April Newsletter 2024

During the month of March, we focused on removing toxins and incorporating safer practices and products to help keep our toxic load as low as possible. One of the ways we do this is by removing toxic emotions, like fear, anger, guilt, and resentment. Because chronic/consistent stress can have a negative impact on your overall health, we wanted to challenge you to incorporate just 5 minutes a day of meditation or deep breathing. This much needed "time-out" for our mind and bodies came in handy during our Group Liver Detox! The first 2 days may have seemed a bit rough, but hopefully your energy levels picked up after day 3! We believe that knowing WHY detoxing is important and hope you carry this with you moving forward.

 At Paradigm360 Wellness, we strive for progression, not perfection.

Movement/Challenge of the Month: Walking

Can you believe it is already April? This month you may be packing up your winter clothes and preparing your closet for a warmer weather wardrobe (try saying that 10x's fast!). You may find yourself planting your garden and seeing your vegetables thrive! We know in Texas, April is one of our favorite months to get outside and PLAY before the weather starts hitting those triple digit temperatures! This is the perfect month for our WALKING CHALLENGE!

Regular movement is essential for our bodies in more ways than one. We have talked about consistent movement and the effects of being stagnant on the fascia in our bodies. The more time we spend sitting, watching TV or even working at a desk, the more our body starts to stiffen up. We want our bodies to stay flexible as we age.

Walking also helps to keep our lymphatic system moving. Your lymphatic system differs from your cardiovascular system. It is not pumped like the blood that flows through your body from the heart.  Instead, it moves passively as muscles are compressed by contraction of surrounding muscles during movement.  Movement is so key to proper lymphatic drainage. Stagnant lymph can lead to fatigue and illness.

Also, according to the American Heart Association, walking just 30 minutes a day has an array of health benefits. The AHA lists the following health benefits:

• reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke

• manage weight, blood pressure and blood cholesterol

• prevent and control diabetes

• reduce your risk of developing some cancers

• maintain your bone density, reducing your risk of osteoporosis and fractures

• improve balance and coordination, reducing your risk of falls and other injuries

• improve our daily mood which cumulatively leads to better mental health

This month, we want to challenge you to go above and beyond and walk 50 miles with us! We created a simple tracker for you to use during the month because we want YOU to decide your pacing! Each shoe on the tracker represents one mile. You may decide to walk 2 miles daily or if your schedule prohibits you from walking daily, try 3 miles every other day. It is totally up to you! Simply print the tracker and mark off a shoe per mile walked. You can also take a screen shot of the document and edit the photo as you go! Don't forget to let us know how you are doing! Use #50miles and tag us @paradigm360wellness through your challenge! Let's GO!

*If you would like a printable Walking Challenge Tracker, message us!

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Health Events in Our Area:

April 6-- National Play Outside day

• April 7--National Walking day

• April 17- Essential Plants for Wildlife and Pollinators

• April 1 and 8--Free Yoga on the Creek

• April 13 Mental Health Fiesta Event

• April 5-8- Confluence Event/Solar Eclipse

• Click here to see San Antonio Fitness in the Park schedule

• Weekend Pearl Farmer's Markets

Recipe of the Month:

Featured Ingredient: Liver

We know what some of you may be thinking...."Eeew gross! No way! can't do it. I'm not eating that." We get it. We may have actually felt the exact same way at some point. But check out this chart from The Carnivore Code by Paul Saladino. Though we do not promote the same principles as the carnivore code, we do believe in animal products and the importance of including them in a diet.

A picture can be worth a thousand words....

Notice all of the dark black sections on the nutrients lists under beef liver? It is incredibly nutrient dense and surpasses blueberries in every single category listed (we still love blueberries and also know they have a purpose in feeding our gut flora).

If we zoom in on this chart, notice the amounts of Vitamin A Retinol (you can’t get this in plants), Vitamin D, and Vitamin k2. These vitamins work together in the body and are essential. Vitamin A is a detox vitamin, meaning it breaks things down.  Vitamin D allows cells to rebuild. And vitamin K2 is the conductor telling A and D where to go –allowing your body to utilize the minerals you consume.  Beef liver's ratio of vitamins allows your body to thrive.

Liver is also high in B vitamins. Our B vitamins need to be replenished every 72 hours. If you are a person who is highly stressed or anxious, your b vitamins deplete more rapidly. B6 is actually destroyed with high heat....which is why we have included The Pottenger RAW Liver Cocktail in our recipes for this month.

Now if all of this makes you feel a little squeamish, have no fear. We love for people to try to get as much of their nutrients from food as possible, but we understand if your pallet does not allow for this. Beef liver can come in capsule form. Contact us if this is something that you are interested in and we will set up an account on our online supplement dispensary.

 Side note: Where do you get most of your vitamin D? If you said from the sun, you are correct! Guess what? Animals get the bulk of their Vitamin D from the sun, also!   This is why it is important that our animals get sun….we want animal fats from pastured animals!

Pottenger Raw Liver Cocktail

Ingredients: 1 tsp frozen grated pastured beef raw liver, 4 ounces tomato juice, squeeze of lemon, dash of Tobasco sauce, 1 tbs whey, dash of sea salt

Directions:  Make sure to freeze liver for at least 14 days prior to consuming. Combine all ingredients and blend with an immersion blender. Drink immediately for ultimate nutrient content.

