January 07, 2021
When the coronavirus COVID-19 variant emerged in the United Kingdom during the month of December 2020, the possibility that similar COVID mutations may exist elsewhere caused a good amount of global alarm as we questioned whether the newly launched phased allocation of the COVID-19 vaccines would even be effective. The immediate US ‘experts’ response to this concern was that the COVID-19 vaccines “being rolled out will likely still work on COVID-19 variants”.
There is simply no possible way for anyone to know this yet. For those of you who know me, what I have shared from the onset of this pandemic with COVID-19, is that mutation is essential for viral longevity and reproduction and is a rule, not an exception. Hence, I have proposed that a COVID-19 vaccine may be less effective than expected, desired, and needed to protect us from SARS-CoV-2 infection. Mutation and variants are so common in the evolutionary history of viruses and viral infection, that scientists use viral mutation as the virus moves through a population, to track the spread of a virus from one place to another. In fact this known fact in the science of viruses is utilized to create the Influenza Vaccine each year.
Mutation creates viral variants and allows/enables the virus to outsmart the host from resisting infection. But if a virus mutates significantly enough, one worry is that current vaccines might no longer offer as much protection.
"My expectation is, this will not be a problem," said Moncef Slaoui, the chief science adviser for the U.S. government's COVID-19 vaccine push.
In my opinion, Ariane Cometa, MD, the mRNA vaccine is too new, both as we pioneer them in humans for the first time in an attempt to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection and in their very recent history of use for five months, since July 27, 2020, when we commenced the phase 3 clinical trials for both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccine. The vaccines have simply not been tested long enough in humans, to make the above statement or others purporting the efficacy of the current mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, as the virus mutates. Anything currently supporting efficacy of the vaccine to withstand the natural viral mutation process, is based upon 'evidence' demonstrated in a test-tube (in vitro).
The COVID-19 variants of concern are worrisome, because COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are created against the very SPIKE PROTEIN demonstrated to have the COVID-19 mutation (enabling the virus to potentially be more virulent (stronger) and potentially escape the current vaccination protocol.
Some more medical expert jargon:
Viruses constantly change through mutations that arise naturally as they replicate and circulate in their hosts. As a result of this ongoing process, many thousands of mutations and distinct lineages have already arisen in the SARS-CoV-2 genome since the virus emerged in late 2019. Scientists are heavily focused on mutations that involve genes which encodes the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein; as in that altered in the U.K. variant. The Spike protein is what we have targeted with the mRNA vaccines, as it is this spike protein that allows viral entry into cells. Our immunity to SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccine efficacy hinges on the ability for the current vaccines to thwart viral entry into our cells.
Let’s just face it…we know this...
Why do we change the Influenza vaccine annually? It mutates.
QUESTION:
Where has the spotlight moved onto regarding COVID-19 potential for mutation?
ANSWER:
Onto the COVID-19 vaccine
Is there a conflict of interest which exists between COVID-19 vaccination campaign AND informing the public that the COVID-19 mutations and variants being produced could interfere with vaccine efficacy?
If we know that mutation and variants are so common in the evolutionary history of viruses and we use this knowledge to track viruses from one place to another, why are we creating a "holy grail campaign" around the current COVID-19 vaccine push?
These are my questions, not my criticism of the mRNA COVID vaccines being distributed.
WHAT SCIENCE IS SAYING:
Pfizer and Moderna are tracking the variants and “if they detect that a piece of the virus is no longer susceptible to their vaccines, they can tweak them in a matter of months…
"What you can do is you can change the RNA of the vaccine to match the new mutation, and then make antibodies to the mutation as well, so they can do that. We do that with the flu vaccine every year."
QUESTION:
1) long term safety of the vaccine
2) how long vaccine protection lasts
3) conclusively establishing whether the vaccine prevents people getting infected with SARS-CoV-2, or whether it simply protects infected people from getting the disease
Finally, if we lose long-term follow up in these vaccination trials that were supposed to continue for 2 years,
how will we ever know if someone who received the COVID-19 vaccine, can still become infected and spread the virus, but not be sick? How will we know? We can't test them for COVID-19 any longer after vaccination AND they will already have antibodies that neutralize SARS-CoV-2 from the vaccine.
The Vaccination Dilemma
This competition between a clinical trial for vaccine efficacy and safety as well as long-term value and it's emergency use is new for us in vaccine development because of the following:
The speed of these authorizations reflects the urgency of the pandemic, and is a testament to the scientific advances that made rapid vaccine development possible, said immunologist James Hildreth, president of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, at the panel meeting on Thursday. “To go from having a sequence of a virus in January to having two vaccines available in December is a remarkable achievement.” and is being fondly called the Vaccination Dilemma.
Many have asked me to share with them what I recommend with the vaccination options being offered at this time.
My role as both a physician and a scientist is to remain well informed and current in the field of Medicine. It gives me great pleasure to present my research and knowledge. You all know I am highly opinionated and yet I feel strongly, it is important for me to reserve my opinions and recommendations when possible, and instead provide information and insight to those interested. I hope in this small way, I am able to facilitate the ability for people to make their own educated decisions.
Viruses are smarter than we humans and as evolution would have it, they are much older too! To hold up our immune fortress against viruses, I recommend a constant surveillance program that upholds our fortitude and strength against infection and disease.
As patients, family and friends can all attest to and quote me repetitively stating,
"we need to be more tenacious than the virus" if we are going to outsmart it!"
Elderberry, Vitamin D, Zinc, Vitamin C are all backbones to our immune support and strength.
In addition, one of my favorite immuno-regulating herbal preparations to protect us from viral infection is T-Cell Balance Px. This wonderful natural formula combines a unique assortment of natural compounds created to stabilize the immune system and support healthy liver function. T-Cell Balance Px:
As always, I welcome and really appreciate your Comments on the blog. Please stay-tuned, as I have more blogs to follow soon:
TOPICS:
To our Global Health and Well-Being in 2021!
