Feeling stressed? Moody? Depressed? While you may think it's your life that needs changing, your real problem might be what's missing from your diet: magnesium.

This under-appreciated and vastly under-consumed mineral is the hidden cause of many mood disorders, and boosting your magnesium levels could be the key to improving your emotional health.

Statistics show that we simply do not have enough magnesium in our diets. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) claims that 60 per cent of Americans aren't getting their daily magnesium requirements. And according to psychologist/MD/medical researcher Dr. Mark Sircus, who has written extensively on the topic, that number just scratches the surface of the problem -- "What they don't tell us is that this 60% is based on minimum daily estimates set by the Department of Agriculture [which] are set terribly low, so actually the number is much higher." A common culprit is processed foods, which are depleted of many essential minerals, including magnesium. On top of this, soil that has been depleted of minerals also lacks the all-important magnesium, so even our fresh produce tends to be lacking.


Find out how to get more magnesium after the jump.

While discussing bone health with a client last week, I mentioned the importance of vitamin K2. The client had never heard of this essential vitamin, which is not uncommon. Although vitamin K was discovered in 1929, it didn't receive a lot of publicity as it was then thought to be nothing more than a vitamin important for blood clotting.

More recent studies have begun to uncovered what K is responsible for in helping the functioning of our bodies. Dr. Mercola, nutrition expert and purveyor of the massive health site Mercola.com, calls it "the next vitamin D" as research keeps building, outlining vitamin K's important benefits for health. And, similar to vitamin D, almost everyone is deficient in vitamin K.

Mercola sites the research of Dr. Cees Vermeer who has found blood analysis of vitamin K levels are not accurate in determining whether a deficiency exists. Although most of us have enough for blood clotting, many lack enough vitamin K to prevent calcification of the arteries, osteoporosis, some forms of cancer and brain health problems like dementia.

I've had a few questions from readers about flaxseeds recently, so I thought I'd do another post on them. One reader wanted to know what lignans are as they are often mentioned on packaging for flaxseeds and flaxseed oil. Another wanted to know why some flaxseed brands claim to have B6 while others don't, and likewise, some manufacturers advertise iron and others don't. And finally, one reader wanted to know whether it was a better idea to consume the whole flaxseed or just the flaxseed oil. I'll get to all these questions below as well as give a little more info on these power-packed little seeds.

Flaxseeds, while originally used for little more than horse feed and birdseed, have risen to prominence in the last decade and are now often referred to as a superfood. Part of the reason for this is that new studies are continually discovering the amazing health properties of the seeds. But in large part, the popularity of flaxseeds is due to the discovery that they are extremely high in the omega-3 fat alpha linolenic acid (ALA).

Omega-3 fats, along with omega-6 fats, are essential, meaning they need to part of your diet and cannot be created from other components in the body. The reason flax has become so valued in health fields is that its high ratio of omega-3 fats to omega-6 fats makes it the perfect remedy to the North American diet, which is far too high in omega-6 (containing anywhere from 14 to 25 times more omega-6 than omega-3) due to the preponderance of sunflower oil, soybean oil and corn oil.

This imbalance leads to inflammation in the body along with a host of health problems such as heart disease, arthritis, cancer and depression. The inflammatory effect of over-consuming omega-6 also suppresses the body's immune system.

Natasha Turner, N.D. is a Toronto-based naturopathic doctor. She is the founder of the Clear Medicine wellness boutique and author of the bestselling book The Hormone Diet. Each week in her column for That's Fit.ca, Dr. Turner advises readers on how to remedy common health issues as well as improve their overall health.


According to the Canadian Cancer Society, in 2010:

• An estimated 23,200 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 5,300 will die of it.
• An estimated 180 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 50 will die of it.
• On average, 445 Canadian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer every week.
• On average, 100 Canadian women will die of breast cancer every week.

More encouraging current statistics suggest that mortality rates have declined in every age group since at least the mid 1980s. This is due in part to early detection, new drug therapies and also to lifestyle changes as the majority of women diagnosed with cancer change their diet and begin taking supplements.

Here are some simple tips to stay healthy and cancer-free.

Natasha Turner, N.D. is a Toronto-based naturopathic doctor. She is the founder of the Clear Medicine wellness boutique and author of the bestselling book The Hormone Diet. Each week in her column for That's Fit.ca, Dr. Turner advises readers on how to remedy common health issues as well as improve their overall health.


I love the summertime for so many reasons, but one in particular: It gives us a chance to get a nice bit of color on our faces from the sun. There's just something about a tan that just makes you feel fabulous, even though we all know it's far from healthy for our skin. If the threat of skin cancer isn't enough to scare you off, knowing that it causes wrinkles too might make you want to stay indoors all summer. But, along with making you feel good about the way you look and boosting your mood, another excuse for spending a little time in the sun is that it boosts our production of vitamin D, a vital nutrient that many of us are lacking.

