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Just One Thing! Health Habits for the Overwhelmed.

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February 22, 2009
	Jo Wehage : Head Operations Ego

This month we consider the long term impact of antibiotics and the benefits of giving sprouts a chance.   Suffering from wellness information overload? Each month we briefly cover one topic that will enhance your health and one topic that can threaten your health. Consider this your Cliff Notes of wellness habits.

Just One Thing – Not To Do
Antibiotic overload.

While there’s no question that antibiotics can be a life-saving and essential part of our lives it’s no secret that their over use can lead to problems. The wise among us try to limit their use to avoid the destruction of good bacteria in our guts and the potential for “super-bug” mutations, but that’s not all to consider.

What’s really shocking is that studies now show alarming risks to disease with long term antibiotic use and they’re not getting much attention.

Cancer & Antibiotics
A Finnish study analyzed the health history of over 3,000,000 individuals. It tracked their antibiotic use for a two-year period and then the incidence of cancer for the next six years following the antibiotic use. Those with no antibiotic prescriptions were the reference group and their risk of cancer was not increased. In the group having 2 to 5 prescriptions, the relative risk of cancer increased 27 percent and those having over 6 prescriptions had an increase of 37 percent. The most common sites for the cancers were endocrine glands, prostate, lung, breast, and colon. (Int J Cancer 08;123:2152-2155)

Other studies have found similar results. Scientists at the University of Washington, working with the National Cancer Institute, studied the association between antibiotics and invasive breast cancer. They discovered that women who took antibiotics for more than 500 days, or had more than 25 prescriptions, over an average period of 17 years had more than twice the risk of breast cancer compared to women who had not taken any antibiotics. Even women who had between one and 25 prescriptions over a period of 17 years have an increased risk of about one and a half times that of women who took no antibiotics. The increase occurred in all classes of antibiotics. (JAMA 04;291:827-835)

Immunity anyone?
Yikes! Perhaps we should remember that 80 percent of our immune response is directly dependent on the balance of bacterial flora in our lower intestinal tract. Any imbalance in the beneficial bacteria can lead to an overgrowth in pathogenic bacteria and impair the function of our immune system. Antibiotics destroy all bacteria, both good and bad. Knowing that antibiotics can destroy such a crucial part of our immune system, perhaps it shouldn’t come as any surprise when we learn their overuse is contributing to the development of all types of diseases, not just cancer.

I’m certainly not advocating that we abandon antibiotics but it’s time we begin to take a hard look at the long term health effects and begin to weigh the risks. And be sure to pay special attention to replenishing your gut flora with a good probiotic when antibiotics are the necessary choice.

Just One Thing – To Do
Give a sprout a chance!

Admittedly I have been unfair to the Brussels spout. Despite all that outstanding press about its ability to ward off cancer, promote healthy skin, and improve digestive health while delivering a nutritional panacea to your body…I have had a prejudice.

My brain wouldn’t allow me to get past those memories of that “smell.” Does anyone else have those “rotten egg smell” memories from childhood?  Clearly I had been cheating my body and my taste buds for far too long.

There’s a wrong way and a right way to prepare Brussels sprouts and the beautiful thing about this preparation tip is that it not only reduces any unwanted smells, but it also enhances the nutrition.

Quarters please
After your sprouts have been washed and ready to go, take the sprout, cut it in half, then half again. Cutting Burssels sprouts into quarters will not only allow the sprouts to cook faster (which will retain the most nutrients) but also eliminate the smelly compounds.

Let it sit
Cutting spouts into smaller pieces breaks down cell walls and enhances the activation of an enzyme called myrosinase that slowly converts some of the plant nutrients into their active forms. So, to get the most health benefits from a Brussels sprouts, let them sit for a minimum of 5 minutes, optimally 10, after cutting before eating or cooking.

Give me 5
For optimal results the magic window seems to be steaming your Brussels sprouts for 5 minutes. That’s enough time to soften the fibers for easy digestion, save valuable nutrients and avoid the release of hydrogen sulfide (that stinky smell) which indicates over cooking and loss of magnesium.

Brussels sprouts are at their peak flavor in the cold months, so now is the perfect time to try them. In hotter months, Brussels sprouts are less tender and will need 1 additional minute of cooking time. They are high in nutrition and low in calories (just 61 calories in a cup.)

Trader Joe’s sells individual bags of baby Brussels sprouts which I have found a convenient lunch option. (I can almost hear my parents gasping in shock.) Once prepared I just sprinkle with salt and go.

For a full list of health benefits and nutritional value visit: http://www.whfoods.org