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TRANSCRIPT
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Table of Contents
About This Book 5
Chapter 1: Reasons Behind Modern Chronic Health Problems 6
Chapter 2 : Metabolism 9
1. Mitochondria and Health 9
2. Sirtuins and NAD+ in Cellular Aging and Health 13
3. PPARgamma 24
4. Leptin 28
What is Leptin Resistance and How to Fix it 35
Chapter 3 : Neurological Causes of Chronic Health Issues 38
1. Reduced Blood Flow and Hypoxia 38
How to Fix Hypoxia 40
2. Neurotransmitter Imbalances 41
3) Problems with Neurotransmitter Reception 48
Serotonin Receptors 48
5HT1A Receptor 48
5HT2A Receptor 50
5HT2C Receptor 58
Chapter 4 : Inflammation 65
Part 1: Diet 65
8 Common Sources of Food Sensitivity 66
Other Dietary Factors that Can Cause Inflammation 75
Dietary Factors that Can Help with Inflammation 81
Part 2: Intestinal Permeability 84
Fixing Leaky Gut 88
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Part 3: Chronic Infections 90
Gut Infections 90
Dysbiosis 90
Testing for Infections and Dysbiosis 91
Systemic Infections 95
Part 4: Are You Th1, Th2 or Th17 Dominant? 101
1) How to Fix Th1 dominance 107
2) How to Fix Th2 Dominance 115
3) How to fix Th17 Dominance 120
Chapter 5 125
Circadian Rhythm 125
Our Circadian Zeitgebers (R): 125
16 Ways How to Keep a Healthy Circadian Rhythm 126
Chapter 6 : Sun Exposure 132
Why Vitamin D Supplementation isn’t a Substitute for Sun Exposure 132
Genetic Factors that Influence Your Need For Sunlight 143
Sunlight Exposure Recommendations 144
Sun Safety 145
Chapter 7 : Sleep 146
What is sleep? 146
Effects of Sleep loss 154
Health Disorders Associated with Sleep Problems 158
Effects of Sleep on Hormonal Axes 158
Insomnia 160
45 Tips for Your Best Sleep and Overcoming Insomnia 161
Chapter 8 180
STRESS 180
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The Biological Impact of Stress 180
The Two Major Stress Response Systems 181
Why Is Stress Bad? 189
Factors That Trigger Your Stress Response 201
Factors That Counteract Your Stress Response 209
Testing the Stress Response System 210
In A Nutshell 212
Detailed Table of Content 214
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About This Book
The information in this book is derived from literature research, personal experimentation, and feedback from my clients. This is a dense book because I believe that it is important for you to understand the mechanisms behind your health problems. Use your own critical thinking and personally experiment with things to see what works for you, rather than just believing things because I say so. That’s how I was able to overcome my health issues.
If you struggle to understand the details, the headings are good conclusions and summary.
In the end, all pathways and mechanisms lead to these 8 things:
1) A healthy diet 2) Sleep 3) Adequate sun exposure 4) Healthy circadian rhythm 5) Removing excess bad stress 6) Healthy natural stressors 7) Reducing toxic exposure and toxic load 8) Managing Inflammation
At the end of each section, I provide a list of possible actionable items that may be specific to your situation. Note that you don’t need to implement every single one of them but try them out (one or a few at a time) and keep ones that make the biggest impact.
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Chapter 1
Reasons Behind
Modern Chronic Health Problems
There are many theories with respect to how humans have evolved. One thing for certain is that our diets and lifestyles are much different from how we evolved now.
Before humans started to develop diseases of civilization, and among current populations who don’t suffer from these diseases, there are a few things that we know for sure (either through deduction or from the literature):
Diets 1) The diets of the hunter/gatherer were more diverse and nutrientdense than what we
presently have, although they relied on a few plant species for energy ( R ). 2) The foods that were harvested or hunted were prepared and eaten fresh, or within a day. 3) The was no domesticated plant or animal species. 4) The animals that were hunted and consumed were wild, which means they were fed a
natural diet of grass, wild plants, and wild animals. The fish that were caught also ate a natural diet of algae, other aquatic plants, and other fish.
5) The wild plants were grown on fertile top soil, with more diverse bacteria and fungal flora ( R ), and the animals that humans hunted also fed on these plants.
6) These animals (including fish) have a much lower percentage of fat in their flesh than modern domesticated animals as their meats do not marble ( R ). The fat content contained healthy ratios of omega3 to omega6 ratio ( R ).
