GrandmaBetsyBell

Sleep and Arthritis Pain

Gentle Reader,

What’s up with not getting a deep, long sleep at night? I have heard from several of my customers that falling asleep is no problem, but they wake up in the night and can’t get back to sleep afterward. Not getting a good night’s sleep is a serious concern in our modern busy world and it seems to worsen when we develop arthritis aches and pains in our later years. Read on for a thorough discussion of arthritis and sleep.

What are the health risks of interrupted, inadequate sleep?

Turning to WebMD we get a lengthy discussion about 10 things to hate about sleep loss.

In a nutshell:

1. Sleepiness causes accidents: 100,000 a year resulting in 1550 deaths. Mostly people under 25 were driving when drowsy, not to mention the 1979 nuclear accident at Three Mile Island, the massive Exxon Valdez oil spill, the 1986 nuclear meltdown at Chernobyl.

2. Sleep loss dumbs you down. You just can’t think well when you are sleepy and without deep rest, your brain cannot store and catalog all the things you learned today. Nighttime is memorization time.

3. Serious health risks of chronic sleep disorders

Heart disease
Heart attack
Heart failure
Irregular heartbeat
High blood pressure
Stroke
Diabetes

4. Lack of sleep kills the sex drive. Need I say more?

5. Sleepiness is depressing. May I add that it is depressing to the sleepy person and to those who would like to play, work, and enjoy life with that person.

6. Lack of sleep ages your skin. It is the cortisol produced by stress that causes those extra lines and dark patches under the eyes. And missing sleep is stressful.

7. Sleepiness makes you forgetful. Maybe you don’t have early onset Alzheimer’s; you only suffer from poor sleep.

8. Losing sleep can make you fat. When you are sleepy, you crave fat-laden carbs.

9. Lack of sleep may increase early death. Read the report to see the study.

10. Sleep loss impairs judgment, especially about sleep. We cannot see how impaired our brain function is.

Since this is a blog about arthritis, I wanted to see if lack of sleep affected our joints. Turns out there is a vicious circle of pain and lack of sleep going on when you have painful arthritis. From a study reported in the Daily Mail about this problem,

Experts say insomnia is common among the ten million arthritis sufferers in Britain, with some estimates suggesting that nearly two in three experience trouble sleeping. However, until recently restless nights were viewed as a secondary and almost inevitable problem for people with arthritis. But now scientists are realising that this problem is a two-way street: not only does joint pain cause sleep loss, but sleep deprivation makes joint pain worse, and can even accelerate joint damage. There is growing concern that sleep disturbance exacerbates osteoarthritis (wear-and-tear arthritis) and rheumatoid arthritis (where the immune system attacks the joints), and experts believe that treating insomnia could lead to an improvement in the condition.

Osteoarthritis develops when cartilage that protects the surface of bones becomes damaged and starts to break down. The exact causes remain unknown, but genes, weight and age are all thought to be involved. Much of the pain and swelling is caused by inflammatory molecules in the body travelling to the joint.

For reasons that are not fully understood, disrupted sleep leads to increased numbers of these inflammatory markers, which further aggravates sore joints. One of these markers is called interleukin-1 (IL-1), which is made by white blood cells. One expert thinks IL-1 is the ‘primary trigger’ of osteoarthritis. Lack of sleep causes arthritis pain and visa versa.

Professor Peter Wehling, an orthopaedic surgeon whose Dusseldorf clinic has become a pilgrimage site for sports stars seeking to prolong their careers, says even a limited amount of sleep disruption can cause the immune system to ‘go into overdrive’. It then begins to ‘flood the body with white blood cells in a vain attempt to address exhaustion-related distress’, as he puts it in his book The End Of Pain.

Many of the IL-1 producing white blood cells lodge in the joints and cause ‘discomfort and gradual erosion of cartilage’, he says. Professor Wehling warns that even one bad night’s sleep can set this in motion.

Professor Silman from Arthritis UK agrees that inflammatory compounds play a role in arthritis. ‘Sleep disturbance can change the body’s natural cycle of hormones as well as possibly adversely affecting the underlying levels of inflammation,’ he says. He agrees that IL-1 is ‘an important player’ in the development of inflammatory arthritis, but says other cytokines — inflammation-causing chemicals — may also be involved. He adds that some of the symptoms of osteoarthritis, especially in its early stages, may be a direct consequence of inflammation.

And while loss of sleep may release damaging inflammatory chemicals, it also means the joints miss out on the healing benefits of sleep.

Sleep is the longest time during which the body has low levels of inflammation and opportunity to heal. Around 15 to 25 per cent of it should be deep sleep — this equates to around 1½ to two hours every night. During this time, energy levels are restored and the immune system strengthened. But it can take up to 45 minutes of sleeping to enter deep sleep — and these deep phases seem to occur only in the first half of the night, for reasons not understood. This means that if someone is tossing and turning they may have very little deep sleep. This not only increases the number of inflammatory markers in the body, but it can also disrupt the workings of hormones vital for joint healing, says Professor Wehling. Perhaps most notably it lowers production of human growth hormone, sometimes called the ‘master hormone’ because it is vital to many processes in the body including tissue repair, weight management and continuing replacement of bone and collagen. Though human growth hormone is produced in small surges during the day, by far the biggest burst comes 60 to 90 minutes after falling asleep as we enter deep sleep.

Inflammation suppresses human growth hormone — and so deep sleep causes levels to surge.

But without much deep sleep, we may not produce enough growth hormone, speeding the decline of tissue and bone, causing it to become worn in joint areas. Furthermore, weariness makes people more sensitive to pain, and can lead to them becoming even more immobile.

Professor Kevin Morgan, director of the Sleep Research Centre at Loughborough University, explains: ‘Moving involuntarily in the night can wake you up with a lightning shaft of pain and a cracking sensation. ‘This sleep disruption makes pain worse the next day, and makes a person less inclined to want to move around. ‘However, movement and activity makes joints hurt less.’

