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Cost of Dying by Lisa Kreiger

The day she brought a hospital bed into her den, Susan Meyers’ role in life changed dramatically, from adoring mate to devoted caregiver.

Like one of every six Californians, she was taking on a job that doesn’t pay, but costs sleep, savings and sometimes physical well-being.

Her beloved, John, the charismatic flight surgeon and avid tennis player who had wooed her with song and dance, was dying of neurodegenerative disease. Not only was she losing a partner, she was shouldering new responsibilities, from running their San Mateo household to managing his medications, disinfecting urine bags and tucking in his blankets to keep him safe and warm in bed.

“At least,” she said, “he is here at home.”

Susan Meyers, 71, shaves her husband, John, who was suffering from neurodegenerative disease, at their San Mateo home Oct. 6, 2012. John passed away Oct. 23, 2012. (Dai Sugano/Staff)

Caregiving can be immensely rewarding, driven by love and dedication. It is also exhausting, expensive and poorly supported by a medical system that delivers life-prolonging miracles, but little help for loving care at home in life’s fragile years. Caregiving bankrupts families, isolates loving spouses, delays retirement or forces us to pass up promotions.

The challenges of caregiving are a reality of daily life for more than 6 million Californians who help parents, partners, children or friends — with everything from meal preparation to taking care of medical needs — even as they worry about their own futures.

The financial, emotional and physical sacrifice of caregivers is the subject of this installment of the ongoing series on the Cost of Dying.

BLESSINGS AND COSTS

Joan Valor cherishes caring for her 43-year-old son, Eric, who five years ago was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a debilitating disease that causes progressive muscle weakness.

“It’s been a blessing to have him here,” she said. “Who knows him better than family?”

Because Medicare and private insurance don’t pay for caregivers, Eric Valor sold his beachfront Aptos cottage and was forced to spend his savings.

Once, he held a high-tech job at Mercedes-Benz, surfed in Panama and scuba-dived in Fiji; now, he’s on Medi-Cal, the state’s health program for the poor.

So he lives with his mother and stepfather, who sold their home to move to a place in Aptos better suited to Eric’s needs. They barter his stepfather’s contracting services to get free or discounted equipment. They used their dwindling savings to create a wheelchair-accessible bathroom and buy necessities not covered by Medi-Cal, such as a $4,600 air mattress, a vehicle that holds a wheelchair, an extra caregiver for his daily shower, or myriad other basics, from gauze to sterile cotton swabs.

He credits his survival to his comfortable and familiar environment.

The cost to his family so far: $600,000. Medi-Cal now pays for his caregivers, but their low pay for high skills leads to frequent turnover. Twenty-four hours a day, caregivers monitor Eric’s ventilator, breathing and feeding tubes and help clear secretions to keep him from choking.

“Eric is not the problem,” said his mother, Joan Valor, 70. “It’s the lack of money to care for him that’s the problem — to give him the life he deserves and needs. But we’re fortunate. A lot of families don’t have what we have.”

THE FAMILY BURDEN

Such dedicated families provide most of the long-term care in California, often at great financial, physical and emotional sacrifice, according to the Family Caregiver Alliance in San Francisco. Their unpaid service has an estimated market value of $45 billion annually.

Bearing witness to life’s end, caregivers push wheelchairs, ease pain and share stories.

Then, when unable to keep up, they turn to more formal alternatives — such as in-home care, assisted living or nursing home care — and find few good choices in a system that is fragmented, uncoordinated and extraordinarily expensive.

What’s happened, experts say, is that life’s final chapter has changed.

A century ago, most people sickened and died quickly from disease or sudden injury, often surrounded by an extended family.

Now many Americans live with chronic, progressive illnesses, typically after prolonged periods of physical dependency with few relatives nearby. And the nation is growing older. People 85 and older — those most in need of long-term care — are the nation’s fastest growing population group, climbing to about 8.9 million by 2030.

Yet the modern health care system — which rewards cures, not caregiving — hasn’t adapted to these trends, said John Schall, president of the Family Caregiver Alliance.

“Family caregiving is the backbone of the long-term care system in this country,” Schall said. “As chronic conditions continue to increase, and we live longer, the burden will increase.”

As Pleasanton resident Orland Silva stayed at home dying of cancer, his five adult children took around-the-clock shifts so that their 71-year-old father stayed clean and comfortable under hospice care. One, with a leave of absence from work, covered mornings; another attended to late afternoons and evenings; a third spent the night. Two others helped run errands and supported their mother.

Their gift of time made it possible for Silva to enjoy afternoon reruns of “Gunsmoke” with his grandson and chat with friends from his beloved Bible study fellowship.

“I have a household of people here just about every day,” said Silva, before his death in May. “I am just experiencing the love being poured out from family and friends.”

More than two-thirds of people older than 65 will require long-term services at some point in their lives, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

But such care is not just for the old and frail. About 40 percent of care goes to people younger than 65, like Valor, who need help due to disease, injury, developmental disabilities or severe mental illness.

“Caregiving is hard. But it doesn’t have to be this hard,” said Dr. Ira Byock of Dartmouth Medical School and author of “Dying Well.”

