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Month: March 2024

Is NAD a Healthy Weight-Loss Alternative to Ozempic?

NAD+ overcomes insulin resistance without disastrous side effects

Social media is burning up with images of celebrities who’ve dropped significant tonnage, but are mute about their methods. This is an odd phenomenon, given the characteristic eagerness of this class to publicly pledge their allegiance to the newest fad, no matter how bizarre that craze might seem to the average person on the street. Yet, at each exhibition of luminary lipid loss, the same word is uttered in hushed whispers: Ozempic.

And we have to wonder, why the muted tones? If Ozempic is a miracle weight-loss drug, shouldn’t we be shouting about it from the rooftops? Turns out there are ample reasons to be wary, and even more reasons to choose a particular safe and effective alternative: the natural coenzyme NAD.

Step 1: Design a catchy ad campaign  

Want to charge $1,200 a month for an injection whose benefits are decidedly short-term, and which puts patients at risk for numerous painful, debilitating side-effects, as well as a dispiriting rebound of the conditions they sought to alleviate in the first place? Then you must, must, must pick a catchy, long-forgotten pop song from the 1970s, whose original lyrics were all about the wondrous state of being in love.

Now you’ve got “Oh-oh-oh-Ozempic!” subliminally telling viewers of ubiquitous pharma commercials that “It’s magic.” Fossils of my era will remember the Scottish band Pilot cautioning listeners, “Never believe it’s not so!” But should we believe the advertising hype around Ozempic? Many sources, including those in the health and fitness sphere outside of Big Pharma, are telling us “No.”  

What is Ozempic and why should I be skeptical?

According to the website Health.com, Ozempic a semaglutide, a “synthetic version of a human hormone called glucagon-like peptide one, or GLP-1.” Humans secrete GLP-1 when food reaches our gut. It tells our brain that we’re full and tells our pancreas to get off the schneid and produce some insulin, the hormone that signals our cells to open wide and receive blood glucose. When all works well, GLP-1 ensures that we don’t gorge ourselves and that the vacuoles of our cells widen, taking in glucose to convert to energy. This latter process also lowers our blood glucose levels, sparing us the consequences of diabetically high blood sugar.

People with type II diabetes either don’t produce enough insulin or suffer from extreme insulin resistance, so that while their insulin’s a knockin’, their vacuoles are sayin’ “Don’t come in.” (This is a problem with cell-signaling, one of the many cellular functions that depend heavily on the co-enzyme nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, or NAD.)

Ozempic is designed to increase insulin production for type II diabetics who have had trouble getting their blood sugar under control with other methods. Ozempic is delivered via twice-monthly injections, at a cost of about $1,200 per month. Health.com tells us, “After injection, semaglutide increases insulin production and lowers blood sugar. This causes the stomach to empty more slowly, reduces appetite, and makes people feel full.” So, it should come as no surprise that Ozempic has delivered another sought-after benefit: weight loss.

Is the bonus benefit just a dangerous illusion?

The Ozempic bonus has led overweight people, especially celebrities who can afford the high price tag, to request the drug for weight loss, a use for which the FDA has not approved it. Yet, doctors seem willing to prescribe Ozempic for off-label use, a practice that is often controversial if not illegal. In fairness to these doctors, we should note that another semaglutide prescription, Wegovy, has FDA approval as a weight-loss drug. But should either of these synthetic hormone drugs be used for this purpose?

This lady in a lab coat says no. And we must listen, because she is appropriately dressed. (Also note that she’s an MD, not an actress.)

Thank you, Dr. Annette Bosworth.

A litany of side-effects, some of which are deadly

If you’ve seen an O-O-O-Ozempic commercial, you’ve heard the recitation of side effects, which range from unpleasant to deadly. The mild variety includes:

  • Fatigue
  • Dizziness or vertigo
  • Discomfort and/or skin discoloration around the injection site
  • Increased heart rate
  • Changes in perception of taste
  • Digestive problems, such as belly pain, constipation, diarrhea, flatulence, burping, nausea, and vomiting

Ozempic patients have also started reporting hair loss.

