Best Natural Ways to Increase Your Testosterone

Testosterone is the hormone of manliness. Yes, women make testosterone too, yet men make much more to achieve the body size, muscle mass, bone density and strength associated with manhood.

Low testosterone levels contribute to infertility, loss of lean body mass, increased body fat, moodiness and even hot flashes. Yes, men have hot flashes too.

In men, testosterone is a hormone produced primarily by the testicles. As men age, testosterone levels decline. By age 30, stress, lack of exercise, highly processed foods and exposure to xenoestrogens (synthetic chemicals that have estrogenic effects like those found in pesticides) depletes testosterone levels.

In the past fifteen years the norm for blood levels of testosterone in men has dropped dramatically. Most men have no idea what their testosterone levels were when they were young and virile. By the time they seek medical attention with signs of low testosterone including erectile dysfunction, low libido, loss of muscle mass, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, and rising cholesterol levels, their testosterone has dropped significantly.
In severe cases, bio-identical testosterone replacement therapy can be prescribed by an experienced health practitioner. Yet high doses and continual use will diminish your natural ability to make testosterone.


8 Ways to Naturally Increase Testosterone Levels

1. Lose Body Fat

Healthy men should have less than 18% body fat. The American Council on Exercise compares male and female body fat percentages by activity level.

 

graph credit: American Council on Exercise

Notice that women need more body fat to produce hormones specifically estrogen. When men approach female body fat levels, guess what, they produce more estrogen too!

Lose the belly fat by cutting out all refined sugars and starches. Eat only whole grains and get most of your carbohydrate calories from vegetables. Your diet should consist of no more than 30-40% of your calories from carbohydrates. Carbs are fuel. If you aren’t using them as energy, you’re storing them as fat.


2. Exercise Nearly Every Day

High intensity exercise, combined with really slow weight resistance is the best way to increase lean body mass. This means interval training. Do some type of high intensity exercise for short bursts—running, biking, treadmill, rowing, elliptical—about 30 seconds as fast and hard as you can. Then slow down for 60-90 seconds. And repeat the cycle 8-10 times. Do this three times per week and you will burn fat and increase lean body mass.

Once a week, go for a long slow aerobic activity—hike, bike, run, swim. Be sure to stretch after each exercise session and always warm up well. As you get older, you lose flexibility, so warming up for at least ten minutes and cooling down with adequate stretching will prevent injury. Go slow, if you are a former couch potato.

At least once weekly, lift heavy weights really, really slow. Strive for a contraction phase of 40-60 seconds and a release phase of double the time (80-120 seconds). Do just one exercise per body part, and you will increase your muscle strength and endurance significantly. Be sure to get professional help at the gym before tackling heavy weights, so you don’t hurt yourself. And of course, warm up first!

At least once weekly, take a day off. This allows your muscles to repair themselves. You will notice results faster with less injuries, if you give your body a weekly break. Take a relaxing stroll with a loved one, walk the dog, do some light gardening—just no intense exercise.


3. Get Enough Sunshine

Vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin. It’s a pro-hormone that allows your steroid hormones to get into the cells. You need at least 15-20 minutes of sunbathing (80% of your skin exposed without sunscreen) to make enough Vitamin D for your daily needs. If your serum levels are low, you may need to supplement with a triglyceride based Vitamin D to optimize your levels. Studies have shown that those populations with the longest longevity average 50 ng/dl of 25OH Vitamin D in their blood.


4. Consume Enough Zinc

Zinc is a mineral that is important for testosterone production. Too much zinc can dangerously lower copper levels, so it is best to get zinc from your diet, rather than supplementation. Zinc is found in meats and fish, raw milk, raw cheese, beans, and yogurt or kefir made from raw milk. Be sure to eat organic grass fed meats and diary products as conventional farming methods rely heavily on chemical fertilizers and pesticides which rob the soil of nutrients like zinc.


5. Eat Enough Healthy Fat

Testosterone is a steroid hormone which means it’s made from cholesterol. As your testosterone levels drop, your cholesterol levels rise specifically LDL cholesterol (the large particle type). You need to eat fat to make testosterone. Be sure to get at least 30% of your calories from fat. And one third of those fat calories should come from saturated fats. Saturated fats help create cells membranes allowing hormones to get into the cells through receptor sites.

Healthy fats include: olives and olive oil, coconut oil, avocado, nuts, seeds, meat, poultry, fish, diary products, and eggs. Fried foods do not count as healthy fats. In fact, high heat adulterates fat and should be avoided.


6. Get Enough Protein

Protein is made up of amino acids which are the basic building blocks of all your tissues. Branched chain amino acids (BCAA) like leucine, isoleucine and valine are needed to build muscle and connective tissue like tendons and ligaments. Whey protein is rich in BCAAs and a safer alternative to using individual amino acid supplements. Animal proteins are the best source of BCAAs, but legumes are a good alternative.
You should be eating 0.5-0.75gm of protein per pound of lean body mass. Your lean body mass can be calculated by subtracting your body fat in pounds from your body weight. For instance if you weigh 200# and you have 15% body fat (or 30# of body fat) your lean body mass (LBM) is 170#. Which means you need at least 85 grams of protein daily to maintain your lean body mass. A 4 oz chicken breast has about 28gm of protein.


