Cavan Reflexology & Massage

21/11/2025

How to make your own electrolyte daily drink. Stay Healthy, Stay Hydrated.

20/11/2025

20/11/2025

19/11/2025

🌊 What Is the Glymphatic System?

The glymphatic system is the brain’s unique waste clearance network, functioning similarly to the lymphatic system in the body—but with a twist. It was only discovered in 2012 by Dr. Maiken Nedergaard, and it has since changed how we understand neurodegeneration and brain inflammation.
This system relies on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) to flush out waste products from brain tissue through perivascular pathways, facilitated by a type of glial cell called astrocytes. These cells regulate the flow of interstitial fluid and act as a conduit for metabolic clearance during deep sleep, especially in slow-wave sleep cycles.

🔥 When the Glymphatic System Is Inhibited: The Inflammatory Storm

When the glymphatic system is impaired, neurotoxic proteins—like beta-amyloid, tau proteins, and inflammatory cytokines—begin to accumulate in the brain's interstitial spaces. This accumulation triggers:
* Microglial activation, leading to chronic low-grade neuroinflammation
* Increased production of pro-inflammatory cytokines like IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-1β
* Oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction within neurons
* Blood-brain barrier permeability ("leaky brain") and further immune dysregulation

Over time, this chronic inflammatory state can manifest as:
* Brain fog, memory issues, and cognitive decline
* Mood disorders such as anxiety and depression
* Increased risk of neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s
* Worsened systemic inflammation due to vagus nerve signaling disruption

🛌 Sleep, the Glymphatic Switch, and Circadian Health

The glymphatic system is most active during deep sleep, particularly during non-REM slow-wave phases. When sleep is disrupted—whether due to stress, screen exposure, sleep apnea, or erratic sleep cycles—the brain cannot engage in glymphatic flushing.
Sleep deprivation has been shown to:
* Increase extracellular beta-amyloid by up to 43% in a single night
* Decrease the expression of aquaporin-4 (AQP4) water channels in astrocytes, impairing fluid transport
* Heighten markers of neuroinflammation, including NF-κB signaling and glial activation

🧬 Systemic Inflammation and Glymphatic Dysfunction: A Two-Way Street

Interestingly, inflammation itself suppresses glymphatic flow. Research shows that systemic infections, autoimmune flares, and even gut dysbiosis can produce pro-inflammatory cytokines that reduce CSF dynamics and glymphatic activity.
Conversely, poor glymphatic clearance can worsen systemic inflammation by:
* Disrupting hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis signaling
* Altering vagal tone and the gut-brain-liver immune axis
* Impairing clearance of immune-modulating neurotransmitters like glutamate

🌿 How to Support Glymphatic Health

1. Prioritize Deep Sleep
* Aim for 7–9 hours of uninterrupted sleep in total darkness
* Use magnesium, L-theanine, or glycine to support non-REM sleep
* Avoid screens and caffeine 3+ hours before bedtime
2. Rebound, Stretch, and Move Your Spine
* Movement of the spine and neck enhances CSF circulation
* Manual lymphatic drainage may also indirectly stimulate glymphatic function
3. Hydration & Electrolyte Balance
* CSF production is heavily dependent on fluid status
* Add trace minerals or electrolytes to water to support fluid dynamics
4. Nutraceutical Support
* Resveratrol, turmeric (curcumin), omega-3s, and NAC reduce neuroinflammation
* Melatonin not only promotes deep sleep but enhances glymphatic activity
5. Cranial and Cervical Lymphatic Drainage
* Facial and neck MLD can relieve interstitial congestion
* Techniques like craniosacral therapy or vagal nerve stimulation may further support this network

🧠 Final Thought

The glymphatic system is a vital yet vulnerable detox engine for the brain. When impaired, it doesn’t just affect cognition—it can unleash a cascade of inflammatory dysfunction that spreads throughout the entire body.

By supporting this system through sleep hygiene, lymphatic stimulation, and anti-inflammatory practices, we lay the foundation for resilient mental, neurological, and immune health.

©️

18/11/2025

18/11/2025

Information I came across - take or leave it!

Can't shut up about this — our traditional oral care is WILDLY effective and backed by both science and generations of practice.

We don’t floss. Flossing was actually removed from world Health Organization (WHO) guidelines in 2016 due to a complete lack of evidence. It remains a controversial topic.

We use chewing sticks. The funny part, there is a far larger body of evidence supporting chewing sticks then floss.

Not just any stick only 'gifted' species — willow, birch, alder, dogwood sometimes even hazel — chewed on one end until it frays into a tough little wooden brush. Then we use that to massage our teeth and gums. Not a quick swipe — but a full, mindful massage. And here’s the wild part:

These sticks aren’t just mechanical.

They're medicine.

• Willow brings salicylates, and other anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving, gum-soothing.

• Birch has xylitol, which at chewing stick level concentrations inhibits the growth of cavity-causing bacteria.

• The massage itself increases circulation and lymphatic drainage, supporting healing and gum strength in ways floss never could.

And if you want to level it up?

Add spruce/pine/cedar/fir gum.

Yup. The same sticky golden resin our ancestors chewed like gum. It's antimicrobial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and full of healing compounds.

We chewed it, yes — but we also used it as a resin tooth balm. Rubbed directly on the gums or packed into damaged teeth.

This isn’t just hygiene. It’s oral pharmacology.

And it’s not about copying Western routines. It’s about knowing what our ancestors knew — that health isn’t just about removing bacteria. It’s about restoring balance, delivering medicine, and building resilience in the tissues that feed us every day.

This is the stuff I live for.

This is why I do this work.

Let’s remember that our ancestral plant knowledge didn’t stop at teas and poultices — it shaped our bones, our gums, our ability to smile into old age with every tooth still in place, and white.

Our old people are WAY more than a treasure trove of knowledge, they are the keepers of the keys that literally unlock our ability to live.

-Joseph Pitawanakwat

16/11/2025

15/11/2025

23/07/2025

Many Blessings 🙏💖

18/07/2025

Importance of minerals

21/05/2025

Practise at home

04/05/2025

Reflexology and Brain Health