Ariane Cometa
your holistic doc
January 07, 2021
FACT vs. FICTION:
We are humbled each and every day that the coronavirus continues to mutate and ravage the health and safety of our planet. While we face the daily impact SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) has on our global well-being, I hope to provide the reader with insight into both the science and the myth surrounding COVID-19, while they make long term health decisions for themselves and loved ones.
As per our national reporting, the first outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) demonstrated itself with severe acute respiratory syndrome - coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, in late 2019. The subsequent COVID-19 infection spread and became pandemic; affecting our global health and economy. In an attempt to reduce the spread of this deadly virus in the spring of 2020, we began to isolate ourselves from each other through social distancing and to wear masks in efforts to avoid spreading the contagion. Then what?
Let’s start with the vaccine. Many have questions about the vaccine. Historically, the vaccination process has artificially introduced an antigen into the body. An antigen is generally an infectious agent or pathogen – such as bacteria or viruses - which has been inactivated by heat or chemical treatment so as not to cause the disease. Exposing the body to antigens leads to the production of molecules specifically directed against them, called antibodies. Antibodies create a memory of a specific pathogen (“acquired immunity”) and they enable a more rapid and efficient response to a real infection with an active pathogen, when and if it happens. Hence, vaccines work by mimicking the infectious agent, i.e. pathogen and training our immune system to respond effectively against it if encountered in our natural environment. In 1798, the first smallpox vaccine was developed. Over the 18th and 19th centuries, the systematic implementation of mass smallpox immunization culminated in the debatable global eradication of smallpox by 1979.
What is the science of the current COVID-19 vaccines?
This vaccine is the first of its kind to ever be used as a defense for infection in humans. Scientifically, it is called a Nucleic Acid vaccine, but commonly, the 2 available COVID-19 vaccines are known as “Messenger RNA” vaccines, (mRNA vaccine). mRNA vaccines are a new type of vaccine to protect against infectious diseases.
While mRNA is a new technology, experts have been working on it for years. The genetic sequence of SARS-CoV-2 is very similar to two other coronaviruses – 79% identical to the original SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) from 2003, and around 50% identical to MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome) from 2012.
Unlike traditional vaccines, the Moderna and Pfizer Covid-19 vaccines don't use modified or killed forms of the virus. Rather, it relies on genetically engineered fragments of the COIVD-19 virus’ genetic code. What does this mean?
The goal of both vaccines is the same: to provoke an immune response-- that will provide protection against infection.
To trigger an immune response, many vaccines put a weakened or inactivated germ into our bodies. Not mRNA vaccines. Once the instructions (mRNA) are inside the immune cells, the cells use them to make the spike protein.
COVID-19 mRNA vaccines give instructions to our immune cells to make the “spike protein” found on the surface of the COVID-19 virus. There’s a lot of spike protein on the outside of the virus, making it a prime target for our immune response. So most researchers have focused on the spike protein as the antigen for SARS-CoV-2.
The SARS-CoV-2 viral particle is covered by “spike” proteins. This spike protein binds to a molecule on the surface of lung cells called the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2).
In theory, after the spike protein is made, OUR OWN cells display the spike protein piece on its surface. OUR immune systems recognize that the protein doesn’t belong in our body. It is at this junction that our immune system is supposed to begin building an immune response and making antibodies against the COVID virus as if there was a natural infection occurring in the body that we must mount an immune response to against COVID-19.
AGAIN, theoretically, our body breaks down and gets rid of the vaccine injected mRNA soon after it has completed its job, providing "instruction". ALSO in theory, mRNA vaccines do not affect or interact with our OWN DNA in any way and the mRNA never enters the nucleus of the cell, which is where our DNA (genetic material) is kept.
Diagrammatic representation of the Nucleic Acid vaccines to include the mRNA vaccine mechanism
I would like to remind everybody WHY I recommend ELDERBERRY during FLU and now COVID season.
I take natural medicine very seriously, so please do not consider alternative companies or substitutes for my current recommendations. I can only endorse what I recommend as an Integrative Medicine doctor-not its alternatives.
Elderberry, also name by its botanical name, Sambucus nigra, has been used since antiquity in herbal medicine.
There are many benefits of elderberry extract, particularly with viruses. Virus cells take over our healthy cells by puncturing the cell wall with tiny spikes called hemagglutinins, which extend from the surface of the virus . This is the spike protein that the mRNA vaccine is engineered to weaken.
Remember, Elderberry has built it's reputation against viruses, in part, due to its ability to inhibit the activity and disarm these spikes. Elderberry binds the SPIKE PROTEIN of the virus, thwarting the virus from entering and invading our cells.
In addition to Elderberry, the role of Vitamin C in viral infection prevention as well as treatment is ubiquitous. Suffice it to say that because we know that the measurable amount of Vitamin C INSIDE the IMMUNE FIGHTING WHITE BLOOD CELLS of the body, is MANY times higher than it is in plasma of blood, there are many functional roles for Vitamin C in the immune system.
To Our global conscious health,
Ariane Cometa MD
your holistic doc
January 07, 2021
I am routinely asked for recommendations regarding Natural COVID Protection.
Vitamin D is an important part of your 2020-2021 COVID and FLU Prevention program. PLEASE remember this fact and refer to the Corona Virus and Influenza Prevention program found here.
Throughout the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak and pandemic, prevention is imperative. In 2020, there has been growing evidence mounting in Europe, demonstrating a significant negative correlation (i.e. inverse relation = lower the level of D associated with increased COVID Infection cases) observed between mean vitamin D levels and COVID-19 cases per one million population in European countries.
