Why are you reading this blog???

If you have a real interest into becoming a healthier person, re-read my other blogs.  The entire purpose of this blog is to help you (YES, YOU) become a healthier person, to age healthily, to live your best life possible.  I’m not selling you supplements or diets; I just want you to be healthier.  I would not be giving you this information if I didn’t know that it is supported by research and evidence.  But, until you really learn what steps to take to be healthier – re-read some of the previous blogs I have written, so they are firmly in your memory bank.

Emotional/Psychological Health

Revisit the April 24th blog, https://wordpress.com/post/drmichaelmurphy.blog/322 where one of the greatest impacts to emotional/psychological health is: “From the positive focus, a loving environment is always the most positive, healing, life-changing, and enhancing force of all.  Whether it is experienced as a giver or a receiver, I attribute love to God.”

Spiritual Health

“Spiritual health has nothing to do with what our physical bodies are experiencing, so it stands alone.  Our faith (trust or belief) provides the understanding of the belief that God did die for our sins.  Today we celebrate Jesus Christ being raised from the dead.  As a Christian, I think of this every day, because I truly believe that spiritual health is the most important health of all.” https://wordpress.com/post/drmichaelmurphy.blog/317  Or try re-reading this blog: https://wordpress.com/post/drmichaelmurphy.blog/429

Physical Health

Under physical health, there are several components:

  1. Hormone Health — https://wordpress.com/post/drmichaelmurphy.blog/344 –Investigate and locate a provider that can evaluate your hormone needs, prescribe and monitor those hormone levels routinely.  They can guide you on a safe hormone replacement journey.
  2. Healthy Body — https://wordpress.com/post/drmichaelmurphy.blog/507  Exercise and monitor what you are eating or drinking.
  3. Healthy Diet – Last week’s blog was about a healthy diet for a healthy body.  Reread: https://wordpress.com/post/drmichaelmurphy.blog/557

Periodically, re-read these blogs as often as needed to continue to support yourself in your journey to a healthier you.

Kind Regards,

Dr. Mike

Healthy Diet, Healthy Body

Healthy Diet, Healthy Body

When we speak of having a healthy body, remember that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit within you.  So… we really need to take care of our body.  As the old saying goes, “Garbage in, Garbage Out”, this can be analogized by what food and drink we put into our bodies will directly reflect how well we are, free of disease, and what energy we have.

Steps to Healthy Diet

Below are some steps to a healthy diet:

  1. If possible, stay away from unhealthy processed foods – some processed foods are healthy.  
    1. The meats that are unhealthy have salt, sugar, or fat added to them, such as, hot dogs, sausages, salami, beef jerky corned beef, canned meat, & meat-based sauces.
    1. Also, frozen and microwave ready meals must be checked to see if they are loaded with excess fat, sugar, and sodium – read the labels.
    1. Microwave and ready-made popcorn adds salt and fat to your diet. 
    1. Instant noodles are carb-heavy, add lots of salt and sodium, and give little to no nutrition.
  2. Make sure to eat foods high in polyphenols.  Polyphenols are micronutrients that occur in plants.  They are included in many supplements, but they are easily available in fruits, vegetable, teas, and spices. Studies show that people who have “polyphenol-rich diets – consuming more than 650 milligrams per day – have lower death risks than those who get less than 500 milligrams per day.  This action can manage blood pressure, improve heart health, lower diabetic risk, raises immunity, and some studies show that polyphenols may block tumor growth and kill active cancer cells.  Below are food that have the highest polyphenol content per serving.
    1. Berries: elderberries have the highest amounts with 870 milligrams per half cup serving; blueberries have 535 milligrams; blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries have about 160 milligrams.
    1. Herbs and Spices: Cloves has 542 milligrams per ounce; peppermint has 427 milligrams per ounce; oregano, celery seed sage, rosemary and thyme have more than 30 milligrams for the same amount.
    1. Cocoa Powder has 516 milligrams per tablespoon.  Heating can reduce the amount of polyphenols.
    1. Nuts: Nuts add fiber protein and essential fatty acids to your diet.  Most nuts contain polyphenols.  Chestnuts are the highest with 347 milligrams per ounce (about 3 nuts); other choices are hazelnuts and pecans with 140 milligrams; and almonds with 53 milligrams for one ounce serving.
    1. Flaxseeds: Flaxseeds improve digestion and relieves constipation.  They also add 229 milligrams of polyphenols.
    1. Vegetables:  Some vegetables with the highest polyphenols are:
      1. Artichoke – small has 260 milligrams
      1. Red Onion – small has168 milligrams
      1. Fresh spinach or shallots – 40,000 milligrams per cup
    1. Olives: 113 milligrams for about five black olives; the same serving of green olives gives you 70 milligrams.
    1. Coffee and Tea: One brewed cup of coffee yields about 30 milligrams; teas such as green, black or ginger add less, but still add polyphenols