 The more serious side effects include:

  • Kidney problems, such as kidney failure
  • Low blood sugar
  • Pancreatitis
  • Gallbladder disease, such as cholecystitis or gallstones
  • Thyroid cancer
  • Allergic reactions

All of these are potentially fatal.

After reading these lists, the reasonable reader might wonder, “At what point do the risks outweigh the possible benefits?” For people who cannot control their diabetes, the disease is eventually fatal. Other messy consequences include blindness and amputation of extremities. So, a roll of the dice with Ozempic might be in order.

Alternatives to a potentially deadly roll of the dice?

However, most people with type II diabetes can control their sugar through dietary and lifestyle modification. These changes are generally not easy, which is why many so people are open to taking a magic shot, courtesy of our consistently trustworthy friends at Big Pharma. This mindset, which seems to be the basis for Ozempic’s marketing strategy, has really rankled celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels, who has voiced her concerns about Ozempic to Megyn Kelly (video below) and Bill Maher.

As Ms. Michaels explain, Ozempic treatment is necessarily short. And for many patients, the benefits sunset early, as their weight loss plateaus and the pounds rebound. Unfortunately, the side-effects seem to linger well beyond patients’ use of the drug. Another reason for concern is the psychological effect Ozempic seems to have on type II diabetics, who should maintain a strict exercise regimen. According to a report from MSN, Ozempic seems to discourage overweight people from working out.

Is NAD+ optimization a better way to manage insulin resistance?

Dr. Jin-Xiong She is a prominent microbiologist who has spent a significant portion of his career studying the relationship between cellular functions and age-related/metabolic diseases, including type II diabetes. The precursor to type II diabetes is the condition we call insulin resistance, where the cells do not respond to the insulin’s signal. This forces the pancreas to produce more insulin, eventually exhausting itself. When the body no longer produces its own insulin, a patient must take insulin orally or via injection. For people in a prediabetic state, insulin resistance causes stubborn weight gain, along with ancillary health problems.

Dr. She has studied the role of NAD in cellular functions, and in this short video, he explains four key benefits of NAD as they pertain to normal insulin sensitivity.

Unfortunately, people lose NAD due to age, stress, and lifestyle choices, such as a poor diet, smoking, alcohol consumption, and a sedentary lifestyle. This can turn insulin sensitivity into insulin resistance. The good news is that replenishing lost NAD can return the system to healthy homeostasis. Replacing lost NAD is tricky, but Dr. She has developed a highly effective supplement he calls Vitality Boost.

NAD optimization: a safe, natural path to better health

One of the great benefits of Vitality Boost is the increased energy one feels after just a few days of using the product. This can empower an overweight person with insulin resistance or type II diabetes to hit the gym and get the natural health benefits of exercise. Many people have been able to reverse type II diabetes and return to good health through dietary and lifestyle modifications. Supplementing to achieve NAD optimization makes the process easier, so more patients should be able to improve their health for the long term.

Importantly, NAD is a natural compound, not a synthetic, so there’s no list of horrendous side effects. I’ve written in this column about the numerous health benefits I’ve experienced with Vitality Boost. It’s precisely because of those health benefits that I asked Dr. She to make me an affiliate marketer for his company Jinfiniti Precision Medicine.

If you are struggling with insulin resistance or type II diabetes, I urge you to try this amazing product. Ask your doctor which is more likely to help you: the all-natural compound that’s an essential cofactor for virtually every cellular function, or the synthetic hormone with the catchy jingle, a monthly cost equal to your mortgage, and a list of side effects the length of the King James Bible.

O-O-O-I think I know what they’ll say.

Great news: Get started with NAD for 15 percent off!

Vitality Boost from Jinfiniti Precision Medicine

You can get started with Vitality Boost for 15 percent off the standard price by using my offer code KevinRush15 at checkout. Just follow this link: Jinfiniti!

