Category Archives: Inflammation and Healing Diet

Through Pain to Victory, A Journey Through Food: The Story of Kathryne Pirtle

Listen to my interview on blogtalk radio with Stephen McCarthy:

Through Pain to Victory
A Journey Through Food: The Story of Kathryne Pirtle

Stephen McCarthy of The McCarthy Project covers a few of the concepts of the book, Deep Nutrition, along with an interview with Kathryne Pirtle, author of Performance Without Pain. She tells her story of overcoming pain to live life and perform her absolute best. Catherine Shananhan’s book covered recent research related to nutrition and traditional gene theory.  Kathryne Pirtle joined Stephen to talk about her journey through pain and struggle with food to gain victory and some ideas on how each of us can improve our performance by eating a non-gmo, organic non-western diet.

Here is a link to the interview:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/themccarthyproject/2014/01/04/epigentics-and-food-choices-story-of-kathryne-pirtle

My Television Interview on Healing with Nutrient-Dense Foods on Deeper Living

My 2007 television interview on healing from 25 years of chronic pain and a life-threatening digestive disorder. It is a great resource for understanding how to permanently solve chronic inflammation and digestive ailments. Press the link below to go to the interview:

Interview

 

My Canadian Radio Interview on Healing with Nutrient-Dense Foods

Listen to this fantastic interview on 1290 AM CJBK, London, Ontario about healing digestion and chronic pain and building optimal health with nutrient-dense foods.

http://pamkilleen.com/app/download/5791226104/Andy+Oudman+Pam+Killeen+Kathryne+Pirtle.mp3

For more information on healing and building health with nutrient-dense foods and seminars on this subject, see www.performancewithoutpain.com

Best in Health,

Kathryne Pirtle

The Relationship of the Dietary Prevention of Inflammation and Digestive Disorders as a Protection Against Degenerative Disease

There is mounting evidence that as more people are experiencing healing from inflammation and digestive illness with nutrient-dense foods, that this factor is in itself a protection from degenerative disease. In articles from the Wise Traditions JournalA Holistic Approach to Cancer:The Disease of Civilization, by Tom Cowan, MD and The Pilot Research Study, Live Blood Analysis of Adults Comparing The Weston A. Price Foundation Diet and the Conventional Modern Diet, by Beverly Rubick, PhD–we can see this relationship.

Dr. Cowan notes that “civilization is the cause of cancer….The hunter-gatherer indigenous populations that were dependent upon animals feeding on perennial grass-based environments lived free of cancer for literally thousands and thousands of years. Organic agriculture turned the soil nearly into a desert, and brought cancer to people who had no cancer. Weston Price got in at the tail end of this inquiry in the 1930s and documented the health of these people from the standpoint of their teeth. But again, whenever we look at the health of non-industrialized people we see the same thing: these people are without cancer, and also without heart disease.”

Cowan discusses how a diet high in hard-to-digest carbohydrates–including hard-to-digest raw vegetables–can cause dysbiosis, intestinal damage and leaky gut, which puts the body in a constant state of inflammation. This state of inflammation is what leads to degenerative illness like cancer and heart disease. It is by returning to the hunter-gatherer diet that we can correct this disease state. This is the same diet that Dr. Weston Price found in immune cultures and that is reversing chronic illness in so many ill people who follow this approach today.

I love Cowan’s statements in response to the question, Is the hunter-gatherer diet “square with human anatomy?” He says, “I am not against changing certain patterns of the diet based on what a person can tolerate. But when someone says that their blood type needs to be a herbivore, a vegan, I think to myself well, yes, that would be fine if they had rumen. Let me tell you, the first cancer patients that come in with rumen, I’m putting them on a vegetarian diet. If they have very long intestines and a rumen with bacteria to ferment cellulose, I’d put them on a vegetarian diet.”