This is a lot of information about adding a healthy diet to your lifestyle, but you will find that it adds years and vitality to your life.  More about a healthy diet, next week.

Warm Regards,

Dr. Mike

References:

Processed Foods and Health

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236906635_Processing_of_meats_and_cardiovascular_risk_Time_to_focus_on_preservatives

https://www.webmd.com/diet/foods-high-in-polyphenols

The Healing Power of Nature

What you see above are pictures of nature that my wife shared with me.  The first one on the left was taken today.  The others were taken in the spring.  Seeing nature, listening to nature, and being in the nature environment refreshes our soul and our mind.  The spirit of God is in nature. There is research that clearly shows being in nature actively reduces stress in our lives.

REDUCING STRESS

We all have stress in our lives.  How we manage that stress leads to a healthy life or an unhealthy life.  Even the American Heart Association (www.heart.org) states that “spending time in nature can help relieve stress and anxiety, improve your mood, and boost feelings of happiness and wellbeing”.  Whether its forest bathing, green time, wilderness cure, or ecotherapy, your brain benefits from being in nature.  

HARMONY IN THE MIND

The time spent outside in nature helps calm the chaos in our minds.  Research on children with ADHD shows that attention span improves after spending time in nature.  Even being exposed to nature scenes helped some study participants’ brain light up (with an MRI) areas of empathy and love.

FOOD FOR THE SOUL

Being in nature helps us feel closer to God and connects with our soul.  We use all five of our senses when we are in nature – the sun shining warm on your face, hearing the song of the mockingbird, the smell of the trees, the taste of the nectar in the honeysuckle, and seeing all of God’s gift to us through nature.

During this week, take a walk in the woods, take a tour of local gardens, get outside and enjoy nature.  You will have a healthier and calmer mind, and a stronger soul for it. 

Kind Regards,

Dr. Mike

References:

https://e360.yale.edu/features/ecopsychology-how-immersion-in-nature-benefits-your-health

https://www.shondaland.com/live/body/a33252244/the-healing-powers-of-nature/&nbsp

https://www.takingcharge.csh.umn.edu/how-does-nature-impact-our-wellbeing

So, you just won the $1.34 billion lottery…

The old proverb says “Money can’t buy happiness”.  Maybe we all would like to try that, but the reality of the proverb is probably true.  Why is that? 

  1. Money doesn’t buy you good health.  It can help you buy better food and perhaps a better exercise program, but it doesn’t really improve your health unless you take action to eat healthier and exercise a healthy amount.
  2. Money doesn’t buy more time.  Money can buy better healthcare, but it doesn’t increase your healthy lifespan.  Again, change from within for a healthier lifestyle can buy you more time, all things being equal.

There are several other “things” that money can’t buy – good friends, less stress, love, self-esteem, fulfillment, knowledge, and most of all a peaceful mind.

Steps to a Healthy Body

So, my steps to good health and more time living can be done without winning the lottery and you will probably find these steps more helpful to reaching those goals.

  1. A healthy diet.  We all know that eating fruits and vegetables help our health.  One of the many things I do is to purchase fresh fruits during the summer — peaches, watermelon, golden kiwi, and more.  These are helpful to have around and ready to snack when you are feeling hungry.  Use healthy recipes to cook – less red meat, more chicken and fish are better.  If you are vegetarian, make sure you have enough protein in your diet.
  2. A healthy exercise program.  Do what you like to do best – walking, jogging, biking, weight program, yoga or Pilates classes.  Exercise at least 30 minutes three to four times per week.
  3. Healthy hormone levels.  Find a healthcare provider that is knowledgeable about hormone replacement and performs routine labwork to ensure that your levels are at the right level. 