CHERISHED MOMENTS

Susan Meyers sought to keep John, 84, at home so they could savor some final private moments during his decline.

She treasured their quiet time together in their living room.

“Some evenings, we’ll put on some nice music, maybe Frank Sinatra or some soundtracks,” she said, before he died in October. “Even if he just squeezes my hand a little bit, it makes it all worthwhile. It is one of the really precious things about him being here.”

But she paid a physical and emotional price. Her weight dropped to 90 pounds. She fell down stairs while trying to help him. With a lifetime of saving, the couple was able to hire weekday help. But Susan took on many tasks and suffered pangs of isolation and inadequacy.

“Sometimes I’d like to bolt, but I never would,” said Meyers, now 71. “Sometimes you just kind of tear your hair out.”

After she had a midnight scare of soaring blood pressure and heart palpitations, she called an ambulance to take her to the hospital. Even then, she worried: Who would care for John?

HEAVY TOLL ON FAMILIES

For society, it is far cheaper to keep people out of the hospital or skilled nursing homes. And most say they hope to die at home, far from hospitals’ rescue credo and the technological panoply of beeping monitors and dangling drip lines.

But caring for loved ones exacts a heavy toll on families, even though it can be a source of great personal satisfaction.

They sacrifice jobs and careers. One national study found that a third of caregivers cut back their work hours to devote more time to loved ones. Others pass up promotions or job opportunities.

Working caregivers find few resources, such as eight-hour day care.

“I can’t leave my husband alone,” said 59-year-old Barbara Gruenwald, a San Francisco financial consultant who struggled to find all-day care for her husband, John, who suffers from Lewy body dementia. “But he doesn’t need skilled nursing. He doesn’t belong in a facility. And it would be devastating to him.”

Some must quit work altogether; Joan Valor gave up her real estate job. When Eric’s caregivers sickened, she took over the job — for four days straight. And when a caregiver quits, it can take months to find a suitable replacement.

EXTRAORDINARY COSTS

Caregiving can also strain retirement income, because time off work reduces pensions and Social Security benefits.

And the costs of care are stratospheric.

A home health aide in the Bay Area costs $25 an hour, on average. That’s $52,000 a year for 40 hours of Monday through Friday care. Alternatives are also expensive: about $55,000 a year, on average, for an assisted living facility in the Bay Area.

Families pay out of their own pockets: Savings. Social Security. Reverse mortgages. Pensions.

That’s because Medicare pays only for treatment, not in-home “custodial care.” Hospice can help, but its patients must be judged to be within six months of death — and even then, its benefits don’t cover prolonged around-the-clock care. Private insurance doesn’t cover care, unless the patient has a long-term care policy that comes with premiums ranging from $2,200 to $7,700 a year for 65-year-olds.

Medi-Cal offers some support, but patients must be poor or spend down their savings to qualify.

“I’m bankrupt,” Eric Valor said, using a computer above his bed that lets him type messages with his eyes. “It was terrible to see everything I had fought so hard to get — my perfect little life — taken due to something over which I had no control.”

The national health care reforms coming in 2014 expand home and community-based services through Medi-Cal. But the state’s long-term care system is complex and fragmented, administered by disparate state agencies with different eligibility requirements, target populations and services.

Home care, an experience seared into the minds of survivors, brings its own grace.

If she loses Eric, Joan Valor said, “I will have had the opportunity to spend quality time with him. … I will have had every day to say goodbye.”

Susan Meyers was at John’s bedside last month for his final moments. She awoke after another restless night and found her husband struggling to breathe. She raised an oxygen mask to his mouth to help his failing lungs, then felt for a pulse. Under his strained breathing, she heard no heartbeat.

“He closed his eyes and went away,” she said. “He was gone before his last breath.”

She had long disliked the big hospital bed where John slept because it separated them.

But on the night after he died, she climbed into it for her own rest — lonely, exhausted and thankful that it had helped her care for him.

“He never had to leave,” she said. “For that, I am so grateful.”

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Motherhealth Caregivers for homebound bayarea seniors 24-hr response at 408-854-1883 motherhealth@gmail.com or conniedbuono@gmail.com

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Drugs in waste water and household waste

Household Hazardous Waste

Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) (also referred to as domestic hazardous waste) is waste that is generated from residential households. HHW only applies to wastes that are the result of the use of materials that are labeled for and sold for “home use” and that are purchased by homeowners or tenants for use in a residential household.

The following list includes categories often applied to HHW. It is important to note that many of these categories overlap and that many household wastes can fall into multiple categories:

Paints and solvents
Automotive wastes (used motor oil, antifreeze, old gasoline, etc.)
Pesticides (insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, etc.)
Mercury-containing wastes (thermometers, switches, fluorescent lighting, etc.)
Electronics (computers, televisions, cell phones)
Aerosols / Propane cylinders
Caustics / Cleaning agents
Refrigerant-containing appliances
Batteries
Ammunition

Radioactive waste (some home smoke detectors are classified as radioactive waste because they contain very small amounts of a radioactive isotope of americium.

