Boost Your Feel Good Approach to Life!

Our lifestyle and diet in these stress-filled times is often compromised and results in lowered ‘feel good’ serotonin levels within our brain. As a result, many people are overweight, crave sugar and other carbohydrates, experience bouts of depression, get frequent headaches, and have vague muscle aches and pains.

Even those who regularly exercise or watch their diet may still struggle with these issues and erratic sleep patterns, as they get older. All of these symptoms can be reduced by naturally increasing serotonin levels in the brain.

We’ve had ongoing delighted customer feedback about the excellent effects of Health Script vitamins. The key is the combination of vitamins and minerals in our formulas that create just the right balance. In our PM Relax & Sleep supplement it is the magic mix of the 11 ingredients with 5HTP and Valerian making the difference. 5-HTP (5 Hydroxytryptophan) is an amino acid that is the intermediate step between tryptophan and the critical brain chemical serotonin.

Extensive international evidence suggests that low serotonin levels are a common consequence of modern living and contribute to depression and sleeplessness. We’ve noticed that many of our customers are those suffering hormonal imbalances during midlife when stress and sleeplessness seem to peak. Their excellent response to this product in combination with our AM Feel Alive energy boosting multi-vitamin has improved their mental and physical well being. Although 5-HTP was relatively unknown in New Zealand, it has been available through pharmacies for several years and has been intensely researched for the past three decades.

It has been available in several European countries as a medicine since the 1970s. Its popularity overseas is due to the many advantages natural 5-HTP has over the chemical L-tryptophan. Firstly, because it is one step closer to serotonin, 5-HTP is more effective than L-tryptophan. 5-HTP is also inherently safer. Although L-tryptophan is safe if properly prepared and free of the contaminants linked to severe allergic reaction known as eosinophilia myalgia syndrome (EMS), L-tryptophan is still produced with the help of bacterial fermentation.

In contrast, 5-HTP is isolated from a natural source – a seed from an African plant (Griffonia simplicifolia). Evidence that this natural source of 5-HTP does not cause EMS is provided by researchers who have studied 5-HTP for over 25 years. They state that EMS has never appeared in the patients who received only uncontaminated L-tryptophan or (5-HTP). There are also several studies that show 5-HTP is equal to or better than standard antidepressant drugs and the side effects are much less severe. The natural effect 5-HTP has in supporting Serotonin levels in the brain, is why it is so effective in improving sleep patterns and reducing stress.

Finally, with all the recent negative press and health issues associated with conventional sleeping medications, it’s worth considering a natural sleep remedy like PM Relax & Sleep, which won’t leave you with that awful chemical hangover from chemical sleep medicine.

Health Script’s natural products are Dairy and Gluten free and made to the highest GMP standards here in New Zealand. They are available online at www.healthscript.co.nz – use promo code LiveLong to enjoy $10.00 off and free delivery for any two products purchased. They are also available from Huckleberry Farms Harvest Whole Foods in Grey Lynn, Auckland.

Do You Need a Multi-Vitamin?

What am I looking for again? Can’t remember a name? Having trouble sleeping? Feeling anxious about things that didn’t used to bother you before? Suffering with body aches and low energy levels?

Lack of sleep, stress, low levels of nutrition and poor lifestyle habits can contribute to irritating changes in your brain and body function. As we age our bodies are less effective at extracting vitamins from our food and we become starved of essential nutrients to function at our optimum. A vitamin deficiency can be the root cause of many of your symptoms.

Health Script Ltd designs their own vitamin formulas here in New Zealand. They’re made to the highest quality standards under strict GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) guidelines, which is audited and certified by Medsafe (part of the Ministry of Health). Every ingredient is independently tested to guarantee its quality and purity. Gluten, dairy, soy, nut and bee-product free with no additives, preservatives or colourants.

Health Script’s premium quality AM Feel Alive multi vitamin and PM Relax and Sleep Dual Pack has 35 essential minerals and vitamins. The Dual pack has more antioxidants than most leading brands with 6,000mg of grape seed extract along with other essential nutrients. Our customers are delighted after experiencing big improvements in their overall energy levels, concentration and sleeping patterns. Another outstanding product is Health Script’s JointFX which blends ancient and modern remedies, giving you anti-inflammatory nutrients for joint, cartilage and muscle recovery.