7. Reduce Stress

Stress in any form creates a fight or flight reaction. Your adrenals do not know the difference between a tiger chasing you and your worry over a late bill. The reaction is the same—adrenaline surges to get you out of danger, followed by cortisol released to fuel the fight or flight. If you were really running away from a tiger, the stored sugar released by your cortisol surge would fuel your flight. If not, you get to store it as body fat!
Cortisol blocks the effect of testosterone in the body. While testosterone is an anabolic hormone (builds tissue), cortisol is a catabolic hormone (breaks down tissue).

Meditation is a great way to reduce stress. Learning relaxation skills like deep breathing and visualization can help reduce stress. Most stress responses are learned. Seek professional help from a licensed therapist to teach you how to be less reactive to your stressors. Chronic stress is the biggest hormone challenger which will age you rapidly.


8. Balance Your Hypothalamus

Most hormonally challenged men have been testosterone deficient and cortisol driven for so long, their hypothalamic-pituitary axis is disturbed. In the center of your brain, the hypothalamus orchestrates your hormonal response, all of your hormones. The hypothalamus perceives your world through your senses and all the hormones you produce via the bloodstream. It then tells the pituitary what hormones to stimulate according to what is most necessary for survival. If you do not correct hypothalamic imbalance, you will need hormone supplementation for life.

I created Genesis Gold® to help balance out the entire symphony of hormones and optimize hypothalamic response. Plus the whole food phytonutrients help your body metabolize and detoxify your hormones safely. Many of my male patients have been able to achieve optimal testosterone levels by taking Genesis Gold® and following the healthy lifestyle habits suggested above.

Keep Hormones in Harmony with Genesis Gold

Read more about how Genesis Gold® can help you achieve your optimal state of wellness at www.genesisgold.com

Copyright 2015 DMaragopoulos

Is Your Hypothalamus Causing Your Health Problems?

Hypothalamic dysfunction could be root of your health issues, if you have the following symptoms:

• Weight gain and inability to normalize weight
• Hair loss
• Exercise intolerance
• Lack of endurance
• Hot flashes
• Temperature intolerance
• Fatigue
• Insomnia
• Skin rashes
• Moodiness
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Intolerance of usual stressors
• Forgetfulness or brain fog
• Irregular periods or No periods
• Infertility
• Headaches
• Thyroid disorders
• Adrenal disorders
• Auto-immune diseases

I have been writing articles regarding the hypothalamus for years and finally the public is reading them. When I got this email, I realized that the time is ripe for the role the hypothalamus plays in our health to be appreciated:

I have been doing research on the Hypothalamus and more specifically the disorders that can plague that gland. I stumbled upon an article you wrote which included a link to your product Genesis Gold®. I have to say that I am very intrigued, as the information you have provided speaks to me and the trials facing me. I would like to give you a history, if you do not mind….

Then she went on to describe a myriad of the above symptoms…which she assessed was hypothalamic after many doctors and treatments later had not relieved her of her problems. Her health goals were to:

• Lose fat and gain muscle
• Improve sleep and energy levels
• Balance hormones and improve fertility
• Ease symptoms of  depression

I guess the whole point of this email is to inquire about your products. I am willing to try just about ANYTHING and I am impressed by the "idea" of your products. My main concern is the cost and the validity of your products and company. I mean no offense, but it is so hard to tell what is real, and what is a scam. I find the information on your site to be very accurate, and informative...especially since there really isn't a lot of information on hypothalamus disorders and even more so on what to do about them. I would appreciate it if you would write me back.

Thank you very much.

So I wrote back:

I understand your reservation.

Genesis HealthProducts was incorporated in 2000. The product has been on the market since 2003 and available online since 2007. I waited to make it available to the public to take time to collect data on a wide variety of populations. I seeded the internet with articles in 2008. It’s just been the past couple of years that people are interested in the hypothalamic connection.

GenesisGold® and Sacred Seven® are the only plant based nutraceuticals that focus on balancing the hypothalamus, improving hypothalamic-pituitary axis, and supporting the neuro-immune-endocrine system. I created them because I could not find anything in allopathic or naturopathic medicine that would correct hypothalamic dysfunction.

As you know, there is no way to measure the hypothalamic hormones without killing the lab rat. So we have to make an assumptive diagnosis based on the decline of hormones directly related to hypothalamic function—like those controlled by pro-opiomelanocortin—the thyroid, adrenals, and pancreas.

Since Genesis Gold® has been available, I have seen patients completely dependent on hormone replacement therapy (adrenal, thyroid, sex steroids) with hypometabolism and metabolic syndrome heal.

One of my patients, a woman in her mid 30’s diagnosed with hypopituitarism and an anatomically normal pituitary gland, came to me wanting bio-identical hormone replacement rather than the synthetics she had been taking for years. She had never had a period and only with obsessive exercise and HRT was she able to keep her weight under control.

She did very well on the bio-identicals for years. When I finally got Genesis Gold® manufactured, she agreed to give it a try. Over the next eighteen months, she was able to wean off her hormones, all of them. And had her own periods not induced by exogenous hormones. I told her it was time to think about contraception. She laughed. She still believed what the doctors had told her all her life—that she was infertile.

She gave birth to a healthy baby boy at the age of 43. She has been hormone free since. I suspect that when she gets close to menopause, she may need some transitional hormone supplementation.

She is my most dramatic case. I have others with hypothalamic dysfunction yet not full panpituitary syndrome who have been able to start functioning on their own.

So far fourteen babies have been born to previously infertile women using Genesis Gold®. I have had insulin dependent diabetics be able to cut their insulin dosages in half. I have patients with  thyroiditis normalize their anti-thyroid antibodies and reverse their hypothyroidism. I have seen polycystic ovary and amenorrheic women menstruate normally after just a couple of months of use.

