian populations:
Women-who-eat-plant-based
diets-and- keep-busy-physically
with-activities-like-walking, etc,
they-do-well. It’s-the Westernized
women-who-are relatively
sedentary, sleep-deprived, &-eat
meat, oil, processed-food,
caffeine, GPF [Glyphosate – a widely used herbicide that controls broadleaf weeds and grasses] who have problems.

Mcdougall’s newsletters Feb &
March 2022 are good on that;
how dexa is standardized based
on a premenopausal woman, and
that postmenopausal women
do not need that much bone
mass. Healthy people in
epidemiologically successful places
like Dan Buettner’s “blue zones”
don’t take any pills or
supplements. They just eat plant
foods & keep busy with a lot of
movement. The Bantus are a
good example of how minimal
dietary needs are for calcium.

Thnx Peter!