We’re offering a special promo for Growups readers. You’ll get $5 off and FREE delivery when buying online. Just copy this promo code LiveLife online or click the mail order option (for manual payment), on the delivery page and you’ll get 60 (two months supply), quality capsules made and manufactured right here in New Zealand for only $39.95.

Why take our word for it?  See what our independent customers are saying.

What Makes a  Top Quality Multi Vitamin?

GMP Approved: New Zealand has strict regulations governing the labeling and contents of health supplements and vitamins. Make sure you buy GMP approved products.

Complete: We need at least 30 different vitamins and minerals says the latest scientific research. Health Script AM Feel Alive is a complete multi-vitamin to boost your energy levels and improve your concentration.

Guaranteed  Quality: The best health supplements are put through rigorous quality testing so you get exactly what it says on the label.

Bio-available: The nutrients must be in the most bio-available form. Natural  and free of artificial preservatives, dyes, allergens or other contaminants.

You be the Judge: Try another formula if a multi-vitamin doesn’t make you feel better within the first 30-60 days. All your symptoms may not have improved in that time, but you should notice a real improvement in your overall energy levels and wellbeing.

Find out more about top quality vitamins, formulated and made here in New Zealand at: http://www.healthscript.co.nz/

Is Vitamin Deficiency holding you back?

Here’s an interesting article about vitamin deficiency in older people, particularly women in their forties and older. This reinforces the role a good quality mult-vitamins like AM PM from http://www.healthscript.co.nz can help support the right balance of nutrients in your system so you feel and look your best 24 hours a day. I’ve uploaded it on our FaceBook page so you can check out other relevant information and articles too. Please LIKE us too to get access to promo codes and special  discounts on our products.

http://www.facebook.com/HealthScriptLtd

Health Script’s products are certified GMP quality and Medsafe approved. See our website for more information and a list of stockist if you want to see them for yourself. Otherwise buy online and have them couriered to your door for free with promo codes available on request. Email info@healthscript.co.nz

On Your Bike!

By the time I was 45 I was over loud, crowded, sweaty gyms, and stressed and frantic in a corporate job. So I had that age-old excuse of “no time”.  I took a variety of vitamins to maintain and support my health but knew this wouldn’t do the trick on its own. After a couple of years of wallowing and becoming increasingly guilty at my lack of activity, I took up cycling.  How hard could it be? Back in the day I cycled 5km to school and back, not like lazy, computer playing kids of today conveyed to school by car or bus while chowing on takeaways!

My husband, a keen cyclist, was delighted. He swooped in with all kinds of advice, he even bought me a bike. I cunningly bought some Lycra gear so no one would know I was a novice – yeah right. An intense discussion ensued around pedals and bicycle clips. I hadn’t factored in any of this but went along for the proverbial ride. Clips then? Yip.  I omitted to say he is VERY economical with his communication. I had no practice and therefore no understanding of how the clips worked. I was mildly alarmed when I watched him screw the pedal lock things under the cycling shoes and change the pedals into some weird looking metal contraption that the shoes would now clip into. No matter. If he worked them, surely I could.

Early on Saturday morning, I transformed myself into a pseudo-tour de France contender, trussed up in tight fitting Lycra from nobly knees to neck. I complained about the thick padded crotch and was convinced I looked like I was wearing four incontinence pads as I duck-waddled to my bicycle. Helmet – check. Gloves – check. Water bottle – check. Anxious – hell yeah!  With a look from him and a grunt that sounded like “follow me” we took off.

