Here we are, February and I want to begin this Weekend Read by talking about the importance of supplementing with digestive enzymes for our optimal health and wellbeing. Shabir recently discussed digestive enzymes with Trinny on their recent live video and it is well established that stress and inflammation can reduce our natural enzyme production, but it is also well established that our levels of digestive enzymes decline with age, so with studies indicating that this decline can begin by the age of twenty, let’s take a look, but first we are going to discuss the digestive system.
Trinny & Shabir

Our bodies obtain nutrients from foods that are broken down efficiently by digestive enzymes, which are released as soon as we ingest food, however the effects of improper digestion are widespread and symptoms include lethargy, discomfort, bloating, gas and wind. Every single cell within our bodies depends upon the supply of vital nutrients and an optimal digestive system depends upon the production of digestive enzymes.

Basically, enzymes act as catalysts working to quicken each and every bodily process they are involved in. Each organ, tissue and cell in our bodies have dedicated enzymes designed to carry out appropriate processes and specifically referencing digestive enzymes, they not only play a role in digestion, but studies have indicated they also help to reduce inflammation in the body and, as most of us know, inflammation is linked to most chronic diseases, including heart disease as well as cognitive and joint functions.

Several studies have shown that digestive enzymes can significantly increase nutrient absorption provided we take the correct form of digestive enzymes, the form that helps break down fats, carbohydrates, fibres and protein. Protein is the hardest food to digest and if protein-rich foods are not broken down sufficiently, it can often lead to symptoms of heartburn, acid reflux and indigestion, all of which are extraordinarily common health concerns.

For the longest time, I have written that there is absolutely no point whatsoever in taking supplementation if that given supplement fails to address the cutting-edge research which determines efficacy, it just doesn’t make sense. There always has to be a point of difference and the point of difference here is that Digestive Enzyme Complex contains three types of proteases, which are protein digesting enzymes, each of which work effectively at different pH levels in the gut ensuring that these enzymes are active throughout the digestive tract during the different stages of digestion.

Most obviously I don’t take every supplement I write about, but I do take digestive enzymes and I really notice a difference if I don’t take them, so with that said I am dropping the price of Digestive Enzyme Complex from £29 to £26 across the weekend. One more thing to add here, I wouldn’t dream of travelling without Digestive Enzyme Complex, mostly because travel constipation is a thing, a thing that seems to affect women far more than men, and herein, a solution.
VH Editorial: Digestive Enzymes For Bloating, Gas Or Indigestion; DoSe Digestive Enzyme Complex £26 for 60 Capsules (offer ends at midnight GMT, Sunday 8 February)

On the subject of solutions, I will often take an email from the many we receive for Shabir’s What’s The Solution column and write about it on the Weekend Read and staying in format, a question about Glaucoma, together with Shabir’s response:

A friend has recently been diagnosed with glaucoma and is terribly concerned. He has been prescribed eye drops but was reading about new research in America and Australia where they are using very high doses of vitamin B3 (3000 mg daily) with exciting results. Can you please advise.

Glaucoma is a set of eye conditions that lead to the damage of the optic nerve, resulting in eventual sight loss. The most common cause is high pressure in the eye due to fluid build-up, which damages the sensitive optic nerve. I would recommend two supplements to be used alongside Latanoprost eye drops, which are usually prescribed for glaucoma.

There are a number of causes for elevated blood pressure in the eye, but primarily it is associated with an abnormality in the drainage system of the eye, which can cause fluid build-up, leading to pressure building up which can lead to damage to the optic nerve. Eye Pressure Support is a supplement containing a patented extract from Bilberries and Pycnogenol. A study using these extracts in Japanese patients confirmed that both extracts reduced intra-ocular pressure.

Further studies have suggested that Bilberry extracts offer a number of protective effects, including displaying potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, which may provide protection against macular degeneration, cataracts and glaucoma. Pycnogenol also displays powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits, enhancing circulation to support the flow of fluids, thus helping to maintain healthy blood pressure.

The second supplement I would recommend is NAD+ Generator and whilst vitamin B3 (nicotinamide) shows promise for glaucoma in early human trials by enhancing levels of NAD+ in damaged optic nerve cells, the dosage of B3 needs to be extraordinarily high in order to generate the required levels of NAD+. That aside, the side effects of high dosages of vitamin B3 can include dizziness, headaches and potentially harm the liver, so I would not recommend it. NAD+ Generator is safe, it does contain B3, but it also contains other nutrients which work synergistically to increase NAD+ levels in the body at the correct therapeutic levels.

So, with Shabir recommending Eye Pressure Support and NAD+ Generator, I am dropping the price of Eye Pressure Support from £30 to £27 and I know I wrote extensively about NAD+ Generator recently, actually it was 24 January, but perhaps this illustrates the importance of NAD+ and why a decline in levels of NAD+ has been linked to numerous age-related disorders and diseases. And so, in a repeat performance, when you buy NAD+ Generator, we will automatically send you NAD+ Generator (15 capsules) free, which is worth £16.
VH Editorials: Glaucoma: How To Treat Naturally; Are NAD Supplements Beneficial; Eye Pressure Support With Mirtogenol by Life Extension £27 for 30 Capsules; DoSe NAD+ Generator £32 for 30 Capsules + NAD+ Generator (15 capsules) Free (offers end at midnight GMT, Sunday 8 February)

Eye health is obviously of paramount importance to each of us and I can’t under-estimate the importance of maintaining optimal eye health, most especially if you are prone to eye infections, particularly styes. It is almost a given that those who suffer from blepharitis are more susceptible to eye infections and styes, blepharitis being a long-term inflammatory condition affecting the eyelids and the skin surrounding the eyes, which can cause tremendous discomfort.