Arthritis Research UK is funding a study by King’s College London’s Institute of Psychiatry, which aims to identify and treat the issues preventing patients with rheumatoid arthritis from being physically active and sleeping well. Around 200 people with the disease are taking part in the research, which it is hoped will lead to new techniques to tackle inactivity, sleep disruption and pain.

A similar study by the University of Washington in Seattle involving 375 patients with osteoarthritis is also being held and is due to report next year. It is examining whether targeting pain and sleep problems is more beneficial than a regimen focusing on pain alone. The researchers have hypothesised that the dual approach will have greater long-term benefits for sleep and pain, increase physical activity and lead to a reduction in healthcare costs.

Jo Cumming, head of helplines at Arthritis Care, says the charity speaks to 12,000 people a year, and 63 per cent say they don’t get a good night’s sleep.

‘It is a huge burden to bear. When GPs are considering medication or joint replacements one of the things they ask patients is whether the pain stops them sleeping,’ she says.

But Professor Morgan argues that previously GPs have considered insomnia as an unfortunate consequence of another health problem, rather than an important health problem in itself.

This has led to patients not always receiving the best treatment.

‘You have to put in a lot of work convincing clinicians that sleep problems are not just collateral damage from the main disease,’ he says.

So what can help those with joint pain achieve a good night’s sleep?

Tips include cutting out afternoon naps, using lamps rather than ceiling lights in the evening, avoiding caffeine after 3pm and not drinking alcohol after 9pm.

Professor Wehling also recommends ‘keeping a consistent bedtime and rising within an hour of sunrise’.

Avoiding midnight snacks can also help.

An estimated 50 per cent of our body weight is carried by the menisci, small pads of cartilage in the knee, so piling on the pounds adds substantially to an already considerable strain. Excess body fat can also heighten arthritis directly because our fat cells expand and produce more cytokines, which fuel inflammation.

However, a lack of sleep can lead to weight gain, which is known to make joint pain worse.

Levels of melatonin, the key hormone in regulating our daily body cycle or circadian rhythm, are also disturbed by sleep loss, and this in turn upsets the balance of two other hormones.

The first is ghrelin, known as the ‘hunger hormone’. Elevated levels of ghrelin at night can prompt people to raid the kitchen, craving carbohydrates in particular. It also causes extra insulin production, making the body store more fat.

The second is leptin, which usually helps regulate appetite, but may be disrupted by loss of sleep. Studies in mice also suggest that leptin may itself have inflammatory effects.

What are some solutions to this problem?

Talk to your doctor and help him/her see that lack of sleep is important enough to work through the available medications to find one that works.

If you are like me and prefer to solve this problem through alternative methods, I have found a number of strategies that work for me. While I still wake up in the night, I can nearly always get back to sleep and return to a deep, untroubled sleep, waking up well rested.

Shaklee makes two supplements which help induce a restful sleep at the beginning of the night.

Gentle Sleep Complex swallowed all at once or made into a tea about 1/2 hour before bed along with

Stress Relief complex. Taking 2 seems to be the best amount for helping with sleep at night.

Lavender oil dabbed on the bottoms of the feet. (I know, sounds woo woo but it seems to work. You can also buy a little chimney with a dish on top for the Lavender oil. The odor wafts through the bedroom and helps with sleep.) WebMD has information about lavender oil.

There are some other oils that some people use like Rescue Remedy. You can find these oils in most stores that sell supplements. I have used a drop of Rescue Remedy under my tongue when other methods did not result in a return to deep sleep at that 2 a.m. hour.

Insomnia Relief Audio CD — Peggy Cappy’s sleep meditation

I also have used Peggy Cappy’s soothing voice on her mediation for back rejunvenation. I have it on an Ipod which I keep at the head of my bed. Peggy Cappy has a CD for sleep which I just ordered. I’ll give a full report when I have used it. I often begin my night listening to her Back Care CD and fall asleep immediately. I swear my back pain has lessened considerably over the years I have been listening to her. I have blogged about Peggy Cappy in the past.

Another thing I do routinely is make a note of anything I must do the following day so I know they are scheduled and I can trust that I will get back to them.

I recently discovered that my trusted Feldenkris practitioner addresses this problem with a new series/private consultations/workshops. http://www.becciparsons.com/Sounder_Sleep_System.html I haven’t taken her classes, but she is the practitioner who got me walking/sitting/standing/bending again after herniating my L5 disc in 1989. Becci Parsons has been a guest blogger for me. Please read that post for more information.

Happy Dreams,

Be Well, Do Well and Keep Moving.

Betsy

I would love to hear from you how you manage sleeplessness. Please send me an email.

betsy@hihohealth.com

206 933 1889

Arthritis or Tendonitis?

Gentle Reader,

Tendonitis or arthritis? Which is it? My oldest daughter (52) was feeling sprightly one morning in Ecstatic Dance and accepted an invitation to do a cartwheel and round off. Why not? She is fit, exercises daily and used to do them easily when she was a gymnast back in high school. So off she sped across the floor, executing the perfect cartwheel and round off, landing smartly on her heels, arms out in a victory pose. Immediately she felt the sharp pain in her right buttock but went on dancing. That was last August. By December she could not bear weight on that leg, on her sit bone which made walking and sitting painful and challenging. The diagnosis was a torn hamstring tendon, a rare accident usually confined to linebackers. Most orthopedists see a hand full in a life-long practice. She found one who, in twenty years, had repaired twelve such injuries. The operation was successful and she is walking, driving, and sitting comfortably again. This condition is a torn or ruptured tendon. Definitely not tendonitis or arthritis of the hip, which she fleeting believed it might be.

Tendonitis, commonly called tennis elbow, swimmer’s shoulder, trigger finger, is an inflammation of the fibrous, cordlike connective tissue that attaches muscle to bone. Tendons can withstand amazing amounts of force, but they are not indestructible. Witness my daughter’s round off. The pain of tendonitis accompanies stiffness and swelling near a joint. Arthritis presents in the same way. When you get this pain, stiffness and swelling, you usually take some anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen; apply ice and rest the affected joint. But this could be a miss-diagnosis. [information from an article in Johns Hopkins Health Alerts]

Perhaps the inflammation is actually in the sheath around the tendon. Tendons do not contain many blood vessels, so they are seldom inflamed. If you are over 50, it is possible your tendons are degenerating. The collagen that makes up the tendon breaks down, causing multiple microscopic tears. What little blood circulation there is to the tendon also decreases with age, making the healing of these microscopic tears more difficult. This degenerative condition is called tendinosis. Can you tell the difference between tendinosis and arthritis?