Several studies have also demonstrated the role of vitamin D in reducing the risk of acute viral respiratory tract infections and pneumonia due to direct inhibition of viral replication as well as it's anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory power. Vitamin D supplementation has been shown as safe and effective against acute respiratory tract infections and in a critical meta-analysis it was suggested that “those people who are at higher risk of vitamin D deficiency during this global pandemic should consider taking vitamin D supplements to maintain the circulating 25(OH)D in the optimal levels." VERY INTERESTING is that the European OPTIMAL LEVEL FOR VITAMIN D LEVELS is 75-125nmol/L of Vitamin D!!! This is a different and higher optimum level in comparison to our routine laboratories in the US (reference range 20-100 - with NO OPTIMUM levels). Hence, routine labs in this country use a reference range that allows doctors to MISS D deficiency in their patients. Worse is when many patients have their Vitamin D levels rise into therapeutic range, their physician will tell them to stop the Vitamin D.
Vitamin D is part of an ancient complex molecular effort to protect our immune system in every imaginable way. But Vitamin D's ability to do its work is created by the molecular dance on receptors of the human cell when A, D, and K work together. These lipid-based molecules are all powerful antioxidant nutrients which are intricately bound through shared receptors. They balance and enhance each other, and as a group, profoundly influence genes, immunity, inflammation, and the healthy balance of life in our body.
Vitamin D may be one of the most important nutrients in our nutritional armamentarium—and currently, one of the most misunderstood. Vitamin D can help us fight infections and reduce the risk of multiple sclerosis, diabetes, heart disease, cancer (colon, breast, skin and prostate, etc.), osteoporosis, cavities, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, mood disorders (depression) and much more. There are 1000’s of peer review studies on vitamin D, stretching all the way back to 1922.
Vitamin A deficiency is more common than we realize because vitamin A-rich foods are rarely eaten and vitamin A toxicity has been overblown, to our profound immunological detriment.
Vitamin A is necessary for optimal mucosal immunity—and is a key nutrient in balancing the pro-inflammatory cytokines. (CYTOKINE STORM caused by COVID often leads to incipient death).
Most important, vitamins D and A are an ancient and inseparable team that evolution has honed through time. They must be supplemented together in order to not create a “functional” deficiency of either one. Excess D will create a “relative” deficiency of A, even when dietary levels are adequate. And vice versa.
Receptors for vitamin A and vitamin D are found in every cell and when they dock at the same receptor, they initiate a cascade of responses throughout the entire body.
Vitamin K2 is not to be forgotten as it serves as a molecular ‘link’ between hormonal receptors and intracellular signaling pathways. As is a true hormone, like vitamin D and A, they circulate throughout the body eliciting specific effects on the activity of cells situated remotely from their point of origin.
Vitamin K2 as you remember from former blogs, enhances vitamin D’s impact on bone, and protects against vascular disease, atherosclerosis.
I believe that I have outlined a very strong, proactive, yet simple viral prevention program and it is on my website homepage.
Please stay tuned, as I continue to educate thereader about WHY I make my specific recommendations for you and your friends and family to maintain health and wellness during these challenges times!
Always there for you!
Dr. Ariane Cometa
your holistic doc
This program is recommended for those who want to support the immune system AND protect themselves from viruses of all types - to include COVID and Influenza (FLU), in 2020-2021. Please consider these simple suggestions
January 04, 2021
Disparity is Coronavirus's middle name!
Disparity (defined as)
now goes beyond the racial disparities among confirmed coronavirus cases and related deaths, with growing awareness that in addition to the elderly and the medically compromised community being disproportionately impacted, the African-Americans are bearing a strikingly disproportionate share of the suffering in the United States. To quote Isaac Chotiner of the New Yorker in his April 2020 article, The Interwoven Threads of Inequality and Health:
“Is the spread of the coronavirus, and especially its disproportionate impact on the African-American community, teaching us new things about racial disparities in health care and health outcomes or confirming things we have long known?”
The possible reasons for this Inequality are that African-Americans are less likely than white Americans to:
Additionally, recent research notes a correlation between the prevalence of coronavirus deaths and poor air quality with high particulate matter and thus, the disproportionate impact COVID has had on underserved communities in crowded, industrialized urban settings.
Disparity arises as well when the question is asked:
Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the U.S. National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), is considered the “leader” of the “experts” and is spearheading the White House Coronavirus Task Force. Dr. Fauci first stated in early April that "the novel coronavirus may re-emerge" as a second wave in the October-November period, and that “the scientists can only anticipate what might happen later this year”. Their professional estimates were and still are based on no science at all, but on the the course taken by previous viral pandemics and outbreaks, as "other viruses have re-emerged after their initial outbreaks". Here lies yet another Disparity raised by the current pandemic---that is, we are being provided conflicting and confusing information. On one hand, we are being told that the COVID-19 is a "novel" coronavirus that is unprecedented and unlike previous corona viral outbreaks in the past such as the 2002 SARS pandemic. On the other hand, our experts are predicting the current COVID-19 coronavirus to behave in a precedented (justified by a precedent-an earlier event or action that is regarded as an example or guide to be considered in subsequent similar circumstances) fashion.
For COVID-19 to re-emerge later in 2020 is not only speculation based on the history of the H1N1 flu (swine flu) outbreak in 2009, SARS in 2002 and the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic- but as Fauci states " it wouldn’t be out of the norm at all for this coronavirus to have a second wave, too".
COVID-19 can't both be Unprecedented in it's behavior and behave in a way that is considered Normal as per other cases in the past and hence in a Precedented fashion.
There is speculation that the US government can greatly impact the number of people that succumb to entering the COVID-19 vaccine test-tube and be a part of the grand experiment to determine it's safety or NOT, if we fast-track this untested vaccine on the American public, stating that it will (with no scientific evidence at all) protect you from the resurgence of this novel, uprecedented virus in the event in behaves in a precedented way, like other viruses in the past.
Please always remember, the safety of a vaccine is only based on how many millions of humans do not reveal how dangerous the vaccine is. We have NO way to test this vaccine without using the American public as the testing arena,
NO THANKS!
