Something I have been super into since the new year is bone broth. I'm not quite sure what it is that I've been missing in my diet, but after eating it I feel energized, my appetite is properly managed, my teeth are whiter and gums are pinker, and the skin on my face is glowing. 

Bone marrow is a good source of vitamin K2, which I have been reading about in Weston A Price's book "Nutrition and Neurodegeneration" (A huuuge book review and summary coming soon, this thing is a monster to read!). vitamin K2 is typically found in dairy, and since I cannot have dairy, I must find other sources. It is especially important in calcium regulation, and necessary to supplement in conjunction with vitamin A and D. It turns out that popping vitamin D supplements on their own can be dangerous and cause calcium to be deposited on the arteries! This is because while vitamin D helps with calcium absorption, there is another pathway that directs the body on where to put it (Vitamins A and K2). I can expand on these topics later, but lets get to the recipe. 

Here is a simple recipe for bone broth, I don’t have exact amounts, you can use as little or as much as you like of the condiments.
 
Main ingredient
1-2 pounds of Grass Fed beef bones
(Optional)1-2 pounds of meat on the bone such as short rib (if you would prefer a stew instead of a broth)
 
Condiments
1 onion-cut into large chunks
Carrots-cut into large pieces
1 bunch Celery or Fennel (fennel is more aromatic)
(Optional) cubed sweet potato
 
Spices
1 head of garlic whole pieces,
Salt
A few branches of Rosemary
(Optional) turmeric, ginger, green onion, cinnamon, thyme, cilantro, parsley. You can ask your acupuncturist what herbs to add to your bone broth. 
 
Put the bones in the slow cooker first. Do not put more than 2 pounds total of meat/bones because the slow cooker is small.
Add enough water to cover the bones 2”
Add the spices
Now add the condiments until the slow cooker is full (within 1 inch of the top)
If there is not enough water, add more water.
Cook on low setting for 24-48 hours. If you are worried about the food not being hot enough, you can cook on high overnight, and then turn on low the rest of the time. Make sure the lid is on the slow cooker.

****Alternatively you can pressure cook for 1.5 to 2 hours! 

For your first time cooking, I would recommend trying different timepoints to see what cooking time you prefer to eat. It is also fun to taste the change in the broth over time. Keep in mind that the collagen doesn’t gelatinize until at least 24 hours, and that is really good for your skin and hair and nails.  J
 
You can start a new batch overnight. In the morning, roughly 8-12 hours later scoop out some broth and drink it for breakfast! You can have more at 24, 36, 48 hours.
 
The broth will have a thick layer of oil at the top, from the bone marrow. If you cool it down, you can scoop it off and use it as lard or just dilute the broth with more water so the oiliness is at a comfortable level. This is where a lot of the fat soluble vitamins are so don’t be afraid to eat it. It also keeps most of the flavor from the herbs. Broth without this layer tastes pretty dull.
 
You can store the broth in the fridge or in the freezer. Enjoy!!


Below is the pressure cooker that we bought from Amazon:


https://www.amazon.com/Instant-Pot-Muti-Use-Programmable-Pressure/dp/B01MFEBQH1/ref=sr_1_3?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1519962482&sr=1-3&keywords=pressure+cooker

My cousin requested a quick recommendation of books and vitamins that I take every day. Thought I would post what I had written to her. Enjoy! 

3. Good Calories, Bad Calories (This book is a monster, but not a single wasted word; 20-30 hour commitment)

This book is a beast but worth reading. Its an investigative expose that got so big that it turned into a book, this author has gone on to write 2 more books about health after this, I've read all of them, but this is the best one. He wrote a shorter version of this book without all of the intense scientific references called "Why we get fat and what to do about it" (a 10 hour read instead of a 20 hour read). If you feel like you can't read all of "Good Calories, Bad Calories" you can get that one instead. But I have read both and prefer the larger one because I like all of the information. 

Thyroid Test

Every woman should get their thyroid tested. And make sure you get a full panel. A lot of doctors will only test TSH and T3 levels, but it is important to get a full panel, since people that have the inflammatory disorder, Hashimotos Disease (This is what I have), can have inflammation for up to 10 years before they actually start having thyroid dysfunction. It is good to know if you have inflammation so that you can take steps to reducing your inflammation such as starting an autoimmune diet, reducing your exposure to mercury, etc. I have high TPO levels and high TSH when I am under stress and at the peak of my work related chronic injuries (increased inflammation in my body). 