Steps to a Healthy Mind

  1. Give your mind a rest routinely.  Use prayer time to speak with and listen to what God is saying.  Find some quiet time to reflect what is going well.  Use self-talk for positive affirmations.  Give yourself some grace.
  2. Continue to read and to learn.  Learning new things keeps your mind working and gives you more confidence in yourself.  Reading daily helps you stay up to date on current events and allows healthier interactions with the people with whom you are conversing daily.
  3. Get plenty of sleep.  This not only helps your mind, but also your body.  Sleep is a necessity that we cannot take lightly.

Steps to a Healthy Soul

  1. Talk and listen to God daily – or more often, if needed.
  2. Be kind.  Kindness helps fill you soul with good thoughts and ultimately, you begin to believe those thoughts; then, they become truth.  Acts of kindness gives your soul strength.
  3. Help someone daily.  Doing good for other human beings helps our souls grow stronger.  It doesn’t have to be a major gift; it can be as simple as providing support by listening to a friend or acquaintance and recognizing their value here on this earth.

If you take heart to these suggestions, you can feel your life enriched daily.  I wish you well this week, and please feel free to contact me.

Kind Regards,

Dr. Mike

How do I protect myself in this unhealthy world?

What is happening to our world right now?  Resurgence of COVID, declaration of World Health Organization that Monkeypox is a global emergency, increasing heart disease in the United States, cancer, and obesity are a few of these issues.  How do we fight these diseases?

Taking Action for Spiritual and Psychological Health

Some of the first steps to take toward being healthier and fighting off the diseases that are rampant in this world is to take care of yourself mentally, spiritually, and physically.  Examine how you are reacting to the world.  Do you close yourself out?  Or do you go out into the world?  Connect with nature.  Listen to the sounds – of the wind, the birds, and the rustling of the leaves.  As we reach out to our environment, we can remember and resurrect the feeling of being at peace in the world.  The relaxation that occurs when we are outside with nature helps stabilize the harmony within our bodies.  These actions are acting upon the psychological self and the spiritual self.

Physical Health

To improve our physical health, we must move our bodies, our long bones, and speed up our heart rate.  Exercise is the way to strengthen our body, either by walking, running, cycling, yoga, or any other type of healthy exercise that moves all parts of our bodies.  If you cannot go outside and exercise, exercise in your home or a gym.

To have a healthy body, we must watch what we put into it.  As the Bible states, our body is a temple for God.  Treat it as such.  We must make good choices of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, fiber, vitamins, minerals and water. Healthy fats in our regular diet are a necessity.   Drink plenty of water, not sodas or caffeine drinks, but water.

Physical Health at the cellular level

Our hormones control our bodies at the cellular level.  Ensure that you have a reputable healthcare provider who can test for your hormones and prescribe an appropriate hormone that is best for your body, not a standard set of hormones, but a regimen that is specific to your own body.  Take care of yourself and follow your provider’s advice.

On a personal level, I want to again encourage you to care for yourself, body, mind and spirit.  If you have questions, please contact me.

Warm Regards,

Dr. Mike

Dinosaurs and Genetics

With the new Jurassic sequel, Jurassic World: Dominion, arriving in the movie world, this generates a new interest in the concept of genetics and genetic engineering.   The dinosaurs in Jurassic World were genetically engineered to be only female, however, in some of the genetic splicing there was a frog that could change sex from female to male, but it involved different mechanisms and environmental factors; subsequently, they reproduced.

The facts are that there is a species of frog in West Africa that can change the sex from female to male if there are no males in their habitat. As it is said in Jurassic World, “life finds a way”. This was based upon science discovered in the 1980s.

What are genes?

It is amazing how God created the human body and genetics. Genes are made up of DNA which we all inherit from our parents.  In the center of the DNA molecule are thread-like structures call chromosomes. As the dinosaurs mutating their genes based upon their environment, so we are affected by our environment.  Genes have a lot to do with our health.

Our environmental factors

Genes are not the only influence on our health—our lifestyle and the world around us also affects our health.  These environmental factors, such as clean air, clean water, and our lifestyle choices, like smoking or exercise, also affect our health.

Your well-being is the result of your lifestyle choices.  These choice include spiritual beliefs, psychological well-being, and even including personal choices, such as:

  1. Stress, especially from work or family, can lead to heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, and other health problems.  That’s why it is so important to find healthy ways to resolve the stress; for example, either by exercise, get therapy, or reduce alcohol intake.  During the pandemic, alcohol seemed to be the drug of choice for “getting through” the isolation.
  2. Cigarette smoking is shown to cause more than 10 types of cancer, including lung, kidney, liver, colon, and breast.  It is also linked to heart disease, stroke and other diseases.
  3. Obesity is tied to several health problems, like stroke, diabetes, cancers, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea and more.