Global and community awareness of the individual stress each of us is enduring at this time of planetary change is vitally important as a global shift is taking place. What do I mean? Heightening hysteria about the next wave of COVID-19 and being prepared needs to be measured with at least a grain of scientific truth. To make matters worse and more confusing is the fact that the best protection we have to prevent the re-emergence of COVID-19 is the health of the population where it resides. THIS TOPIC is NEVER RAISED by the medical media.
COVID-19 spread during GLOBAL HYSTERIA
...a breeding ground for infection due to the impact stress has on lowering immunity as I have stated in prior blogs
Without a national policy in place, there is yet another Growing Disparity currently revealed in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic in the US. This evolving Disparity is attributed to how we as a country mandate and institute Social Distancing. Given that guidelines have been left to each state to decide, the lack of uniformity and the lack of a federally mandated policy has led to a loss of national cohesion and increasing confusion.
COVID-19 is not a disease of the states; it is global issue and in the US, it is a national concern that can be best mitigated with as little variation as possible in the prevention policies in place. This should be taken into serious account as the economy is re-opened.
Beginning Monday, April 27, physicians were able to order asymptomatic patients the serum COVID-19 antibody testing. As soon as SARS-CoV-2 IgG testing was announced, it's value for protection in the future for the next coronavirus emergence was placed in question. YES, another Disparity. WHY do we see this Disparity? Think about it...how can the economy be boosted by an upcoming potential COVID-19 vaccine mandate to get on planes, go to work (all healthcare providers HAVE to get a flu vaccine or can't go to work; i.e., no paycheck...wreak of fascism?), go back to school, or any other powers of manipulation created, if you test positive on the COVID-19 antibody testing? If we believe that the antibody indicates immunity, why would we get the vaccine?
After all, it is bad for the medico-economic business to put a buttress against the future COVID-19 vaccine with another test. Isn't it is easier to state that the antibody may not protect you in the future, to insure you are scared enough of COVID-19, to enter the test- tube and get the vaccine as well?
My goal with the current blog at this pivotal time, is to provide as much out-of the box and yet medically substantiated thinking NOW, before making decisions regarding your health and the health of your family. Disparity is real and it requires decisive thinking rather than rote thinking. I welcome your thoughts and comments.
As Always,
Ariane Cometa MD
your holistic doc
January 04, 2021
In the recent weeks, Social Distancing has impacted the world in a varied and yet distinct manner. Many families are noticing a sense of peace that has come over the family as the busy working parents and industrious children are forced to live, learn and work together because they are confined to the home and asked to practice Social Distancing from their community. People effected in this way have shared feelings of guilt, because at a time of global crisis and tragedy, they feel happiness and new contentment in the home and family nucleus. For those individuals who live alone and are not shrouded within their home by family, there are those that are feeling a sense of isolation and loneliness as they are sequestered away and alone in their home away from routine 'lifelines' they have established for their connection to life beyond themselves. As my hero Brene Brown, PhD stated on 60 Minutes recently, regarding Social Distancing, “We are not supposed to help ourselves, we are supposed to help each other. My message is clear—you do not have to do it alone, we were never meant to. We are neurobiologically hardwired to be in connection with other people”. Although the example experiences described earlier are a response to Social Distancing, they are almost polar opposite reactions and require we all have community awareness of the individual stress each of us is enduring at this time of planetary change. There is a global shift taking place on the planet at this time of crisis and the silver lining resides in the woven tapestry found in the power of love, the family dynamic and community awareness.
In addition to the ongoing stress of: 1. NOT KNOWING when the Coronavirus will stop spreading, 2. the growing number of deaths the virus is leaving in its wake and when will it end as well as 3. the fact that there is no known treatment for the infection, we humans are under the additional unprecedented stress of social isolation from each other when we need to depend on each other more than ever. This disparity in our reality is devastating and greatly impacts the human mind, which is historically very Uncomfortable with UnCertainty. As another hero of mine has shared in many books and lectures, Pema Chodron reminds us that "without realizing it, we continually shield ourselves" from the pain we share with others, because it scares us. Our new reality of NOT-KNOWING perpetuated by the current pandemic has created fear and concern in us all as we try to control the uncontrollable while at the same time it has torn us apart from each other when we need each other the most for security and predictability.
Millions of people across the globe are experiencing the symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Stress resilience and maintaining a positive mental outlook are two factors that are very important to our ongoing health.
In addition to my 3 Pillars of Health, which can greatly reduce the sustained-REACTION we can have to ongoing environmental stress, Mother Nature provides a plethora of natural resources which when correctly cultivated and blended into synergistic formulas, are able to better ensure a balanced physiology and adaption to our environment.
I would like to introduce two very powerful formulas which are capable of restoring mental clarity and a balanced mood while reducing the sense of overwhelm that an overstimulated nervous system can cause when we are under chronic stress.
is formulated to support and promote a relaxed, focused state. It includes amino acid precursors and bioactive nutrients that support healthy levels of neurotransmitters such as gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine. Maintaining adequate neurotransmitter production is vital for regulating mood, appetite, memory, focus, energy levels and a healthy sleep cycle.
is a synergistic blend of botanicals historically used to support a sense of tranquility by reducing overstimulation and scattered thoughts. The ingredients in Botanicalm work together to induce relaxation by increasing gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) activity in the central nervous system (CNS). GABA is primarily an inhibitory (calming) neurotransmitter in the CNS that promotes a sense of tranquility and counteracts the effects of stress.
In addition to,
To quote António Guterres of Portugal, the ninth Secretary-General of the United Nations, "But the spread of the virus will peak. Our economies will recover. Until then, we must act together to slow the spread of the virus and look after each other."
But, YOU are your best advocate and the best one for the job when it comes to taking good care of you. Remember, you are worth it and everyone benefits when you feel your best.
Stay tuned for more support and information and as always Thank you for joining me.
