What Supplements Do I Take?

by Glen Depke, Traditional Naturopath

So often I have individuals on social media or when I am presenting events ask me what I take personally from a supplement perspective. I write this type of article about once per year because while I do have some basics that remain the same, as I learn and grow for myself personally, some of my supplement choices shift within these new understandings.

Before I address the supplements specifically, I wanted to point out some recent research that shows not only health benefits of supplementation but also provides the hard facts on the significant savings in health care cost. To read this article and further information, visit this link.

OK, so what do I take?

I breakdown my supplementation needs based on the most significant factors for myself as an individual. These factors are:

• Optimal digestion
• Increased circulation
• Optimal brain health
• Immune system support
• Adrenal support

For optimal digestion, I take the Depke Wellness 1, 2, 3 of Digestion daily. This is a

combination of the Prebiotic/Probiotic Formula, Prime Digestive Support (enzyme) and the Prime Stomach Acid Support. I take 2 Prebiotic/Probiotic Formula before breakfast daily, one Prime Digestive Support during each meal, one Prime Stomach Acid Support after each meal and one scoop of RepairVite prior to bedtime. The Prebiotic/Probiotic Formula contains herbs to assist the gut environment to optimally utilize the 40 billion beneficial bacteria (the good guys) taken to assist in reaching that all important 9:1 ration of beneficial to detrimental bacteria needed for a healthy gut. The Prime Digestive Support is the full spectrum digestive enzyme that contains both animal and plant based enzymes to break down the wide array of proteins, fats and carbohydrates I'll consume with each meal. This enables me to utilize the first third of my stomach to predigest my food, which in turn will allow for and further ease of digestion as my food progresses through the digestive tract, ultimately making life easier for my pancreas also. Lastly the Prime Stomach Acid Support will assist my body in properly breaking down my proteins, absorb minerals as well as B vitamins. At night before I go to bed, I take one scoop of RepairVite in water knowing that this is a gut restorative supplement. I take this specifically due to gut damage caused by my past consumption of intolerant foods that I was not aware of.

If you want to confirm the use of the use of these with my meals, simply ask anyone that I have eaten out with. I am always reaching into my pocket during and after meals to address these important digestive aids.

To increase my circulation, I take two supplements. One is from Chi Enterprise called Vein Lite which I take 3 capsules of these twice per day after meals. Some days I do this only once but I do shoot for 2 times daily. I also take Nitric Balance which is a liquid that I take one tablespoon in the morning. The Vein Lite has a long term affect on increasing circulation and the Nitric Balance has a more immediate impact on circulation along with a beneficial cellular energy increase. I take these because proper circulation is a key to most everything. This is how you move nutrients, oxygen, hormones and so much more throughout your body. Without proper circulation, all else is hindered.

The brain support is important to me since I have a history of dementia and other neurological disorders in my family. Not withstanding the fact that I was considered epileptic from about 17 to 28 years old. Because of this, I take a liquid omega 3 fatty acid supplementation daily that is very high in DHA, which is the "brain food" component of the omega 3. I am also currently addressing some neurotransmitter issues by taking Serotone Active, Dopatone, Acetyl-CH Active and a Neurotrans spray three times per day. I am not doing this only because of the potential inherited issues but also the simple fact that my brain really needs to be "on" all day when I am working with clients. There is not much time off for my brain so it needs that support. Don't worry though, I also get my fare share of tennis, golf and fun on a regular basis.

As far as my immune system support is considered, most of this is addressed with my gut and brain supplements because as those systems go, so goes the immune system. The only addition I make here is the use of a liquid emulsified vitamin D supplement called Ultra D, which I take on tablespoon per day and about 2000 mgs of a powdered Buffered Ascorbic Acid mixed with a small amount of water before bed. Many people have issues with ascorbic acid, but this is due to the fact that most are derived from corn, which I am intolerant to. Of course the form that I use is manufactured from a healthy source. I also take either the Pure LiquidNutrients which is a yummy mango/orange flavored liquid vitamin/mineral supplement or a mix a Clearvite PSF in my morning smoothy to increase my nutrient uptake.