Waste in the USA

As a nation, Americans generate more waste than any other nation in the world with 4.5 pounds (2.04 kg) of municipal solid waste (MSW) per person per day, fifty five percent of which is contributed as residential garbage. The remaining forty five percent of waste in the U.S.’s ‘waste stream’ comes from manufacturing, retailing, and commercial trade in the U.S. economy.[1] Based on proprietary data released to the public, Nevada was named America’s “Most Wasteful State” for the years 2005-2010; where each resident threw away over 14 pounds of non-recycled, unreused items, often ending up into landfills and incinerators per day, eight pounds over the national state daily throwaway average.

Drugs in waste water

When people take drugs, they end up in the water, either unchanged or broken down into specific metabolites. Increasingly, water can be tested to gauge how much drug use is going on in an area, and a new study shows that the level of illegal drugs being used in a community can be tested in real time, and potentially applied to help police narcotic use.

Before the advent of this type of testing, dubbed “sewage epidemiology,” drug usage was generally estimated by surveys, crime statistics, narcotics seizures and other self-reported information. But by analyzing the amount and type of drugs in wastewater, as done in this study, researchers can more accurately detect usage rates, find hotspots for abuse, and potentially measure the effectiveness of police countermeasures.

In the study, scientists searched for six illicit drugs (and their metabolites) in two wastewater plants, one serving a small and another a slightly larger community near Albany, N.Y. And drugs did they find, after testing the water each day for a week. In fact, the researchers detected cocaine in 93 percent of the untreated water samples. Based on the relative level of cocaine’s metabolites, they determined that most of the drug ended up there via human excretion, rather than direct disposal. So it doesn’t appear that a lot of people in Albany are flushing coke down the toilet in a panic. Drug levels remained relatively constant throughout the testing.

Morphine was found in 100 percent of the untreated water

Surprisingly, at least to me, morphine was found in 100 percent of the untreated water(!). The human body breaks down heroin into morphine and other chemicals, and this may be where the morphine is coming from, although the researchers don’t specifically say in the study, published in Environmental Science and Technology. For what it’s worth, the average concentrations of morphine found in the water “was 2.7–3.6 times lower than those reported earlier from the USA and the UK, but 3.0 times higher than those reported in Spain,” the authors noted.

The study also found low levels of the designer drug 3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine (also known as MDA) and ecstasy, or MDMA.

Testing for drugs in public water supplies has revealed a slew of interesting findings in the past few years. A study earlier this year found, for example, that in tests of water from a campus in Washington, “amphetamine levels go through the roof during finals,” University of Puget Sound researcher Dan Burgard told Environmental Health News. Other tests have revealed trends in various countries, as the site noted:

In London, cocaine and ecstasy spike on weekends while methadone is used more consistently.
In Italy, cocaine use has declined while use of marijuana and amphetamines has increased.
In Sweden and Finland, people use more amphetamines and methamphetamines and less cocaine than other European cities. Also, in Finland, stimulants were more common in large cities.
In Zagreb, Croatia, marijuana and heroin were the most commonly found illicit drugs, but cocaine and ecstasy showed up more frequently on weekends.
In Oregon, cocaine and ecstasy are more common in urban than in rural wastewater according to a 2009 study.

Another study published last month in the journal Addiction looked at drugs in the water in 42 European cities. And it found that people in Antwerp, Belgium, love drugs. The research “revealed traces of cocaine, amphetamines, cannabis, and ecstasy in Antwerp’s sewage—all at levels among the highest of [the] European cities tested,” Bloomberg Businessweek noted.

Parkinson and Copper Toxicity by Michael McEvoy

Copper toxicity is a central factor in many of today’s modern disease epidemics including: cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, schizophrenia, OCD, ADD, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disease. Copper toxicity is even a major player in women’s health issues such as estrogen dominance, candida overgrowth, and PMS. While copper toxicity is a major cause for concern, it is something that can be effectively dealt with by powerful nutritional therapies.

Copper and zinc are known to bind to amyloid beta proteins in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.^[27] This bound form is thought to mediate the production of reactive oxygen species in the brain

Primary Copper Antagonistic Nutrients

Consult with an experienced practitioner in balancing all these nutrients to avoid toxicity and deficiency.

Antagonize copper

The following nutrients are primarily used to antagonize copper:

Zinc
Molybdenum
Manganese
Arachadonic acid (omega 6)
Sulfur (sulfur amino acid cysteine is essential for the formation of glutathione and metallothionein, both of which bind to free copper)
Vitamin B-6

Protect against copper-induced oxidative damage

The following nutrients have been shown to protect against copper-induced oxidative damage:

Vitamin E
Vitamin C
Glutathione
Metallothionein
Alpha Lipoic Acid
Beta Carotene
Polyphenols

Copper: What You Don’t Know May Be Making You Very Sick

Before I get into the many problems associated with copper toxicity, lets talk about what copper does in the body. Copper is an essential trace element and it has many important roles in the body. These include:

Connective tissue formation
Nerve conduction
ATP synthesis
Iron metabolism
Brain health via neurotransmitter synthesis
Gene transcription
Synthesis of the antioxidant superoxide dismutase
Skin pigmentation
Nerve tissue: myelin sheath formation
Blood vessel formation

Copper is necessary for biological functions. In order for the body to use copper, however, it must be bound to a transport protein. More than 95% of the copper in the blood plasma is bound to a protein known as ceruloplasmin.

