New Year, Clean Start

Posted by: The Balancing Center

And welcome to 2014. It’s been a brutal start to the year. We hope you weathered the freeze with relative aplomb. We can all look forward to a veritable heat wave this weekend! 38 degrees? It’s practically beach weather!

When it’s this cold outside, healthy eating can be at least a little challenging. Cool, crisp salad doesn’t warm you up like pot roast or chili or burgers. The coldest and darkest months of the year require comfort foods and hibernation! 

But if you’re feeling the toll of that comfort, feeling a little slow and sluggish after the indulgences of the holiday, this might actually be a great time to reintroduce healthy eating into your days and nights. It might not seem like it at first, but healthy eating can be an even greater comfort to your body and mind in both the short and long run.

You can make a great start by clearing out the old before ushering in the new. Kickstart your year with a great cleanse! Cleanses can jumpstart your body and set a great foundation for a year of healthy eating and habits.

The two cleanses for 2014 we’re recommending are the McCombs Plan and Orenda’s Clean, Burn, and Shape. Both cleanses have something a little different to offer, depending on your health goals.

If you’re looking to recalibrate the environment in your gut--gut health being absolutely essential to wholeness and wellness--the McCombs Plan is specially formulated to help you achieve a healthy balance of yeast in your digestive tract. It’s a rigorous and thorough process, with a food regimen and you can find out more at the McCombs website and also in this blog post by Dr. Ken.

Clean, Burn, and Shape is the new cleanse and weight-loss program from Orenda, our partner-in-health. It is a 10 day vegan cleanse followed by a 30 day diet and exercise cycle. This program features tasty shakes and works in tandem with Orenda’s established line of supplements. You can read more about CBS (as we call it) here.

Let us know if you’ll be embracing a cleanse this year and which one! We’d love to feature and celebrate your results. 

Here’s to a clean start and a wonderful winter!

November's Product of the Month

Posted by: The Balancing Center

The holidays are approaching. (Maybe you noticed the storefronts around the city have gone straight to displaying Christmas trees? We’ll be celebrating Christmas in July soon enough.)

Whichever holiday you observe, the upcoming months are a wonderful time for the three Fs: family, friends, and food.

And oh, the food. Holiday meals are more like feasts, tables arrayed with countless combinations of meats and vegetables and fruits in a variety of spices and seasonings and sauces.

Between the freezing wind outside and the plates of rich food inside, hibernation begins to make sense for us humans.

That’s why for this November, our Product of the Month is Eaze, a digestive supplement from Orenda. Eaze is a supplement that supports digestion from mouth to stomach to gut and not only relieves digestive discomfort but supports an overall healthy digestive system. You can digest rich feasts easier with this blend of 31 digestive enzymes, probiotics, and prebiotics!

Prebiotics and probiotics, however, are not just for easier digestion (though they are stupendous at that). Recent research suggests that repopulating your stomach and gut with healthy, essential prebiotics and probiotics can help support a buoyant and healthy mind! Scientists have long known that the brain sends signals to the stomach and digestive tract but only recently have they begun to study how the stomach and digestive tract actually send signals back to the brain.

Read more about the effects of prebiotics and probiotics on mental health here.

This holiday season, digest your feasts with ease with Eaze! And, as a bonus, give your brain a boost!

To order Eaze, stop by the office to pick up a bottle at a $5 discount! You can also click here and select the “Get Started” icon in the top right corner of the page to shop for it and other Orenda products. If you have any questions, give us a call at (312) 787-7222 or schedule an appointment.

Clean, Burn, and Shape

Posted by: The Balancing Center

We are well into the second half of 2013 and it seems like a great time to evaluate how your year has gone and how you would like your year to finish. How are you lately? Are you feeling energized and lively? Sluggish and tired? Ready to take on the upcoming months or maybe wanting to get back to those New Year’s resolutions you made almost eight months ago? However you’re feeling, there are things you can do to either keep up your momentum or increase your energy so you can finish your year with a flourish!

Besides visiting your friendly neighborhood chiropractor, we recommend taking on the rewarding challenge of a cleanse, specifically Orenda’s new Clean, Burn, and Shape program. Cleanses, when done safely and properly, can give you more energy and support the health your body is designed to achieve naturally and on its own.