Lastly, we are looking at adrenal support. I do not take this at all times but due to some recent

adrenal challenges because of a gut infection that I picked up in the recent past I am currently engaging in needed adrenal balancing. To accomplish this I take sublingual liquid forms of pregnenolone and DHEA three times per day and I take two 500mg capsules of the Depke Wellness Prime Adrenal Support daily also.

I do cycle on and off two powerful liquid emulsified anti-inflammatory supplements called Resvero and Tumero, but currently I am in the cycle off period with these. I typically do three months on and three months off.

Overall from a generally perspective, I am always taking something to support my gut, brain and immune function. From there everything else I would take is either for a short duration determined on an acute challenge or other times I simply take something new as an experiment for myself and my clients. 

I want to be clear that what I take does not necessary equate into what you need. While general gut, brain and immune supplementation is an advantage to everyone, some areas are tied directly into personal needs for myself, such as the neurotransmitters and adrenal protocols. At least with this information, you can see first hand what your Traditional Naturopath is taking. 

You know what's funny though, I do not feel like I take that much until I write it all out. So with that said, here's to my adrenal protocol coming to an end soon. LOL!

Many of these supplements can be found in the Depke Wellness Store where you can either search through all the supplements or go to the headings on the left side of the page to click on specific brands such as Depke Wellness, Chi Enterprise or Pure Encapsulations. We are even building and area of the store that will be available to our current clients to purchase supplements that are not accessible to the general public due to company policies. The good news is that supplements purchased via the Depke Wellness always include free shipping and handling. Yay!

Food Cravings...Uggg!

by Glen Depke, Traditional Naturopath

So what types of cravings do you experience on a regular basis? Sugar, chips, ice cream, breads, salt, chocolate, alcohol and the list goes on...

While most of us crave foods with some regularity, very few understand all of the mechanisms behind these cravings. Understanding this may assist you in curbing your cravings, so here we go.

We'll start with one of the most obvious and that is cravings based on the consumption of high glycemic foods. You know, foods sugar as sugary treats, sodas, processed carbohydrates, alcohol, fruit juices and fruit especially without the skin. When we consume these high glycemic foods, especially without added fat, these drive up glucose which in turn leads to a spike in insulin levels. When insulin levels spike so quickly, this will often send your blood sugar plummeting. As a result you have what...cravings. Often this is for more high glycemic foods also and round and round we go.

So to get off the high glycemic/craving cycle, do what? 

How about stopping the consumption of high glycemic foods? OK, so that was too easy of an answer and a bit of a smart (you know what) comment. It is a good idea though to consume high glycemic foods sparingly or only prior to times of physical exertion. What do you do when you simply want to enjoy one of these foods but you are not going to have the opportunity to burn off this sugar with exercise? The answer to this is to eat these foods at the end of your meal and always with added fat. Examples are:

• Apple with nut butter
• Wine with cheese
• Bread with olive oil

 * I am necessarily condoning all of these choices as healthy but I wanted to give you some real life examples.

A significant reason for cravings would be emotions. When we get stressed out what to so many people reach for to sooth their feelings? As mentioned earlier sugar, chips, ice cream, breads, salt, chocolate, alcohol and the list goes on...

Another factor that deals with emotions as tied into sweets is when we feel as if we are missing our own personal "sweetness" of life. So often we get caught up in a life of "doing" rather than a life of "being" and this leads to self soothing again and so often with sweets. Based on our discussion earlier, you now understand what dynamics are occurring when you are self soothing with these sweets.

There is one more craving definitely built into the challenges with emotions. When we are too ramped up, frustrated, irritated and angry we often crave processed carbohydrates such as breads. These choices actually have a sedating or depressing effect on your body to calm you down. Think about, how do you feel after a meal high in processed carbohydrates? You likely feel like hitting the couch and completely chilling. Unfortunately this is not the best way to achieve this due to the effect that this has on further cravings.


If you really want to do something to satisfy your emotions, try some deep belly breathing. Take a deep breath through your nose for a count of 7 while expanding your stomach and breath all the way down to your belly button. Hold that breath for a count of 4 and then forcefully blow this out through your mouth while contracting your stomach muscles to push every ounce of that breath out of your lungs. Actually, try this right now and see how you feel.


So why do I recommend the deep belly breathing? Because you cannot be under stress and take a deep belly breath at the same time. This are two opposing aspects of your nervous system function that will not exist at the same time. Take 3-5 of these breaths once per hour during your waking hours would be so helpful for curtailing these cravings and absolutely use this during acute stress.


