Author: Andreas

Sunday Health Hack No. 11 – Every evening, before you go to bed, take 50mg of Zinc.

I already mentioned the importance of Zinc before in association with the prevention / treatment of COVID-19.
Zinc is a crucial element required for the chemical reactions of over 300 enzymes that aid in metabolism, digestion, nerve function and many other “body” processes.

Zinc is necessary for the proper functioning of our immune system and immune response by boosting the activity of T-cells and other natural killer cells, which help protect your body from infections.
Our body needs zinc for protein synthesis, hormone production and cell division which is essential for our growth and development from infancy to adolescence. Without zinc, we wouldn’t have a sense of taste or smell, and the health of our skin and even our eyes would be severely at stake.

Because this mineral plays various critical roles in collagen synthesis, immune function and inflammatory response, it is necessary for proper wound healing too. In fact, your skin holds a relatively high amount — about 5% — of your body’s zinc content. Which is why zinc is commonly used in hospitals as a standard treatment for burns, ulcers and other skin injuries. Or maybe you remember that your mother put some plain zinc ointment (and a huge colourful patch) on your grazed knees after your first bicycle accident as a kid :-).

The World Health Organization (WHO) assumes that at least one third of our population is affected by a severe zinc deficiency, and even more so with just mild shortcomings and the side effects have not been associated with this – yet.
Until COVID-19 came along. The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are impaired smell and taste, fever, cough, sore throat, general weakness, pain as aching limbs, runny nose, and in some cases diarrhoea. Well, these are exactly the same symptoms which may occur when being Zinc deficient.
Scientist also proved that, as zinc deficiency results in altered numbers and dysfunction of ALL immune cells, people with suboptimal zinc levels have a much higher risk for infectious diseases, like SARS or also the influenza virus etc..
The WHO also states that zinc deficiency is responsible for almost 20% of all deep respiratory infections world-wide, which additionally provides another strong link of zinc deficiency and severe progressions of COVID-19.

I mentioned above the importance of zinc for your skin health. But it’s not only your “outer” skin you can see and touch but also your “internal” skin, the tissue around your organs, muscles, glands etc.. And also your “respiratory system”, from the nose to the lungs, exists of multiple natural tissue layers, preventing the entry of all kind of pathogens, which is why again zinc deficiency can be added to the detrimental progression of COVID-19 with many patients.

Zinc is considered an essential nutrient, meaning that our body can’t produce or store it but we have to obtain it through food or supplements.
The problem with our “food” is, that even if you follow an “organic, whole-food” diet, most probably you don’t take in enough minerals in general, not only zinc. Many studies have shown that we’ve totally depleted our soil (through “modern” agriculture methods and over-fertilisation), and our “food” lost 50-70% of its vitamin and mineral content in the last decades.
So, an “organic, whole-food” diet is still highly recommended, but supporting our body and immune system with some extra zinc in supplement form is the best option to be on the safe side.

I talked about it before, and it will be an extra “Sunday Hack” somewhen later too, but our body “regenerates” and “repairs itself” primarily during our sleep. So, supporting this “nightly restoration process” with some extra zinc taken before bed is the best timing.

Fitness Hack – When your exercise you put your immune system under stress (for having it grow stronger afterwards). Minerals are crucial for supporting this recovery process. But minerals are also lost through sweat during exercise, so one needs to emphasize replacing them.
Zinc, besides boosting the immune system, also aids in muscle protein synthesis – the process by which the protein you eat becomes a building block of your muscles (growth). And don’t think “muscles” in terms of “bodybuilders” but regarding muscle preservation. Still, zinc is a crucial mineral for increasing muscle strength and performance.

Extra tip: Not all “zinc” is alike. Most probably the “zinc supplements” you get from the supermarket shelves are cheap “zinc sulphate” products. Please go to your local health store and ask for a “zinc bisglycinate” product which has a great bioavailability. There are other (much) more expensive zinc forms around like “zinc histidine” which might offer a couple of more percent bioavailability but don’t bother. Or don’t let you misguide by “complicated” again more expensive “combinations” of various zinc forms mixed together. No need, keep it simple and straight-forward.
In Germany, a good inexpensive product can be bought on Amazon from “Natural Elements” (no affiliation whatsoever!) – https://amzn.to/3K2TLWr

Sunday Hack No. 11 – take 40-50mg (most often two small tablets of 20-25mg) of zinc bisglycinate in the evening before you go to bed.

In-zinc dreams, Yours Andreas

Sunday Quote
Obviously, none of us is perfect. But let’s try to be slightly less terrible than yesterday. When you keep that up, you eventually get to wherever you want to be!

Sunday Music
One for the night – and some cuddles for your soul having to deal with all these continuous “demands for change” 🙂

Sunday Health Hack No. 10 – Simply put ginger in (almost) every beverage you consume.
The science hasn’t determined which “form” is best, so I use them all – fresh pressed ginger juice (from the farmers market) in my lemon water (~ one teaspoon). I always put a couple of freshly cut ginger slices (from the root) in my teas. And I use ginger powder as a “back-up” if I run out of one of the two.
And apart from the beverages I use it (the powder) as a spice, eg. for my “(non) chicken curry”, combining it with Turmeric (Sunday Health Hack No. 7) which synergetically accelerates the health benefits of each.