Orenda’s Clean, Burn, and Shape program is a multidimensional cleanse program, beginning with detoxification, supporting healthy weight-loss functions, and creating a strong foundation for continued weight and health maintenance. You start with a 10 day cleanse to jumpstart your metabolism and detoxify your system. After the cleanse you move into three 30 day cycles that outline a detailed diet and exercise regiment. All told, it is 100 days to a leaner shape, cleaner body, and more vitality!

The last step after any cleanse is to integrate your new, healthier habits into your everyday life to maintain your vitality for the rest of your life. Orenda’s Clean, Burn, and Shape program is ideally designed to help you achieve that integration.

Check out this simple and informative online brochure to get the scoop on Clean, Burn, and Shape. If you would like to order the program, visit Orenda’s website here or call the convenient support line at (866) 673-1333. If you would like, you can even call us at The Balancing Center, and we can support you in your decision to Clean, Burn, and Shape!

We’d love to feature your progress and celebrate with you as you move forward in your health goals. Our wonderful office manager, Jennifer, recently began the program and has already seen encouraging results. After her first 10 days, she lost over 13 pounds and an inch from her waist!

If you’re looking for a way to make the second half of 2013 even better than the first, try Orenda’s Clean, Burn, and Shape to receive the best support for your optimal health!

Alkalize for a Balanced Life

Posted by: Dr. Ken Bennett

Balance your pH and regain all the effortless energy and wellness you thought was lost with your childhood.

Life is all about Balance. We’ve all heard the Universal Law - for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Well, the universe that is the inside of our body is no different. Our bodies are constantly working to maintain a pH (Acid/Alkaline) balance in the cells and tissues.

Here’s a quick refresher for those of you that don’t remember high school chemistry that well. The pH scale runs from 1 to 14. A pH of 1 is a strong acid, while a pH of 14 is a strong base (alkaline). Water is a neutral 7.0.

Our body wants to be just slightly alkaline (about 7.4) specifically in the blood which is most important. Different tissues and organs in the body require different pH levels but the blood will always be the priority. For example, your body would sooner take calcium from your bones to bring your blood pH back to 7.4 after your steak and potato dinner. Or it will let all the lactic acid produced from a workout stay in your muscles (making you constantly achy or sore) to keep the blood alkaline. All of this happens because cells and tissues start to malfunction, germs can survive and thrive in an acidic body.

A foundational principle of health is the body is designed to be healthy but programmed to survive.

Sidenote - At The Balancing Center we know this principle holds true for more than just the Acid/Alkaline balance. Structurally speaking our bones are made to be in proper alignment and support our weight. However, accidents and injuries (even repetitive strains like poor posture) can tear loose connective tissue and let your spine and bones shift out of proper alignment. This is important because a misaligned spine creates disturbance in the function of your nervous system which is the master control system, aka: runs all systems of your body. It also means your muscles have to strain to compensate and hold against the misalignments which leads to additional acid formation and wear n’ tear in the body, aka. pain. At The Balancing Center we specialize in detecting and correcting this imbalance. Thus allowing your brain to run the body without disturbance.

We have the choice to make our body's Acid/Alkaline balancing act easy or hard. Thus allowing the body to function more by design than survival programming.

If we choose to eat a lot of acidifying foods such as proteins (meat, grains and dairy) processed foods, and sweets, our bodies have to strain to fight off all the accompanying acid. We can counterbalance the acid, but then we loose all our vitamins and minerals - calcium, potassium, magnesium, etc. In this way we are robbed of the nutritional value in our foods (even bad foods have some value, usually) and we create an environment ripe for the formation of disease. In an acidic environment, as our alkalizing minerals are no longer available for their primary purpose, the body begins to malfunction and disease becomes a reality. Disease can look like any of the following conditions: poor sleep, allergies, loss of energy, digestive issues, cloudy thinking, confusion, pain, weight gain, skin conditions and many more serious problems.