It is common to develop tendinosis and have no symptoms until some sudden trauma or the gradual build up of repetitive motion in work, sport or exercise. Perhaps my daughter had tendonosis compromising the tendon’s elasticity. She would not have known that she was at risk for a major trauma to the hamstring tendon.

Here’s a way to tell if your joint pain, stiffness and swelling is tendon related or bone and joint related: try taking glucosamine (Joint Health Complex by Shaklee) for two weeks. If it helps, you likely have osteoarthritis. If not, it is more likely a tendon problem.

Glucosamine has been shown in quite a few scientific studies to help with cartilage formation. Cartilage is what your joints are made of, and what arthritis attacks, so upping the rate of production of cartilage helps your joints. You feel better….if you have arthritis.

On the other hand, glucosamine will not help with collagen formation, and tendons are made of collagen. So it stands to reason that if you feel like you have “joint pain”, take glucosamine, and do not experience any relief, one very likely culprit could be your tendons. Tendon insertion points are often very close to joints and it can be difficult to tell exactly where the pain is coming from.

Taking NSAIDs (anti-inflammatories) using ice and rest can provide temporary relief for either tendonosis or arthritis, but since both are the result of inflammation, using these treatments will not help you distinguish between the two. Knowing which one you have is important if you intend to treat the condition yourself. If you take NSAIDs and they do not help, you probably have degeneration of the tendon.

This information comes from a web site http://www.targettendonitis.com/ by Alex Nordach, who is marketing his ebook (for $29) on how to treat degenerating tendons. I have not purchased this book so I can’t recommend it. If you are interested, follow the link and see for yourself.

What I can tell you about natural healing for both joint and tendon caused pain, is the following:

Acupuncture can relieve pain, stiffness and swelling.

Vitamins C and B Complex, plus Alfalfa help build collagen naturally, reduce inflammation and increase blood flow into the area. And I do not mean one or two tablets. 3000 mgr. of Sustained Relief C and 6 tablets a day of Shaklee’s B Complex can make a difference. I could tell you stories of people who have avoided surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome by taking lots of B Complex. Alfalfa tablets are small pea sized pills and should be eaten by the spoon full, not one by one. We are talking food. Can’t swallow that many pills? Chew them up. Shaklee’s Alfalfa tablets smell sweet when you open the bottle and taste like new mown hay with no sticks or twigs.

Whether your joint pain is tendonosis or arthritis, these supplements will help. Since glucosamine is expensive and NSAIDs mess up your stomach, check out the treatments to see what you are dealing with and then proceed with these three supplements. Their side benefits are legion.

In most of my blog posts, I talk about the various causes of arthritis and things you can do to manage arthritis short of medication and surgery. This blog addresses another cause of joint pain, tendonitis and tendinosis. I hope this refinement — arthritis or tendonitis–helps you.

If this information is helpful, please let me know.

Be Well, Do Well and Keep Moving,

Betsy

206 933 1889

How flexible should I be?

Gentle Reader,

How flexible should I be? Should you be? It is amazing to me how much more flexible I am after a weekend Yoga retreat and 3 additional sessions with the instructors; more to come. But in no way do I lean to left or right as far as the others in the class. Nor can I make my shins line up on top of each other in that bent knee sitting position. I sit for opening and closing O-m-m-ms on a rolled up blanket to gain some height.

How flexible show we be? Dr. Pierre Dubois has some ideas that may help. He begins with asking, “How do you measure flexibility?
Man Touching Toes “Watching a dancer her leg to her nose is an impressive sight, and many of us can perform similar feats when we’re children. But we begin to lose flexibility as we age if we do not make a conscious effort to remain limber.

“Inactivity causes muscles to shorten and stiffen, and muscle mass is lost with increasing years as well. However, maintaining flexibility as we get older is of great importance, since it allows us to retain our mobility and reduces the likelihood of aches, sprains and falls as we age.

“How Flexible Should I Be?

“Optimal flexibility means the ability of each of your joints to move fully through their natural range of motion. Simple activities such as walking or bending over to tie your shoes can become major difficulties if your flexibility is limited. Unfortunately, sitting for hours at a desk, as so many are forced to do on a daily basis, eventually leads to a reduction in flexibility as the muscles shorten and tighten.
Dr. Dubois suggests this simple Test For Measuring Flexibility
“There are a number of different tests used to measure flexibility, but the one test that has been used as a standard for years is the sit and reach test. It measures the flexibility of your hamstrings and lower back. The simple home version of the test requires only a step (or a small box) and a ruler.

In Seattle’s Pacific Science Center, there is an interactive exhibit in the Human Body room where you climb on a bench that is set up exactly as described here. I was interested in the flexibility range presented by my own 11 teen-aged grandchildren who were with me. The ones who move a lot in sports were more flexible. I expected that. What surprised me was the lower measure of flexibility in the ones who did not move very much in their everyday school life.

“Before the test, warm up for about 10 minutes with some light aerobic activity and do a few stretches. Then place the ruler on the step, letting the end of it extend out a few inches over your toes, and note where the edge of the step comes to on the ruler.

“Sit on the floor with your feet extended in front of you, flat against the bottom step (or box). With your arms extended straight out in front of you and one hand on top of the other, gradually bend forward from the hips, keeping your back straight. (Rounding the back will give you a false result).

“Measure where your fingertips reach on the ruler. They should ideally be able to reach at least as far as the front of the step. Any measurement past the edge of the step is a bonus. No matter how far you can reach on the first measurement, do the test periodically and try to improve your score every few weeks”.

Increasing Your Flexibility

“If you find that you are less flexible than you should be, some regular stretching exercises combined with visits to your chiropractor can help to restore flexibility and improve range of motion, helping to ensure that you remain limber into older age.”