One more significant factor for cravings is a lack of proper digestion. You know, you are not what you eat, rather you are what you absorb and assimilate. So what does this have to do with cravings? 


First understand that you are not hungry to fill your stomach, you are hungry so your body can produce energy. When you make quality nutritional choices and digest these foods properly, your body will produce the energy needed and your trigger for hunger will be cut off. It truly is that simple.


So what happens if you digestive system is not working properly?


This leads to a lack of proper absorption and assimilation, thus leading to a desire for more food. Once the stomach if full though, your trigger for hunger will subside even if you did not reach the desired energy production. Here's the kicker though. If your hunger went away and your stomach is full, you WILL have a craving to follow this meal. The bigger challenge is that this craving will almost definitely be for something sweet because sugar is a definite "quick fix" for energy and we have all had sugar enough for our body to recognize this.


Think about it. How often does this happen? You go out and eat a big meal, fill your belly, yet you still cannot make a move until you get some type of sweet in on top of this. This happens more often that not and most often this is due to poor digestion.


So how do your improve your digestion?


First off, the recommendation of the deep breathing above is definitely a benefit just prior to eating a meal. When you deep belly breath and get your body in a relaxed state prior to eating, this will assist your digestive system.


There are also some basic supplements to use for proper digestion to assist in aleviating cravings.

• Probiotics
• Digestive enzymes
• Stomach acid

These are the basics that Dawn and I use personally and typical recommendations for my clients. As a matter of fact, I refer to this trio as the Depke Wellness 1, 2, 3 of Digestion. If you would like to learn more about the 1, 2, 3 of Digestion visit this link provided. 

So now you know three of the biggest factors for you cravings, so when you think of cravings now, "uggg" does not have to follow.

How Heavy is YOUR Stress?

by Glen Depke, Traditional Naturopath

I have to thank Dr Dan Yachter from www.elevationhealth.com for this awesome analogy on stress.

A psychologist walked around a room while teaching stress management to an audience. As she raised a glass of water, everyone expected they'd be asked the "half empty or half full" question. Instead, with a smile on her face, she inquired: "How heavy is this glass of water?"

Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. to 20 oz.

She replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it's not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my arm. If I hold it for a day, my arm will feel numb and paralyzed. In each case, the weight of the glass doesn't change, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes." She continued, "The stresses and worries in life are like that glass of water. Think about them for a while and nothing happens. Think about them a bit longer and they begin to hurt. And if you think about them all day long, you will feel paralyzed - incapable of doing anything."

It's important to remember to let go of your stresses. As early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don't carry them through the evening and into the night. Remember to put the glass down!  

This analogy is a perfect representation of what most people do in our culture, and I am not talking about putting down the glass. We are a culture of holding this glass until we experience pain and discomfort. Unfortunately, most of us even continue to hold onto this long after we begin experiencing these challenges.

So what does this do to the body?

As you likely already know by reading this newsletter, holding onto the glass is a major contributing factor to adrenal issues. To learn more about the affect stress has on adrenal glands click here.

Understand that this is so much more than just your adrenals. This affects your brain function, inflammation, blood pressure, thyroid function, female hormones, digestion, detoxification, immune function, cellular energy, blood sugar balance, quality of sleep and of course your moods. This isn't even a comprehensive list as I am touching on the more significant issues at this time.

Let's look at some of these areas specifically. Starting with the brain it is important to know that stress actually has an accumulative affect on the brain. Often clients will say that they have not had significant stress during their lives. They are thinking of major traumas though, such as death, life threatening disease, divorce, you get the picture. But based on the fact that all of life's little stresses tend to accumulate over time, many of these little stresses can create the same affect as major traumas.

Another big area to look at is with inflammation. I often see clients in my practice that are living with chronic inflammatory states. While it is noted that common causes of chronic inflammation tie into adrenal fatigue, infection, poor diet, gluten or other cross reactive foods and chemotherapy treatment, stress is also a trigger for inflammation. So yes, your perception and reaction to life's stresses impact inflammation in your body. How many people actually feel bodily pain and discomfort after a stressful event? That answer is many or most and that is directly tied into the inflammation created via this response.