GenesisGold® and Sacred Seven® are the only plant based nutritional supports for the hypothalamus. With glandulars you are limited to six months of use as after that studies show that the glandular is dispersed through the system rather than concentrated in the target gland. We were not meant to consume the glands of animals for more than medicinal purposes.

I wish that I could afford to do the research necessary to support my findings. All I have are case studies. Yet Genesis Gold® sells itself. People see how well their friends and family are doing and start taking it too.

I recently started consulting in a conventional medical practice. These patients are over medicated and undereducated. The physicians do not believe in supplementation. I’ve broached the subject with some of their tough cases. And those who have chosen to take Genesis Gold® are responding quickly. Perhaps that is because they are so very toxic with all the medications and poor diets.

Most of my customers/patients find that Genesis Gold® replaces many bottles of supplements saving them at least half in cost and a whole lot in convenience.

While Genesis Gold® contains Sacred Seven® amino acids, I find that adding extra Sacred Seven® hastens the healing in the toughest cases.

It's about time we got to the root of so many health issues.

The hypothalamus is maestro of the entire symphony of hormones, neurotransmitters, and immune factors. Plus it controls all our basic body functions including those essential for survival.

Thankfully, the hypothalamus is very responsive to nutritional therapeutics. And I created Genesis Gold® to support the hypothalamus. If the maestro gets support, the whole orchestra is more harmonious.

Feed the body what it needs to heal and it will heal.

I hope you find this information helpful.

Yours in Health,

Deborah Maragopoulos MN FNP-BC

Intuitive Integrative Medicine

www.genesisgold.com

Balance takes Time

Hormonal transitions like perimenopause, andropause, even aging can be very challenging especially with the change in metabolism. You gain weight and lose muscle tone. You sleep poorly and have trouble handling stress. You have low energy, low sex drive, low motivation. 

And you want to feel better now... yet balance comes with time 

Everything that lasts takes its own sweet time to ripen and mature.

Your current state of health did not happen overnight. Who you are now is a result of years of choices. Lifestyle choices including what you eat, when you sleep, how much activity you get, what toxins you've been exposed to, even your belief systems affect your health.

I created Genesis Gold to help our bodies heal naturally.

Choosing to take Genesis Gold is making a commitment to your future health. For those newly ill, most recently out of balance, it may take weeks or months to optimize their health. For those out of balance for many years, it'll take longer. 

It's like making the choice to quit smoking. Let's say you've smoked a pack a day for thirty years.  You feel worse before you feel better. You cough up pretty yucky stuff as your lungs clear out years of toxicity. It'll take at least thirty months to restore healthy lung function. 

Same with Genesis Gold. Most people find it when their health is truly challenged. Oftentimes they've tried many therapies before finding my website, reading an article, or being referred by a friend. I counsel them that according to how long they've been ill is reflected by how long it'll take to restore wellness.

Those who commit to taking Genesis Gold as their daily foundational support will keep optimizing their health. 



Which product should you take— Genesis Gold or Sacred Seven?

Genesis Gold has adaptogenic herbs to help support your adrenals, sea vegetation to support your thyroid, whole plant nutrients to optimize digestion, detoxification, immunity and energy production as well as the Sacred Seven amino acids to balance your hypothalamus. Genesis Gold provides foundational support for lasting change. 

Adding extra Sacred Seven to Genesis Gold for the first few months or during times of extreme stress will provide the hypothalamus with extra support to speed the healing process. 

 Remember - Balance comes with time.

After eighteen years of no menses, it took two months of taking Sacred Seven before I had my first normal period. Yet not until I started taking Genesis Gold was I able to stop taking all the other supplementation to support digestion, detoxification, and hormone metabolism. And when I began the menopausal roller coaster a few years ago, I added back Sacred Seven to my Genesis Gold to help me flow through this hormonal challenge as gracefully as possible.

Tap into Your DNA

I've been teaching my patients for years that thought becomes manifest in our DNA. Our self-talk directs our DNA to dance accordingly...as healing or dis-ease. And Russian scientists have proven it! *

Consciously directing our DNA is why I created Genesis Gold...I alchemized into the formula (which came to me in dreams) my heartfelt intention to optimize our genetic potential by balancing hormones, neurotransmitters and cytokines (tiny immune messengers) so our biochemistry sings harmoniously to our DNA. With the help of Genesis Gold, many have healed themselves.

Healing at the genetic level is through a symphony of biochemicals that carry messages to the DNA. Most of us are born with DNA encoded for survival. If our communication networks are functioning properly then the DNA gets the proper messages to adapt to any situation. Dis-ease is more of a mal-adaptation to the environmental exposures and disharmonious energies.

We now have scientific proof that water has memory and can be imprinted with whatever it is exposed to. Since our bodies are made up of at least 60% water then it holds true that we can imprint our cellular fluids with healing through positive thoughts, nourishing foods and joyous experiences. I've "known" this to be true since I became a healer... my healing energies are imprinted in Genesis Gold and every day I take it, I send blessings to all those who are drinking it with me.

When the Japanese earthquake sent radiation spilling into the ocean, many of my patients called concerned. I told them that first, Genesis Gold has enough sea vegetation in it to protect their thyroid from radiation uptake, and second, that by promoting harmonious communication, they would adapt to whatever comes.

Your DNA has the best blueprint for your adaptation to any situation.