In addition to its role as a major copper-carrying protein, ceruloplasmin is also essential in iron metabolism. Ceruloplasmin is a protein encoded by the CP gene. A deficiency of ceruloplasmin is known as aceruloplasminemia, and this issue crops up quite a bit with copper toxicity-related conditions. Another copper-iron protein known as hephaestin is believed to mediate copper transport as well.

A deficiency of ceruloplasmin is strongly associated with copper toxicity. If left free and unbound, copper becomes a powerful free radical, resulting in oxidative stress, cell and tissue destruction, neurological degeneration, and a list of health-related issues.

Copper Toxicity’s Neurological Effects: Alzheimer’s, OCD, Schizophrenia, Huntington’s, Pyroluria, Parkinson’s, Wilson’s

Among its many harmful effects, copper toxicity is associated with numerous neurological inflammatory conditions.

Copper Toxicity & Alzheimer’s

An important study in the quest towards understanding Alzheimer’s Disease was published in 2013. Researchers from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that copper toxicity plays an important role in Alzheimer’s disease development:

“It is clear that, over time, copper’s cumulative effect is to impair the systems by which amyloid beta is removed from the brain (-Rashid Deane, Ph.D).”

The study also found that the cumulative effect of copper caused a degeneration of the blood brain barrier in the lab mice used in the study.

The blood-brain barrier is a key mechanism that prevents harmful toxins from entering the brain. The major antioxidant defenders in the blood-brain barrier are glutathione and metallothionein. Both of these powerful free radical scavenging antioxidants are capable of capturing free, toxic copper.

While studies have directly linked copper toxicity to Alzheimer’s brain degeneration, it is significant to address that glutathione and metallothionein expression have both been found decreased in those with Alzheimer’s. Without these essential metal-capturing antioxidants, copper (and other metals like mercury) will accumulate in brain and neuronal tissues.

Copper Toxicity: OCD & Schizophrenia

Copper toxicity and deranged ceruloplasmin metabolism are strongly implicated in neurological and psychiatric conditions such as OCD and schizophrenia. A 2008 study found a direct association between elevated ceruloplasmin and OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) (6). Unfortunately, the study did not look at concomitant serum copper values, which would have established the probable cause of elevated ceruloplasmin, i.e. high copper causing an increased production of the copper-carrying protein ceruloplasmin.

For several decades, copper toxicity has been studied in direct relationship to schizophrenia. Rather than lumping schizophrenia into one clinical condition, research scientist William Walsh, PhD has asserted that schizophrenics are of varying types. Based upon his research of schizophrenics (which includes an enormous database of testing results), copper toxicity is one primary etiology (1).

A likely mechanism behind copper’s psychological and neurological effects is its induction of dopaminergic activity. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is often referred to as the ‘feel good’ neurotransmitter. However, dopamine is converted into the excitatory neurotransmitter norepinephrine, and copper is a major co-factor for this conversion.

Research has found that norepinephrine levels are elevated in the cerebrospinal fluid (2), as well as in certain regions of the brain (3) among paranoid schizophrenics.

Norepinephrine (also known as noradrenaline) induces “fight or flight” stress responses, excitatory physiological responses (such as elevated heart rate) and greatly impacts large parts of the brain responsible for thinking, arousal, alertness, decision making and emotional responses. Elevated norepinephrine caused by copper toxicity may be a major culprit in attention deficit disorder (ADD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and schizophrenia, as well as other behavioral-related issues.

Copper Toxicity: Huntington’s, Parkinson’s & Wilson’s

A genetic condition known as Huntington’s Disease induces a characteristic neurological degeneration as well as involuntary muscular jerks known as chorea. Similar involuntary movements are also characteristic of Parkinson’s Disease as well. A common feature among both of these conditions features copper toxicity.

A fascinating study published in 2013 from John’s Hopkins University School of Medicine found that Huntington’s disease features dramatic increases in copper protein activities. Additionally, copper depletion therapy dramatically reduces Huntington’s gene expression:

“Copper reduction dramatically decreases the level of toxic huntingtin levels. Strikingly, substitution of two potential copper-binding residues of huntingtin completely dissociates the copper-intensifying toxicity of huntingtin” (7).

Parkinson’s Disease features neurodegeneration, impaired motor function and dopamine neuronal damage. α-synuclein is a key protein that is expressed, and aggregates in the central nervous system among those with Parkinson’s. The Neuronal damage caused by α-synuclein is accelerated by numerous toxic metals, and the existing literature demonstrates that copper increases α-synuclein aggregation more than any other metal (10), (11).