How about digestion? Did you know that your body uses a huge amount of blood within your digestive system? Did you also know that when you are stressed out, this blood is actually directed away from your digestive system and pushed to your muscular/skeletal system. This is a perfect flight or flee response, because it is obviously more important to your body to save your life rather than digest your food properly. The big challenge here is that most of us are not in true life and death situations and the stress is simply holding onto the glass for too long.

Are you getting this now?

Blood sugar is another big issue as tied into stress. I had an client back in Illinois, prior to my move to California that was a type II diabetic. This was such a chronic issue for so long that the person had already lost their eye site and one limb. When I first started working with them, blood sugar was regularly between 250 and 350. But the kicker though was the fact that when this client's stress levels were up, the blood sugar would rocket up to 450 to 500 and often higher. Yikes! 

So why does stress raise blood sugar? This is due to fact that your body is tapping into stored glycogen to release huge amounts of sugar into your blood, to do what? To provide the necessary response for your fight or flee situation. But as discussed earlier, this fight or flee is typically not a true life or death situation and you are not fighting or fleeing anything. Due to this, the high blood sugar levels long term simply lead to insulin resistance and insulin surges. So really, do you want to continue to hold onto your glass?

How about quality of sleep? So many of my clients have issues with sleep. This may be challenges falling asleep, waking often through the evening, waking too early or even if they sleep through the night, that are still not waking up rocked and ready to go. You know if this is you, the snooze alarm is your best friend. Holding onto your glass affects sleep in so many ways. Often this is increasing night time cortisol, which in turn is lowering night time melatonin, thus poor sleep. Almost as likely is the stress factor with neurotransmitters. Poor neurotransmitter function will trash your sleep patterns as well as creating many other chronic health challenges. More to come on this with future newsletters.

So how do you put down the glass?

One way to do this is to practice deep breathing techniques. To do this follow the directions below.

• Take at least 3 to 5 deep belly breaths every waking hour
• Always take 3 to 5 of these during times of stress
• Inhale through your nose for about a count of 7 while protruding your stomach while allowing your breath to flow down into the area of your belly button
• Hold that breath for a count of 4
• Exhale forcefully through your mouth while contracting your stomach muscles for about a count of 8

Try this right now and you will recognize that it will be much easier to put down your glass with this technique.

There are many other tools that can be used to assist you in putting down your glass such as ERT, EFT, TFT, EMDR, spinal correction, soft tissue work such as rolfing and massage, prayer and exercise. I feel that it is important to find what resonates with you and most important, what works for you.

After all, doesn't it sound much easier to simply put the glass down?!?!

It Happened to Me...

by Glen Depke, Traditional Naturopath

....so by all means, it can happen to you also.

Glen Depke

So what the heck and I talking about?

Let me set this up for you first. As you may have heard me share in the past, I typically sleep very well, wake up before the alarm ever goes off and am rocked and ready to go. That is until a few months ago. I recognized that I was now waking to my alarm and getting out of bed was, uggg, almost painful.

Now most of you know that I walk my talk, so what do you think was the first thing I did when this new (ugly) pattern was recognized? I did an adrenal saliva kit of course. If you are a client of mine, you probably already guessed this.

So what showed up in my adrenal results?

I actually found more than one challenge. First of all, I was in a stage II adrenal insufficiency and a late stage II at that. I also had very low DHEA levels and low melatonin. I was actually happy to get these results because this explained the reason behind my new and not so improved sleeping pattern. 

What did not make sense though, is why the heck was I in a stage II adrenal insufficiency. After all, I am definitely balanced emotionally, I do not eat gluten or cross reactive foods and I have been through 2 substantial cleanses this year already. While this did not make sense to me there was a little red flag in my adrenal results. Understand that cortisol levels and melatonin should be exact opposites of each other. My night time cortisol levels were fine but my night time melatonin was low. This would tell me that my low melatonin level is not a hormonal issue, this would then be a digestive issue. 

As a side note, if melatonin is low, what do I never recommend for my clients? If you guessed melatonin, you are correct. Let me tell you why.

Once you have eliminated the hormonal tie into low melatonin, the next major area to address is digestion and here's why. Follow this list below on the sleep cycle for clarity.