7) Everything on an animal carcass was eaten, including fat deposits, some stomach content, marrow, and organ meats ( R , R2 ).
8) Humans expended a lot of time and energy physically finding and preparing foods, and may have gone for long periods of time without eating ( R ). Their livelihoods depended on detailed knowledge of the land, food availability, and the behaviors of edible plants and animals during various seasons.
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9) Humans generally had a preference for animalsourced foods, which means that they had a high protein, low carbohydrate diet ( R ). Among the animalsourced foods, humans in colder climates relied on more fish than do humans in warmer climates ( R ).
Lifestyle 1) Since there was no electricity, human body clock (circadian rhythm) operated in synch with
the sun. 2) Short of natural disasters and predators, humans got plenty of sleep during the night and
sun exposure during the day. 3) Most of the stressors that humans were exposed to were shortlived ones that could be dealt
with physically, such as running away from lions (read: no pent up stress like being stuck in traffic, or chronic stress).
4) The physical stressors were either in short intense bursts (sprinting after or away from something), or low intensity endurance (e.g. long walks or hike to gather or hunt), which involved all planes of motion on uneven grounds and different types of terrains.
5) There’s no sitting on chairs as most resting positions are either sitting on the floor or in fulldepth squats.
6) Most huntergatherer communities were tightknit, with extended families and tribe that supported each other, although very large communities could only be formed if food and water sources were sufficient ( R ).
7) There were no modern manmade chemicals and pollution, as well as the bacteria and fungi in the environment that evolved in response to these chemicals ( R ).
Among these huntergatherer populations whose diet and lifestyle followed the criteria above, there were no reports of obesity, cardiovascular diseases, or autoimmune diseases ( R ). In the modern days, when people from these huntergatherer populations are removed from their native environment and lifestyle, into the western lifestyle and fed western diet, they develop diseases of modern civilizations including diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, depression, and autoimmune diseases ( R ). Once they are brought back to their native environment and started their huntergatherer lifestyle again, almost immediately their blood markers return to healthy levels and their health is restored again.
The premise of this book is not to give up all technology and become huntergatherer again, even though it is clear that the modern lifestyle has harmed our health. In fact, SelfHacked is protechnology. We seek to understand the biochemical basis and individuality in order to address the negative health effects, and use technology and tools to live in the modern world while maintaining health.
Modern Lifestyle Nowadays, what seems like a normal lifestyle looks like this:
● We have access to an abundance of food, pretty much 24/7.
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● We eat a lot more grains, mostly refined and not cooked in traditional ways. ● Our foods are mostly domesticated species (plants or animals) that are grown on
depleted soil. Most of the meat and fish that we eat are also raised in confinement and fed grains.
● We’ve become mostly sedentary and sitting for most of our days. ● We are also sleeping less, with worse sleep quality than ever before. ● We are exposed to artificial lights 24/7 and not exposed to enough sunlight during the
day. ● Most of us are far removed from our extended communities, and only see them perhaps
only on the weekends. ● We deal with perpetual stress, most of which are chronic. ● We are exposed to numerous toxic chemicals. ● Higher reliance of substance, food, or technology over play or community for pleasure
These technologies and agricultural evolution have only emerged in the past few hundred years, so this modern lifestyle, although it seems to have made things much easier, are not compatible with our genetics.
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Chapter 2
Metabolism
Common metabolic problems that contribute to modern health issues include:
1. Mitochondria dysfunction 2. Aging, low sirtuins and NAD+ levels 3. Problems with PPARgamma 4. Leptin
1. Mitochondria and Health
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The mitochondria The mitochondria (singular mitochondrion) are bacterialike energyproducing structure within our cells. They are responsible for the final steps of breaking down carbohydrates and fat into energy called the Krebs Cycle and Oxidative Phosphorylation.
In addition, the mitochondria also have other functions ( R ):
● Control fat breakdown and indirectly influences the demand for fat molecules in the cell ( R )
● Is Involved in controlling the proper concentration of metals, especially iron ( R ) ● Constantly communicate with the cell, deciding supply and demand for certain
substances ( R ) ● Influence aging ( R ) as poor mitochondria function can age the cells ● Healthy mitochondria function prevents cancer ( R ). ● Monitor cellular health and commands the unhealthy cells to commit suicide (apoptosis)
( R ). Oxidative Stress and Mitochondrial Dysfunction Organs with high energy demands like the brain, the heart and liver heavily rely on the mitochondria. Mitochondria dysfunction can be linked to fatigue, cognitive dysfunction, and neurodegenerative diseases, as well as other health problems.