Disclaimer: The column may contain affiliate links, which help support the website. When you clink on an affiliate link and make a purchase, the website receives a small commission at no additional charge to you. Thank you for your support.

NAD: The Best Sleep Aid I’ve Ever Encountered

Essential molecule rebuilds your sleep mechanism on the cellular level

For as long as I can remember, I have struggled to get a good night’s sleep. The problem started after a childhood accident left me with a nasty case of whiplash and misalignment of my spine. I suffered from stiff necks, and it became exceedingly difficult to get comfortable. I often woke up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. As the years progressed, my sleep got progressively worse, because now I had daily concerns that I took to bed each night. I turned them over in my mind, as I tossed and turned in my bed.

So, naturally, I was tired all the time, which too often seemed to be the defining characteristic of my life. I got through high school on sheer adrenaline and caught a break at college where free time between classes allow me to sneak an occasional nap. Studying didn’t come easy; reading was so relaxing, I’d often fall asleep at the beginning of an assignment. There wasn’t enough coffee or speed, (readily available at the campus infirmary), to enable me to pull an all-nighter. As a result, my grades were far from stellar, and I graduated thoroughly unready for the working world.

man sitting on bed in morning
Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com

Working 9 to 5, as I often did between acting gigs, was torturous. When three o’clock rolled around, I could barely keep my eyes open. I had to fight to stay awake until I got my second wind. I often waited tables, beginning an evening shift around 4 o’clock, which meant leaving home around 3 pm, which was the height (or depths) of my afternoon slump. Eventually, I went into teaching, where the workday mercifully ended with a 3 pm dismissal. I could leave school by 3:30 and either get my much-needed nap or fight the slump and go running…slowly…after a long, slow warmup. Many an afternoon, I felt like a vampire crawling back to his coffin at dawn.

There were years when I commuted by motorcycle or car, and my heavy lids put me in mortal danger. You might recall the old Bill Cosby routine about negotiating with himself over how long he could “rest his eyes” while driving. I mentioned this to a colleague who said he actually did fall asleep driving home one afternoon and awakened just in time to brake, to avoid crashing into a car stopped in front of him.

There were times when lack of sleep had me so stressed out, I’d have horrible nightmares. This pattern made me apprehensive at bedtime, making it even harder to relax and fall asleep. Of course, the nightmare would come, like a self-fulfilling prophecy, guaranteeing a couple of insomniac hours before I could fall asleep again…often 10 minutes before the alarm went off.

My futile search for a good night’s sleep

I was not cavalier about my sleeping problem. I knew that poor sleep was ruining my health, and I did everything I could to overcome it:

  • Acupuncture
  • Aspirin
  • Tylenol PM
  • Benadryl
  • Chamomile tea
  • Dragon bone
  • Dolomite powder
  • Tryptophan
  • Melatonin
  • Rosebud tea
  • Hot baths
  • Massage
  • Therapy
  • Meditation
  • Calcium, magnesium, and zinc
  • SAMe
  • St. John’s Wort

None of this really worked. Oh, perhaps for a time I might sleep better, then the insomnia would creep back in. Or I’d go out like a light and not be able to wake up in the morning. Or the remedy would work, but a side-effect would force me to give it up.

I even went to a sleep clinic, and they gave me a machine to monitor my sleep. They said to put a clip on my finger and sleep as usual, and the machine would record my oxygen level to determine whether I had apnea. I put the clip on my finger, and the annoying thing kept me awake all night. No sense getting a C-PAP machine. If I couldn’t sleep with a clothespin on my finger, I wasn’t going to sleep in scuba gear.

thermometer on medical pills
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

At one point, I wondered if I was clinically depressed, so a doctor prescribed some antidepressants. I took them for a couple of nights, but they left me feeling utterly desolate. It’s hard to explain the sensation, but it felt like a knife was scraping the flesh from the bones of my soul. I tossed the rest of the pills in the trash.