Exposure guidelines
Don't hide from the sun -- sunlight, in reasonable doses, enables natural immunity, promotes skin growth and healing, stimulates hormone production and contributes to an overall sense of well-being. Getting 15 to 20 minutes of sunlight a day enables the body to manufacture vitamin D naturally, and the sun is responsible for the synthesis of the pigment melanin, the skin's natural sunscreen.

Do, however, practice safe sunning. The key is to be conscious in the sun without blocking it out completely (unless, of course, you have skin cancer or some other condition which should not be exposed to the sun,such as an allergy.) Gradually working up to an hour of suntime per day, outside of prime hours (11 am to 3 pm,) and wearing a hat to protect your face should provide relatively safe sun protection for most adults. Use caution in the sun during peak hours by covering up with light clothing. If you choose to use sunscreen, select one that is broad-spectrum with a minimum SPF 15.

Should you use sunscreen?

Each morning, we dish out a few links we love.

How do you like your fitness -- solo, in a group or with a pal? If you have yet to find yourself a workout buddy, now might be the time to hook up with one -- studies show that women who get fit with a friend are much more likely to lose weight.

If your parents tend to spend a lot of time in the casino or at the track, beware of your own betting behaviours -- recent studies show that gambling addiction is highly genetic.

Smokers, listen up: Obama wants to help you quit. And he should know how hard it is -- he's an ex-smoker himself.

If you're undergoing cancer treatment, is it OK to work out? All signs -- and experts -- point to yes, but do so with caution.

A changing voice isn't a problem that just pubescent boys go through: If you find that yours sounds different, here's what it could mean.

Despite the fact that I'm always harping on about processed foods and how bad they are for you, it seems some of my regular readers still don't get it. I get comments all the time that I should ease up on processed food bashing, that "everybody eats it" and that it's not that bad. The thing is, it is that bad.

How bad? Well, a study in the British Journal of Psychiatry found that eating processed foods actually leads to depression in middle age. Eating processed foods filled with chemical additives, refined grains and sugars, processed meats and trans fats can bring you down. Who'd have thought?

Eating a whole food diet, on the other hand, was found to prevent the onset of depressive symptoms.

While previous studies focused on particular nutrients and their link to depression, this is the first to look at overall diet trends and mood disorder. The researchers examined data from 3,486 participants over five years. Subjects were separated into two groups based on their eating habits - the whole food group (eating vegetables, fruits and fish) and the processed food group (eating sweetened desserts, fried food, processed meat, refined grains and high-fat dairy products) - and each were asked to fill out a depression questionnaire.

Sunscreen season is upon us and if you're like me, you hate slathering the stuff all over your skin. But nonetheless, if I'm going to be out in the sun for an extended period of time, I put on some sunscreen. There are very real consequences to staying out in the sun unprotected for too long. These consequences are different for for everyone and and depend on skin type, location in the world and time of day.

This being said, some people go overboard with sunscreen. Despite what you've heard, getting absolutely no unprotected sun exposure per day is not ideal. Just like all life forms on the surface of this planet, we need to get some sun, plain and simple. If we block all our sun exposure we're just asking to get sick.

One consequence of our continued sun-dodging, whether purposeful or simply a result of the increasingly indoor existence of the western world, is low vitamin D levels. Vitamin D is created by the body when sunlight reacts with cholesterol in the skin (yep, cholesterol. Not such bad stuff after all). Vitamin D is a hot-bed of scientific research at the moment. It has already been found to be vital for immune system function, maintaining bone density, helping with calcium absorption and maintaining calcium and phosphorous levels in the blood. Add to that the preventative role vitamin D plays in autoimmune disease, hypertension, osteoporosis and cancer and it is clear this is a vitamin you do not want to be without.

Noni is a tropical fruit that was originally native to Polynesian islands, but is now grown in many tropical regions around the world. It has been widely regarded in the traditional cultures of these regions to have medicinal properties. And it has a reputation as a relaxant and stress reliever, being used widely as a natural means of calming nerves and helping support sleep when consumed before bedtime.

A new study out of Japan may confirm that very reputation. The animal study, published in the journal Physiology & Behavior, has found that noni actually protects the brain from stress in a way that maintains cognitive function. Mice were subjected to stress and then made to run a water maze, a commonly used test to determine cognitive function. One group was given noni juice while the control was not. What was found was that the group that was given noni were both more efficient at completing the maze and showed less signs of inflammation in the blood vessels of the brain, a common effect of stress. The researchers concluded that noni juice has a protective effect against the kind of stress that causes cognitive impairment.

That's good stuff. And it makes me wish I knew about noni juice when I was still in school doing exams. I could have used something that helped me think clearly under stress.

While it has been known for some time that cruciferous vegetables are cancer fighters, scientists have been working to find which compound actually does the work. This has lead to the discovery of several different compounds and their effects on cancer cells.