The Bottom Line

• Optimal flexibility means a full range of motion for all of our joints.

• Age, inactivity and desk-bound work environments all can cause loss of flexibility.

• The sit and reach test is a good measure of flexibility.

• If your flexibility is not what it should be, do stretching exercises every day.”

I am convinced that with gentle, persistent and consistent effort, you can increase your flexibility and that in turn can decrease arthritis pain. I’d love to hear from you, so shoot me an email about how flexible you are.

Be well, Do well, and Keep moving,

Betsy

206 933 1889

Yoga for Arthritis

Gentle Reader,
I have a diagnosis of arthritis, osteoarthritis and spinal stenosis. I gave up yoga for arthritis about 6 years ago, as it seemed to exacerbate the pain in my hips and spine. However, when my youngest daughter Ruth raved about her 6 a.m. yoga class and the teacher, I took notice. She convinced me that Laura could instruct me in a way that would build from the core so that I would not hurt myself. Furthermore, Laura and Beattie, her partner, were conducting a yoga retreat at the hot springs retreat center in Oregon called Breitenbush. I have always wanted to go. It would be wonderful to spend a weekend with my daughter. I signed up.

Have you ever enrolled in a program only to have buyer’s remorse? My thoughts raced around my head: I can’t do yoga for arthritis. I’ll hurt myself again. How will I spend my days with no internet or telephone? (That’s right. No connectivity at Breitenbush.) I planned to take a book, attend the first hour and bow out politely.

With the right yoga instructor, yoga for arthritis is not only possible but builds strength, stamina and flexibility. That is an all-important caveat: the right yoga instructor.
I not only lasted the first hour-and-a-half session on Thursday night, but the morning two hours on Friday as well. I took the Friday afternoon session off. By 10 a.m. on Saturday morning, Ruth and I had soaked in the hot springs pools four times. I was ready to try again. Not only was I able to practice with the other 12 participants for two hours on Saturday, but again that afternoon.

And, Ruth and I took a spectacular 4 ½-mile hike through the emerald green forest surrounding the Breitenbush site. Sunday morning’s two-hour session was beautiful. I did not try handstands or back bends, but everything leading up to those poses was restorative and strong.

How do you choose a yoga instructor that will help and not hurt your arthritic joints? If you are serious about including yoga for arthritis management, I recommend you visit studios and sit in on the session labeled hatha yoga, slow-moving emphasis on arriving at the pose from a core-strengthened place. I found of the various yoga practices. If you have arthritis, I would not recommend the fast moving practices. Participate as best you can, stopping short of anything that twists or hurts.

If you are a Type A competitive person used to high achievement goals (that would be me), you need to monitor your progress in a class very carefully so as to not over do. The personal triumph of the weekend retreat at Breitenbush was to opt out of the Friday afternoon class without feeling like a failure. I needed to rest my body in order to benefit from the rest of the weekend.

Open heartedness and acceptance are two attitudes to cultivate as you find a yoga practice for arthritis. Leave your judgments at the door and listen to your body.

I have posted information about Peggy Cappy many times before. She is a Public Television personality and yoga teacher who works with older people. Her videos and especially her CD mediation for healing the arthritic back are part of my daily routine.

The joy of practicing in a room full of other people over the weekend reminded me how much I have missed breathing, moving and meditating with others. I loved the group experience so much, I have been to one of Laura’s and Beattie’s Seattle classes and I plan to incorporate their practice in my week.

Do not settle for less than a careful, hands-on instructor if you want to use yoga for arthritis. It could get you into trouble. I wish you luck in finding a good instructor. Let me know how it goes with yoga if you already incorporate this modality in your arthritis or other health management.
Be well, Do well and Keep Moving
Betsy
BetsyBellsHealth4U
206 933 1889
betsy@hihohealth.com

Grandmas on the move

Gentle Reader,

The first few moments of a hike and I confess, I do not feel like one of those Grandmas on the move. I feel every twinge in my ankles as they wake up; in my knees as the right one clicks ominously; in my left foot where the old neuropathy pain can flair up. After about 20 minutes and everything works like a well oiled machine, a steady climb or descent. There is no snow to speak of in our Snoqualmie Pass, so the ski bus was called off for the second week. Three of us went hiking on the Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie River. It was a beautiful day for us Grandmas on the move and we loved it.

Down in LA, the Trust for Public Land installed a fitness zone in a neighborhood park. Here is what they found when they went back to check two years later: Grandmas on the move.

Get your self out there and keep moving. It makes a difference. I have the choice of not moving when these twinges tell me my legs, joints and muscles are not working they way they did 50 years ago. Sure, I have severe osteoarthritis and spinal stenosis. These diagnosed conditions might give someone license to sit down. Years ago, my neurologist told me I should be in a wheel chair, if my x-ray images were to be believed. He said my bones were not good enough to operate. “Get strong, Betsy. Let your muscles carry you.”

These grandmas on the move have figured that out. I hope you can find a way to do what they are doing.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving,

Betsy

206 933 1889

Gifts for health

Gift Ideas for a Healthy Life

Here is a suggestion list of beautiful ways to remember someone’s birthday, anniversary, special achievement or goal with a simple gift for a healthy life. Your friends and family will know how much you care when you give one of these gifts for health.

TO SLIP IN WITH A CARD

*180 Pomegranate Tea Stick(s) with a Girardelli Chocolate Square with a little note to “enjoy this gift of energy” and to “remember to enjoy all antioxidants all year-long.”

*Energy Chew(s) with a little note to “enjoy the energizing treat of Olympians.”

*180 Drink Mix Packet with a little note “a gift of healthy fast food this busy season.”

FOR GUYS

*Performance Sports Drink (Orange or Lemon-Lime), 180 Snack Bars, and Joint & Muscle Pain Cream along with a sports bottle, football, soccer ball, a signed ball or signed photograph.

*180 Snack Crisps (Sea Salt or Barbecue or both) in a basket circled with ribbon along with some movies or a subscription to NetFlix, etc.