Make sure you get these things tested: 

TSH
Free T3
TPO Ab
Free T4

Read Part 1 here

A Facebook targeted article is what changed my life and sent me down the rabbit hole. I follow a science news network on Facebook and I was searching so much on google about ways to control my acne, that a Facebook targeted article about the effects of intermittent fasting controlling insulin spikes. I had read that irregular insulin regulation could also be a factor in acne, and I had never heard about intermittent fasting and was intrigued. 

Thus began my trip down the rabbit hole into the alternative health world that is intermittent fasting, ketogenic dieting, and paleo. Not only could I maybe control my acne, but also lose those 10 pounds that had creeped up over the last year, reduce my risk for developing cancer, and all the countless benefits of intermittent fasting. For once I felt hopeful that I could heal and be myself again. 

I had no idea how much I underestimated the benefits of changing my lifestyle. I could go into detail of my exact discovery process, but it’s pretty circular in the beginning. I spent countless hours reading books, blog posts, and listening to podcasts. 

The first book that I read was The Obesity Code, by Jason Fung. An incredible book written by a Canadian kidney doctor, with plenty of scientific references to back his theories, not to mention that actual success that he has personally had in his own clinic, reversing type II diabetes mellitus in many of his own patients. I will write a book summary and review soon, but this is a good place to start if you’re looking for a non intimidating way to begin to delve into the vast amount of information that is out there. The book took me about 4 hours to read. 

A huge influence and a great source of authors, books, and people to follow came from Dave Asprey and his BulletProof podcast. I think I listened to close to 100 episodes in the first few weeks because I just couldn’t get enough information. He is well learned for having no background in biology and has some really stellar interviews, which I can link to in the future. 

My next step in self discovery was to take an at home food sensitivity test. These tests differ from your traditional allergy tests because traditional tests look at IgA blood reactions, which are the more acute allergic reactions. They are responsible for anaphylaxis, hives, swelling, and redness people get within minutes or even seconds of eating an allergenic food. The IgG pathway is what is tested in the IgG sensitivity test. This pathway is more related to chronic inflammation, and also happens to be the same inflammatory autoimmune pathway that drives Hashimoto’s (SURPRISE!). IgG takes about 1-3 days after exposure to be in full effect and can be displayed in symptoms of brain fog, anxiety, joint pain, and in my case, cystic acne. 

 I suspected that my dairy sensitivity went beyond lactose intolerance. The typical bloating, cramping I would get after eating cheese and cream seemed to severe to just be an inability to digest lactose. I reached a point where I was only eating cheese sometimes on the weekends. Like clockwork, by Monday or Tuesday the following week I would have 3-4 new and painful cystic pimples. But sometimes it happened when I didn’t eat dairy. Because I don’t drink often during the week, I was able to pin it down to only days that I had a lot of beer, especially unfiltered beer. Trying to figure out my sensitivities by trail and error was driving me nuts, so I finally decided to just pay for the allergy test. 

I will post a more detailed review of the allergy test in a future post, but the one I used was from an online web site that sent you the kit in the mail after purchase. They work with CLIA certified labs within the US to provide their clinically validated test results, which are then analyzed by a doctor before the results are returned to you. The best part about this was that I was able to collect blood from the comfort of my own home, send the kit in the  mail, and I got results back within 5 business days. I had to prick my finger with a lancet and provide 4 very large droplets of blood onto some whatman filter paper, wait for it to dry, then put into a biohazard ziplock bag. 

In short, the allergy test confirm exactly what I had suspected: I was allergic to all types of milk protein, and any derivation of any type of milk protein including yogurt, cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, but especially cow’s milk. 

I was also able to confirm that beer was indeed the other cause of my acne, specifically barley, and more so: malted barley. No more beer for me.  :( 
​
There were a few other unexpected sensitivities, including foods that I eat every day such as eggs and almonds. I’m not so sure if they are actual sensitivities or just a result of leaky gut from eating dairy and drinking alcohol. I plan to retry this test after a few months when my system has had some time to settle. ​

Stay tuned for Part 3 of my journey, where I discuss how I found out that I have Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis! 

So how did it all start for me? I just thought I should share why I care and wrote this blog. When I was doing my research it was so enlightening to find other authors personal stories, which fueled their initial passion to getting to the root cause of their problems, and by proxy helping others in the process. I hope my story can provide some unforeseen insight to you. 


