HOLISTIC HEALTH NOTEBOOK

Those of you who read this column regularly know that when I return from a nutrition conference, I am all fired up. Today is no exception. I just got back from the annual continuing education weekend that generally spurs this level of excitement. So I am going to share some of the information I gleaned from leading experts from around the country. You may get fired up, too.

One of the experts was Russell Blaylock. He wrote "Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills," which chronicles the damage inflicted on brain cells by aspartame and MSG. His presentation was entitled "Role of Glutamate Receptors in Cerebral Trauma and Concomitant Problems." That title may put you to sleep and in fact, I nearly dozed off a couple times because he doesn't wax eloquent and he talks about stuff that is way over my head, stuff that I would have learned if I had sat in one of his lectures at medical school.

He described glutamate transports, circumventricular organs, CN immnoexcitotoxivity, AMPA receptor function and… Well, you can see what I mean.

But I woke up when he started talking about microglial activation and cellular energy because this is where, according to his research, we all run into trouble in our senior years. Microglial cells are part of the scaffolding upon which the central nervous system is built. When these cells are activated by neurotoxins or damaged by injury (stroke, for example), the structure of the brain is damaged, leading to significant dendritic damage and neuronal death. When brain cells cannot produce enough cellular energy, they die.

He listed several things that cause the microglial cells to start unraveling: low mitochrondrial energy (low cellular energy), low magnesium levels, systemic immune system activation (this is what hits so many of us all the time), mercury, histamine excess (seasonal allergies that increase histamine production?), aluminum, lead, or other heavy metals, and pesticides or herbicides.

I will continue with this discussion next week because there is so much here to think about. While I was listening to his presentation, my brain felt like it was fizzing and I imagined microglial cells contorting, crying out, and dying. Why was that happening? I had enjoyed a morning cup of coffee, which renders me helpless in cognitive tasks. My brain literally cannot think on coffee, but now I think I know why. Those microglial cells…

— Carol does lifestyle and nutrition coaching at the office of Dr. Alan Gruning in Fort Myers. For more information or to set an appointment, call (239) 939-3303.