The known history of ginger dates back about 5.000 years. Its native home is debated but its medicinal and spiritual uses were first documented in Southeast Asia, India and China.
Like many other spices, ginger was once a costly commodity. In the colonial prime time, a pound of ginger was traded in Europe for (the price of) one cow!
Ginger is a flowering plant and belongs to the Zingiberaceae family, closely related to turmeric or cardamom. And the ginger as we know it is the rhizome, the horizontal underground plant stem, also called “creeping rootstalk”.

Ginger has a very long history of use in various forms of traditional and alternative medicine, as it is claimed to be among the healthiest spices on the planet. It’s been used as an herbal medicine to cure a variety of ailments, like treating indigestion, reducing nausea, helping to fight the flu and common cold, decreasing menstrual pain, eliminating heart disease risk factors, lowering blood pressure, promoting liver health, inhibiting oxidative stress (a form of cellular aging), to name a few of its benefits.

The unique fragrance and flavour of ginger come from its natural oils, the most important of which is gingerol. Gingerol is the main bioactive compound in ginger. It’s responsible for much of ginger’s medicinal properties, due to its powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.
This is also why it’s not such a good idea to consume lots of ginger ale or ginger beer now, as they are not only loaded with sugar but there is no gingerol in it, just the “ginger flavour”.

But besides all these above mentioned health benefits, which should be reason enough for you to incorporate ginger in your daily (beverage) routine, today I want to focus on ginger’s outstanding positive effect as a “fat-burner”.
Ginger (the gingerol) is a “vasodilator”, meaning it increases the diameter of small arteries and enhances the circulation of the blood. This leads to an (slight but crucial) increase in body temperature, called the thermogenic effect, which promotes metabolism and burns (much) more calories.
Ginger also stimulates the metabolism, which additionally increases the burn-rate of calories.
Ginger optimizes the carbohydrate digestion and insulin secretion, thus keeping the blood sugar levels in check, inhibiting the storage of fat.
Ginger reduces hunger pangs and the urge to “snack”. Meaning, keeping away “undesired” calories in the first place.
And many of the above mentioned other benefits contribute to a nice higher (fat) burn-rate too, like a strong liver working now under full steam.

Of course, whether ginger really is able to burn some extra fat depends on many other factors too, such as diet or exercise. Ginger won’t help if you callously sprinkle some on your processed supermarket pizza while binge-watching Netflix on the couch.
Nevertheless, for good reason ginger has become an important ingredient in many modern “industry fat-burning” supplements today. But please go for the “organic original”. And put some ginger powder in your gym drink too.

Tip – I buy ginger powder in a “bulk”. Most Indian shops do have (organic) ginger powder in 500gr or 1.000gr bags. Or I order it online directly from a trusted source like Azafran (in Germany).
https://bit.ly/3JyUDC2
Emphasizing once again, that I have no relation and no affiliation with this company. But people keep on asking for recommendations, and I don’t want to let them buy some any junk.

Funny sidenote: There is no scientific explanation yet but ginger not only reduces body weight in general but has also got an attractive (in the truest sense of the word) positive effect on the waist-hip ratio. Meaning, ginger doesn’t just burn fat away anywhere but particular in the “preferential zone” :-).

Extra-Hack: Many might already have heard of Green Tea as another efficient natural fat-burning “supplement”. So, if you combine the two and put some (organic) ginger slices in your cup of green tea, you “triple” the effect (1+1=3).

Maybe not Roger but certainly all Ginger, Yours  Andreas

Sunday Hack Quote
Yesterday I was smart, so I wanted to change the world.
Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.
Rumi

Sunday Hack Music
For a better imagination, this is how “Ginger” works in your body. 🙂

Sunday Health Hack No. 9 – Every morning in the bathroom, put a large spoon of Coconut oil (large spoonful because most likely the Coconut oil is solidified) into your mouth, or take a proper gulp of Sesame oil out of the bottle. Then swish it around in your mouth for 3-5min. After that, spit the oil in the toilet.

In my last Sunday Health Hack I talked about the importance of a clean nasal sinus system for your health, for fighting off viruses in particular.
The other “main entrance” for many “undesired” aerosols is the mouth cavity. So let’s take care of that as well concurrently because a healthy oral cavity offers much more benefits than just eradicating incoming viruses.

Oil pulling dates back 3,000 to 5,000 years and finds its origins again in ancient Ayurvedic medicinal texts.
Throughout the centuries, in the center of all “ancient” doctor’s attention was our “tongue”, not only in Ayurvedic but also in TCM (traditional Chinese medicine). And the father of modern Western medicine Hippocrates von Kos considered the tongue to be the most important indicator or barometer of health and disease too, and so did Hildegard von Bingen in medieval times. And there are some doctors out there today who still follow this ancient tradition.