1. It first starts with proper digestion
2. Next comes the need for regular protein consmumption
3. With proper protein and digestion, your body will be able to pull out the necessary levels of L-tryptophan
4. Only about 1% of this L-tryptophan will be needed for this sleep cycle while the rest is needed for B vitamin production and other bodily processes
5. With the L-typtophan the body can then produce 5-HTP
6. From 5-HTP the body will produce setotonin
7. Finally from serotonin, the body will produce melatonin

Knowing this you can probable deduce on your own the simply taking melatonin does not truly resolve the issue. It might help with my sleeping pattern a bit but it would still leave so many other deficiencies. 

Remember I mentioned that there was a red flag that I had a digestive issue causing the low melatonin? Knowing that I am not stressed out and I do not consumed foods that I am intolerant to, what would the cause be? If you guessed pathogens, that is exactly what I was thinking.

With the suspect of pathogens, my next step was to complete a 4 day comprehensive stool collection. I waited impatiently to get these results, and there it was. I was not only dealing with a pathogen, I was dealing with two pathogens. Somewhere in my last 2 years, I had picked up a detrimental bacteria called klebsiella and an amoeba called endolimax nana cyst. You might be thinking "YIKES" but honestly I was happy to get this. It explained my digestive issues as well as my sleep and adrenal challenges. It is also good news to have this awareness because both of these can be dealt with with relative ease now, rather than waiting for future challenges to develop. 

Long term, klebsiella that is not addressed can lead to pneumonia, urinary tract infections, septicemia, and soft tissue infections. Klebsiella species have also been implicated in the pathogenesis of ankylosing spondylitis which is an inflammatory/autoimmune condition that primarily affects the joints of the spine. The endolimax nana cyst often leads to chronic or intermittent diarrhea, which was also becoming an issue for me.

Now does it make sense that I was happy to see these reports?

So why am I sharing all this?

I am sharing this because if this can happen to me with all the positive focus I have on my own health and wellness, this can definitely happen to you. So the next time you recognize that your sleep is a little off or your energy is a bit low, don't simply reach for some melatonin to help your sleep and caffeine to boost your energy. Look deeper and find the real issues so you do not have to live with chronic ailments later in life.

Remember, it happened to me...it can happen to you.

Prime Enzyme Support

by Glen Depke

Digestive enzymes are one of the more significant keys to optimal health!

Prime Enzyme Support

To understand this, let me first discuss optimal digestion. The proper flow of digestion looks like this:

• Eating in a relaxed state
• Chewing your food thoroughly
• Predigesting your food in the upper third of your stomach based on natural enzymes in raw foods, some enzyme activity via your saliva and/or supplemental digestive enzymes
• Further in the stomach this predigested food is then further broken down with naturally produced stomach acid
• Once released from the stomach into the small intestine, your pancreas will release pancreatic juice which contains further enzyme activity and bile released from your gallbladder to aid in emulsifying fats
• Properly broken down food will then be absorbed and assimilated through the villi in the small intestine to reach the blood stream
• Anything left over will move from the small intestine into the colon
• The contents enter the colon as a liquid, while the colon will absorb much of this liquid leaving you with the bulk recognized as you release your bowel movement
• All this should occur in 18 hours or less

I could lay this out in a much more comprehensive description but I at least wanted you to understand the basics.

So what role does the Prime Enzyme Support play in optimal digestion?


Let's first recognize that most people eat cooked food. When we cook the food above a temperature of 118 degrees, the enzyme activity is completely destroyed. Supplemental enzymes such as the Depke Wellness, Prime Enzyme Support, simply puts back the enzyme activity that we destroyed by the cooking process. Without the use of digestive enzymes for those that are consuming cooked foods, the predigestion that occurs in the first third of your stomach is significantly decreased, thus creating so much hardship for the rest of the gastrointestinal tract to follow.

With this in mind, you can understand the importance of digestive enzyme use with every meal you consume. Since most that are reading this article consume cooked food, this is vital for you.

I can share that personally, I take a Prime Enzyme Support with each and every cooked food meal that I consume.

Based on my years of practice I recognize that the toughest foods to breakdown properly are flesh protein, fat, beans and some vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower and Brussel sprouts.

Another factor to address is the fact that most digestive enzymes on the market are vegetarian based. This means that we are often trying to break down animal proteins and fats with vegetable based enzymes. It does not even make sense to write this.