There are two types of blepharitis, anterior blepharitis, which affects the outer edge of the eyelids where the eyelashes are found, and posterior blepharitis, which affects the inner edge of the eyelids where the eyelid comes into contact with the eyeball. The symptoms of blepharitis vary with the severity of the condition and in his article linked below, Shabir takes a look at some of those symptoms together with the causes of blepharitis and suggested treatments.

I want to mention two products here, the first being Hypochlorous Eyelid Spray, which I talk about rather a lot, basically because hypochlorous solutions help to eradicate bacterial infections and in the case of blepharitis this solution will also help to unblock tear glands whilst calming the redness of the skin around the eyes. Hypochlorous solutions can be used to heal wounds and purifying the skin from pollutants, it really does help to soothe irritated skin. And just perhaps this should become a bathroom essential, but actually it is also a medicine cabinet essential. A multi-tasking medicine cabinet essential.
Hypochlorous Eyelid Spray by The Eye Doctor £10 for 100 ml

Posterior blepharitis is probably the most common form of blepharitis and is associated with Meibomian gland dysfunction. The symptoms include dryness, itching, red eye, stickiness and foreign body sensation and although warm compresses are usually recommended to treat this health concern, they do not stay warm for any length of time, so we recommend the Heated Eye Wand LED+ which rather brilliantly helps to alleviate the symptoms of blepharitis as well as helping to soothe tired or dry eyes, restoring comfort.
VH Editorial: Treatment For Blepharitis; Heated Eye Wand LED+ by Peep Club £85

Before we move on, I cannot write about hypochlorous solutions without mentioning Clinisept+ Mouthwash and I’ve lost count of the number of times I have written about, and recommended, this product. It is beyond me why anybody would want to use alcohol-based mass-market mouthwashes which can disrupt the balance of good bacteria in the mouth, often leading to concerns such as dry mouth and irritated tissues. Clinisept+ Mouthwash should be the mass-market mouthwash, but we all know why it isn’t, so upholding everything I have ever written about Clinisept+ Mouthwash, it drops in price from £9.50 to £7.50 across the weekend.
Clinisept+ Mouthwash £7.50 for 400 ml (offer ends at midnight GMT, Sunday 8 February)

And now we do move on, and we move on by offering a 20% discount across all Better You products for the month of February, particularly referencing their vitamin D3 products. It is a given that most of us have sub-optimal levels of D3, often associated with bone pain and muscle weakness, but D3 also plays an important role in immune function and hormonal balance, with emerging evidence also associating a D3 deficiency with higher rates of infection and reduced bone density. Shabir does a deep dive into D3 with his article, linked below.
VH Editorial: Vitamin D Deficiency; Better You Products (offer ends at midnight GMT, Saturday 28 February)

Right, Color Wow. A few months ago, I wrote about a new product from Color Wow, Insta-WOW Advanced Dry Shampoo, a next-generation formula that cleanses like a shampoo, lifts away oil, neutralises odours and leaves hair silky soft, with no white cast, clumping or build-up. And it was ‘insta-wow’ because it became one of Color Wow’s bestselling products, we had a wait list, well a very temporary wait list, and now it is available in a smaller handbag size (60 ml) which is perfect if you are travelling. So, short and sweet, I am throwing a 15% discount across all Color Wow products this weekend and I am linking both sizes of the Insta-WOW Advanced Dry Shampoo below.
Insta-WOW Advanced Dry Shampoo 200 ml; Insta-WOW Advanced Dry Shampoo 60 ml; Color Wow Products

Having thrown some of the focus on our eyes this weekend, it is perhaps fortuitous that the TEMPLESPA offer for the month of February is Windows Of The Soul. Windows Of The Soul is a cooling, lightweight eye balm-gel formulated with Edelweiss, Milk Thistle and Echinacea to calm and refresh tired eyes, helping to reduce puffiness around the eye area. Windows Of The Soul is normally £37, but it drops to £27 until midnight GMT, Saturday 28 February.
Windows Of The Soul by TEMPLESPA £27 for 15 ml

We end this Weekend Read by talking about PHA Exfoliating Serum. PHA Exfoliating Serum contains Polyhydroxy Acids (PHAs), a new generation of gentle exfoliating acids, which are suitable for those of us with sensitive and redness-prone skin. I can’t use Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHAs) on my skin, they are way too harsh and I know I am not alone, so with PHA Exfoliating Serum supporting and increasing the benefits of our chosen skincare products by enhancing cell renewal, I am dropping the price of PHA Exfoliating Serum from £22 to £19.
VH Editorial: What Are Polyhydroxy Acids; DoSe PHA Exfoliating Serum £19 for 30 ml (offer ends at midnight GMT, Sunday 8 February)

Into the Saturday only gift, and with every order placed for £35 and above, excluding p&p, we will automatically send you Neom’s Perfect Night’s Sleep Bath Foam (50 ml)*, a blend of Lavender, Sweet Basil and Jasmine, to help you unwind and prepare for sleep. Full product details below.
Perfect Night’s Sleep Bath Foam

Finally, a song to align with the gift. ‘Golden Slumbers’ was released by The Beatles on 26 September 1969 on their album ‘Abbey Road’. Recorded in July and August of that year, the song was based on a 17th Century poem by English playwright, Thomas Dekker, ‘Golden Slumbers Kiss Your Eyes’, which was adapted by Paul McCartney and merged with ‘Carry That Weight’ and ‘The End’ to become one song. Abbey Road was the last album recorded by The Beatles, although it was released before ‘Let It Be’, which was released the following year on 8 May 1970.
Golden Slumbers by The Beatles; The VH Playlist

All that remains is for me to wish each of you a restful weekend.

With love

Gill x