Wilson’s Disease is a condition that involves toxic copper accumulation due to genetic mutations of the ATP7B copper transport gene. As a result, copper cannot effectively bind to ceruloplasmin (the copper-carrying protein that transports 95% of total copper in the body). Wilson’s induces numerous types of movement-deranged symptoms, similar to those of Parkinson’s. If left untreated, Wilson’s disease can result in severe liver damage known as hepatic cirrhosis, as well as damage to the basal ganglia of the brain.

Research has shown that oral copper depletion therapy is highly effective at restoring health among those with Wilson’s (12).

Copper Toxicity: Pyroluria

Pyroluria is a condition that has also been known as KPU, kryptopyroluria and Hydroxyhemopyrrolin-2-one and HPL. Pyrlouria was first identified by Abram Hoffer, MD, PhD several decades ago. Pyroluria is often found among those with neurological inflammation and symptoms such as: behavior disorders, schizophrenia, Lyme disease and OCD.

Pyroluria appears to be genetic, and in some instances is induced by severe levels of oxidative stress. Pyroluria causes an over-production of pyrroles, and as such causes rapid depletion of Vitamin B-6 and zinc levels. As zinc values are depleted, copper levels accumulate. This is likely due to the fact that copper and zinc are antagonists, and zinc is essential for the formation of metallothionein, a protein/antioxidant that binds to free copper ions.

Copper Toxicity & Cancer

Dating back to the 1930’s, medical pioneer Emanuel Revici, MD found highly abnormal copper values among those with cancer. Specifically, Dr. Revici found that cancer often featured elevated serum copper, but low levels of intracellular copper (16).

Deranged copper metabolism has been found among various types of cancer such as: breast, brain, ovarian, bladder, gastric, lung, prostate and colon (17). One of the core causes between copper and cancer is due to copper’s role in angiogenesis, the formation of blood vessels. Angiogenesis is a key characteristic in cancer formation and metastasis, linking cancer tissue to the host’s blood supply. Highly vascularized tumors require copper as a core nutrient for tumor growth. Additional research supports the hypothesis that copper is also essential for cancer cell migration, which results in eventual metastasis.

Recent literature has found that the copper-depletion drug Tetrathiomolybdate significantly reduced the recurrence of breast cancer among women with a high risk relapse (18). In 2007, the same copper-depleting drug was studied in squamous cell carcinoma, where it was found highly effective at preventing cancer formation to the head and neck.

Another depleting drug D-penicillamine, has shown to be cytotoxic to leukemia and breast cancer cells (19).

The evidence suggests that copper toxicity and deranged copper metabolism is characteristic among numerous types of cancer, and that copper depletion appears to be highly beneficial for preventing cancer growth and metastasis.

Copper Toxicity: Contraceptives & PMS (Premenstrual Disorders)

The use of all types of birth control medications raise serum copper levels (21). This includes both estrogen and progesterone-based contraceptives. While it is known that certain estrogens possess carcinogenic and genotoxic activities, research has found that copper increases estrogen’s genotoxic effects (22).

Women taking oral contraceptives may be copper toxic, and this will negatively impact their zinc status, due to the antagonistic role of zinc and copper. Studies have also found that the use of oral contraceptives cause Vitamin B-6 deficiency.

Studies have found direct correlations between PMS (premenstrual syndrome), low zinc and high copper. This imbalance is specifically expressive during the luteal phase of the cycle (23) (24), when PMS symptoms occur.

Copper Toxicity & Candida Albicans

Candida overgrowth is a very common, proliferative symptom. Candida is a yeast that exists in small amounts in the intestines. When conditions are ripe, candida can proliferate, where it disrupts the intestinal flora balance, increases GI toxicity, as well as causes secondary symptoms that may be related to: skin outbreaks and itchy rashes, brain fog, and systemic toxicity.

Research has found that candida requires copper for its proliferation (25). Often times, the trace mineral molybdenum is given to increase the detoxification of the acetaldehydes that are produced by candida species. Curiously, molybdenum is a powerful copper antagonist.

Copper Toxicity: The Causes

Based upon all of the existing data, research and literature, there can be multiple causes of copper toxicity.

Genetic Mutations that negatively alter copper-transport proteins such as ceruloplasmin (CP gene). Genetic mutations that influence or cause the development of Huntington’s (HTT gene) and Wilson’s (ATP7B copper transport gene)
Environmental Copper Toxicity. Sources include: Copper pipes, dental fillings, copper-contaminated foods, contaminated municipal drinking water containing copper sulfate as an anti-fungal, copper IUD’s, copper fungicides, copper cookware and jewelry. (Note: copper pipes combined with water softening will increase the leaching of copper and other toxic metals by making water acidic).
Nutrient Deficiencies: vegetarian and vegan diets (tend to be high in copper and low in zinc), zinc deficiency, pyrrole disorder
Increased Oxidative Stress: Deficiencies in the expression of cellular antioxidants such as metallothionein and glutathione, both of which bind to free copper ions

Strategies & Solutions For Copper Toxicity

The good news about copper toxicity is that it is something that can be detected with the correct types of testing. Copper toxicity can be appropriately dealt with through the correct implementation of nutritional therapies.