In the current study, published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, the compound investigated is one called sulforaphane, extracted from broccoli and broccoli sprouts. The researchers found that, in both cell cultures and rodents, sulforaphane targeted and killed cancer stem cells and prevented new tumours from starting. They believe this may be an effective means of treating or preventing breast cancer.

These researchers believe that working on the cancer stem cells is the key when it comes to controlling cancer. The authors report that recent studies have built evidence toward the theory that many cancers are actually driven and sustained by a relatively small proportion of cancer stem cells.

"This research suggests a potential new treatment that could be combined with other compounds to target breast cancer stem cells. Developing treatments that effectively target the cancer stem cell population is essential for improving outcomes," said Dr Max Wicha, lead researcher for the study.

Think five to 10 servings of fruit and veggies a day is the secret to a long and healthy life? You're not alone -- for years, experts touted the magical benefits of fresh produce to the masses. But recent research has found that fruits and vegetables can only offer limited protection when it comes to one major killer -- cancer.

Studies on over 500,000 people across Europe conclude there's only a 'weak' association between high produce consumption and lowered cancer risk. They found that eating an extra 200g of fruits or veggies only reduced the cancer risk by three percent, and this mostly applied to women. What's more, the five-to-10-a-day rule really only benefited the health of heavy drinkers.

When it comes to cancer, Walter C. Willett of Harvard's nutrition department thinks people should put more effort into avoiding known disease-causing habits. "For prevention of cancer, the primary focus at present should be heightened efforts to reduce smoking and obesity because obesity in the United States has become similar in magnitude to smoking as an avoidable cause," he said in an editorial note on the study.

Eight years ago, Carole Carson went on a mission to get healthy. She changed her eating habits, started exercising regularly, lost 62 pounds and felt like a million bucks. She has written four books and is spearheading community weight-loss efforts ("Community Meltdowns") across North America. Here, she describes what prompted her to change her life.

Q: What inspired you to get healthy?

A: I got up one morning eight years ago and I weighed myself naked - I didn't put on my underwear because that will weigh a half ounce - and I stepped on the scale and it broke. I thought that might be a message from on high. I realized that I needed to do something. We live in a little town in northern California, and I went out and bought a new scale - and it was worse than I thought. I decided that I wasn't going to go on a diet, but that I was going to get fit once and for all.

Q: Did you feel unfit or unhealthy before you made changes?

Would you like to avoid cancer? Silly question, I know - who wouldn't? Well, a new study done by the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) has found that those who consume higher levels of vitamin K2 are 14 percent less likely to get cancer. And those who consumed high levels of the vitamin who did get cancer were 28 percent less likely to die from it.

These numbers may seem low, but when it comes to cancer prevention, anything you can do to improve your chances is worth trying. Avoiding toxic products that contain carcinogens, eating foods high in cancer-fighting phytochemicals, getting adequate nutrition and overall living a healthy lifestyle are all secrets to a long and cancer-free life.

Vitamin K is considered an "emerging nutrient" as more research comes out about its function in the body. As you might have guessed, there is more than one form of vitamin K. The term "vitamin K" actually denotes a whole family of related compounds. Two of the more common forms are K1 and K2. Vitamin K1, also known as phytonadione, is found in green vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, spinach or lettuce. Vitamin K2, also known as menaquinones, is a little harder to source, which I'll get to after the jump.

A new study out of France has found that men supplementing with the essential trace mineral selenium decreased their risk of abnormal blood sugar metabolism. The mineral shows the potential to protect against diabetes, according to the study published in the journal Nutrition & Metabolism. Oddly enough, the mineral did not seem to have an effect on the abnormal blood sugars of the women studied.

"The reason we observed a protective effect of selenium in men but not in women is not completely clear, but might be attributed to women being healthier at baseline, having better antioxidant status in general and possible differences in how men and women process selenium," said lead researcher Tasnime Akbaraly from the University of Montpellier I.

Sitting on the couch doesn't prevent cancer.

Some people think they are a ticking time bombs when it comes to cancer, but it turns out that genetics only plays a small role in contracting the disease; it's lifestyle that really matters. A 2008 review determined that only 5 – 10 percent of cancers are related to genetics. The study reported: "The evidence indicates that of all cancer-related deaths, almost 25–30 percent are due to tobacco, as many as 30–35 percent are linked to diet, about 15–20 percent are due to infections, and the remaining percentage are due to other factors such as radiation, stress, physical activity, environmental pollutants etc." I should note that the majority of the cancers caused by infection are related to sexual activity (HPV and HIV/AIDS), so you may wish to be discerning in your choice of partners.

So, don't smoke, eat healthy, choose your bed partners wisely, chill out, avoid chemicals, and get some exercise. Can you remember all that?

Oh, and I forgot to add: get enough sleep.

An interesting study presented at the 2008 Annual International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research suggested that regular exercise can decrease a woman's risk of cancer; if she gets enough sleep, that is.

Find out more after the jump