I fumbled and wobbled and after about two blocks managed to get both my shoes into the cleats. That would’ve been reassuring, if I wasn’t so frightened about how to get OUT of them. There was so much to watch out for, trucks, people, dogs, traffic, parked vehicles, and of course my husband. I struggled to keep up with him and then a red traffic light. I slowed and started to wriggle my right foot, trapped in the pedal. I frantically watched the back of him disappear around the corner and slammed on the brakes, falling hard to the right, both shoes still cleated into the racing pedals. Had anyone seen me? NO. This is the reason cyclists go out really early in the morning! I scrambled up, my elbow, knee and thigh bleeding – miraculously through the Lycra, which remained intact.

I leapt back on the bike. I can do this. Frantically ridding in his general direction and now aware of Le technique, was no assurance that I could execute it! Get at least one foot out and ready to hit the road before the traffic lights. Another set of lights and another fall. Sensibly, I fell on the left ,to balance out the grazes and bruising, now on both sides of my body. During that first ride I fell about 5 times and travelled about 30km. The second time I only fell once. I rode most of the time with one foot out of the cleats and balanced precariously on top the metal pedal clip – it inadvertently slipped into position and I fell at the next stop street. I argued for “real” pedals and he insisted I would never learn to ride “properly” and I didn’t. I gave up after several attempts and one race along the coast where I came in the last third of the pack. Some years later he confessed at a dinner party that something was wrong with the cleats themselves that should just slide out easily. Ummmmmmmm.

Now ten years later, I walk, jog and listen to music as I move through the park or along the coast. It’s calm and pleasant, my cycling scars have almost healed – just the psychological ones remain. I did ride again, about a year ago, with real pedals to see if I could get to work each day. In Mission Bay an idiot in a 4WD swung his door out from a parked position, I shouted, swerved to miss being hit head on by his ignorant manouvre and went into the oncoming lane. Fortunately, for me, there was no traffic and I survived – unlike the young woman killed on Tamaki drive two weeks after this. That was the end of my cycling. I will stay firmly on terra firma and enjoy the stress-free ease of moving at my own pace and in my own style.

Enjoy Successful Aging

Live longer, healthier and look better too

You don’t have to starve yourself, or miss out on tasty treats….or pound the pavements for hours a day to keep fit and healthy. I firmly believe that a little of what you love does you good – as long as it’s not EVERY DAY!!

Moderation with food and also moderation with exercise. See what they say here about maximising the results of your efforts:

http://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2010/06/26/10-minutes-of-exercise-yields-hourlong-effects.aspx

Getting your heart rate up for 20-30 second intervals helps burn fat and improves your overall fitness. This is far more effective than a gentle stroll around the shops (as much as we all love that!). And NO – house work doesn’t count!

Think of cave men – after all that’s where we came from and how we are biologically designed. They were constantly moving and sometimes in very stressful conditions and at speed! So it makes sense to consider “Interval” training so you rest and relax your breathing and give your body a break inbetween pushing it hard, lifting that heart rate and your breathing in between. In the link above they say 20 minutes of this a day and you’ll be fit and flourishing in no time.

Eat a balanced diet, drink lots of water and keep moving – especially if you are over 30. It’s hard to drag yourself around the park in winter – but that’s the time your body needs it most. The tendency to slouch on the couch and eat more stodgy food is always higher during cold weather – so keep yourself in check. Lifting a few weights won’t do any harm either and keeps your muscle tone in good condition. Good quality supplements – a multi-vitamin to ensure you get all the nutrients you need will help support you healthy aging programe! ENJOY!

See http://www.healthscript.co.nz

Ten Stress Indicators – How stressed are You?

Read the ten points below and if you answer yes to 3 or more of these indicators, then you are living a stressful existence. If you respond to 5 or more of the statements below, then you are seriously stressed and need to take some positive action to improve your health and well being.

• Broken sleep, resulting in less than 5 hours sleep a night

• Feeling overwhelmed and drained by day to day activities

• Mood swings, quick to anger or upset with family and work colleagues

• Memory loss and concentration issues. Distracted at work or with family demands

• Headaches, sore eyes, tension in shoulders and neck.

• Over eating or snacking the wrong foods in a rush. Or under eating and effectively “starving” becoming mal-nourished through bad eating habits.

• No time or motivation to exercise. Can’t be bothered about much these days.