*Basic-H2 with a sponge in a bucket filled with car magazines. Add Scour Off Paste for the tires and tough spots.

*ENFUSELLE Sun Screen, Performance Sports Drink (Orange or Lemon-Lime), and ENERGY CHEWS with golf stuff, ball, gym bag, etc.

*180 Meal Bars with brochures for hiking trails, bike routes, fishing holes, etc.

FOR GALS

*ENFUSELLE Anti-Aging Skin Care collection with a lighted makeup mirror.

*Cocoa Meal Shake or 180 Chocolate Shake Mix Canister or Packets for healthy hot chocolate snacks along with a warm hat, scarf, and gloves.

*Herbal Blend Multi-Purpose Cream with some nice slippers and/or cute designer sox. Include a note about how the cream soothes sore tootsies year round. You can even refrigerate it to cool feet in summer.

*MB Cleansing Bar and Hand & Body Lotion wrapped with a pretty ceramic soap dish and colorful bath accessories.

*ENFUSELLE Infusing Mineral Masque and Skin Polisher with a silky robe, one in each pocket.

*ENFUSELLE C+E Repair in a chic black matte cosmetic clutch with a designer mirror.

*ENFUSELLE AM Repair with a beautiful scarf in a gold organza bag.

FOR NEIGHBORS, COWORKERS

*Cocoa Energizing Soy Protein with the recipe for cocoa soy-peanut butter “energy balls” and a festive container full of them. Or Instant Protein with a container of fruit or chocolate dessert bars made with it and the recipes.

*Travel Bag filled with ENFUSELLE Products along with travel magazines and/or a video of a fun destination.

*Chewable C and/or ENERGY CHEWS in a beautiful candy dish wrapped with a big bow.

*Instant Protein Soy Mix with pumpkin bread or cranberry/orange bread you’ve made, using it as an ingredient, along with the recipe.

*180 Tea with a cute teapot and tea cozy or 180 Cafe latte with cool coffee mugs.

STOCKING STUFFERS

*MB Cleansing Bar sewn into satin material and decorated as a drawer sachet, or wrapped in a pretty handkerchief tied with a velvet ribbon.

*Joint & Muscle Pain Cream with a tag wishing them many nights of perfect sleep!

*Toffee & Chocolate Crunch Snack Bar wrapped with a ribbon.

FOR YOUNG PARENTS AND KIDS

*Basic-H2 Organic Super Cleaning Wipes and Germ Off Wipes with some fun tub toys, or a set of baby clothes, blanket, etc. (Include info why these products are safer for baby and the whole family.)

*MIGHTY SMART “Smart Candy” with books and fun pens for a grade schooler.

*Vita-Lea, Meal Shake and a SHAKLEE Shaker with a fun wake-up alarm clock.

FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS

*180 Snack Bars wrapped in a see-through colorful net and tied with ribbon

*ENFUSELLE Shower Gel, ENFUSELLE Hand & Body Lotion, and Bath Sponge in a pretty shower caddy or with a set of monogrammed towels.

*Basic-H2 Sample rolled in the sheet called “How to Use This Little Bottle of Basic-H2,” tied at each end with festive ribbon with a card that says, “My gift to you is a gift to the Earth, too! Enjoy!”

*Chewy Apple Cinnamon Bars with some polished apples in a festive box or basket.

FOR MOM, GRANDMOM, AUNTS

*Joint & Muscle Pain Relief Cream with a microwaveable comfort pillow.

*180 Tea with a cookbook of decadent gluten-free desserts.

*ENFUSELLE Firming Serum with a pretty scarf, or jewelry, or designer shades.

*180 Snack Crisps (Sea Salt or Barbecue or both) in a basket circled with ribbon along with gourmet soup makings and a cookbook.

*Get Clean Pitcher (possibly with a year’s supply of filters) with a set of fashionable drinking glasses, ice trays, fresh lemons.

*CorEnergy and B-Complex with boxes of various kinds of teas and a mug.

*Instant Protein Soy Mix with recipes for fish batter, muffins, etc.

*Instant Protein Soy Mix with recipes and colorful baking pans and utensils.

*Menopause Balance Complex with a box of chocolates.

FOR DAD, GRANDDAD, UNCLES

*A bottle of VIVIX with a bow and a nice calendar with a message about having a “youthful” year.

*Vitalizer with a picture of the kids or grandkids or great grandkids. And add ENERGY CHEWS with a gift of gym membership.

*Herbal Blend Multi-Purpose Cream with some nice slippers. Include a note about how the cream soothes sore tootsies year round–refrigerate it to cool in summer.

*NUTRIFERON with ear muffs and HAND & BODY LOTION.

UNIQUE GIFTS

*Stress Relief Complex with tickets to something fun for “stress relief” or add VITALIZER with a map and a shaving kit or cosmetic bag for traveling.

*EZGEST and Stomach Soothing Complex with a coupon for a supply of ice cream for someone who usually can’t eat it…or with a coupon for dinner out at a restaurant known for 4 Alarm chili, or Mexican food, or spicy Indian cuisine, etc.

*SHAKLEE Sun Screen SPF 30 with sun hat, ball cap, sunglasses, or picnic basket.

*180 Turnaround Kit or Lean & Healthy Kit to start the new year right, along with a funky calendar, and a coupon for a shopping spree for clothes in 90 days.

*Orange and Lemon-Lime Performance Drink Canisters with a walking audio like Dr. Weil’s. (Remember that mixing the two flavors gives you a tropical flavor!)

*Ultra Moisturizing Shea Butter Cream with gift of a massage.

*Fresh Laundry Concentrate & Soft Fabric Concentrate with some luxurious towels.

*Performance with gardening things like a hat, cotton gloves, and/or kneeling pad. You could add Joint & Muscle Pain Cream, and Basic-H2 as a safe bug repellant, an invisible glove, as fertilizer, and more.

*PHYSIQUE Recovery Drink and Joint Health Complex with a jump rope or exercise DVD for someone making new year resolutions.

*ProSanté Hair Care System with a really nice brush and hair things, along with info about how hair will stop falling out.