Ariane Cometa MD
your holistic doc
January 04, 2021
As everyone you know as well as everyone across the globe, continue to endure unprecedented TOXIC STRESS imposed by the Coronavirus pandemic – I would like to bring attention to my THREE PILLARS OF HEALTH. What are the 3 Pillars of Health and why are they important? IF followed, the 3 Pillars of Health can greatly reduce the sustained-REACTION we can have to ongoing environmental stress. Called the “fight or flight response”, this sustained reaction to stress can be very harmful and actually life threatening if not curbed and brought into check WHY is this? "Fight or flight" should be short-lived response and can be life-saving in measure, but never should be prolonged. The 3 Pillars of Health enables us to restore our healthy survival response which protects us from harm and illness.
The reason I LIST these 3 areas or PILLARS of Health is because when instituted together routinely under stress, they are able to better ensure a balanced physiology and adaption which means less vulnerability to illness and the disease process that stress can cause.
There is a very important part of our human physiology which is too often neglected, ignored or simply not understood. This important part of our human body is called the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS). The ANS is connected to that part of our Central Nervous System (CNS), often referred to as the Primitive Brain, which together with the ANS, controls our innate and automatic self-preserving behavior patterns.
The Autonomic Nervous System involves both the ability to be productive in your waking state as well as being productive in your physiology when you sleep.
The Sympathetic tone or arm of the ANS is responsible for waking you up in the morning and doing your day productively, but it can also respond to your life, world, environment in a way that helps you to avoid danger and to escape danger.
The Parasympathetic tone or arm of the ANS is responsible for your ability to sleep well and feel well rested when you get up in the am. It is also responsible for the detox process which occurs while you digest during sleep and it is why the bowels are best to move in the am.
The ANS does not reside IN OUR brain, but rather provides important messages from where it resides outside the brain in the body, making it responsible for the body’s involuntary functions. The (efferent) connections and messages that the ANS provides to the CNS - especially the primitive brain - is how the ANS communicates to our higher brain which in turn responds back to the ANS to ensure our own survival as well as the survival of our species.
To better understand this, let me simplify:
The sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions of the Autonomic Nervous System:
These divisions work together, usually with one activating and the other inhibiting the actions of internal organs.
Because the sympathetic division prepares the body for stressful or emergency situations....
.. it increases heart rate and the force of heart contractions and widens (dilates) the airways to make breathing easier. It causes the body to release stored energy. Muscular strength is increased. This division also causes palms to sweat, pupils to dilate, and hair to stand on end. It slows body processes that are less important in emergencies, such as digestion and urination.
THESE ARE ALL SYMPTOMS OF STRESS and if stress occurs a lot or is chronic- the Sympathetic Nervous System is telling the body it is in constant fight or flight! NOT GOOD!!
The parasympathetic division is very different....
...in that it conserves and restores.
It slows the heart rate and decreases blood pressure. It stimulates the digestive tract to process food and eliminate wastes. Energy from the processed food is used to restore and build tissues. The parasympathetic division of the ANS is most active at night, while we sleep, restore, digest and detoxify and very importantly, rejuvenate! Our heart rate and respirations are slowed and we are not in an active conscious state-while we sleep.
This is why adequate restorative sleep as well as rejuvenating exercise that keeps the mind and body effectively decompressed and more relaxed are 2 very important pillars of health.
Nutrient dense foods support the work of the parasympathetic division, and this is very important for sustained health. WHY and HOW does food that is high in nutritional value do this? Well, we activate the REST and DIGEST Parasympathetic division of the ANS when we digest good nutrient dense food that will not only nourish our body but also relaxes us!
This is in contrast to what processed and unhealthy food does to our health; Nutrient deficient foods actually cause us stress and will stimulate the sympathetic ANS to feel fight or flight as the body attempts to extract nutrients that do not exist in the food.
Please remember that our personal vitality and health comes with responsibility and accountability to ourselves.
In addition, to further strengthen your Ability to adapt, remain healthy and strong during these stressful times, please consider adding VITAL ADAPT Capsules -2 or more daily, to your Innate Response C (or C-Flav capsules or C powders I have recommended in the past).
Vital Adapt is a nourishing herbal tonic designed to optimize the body’s natural resistance and adaptation to stressful influences, while promoting health, longevity and total well-being. Vital Adapt contains herbs that promote our natural ability to Adaption during stress. Called Adaptogen herbs, and to name a few here, Siberian Ginseng or Eleuthrococcus, Rhodiola, Schizandra and Ashwagandha, work synergistically to support our energy and immune function naturally while under stress, whether it be daily stress or more sustained chronic stress, such as what we are all experiencing now with the Coronavirus.
Remember to take good care of you for everybody's benefit.
Visit me at www.yourholisticdoc.com
Don't forget your 15% discount code for all supplements, STAYWELL
January 04, 2021
The difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis
is that in osteopenia the bone loss is not as severe as in osteoporosis. That means someone with osteopenia is more likely to fracture a bone than someone with a normal bone density but is less likely to fracture a bone than someone with osteoporosis.
Bone is a dynamic, living tissue which is continuously remodeled. As old bone is reabsorbed by osteoclasts, (cells that break bone down), the “old and stressed” bone is replaced with healthy new bone by osteoblasts (new bone cells).
DO WE WANT TO INHIBIT RESORPTION?!
is a condition found in patients who have received intravenous and oral forms of bisphosphonate therapy for Osteopenia and Osteoporosis. Bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) manifests as exposed, non-vital bone involving the maxillofacial structures.
Did you know that it is essential to stop Fosemax and all Bisphosphonate drugs before elective bone surgery? To say this another way, what if you are taking Fosemax orally on a daily basis or worse, get a 1-2 time a year injection of one of these drugs that is impossible to remove from your body because it lasts in your system for 6-12 months AND now you need emergent orthopedic surgery on a bone or bones that were traumatically broken in a car accident, fall, etc? That surgery will be fraught with potential complications because that same bisphosphonate drug that was supposed to help prevent the broken bones is now preventing your natural bone healing process. PRETTY SCARY and very true.
