​Do you take Vitamins A, D, E, and/or K on an empty stomach!? If you do, the only thing you’re accomplishing is- expensive pee.

Most vitamins are water-soluble. However, Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble vitamins. What this means is, for absorption, there must be fat inside your stomach. And, no, excess fat on your body doesn’t count! Now when I talk about eating fat with Vitamins A, D, E and K- I don’t mean the fat off a steak. I mean good fats- nuts, coconut oil, avocados, etc. 

Vitamin A has four major functions in the body: “(1) It helps cells reproduce normally—a process called differentiation (cells that have not properly differentiated are more likely to undergo pre-cancerous changes). (2) It is required for vision; Vitamin A maintains healthy cells in various structures of the eye and is required for the transduction of light into nerve signals in the retina. (3) It is required for normal growth and development of the embryo and fetus, influencing genes that determine the sequential development of organs in embryonic development. (4) It may be required for normal reproductive function, with influences on the function and development of sperm, ovaries and placenta.”

“Vitamin D’s most important role is maintaining blood levels of calcium, which it accomplishes by increasing absorption of calcium from food and reducing urinary calcium loss. Both effects keep calcium in the body and therefore spare the calcium that is stored in bones. When necessary, Vitamin D transfers calcium from the bone into the bloodstream, which does not benefit bones.”

Vitamin D has very strong influence on almost every single organ system in the body and epigenetics of the body.

If you live where the air hurts your face, you need Vitamin D supplementation during the winter months. 

“Vitamin E is an antioxidant that protects cell membranes and other fat-soluble parts of the body, such as low-density lipoprotein (LDL; cholesterol) cholesterol, from damage.” Antioxidants protect cells from the damaging effects of free radicals. Antioxidants are VITAL!

“Vitamin K is needed for proper bone formation and blood clotting. In both cases, vitamin K does this by helping the body transport calcium. Vitamin K is used by doctors when treating an overdose of Warfarin. Also, doctors prescribe Vitamin K to prevent excessive bleeding in people taking Warfarin but requiring surgery.”

Now, before you hop on Amazon or run to your local retail store to supplement some extra Vitamins A, D, E, and K into your life- not all supplements are created equal! Independent verification is an absolute must. 

I hope you learned something.
​Let's get back to health,
​Dr. Taryn

Glyphosate is an herbicide, the active ingredient in Roundup. It was patented and introduced by Monsanto in 1974 for agricultural weed control. In 1992 glyphosate, began to be used as a desiccant (it accelerates drying and speed ripening before harvest.) ​Approximately 90% of domestic corn acres and 94% of domestic soybean acres are produced with herbicide tolerant seeds.

Genetically modified (GM) crops are sprayed with glyphosate, usually referred to as “Roundup Ready” crops (RR). Wait, hold the phone, what are genetically modified crops?

Genetically modified crops have been created in a laboratory- just like the Impossible Burger. Their genetic material has been artificially manipulated through genetic engineering.
​
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs), which are genetically modified crops, have been engineered to endure the direct application of an herbicide and/or to produce an insecticide. Hence, why they’re called “Roundup Ready”. However, GMO’s do not stop at withstanding herbicides, they now are used to resist browning of apples or create seedless watermelons. 

Glyphosate is a water-soluble toxin. What does that mean? Just simply that it’s able to dissolve in water. Roughly 60% of the human body is made up of water.

While you may have over 20,000 chemicals in your body, two that are particularly hazardous to your brain are glyphosate and aluminum. Glyphosate is an analog of the amino acid glycine. It attaches in places where you need glycine. Importantly, glycine is used up in the detoxification process, hence many of us do not have enough glycine for efficient detoxification.3

To add on to that, Glyphosate can lower the sulfate levels inside your body. Sulfate is needed to produce glutathione. Glutathione is your body’s chief detoxing agent to xenobiotics. Xenobiotics are harmful environmental compounds such as pesticides, herbicides, and heavy metals.

​Glyphosate impairs VITAL biochemical cascades inside your body. 

​The United States of America has THE MOST expensive healthcare system in the world. Why is our health continuing to decline? Let’s invest in our health and well-being. Let's focus on healing from the inside out. We deserve it, our children deserve it. 