*SHAKLEE First Aid Kit or SHAKLEE “Non-Medicine” Cabinet in a pretty basket. Choose any combination of the following…or the Packages below.

FROM THE ALPHABETICAL TABLES BELOW, CREATE:

A COLDS & FLU PACKAGE (about $239) Alfalfa, Defend & Resist, Extra Vita-Lea without Iron, Garlic, GERM OFF Wipes, Liqui-Lea, Optiflora Pro-biotic, Performance Lemon Lime, Performance Orange, Vita-C Chewable, Vita-C Tablet, Vitamin D3, Zinc.

Alfalfa Complex

Defend & Resist

Extra Vita-Lea without Iron

EZGest

Garlic

Gentle Sleep Complex

GERM OFF Wipes

Herb-Lax

Joint & Muscle Pain Relief Cream

Vita Lea Plus Iron

Multi-Purpose Cream

Nutriferon

OPTIFLORA Pre- and Pro-biotic

Pain Relief Complex

Performance Lemon/Lime

Performance Orange

PHYSIQUE

Stomach Soothing Complex

Vita-C Chewable

Vita-C Tablet

Vitamin D3

Zinc

AN ACHEY BREAKY EMERGENCY PACKAGE (about $265) EZGest, Gentle Sleep Complex, GERM OFF Wipes, Herb-Lax, Joint & Muscle Pain Cream, Joint Health Complex, Multi-Purpose Cream, Pain Relief Complex, Performance Lemon Lime, Performance Orange, PHYSIQUE, Stomach Soothing Complex, Vitamin D3, Zinc.

Feel good about the gift you give when you give a gift for health.

Digestion: Key to health

Gentle Reader,

Here we are in a New Year. I hear murmuring around me about changes in eating, in exercise, in work habits. People everywhere seek balance in their lives, which seem to be uncontrollably hectic. We interrupt ourselves and forget what we hoped to accomplish in the next hour. There is no peace.

This time of year solutions abound. Your favorite person on Facebook asks everyone to comment on their resolutions and past successes. The radio and TV, pod casts and news articles have the answer if you would just listen, please. Of course, I am going to recommend a better diet, one with supplements. Ha! It just could be that digestion is the key to health.

Years ago I learned a very important lesson that relaxed my need to save the world all by myself. Food, diet and nutrition are one small part of the total health picture. A wise woman, Angela Arriens, lectured on the 8 common threads across all cultures that lead to a health filled life. As a cross-cultural anthropologist, she knew what she was talking about from years of research.

It turns out that our diet per se is only one/eighth of the picture. Other factors–exercise, spiritual practice, friends and relationships, music and color (art), and deep rest are the aspects I remember to this day, 24 years after hearing her speak. What a relief to know what a small part I might play in advising someone’s health picture. My supplement program is not the key ingredient to a healthy life, just one aspect.

Having said that, I want to suggest that digestion is a key to health, one of the most important aspects of nourishing our bodies. We can eat whole foods and never contaminate our bodies with junk food, but if we don’t have a functional digestive system, we may still miss the nutrients we need. If you struggle with acid reflux or bloating and gas after eating, perhaps your digestive system needs some fine-tuning. If you suffer from arthritis, joint pain, or are developing spinal stenosis and osteoporosis, it could be that your nutrients are not doing their job in the body.

Goal of Digestion

Take whole foods and turn them into energy and nutrients to allow the body to function, grow, and repair itself. When we swallow food we have chewed in the mouth, the esophagus carries the mass to the stomach. The first potential problem is the esophageal sphincter, or trap door that opens to let the slurry of food pass into the relaxed upper stomach. If the food is well-chewed, broken down evenly, the weight will easily open the trap door and the mass will pass into the stomach, letting the sphincter close behind it.

Chew your food well to aid this process.

Problems occur when we swallow chunks of food and the sphincter explodes open to let the material pass. Gas results. Flow back of acid results. In time, the sphincter wears out and doesn’t close firmly or quickly.

In the stomach, an acid excretion further breaks down the food into the nutrients that can be absorbed by the tiny cilla in the small intestine. The stomach must be acidic to do this job or food continues down the digestive track un-dissolved and its nutrients are not absorbed.

When people feel discomfort from the escaping acidity up the esophagus into the mouth, called heart burn or acid reflux, the go-to remedy is an antacid. This might give a feeling of relief but the nutrients that need to be broken down into their absorbable components remain unavailable to our system. Antacids neutralize the acid the stomach provides to break down food.

Ideally, the stomach breaks down proteins. When this is not functioning as designed, a better intervention is to increase the stomach acid by drinking warm water and lemon juice first thing in the morning. Not coffee. And chew, chew, chew until the slurry that drops to the esophageal sphincter gently pushes the trap door open.

If there are foods that are hard for you to digest like dairy or refined carbohydrates (cookies, crackers, breads, cakes), the cruciferous foods—broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, or legumes—beans, you might need digestive enzymes to hit the stomach first thing before a meal to help break those things down. (This is where Shaklee’s EzGest comes in handy, Take one before each meal.)

Most of us do not feel the peristalsis—muscle action of the small intestine as the slurry passes on down. When functioning normally, the digestive acids in the intestines break down starches, proteins and carbohydrates. Nutrients are absorbed into the body all along this passage as they become dissolved. Certain vitamins like the 8 different B vitamins become absorbed in specific areas of the intestines whether the B’s come from foods or supplements. When not functioning normally, we feel gas and bloating moving down the intestinal track, often producing pain and even severe discomfort.

Finally, the pancreas introduces pancreatic acid to break down starches, fats and protein and the liver produces bile acid to further break down fats.

Alcohol is absorbed into the blood stream from the stomach. (Eating grapes and other high sugar content foods seems to have the same quick absorption rate for me, but I know there has to be some breakdown beyond the stomach acids. Still the same rush alcohol brings happens with these high sugar foods.)

The most common drugs prescribed by the medical profession and purchased over the counter are meant to correct mal-functions in this digestive process. They often eliminate the discomfort that occurs when the acids do not stay where they belong but they weaken natural digestion. It is possible to return your digestive system to a drug-free, comfortable state. It takes changing your eating habits. Since digestion is the key to health, you’ll be glad you did.