Natural Supplements for Bone Health:
Lifestyle - Nutrient Dense Diet and routine weight-bearing Exercise
The two main forms of Vitamin K2 are Menaquinone-4 (MK-4) and Menaquinone-7 (MK-7)
Once activated by Vitamin K2, Osteocalcin binds calcium. Calcium from all over the body is then transported into the bone matrix! Sounds pretty important to me!
How else is Vitamin K2 different from K1?
How do we get Therapeutic levels of Vitamin K2 in our diet?
The abbreviated answer is we do not. Vitamin K2 is rich in the Japanese diet due to the addition of Natto. Natto is a traditional Japanese food made from soybeans that have been fermented with Bacillus subtilis var. natto.
As the richest known food source for Vitamin K2, those women who eat more Natto in Japan, have far fewer fractures than their western neighbors ( i.e. we in the US).
Limitations of Natto:
SO, forget Natto.... I will review Vitamin K2 supplementation below.
Have you ever wondered why so many aging people have calcified plaque in their arteries (atherosclerosis) and yet walk around with brittle bones that are markedly depleted of calcium (osteoporosis)?
So, in K2 deficiency, in addition to ineffective transport of calcium into the bone matrix, we also can not prevent or inhibit arterial calcification!
What do we end up with?
Calcified plaque in our arteries (low Matrix G1a protein activation) and brittle bones (low Osteocalcin protein activation)
We literally ossify the plaque of our arterial wall rather than our bone matrix!
The first vigorous studies were launched in Europe in the 1990’s to evaluate Strontium’s bone-building abilities.
How Strontium Works
Improves Quality and Quantity of Bone:
LIFESTYLE
If you are looking to REVERSE OSTEOPOROSIS, then the Osteoporosis Reversal Program is what you are looking for. The discounted package is less then $2.50 daily.
THE MOST exciting aspect of this blog is that I am sharing with you how to simultaneously preserve your bone health as well as your vascular health with one simple program. Nothing I write in this blog is new news, it is just not known by many to include all your medical doctors that are uninterested in Nutritional Medicine. I tell you this fact, because I am thrilled to have helped restore bone and vascular health to 1000's of patients in my career, but also to answer the question asked to me all the time, "WHY didn't my doctor tell me this?"
Remember your circulation and heart health are connected to your bone health and when properly instituted, my programs above, will preserve the integrity of both of these vital systems in your body.
Here is to your Optimum Heath and Vitality,
A
riane Cometa MD
your holistic doc
January 04, 2021
Methylation is a term most people know little about, but an imbalance can cause serious problems.
January 03, 2021
As many of you know, Mark and I have a High School graduate this year. Sophia will have her Roland Park Country School live graduation – for immediate family only- on the morning of July 20, 2020. Adorning masks and practicing 6 feet social distancing, the proud families of our girls are so grateful for this opportunity to celebrate their incredible accomplishments together. First on the list for most, if not all of us, on this list of accolades, are how these graduates, amongst all the 2020 HS graduates on this earth, were able to keep their heads high, while they also kept their nose to the grindstone and their eyes peeled to their bright future - as COVID-19 ransacked and invaded their present and future lives; all in the blink of an eye. These young adults are nothing short of miraculous as they tirelessly demonstrate an impeccably pragmatic and very driven nature, so representative of the Gen Z population, known fondly as the Gen Zers, who began to populate the planet in 1997.
RPCS Senior Pep Rally Fall 2019
What does Generation Z signify? Where does it come from? They follow the Generation Millennials. For decades, the Pew Research Center has been committed to measuring public attitudes on key issues and documenting differences in those attitudes across demographic groups. “One lens often employed by researchers at the Center to understand these differences is that of Generation”. To learn more about the Pew Research Center, please see the end of this blog.
So what do these Generations, also known as Generation Cohorts encompass? They provide the opportunity to look at Americans both by their place in the life cycle – whether a young adult, a middle-aged parent or a retiree – as well as by their membership in a cohort of individuals who were born at a similar time.
Generation Cohorts by Dates in 2019 as per the Pew Research Center:
Naming Generations is best regarded as a LENS through which to understand societal change, rather than a label with which to oversimplify differences between groups. These Generational cohorts give researchers a tool to analyze changes in views over time and this helps to gain an understanding of how different formative experiences (such as world events and technological, economic and social shifts) interact with the ongoing life-cycle and the aging process to shape people’s views of the world. With this perspective, the younger and the older adults may differ in their views at a given moment because their generational cohorts differ due to their formative life experiences.
I will reiterate, that all the while we discuss Generational Cohorts, it is important to keep in mind that naming Generations is best regarded as a LENS through which to understand societal change, rather than a label with which to oversimplify differences between groups.
Pew Research Center has been studying the Millennial generation for more than a decade. By 2018, it became clear to this dedicated group of researchers that it was time to determine a cutoff point between Millennials and the next generation, Generation Z.
In order to keep the Millennial generation analytically meaningful, and to begin looking at what might be unique about the next cohort, Pew Research Center decided to use 1996 as the last birth year for the Millennials Generational Cohort. Anyone born between 1981 and 1996 (ages 23 to 38 in 2019) is considered a Millennial, and anyone born from 1997 onward (which may end in 2012) is part of a new generation, Generation Z.
The historical, technological, behavioral and attitudinal data accumulated through various surveys and studies to understand how Generations differ and overlap, demonstrates more of a continuum across generations rather than a threshold or cut-off determined by large change and shifts in behavior. This means that the differences within generations can be just as great as the differences across generations, and the youngest and oldest within a commonly defined cohort may feel more in common with bordering generations than the one to which they are assigned. This is a reminder that generations themselves are inherently diverse and complex groups, not to be labeled.
