As many of you know, it has been a busy year for Westcoast Integrative Health. We have settled into our new location on Lonsdale Avenue in North Vancouver and are now connected to an amazing compounding pharmacy run by Peter Lee. Peter brings a wealth of knowledge, with regards to integrative medicine, and I have no doubt that Balanced Health Integrative Pharmacy is going to be a staple in the lower Lonsdale area.
Along with a change in location, I have also finally decided to implement our paperless electronic medical charting software. I purchased the software 3 years ago now but have been a little nervous to start using it simply because of the change from good old paper, but the environment is worth it! So I have overcome the fear and set a deadline for going paperless by February 2015!
Finally, with the new year comes a new health challenge! This year, many of my clients that I have tortured in the past will be happy to know, I am going full GAPS. I have been encouraging the GAPS diet now for several years with very good success in some tough cases. Over that time I have certainly made a lot of bone broths and fermented veggies, but it’s time for me to structure the diet into the full GAPS protocol starting from the beginning.
I’m already on day 8 and still adjusting to the ketogenic state that this diet demands. Ketosis, which needs to be differentiated from life-threatening ketoacidosis, occurs when there is not enough sugar for our cells to use as energy. The ketones, in a fasting state are derived from fats and protein. Although bone broth is extremely dense in nutrients, if made correctly, it contains very little sugars, but is high in fats and protein, so ketosis is virtually unavoidable at the beginning of the GAPS diet.
The GAPS diet is designed to heal the gut through eliminating most sources of food for the microbiome (gut bacteria and yeast), along with providing dense sources of sulphur, in the form of glycosaminoglycans, or GAG’s for short. GAG’s are an important part of the connective tissues that hold our bodies together and along with other powerful compounds from collagen, bone broths are considered by many to be the true fountain of youth!
This link takes you to a great recipe for bone broth –
https://westcoastintegrativehealth.com/gaps-diet/
Pictures – Tofino on New Years Eve and New Years Eve Eve! Happy 2015!