Super Zeaxanthin to Support Super Vision, Day and Night

Submitted by Life Extension Foundation

The eye is a highly complex organ that detects light and converts it to electrochemical impulses in neurons. It must safely harvest, control, focus, and react to light in order to produce vision. Light enters the anterior (front) portion of the eye through the clear cornea and fluid-like aqueous humor, and is then focused by the clear lens before entering the gel-like vitreous humor. It must pass through a nerve layer of ganglions connected to photoreceptors (both rods and cones) where light signals are converted to electrical signals that are transported to the brain. Behind the photoreceptors is the retinal pigmented epithelium, which nourishes the retinal visual cells and removes waste from the constantly active photoreceptor cells. The retinal pigmented epithelium rests on a thin, connective tissue-like support structure called Bruch’s membrane (vitreous lamina), which also serves to create a blood-brain barrier for transport of nutrients, waste products, and critical oxygen. The macular region of the human retina is yellow in color due to the presence of the macular pigment, composed of two dietary xanthophylls, lutein and zeaxanthin, and another xanthophyll, meso-zeaxanthin. The latter is formed from lutein in the retina.

By absorbing blue light, carotenoids protect delicate photoreceptor cells in the retina’s macula from light damage. The density of your macular pigment (composed of lutein, zeaxanthin, and meso-zeaxanthin) is essential to proper vision. These carotenoids act as antioxidants and protect the macula from damage by photo-initiated oxidative stress. Unfortunately, this density declines naturally over time. Some aging people also lose their ability to convert lutein into meso-zeaxanthin inside their macula. Eating lots of lutein- and zeaxanthin-containing vegetables can help maintain the structural integrity of the macula. However, since meso-zeaxanthin is not part of the typical diet, it cannot be replaced except in supplement form.

This Super Zeaxanthin with Lutein, Meso-Zeaxanthin, plus Astaxanthin and C3G formula, from Life Extension, provides therapeutic doses of all three carotenoids to help protect your precious eyesight, plus an additional carotenoid, astaxanthin, to help fight eye fatigue.

Super Zeaxanthin formula now includes C3G (Cyanidin-3-glucoside), a cutting-edge berry flavonoid compound that helps to stimulate regeneration of rhodopsin. Rhodopsin is a compound in the eyes that absorbs light in the retina. As rhodopsin dramatically declines over time, it leads to a progressive loss of night vision. By helping to maintain rhodopsin, C3G helps to support night vision.

References:
1. Ophthalmology. 2008;115(2):324-333.e2.
2. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 1993;34(6):2033–2040.
3. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2008 Apr;49(4):1679-85.
4. J Med Liban. 2009 Oct-Dec;57(4):261-7.
5. Report by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce, Sept. 2001

Professional Strength Greens with Capros®

Submitted by Innate Response Formulas

Renewal Greens, by Innate Response Formulas, is a professional strength greens drink that has clinically proven benefits, boasting absolutely no fillers of any kind. It is a completely grain-free and dairy-free formulation, making it ideal for gut health protocols and detoxification. A unique feature of Renewal Greens is that it contains Capros, a superfood derived from Indian gooseberry that has proven to support cardiovascular health.

Clinically Proven Benefits
Capros (Phyllanthus emblica) is traditionally used in Ayuervedic medicine to support healthy skin because of its effective detoxifying and rejuvenating capabilities. Capros has recently been shown to inhibit the activity of collagenase, an enzyme that breaks down and degrades collagen. Capros protects the skin’s collagen, an important factor in maintaining healthy skin and protecting the skin from premature aging. It also protects against oxidative stress by serving as a powerful and broad-spectrum natural antioxidant. Capros, combined with a broad phytochemical blend helps restore pH balance to the body and provides cardiovascular support.

The Ideal Greens for Promoting Gut Health
To maximize digestive health, a greens formula should be made without grains such as corn, gluten, rice, or fillers. Gluten and similar proteins found in grains can be difficult to break down. Cereal grains tend to have proteins that are high in the amino acid “proline.” These prolamines (proline-rich proteins) are tough to digest, resulting in gut irritation.
Another sign of a good greens formula is the absence of lectins, a group of proteins commonly found in cereal grains (even those that are gluten-free), soy, and legumes. The digestibility of lectins varies greatly from person to person, but for some, certain lectins are not broken down in the normal digestive process. This leaves large, intact proteins in the gut, leading to irritation and nutrient absorption difficulties.
Dairy provokes an inflammatory response in the gut, spikes insulin levels, and has an acidifying effect on the body; therefore, it should be avoided in a greens formula.
The ideal greens formula contains digestive enzymes and probiotics to support gut health and the overall health of the digestive system.