**See Research and Reviews section on Dr. Pottenger.

Research & Reviews:

In March, Stephanie and her father gave a presentation on the one of a kind work of Dr. Francis M. Pottenger Jr. (Stephanie’s great grandfather).  He was best known for his  generational study of dietary effects on cats. He wrote a series of articles and had journal entries about what he was discovering.  All of this information was combined into the book, Pottenger’s Cats.   We know that humans are not exactly the same as cats.  This study is not meant to show you exactly how or what to eat, but the depth of the study shows how one's diet affects generations to come.  This is the overlying concept that we find important and we want you to be aware of that as you read through a summary of the study.

The cats were initially quality control animals. Animals, such as cats, were sometimes used for testing the efficacy of medications created by doctors.  In the case of Dr. Pottenger’s study, the cats were used to test the potency of adrenal gland hormones that were prepared for human use. The adrenal glands produce cortisol, aldosterone, and adrenalin. These hormones help to regulate  metabolism, immune system, blood pressure, response to stress and other essential functions.  The cats would have their adrenal glands removed and the dose of the extract required to support their lives calibrated with the potency of that extract.   

Dr. Pottenger cared about the cat's preoperative health and fed them a diet that was considered to be rich in nutrients:  raw milk, cod liver oil, and scraps of COOKED meats( including organ meats in the mix).  However, he noticed deficiencies in all of his laboratory cats and was experiencing a high mortality rate in the cats post-operation.   People in the area would donate cats to the sanatorium and as the number of cats increased, the demand for cooked meat exceeded his supply.  He then placed an order for some scraps of raw meat.  With his scientific mind of wonder, he fed these raw meat scraps to a segregated group of cats and within a few months this group appeared healthier!   This observation led him to his greatest controlled experiment, the Pottenger’s Cats.

The cats were given space to move with fresh air and also space that shielded them from the elements.  They had space to use the restroom and those areas were cleaned out daily. Fresh water was provided to all of the cats in the experiment, as well as cod-liver oil for its Vitamin A and Vitamin D content.  (We highly recommend you take your cod-liver oil as well!)  Extensive charts were taken on 600 cats from birth that included  x-rays and autopsy files!   This was a generational study.

The first part of his study split the cats into two separate groups.  One group was fed the RAW meat scraps and the other group was fed the COOKED meat scraps.  The differences of health in the cats from generation to generation with this variable were huge!  Dr. Pottenger noted that the cats in the cooked meat groups suffered from all types of illness and disease such as heart problems, eyesight degeneration, thyroid issues, infections of the  kidney, liver, testes, ovaries, and bladder, arthritis, inflammation of the nervous systems, and meningitis.  He also observed differences in bone mineral density.  Bones decreased in diameter in the 2nd generation of cats and by the 3rd generation of cats, bones appeared to become more “rubbery”.  The male cats began presenting more feminine features and behaviors while the female cats presented more male features and aggressive tendencies.   Allergies became more widespread among the cooked meat generations of cats.  Reproductive organs were affected by this diet.  Females experienced more  miscarriages and there were more deaths in labor with these cats.   Males began to fail at producing active sperm.  There was a clear difference between the two groups of cats and their offspring. 

With this part of the experiment, his findings were as follows:  “Elements in raw food that activate and support growth and development in the young appear easily altered and destroyed by heat processing and oxidation.  Cooking denatures proteins, rendering them less easily digested and absorbed.”

The next phase of his study dove into the effects of RAW milk versus Pasteurized Milk.  Dr. Pottenger was a huge advocate for raw milk and all of the health benefits that it possesses.  He replicated the previous experiment, serving one group of cats the raw milk with raw meat and cod liver, and one group of cats pasteurized milk with raw meat.  His findings were very similar to the original study.  The cats served the pasteurized milk and their 

offspring suffered from reproductive issues, allergies, bone mineral deficiency, respiratory issues, etc.  

His Findings on this part of the experiment are as follows:   “Raw milk includes essential minerals, fats, proteins, hormones, enzymes, and antibodies.   Pasteurization:  physicochemical state of milk is altered.   Hormones such as thyroid, insulin, and adrenal steroids are affected as well as enzymes that affect metabolism. Minerals are less soluble and antibodies to help fight disease are affected.   Deficiency in milk may affect life long health…affecting skeletal development, immunity, and increasing degenerative problems like allergies.”

The book, Pottenger’s Cats, has so much information!  Next month, we will share his findings with “Regenerating Cats” and “Variation Cats” and how this can be applied to humans.  Stay Tuned!

Featured Product:

Have you signed up for our online supplement dispensary yet? Contact us to help you get started on saving money on supplements you may be overpaying for! Plus, the brands on our dispensary have all been third-party tested. That means the supplements are high quality and actually have 100% of the product rather than added fillers (yes, this happens!). Third-party testing ensures there's no bias. The best part is that it's FREE to set up your account.

If unsure where to start,  Cod liver Oil is a great foundation and we highly recommend it for meeting your Vitamin A, D, and Omega 3 needs.  Nature intended vitamin A and D to work together. This supplement provides Vitamin A in retinol form, making it easier for your body to absorb and use in order to  support immune function, vision, and cellular communication.  Without enough vitamin A, your vitamin D may not perform as well.    The cod liver oil presents a balanced natural source of both.  Vitamin D is important for immune function, as well as bone and muscle health.  Cod Liver oil also contains a healthy dose of Omega 3's, which will help reduce inflammation in the body and increase brain health.

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