Testing copper should always involve testing zinc status as well, because of the close, antagonistic relationship between zinc and copper. Additionally, I have found that the concomitant testing of hair zinc and copper, with serum/plasma zinc and copper is highly beneficial. This is because the hair shows one pathway of excretion of these minerals over 3-4 months. Whereas the serum and plasma values are reflective of day to day activities, and exist in circulation. So both the hair and blood tests together are ideal.

If someone is dealing with a known copper toxicity, a known or suspected copper toxicity-based genetic condition, then the regular testing of ceruloplasmin (the primary copper-carrying protein) with hair and blood zinc/copper tests is extremely warranted.

Each of these tests are relatively inexpensive, and yet can provide tremendous data regarding copper toxicity and zinc deficiencies. Please contact us to learn more about Copper Toxicity Self Screening tests.

Nutritional Solutions For Copper Toxicity

There are no “one size fits all” approaches. So therefore it is best to consult with a knowledgeable and experienced practitioner when dealing with copper toxicity. The following nutrients can be classified as very important in terms of copper toxicity.

In summary, copper toxicity is a major cause of concern, and is likely a key player in many of today’s major disease epidemics. Zinc and copper screening tests are an extremely inexpensive yet powerful way to monitor zinc and copper status. Individualized nutritional therapies offer powerfully protective strategies from copper toxicity.

Growth hormone rich foods

Morning glory

Melatonin-rich foods can increase HGH production by up to 157%. Raspberries give the best boost to your levels, so throw some on your oats for breakfast.
Clinical Endocrinology

Fish for a compliment

Vitamin D deficiency is directly related to lowered levels of male hormones, but raw fish such as salmon sashimi provides 271% of your RDA per 100g serving.
Rikshospitalet, Oslo University

Sleeping giant

Pineapple is a great source of serotonin: a hormone made between the brain and digestive tract that works as a neuro-transmitter to relax you. Eat it late to aid sleep and boost HGH.
The Journal of Clinical Investigation

Well-oiled machine

Add some coconut oil (1g per kg of your bodyweight) to your pre-workout shake to boost your HGH for up to four hours – and improve your resistance training power in the process.
Journal of Endocrinology

Veg out for workouts

If you need a snack pre-gym, go vegan. Soy beans are a great source of L-arginine, which increases your hormone levels after only 30 minutes.
Department of Exercise Science at Syracuse University

Learn from lecter

Hannibal Lecter’s favourite, fava beans are high in L-dopa. This stimulates your pituitary gland to make extra growth hormone available to your muscles.
Kobe University School of Medicine, Japan

Beef up your meal

OK, you knew it would be in here. But protein benefits aside, the amino acids found in your favourite steak help you synthesize L-orthinine; a compound that raises your growth hormone by up to four times above baseline levels.
University of Houston, Texas

Pot of gold

Research shows that as little as 2g of foods high in the amino acid glutamine, such as yoghurt, is enough to raise production of HGH. Eat after dinner to top up your levels.
Department of Physiology, Louisiana State University

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Connie’s comments :Women and men should choose no hormones in their eggs,meat,cheese and milk. Plastics are toxic, causing hormonal imbalance. Cortisol and sleep should have a balance. Happy foods such as eggs, yam and beer increase dopamine levels. Have a healthy intestinal flora with pickles, kefir,apple cider vinegar,cranberries and alkaline producing veggies. Have some sunshine and do dim your bedroom when sleeping.

http://www.teamasantae.com/clubalthea/

For holistic caregivers for seniors in the bayarea, call 408-854-1883 motherhealth@gmail.com http://www.clubalthea.com

Thank you

Thank you readers for reading my stories and posts.

It perks up my day knowing that you are reading my post and sharing them.

That we may have more healthy people

That we can depend less and spend less on medications

And spend more time with each other

Building a healthy planet.

Connie Dello Buono

————

Some of the stories I tell others include:

I have been in the bayarea for about 20 yrs with two teens in college.

I love California and the people. Been to Taiwan, Puerto Rico, Oregon, East Coast and South California but the bayarea is my favorite.

I had my babies at home with the help of midwives which help me start my thirst for more health information.

I blog at http://www.clubalthea.com focusing on Alzheimer’s and Parkinsons.

I have more than one job..

And so on…

Food synergy

Eggs and Cheese

The vitamin D found in egg yolks makes the calcium in dairy more available to your body — important not only for bones, but for heart health as well.

Rosemary and Steak

Marinate your steak with rosemary before cooking. The herb is rich in antioxidants such as, rosmarinic acid and carnosic acid, that help neutralize carcinogenic (cancer causing) compounds known as heterocyclic amines (HCAs) that form when steak reaches a temperature of 325 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.

Tomatoes and Olive Oil

Cancer and heart disease-fighting compounds called carotenoids (the most well known of which is lycopene) are found in abundance in tomatoes. They’re fat-soluble and, as such, they’re more available to your body when you eat them with fats such as, olive oil or mozzarella cheese.