Tongue diagnosis is based on the “outer reflects the inner” principle. External structures reflect the conditions of the internal structures and can give important indications of disharmony. And the tongue provides (the most) important clues reflecting the conditions of the internal organs.
Most organ’s prime function is to process and assimilate waste and toxins. And especially in these modern times, much more so than a hundred or a thousand years ago, we are bombarded with a multitude of environmental or “food” toxins on a daily basis – whether it be car emissions when walking down the street, mercury in our fish (especially tuna!), or glyphosate in our wheat and corn, etc..

In traditional Chinese medicine, the tongue is THE connection to our organs through meridians in our body, which are energy pathways. And if one of your organs doesn’t work properly or is even severely “poisoned”, it will show on your tongue first.
So now we come back to the importance of oil pulling. Oil pulling activates salivary enzymes which absorb toxins such as heavy metals or other chemical, bacterial and environmental toxins from the blood and remove them from the body (organs) – through the tongue.

But the oral cavity is generally been regarded as one of the most important gateways between the body and the environment. So, maintaining the health of this connection is critical for your overall well-being too, not just for “detoxification”.
Accordingly, oil pulling has been used in “ancient” medicine to support, address, or prevent many other health issues as well. For example, it strengthens the gums and prevents gum bleeding. It cleans your teeth and gets rid of stains. It’s very effective against “bad breath”. Or, if you do have a sore throat, oil pulling helps too. And the oil is beneficial for the lips of course, especially against cracked lips during wintertime.
In addition, when “cleaning” the tongue (by oil pulling), it increases your taste reception. Not only do you then eat less (because the “signal” function of the tongue works properly) but you also eliminate the need to add excessive sugar, salt, or spices to the food for making it more “tasty”.

So, my Sunday Health Hack for today is – Every morning in the bathroom, after you’ve done your “Neti”, put a large spoon of Coconut oil (large spoonful because most likely the coconut oil is solidified) into your mouth, or take a proper gulp of Sesame oil out of the bottle. Then swish it around in your mouth for 3-5min. After that, spit the oil (“toxic” salvia) in the toilet.
Don’t spit it into the washbasin as the oil might solidify and could clog the pipes.

You may have read or heard that you do have to do at least 20min of oil pulling to get all the toxins out. First, hardly anyone has got an extra 20min in the morning. Second, it’s again more about “consistency”. Doing it every day for a couple of minutes will be much more beneficial than doing it for 20min once in a while.
Still, eg. on the weekend, when I prepare my fresh-pressed lemon juice for the week (prep time ~15min), I put some Coconut oil into my mouth and swish it around for much longer. You can be as creative about it as you like, doing some extra (lengthier) oil pulling whenever it fits in your day / week routine. Because you certainly can’t “overdose” in oil pulling :-).

Some asked what one can do during these 3-5min while oil pulling. Well, the easiest thing to do is that you are getting dressed during that time. I myself use this extra time window for dedicated breath and “spiritual” work in the morning to prime myself for the day. But that’s a topic for a different Sunday Hack in the future.

Sesame oil is used in Ayurvedic medicine because it’s high in antioxidants, has strong anti-inflammatory properties, its powerful anti-bacterial effect is the main reason for the boost in dental / gum health, and because of its strong (skin) healing properties of wounds (which you do have in your oral cavity more often than you might think, mostly on a micro-level though).
As Sesame oil is not everyone’s favourite taste you can also use Coconut oil which offers the same health benefits as Sesame oil. Additionally, the lauric acid in coconut oil reacts with saliva, forming a soap-like substance that prevents dental cavities and helps reduce plaque build-up and gum inflammation.
I myself always switch between the two.
And by the way – studies have proven that both oils significantly reduce the count of harmful bacteria in the mouth, “outperforming” regular (chemical) industry mouthwashes by far!

Important note – Oil pulling doesn’t “replace” proper tooth brushing! Yes, it adds to your dental health, but primarily it’s about getting rid of the toxins in your body.

Extra-Hack: Speaking of taste – let me touch “Essential oils” here the first time (to which I will come back to many times in the future). Get some (organic) “Peppermint” as well as “Clove” essential oil from your local health store. Put 2-3 drops of each on a tablespoon and put it in your mouth in addition to the oil. This will not only take away any “oil taste” but will add another layer of (oral) benefits to your oil pulling.
Peppermint oil is known for its cooling and numbing elements which can effectively soothe tooth and muscle aches. Research has found that peppermint oil is exceptionally powerful for fighting oral pathogens and killing particular the kind of bacteria which lead to cavities and gum disease.
Clove oil has been used in ancient medicine against tooth pain and gum diseases. It’s great against bad breath due to its natural ability to inhibit the development of certain bacteria, fighting off other mouth and throat infections too along the way.
Sage and cinnamon oil are also on my list but I don’t want to make it too complicated. Peppermint and Clove are the two most important “extra ingredients” for a good and now even tasty oil pulling.

Pull & pray, Yours  Andreas

Sunday Hack Quote
The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life. Literally and figuratively.

Sunday Hack Music
Giving you a powerful Opus today for when getting dressed, breathe, or pray while oil pulling –