• Body aches and pains, digestive issues and mid-life problems.

• Sometimes just want to run away from it all and hide. Don’t want to face each day – fantasize about escaping the job, home, country etc.

• Tired and exhausted when only half way through another demanding and stressful day – fall asleep at any opportunity but cant stay asleep.

We’re not getting any younger – so doing all you can to ensure you maintain your mental and physical well being, and enjoy healthy aging is a good start. Using the right skin care, getting a good hair cut and buying a new outfit with a great pair shoes will temporarily make you feel good. But what about the real you on the inside? Just how stressed are you and also what effect is it having on your appearance? Nothing ages your mind and body faster than stress and can be a trigger for serious illness too.

Vitamin Deficiency contributes to feelings of stress and exhaustion

A major contributing factor to feeling under par and exhausted with an over-reactive response to stress, is vitamin deficiency. This is particularly evident as we age. Your body becomes less efficient at extracting the nutrients you need to function at your optimum and feel in balance.

Add to this toxic mix, the stress of work and demands at home and you’ll soon feel distressed, sleepless and exhausted and on the road to feeling down and de-motivated, if not depressed.

Taking a top quality multi-vitamin is the first step to boosting your energy and getting yourself back on track. Health Script’s two-part breakthrough formula in the AM PM Dual Pack is uniquely designed to deliver the nutrients you need to energise you during the daytime with the AM http://www.healthscript.co.nz/Products/vitamins-supplements-AM-feel-alive.aspx

and another completely different formula for the evening in the PM http://www.healthscript.co.nz/Products/vitamins-supplements-PM-relax-sleep.aspx

which you take in the evenings to unwind and relax for a good night’s sleep. To learn more or buy online http://www.healthscript.co.nz/Products/vitamins-supplements-products.aspx

It stands to reason, if you sleep better, you’ll feel better. If your energy levels are enhanced, you’ll cope better and feel great. You’ll look great and have the energy to cope with day to day frustrations.

It will take about 2-3 weeks of regularly taking the AM in the morning and the  PM at night, to notice improvements. These are not drugs, contain no chemicals and are dairy and gluten free. Vitamins need regular absorption to bring your body back into balance. Then you’ll start to feel on top of the world! You’ll have more motivation to exercise, take charge of your life and be better at coping with the daily stresses at work and home. But why take our word for it? See our customer feedback http://www.healthscript.co.nz/Feedback.aspx

Clarifying the Calcium Debate

I’ve been told calcium carbonate and magnesium oxide are the most difficult for the body to assimilate. It’s so difficult to decide what really is a good supplement?

Recent studies have indicated that in fact high release Calciums are not good for your body. It gets absorbed too fast and contributes to high levels for a short period of time in the blood, raising the risk of heart problems and/or stroke. Our registered Naturopath Rob Martin, specialist in Phytotherapy and R&D responds: This is why we selected a calcium that is absorbed more slowly to reduce this risk factor – you may have been given the opposite advice as that was certainly the thinking up until the report about six months ago. There is a further study currently being conducted at Auckland university, the results of which should be out next year, backing up previous research that the high-release calciums are one of the leading causes of myocardial infarctions (heart risk). It seems the slower absorbed a calcium is, the lower the peak calcium spike, leading to a longer term absorption.

From a naturopathic view, 90+% of the world gets its Calcium from Calcium Carbonate (the lime in water, dissolved limestone etc) or from Calcium Phosphate – found in milk or bone. If either of these calcium salts were so poorly absorbed, the population of the earth would have died out a long time ago. In my opinion (and I admit it’s contrary to many more ill-informed naturopaths) the Calcium Carbonate is better – The calcium is absorbed well, and the carbonate ion helps to alkalise the blood.

Magnesium Oxide provides magnesium in a pure and simple absorbable form. The Magnesium is easily dissociated in the stomach to the Magnesium ion and absorbed quickly. Magnesium is traditionally used in many sleep formulae for its ‘relaxing’ properties. Therefore it is a vital part of the PM Sleep & Relax formula as well as supplying the magnesium the body needs on a daily basis.