Cowan uses a nutrient-dense diet in his work with cancer patients. This diet eliminates all disaccharides–sugars in grains, lactose in fluid milk (even raw) and starchy vegetables. It emphasizes lots of healthy fats–butter, ghee, and coconut oil–grass-fed meats and organ meats, wild seafood, fermented raw dairy, low-starch vegetables, some fruit, bone broth soups and cod-liver oil. This is exactly the same diet that saved my life and that I have written about extensively for the last eight years. This is how I overcame 25 years of chronic inflammation and a severe digestive disorder. IT WORKS!

A new exciting study, The Pilot Research Study, Live Blood Analysis of Adults Comparing The Weston A. Price Foundation Diet and the Conventional Modern Diet, by Beverly Rubick, PhD, compares the blood from two groups of men of three age groups–one eating the Weston A. Price diet and the other a conventional diet.” The blood of the subjects on the WAPF diet showed reduced blood coagulation and clotting within forty-five minutes compared to those on conventional modern diets. Blood coagulation and clotting in fresh blood draws are generally associated with increased inflammation.” Here again, in the  prevention of inflammation, a traditional, nutrient-dense diet is showing great promise.

As we see more people healing and being protected from inflammation, digestive disorders and degenerative illness with nutrient-dense diets, and even more research pointing to the support of this powerful traditional dietary approach, we will hopefully move our society in the direction of seeking true solutions for our ever-increasing modern health epidemics. As more people also seek the foods produced by traditional small-farm agriculture to accomplish this goal, we can reform our food supply to improve the health of future generations.

Best in health,

Kathryne Pirtle

For more information on building health and healing with nutrient-dense foods see Performance without Pain and our new e-book on healing acid reflux.

Interesting Article on Butter

As you know from my blog by now–raw butter from grass-fed cows is an amazing nutrient-dense food. It is one of the foods that saved my life. It helped to heal my gut and gave me the important saturated fat I needed to be able to absorb the nutrients in my food. Dr. Weston A. Price found that healthy cultures ate plenty of traditional saturated fats–raw butter being extremely common, especially for the people in the Swiss Alps. In fact, raw butter in the spring time was considered a sacred food! Below is an interesting article I received about butter.

Pass The Butter … Please.

This is interesting …

Margarine  was originally manufactured to fatten  turkeys.  When it killed the turkeys, the people who had put  all the money into the research wanted a payback so they put their  heads together to figure out what to do with this product to get  their money back. It was a white substance with no food appeal  so they added the yellow colouring and sold it to people to use in place of butter.  How do you like it?   They have come out  with some clever new flavourings….

DO  YOU KNOW.. The difference between margarine and butter?

  • Both  have the same amount of calories.
  • Butter  is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8  grams; compared   to 5 grams for margarine.
  • Eating margarine can increase  heart disease in women by  53%  over  eating the same amount of butter, according to a recent  Harvard  Medical Study.
  • Eating butter increases the absorption of many other nutrients in  other foods.
  • Butter  has many nutritional benefits where margarine has a few and
  • only  because  they are added!
  • Butter  tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the flavours of  other foods.
  • Butter  has been around for centuries where margarine has been around for less than 100 years .

And now, for Margarine..

  • Very High in Trans fatty acids.
  • Triples risk of coronary heart disease …
  • Increases  total cholesterol and LDL (this is the bad cholesterol) and  lowers HDL cholesterol, (the good cholesterol)
  • Increases  the risk of cancers up to five times..
  • Lowers  quality of breast milk.
  • Decreases immune response.
  • Decreases  insulin response.

And  here’s the most disturbing fact….

  • Margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away  from being PLASTIC… and shares 27 ingredients with PAINT
  • These facts alone should have you avoiding margarine for life  and anything else that is hydrogenated (this means hydrogen is  added,  changing the molecular structure of the  substance).

You  can try this yourself:

Purchase  a tub of margarine and leave it open in your garage or shaded  area.  Within a couple of days you will notice a couple of things:

  • no flies, not even those pesky fruit flies will go near it  (that should tell you something)
  • it does not rot or smell differently because it has  no nutritional value ; nothing will grow on it. Even those teeny weeny  microorganisms will not a find a home to grow.  Why?   Because it is nearly plastic .  Would you melt your Tupperware and  spread that  on your toast?

Share  This With Your Friends…..(If you want to “butter them up”)!