Imagine mining your DNA for gold: Health. Wellbeing. Longevity. Vitality. Greater Mental Abilities. Emotional Intelligence. More Refined Senses. Increased Sensitivity. Sacred Attributes. Well, you can.

I mine my DNA by swimming Fibonacci patterns. Diving under the water I imagine diving into myself, into my cells, into my own genetic code.

With each figure eight I swim, my mind clears, I relax into myself, and soon insight bubbles to the surface. I like to swim but you can do it anyway you please. The figure eight motion whether swimming, walking, dancing is meditative in itself.

Anytime I have a healing concern, I dive into myself. Usually my body will communicate back to me what is needed to heal: a change in diet, more sleep, different activities, a change in scenery.

Going more deeply, past the afflicted body part, into the tissues, the cells, finally into the DNA itself, I find what is needed may be a shift in consciousness.

First we must be open to change before healing transformation can begin. That’s really the hardest part—being open to receive healing.

When healing seems evasive, I often wonder how I’m blocking healing. Usually it’s emotional. Unresolved grief, unexpressed anger, or deep fear manifests itself as dis-ease.  It’s the emotion that may be blocking healing, even our own healing intentions.

Once I had a patient come to me to lose weight. So I counseled her on changing her sleep patterns (she was a night owl which contributes to insulin resistance and obesity), changing her diet (which was SAD—the Standard American Diet—high in calories, low in nutrients), begin exercising (she was completely sedentary with a daytime desk job) and most importantly to learn to love herself enough to make the changes necessary to get healthy.

She struggled with her weight…never quite ready to make all the changes necessary to get healthy. Oh, she dieted and would lose some weight. She started exercising and again weight would come off. She learned to sleep at night which improved her insulin resistance. Yet she was coming for help out of fear of dis-ease, not out of love for herself. While we made some progress, it didn’t stick.

Then she started taking Genesis Gold and began noticing all the ways she was sabotaging herself. She described becoming a more compassionate observer of herself. She decided finally it was time to change for good.

She took the plunge. And discovered a deeply ingrained belief that was sabotaging her weight loss. Over time with more counseling and more work on her part to learn to love and appreciate herself, this patient got down to healthy weight and has remained there since. And she does not have to be so strict with her diet or obsessive with her exercise. She can even miss some sleep and not miss a beat. With the change of attitude and help of Genesis Gold to balance her hormones, brain chemistry and metabolism, she is manifesting her best self.

It takes much courage to dive into yourself and discover what is needed for your highest wellbeing. No one else can do this for you. You can be guided with visual imagery, hypnotized, counseled ad nauseum, yet ultimately, you must commit to yourself and take the plunge. 

I created Genesis Gold to help us tap into our greatest potential. It’s all in our DNA, everything needed to be healthy. We are already whole. We just got to dive deep to discover the treasure. Go on, now, take the plunge!

Tap into your highest genetic potential with Genesis Gold!

* http://wakeup-world.com/2011/07/12/scientist-prove-dna-can-be-reprogrammed-by-words-frequencies/

How to become your own Body Whisperer

What if you could know exactly what your body needs? Without researching on the internet, consulting with medical experts, or running a bunch of tests. What if you could be your own medical intuitive?

Well, you can. Your body has innate wisdom that you can tap into. You have within your DNA all the information needed to heal any dis-ease, age gracefully, in fact live much longer than your ancestors. But how to access that information?

Your body communicates with you all the time. Most of us don't listen to the subtle communication until we become ill. Dis-ease is your body screaming at you when you haven't attended to the whispering. It's ok. It's how we learn. As humans, we are a bit hard-headed. We think we know. And we try to think our way through our body's intricate physiology without really understanding its language.

And the soul speaks through the body. I find that in spite of the best treatments, until the deep soul issue that dis-ease is mirroring can be identified does the true healing begin. Most of my work now focuses on helping patients discover why their body has manifested imbalance in the form of injury or illness. We address the physical aspects with a combination of conventional and alternative medicine. Sometimes patients are so ripe for healing that in our first two hour consult they receive the soul issue and start to do the work.

I believe that my patients have progressed because I have learned to open myself to receive them body, mind, and soul. So in their own sweet time, they learn how to heal themselves, how to trust their body's innate wisdom, and then miraculously it seems they heal.

Becoming innate is a remembrance of our ability to self heal, to know what our bodies need for health and vitality and what our souls need for growth and enlightenment. It's like becoming a Body Whisperer. That is what it feels like to me as a healer. Very similar to reading the subtle messages of a horse or a dog. Someone once called me a Hormone Whisperer. That's where I start...I resonate with my patients and "read" their body's innate wisdom like a vibrational book.

It has always been my intention to tap into the body's innate wisdom. I feel strongly that communication with the genetic blueprint is possible if...and this is a big if...our hormones are in balance. By focusing on the hypothalamus which directs all the hormones, I was able to get my own hormones in balance and hundreds of others over the past eleven years.

By creating then consuming Genesis Gold, I achieved hormonal harmony and became a Body Whisperer. First for my own body and then for others. Because when you're in harmony, dis-ease and imbalance really feels out of tune!

Since Genesis Gold came to market in 2003, I have witnessed many of my formerly "stuck" patients—those unable to heal themselves—start to listen to their bodies and then trust that innate wisdom enough to allow healing to occur.