Find out more: http://www.heathscript.co.nz

Why Don’t Vitamins meet RDA?

Some of our customers are worried about vitamin deficiency and how the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) effects them: Our registered Naturopath Rob Martin, specialist in Phytotherapy and R&D responds: For example Selenium found in Health Script’s Supplements, is sometimes added to some foods and health drinks. We felt the strong antioxidants and Vitamin B’s took priority, so again, this was the trade-off in developing our formula, focused on energy boosting and healthy aging – so our emphasis in the contents is aimed at that objective.
The RDA of Selenium is much lower than many people believe – it is only 70-80mg/day from all sources. People routinely state the lack of Selenium in NZ soils, however many food crops are imported (grains from Australia, USA, Canada) which tends to have sufficient Selenium in the soils and therefore in the crops grown in them. Also, in NZ, farmers being aware of nutritional deficiencies  in NZ soils tend to supplement their animals with mineral supplements in the form of Selenium going in to water troughs, mineral licks, minerals going into food pellets or added into silage. Minerals are also added to fields (and not just NPK) and so on.

The desire in NZ to supplement Selenium does not take into account ‘From all sources’ and can lead to excessive doses – the symptoms of which are hair loss, fingernails dropping out and curiously, ‘Onion breath’!

If we were to put the full RDA of vitamins in a single multivitamin – the tablet would have to be delivered as a suppository – and even then, the size would make your eyes water! But in all seriousness, we have had to formulate a balance of ingredients to deliver the best results for energy boosting, healthy aging and to maintain and support a healthy balance of nutrients without going overboard.  We believe in clever combining of ingredients, rather than “over dosing,”  which can overload your kidneys and liver, and lead to other health problems. In terms of health supplements, we believe less is more for a better and smarter outcome!

All in the Mind

“Visualize it and it’s yours”. Yeah right! I’ve been visualizing a Lotto win for years. It works well on kids. I would visualize a peaceful evening move the clocks forward, feed them dinner early and convince them it was 8pm bedtime when it was only 6.30pm. Ahhh bliss.

The power of suggestion is not to be under-estimated, so I decided to delve more into the techniques. I’ve read about psychosomatic influences. The power of suggestion. There’s even research where they compare people who had knee ops with those who just had a cut and stitches on their knees but believed they had the full operation. The recovery and success rates for both groups was identical! People believe they are cured and so they are.

How does it work? Little is known about this aspect – but it’s all to do with belief. If you believe you will recover, you enjoy a much higher chance of success. I also discovered that 69% of the response to vitamins was apparently psychosomatic too. So I decided to use myself as a guinea pig. I’ve taken vitamins all my life and TRY and eat healthy and walk or jog about 20-30 minutes a day. I don’t believe in straining myself too much!

I made an appointment with the Nutritionist, Kate Gray at http://www.lifespark.co.nz/  She stood me on this amazing electronic machine, holding onto two handles while an painless electric current went through my wayward body – thankfully she didn’t tell me how it worked until afterwards! It calculated my water and fat content, my muscle tone….in fact about 40 different measurements – even the percentage of fat around my critical internal organs. In conclusion, Kate told me, I was 15 years younger than my biological age! Yippppeee that makes me younger than my husband!

After a conversation about diet with Kate I decided to pull myself back on track. More walking, water drinking and less sugar. At this rate I’ll be 18 by Christmas! Of course it also means I may be working until I’m 90 to pay for the extended years of shopping I’m determined to enjoy!

I didn’t dare confess that the occasional glass of wine and bar of chocolate sometimes consumed at the same time was my secret to success! But it did make me think about the Health Script vitamins I take. Do I really need them? I decided to stop them completely and carry on with my usual routine.