Ultimately, my strategy for decent sleep became a low-stress schedule, a panoply of supplements, occasional acupuncture and massage, regular but not too strenuous exercise, rosebud tea, afternoon nap, and a near-total ban on red meat. (And, of course, no sugar, but that was for other reasons.) Over the last several years, since I’ve been working freelance and making my own hours, I could catch some Zs on the back end of a rough night. If I was wide awake from 3 to 5 am, I could sleep until 9 am. If it took me 10 hours to get seven hours of sleep, so be it. It was high-maintenance sleep hygiene, but at least I could function.

Sleep restored through NAD+

What a difference three months make! That’s how long I’ve been taking Dr. She’s NAD+ optimization formula, Vitality Boost. In that time, my sleep has become deeper and more restorative. I still wake up once or twice during the night, but I quickly fall back to sleep. Sometimes, I’ve been out so deep, that it takes me a while to come around, but once I do, I have a great deal more energy. In short, Vitality Boost is the most effective sleep remedy I’ve ever encountered. I’ve had such great results from Vitality Boost that I asked Dr. She to make me an affiliate marketer for his company, Jinfiniti Precision Medicine. So, here’s my pitch for your best night sleep.

NAD restores essential molecules for cell functions

photo of sleeping man
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

NAD+ is an essential, natural compound for maintaining a healthy circadian rhythm. When you have sufficient levels of NAD+, your body understands that it’s time to sleep. NAD+ also reduces inflammation, so aches and pains melt away. You’re more comfortable, relaxed, and ready to sleep. Plus, NAD+ improves cell signaling, thus correcting problems like insulin resistance that can cause blood sugar spikes that disrupt sleep in the middle of the night.

People lose NAD+ with age, stress, exposure to toxins, and poor lifestyle choices. Once your levels fall off, NAD+ is very hard to replenish with just diet and exercise. Fortunately, when the importance of intracellular NAD+ became apparent, scientists like Dr. Jin-Xiong She set out to discover effective ways to optimize for it.

More than an effective insomnia remedy!

As I alluded to above, NAD+ is an essential cofactor in a wide array of cellular functions, such as energy production, respiration, and cell division. Without NAD+, our cells struggle to function, which means our tissues, organs, and systems struggle, opening the door to various metabolic and age-related illnesses. I’ve written in this blog about how NAD+ helped me overcome a panoply of symptoms, including:

  • Allergies
  • Brain fog
  • Fatigue
  • Insomnia
  • Muscle strain
  • Inflammation
  • Sciatica
  • Shoulder impingement syndrome

My experience is not unique. I’ve spoken to numerous people, including Dr. She himself, who have overcome age-related aches, pains, and decline. They report greater energy and mental clarity, as well as higher libido and improved sexual performance. But research has also shown that optimizing NAD+ levels can alleviate the symptoms and/or deter the onset of:

  • PTSD
  • Insulin resistance
  • Type II diabetes
  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Cancer
  • Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s

Based on what I’ve experienced and read over the last several months, I firmly believe that anyone over 35 should be supplementing to optimize their NAD+ levels.

All NAD+ supplements are not created equal

Vitality Boost from Jinfiniti Precision Medicine

Unfortunately, NAD+ is hard to supplement, and not all products or methods are equal. Many are, frankly, a waste of time and money. Dr. She has tested his supplement, Vitality Boost, against other products on the market, and has documented that it is far more effective. It’s also super convenient to take, and is reasonably priced for all the benefits it bestows.

Great news: Get started with NAD for 15 percent off!

You can get started with Vitality Boost for 15 percent off the standard price by using my offer code KevinRush15 at checkout. Just follow this link: Jinfiniti!

If you routinely struggle to get a good night’s sleep, you know how insomnia is undermining your health. Do yourself a tremendous favor and order Vitality Boost today. You’ll be very happy you did.

Disclaimer: The column may contain affiliate links, which help support the website. When you clink on an affiliate link and make a purchase, the website receives a small commission at no additional charge to you. Thank you for your support.

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