In fact, I warn my patients before they choose to partake of Genesis Gold that their lives will change as they perceive their lives with more enlightened eyes. As they consume Genesis Gold, their perspective shifts. Yes, many of the changes are physical—people sleep better, their hormones come into balance, their moods stabilizes, their digestion improves, they detox more efficiently, their hair grows, they look and feel more vital—but there's more subtle changes that transform their lives. They start to recognize synchronicity.

Dreams become more lucid and they begin to understand what their subconscious needs to heal. They start to live more peacefully, experiencing greater ease, trusting in their own ability to heal, to transform their lives.

Geneticists have discovered that within the unexpressed DNA are potentials. As if everything we were and will be lies in the blueprint in every cell. What we are at the moment is DNA expressed. What we needed in the past is still in our genetic code...like the genes for hibernation. Still there some 26,000 years since the last Ice Age. We may need it again. In fact some peoples' bodies are expressing that Ice Age genetics today. We call it Insulin Resistance. Yes, in order to survive the Ice Age, your body needs to store fat around your middle with thick sugary blood that acts like antifreeze flowing through your veins and a very slow metabolism.

Unfortunately, because of hormonal miscommunication, the genes of hibernation are turned on. Medicine calls it dis-ease...pre-diabetes...Well, I call it maladaptation.

So why not improve hormonal communication and turn off the "dis-ease" genes and turn on healthy adaptive genes? You can do this by changing your lifestyle—turn off all your lights after dark. That's right, no computer, no TV, no light what so ever shining on or near you while you sleep. Oh, and stop eating processed foods. No sugar at all! Adopt a strict Paleolithic diet AND a very early bedtime. Oh yes, to keep in perfect balance, you must rise with the sun.

And this strict healthy lifestyle may help some achieve their perfect health. But it won't work for all of us. And I, for one, prefer to celebrate life with good food, good wine, (yes, wine—the good stuff, life is about joy so why suffer?)

Recently I had a physical examination, pretty much from head to toe by my local nurse practitioner. We have been colleagues for years, but she hasn't seen me—well, all of me—since 2004. She was surprised. "You're in such great shape. You haven't aged at all." Well, that's not true, but compared to who she usually examines, I guess I've maintained pretty well.

"You must work out all the time! It shows!" Nope, I don't! 

"You must never eat junk food!" That's not true. I love home baked cookies and gelato.

"Then what is it that keeps you so healthy?"

Genesis Gold. It's all I take and I eat what I want and keep active, but no more formal exercise. Unless you count dancing in the kitchen :)

 

Genesis Gold helps your body tell you what it needs. And it may need drastic lifestyle changes...or it may need a more gentle transformation. Either way, you'll be naturally supported and not have to take a ton of supplements to stay well.

The choice is yours. You CAN heal yourself by tapping into your genetic potential.

Your Hypothalamus – the Maestro of your Symphony of Health

A biochemical symphony controls your body’s function.  Hormones, neurotransmitters and immune factors act as biochemical messengers that sing to your DNA. If you’re hormones are in harmony, your DNA dances health. 

These "hormones" control all of your body's functioning—digestion, detoxification, growth, repair, sleep, sex drive, reproduction, stress response, metabolism, body composition,  immunity, healing, cognition, learning and memory.

Neuro-immune-endocrinology—the Symphony of Hormones 

 I have been taking care of patients of all ages for nearly 30 years. While my conventional training focused on the treatment of the symptoms of disease, my intuition guided me to search for the underlying roots of dis-ease.  

As a nurse practitioner practicing intuitive integrative medicine, I perceive the roots of dis-ease...biochemical, psychological, spiritual. Yet I believe healing is innate, encoded within our DNA.

Your Hypothalamus—the Maestro

When I left conventional medicine to practice Intuitive Integrative Health, I started to see the most challenging cases. That’s when I began to assess and focus my treatments on the symphony of hormones produced by the neurological, immune, and endocrine systems.

That’s when I discovered, rather rediscovered, the HYPOTHALAMUS.

The hypothalamus is a crucial organ in your brain that runs the entire neuro-immune-endocrine systems.  And when the “hormones” produced by the neuro-immune-endocrine system are out of balance, the body malfunctions which we call dis-ease.

Although, we learn about the hypothalamus in premed anatomy and physiology classes, by the time we begin our health care practice, we forget the importance of this primitive brain structure. We just don’t appreciate the hypothalamus. We cannot measure the hormones the hypothalamus produces, so we don’t deal with it.

Yet the hypothalamus plays a vital role in the orchestration of the symphony of hormones. Hormones directly control the DNA and most dis-ease is a result of hormonal miscommunication.

When Hormones Sing, DNA Dances.

The hypothalamus orchestrates our entire system.  Feed the hypothalamus and harmonize the symphony of hormones so the dance of the DNA expresses health and vitality.
What could I feed the body to tap into the genetic potential for health and wellbeing?  After much research and soul searching, I surrendered and in my dreams a formula was revealed... 

The first seven nights I awoke each morning from my dreams and wrote what I remembered—sets of seven amino acids. Each corresponding to the hypothalamic control of the endocrine glands. Seven times seven. 

After following my intuition and paying close attention to my dreams. I began clinical studies. I believe what we intend becomes. So I mixed the plant based amino acids with the intention to heal the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual body— Sacred Seven®.   

Like any scientist, I was my own guinea pig...

I took the Sacred Seven® along with my patients in the first pilot study. But first I took myself off bio-identical hormone replacement therapy I had been using to treat runner's amenorrhea. I also stopped all other supplementation.