Initially I didn’t notice a thing. But after about a week I started to feel down, tired, every little thing seemed a struggle. I’d suffered disruptive and broken sleep, and just couldn’t be bothered with much…. I pressed on. It’s been nearly three weeks now and I am firmly back on the health supplements. After a week of pill popping I noticed what was missing. Not the power of suggestion, but the power of good quality nutrients. As we age we gradually suffer from vitamin deficiency, out bodies less able to extract some of those critical minerals and vitamins from our food. After taking Health Script Vitamins again I felt like I was flying during my morning walk/jog. I now feel upbeat and energized. I slept through the night for the first time in three weeks. The PM does the trick for a good, relaxing night’s sleep and along with the AM to kick start the mornings, I’m firmly back on track.

I wasn’t going to say anything – almost felt I couldn’t – shamelessly promoting my own products. What a cheek! I was telling a good friend and she said, “ hell yeah – blog it. Tell them about your response – people can take it or leave it. But even I can see the difference in your whole demeanor!”

So that’s it then – give it a go with good quality health supplements that deliver potent anti-aging antioxidants and all those rich minerals you maybe missing in your diet. Get to feel 15 years younger too! Of course the downside is you’ll be paying taxes for longer – groan – unless you marry a younger work-horse or seven – Liz Taylor had the right idea!

See www.healthscript.co.nz for more information including details about every top quality ingredient used in these products. Gluten and dairy free.

Why do You Need Multi-Vitamins?

Ummm What am I looking for again? Uh-uh can’t remember her name? Having trouble sleeping? Or worried about things that didn’t used to bother you before? Before what? Lack of sleep, stress, low levels of nutrition and poor lifestyle habits can contribute to irritating changes in brain and body function and a sense of operating under par as we age. Add to that the prospect of mid-life crises for men and menopause for woman and your whole wellbeing goes out of whack.

Contributing to this mix is the depleted nutrient level and over processing of foods we eat and toxins in our environment. This is a recipe for under performance in day to day life, at work or recovering from exercise. Feeling tired and unmotivated is just a symptom of the greater picture. As we age our bodies are less effective at extracting vitamins from our food and our bodies become starved of essential nutrients to function at our optimum. Stress impacts harder and we tend to cope less effectively with all kinds of issues.

New Zealand soils are deficient in selenium, magnesium, zinc, and boron. These essential minerals are critical for a healthy body and mind, keeping hormone systems in balance and maintaining immunity, especially during winter. Also a number of chronic diseases have been linked to diets lacking in these elements.

I was talking to a Charge Nurse this week, whose worked in NZ hospitals for the past 32 years. She made an interesting comment about our over drinking of water in recent years. “I see what would be healthy patients, but they drink so much water that they flush all the nutrients through their system. They take vitamins and they eat healthy but they wash all the goodness out of their body,” she explained. Later she talked about a “fluid restricted” diet for those with kidney damage. These patients functioned on 800ml of fluid a day as their kidneys were so damaged from overworking and processing so much fluid for so many years. So while it’s good to maintain normal fluid levels, remember drinks other than water are also fluid and 8 glasses a day should be more than enough for normal body function, which will not flush vitamins out of your system.

There are a total of 13 essential vitamins, including vitamin A, B-complex, C, D, and E.  Each vitamin plays an important role in improving and maintaining your health.  A good quality multi-vitamin will often have other ingredients too like antioxidants to support healthy aging and other nutrients to support cell regeneration and body recovery, etc. A quality multi-vitamin can help in all the metabolic processes of your body and brain, as well as boost your energy levels. Health Script believes a good multi-vitamin supports and maintains your health and shouldn’t be used as a substitute for a healthy diet of fruit, vegetables and grains.

What Makes a Quality Multi Vitamin?

Complete: Women in particular, need at least 30 different vitamins and minerals says the latest scientific research.

Guaranteed  Quality: The best health supplements are put through rigorous quality testing so you get exactly what it says on the label.

Bio-available: The nutrients must be in the most bio-available form. Natural  and Free of artificial preservatives, dyes, allergens or other contaminants.

You be the Judge: Try another formula if a multi-vitamin doesn’t make you feel better within the first 30-60 days. All your symptoms my not have improved in that time, but you should notice a real improvement in your overall energy levels and wellbeing.

Find out more about top quality vitamins, formulated and made here in New Zealand at: http://www.healthscript.co.nz/