These supplements help:

Ez-Gest digestive enzymes

Optiflora pre- and probiotics for maintaining a healthy digestive balance Healthy bacteria

Herb Lax for constipation and blood cleansing Healthy colon

Fiber Advantage Bars, and Fiber Tablets Promote colon health and regularity

Changing your digestive process may be the key to losing weight along with the other benefits. Many of us take on the goal of getting to our healthy weight by summer time. The Shaklee 180 Turnaround is an excellent program to help you on your way. It could be that dealing with the digestive issues will make all the difference.

Remember, just losing 10 pounds will ease up on those aching joints, the arthritis in your knees, hips and feet. Could better digestion help? Didn’t we say that digestion is the key to health?

Let us know your solutions to the struggles you have with digestion.

Be well, do well and Keep Moving,

Love,

Betsy

Betsy Bell’s Health4u

206 933 1889

betsy@hihohealth.com

Alternative cures

Are you a seeker of cures? Alternative cures?

I have a friend who is a seeker of alternative cures. She has studied the back story of her blood and skin and their reaction to the environment and foods. She knows she has a bad reaction to anything with sulfur in it. A doctor had prescribed a medicine with a form of sulfur. An over-the-counter supplement someone recommended had a form of sulfur in it. Both gave her the negative reaction she feared. It turns out nature’s bounty is full of plants with sulfur. However, some forms are benign while others are active. This girl knows these things and as I read the label of a product she was interested it, we both discovered the Shaklee scientists had included a form that was not active or harmful.

Even as I open the document with the ingredients, she lets out a happy sigh, “Thats perfect. I think I’ll try some.” She is rattling everything in the kitchen as we speak. I can picture the lake with all its homes and docks out side her sweeping picture windows, a mist rising off the still water. She is probably putting away the groceries, unpacking one cloth bag after another.

My friend is beautiful, a cosmotologist with a tiny waist and perfect features. She is a mother of grown teenagers and she has taken great care to raise her children on an organic diet, helping them recognize the consequences to their health of poor eating . Her own mother raised her on Shaklee supplements. She remembers rebelling against “so many pills”. For year she didn’t take any vitamins, but her yearning for knowledge led her to seek alternative products and procedures. She has taken lots of Shaklee over the years, cycled away from “so many pills,” again and just recently came back. The search for pure products, ones made from the part of the plant that will react well in the body brings her back again and again to Shaklee.

I am so happy to have found a product line with a solid scientific foundation. Products that work every time. Products that are safe. Products that are cost effective. My task is never to argue or persuade, only to present information that is true and reliable. You decide.

If you are the sort of person who seeks to both prevent illness and to heal yourself with alternative cures, I’d love to explore the possibilities with you. Results vary and not every vitamin or herbal supplement works for every person the same way, just like in medicine. Let’s talk.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving,

Betsy

206 933 1889

From size 16 to size 6

Read Elizabeth’s Shaklee 180 Story: Learn how she went down 30 pounds and dropped from a size 16 to 6 and stayed that way.

Some of you may or may not know this about me, but I have struggled with my weight for quite some time. At the age of 14 I got up to a size 12 and I stayed there until I was 19. Then in fall of 2008 I spent 4 months in Germany as a volunteer helping out an religious order of retired sisters. Little did I know that I would come back home 20 pounds heavier than when I left. I went from a size 12 to a size 16! My clothes didn’t fit any more and I knew I didn’t want to buy all new clothes! Something needed to change and It needed to change fast.

After a year of not being able to lose the weight and after trying so many different kinds of diets, none of them seem to work. I guess you can say I gave up on trying to lose the weight all together. I found that it was easier to put on weight than it was to take it off. I had convinced myself and everyone around me that I was comfortable with who I was and how I looked. But what I really needed was to do a complete 180 with my life.

I felt very sluggish and unable to show my true potential. Everything I did took me twice as long as it should have and that was just to get the bare minimum done. I would want to sleep in late, go to bed early and nap almost daily! I had no energy to do anything and no motivation to change on my own.

My sister Bonnie was really the one who introduced me to the Shaklee 180 Turnaround program. I decided to give the program a shot. I had committed to give it my all for the full 90 days, as long as Bonnie did it with me!

As far back as I can remember, Bonnie and I would always do everything together. Whenever one of us would want to lose weight or get healthy we would make the other do it as well. It not only made it more fun but it was great to have someone keep you on track and keep you going.
Take the Challenge today, we did!!

In just 5 months of using the entire Shaklee 180 program, I ended up losing a total of 28 lbs and 19 1/2 inches! I went from a size 16 down to a 6! I don’t think I had ever been a size 6 before. Thanks to Shaklee 180 my life had been changed forever!

I haven’t even told you the best part yet…It has been 3 years and I am still a size 6! I have never had a weight loss program teach me how to keep off the weight like this one did. I love that Shaklee focuses on not only your before and after but your after-after as well! I feel better than ever and I have more energy than I ever could imagine. This is a picture of me from October, 2012. Now that I am a Shaklee specialist, I earned a free trip from Shaklee. It was a week long, all inclusive resort to the Rivera Maya in Mexico. I never felt more comfortable in my bathing suit and I am looking forward to my next year’s Shaklee Trip!

With my wedding only 8 months away, my fiancé (Brandon) and I have decided to do this challenge again! We would love to start our lives together feeling health and happy. I know personally I want to be “Tiny Tone and Tan” come my honeymoon! Besides with Shaklee’s 100% money back guarantee, we can’t go wrong.

Ok, now you are probably wondering what Shaklee 180 is and how you can get more information about it. Well don’t worry, I won’t leave you hanging. I got started with the Shaklee 180 Turnaround kit! It has everything you need to get started with your own weight loss journey. This is an amazing value! This kit includes: 2 meals, a snack, an energy drink, the BURST work out program, along with a great mobile app to help you track your progress and receive manageable rewards. Not to mention an amazing support group to help you stay on track and meet your goals. All for less than $9 a day! You will also receive a free Shaklee Lifetime membership that will give you not only 15% off all future Shaklee orders but you can also get the chance to get your entire Turnaround kit for FREE! And I used to think that a $5 foot long was a good deal!