The Prime Enzyme Support contains the necessary animal based enzymes to break down your animal proteins and fats as well as a specific enzyme to assist with those pesky beans, cauliflower, broccoli and Brussel sprouts. This is also containing all the needed enzymes found in other quality formulas and as an added bonus there is a small amount of pepsin and betaine HCL due to the fact that most in our culture are also suffering from low stomach acid.

Order Now

Why would you use the Prime Enzyme Support?

Prime Enzyme Support

• Bloating
• Slow digestion
• Flatulence
• Gassy (belching)
• Acid reflux
• Sluggish colon (less than 2 bowel movements daily)
• Poor mental clarity
• Poor memory
• Immune dysfunction
• Frequent illness
• Food cravings
• Caffeine cravings
• Sugar cravings
• Weight gain
• Unhealthy weight loss
• Poor exercise recovery
• Any digestive, immune or brain challenges
• ...and the list goes on

Supplement Facts:

Pancreatin 4X................100mg
Protease.......................10,000 USP Units
Amylase........................10,000 USP Units
Lipase...........................2,000 USP Units
Ox Bile..........................100mg
L-Glutamic Acid...............100mg
Pepsi.............................100mg
Papain...........................50mg/600,000 USP Units
Bromelain......................2,000 M.C.U.
Betaine HCL...................100mg
Alpha Galactosidase........100 A.G.S.U.

90 count bottle

Recommended dose: 1 capsule per meal

Order Now

Should YOU Eat Meat?

by Glen Depke

This is a significant question these days for many of my clients. I will share that for most, this is a definite yes. I also have to share that the answer to the question often is not that simple though. Let's look at this from a few different vantage points today.

First of all, there are many people that do not digest meat that well. I would first suggest that the meat itself is not the issue. Poor digestion is typically the issue here. This could be due to a lack of proper enzyme activity, poor bacteria balance, lack of stomach acid production or GI distress such as some type of pathogenic challenge. This could also be an issue due to eating while under stress or from simply not chewing your food thoroughly. Once these areas are addressed, it is amazing to see the improvement in the breakdown of meat overall. It is of utmost importance to address these areas though, due to the fact that meat that sits in your GI tract for too long will tend to putrefy and lead to added toxicity, which is never a positive for you. Follow these simple steps below to reach optimal digestive function.

• Take a quality probiotic, digestive enzyme and HCL supplement if meat breakdown is a challenge
• Always chew your meat sources very well
• Deep breath before and during meals to allow for proper digestive function
• Assess possible pathogens with your holistic health practitioner

The other area to understand within this question is the reality that we are all bio-chemically different. While one person my excel eating red meat or higher fat, heavier seafood such as shrimp or salmon, another may actually be challenged with this. Some are best to keep their meat consumption to light chicken or turkey or lower fat, lighter seafood such as tilapia or orange roughy. Some individuals actually require meat with regularity while others may actually do fine with very little meat with additional plant based proteins. Remember, we are all bio-chemically different!

Understanding your Nutritional ID is so important to make this distinction. This goes back to the same saying made by Hippocrates some 2600 years ago, "One man's food, is another man's poison." This is just as true today as it was so many years ago.

Thankfully by the beginning of the year, DepkeWellness.com will be providing the Nutrition ID evaluation on-line at no cost to you. This will provide you with the basic understandings and guidelines for making proper nutritional choices that are best for you as an individual. As we get closer to the launch date of the Nutritional ID assessment, we will address this on a much deeper level for your understanding.

Lastly today, I would like to focus on quality of your meats. I am never one to recommend meat that is grain fed, farm raised seafood, or any meat source this is in an unhealthy environment, eating poor quality food and pumped with hormones and anti-biotics. This would not be considered healthy in my opinion. Using smaller quantities of healthier meat choices goes a long way in providing your protein needs. Companies such as Vital Choice and Blackwing Meats are some of the sources that I use and enjoy personally.

I would like to close by sharing once again that meat itself is typically not the issue. The issues with meat are generally tied into poor digestion, the consumption of poor quality meat or eating the types of meats that are challenging to your own personal Nutritional ID.

If you have any questions or comments, please leave this below and I will address these personally.