Garlic and Fish

Both of these foods fight inflammation and disease, but together they’re even more powerful. Research has shown that a combination of garlic and fish lowers LDL (bad) cholesterol more effectively than eating the foods on their own.

Raspberries and Chocolate

Scientists have discovered that when raspberries and chocolate are paired together, their disease-fighting flavonoids (quercetin in raspberries and catechin in chocolate) are even more effective at thinning the blood and improving heart health.

Turmeric and Black Pepper

The spice turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties — it’s being studied for its potential to fight cancer, improve liver function, lower cholesterol and avoid Alzheimer’s disease. When you combine it with black pepper, your body absorbs much more curcumin (turmeric’s active ingredient).

Salmon and Red Wine

Plant compounds in grapes known as polyphenols do more than promote good circulation — they also help your body absorb more of the brain-healthy omega-3s in fish.

Oatmeal and Oranges

Phenols (a type of plant compound) in oatmeal and vitamin C in oranges, both lower LDL (bad) cholesterol. When eaten together, their ability to improve cholesterol and prevent heart disease is four times greater than what they’re capable of individually.

Lemon and Spinach

The vitamin C in lemons helps your body absorb more of the plant-based iron found in spinach, a mineral that prevents mood swings and promotes happiness.

Red Wine and Almonds

Together, the antioxidant resveratrol in red wine and the vitamin E in almonds boost the body’s ability to thin the blood and improve the health of blood vessel linings.

Vinegar and Sushi Rice

Vinegar decreases rice’s ability to raise blood sugar levels by 20 to 40 percent.

Beet Greens and Chickpeas

Chickpeas are a good source of vitamin B6, which helps your body absorb the magnesium found in beet greens (B6 helps facilitate the transfer of magnesium across cell membranes). These nutrients work together in the body to ease the symptoms of PMS and ADHD.

Green Tea and Lemon

The vitamin C in lemon makes more of the catechins (a type of antioxidant) in green tea available to your body.

Banana and Yogurt

Bananas contain inulin, which research indicates fuels the growth of yogurt’s healthy bacteria (which helps regulate digestion and boost immunity).

Apples and Cranberries

These Thanksgiving staples are rich in a wide variety of antioxidants such as quercetin and anthocyanidins. Research shows that when you eat these foods together, their antioxidant activity is significantly higher than if you eat them separately.

Chicken and Carrots

Chicken contains zinc, which is what your body needs to efficiently metabolize the beta-carotene in carrots into vitamin A, a nutrient you need for healthy skin and eyes and a strong immune system.

Fish and Broccoli

Fish contains the mineral selenium and broccoli is rich in a disease-fighting compound known as sulforaphane. Research shows that selenium and sulforaphane together are 13 times more effective at slowing cancer cell growth than when eaten alone.

Whole-Grain Bread and Peanut Butter

Together, these two foods contain all nine of the essential amino acids that your body needs to build bones, muscles and hormones.

Broccoli and Pine Nuts

The vitamin C in broccoli helps keep the vitamin E in pine nuts effective.

Blueberries and Walnuts

Blueberries contain phytochemicals, known as anthocyanins, that protect the brain from oxidative damage and walnuts are a rich source of omega-3s that make you smarter. Research has shown that these compounds are even more powerful at sharpening memory and improving communication between brain cells when they work together.

Garlic and Onions

The organosulfur compounds in garlic and onions are more powerful in combination than solo. Together, they help remove plaque from arteries and keep blood vessels flexible and healthy.

Source: The Happiness Diet, published by Rodale, 2011.

51 fastest fat burner by Kate Ashford

IN THE GYM

1. Catch the running bug. You’ll continue to burn fat after your jog: People who run for at least four hours a week melt more calories than non-runners, even when they’re not running, a Yale University School of Medicine study reports.
2. Crank it up early. Working out harder during the first half of your workout and taking it easier during the second burns up to 23 percent more fat than doing the opposite, according to a study from The College of New Jersey.
3 & 4. Go hard — and make it quick. Staying at 80 percent of your max heart rate for 40 minutes can amp your metabolism for 19 hours afterward, research published in Obesity notes. And doing a shorter workout at 75 percent of your max aerobic capacity will give you a greater metabolic boost than sweating longer at 50 percent, a Colorado State University reveals.
5 to 7. Lift dumbbells … slowly. More muscle equals mega metabolism boost. Strength training can help you trim major fat, research reveals — and doing super-slow (versus normal speed) reps increases strength by 50 percent.
Plus, using dumbbells activates more muscle fibers than using machines, explains Gregory Haff, Ph.D., an associate professor in the exercise physiology department at West Virginia University.
8. Speed up, slow down. Alternating bouts of high-intensity and low-intensity cardio has been shown to torch pounds.
9. Put on weight (literally). Wearing a weighted vest (about 10 percent of your body weight) while walking can boost your calorie burn by 8 percent.
10. Download Rihanna, not Brahms. Listening to up-tempo songs actually makes you run faster and harder than listening to slower-paced music, British scientists say.
11. Let kettlebells ring. Not only does working out with kettlebells build muscle, but doing it for 20 minutes burns as many calories as running at a 6-minute-mile pace for the same amount of time.

