A New Healthy and Sustainable Plant Based Omega 3 Oil?

Feb 08, 2024

Could Ahiflower Replace Fish and Flax?

By Dr. Sean M. Wells, PT, DPT, OCS, ATC/L, CSCS, CNPT, Cert-DN

In the realm of nutritional supplements, Ahiflower oil has been gaining recognition for its impressive profile of health-promoting properties. Extracted from the seeds of the Buglossoides arvensis plant, Ahiflower oil is rapidly becoming a popular choice for those seeking an omega-rich alternative to traditional fish oil. Some people are making the claim that Ahiflower could replace fish-based Omega 3s but the plant is still new to the scene. A recent PubMed article outlines some of these factors, but let's briefly dive into the potential health benefits that may make Ahiflower oil a noteworthy addition to your wellness routine.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids Reinvented

Ahiflower oil distinguishes itself by its omega-3 fatty acid content, particularly boasting a unique combination of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), stearidonic acid (SDA), and gamma-linolenic acid (GLA). This trifecta of fatty...

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Intermittent Fasting and PT

May 26, 2021

Fasting, or intentional restriction of food intake, has been around for thousand of years. Much of the roots of fasting comes from religious or spiritual ceremonies; today, fasting is often done for the aspects of improving health and longevity, with some still continuing the religious or spiritual purpose. The data on fasting is robust and doctors of physical therapy (DPTs) need to be aware of the benefits, risks, and the how-to of fasting. Let's get started!

Many various forms of fasting exists. Strict or pure fasting includes the abstinence of food altogether. Time restricted fasting or feeding is where a person restricts feeding to a certain number of daytime hours and uses sleep to help create a partial fast. In other words, a person may eat only from 11am to 7pm, while fasting from 7pm to 11am. Some might consider this a form of intermittent fasting, but the true definition of intermittent fasting is where person will consume food ad libitum one day while restricting food...

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The Expanding Scope of Nutrition

May 17, 2021

By Dr. Sean M Wells, DPT, PT, OCS, ATC/L, CSCS, NSCA-CPT, CNPT, Cert-DN

The field of nutrition science continually expands. Once seen through only a metabolic and nutrient lens, nutrition science now interconnects with immunology, neurology, and psychology. How these fields of study interact are becoming amazingly complex but may help to shed light into various therapies and prevention for many common chronic conditions. How these various areas of clinical practice interact with nutrition makes it apparent that the practicing physical therapist needs to be aware of how foods interact with human physiology and biochemistry. 

Immunonutrition

Nutrition certainly impacts immunology. From colds to rheumatic flares, diet can certainly mediate certain physiological processes that can drive or promote disease states. Nutrients play a vital role in disease prevention. Water helps to hydrate our eyes and mouth to prevent infections. Vitamin C helps to boost white blood cell count, which...

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Geriatric Physical Therapy and Nutrition

Sep 30, 2020

By Dr. Sean M. Wells

Many facets of nutrition can impact older adults' function and health. The focus on this blog article will be to highlight how inflammation, which can be mediated via diet, impacts older adult function and health. 

Using the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII), physical therapists can quantify the amount of inflammation a client's diet is provoking. Essentially the score ranges from as low as -5 to as high as 5, with a "fast food diet being reported at 4 and a macrobiotic diet being listed at -5. Probably the best diets on the DII are vegetarian Indian diets and other Asian diets rich in vegetables and spices. Another way of "scoring" or ranking the inflammation cause by a diet is to use an A-F system. An "A" score would be ideal and the most negative (e.g. close to -5, which is the least inflammatory), while "F" is the most inflammatory (e.g. most positive, 5). An average, or "C" score, would be a 0. 

 Using the DII, PTs can see how diet...

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Physical Therapy and Alcohol: A Good Mix?

Aug 20, 2020

By: Dr. Sean M. Wells, DPT, PT, OCS, ATC/L, CSCS, CNPT, NSCA-CPT, Cert DN

Many people kickback and enjoy a cold beer or nice glass of wine with a meal or just to relax. But does alcohol consumption pose a risk to our health and physical therapy patients? The answer can be difficult to find amongst the literature, especially due to industry influence. Let's take a look at the guidelines, some upcoming revisions to alcohol intake recommendations, and what all this means to PTs and physical therapy outcomes.

Old Guidelines

Alcohol intake guidance varies depending on where you live. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Dietary Guidelines demonstrates that females should consume no more than 1 drink per day, while males can have 2 drinks per day. Most of this guidance is rooted in the fact that males usually have larger mass, and therefore, can physiologically "handle" more booze. Obviously all drinks are not created equal, so if  a person...

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Turmeric or Curcumin?

Sep 18, 2018

Which is better and what is turmeric and curcumin?

Turmeric is root much like ginger. I can be ground up and used as delicious spice. It is often used in Indian dishes and has been linked to a reduction in inflammation, diseases, and possibly improved longevity. What's the potential activity compound in turmeric? Curcumin.

Curcumin is refined and processed from tumeric. One gram of turmeric may only contain 0.02 grams of tumeric! That's not much. Some studies highlight the benefits of using supplemented tumeric, such as improvement in arthritis, inflammatory bowel diseases, and rheumatoid conditions; however, other studies still highlight the perk of turmeric root. Other compounds in the turmeric may be responsible.

It may be best to stick with the whole root of turmeric, even though studies are highlighting the benefits of curcumin. For one, turmeric is cheaper than curcumin. Second, turmeric is processed in order to get turmeric, so other compounds that may be beneficial are...

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Arthritis: Exercise and Food for Your Joints

Sep 11, 2018

More than 80% of older adults over the age of 65 have some form of osteoarthritis, also more commonly known as arthritis. In fact,  arthritis has more than doubled in the last 50 years! How did we get to this point? Is it just a matter of better Imaging or are we actually seeing a change within our bony structures? More importantly what can we do to prevent the continual growth of osteoarthritis within our population?

The answer lies within several studies that were published recently. Epidemiologists and researchers going back and measuring our skeletons of our ancestors have shown that physical exercise and activity have been a integral part of our lifestyle and bodies. With modern technology and changes to our lifestyle we have become less agrarian and less active. As a consequence our bones and bodies have changed. We have gained a little bit more weight, or joints have not gotten used to not being used, and we suffer from other ailments related to changes within our diet....

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