For more information on building health and healing with nutrient-dense foods see Performance without Pain and our new e-book on healing acid reflux.

Best in health,

Kathryne Pirtle

The Relationship Between Mercury Poisoning from Amalgam Fillings and Candida Overgrowth

We have discussed the severe problems with mercury-laden silver fillings. Mercury is one of the most toxic metals in the world and amalgams contain 45% mercury. Dr. Louisa Williams’ important book called Radical Medicine”points to research done by Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt in the 1990’s that shows how mercury amalgams initiate candida overgrowth.

He states that:
“Mercury suffocates the intracellular respiratory mechanism and can cause cell death. So, the immune system makes a deal: it cultivates fungi and bacteria that can bind large amounts of toxic metals. The gain:the cells can breathe. The cost: the system has to provide nutrition for the microorganisms and has to deal with their metabolic products.”

Also from the book The Mercury in Your Mouth-The Truth About Dental Fillings, it states that:

Indigestion and weak stomach acid are associated with mercury toxicity. The gastrointestinal tract is one of the organ systems which absorbs the highest concentration of mercury. Fillings are constantly bathed in saliva. When the immune system is weakened by mercury, candida fungus multiplies rapidly.

Although the removal of dental amalgams is a very complicated process and a biological dentist must thoroughly assess the health of the patient before removal can be recommended, the eventual removal of these amalgams is a prudent step in long-term health. Removing mercury amalgams along with a nutrient-dense diet will help to alleviate the pervasive health problems associated with Candida overgrowth and dysbiosis significantly.

For more information on building health and healing with nutrient-dense foods see Performance without Pain and our new e-book on healing acid reflux.

Best in health,

Kathryne Pirtle

Are you corn fed?

You hear about corn-fed livestock and vegetarian-fed chicken–which also means corn-fed–but have you considered that you are what you eat-eats? In Dr. Francis Pottenger’s study of cats, he experimented with feeding them different types of raw milk. The health of the cats receiving raw milk from grain-fed cows was remarkably poor in comparison to those fed raw milk from grass-fed cows. These cats displayed all kinds of nutrient deficiencies. Their bones were weak, they had poor immune systems and they developed degenerative conditions of all kinds.

Just look around and see all the health epidemics. It does not take a brain surgeon to realize that corn-fed does not work!

If your health is your wealth, our country has a disaster waiting to happen! However, by purchasing foods that are traditionally raised, you will not only improve your own health, but be a part of a movement that is helping to insure the health of future generations!

For more information on healing and building health with nutrient-dense foods, see our book Performance without Pain and our new e-book on acid reflux.

Best in Health,

Kathryne Pirtle

Tradtional fermented foods–why everybody needs them for good health

Traditionally cultured and fermented foods like plain whole milk kefir and yogurt from grass-fed cows, homemade sauerkraut, kimchee and pickled beets, and beverages like beet kvass and  kombucha were common foods throughout history before refrigeration. They were a way to preserve foods worldwide. Would it surprise you to know that you absolutely cannot afford to live without them though?

In order to function properly–that is to break down our foods into usable components and detoxify our body– the human digestive system needs ample probiotic bacteria and enzymes. Fermented and cultured foods naturally provide these components. Without these kinds of foods, we may develop many serious digestive problems like candida overgrowth, which chemically change the way our foods are processed and we will not be able to get rid of toxins. Ultimately, poor digestion equals poor health. In fact, acid reflux, inflammatory conditions of all kinds and cancer can be linked to poor digestion and a toxic overload.

Do your health a big favor–devote time to learning to prepare these delicious cultured and fermented foods. As your digestion improves so will your health!

For more information on preparing cultured and fermented foods see our website at www.performancewithoutpain.com. Both of our books, Performance without Pain and our e-book on healing acid reflux are wonderful guides to optimizing digestion.

Best in health,

Kathryne Pirtle

Normal muscle soreness vs. chronic muscle and tendon inflammation–the gut relationship

The physical challenges that performing artists and athletes face have a lot in common especially in the area of pain in muscles and tendons. It is normal to have occasional muscle soreness after a heavy workout or practice. However, as most people know the difference between muscle soreness and chronic inflammation, it is important to understand that there is often a biochemical component in chronic inflammation that may not addressed even in traditional holistic therapies including massage and chiropractic.