What can I do?

You may have a genetic disposition to having heart disease, diabetes, or Alzheimer’s, but you can reduce your risks by maintaining a healthy lifestyle, which includes spiritual well-being, exercise, psychological well-being, eating a healthy diet, and maintaining your hormones at healthy levels, as prescribed by your healthcare provider, to ensure you can keep that healthy lifestyle going.

 Find that inspiration within yourself to take care of yourself.  Remember to “Never give up”.  It isn’t just a meaningless phrase, it what will make the difference between a healthy you and the opposite.  If you need encouragement, please reach out to me.

Kind regards,

Dr. Mike

References:

https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/understanding/basics/

A Different Perspective on Hormone Therapy

Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) can be misinterpreted as a cure-all. HRT can be abused by charlatans in their marketing. However, this is true of almost any intervention marketed in today’s society, the good and the bad. I recently saw this news clip about a recipient of Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) and a highly reputable physician that provides care for him, which I’ve attached to this blog.

Dr. Mark A. Rosenberg is an internal medicine physician who is president of the Institute for Healthy Aging. He received his Doctor of Medicine from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. So, I feel this clip is important to have on my site of a physician who is an authority on anti-aging and proclaims the benefits that I embrace and would like for you to embrace as well.

Hopefully, this will remind you to ensure that your provider is a reputable professional that has only your well-being in mind in the products that she/he is promoting. So in review of my posts, testosterone has consumed a fair amount of the discussions. Here are some of them, if you wish to refresh your knowledge:

  1. Which Hormones?
  2. What Benefit is Testosterone on Aging?

Please feel comfortable to send me questions in the Contact Me page or comments below. I would invite participation with more discussion from those of you reading my blog. The purpose of this blog is to not just post something interesting, but instead, to share meaningful information which can be beneficial to anyone sometime in their life. I will continue to review hormone replacement because of the impact that it has on every cell in our bodies and every one of us eventually.

Warm Regards,

Dr. Mike

Hormone Balance is Everything

So what? Why do hormones even matter?  What part do they play in my everyday life?  I can tell you if some of your hormones didn’t exist you would be in a vegetative state right at this very moment.  As an example, if we didn’t have thyroid hormones, we would be an “unconscious organism” (Hertoge, pg. 18, 2010) and wouldn’t even be human.  So having hormones and having them balanced makes you healthier and able to live in this world to our maximum potential.

Every one of us have our own natural level of balance to our hormones.  From the teenage years to the thirties, forties and fifties; we begin to see a decrease in our balance of hormones.  One hormone becomes out of balance, then another, then we find ourselves with several physical and even sometimes psychological issues. It is important to start with a primary care provider that provides testing for most of the major hormones that impact our lives, so there is a clear plan to correct the deficiencies and move you toward a healthier life.

What do hormones do?

The word hormone comes from the Greek language meaning “to set in motion”.  Hormones are made in the endocrine glands, enter the blood stream and then carried to all parts of our body.  Some hormones act upon every cell in the body, such as thyroid hormones. Some only act on one or two parts of the body.  Hormones ensure proper functioning of the body’s cells.  When we have hormone deficiencies, your body’s cells cannot function as well.  Hormones are interactive, they help speed up some hormones or slow down the action of others.

So what to do?

Take action.  Reach out to your provider.  Have labwork to determine what your hormone levels are.  Listen to your provider and take the appropriate replacement hormones so that you can have balance back into your life.  Eat a healthy diet, exercise at least three to four time per week, and most importantly follow the advice of your provider in taking hormone replacement to provide the balance needed to move you back to the balance you had when you were a teenager.  Take the step.  Join me in reaching the healthy balance for a better life for yourself and your family.

Reach out to me with questions.

I’m available to read your questions and provide answers.  Take the step.  It certainly can’t hurt.  You are aging every day.  Your endocrine glands are functioning at a a lower level as you age and have a negative impact upon your life.  Take the step to have a healthy hormone balance in your life and live you life to the highest level possible. Please reach out and let me know how you are doing?  Ask me questions.  Thank you for reading and taking action.