Pew Research defines members of Generation Z as anyone born between 1997 and 2012. That means the group spans ages 7 to 22 in 2019. The organization cites important political, economic, and technological factors that helped them determine the transition from Millennial to Generation Z.
To cite a few of these factors:
Many believe that the rising Generation Z will get to the point where they are able to mold society into something that reflects their energies and values. Further, many believe that the truth they hold and defend so well is currently reflected in their integrity and moral conviction to correct the wrongs imparted upon them, which they have inherited in their youthful state.
In his down to earth and heartfelt manner, when President Obama gave his Commencement Address to the nation’s 2020 high school seniors ( all “Gen Zers”) on the May 16 2020 special “Graduate Together: America Honors the High School Class of 2020”, Obama spoke so eloquently to this concept of the truth Gen Zers hold and how they are actively defending it at this very time of crisis and transformation with the COVID impact upon them and the rest of the planet in 2020. To quote President Barack Obama:
Let’s take a look at their predecessors. The Generation Z has been very fortunate to build their future of the blood, sweat and tears as well as strong work ethic of the Millennial Generation.
Throughout U.S. history, the American Dream has meant the ability to build a successful life through hard work and individual initiative. Yet every generation has a different vision of exactly what that means. For parents of the baby boomers, in the aftermath of World War II, the driving factor was just to avoid another Great Depression. That need inspired the prosperity of the 1940s and 1950s and allowed the next generation to aspire to goals beyond financial security, such as pleasure and self-fulfillment.
Like the generations before them, Millennials have a version of the American Dream that is built on their parents’ legacy (Baby Boomers and Generation X), but at the same time distinctly their own. The major goals of the Millennials’ American Dream sound just like those of their parents and grandparents. They want to be successful at work, get married, have a family and achieve financial security for retirement. But their vision of what that looks like and how they want to get there, definitely involves changing things.
Perhaps the biggest change in the Millennial version of the American Dream is what success at work means to them. It’s not about the big paycheck or a pat on the back from the boss. According to the Allstate/National Journal poll, it’s about whether they’re “doing something enjoyable” and/or “making a difference in society.” In another study, more than seventy percent of Millennials reported wanting a workplace that feels like “a second family”—and as every employer knows, (me included), they’re more likely than any generation before them to pick up and leave if they’re not getting what they want.
Millennials see lots of room for improvement in the institutions they have inherited: a workplace layered with managers who create obstacles to innovation, a private sector that pays too little attention to social problems, and a federal government that isn’t doing its job, particularly in relation to two of their biggest issues, income inequality and climate change.
The good news is that Millennials are idealistic, hopeful, and committed to making positive change. They are a lot more optimistic than their older counterparts that things will be better next year. And despite the fact that they got the worst of the Great Recession—high unemployment rates just as they were starting out, coupled with a wearying load of college debt—almost ninety percent say they are confident they will have enough money to hit their financial goals in life. They are more optimistic about the state of the nation than their parents and grandparents, and more likely than any other generation to say the country’s best years are still to come.
Maybe that’s because they’re looking in the mirror. Despite the popular portrayal of Millennials as “selfish” or “entitled,” a Pew Research Center survey reported that their top priorities in life are “being a good parent” (52%) and “having a successful marriage” (30%). Coming in fourth and sixth were “owning a home” (20%) and “high-paying career” (15%). Almost none of them cared about “becoming famous” (1%). They want to be leaders in the workplace not only to make great things happen but also “to empower other people.”
Despite their economic hardships, they are on course to be the most giving generation in U.S. history. According to the latest Millennial Impact Report from the Case Foundation, 84% of them made a charitable donation in 2014, and 70% were volunteering for a favorite cause or charity.
The most wonderful aspect of the children being born since 1981 is their willingness to take on the world and learn to make their own way through it. These children are now adults if they are of the Generation Millennials, currently 26-40 years old or young/soon to be future adults if Generation Z, currently aged 8-23. More about the Generation Cohort that follows Generation Z, Generation Alpha, in future blogs.
If there is one thing Millennials are happy about, it is transferring most of the ageism stereotyping they have endured over the past decade to the new Generation Z or Gen Zers. Calling Millennials entitled and spoiled is no longer fitting as the oldest of that cohort either are or are approaching 40. Some are already running large companies or higher up the corporate ladder. Unlike the more optimistic Millennials that preceded them, Gen-Z are largely realists.
A frugal generation- Generation Z
Even before the pandemic, Gen Zers were known as being a practical and frugal generation.
A 2018 research by Dell Technologies titled, ‘Gen Z: The future has arrived,’ revealed that although they want job security and monetary motivation, Gen Z is less interested in climbing the corporate ladder and are more intrigued about supporting their companies’ growth and success. The research surveyed over 12,000 Gen Zers across the globe.
The report found that Gen Z looks for non-monetary factors in an organization, with 45 percent wanting to work at an organization that has meaning and purpose beyond simply getting paid. The survey showed that 38 percent of Gen Zs polled want to work in socially and environmentally responsible organizations. Dell’s report found a common characteristic shared by many Gen Zs which is the desire to make a positive impact on the world.
COVID-19 has emerged as a defining event for today’s Gen Zers and Millennials. Not to mention, Gen Zs are inheriting a world that is plagued with severe climate catastrophes, rapid extinctions and loss of natural ecosystems. This Generation more than any before them are willing to engage in environmental activism from a very young age to support causes they care about and are not happy about it. Many are practicing an eco-conscious lifestyle and have early interest in environmental issues.
But, Ageism (defined as prejudice or discrimination on the grounds of a person's age), can be debilitating for the youth because what is said gets buried under who says it. And from what we can see, Gen Z is more determined and louder in asking for change, and leading this pack, are some highly focused females. One of the most famous and talked about Gen Z activists is 17-year old Greta Thunberg from Sweden. She gave United Nations (UN) leaders a lecture at the 2019 UN Climate Summit in the most confronting way to push for greater action on climate change. The global strike has since inspired other sub-protests around the world, initiated by the youth.