I’m a preclinical scientist at a major pharmaceutical company in California, so I’m naturally pre inclined to have a curious and skeptical mind. 
Looking back, I can see now that it must have started when I got carpal tunnel. My work in a fast paced intense start up biotech company caused me to have not one, but two work induced injuries. I had bilateral carpal tunnel and a neck sprain for about 2.5 years. Thankfully, I never reached a point where I needed surgery, but it’s pretty obvious now that that level of constant chronic inflammation, not to mention stress, and emotional despair at being 26 and almost too injured to work, is what was the catalyst for my future issues. 


Then came the food intolerances. All of a sudden after eating what was seemingly normal food, I was getting severe discomfort and bloating. So severe, that a few hours after eating a “healthy” breakfast omelette, I could no longer fit into a dress I was planning to wear at a friends wedding! 


I was finally able to narrow it down to dairy foods, specifically heavy cream and cheese, that seemed to be the culprit for my discomfort. The bizarre thing was, I always had upper gastro intestinal symptoms. Never had the typical diarrhea that was normal of lactose intolerance and inability to digest milk sugars. I spent the year experimenting with foods to see if there were any that I could tolerate, but had a hard time figuring out what prompted the symptoms. Surprisingly, milk and yogurt seemed to be the least provoking, but were also the ones with the most lactose. 


The other odd thing about my symptoms was the acne. I had reduced my exposure to milk products to be mostly on the weekends, when I would find myself in front of cheese platters at parties, or other situations where I didn’t want to be THAT annoying person with the food sensitivity, and just ate the food that was in front of me. 


Without fail, 2-3 days after eating dairy, I would get the most awful cystic acne pimples on my chin and cheeks. They felt enormous, were so painful, and became red and left scars from inflammation even if I never popped them. It is 6 months later and I still see the same pimple I had on my cheek that was caused by last Christmas dinner. 


Back to my story of 2 years ago: I let myself take a break over one Thanksgiving, and had a piece of my cousin’s infamous hash brown casserole. It contained sour cream, cheese, condensed milk, but I thought if I only had a small piece it might be okay. 


It was not ok. 


I woke up in the middle of the night in the most pain I have ever been in my life. I was pale, sweaty, and in so much pain I could barely breathe. The only reason I didn’t take myself to the emergency room was because trusty web MD informed me that my appendix is actually located on the other side, so it was not appendicitis, but I was clearly dying of some other rare disease or type of cancer. 


I woke up the next morning feeling fine, but worried, and booked an appointment with my primary care doctor. 


She listened to my ailments for about 30 seconds before cutting me off to condescendingly explain that it was clear that I was lactose intolerant, and all I needed were some probiotics and yogurt. 


As if it hadn't occurred to me that I was lactose intolerant. But hey, she’s the doctor, so maybe there was something that she knew that I didn’t. 


This was my first visit with this doctor, having been put onto a new insurance plan because I changed pharmaceutical companies where I worked. So, I also brought up that I had been wanting a genetic test to assess my risk for breast cancer. 


She declared that despite my background in pharmaceuticals and biology, I wouldn’t be able to comprehend the difference between a pathogenic and non pathogenic risk factor, and that the risk to my emotional health upon finding out I was predisposed to having breast cancer was greater than my actual risk to getting breast cancer.  And that since only my mom had breast cancer (despite having no other sisters), the risk CLEARLY wasn’t genetic. Because I’m sure this doctor had more than a few hours of genetics taught to her in medical school. 
Needless to say, I left this appointment utterly livid and vowed to never go back to this doctor. I didn’t see a single doctor for the next year. 


But being the scientist that I am, I decided to give these probiotics a try. I couldn’t rule out this new information that I had been told despite the fact that I was pretty sure that this doctor was full of shit. Pun intended. 


Long story short, the probiotics didn’t work. Taking Lactaid didn’t work. Taking seven Lactaids didn’t work. Eating things with lower lactose content didn’t work, and seemed to make my reactions even worse than before. 


So here I am back where I started, getting weekly pimples at 28. It was making me very depressed especially since  I had never had cystic acne as a teenager and had never had to deal with a consistent skin care regimen. I began spending exorbitant amounts of money on new products, not to mention the chemicals I was covering my face with 2-3x per day. This was not sustainable and I was reaching my maximum limit. 

​
I feel a little vain focusing so much on the acne. But you see, it’s like my canary in the coal mine. It’s my primary readout for my underlying inflammation and whether I am on track in my anti-inflammatory lifestyle. I’m young, I go out, I drink, I get sleep deprived from time to time. And now I am able to use such symptoms as acne and leg cramps to signal to me that I have been straying too much from the protocol. ​

Continue to Part 2