The nervous system, in particular, is one of the more susceptible to oxidative damage because:
● The high metabolic rate by the mitochondria in the nerve cells generate a lot of reactive oxygen species .
● The nerve cell membranes typically have a lot of polyunsaturated fatty acids, which make it more susceptible to oxidative damage.
● There are iron and zinc that can oxidize other cellular components. In healthy nervous system, the neurons have antiantioxidant components that can keep the oxidative stress in balance. But when the balance is tipped off, that’s when diseases and health problems occur.
What increases oxidative damage?
● Low NAD+ / Sirtuins or aging ● mTOR activation from overconsumption of foods or proteins and carbohydrates ● Lack of antioxidants ● Being high in oxidants ● Some antibiotics such as quinolones (e.g. ciprofloxacin), betalactams (ampicillin) and
aminoglycosides (streptomycin and kamamycin) ( R ) ● Other drugs and toxins including several cancer drugs ( R ), antiinflammatories, HIV
drugs ( R ), and mold toxins ● Any other factors that inhibit mitochondrial pathways.
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● Inflammation
Nutrient Deficiencies and Mitochondrial Dysfunction Nutrient deficiencies are a common cause of mitochondrial decay, because the mitochondria requires several vitamins and minerals to function. When the body is missing nutrients, it triages nutrients towards bodily functions that are more critical for survival first ( R ). For example, the heart and blood cells may receive enough nutrients while the brain and liver may be very nutrient deficient.
Common nutrient deficiencies that hamper mitochondrial function and overall health include ( R )
Nutrient Roles
Magnesium Mitochondrial DNA protection Reducing inflammation Antioxidants Required for enzyme function
Vitamin D Improves oxidative phosphorylation and general efficiency of the mitochondria ( R )
Calcium Used in the communication between the mitochondria and other parts of the cells, including during apoptosis Calcium ions help establish the electrical gradient that allows the mitochondria to generate energy ( R )
Selenium Protection from DNA damage and oxidative stress
Potassium Increase rates of oxygen use (by improving oxidative phosphorylation) ( R )
Omega3 (EPA and DHA)
Incorporate into the mitochondrial membrane and making it more supple, improves some aspect of mitochondrial metabolism ( R , R2 ). Enhances mitochondrial biosynthesis ( R )
B Vitamins
Thiamin B1 Required for some energy production enzymes ( R )
Riboflavin B2 Part of the enzymes in energy production ( R )
Niacin B3 Used in the production of NADH ( R )
Biotin B7 Required for an enzyme in the generation of new glucose molecules from amino acids and fat ( R )
Cobalamin B12 Methylcobalamin is a methyl donor ( R )
Required for energy production pathways
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Folate B9 Required for synthesis of DNA components and methionine, methylation pathways, cellular growth.
Amino acid and homocysteine metabolism
Antioxidant ( R )
30 50% of cellular folates are located in the mitochondria.
Choline Methyl group donor ( R )
Precursor to betaine
Antioxidants
Nutrients Required for heme synthesis
Pantothenic Acid B5
Generation of NAD+/NADH (Coenzyme A), important for energy production from burning carbohydrates and fat
Required for heme synthesis in the mitochondria
Prevents collaspe of mitochondrial membrane potential and restores energy production, and activity of antioxidant enzymes
Pyridoxyl B6 Required for heme synthesis in the mitochondria
Zinc Required for heme synthesis in the mitochondria
Iron Required for heme synthesis in the mitochondria
Copper Required for heme synthesis in the mitochondria
Other Nutrients that Can Help with Mitochondria Function
● Carnosine ● Alphalipoic Acid ● CoQ10 ● Ketogenic Diet ● Fasting
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2. Sirtuins and NAD+ in Cellular Aging and Health Most modern ailments have NAD+/Sirtuin disturbances as a root cause.
Many people nowadays have low levels of Sirt1 because they don’t take care of their circadian rhythm, don’t get enough oxygen to the brain ( hypoxia ), eat excess carbs, eat too much foods and don’t move enough. This explains the increase in chronic health problems.
What is Sirt1? Sirt1 pluck acetyl groups off of proteins that promote aging, and thereby deactivating them.
By plucking off acetyl groups from proteins that control other protein production (gene expression) in the cells, Sirt1 also control how much of the aging genes are turned off. The genes turned off by Sirt1 includes genes involved in inflammation, fat storage, and blood sugar management ( R , R2 ).
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