Within two months, I had my first normal menstrual cycle in over 20 years. I also craved meat...which was disturbing since I had been a vegetarian for seven years. But I had decided to "listen" to my body like I instructed my patients...so I ate meat. And felt great! In fact, my mild anemia cleared up. Then I began craving orange vegetables—pumpkins, yams, butternut squash. So I ate them too and did not suffer from the winter blues. Interesting.

Granted I had put on five pounds, my overweight patients do not gain, but most lose the extra body fat. I apparently needed to gain...the same amount of weight I gained each time I conceived. In spite of my gynecologist's warning that with such low body fat, I was probably infertile, my two children came to me in dreams (like Genesis Gold®), so I let my body take over AND it gained five pounds AND I conceived.

Not since my pregnancies had I been so attuned to my body. It was like my DNA was talking...loudly...telling me what to eat, when to rest, and how much to exercise. Sacred Seven® amino acids changed my life. I slept well for the first time...having suffered somnambulance—sleep walking nearly every night for 18 years was exhausting.

Yet I could no longer exercise. Now I usually instruct my patients on regular exercise. But I was fanatic. I only had 12% body fat, I had been running competitively since high school and had competed as a triathlete for seven years before conceiving Sacred Seven® and GenesisGold®. Almost as soon as I began the Sacred Seven® amino acids, I could not even think about running without my Achilles tendon aching horribly. So I walked. I learned to dance. I rode my horse. And when my body said it was ok to run, I enjoyed the scenery for the first time ever.

Once I found the best manufacturer for Genesis Gold®, I switched my alliance. I am better supported with the full formula, no more outrageous cravings to fill in my nutritional deficits. And I eat well. We grow most of our own fruits and vegetables and buy organic, but even I cannot gather all the nutrients necessary to support my body, mind, and soul in our modern world. So now with Genesis Gold®, I can eat anything I desire and I feel great.

Over the past thirteen years, I have maintained that crucial five pounds, no more, no less, without obsessive exercise. And I’m now going through menopause at 52, although my three younger sisters have been menopausal for the past eight years—a testament to how stress robs you of your hormonal competence without the hypothalamic support of Genesis Gold®.

So why do I still take Sacred Seven®? Because as a healer dealing with the Hormonally Challenged, I need extra hypothalamic and genetic support to maintain optimal health. Although Sacred Seven® is in GenesisGold®, the extra amino acids also helps me maintain my creative energies...to help you, my patients, my colleagues and myself heal...body, mind and soul.

May Your DNA Dance Health!

Deborah Maragopoulos MN FNP-BC

Genesis Gold naturally balances your symphony of hormones, neurotransmitters and immune factors

Sacred Seven balances your hypothalamus naturally

 

Why I became a Hormone Expert...

Everyone has a story: why they do what they do, how they became who they are in the world. And I have mine.

In 1984, I gave birth to a premature baby who stumped expert endocrinologists with numerous hormonal challenges. Defying medical advice, I orchestrated the care of my firstborn by learning everything I could about how hormones affect developmental behavior. My intuition proved correct—our healthy son is now a beloved teacher. In spite of my traditional training as a nurse practitioner, what I learned as a patient and a parent sparked an expertise in holistic neuro-immune-endocrinology, the interface, I believe, between the bio-physical and the psycho-spiritual being.

Through my own bio-psycho-spiritual journey, I evolved into an intuitive healer capable of honing in on the biochemical interconnections of human physiology and relating them to symbolic imbalances as lessons on a patient’s soul path. Spiritual gurus, psychological geniuses, and fully grounded but very ill patients from around the world presented themselves to gain insight on the wellbeing of their physical forms. Yet, I learned the most from the children.

In 1988, my daughter was born beautifully whole and much more work than my premature son. Although developmentally advanced, speaking by six months and reading at three, he struggled in his body, while she delighted in her humanness. Forcing us all to stay awake, she candidly shared her interdimensional experiences, in constant communication with my dead grandmother, so connected to her father that at any distance she knew what he was feeling, claiming with innocent assurance that they had been father and daughter in a past life, and like I did as a child, could lay her hands on someone and “know” what ailed them. 

Meanwhile, my son struggled in school and at eight, asked to see a “brain doctor.” The psychologist insisted that with his intense brilliance, he could not have attention deficit disorder, but my son insisted on being tested with the “video game.” The psychologist was floored. How could a child know about the newly developed computer program used to differentiate learning disabilities? I just shrugged; his uncanny knowingness was part of our life. When my son agreed to submit to traditional therapeutics, “only, Mommy, if I do not lose my dreams,” again, I was challenged to find a natural solution to his dilemma. Of course, the universe presented lots of opportunities for growth as pediatric patients were brought to me by their parents.

After much research, I began treating my autistic and learning disabled patients nutritionally. While gladly mixing the “brew,” squeezing oil from capsules, carefully measuring powders, their parents asked me to create something easier. So by 1998, and after many exhaustive but futile attempts at finding the nutritional connection between genetics and the hypothalamic orchestration of the neuro-immune-endocrine system, I surrendered to the advice of my children and prayed. 

Every night for three months, I had the same dream in which my most hormonally challenged patients came to drink from a chalice I held. We never spoke, but intuitively I knew they were better. I awoke every morning asking what was the golden liquid in the cup. The first answer came as seven letters, I thought were Hebrew, but later found were Aramaic. Amazingly they translated into the same single letter denotations used for the seven amino acids I had been studying related to the hypothalamus. 