Get gorgeous arms

12. Keep it up. As few as 80 minutes a week of aerobic or weight training helps keep you from regaining belly fat after losing weight, according to researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
13. Add poles. Use Nordic poles while you walk, and you’ll burn 20 percent more calories, says research from The Cooper Institute in Dallas.
14 & 15. Lift first, nix the rest. Doing strength training before cardio can torch more fat than cardio alone. And if you do one move after another without pausing, “you’ll see more gains in strength and muscle mass,” says Dr. Pierre Manfroy, M.D., consultant for the book “100 Ways to Supercharge Your Metabolism.”
16. Add pounds. Lift heavier weights for fewer reps to make your workout more intense — and burn more fat — Manfroy says.
17. Try aromatherapy. Exercisers who inhaled strawberry and buttered-popcorn scents torched more calories than those who sniffed neutral odors, according to research from the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago.

18. Box yourself in. Wii boxing knocks out nearly twice as many calories as some other games, like Wii golf.
19. Kick it. Playing soccer not only torches more fat and builds more muscle than jogging, but it feels less tiring, Danish research reveals.
20. Stay in shape. Fit people have more fat-burning metabolites in their blood than couch potatoes do, scientists say.

IN THE KITCHEN

22. Get more protein. Eating a protein-packed breakfast and lunch helps you burn more post-meal fat than if you eat lower-protein meals, according to Australian research.
23 & 24. Guzzle green tea — or coffee. Downing five 5-ounce cups of green tea a day boosts metabolism, says Lyssie Lakatos, R.D., author of “Fire Up Your Metabolism.” Two cups of coffee will also do the trick, one study shows.

25. Have an omelet. Eating two eggs for breakfast while dieting will help you trim more weight and body fat than if you ate the same amount of calories noshing on a bagel, scientists say.
26. Stay above 1,200 calories... “The average person’s body goes into starvation mode if she eats fewer than 1,200 calories a day,” says Eric Berg, author of “The 7 Principles of Fat Burning.” “That’s stress, and stress creates more belly fat.”
27. … and cut calories gradually. If you diet, don’t trim more than 250 calories a day. Cutting calories too quickly slows your metabolism down, Dr. Manfroy says.
28 to 33. Munch on these. Almonds, cherries, yogurt, grapefruit, whole grains, and spicy foods have all been shown to torch fat.
Health.com: 7 foods that fight fat
34. Fuel up right. Eating a low-glycemic-index breakfast (such as muesli and peaches) will help you burn more fat during a subsequent workout than eating a high-glycemic-index meal (like waffles), researchers from the University of Nottingham reveal.
35. Think before you drink. Sipping as few as 90 calories’ worth of vodka can slow your metabolism by 73 percent, one study shows.
36. Graze. Women who go without eating for long periods are more likely to have higher body-fat percentages than women who nosh more regularly, one study notes.
37. Dine like a Greek. Eating a diet rich in monounsaturated fat (think olive oil, avocados) can help trim both weight and fat, research published in the British Journal of Nutrition shows.
38. Stop gorging. Your body can only handle so much food at a time, so stick to 600 calories or less per meal to maximize fat-burning, says Leslie Cooper, co-author of “Flip the Switch: Proven Strategies to Fuel Your Metabolism and Burn Fat 24 Hours a Day.”
39. Skip juice, soda and sugar. Reaching for an apple instead of apple juice is not only better calorie-wise, but it’ll also do a better job of boosting your metabolism, Dr. Manfroy explains.

IN YOUR LIFE

41 & 42. Get C and D. Vitamin C can help you burn more fat, and D may help you lose fat, research notes. Aim for 400 to 500 mg of C and 800 mg of D a day.
43 & 44. Walk more (in denim). Researchers found that fitness-friendly offices (think treadmill desks, mobile headsets) helped people trim pounds and fat, as did wearing jeans to work, since dressing casual encourages you to move more. Wear comfy clothes when you can, pace while on the phone, and stand while chatting with co-workers.
45. Add fish oil (And work out). Taking 6 grams of fish oil per day and hitting the gym three times a week can help nix body fat, an Australian study reveals.
46. Work the day shift. Keeping nontraditional hours lowers levels of hormones that trigger satiety, increases blood glucose and insulin levels, and raises levels of the stress hormone cortisol (which can drive you to eat more), scientists say.
47. Nix the boob tube. Cut your TV time in half, and you’ll burn more calories each day, research from the University of Vermont suggests.

48. Go mental. People who visualized themselves training a specific muscle boosted the strength in that muscle group, researchers found.
49. Eat a smaller dinner. Your body may not digest food — and burn fat — as efficiently if you down a huge meal right before bedtime, especially because your metabolism is slower while you sleep, Dr. Manfroy says.
50. Jump-start your morning. Wake up your metabolism — and get fat-burning started — by doing some sort of exercise within the first few hours of being awake, Cooper suggests.
51. Get your snooze on. Sleep for a solid 81D 2 hours instead of 51D 2, according to research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, and you’ll lose more fat. Sweet dreams!

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