Warm Regards,

Dr. Mike

References:

Hertoghe, T. (2002). The Hormone Solution.  Three Rivers Press.

Forgiveness – A necessary part of mental and spiritual health

Today, I was thinking about what is really important to me at this stage of my life.  Forgiveness came to mind.  How valuable that act can be and how it impacts not only your mental health, but your spiritual health as well.  I recalled a book that I had read years ago, by Ira Byrock, M.D.  —The Four Things That Matter Most.  What stood out to me was the power of saying those four things: “Please forgive me”, “I forgive you”, “Thank you”, and “I love you” – and the powerful impact this can have on your life and your relationships with others.  When you see friends that you haven’t seen in a while, remember these four things.

Actions

There may have been things you have done in your life that you regret.  All of us have done things, said things, or not said things that we regret.  Did we ask for forgiveness of those we hurt?  Have we learned to forgive ourselves for the mistakes we have made during our lives?  We must learn to forgive ourselves first, and then forgive others for any pain or hurt we have caused over the years. 

How can we do that?

One of the first steps is to read about forgiveness in the Bible.  In 2 Corinthians 2:10, Paul writes “To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also…” and in Ephesians 4:32 – “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”  The power of forgiveness of ourselves allows us to focus on doing good rather than feeling guilt, anger, or regret of our actions or statements.  By asking others for forgiveness, this frees us from guilt, worry, or other self-deprecating thoughts that hinder us from doing better.

We are human

There is a part of us that is kind, understanding, considerate, that would like to do everything with good intentions.  But that part of us is not always available, because of greed, hatefulness, jealousy, and basically being human. So if we focus on that negative part of our humanness, we defeat ourselves,  To forgive ourselves and others in order to have good spiritual health and a sound mind, we cannot carry those negative feelings with us about ourselves or others.

 Final Thoughts

Every day we choose which thoughts upon which we focus.  We can focus on the better part of our humanity or the evil side.  In Philippians 4:8, Paul reminds us – “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just , whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

Warm Regards,

Dr. Mike

A Day of Retrospection

As we look retrospectively at my blogs, we realize as we do so, our initial concern has been in the process of aging, we lose much of our abilities and ultimately, we lose our life.  Barring a major accident or event, age will eventually kill us all.  It’s a fact!!

LIVE A HEALTHY LIFE

The purpose of the blog itself has been to explore avenues in which we can enjoy life longer, possibly, increase our life span through the actions we take while we continue about our daily lives.  Living a healthy life is a broad statement. So, we’ve narrowed it down to a few methods, in which we can ensure the healthiest existence that we, as individuals, may or may not pursue directly, or engage with earnest. We may suppress our knowledge of what truly is the best way for us to live our lives.  I can’t control those things in anyone, but myself.  Yet, most of you are reasonably intelligent people, so what would prohibit you from wanting to live a longer, healthier, and happier existence?  Well, this blog engages you in those activities that you may pursue a healthy lifestyle.

PROVIDERS

There are people who have expertise in nutrition, which I will only modestly approach as far as types of diet you may want to engage in some day.  There are others whose profession are rapidly growing across America.  These are well-being healthcare providers who have the knowledge and experience to explain how the hormones, vitamins, and other nutritional supplements contribute to your health. 

I want to continue to enrich your knowledge about those things in life that if we just focus on and try to build into our lives, a little at a time.  I want to make sure that you understand as much as you possibly can about hormone replacement.  I have discussed in some depth, but still more depth is needed.  I want to continually revisit because hormone replacement therapy is one of the up-and-coming treatments being offered to aging men and women, that can be addressed through knowledgeable and well-trained providers.  Mind, body, and spirit are the keys that we must address for overall health. 

ASK YOURSELF

Ask yourself the question… do you really want to live a longer, and, a healthier and happier life while you are on this earth?  I think the answer will likely be “yes, of course, BUT…”  The “but” represents a desire or the lack of willingness to engage.  How do you overcome that?  I suggest you look in the mirror.  Do you see things changing in your life?  Look at your family and friends.  Do they seem to have vigor? Or do they tire easily and live life without joy or a meaningful future?  Do they seem to find ways to invest themselves in life itself?  Do they like to laugh and have fun?

Think about all of this during this week…. We will discuss in more depth next week.

Warm Regards,

Dr. Mike