We have the choice to make this balancing act easy. We can choose to eat A LOT of fruits and vegetables -- especially greens. Depending on your metabolic type, this could mean up to 80% of your diet...now I make plenty of healthy choices when it comes to eating, but personally I’m not looking to become the next Bugs Bunny. Therefore, I choose to drink alkalizing, nutrient packed green drinks on a daily basis. When we eat and drink more Alkalizing Foods the minerals and energy packed within create a powerful alkalizing environment for our cells. Germs and tumors starve and die in this environment. Our cells are energized leading to a healthy expression of life -- you can say hello to renewed vitality, a trim lean body that feels great, mental clarity, restful sleep,easy digestion and so much more.

Although it always makes me laugh a bit, the book title “Alkalize or Die” is basically true...although I like to think more along the line of creating balance in life. A body balanced structurally and chemically opens the door to more balance in all aspects of your life. So get your pH in balance and bring abundance and happiness to all those around you.

3 Ways to Boost Your Immune System this Winter!

Posted by: Ken Bennett

Before we get to the 3 ways that help boost your immune system let’s take a step back and think about why we get colds in the first place. Basically, when a germ or toxin we eat, drink or breathe gets past our defense system we get sick. Why aren’t we always sick, if we are always eating, drinking and breathing. Because our immune system usually has the resources to take care of germs easily. So maybe it’s a matter of resources…

At The Balancing Center we believe (and with each patient continue to see proof) that the body is designed to be healthy but programmed to survive. We know that the brain and nervous system control everything that happens in the body (digestion, breathing, immune system, pleasure, pain and the list goes on). There are a number of things that can put our bodies into survival mode such as: germs, accidents, spinal misalignments, injuries, stress, poor nutrition, environmental toxins and the list goes on. When our nervous system’s resources are being used to compensate for a problem, they aren’t available to do what they are designed to do; for example, if your nervous system has to figure out how to deal with a body that is structurally out of balance, digest poor food, deal with a deadline at work or a project at home. It is busy. This creates stress and uses up resources. Our nervous system can lose touch with the immune system. That’s the perfect time for a germ to take advantage and sneak past our defenses. Once the intruder alert goes off the most pressing matter for the nervous system is the germ. So it tells the immune system to get to work but it’s too late. The germ is in and we get sick.

A cold is actually a good thing. Our body is getting whatever shouldn’t be there out of our system. It might not feel good but it serves a very important purpose. What we call cold symptoms is really our immune system (under orders from the nervous system) trying to make our body as inhospitable as possible for the germs. Think about this, if the only water you have is contaminated with bacteria what are you going to do? Yes, boil it! Why? So the bacteria is killed off. Doesn’t that sound like a fever? I’d say so. Then why do people take Tylenol to lower a fever and let the bacteria live? I’m not saying don’t take medicine when you have a fever of 105. Next time you’re feeling a cold coming on, instead of running to the medicine cabinet you can run to your vitamin cabinet. Ride out the symptoms and try and do something to support the fever or congestion (it is there for a reason). Do something to make your body even more inhospitable.

Here’s what you can do.

The top of the list is to help your nervous system. The more resources your nervous system has, the more your nervous system is able to function as it is designed to function (healthy and well) the more resilient and vital every system in our body is, including the immune system. If your nervous system is primed from regular adjustments, when you do get sick (which is inevitable) but, the cold will rarely be bad and typically will be short lived. I know that’s true for my body and I’ve seen the same thing with thousands of patients. A well adjusted nervous system will help every organ, tissue and cell in your body. Immune system included.


#1 Way to Boost your Immune System = Get adjusted and let your nervous system do its thing.


Next, we get to nutrition. What we eat and drink and the vitamins and supplements we take either support us or hinder us. Not taking quality vitamins and supplements while eating processed foods, grains, sugars and dairy will weaken the body. These foods lead to increased levels of inflammation, acidity, glucose and insulin. All of which increase cortisol, stress hormone, levels. Cortisol directly inhibits the immune system.

Eating plenty of organic, fresh fruits and vegetables and organic and free range meat gives our body the vitamins, minerals, protein and good fats necessary to be healthy. These foods all help to decrease levels of inflammation, acidity, glucose and insulin. Hence, cortisol levels go down and the immune system is supported. It’s really not complicated at all.

The following supplements all help to support the immune system either directly or indirectly. I’m going to list the names of the products we have in the office and the main supplement in it. We are very careful only to carry to best products in the office, so everyone gets the most bang for their buck. If you have any questions about why just ask.