Chronic inflammation is a frightening condition as pain may be present even when you have done very little and may be excruciating if you do the slightest bit more. It often does not go away–even with rest– and it can haunt you day and night.It also often moves from one area to another and you can end up literally “chasing” the pain in your physical therapy sessions to no avail–for just as you solve the problem in one area, another area becomes sore.

Ongoing inflammation cannot be solved permanently with physical therapy–sorry–as this kind of inflammation is systemic. If you don’t look at the “why” deeply, you will continue to suffer and this symptom may be just the start of more serious health problems down the line.

Systemic inflammation often is a sign of poor digestion and “leaky gut syndrome.” Leaky gut is most often caused from eating difficult-to-digest, nutrient-poor foods that create intestinal flora imbalances like Candida overgrowth. With poor gut flora or “gut dysbiosis,”  intestinal damage is likely. When the intestinal tract becomes damaged, undigested proteins can “leak” through the intestinal wall, causing an immune system response and inflammatory chemicals to constantly circulate throughout the body.

Permanent healing is possible if you change your diet to focus on easy-to-digest, nutrient-dense, traditional foods that will heal the intestinal tract and build optimal health. Although at first this may seem like a daunting task, the benefits far outweigh the difficulty. You have spent your entire life dedicated to top performance, so isn’t your future worth the care that it took for you to come this far? Remember–“Your health is your wealth!”

For more information on building health and healing with nutrient-dense foods see Performance without Pain and our new e-book on healing acid reflux.

Best in Health,

Kathryne Pirtle

Chronic muscle and tendon stiffness may be a sign of malnourishment and poor digestion.

Instrumentalists, dancers and athletes depend on muscle and tendon flexibility for top performance. If you need to do yoga just to function–this is not optimal.  If muscles and tendons are overly stiff, it may be due to a nutrient-poor diet and poor digestion.

In my 30’s, I had a lot of trouble with muscle and tendon stiffness. Without a daily yoga regime, I felt like my arms, back and fingers were stuck. In my 40’s when I became deathly ill with a digestive disorder resulting from years of eating a high-fiber/low-fat “healthy diet” and turned to easy-to-digest, traditional, nutrient-dense foods to heal, I noticed that eventually all of my stiffness melted away. So–in my 50’s I am more flexible than ever before!

Weston A. Price’s research on healthy cultures worldwide determined the nutritional elements that are necessary for optimal health. Most people today are following a high-fiber/low-fat diet thinking that this is healthy. However, this kind of diet was not even close to the kind of diets that Price found in optimally healthy populations. To the contrary, all 14 healthy cultures, though their diets were all different, consumed ample traditional fats and nutrient-dense, easy-to-digest foods that provided over 10 times the amount of vitamin A and D  and 30 times the amount of other vitamins compared to diets in the US. Price found that without adequate traditional fat (butter, cream, lard, coconut oil) and Vitamin A and D  from natural sources in the diet, you could not absorb the nutrients in your foods–no matter how good the diet.

Below are some of the basic elements of a good diet:

  • Nutrient-dense foods such as meats, poultry, eggs and dairy from animals eating their natural diets and traditionally made bone broth soups
  • Foods that help the digestive system function properly and promote good intestinal flora for optimal nutrient absorption.  Examples of these are old fashioned probiotic, high-enzyme  foods include cultured dairy–whole fat kefir and yogurt; lacto-fermented vegetables–homemade sauerkraut and pickled beets and cultured drinks like kombucha and beet kvass.
  • Third, traditional fats like butter, cream and coconut oil which help with nutrient absorption, cell integrity and hormone function.
  • Fourth, adequate vitamin A and D from natural sources like cod liver oil, egg yolks and liver also for nutrient absorption

For more information on traditional, nutrient-dense foods for optimal health and a healing diet see www.performancewithoutpain.com.

Best in health,

Kathryne Pirtle