Read Elizabeth's Shaklee 180 Story:Some of you may or may not know this about me, but I have struggled with my weight for quite some time. At the age of 14 I got up to a size 12 and I stayed there until I was 19. Then in fall of 2008 I spent 4 months in Germany as a volunteer helping out an religious order of retired sisters. Little did I know that I would come back home 20 pounds heavier than when I left. I went from a size 12 to a size 16! My clothes didn’t fit any more and I knew I didn’t want to buy all new clothes! Something needed to change and It needed to change fast.After a year of not being able to lose the weight and after trying so many different kinds of diets, none of them seem to work. I guess you can say I gave up on trying to lose the weight all together. I found that it was easier to put on weight than it was to take it off. I had convinced myself and everyone around me that I was comfortable with who I was and how I looked. But what I really needed was to do a complete 180 with my life.I felt very sluggish and unable to show my true potential. Everything I did took me twice as long as it should have and that was just to get the bare minimum done. I would want to sleep in late, go to bed early and nap almost daily! I had no energy to do anything and no motivation to change on my own.Elisabeth Heasley Before Pictures for the Shaklee 180 program!My sister Bonnie was really the one who introduced me to the Shaklee 180 Turnaround program. I decided to give the program a shot. I had committed to give it my all for the full 90 days, as long as Bonnie did it with me!As far back as I can remember, Bonnie and I would always do everything together. Whenever one of us would want to lose weight or get healthy we would make the other do it as well. It not only made it more fun but it was great to have someone keep you on track and keep you going.Take the Challenge today, we did!!In just 5 months of using the entire Shaklee 180 program, I ended up losing a total of 28 lbs and 19 1/2 inches! I went from a size 16 down to a 6! I don’t think I had ever been a size 6 before. Thanks to Shaklee 180 my life had been changed forever!I haven’t even told you the best part yet…It has been 3 years and I am still a size 6! I have never had a weight loss program teach me how to keep off the weight like this one did. I love that Shaklee focuses on not only your before and after but your after-after as well! I feel better than ever and I have more energy than I ever could imagine. This is a picture of me from October, 2012. Now that I am a Shaklee specialist, I earned a free trip from Shaklee. It was a week long, all inclusive resort to the Rivera Maya in Mexico. I never felt more comfortable in my bathing suit and I am looking forward to my next year’s Shaklee Trip!With my wedding only 8 months away, my fiancé (Brandon) and I have decided to do this challenge again! We would love to start our lives together feeling health and happy. I know personally I want to be “Tiny Tone and Tan” come my honeymoon! Besides with Shaklee’s 100% money back guarantee, we can’t go wrong.Ok, now you are probably wondering what Shaklee 180 is and how you can get more information about it. Well don’t worry, I won’t leave you hanging. I got started with the Shaklee 180 Turnaround kit! It has everything you need to get started with your own weight loss journey. This is an amazing value! This kit includes: 2 meals, a snack, an energy drink, the BURST work out program, along with a great mobile app to help you track your progress and receive manageable rewards. Not to mention an amazing support group to help you stay on track and meet your goals. All for less than $9 a day! You will also receive a free Shaklee Lifetime membership that will give you not only 15% off all future Shaklee orders but you can also get the chance to get your entire Turnaround kit for FREE! And I used to think that a $5 foot long was a good deal!

To get yourself started with a 180 Turnaround, go to my shopping web site. It’s my personal Shaklee web page for all the Shaklee products.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving!

Betsy

206 933 1889

Gifts for arthritis

Gentle Reader,

Who do you know who suffers from sore, painful knees, hips, fingers or shoulders? You love this person who has arthritis and you are going to go shopping to buy them something for Christmas. Why not combine a cozy lap blanket with an herbal pain reliever and a deep-tissue cream that could bring comfort as well as warmth?

I’m not a shopper so I was stunned Wed. night when a friend and I went to a movie in Seattle’s endless mall area with a big AMC. We were thinking the parking would be easier. Whoa! People are out shopping already—in droves and into the night. In this blog, I’m inviting you to shop. ‘Tis the season, right?

You might appreciate choosing gifts that bring better health to those you care about. This is an invitation to shop for health. Bring meaning to every purchase.

Have you watched Annie Leonard’s Story of Stuff? Take a minute to watch before piling up a mound and consider the necessity of each purchase and how it got to the store and what the received is going to do with that gift later.

I make an argument for buying a Shaklee product over something else because I believe in the company’s philosophy of living in harmony with nature in every aspect of their corporate life. In the end, stuff is stuff, and all the great suggestions I have for you about things you can add to a Shaklee product to make a sweet, health enhancing gift still accumulates stuff. It is tricky being a fierce environmentalist and a sales person of goods I love and buy myself.

So, having suggested you buy nothing this Christmas here goes my suggestions for what to buy for someone who has been complaining of arthritis. After all, I know you and I are going to buy some stuff anyway.

Joint & Muscle Pain Relief Cream with a microwaveable comfort pillow.

Pain Relief Complex and Physique After Workout Recovery Drink with Peggy Cappy’s DVD “Easy Yoga for the Rest of Us” especially for arthritis. Add a yoga mat to make this gift special.

Joint Health Complex and Peggy Cappy’s CD meditation for back health. I listen to this CD nearly every night and I’m convinced her quiet words have helped heal the arthritis in my lower back. You can add an orthopedic pillow. This is the one I have used for the last 15 years and I love it.

I have a lo-o-o-ng list of healthy living gifts on my resource page www.GrandmaBetsyBell.com.

If you decide to do any of these suggestions, I’d love to hear about the results. You can shop for the Shaklee part of the gift at www.GrandmaBetsyBell.com/shop. Or you can click on the links above.

Have a great Thanksgiving, pain free and full of love.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving,

Betsy

206 933 1889

Enjoy the list. I hope you get some great ideas. Let me know if you have questions.