And that’s how my nutraceutical formula, GenesisGold®, was born.

Keep Hormones in Harmony with Genesis Gold!

Hormones in Harmony® - The Secret to Optimal Health

How to Keep Your Joints Healthy Naturally

Ever notice that just as you start an exercise program, you become really aware of your joints? With the best of intentions you go out and start jogging.  Everything feels fine. Until the next morning when you get out of bed, step on the hard floor and the bottom of your feet complain, or your knees creak a bit, or your lower back aches?

Or perhaps you're too busy to exercise. You spend hours every day working on the computer. And every night you go to bed with sore shoulders and neck. Perhaps your wrists or elbows or thumbs ache, maybe they're even a little swollen sometimes.

Well, it's time to start taking care of your joints! Even if you're too young for osteoarthritis, you can slow down the wear and tear effect on your joints with proper care. And if you've already spent a few decades abusing your body, your joints will definitely benefit from care.

What are Joints?

Joints are where bones meet. Ligaments connect the bones to secure the joints. The ends of the bones are capped by cartilage which keeps the joint space intact by producing lubricating synovial fluid.  Meniscus are crescent shaped cartilage that partly divides a joint. Some joints are hinge joints like your knees. Some joints are ball and socket joints like your hips and shoulders. Some joints are sliding joints like the vertebrae in your spine.

Joint pain comes from many factors. Over-strained ligaments, too little lubrication, worn out cartilage. Osteoarthritis is a painful condition in which the joint cartilage is worn to the point that bone rubs on bone.

A Pain in the Neck

Recently, I've been having neck pain with numbness in my right arm.  It started with all this typing. Writing books, articles, blogging...too many hours on the keyboard  completing my two books, writing marketing articles, blogging, designing labels, graphics for lectures...too many hours hunched over my laptop.

I first noticed my neck issues in 2010. The same time my father was experiencing severe cervical neuropathy that required surgery. Getting my resistant father the care he needed through the medicare system was a symbolic "pain in the neck"! I wrote my neck issues off as empathic.

Now I did have a significant fall a couple years before. My horse tripped going down a muddy hill, went head of heels with me on her back. To avoid getting crushed, I vaulted off her back, tucked, rolled, and landed on my feet at the same moment my athletic horse landed on hers. My riding companion clapped, gave us a 10, and we called it a day. Just to be safe, I started my mare on natural anti-inflammatories (my DMAR Natural Anti-inflammatory Treatment) and had the equine chiropractor give her an adjustment. I did nothing for myself...I felt fine.

But that was the injury that haunts me now. My muscles tightened up to protect my vertebral joints and I added to the chronic tightness by too much keyboarding. About three years after the initial injury, I had enough pain and numbness to seek treatment.

After ruling out that I did not have a disc herniation, I sought chiropractic adjustment. Until my neck issues, I did not get regular adjustments, now I'm a believer. I always warm up first with direct heat or exercise and my chiropractor uses an electric massager that helps my muscles relax.

I also do traction. I apply heat to my neck for fifteen minutes twice daily. Then I "hang myself" with an over the door cervical traction device. It looks archaic and kind of scary...the first time my sister saw me in traction, she screamed, but then she tried it and felt relief from her neck tension. Gentle traction separates the joints. It's important to relax the muscle tension with heat before traction. I do this daily regimen until I no longer feel numbness or tingling which are signs of nerve compression, the slowly wean down the traction. Compressive activities like lots of computer work, horseback or motorcycle riding necessitate that I open up my cervical vertebrae with gentle traction from time to time. 

I've changed the way I keyboard. I use my iPad which I can easily place at a comfortable position in my lap to write all my first drafts. If I need to edit or do graphic work, I raise my desk chair as high as possible, bring my laptop as close as possible and support my dominant hand on a pillow on the arm of the desk chair. I also find that wearing my grain-filled hot wrap over my shoulders while I work reminds me to relax my shoulders.

Regular exercise helps improve circulation. Plus I do stretching and strengthening exercises. For my neck, I do yoga poses that focus on the neck and shoulders. Doing supported back bends over a large physical therapy ball helps to stretch my neck and upper back.

I also take nutritional supplements to support joint healing (my DMAR Natural Joint Therapy) Loss of disc space between the vertebrae is common as we age, so I'm doing all I can to keep my discs plump and my joints healthy.

Three tips to keep your joints healthy:

1) Adopt proper body mechanics

First you must change the way you're doing things that are causing pain. I have to go over my patients' body mechanics in relation to their injury to help them Realize what they need to do to stop aggravating the issue. That may mean buying better running shoes, jogging on soft surfaces like dirt rather than concrete, getting an expo to evaluate your body mechanics during the offending activity. It may mean ergonomic chair, computer placement with keyboard on your lap and screen at eye level. Massage and chiropractic adjustment may be necessary.

2) Strengthen muscle groups that support the affected joints

Exercise - the key to healing. Yes, strong muscles support your joints. Exercise specific for the affected joint is important. Low impact aerobic activity increases circulation and relieves muscle tension. An evaluation with an exercise physiologist or physical therapist may be necessary to find out what specific exercise you need to strengthen the muscles that support your affected joint. Usually the exercises necessary to help heal your pain are not the same ones you've been doing that caused the problem. Many runners with lower back issues have tight hamstrings which need to be stretched.

3) Nourish your joints to help them heal

You may be eating all organic, well balanced meals, but joint healing requires extra nutrients. Many of my older patients complained of joint pain when they ran out of Genesis Gold. The extra nutrition from the whole plant foods in Genesis Gold keeps inflammation at bay.

