Highland Laboratories' Director of Quality & Compliance, chemist John Mills, has been in the natural products industry for over 22 years, and oversees all of our custom and private label product formulations. His vast experience means he instantly and intuitively knows which ingredients work well together to support a particular structure or function in the the human body. As such, we thought it would be fun to explore John’s methodology as he embarks on a new private label formulation. As an example, let's say John is looking at creating an herbal formulation that is going to support the immune system, and he settles on an herbal material that affects that immune function in the body. Once he’s established what that herbal material...
Make No Bones About It Bones are living tissues, under a constant state of building, repairing, and tearing down. In fact, 5-10% of our bones are replaced annually – which is why it’s really important that your body has all the building materials it requires at its disposal. Osteoporosis occurs when the rate of bone resorption exceeds bone formation. After menopause, women experience an increase in bone loss due to dropping estrogen levels, making bone health a priority for woman during this life phase. Weight bearing exercise (exercise done from a vertical position) is crucial for bone health. Physical activity places an increased force on our bones, and they respond by forming new bone and remodeling the bone to be...
Joint Comfort† Do you know how much weight is placed on your joints each time you take a step? One and one-half times your body weight. That is pretty scary! Lucky for us, each joint has something called “articular cartilage” which absorbs most of the pressure. It not only acts as a shock absorber, but also as a “teflon” coating over the surface of the joint. Glycosaminoglycans (bet you can’t say that three times in a row) are a very distinctive protein designed to give connective tissue its structural qualities. Cartilage is continually being broken down and replaced. When cartilage is being broken down faster than it can be replaced, problems may occur. JointSolution™ Over a period of time, wear...
In BalanceYou’ve had those times in your life: too many demands leave you feeling irritable, anxious or unfocused. Perhaps you’ve lost interest in sex. Maybe sudden sounds or movements send you jumping out of your chair. While life demands might trigger your symptoms, what’s going on in your body chemically involves the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). A calming brain chemical, GABA not only inducesrelaxation and reduces the effects of stress and anxiety, but it also helps to balance all of your other neurotransmitters. When GABA levels aren’t sufficient, you may feel unprepared to handle even the most mundane life situations. Get a GABA boost Daily moderate exercise will do wonders for improving your mood and stamina, as will a menu containing foods that naturally increase the production of neurotransmitters. Avoid simple sugars and the white foods: white...