I look forward to continuing what I hope is a dialogue with my readers, as I delve more into our Youth and how they will save our planet. I will close by repeating such important words spoken by President Barack Obama:
I welcome everyone to join me in celebrating the Planetary Youth while they place the spotlight on all aspects of our troubled planet to raise the awareness and create the change necessary for our survival. Whether born today (more to come about Generation Alpha) or forty years ago, we need to listen and follow their lead because with or without us, our youth looks at the world with a very heartful and earnest lens to Save the Planet. Someone has to....and they are ready and able to create shifts in our paradigm. Please listen and let our new youth leaders create positive eco-friendly, climate and planet stabilizing changes through socio-economic and political accountability and responsibility, while embracing racial and gender equality to create powerful diversity and unity. Our society molds our belief system. It is up to the youth on this earth to procreate and unleash a compassionate society that strengthens itself through strengthening each other and protects Mother Earth. Get out of the way AND RECEIVE THE MESSAGE. Our Youth is not afraid, they are cautious and ready to embark unimpeded.
Future blogs will highlight and outline how we are currently benefiting from our children and their generous and gracious gifts. Days are beyond unprecedented, we have Genesis in the making.
Until later,
Ariane Cometa MD
your holistic doc
https://www.pewresearch.org/about/our-mission/
is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. We conduct public opinion polling, demographic research, content analysis and other data-driven social science research. We do not take policy positions.
MISSION
The Center generates a foundation of facts that enriches the public dialogue and supports sound decision-making.
Our empirical research on a wide range of topics helps U.S. and international policymakers, civic leaders, educators and the public at large understand and address some of the world’s most challenging problems.
Our public opinion surveys allow the voice of the people to be heard, and our demographic, economic and political analyses provide context to understand how the world is changing.
We are nonprofit, nonpartisan and nonadvocacy. Our mission is to inform, not to prescribe. We believe that better information can build a better world.
“Fact-based information is the fuel democracies run on—the raw material from which societies identify problems and construct solutions.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/16/us/obama-graduation-speech-transcript.html
https://www.kasasa.com/articles/generations/gen-x-gen-y-gen-z
https://www.theatlantic.com/sponsored/allstate/getting-gen-z-primed-to-save-the-world/747/
https://www.theatlantic.com/sponsored/allstate/reinventing-the-american-dream/667/
https://enginegroup.com/us/news/stay-curious/life-interrupted-cassandra-special-edition/
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/01/17/where-millennials-end-and-generation-z-begins/
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/609811/age-ranges-millennials-and-generation-z
April 12, 2020
Trust is a mighty word and Easter Sunday is a day for many that symbolizes the greatest Trust.
Roughly 2,000 years ago, Jesus of Nazareth caused the greatest shift in thinking in human history.
In accordance with the Christian faith, days after his crucifixion, came the Resurrection of Jesus.
To Trust that Jesus rose from the dead is also to believe that he granted eternal life to those who put their Trust in Him. Trust has always been a mighty word and with Trust in Jesus comes Hope for the future.
The problem with Trust is that it is a moment-by-moment choice. Once we have had our Trust broken, how easily can we Trust again? As we learn to not Trust, we harden to endure what would otherwise be interpreted as painful or hurtful. This disconnect from our feelings, is itself, isolating us from our life and everyone in it, including our own feelings.
Have you ever experienced how easy it is to have Trust when things are going well, and we can validate that our ability to Trust works in our favor? On the flip side, how easy is it to have Faith and Trust when things are not going well, and we are forced to make a choice between Trust and our own Will? Have you ever experienced anger, resentment and feelings of rebellion rather than Faith and Trust, when “things are not going as you would like”? This is an example of where we experience a “Fork in the Road” with our Trust. Expectations set us up for a barrier between ourselves and our Trust experience.
This EASTER SUNDAY is a special opportunity for us all to get out of the way of our own expectations and to establish an even stronger Trust in each other, the world and our future. Together we are many strong when we have Faith and Trust in each other.
With Peace and Love,
Ariane Cometa MD
your holistic doc
February 03, 2020
Give FucoThin and EndoTrim a chance to replace and improve upon where ThermoFit left you if EndoTrim may not have been quite enough support!
Naturally Boost your Metabolism without Jitters
is made with Xanthigen® a proprietary blend of concentrated fucoxanthin from brown seaweed combined with pomegranate seed oil used in fücoTHIN, a natural fat burner and the only fucoxanthin formula with "Gold Standard" human clinical studies. In addition, fucoTHIN GREEN contains RAW decaffeinated Coffee Bean Extract Blend to powerfully support healthy blood sugar levels.
fücoTHIN GREEN is the first RAW, whole food supplement to combine the fat-burning power and glucose support of two clinically studied natural ingredients:
Xanthigen® (RAW Concentrated Fucoxanthin): A natural fat burner clinically studied to boost metabolism, minimizing fat storage and supporting a lean body without causing jitters.
Svetol® (RAW Naturally Decaffeinated Green Coffee Bean Extract): Clinically studied, natural fat burner with 50% chlorogenic acid for support of healthy blood sugar levels.
SUGGESTED USE:
Adults take one capsule three times daily with food and at least 8 oz. of water.
is a comprehensive endocrine-balancing formula which focuses on healthy insulin, leptin, and cortisol function in order to support safe fat metabolism and maintenance of lean body mass. The addition of Coleus forskohlii, Garcinia cambogia and EGCg may also help to maintain and improve lean body mass and support basal metabolic rate. This unique array of nutrients and botanicals is also useful for controlling food cravings and helping the body naturally manage blood sugar levels.
SUGGESTED USE:
Adults take four capsules per day with meals
Ariane Cometa MD
your holistic doc