Great Taste Without Compromise
Compliance can be difficult when it comes to changing long-standing diet and exercise preferences. If you are not getting enough vegetables and fruits in your diet, a greens drink is an excellent way to introduce vital nourishment into your daily routine. Renewal Greens is packed with over 40 different fruits, vegetables, and botanicals per serving — specifically formulated to increase daily nutrient intake. Renewal Greens has no added sugar — just the pure, wonderful taste of a variety of organic foods and herbs. It is completely free of anything synthetic or artificial, and is gluten-, lectin-, and dairy-free. Renewal Greens is also casein- and whey-free, and the probiotics included are grown from lactose-free sources. Suitable for vegans and vegetarians, Renewal Greens products are vigorously tested for herbicides, pesticides, and heavy metals to ensure a potent, pure health solution. As a part of the product development process, Renewal Greens has been compared to other greens powders in blinded tests and it always comes out on top, cementing it as the best-tasting professional-strength greens product available.

Healthy Mouth = Healthy Person

Submitted by Everyday Throat Spray

Seasonal allergies occur when your immune system overreacts to pollen from flowers, weeds, and trees, causing the body to release an inflammatory substance called histamine. The symptoms from these allergens include sneezing, nasal congestion, coughing, and irritation in the throat.

A good throat spray can help alleviate allergic irritation, with ingredients such as osha root and echinacea. Throat spray can also relieve a sore throat from a cold, remedy bad breath, and prevent periodontitis, a condition that can lead to more serious health problems such as heart disease.

A Natural Solution
Everyday Throat Spray is an all-natural, certified-organic throat spray that was designed to address everything from bad breath to a sore throat. The secret to Everyday Throat Spray is its very unique formula which was made in conjunction with a medical herbalist. For throat sprays to be effective, they need to be used on a regular basis, so we took care to create a flavor that tastes great. The following ingredients in Everyday Throat Spray address all aspects of treating infections, viruses, and inflammation to maintain good oral health.

Colloidal Silver
Colloidal silver has been known as a remarkably effective natural antibiotic for centuries. It aids in killing unwanted bacteria to help keep the mouth, gums, and throat healthy and fresh.

Osha Root
Osha has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, making it the ideal antidote for viral infections of the sinuses, throat, and upper and lower respiratory systems. It helps bring up respiratory secretions and relaxes smooth muscles, making it beneficial for coughs and asthmatic breathing difficulties.

Echinacea
Echinacea supports the immune system to reduce infections and relieve sore throats.

Ginger
Ginger helps create a feeling of warmth and well-being. It has an anti-inflammatory action and helps alleviate persistent coughs, colds and flu, and other related problems of the respiratory system.

Licorice
Licorice’s effect on respiratory problems is mainly due to the presence of glycyrrhizin in it, which acts as an expectorant and helps prevent and ease coughing. Glycyrrhizin, which is 50 times sweeter than sugar lends a subtle, sweet flavor, and acts as an anti-inflammatory and antiallergenic.

Peppermint Oil
The essence of peppermint has both cooling and warming properties, and gives a pleasant flavor to the throat spray.

New Form of Magnesium May Mitigate Memory Loss

By Teresa Bujacich, ND

Are you magnesium deficient? Only 16% of the magnesium found in whole wheat remains in refined flour, and magnesium has been removed from most drinking water supplies, setting a stage for magnesium deficiency. This is aggravated by the fact that magnesium is depleted by stress, sweating, alcohol consumption and a plethora of pharmaceutical drugs. Magnesium plays a primary role in a myriad of biochemical processes in the human body.

One critical effect of magnesium deficiency is that neuronal requirements for magnesium may not be met, causing neuronal damage, which could manifest as memory loss, depression, and more. Anxiety disorders, such as phobias and post traumatic stress disorder, are among the most common mental disorders and are associated with magnesium deficiency. Stress exposure, depending on its intensity and duration, affects cognition and learning.

A new form of magnesium (magnesium L-threonate) has been shown to be beneficial for mitigating these effects in several regions of the brain. Increasing plasticity in the prefrontal cortex and amygdale of the brain improves memory because these brain areas are also deeply involved in mediating the effects of exposure to stress on memory.

Several studies indicate that these same synaptic connections in the brain hippocampus, a critical brain region for learning and memory, decline during aging. Studies have also found low levels of magnesium in the brains of patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Magnesium L-threonate was found in animal studies to increase learning ability, working memory, and short- and long-term memory.

Many nutrients are unable to effectively cross the blood-brain barrier, making it difficult to deliver them to this critical region. The difference with this new form of magnesium is that it is chelated, or bound, to a novel molecule called L-threonate that helps the magnesium to cross through the blood-brain barrier more efficiently.

Studies suggest that using magnesium L-threonate in a maintenance dose of 2 grams daily, or 3-4 grams daily for people experiencing memory loss, may be beneficial. Trademarked as Magtein™, this exciting new form of magnesium is now available in the Designs For Health product NeuroMag™. Benefits may be further enhanced when combined with their other memory product Brain Vitale™, which contains glycerol-phosphocholine (GPC), acetyl L-carnitine, phophatidyl-serine (PS), inositol, and ginkgo extract.

References
1. J Neurosci. 2011 Oct 19;31(42):14871-81.
2. Neuron. 2010 Jan 28;65(2):143-4.
3. Neuron. 2010 Jan 28;65(2):165-77.
4. Neural Plast. 2007;2007:30873. Epub 2007 Jan 16.