Let's get back to health,
​Dr. Taryn

​100% Grass Fed: ALL of the cow’s nutrition comes from fresh grasses, dried and stored forages- no grains. Even in the winter! There is now a certification to prove that your cattle are 100% grass fed.
Grass Fed: SOME of the animals’ diet came from fresh pasture or dried grasses like hay. It could be a little, or it could be a lot.
Organic: To be certified organic, animals must meet the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Organic Program (NOP) livestock requirements. They must only be fed certified organic feed and cannot receive any growth hormones or antibiotics. This means, no herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, etc. can used on their food.
All-Natural: Somewhat of a buzzword, but simply means that a cow was raised without antibiotics and hormones.
Pasture Raised: Cattle can roam outside and are not confined to indoor feedlots.
Organic, 100% Grass Fed: Go ahead an combine the organic and 100% grass fed definition and voila! Cattle are only fed grasses, never grain. Cattle are never given antibiotics or hormones. 

​I’ve mentioned before that I live on an organic, 100% grass fed dairy farm. I will not pretend that I know everything about farming, but I now know more than I ever have. I’m always learning- I’m unapologetically a nerd. However, nutrition education is pretty black and white and that’s this blog’s primary focus. 

​Cow: fully grown female who has born a calf.
Heifer: a young female cow that has not born a calf.
Steer: young neutered male.
Bull: an uncastrated male.
Beef Cattle: cattle raised for meat production.
Beef: is the culinary name for meat from cattle.
Cattle: large ruminant animals with horns and cloven hoofs, domesticated for meat or milk.

​Alright, you’re heading home to cook supper and you need some hamburger, you need gas, and you drive right past a Kwik Trip. $1.99 for a pound of hamburger and it says, “all natural”?! You’re thinking you hit the jackpot, right? Wrong. (Now, I’m not just blasting Kwik Trip, these comments will remain the same for traditional store-bought hamburger.)

Let’s look at the traditional, conventional (typical) cattle diet: 
Haylage
Corn Silage- which is the corn stalk, the corn cob, and the shell corn processed
Corn
Soybean Meal
Roasted Soybeans- cooked soybeans that have high bypass protein
Minerals and Vitamins

​What do I see? Grains, grains, and more grains- which means inflammation. To top it off, if the grains aren’t organic, they’ve been sprayed with toxic chemicals. Moreover, they’re usually genetically modified. This means, the seed was created in a lab in order to be sprayed with Roundup. Yikes. 

The composition of fatty acids is completely different:
Omega-3s: Grass fed beef contains up to five times as much omega-3’s PMID: 20807460 Research shows that 100% grass fed organic beef has comparable omega 3s to deep sea fish.
Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA): Grass fed beef contains about twice as much CLA PMID: 20219103 CLA exhibits potent antioxidant activity.

Grass fed meat contains considerably more antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals:
Carotenoids, such as beta-carotene, are precursors to vitamin A- they are found in plants. Grain fed beef doesn’t have adequate levels of carotenoids- grains don’t contain them.
Antioxidants, vitamin E, glutathione, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase.
Zinc, iron, phosphorus, sodium, and potassium. PMID: 20219103 ​

I hope it’s clear by now that when it comes to red meat, quality makes a big difference. I understand that you’re not going to be buying organic grass fed beef for $1.99 a pound. But, remember that grass fed meat is more nutrient dense than grain fed.  So even though grass fed is more expensive, you’re getting more nutritional bang for your buck.

Have you switched to a natural deodorant, but you can’t stand ‘your’ smell? This is what I call the transition period, and I’m here to tell you it doesn’t last forever! (Hallelujah!) AND this armpit detox will help speed up the stinky stage.

First, let’s clear up the difference because deodorant and antiperspirant; they are two different things. Deodorant is meant to reduce body odor, and antiperspirant is meant to limit sweat. Conventional deodorants and antiperspirants contain chemicals and additives. 

This is the chemical list in some deodorants and antiperspirants:
·        Aluminum– This is found in antiperspirants. The aluminum limits wetness by blocking your underarm sweat ducts and reduces body odor by inhibiting the bacteria that feed on your sweat. The two main health issues associated with aluminum in deodorant are Alzheimer’s disease and breast cancer.
·        Phthalates–Endocrine disruptors often used in plastic to increase flexibility. These can cause hormone imbalance which can lead to infertility.
·        Propylene glycol– Also known as, antifreeze. Associated with a moderate risk of immunotoxicity and allergies
·        Formaldehyde- You read that right… A known carcinogen… must kill the germs though
·        Parabens- Another endocrine disruptor! This is preservative that leads to hormonal imbalance.

​The buildup of toxic chemicals could be the reason, and most likely is. Sometimes when you use a natural deodorant you will notice your armpits can smell bad. After detoxing your armpits, the odor and/or rash will continue to fade.

Axillary lymph nodes are found in your pits. The purpose of these nodes are to support your immune system but to also filter out "bad guys" like cancer cells. Putting endocrine disruption chemicals directly on top of your lymph nodes is asking for problems.  

Happy detoxing,
​Dr. Taryn