Orenda Immune - glucarate
Vitamin D
Detox Essentials – vitamin C with bioflavanoids
Orenda Balance – decreases cortisol
Alka Green – barley
Alka Pan – enzymes
Omega Sufficiency – omega 3 fats, fish oil
Thieves – essential oil blend

Instead of robotusin or Theraflu, when I’m feeling sick these are things I take to make my body more inhospitable and support my immune system. And I totally eliminate grains, dairy and sugar from my diet.

Another thing you can do to strengthen every system in your body is a detox diet but that’s a different blog entry.


#2 Way to Boost your Immune System – Eat a healthy diet and take quality supplements.


Last on my list is sweating. There are two ways to sweat that support your health in different ways.

First, passive sweating is sitting in a sauna or hot bath. As your internal temperature raises your body detox’s from the inside out. The cleaner we are on the inside, the fewer hiding places for germs. Sweating a couple times a week for 10 to 20 minutes is a great habit and it’s relaxing. You can sweat when your feel good or ill. It’s never bad to take a sweat.

Second, active sweating is exercise. You really don’t have to exercise until you are dripping wet. Just getting up and getting your body moving helps to increase circulation throughout your body but especially the circulation of your lymphatic system. The lymphatic system is similar to the circulatory system but your immune cells are in the lymph not red blood cells. Exercise doesn’t have to mean the treadmill or the gym. Those things are great but you can also walk, stretch, swim, bike, skate, etc. The specific activity isn’t important, the doing something is. You also gain the benefit of a stronger heart and lungs while losing weight…all while strengthening your immune system.


#3 Way to Boost your Immune System - Sweat


The bottom line is that the more things we do on a regular basis to support and optimize our body (nervous system) the more vitality and resiliency we will have. We are still going to get sick from time to time. However, a strong body and immune system will respond better and faster to germs and toxins. You can never have too much health. The more we do when we are healthy, the shorter and less severe our colds will be.

Getting Your Vitamin B's While Only Eating Trees

Posted by: Whitney Compton


Since becoming a vegetarian three months ago, I have experienced really great changes in my body. I have more energy, my mind seems to be clearer and in tune with my body, and I have been unintentionally eating healthier by not having the meats tempt me into fatty meals. However, my diet does have to be intentional. I have had to check labels to be sure there aren't animal products. But more importantly, I have needed to make sure my body is getting the nutrients that animals usually provide. Many people question if I am getting enough protein. Beans, eggs, cheese, milk, Boca products, and nuts frequent my cupboards and fridge now. Up until a couple of weeks ago I thought I was doing great and had this whole veg-head thing down. Then Dr. Taka asked me if I was taking a B-12 or B-complex vitamin. I learned that these B vitamins have no vegetarian source, they only come from animals. These B-complex vitamins are important for the cardiovascular system and are extremely important for vegans or child vegetarians. While we don't carry B-12 or B-complex vitamins individually in the office, you can find them in your local store. However, the Orenda All-In-One male and female multi-vitamins do contain the B-12 and B-6 vitamins that you can incorporate into your diet. And vegetarian or not we could all use some extra healthful nutrients in our bodies!

Fruits and Vegetables: Friend or Foe?

Posted by: Dr. Ken Bennett

Did any of you see a recent study that basically said there’s no real benefit to eating fruits and vegetables as it pertains to cancer prevention? Well I did and I was dumbfounded! It’s hard to believe how things like this are allowed in print, let alone a scientific journal…

I just wanted to share an amazing critique that Dr. James Chestnut posted on his blog. He is one of the smartest, logical and straight forward researchers I know. Everything he recommends and believes in boils down to one simple thing. How and what did our ancestors (caveman) eat, drink, and move? If it was good enough for them to live without cancer, diabetes, ADHD, heart disease, arthritis, etc. It should be good enough for us too!

I hope you like the article. I have learned and continue to learn a ton from Dr. Chestnut.

http://www.wellnessandprevention.com/index.cfm/2010/4/22/Fruit-and-Vegetable-Intake-and-Cancer-Risk

Basically, it's just like mom said..."eat your fruits and vegetables"