There are joint specific supplements that have been shown to hasten joint healing. Glucosamine and chondroitin have both been show to help repair cartilage. Hyluronic acid helps lubricate the joints. MSM has an anti inflammatory effect. Collagen can help repair joint damage. Hot herbs like frankincense and turmeric are excellent anti-inflammatories.

All these supplements can be found at most health food stores, pharmacies, or online. Unfortunately many people take these supplements improperly and do not get the full benefit. I've put together my favorite joint supplements in a protocol that seems to do the trick. Check out: DMAR Natural Joint Therapy.

If physical therapy, body work, or chiropractic adjustments do not seem to last, myofacsitis may be an issue. Fascia is a fibrous plane of tissue that holds muscles in place. When you injure a joint, the body protects itself by splinting the area. the muscles become tense and inflamed and eventually the fascia scars and holds the joint and muscles in malalignment. Sometimes the fascia needs to be released with deep massage in order to allow the muscles and joints to heal in proper alignment. If the fascia is softened up for 2-3 weeks before therapy, myofascial release works better and faster. I developed a nutritional protocol to hasten healing of old injuries prevent scarring in early injury that's my DMAR Natural Anti-inflammatory Treatment.

Yours in Health,

Deborah Maragopoulos MN FNP-BC
Intuitive Integrative Health

For Optimal Health Tap into Your DNA

So you think you’re stuck with what you’re born with? Not so.

Our genetic potential has barely been tapped. Most of us only use about 30% of our DNA. What do I mean by that? Well, when scientists finally decoded DNA in 2000 they found that less than one third of our genetic material was being expressed. The rest they called junk. We have since found out that the rest of the "unexpressed DNA” is not junk.

Think of holiday lights taken out of storage. A tangled mess you plug in and only 1/3 of the lights are on. Now with a little work, you can disentangle the lights and figure out which bulb needs tightening or replaced and viola, they all work. Well, same with our DNA. The secret is how to tap into to our highest potential.

Our DNA is a divine blueprint, a set of instructions for how to build and maintain our bodies, how to survive everything life on earth has in store for us, and how to thrive as the energy on the planet shifts from 3D to 5D and beyond. Yes, everything we need to manifest our souls' desires while here on earth.

Yet we were taught that what you were born with is all you have to work with. In other words, there's no turning on more lights. I have never believed that DNA was static.  And in 1984 just a year out of nursing school, I gave birth to a child who proved my intuition. My baby was born intersex. Back then the condition was called ambiguous genitalia and chromosome studies showed the baby to be an XY female.

But wait! Isn't XY the male chromosomes? Yes, but the baby's genitalia appeared feminized. So the top pediatric endocrinologists advised that my husband and I raise our child female. I didn't agree. I had a dream of delivering a blond baby boy. So we kept him as is. The doctors were alarmed, "he'll never masculinize!" Yet by puberty those androgen resistant cell receptors started responding and his testosterone began directing his DNA to become a young man. Now, my son is still intersex. While his body masculinized, his brain functions like a woman as well as a man. He is very special gift indeed. I learned that:

A: What I was taught in my medical training was wrong...DNA is not set in stone, and

B: DNA can shift with nurturing--the physical, the mental, and the spiritual.

In 1997 when I first opened my Intuitive Integrative Medical practice, I prayed to understand how the neuro-immune-endocrine system orchestrated health and dis-ease.  So the universe sent me (or rather, I manifested) an influx of Hormonally Challenged patients including many "learning disabled" children.

Intuitively I knew that these children's brains were starving. These were the children of the new age, of our new earth. They do not learn as we do in old paradigm ways. And they needed highly absorbable nutrition to optimize their genetic potential and help them thrive in the shifting energy.

I developed micronutrient recipes using various supplements that I had their parents feed them. And the children woke up. They spoke for the first time. They began to socialize with their peers. They began to thrive.

In the meantime, more and more Hormonally Challenged patients were coming from around the world. I had great success with bio-identical-hormone replacement therapy, yet it seemed I was creating dependency by replacing what the body should be making. Plus the numerous bottles of supplements needed to enhance the aging or dusfunctional cell metabolism was overwhelming. And the children’s formulas had to be constantly adjusted. Could I do what I was asking my patients to do to be healthy?

No. It had to be simpler. My research led to the maestro of the entire symphony of hormones, neurotransmitters, and immune cytokines—the hypothalamus.

If I could feed the hypothalamus what it needed to orchestrate the system, then the hormones would be in harmony and sing beautifully to the DNA, which would dance health and vitality.  Maladaptive genes that cause dis-ease would turn off so more of our genetic potential could be expressed. The body would have what it needed to heal itself.

My son, the child who started my venture into the science of medicine and the art of healing, advised that I meditate on what I was searching for and then see what came in my dreams. And I dreamt of a unique nutritional formula to support the hypothalamus and optimize genetic potential.

That was over thirteen years ago and my creation, GenesisGold, has helped hundreds of people become healthy in body, mind, and soul. Some have called it therapy in a bottle—as once your body gets what it needs to optimize its genetic potential then old psychological patterns that no longer serve your new healthy self begin to arise to be cleared.

I believe we are tapping into our highest genetic potential…aging more gracefully, becoming free of medications as our bodies heal, knowing innately what we need to thrive—physically, psychologically and spiritually.

Genesis Gold was gifted to me. Now I offer my creation to you.