An article through Reuters states that doctors often write off patient side-effect concerns.  The truth of the matter folks is that its not only doctors who do this.

A survey of 650 patients was done with the popular drug class of medications called statins by a Dr. Beatrice A. Golomb and fellow colleques. 

I personally feel this class of medications is slowly killing people, though for now that is neither here nor there.  For information at the present time I refer you to our blog roll to the book written by Dr. Dick Tapert (the proof is in the science)

The researchers investigated the response of doctors to statin patients who believed they were having adverse drug reactions.  In the great majority of cases, the patient, not the doctor, intitiated the discussin. 

Forty-seven percent of patients with muscle problems or cognitive prolems said their doctors dismissed the possiblitly that their symptoms were statin-related, while 51 percent of patients with peripheral neuropathy, a type of nerve pain affecting the extremities, said their doctors denied a possible connection with statins.

The investigators were surprised at how frequently patients reported that their doctors dismissed their concerns, Golomb said.  While her study wasn’t designed to find out why, the researcher notes that while the pharmaceutical industry is sure to get the word out about a drug’s benefits, there is “really no corresponding interest group to make sure that physicians learn about adverse affects.”

This is a very big problem.  Daily in your average pharmacy and Dr office their will be complaints of side effects with various medications.  Not appropriately addressing this is just one concern.  Should’nt these be documented, than this will give us a much clearer picture of the risks at hand since many studies that side effects are noted in in clinical trials have proven to be designed in a biasis fashion.

 Robert B Kress RPh CCN

Could you have an undiagnosed thyroid disorder?

Does any of this sound familar to you?…weight gain, depression, constipation, brittle hair and nails, menstrual irregularities, morning stiffness, insomnia, fatigue, cold hands and feet, etc. etc.  These are some of the more common symptoms to an ever prevalent health imbalance that by far is not being properly addressed.

Subclinical hypothyroidism is one of the most commonly underdiagnosed and under treated health imbalances today.  Why is that?  A number of reasons.

First of all, oftentimes the practitioner is only treating off of lab values, regardless of the patients symptoms.  After the blood test there is a range that the different values of thyroid must fall in to be “normal.”  Even after adjustments have been made to narrow this range it still leaves many individuals abnormally normal.

Next, the whole picture is not being looked at.  What do we mean by this?

An average thyroid panel will consist of a TSH (thyroid stimualting hormone), and T4 (thyroxine.)  TSH is made in your pituitary gland and places the order to when and how much thyroid hormone should be produced.  If the body has too much thyroid hormone than TSH should decrease, if the body has too little, than it should increase.  There are instances where there is a “mis-read” and this process does not work accurately.

Most of the T4 is changed into T3 (triiodothyronine) in the liver and the kidneys.  Though in many cases this conversion is impeded.  This can be due to toxins, radiation exposure, nutritional defeciencies, and more. 

Why is T3 often left out of an average thyroid panel?  Good question, though we do not have a good answer.  Maybe it is not often taught in med school?  Though it should be part of any thyroid panel to get an accurate assessment of someones thyroid health.  T3 is 4 to 5 times more active than T4!  Imagine what can be missed when this is not assessed.

What else should be looked at?  Thyroid antibodies and reverse T3.

If your thyroid antibodies are too high they can prevent thyroid hormone from attaching to its appropriate receptors.  Reverse T3 (rT3) is stored thyroid hormone.  The body uses it to put on the brakes if it feels there is too much. 

Aside from blood panels we find the practice of kinesiology to be a very good way to assess ones thyroid health.  In our practice we utilize Quantum Reflex Analysis and have found individuals who test strongly to nutrients that can detoxify heavy metals as well as clear off radiation exposure.  Yet other important factors to look at.

Nutrients that support healthy thryoid production are zinc, copper, tyrosine, copper, vitamins A, B2, B3, B6, C, selenium, and iodine. 

For proper thyroid assessment we recommend seeing a practitioner trained in integrative ways of treatment (which you can find in Health Warrior Recommend in our new e-book) and always use only pharmaceutical grade nutrients.

We would like to introduce you to what lies at the root of Health Warrior, and the energy that dictates why we have decided to create this blog site, our new book, and all of the new products and services we have in store for the very near future.
There is an all out assault on our health from various different angles, and one can no longer be passive if they plan on attaining and maintaining extraordinary health.  It is time to take responsibility back into our own hands to ensure a healthy lifetime for ourselves and our loved ones.
For this reason we introduce you to A.I.M.E.
We invite you to take A.I.M.E. towards empowerment of health. A.I.M.E. represents the heart, the true essence of the Health Warrior. 
A.I.M.E. is what our program, business, and life are about.  A.I.M.E. is the vehicle which we believe will help us reach our goal of a health-empowered society.  We invite you to take A.I.M.E. at your goals.

• Attitude- The knowing that you can accomplish anything.  The energy and the determination that you express and your confidence to do so.  Act and believe as if you are in the possession of the goal in which you desire.
• Intention- Intention is the force; the clear undeniable desire to attain your health goals.
• Motivation- The inspired force which will lead you to achieve the results that you desire.    
• Education- Constantly attracting the best information in regards to your health.  Enjoying the life long process of learning and growing in relation to your health and your happiness.

We want you to acquire a “no-partial credit” attitude when it comes to your health.  Decide what you want for your health and the intention to create it.  Find that motivation that will feed your drive to acquire it.  Educate your self so you have the ability to make the best decisions, with your health team, for you.

Infectious Prion Exposure

Animal based tissue and glandular products are commonly used in nutrients.  Examples would be in adrenal and thyroid supplements.  They offer a way for thebody to help stimulate activity and sometimes repair the targeted tissue or gland.

The problem comes when a company does not due its due-diligence to ensure a prion free product.  Commercial animals may carry the risk of infectious prion contamination (infective particles which transmit disease) exposure as well as a greatly increased burden on the kidney and liver to metabolize them.  Examples would be the growing concern and fear over “mad cow” disease, which causes an encephalopathy in humans, and has now been reported in animals around the world.

Consequently, products made with constituents that have come from commercial animals (such as organs and glands) now carry the risk of contamination with toxic prions.
The way to avoid such exposure is to either avoid all glandular products or to purchase from a reputable company who can guarantee a clean product.  Most reputable manufacturers will source their glandulars from companies who raise animals just for this purpose, free of hormones and drugs, in a region or country with strict regulations to protect against such exposure, such as New Zealand. Yet another reason why it is so important to make sure you obtain quality nutritional supplements.In Health,

R-n-A

Avoiding toxic insults to the best of our ability is a very important factor to realize.  When we look at toxins we have to consider the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat.  It has been estimated that we are exposed to five times more toxins inside our homes that outside. 

Utilizing household products free of such toxic chemicals is very important.  Filling our environments with safer alternatives whether it is the pillow and mattress we sleep on or the flooring in our homes.  A negative ionizer can prove to be of tremendous benefit in pooling the toxic gases, bacteria, mold, and dust mites away from ourselves.  Water purification and filtration systems are a must. 

Gone are the days of drinking water from our pipes for they are riddled with heavy metals.  If you have well water, consider this an option as well as having your water checked on a regular basis.
The fact that practically all of us are toxic, leads to the fact that practically all of us need to detoxify on a regular basis.  When I speak of the term detoxify, there are many different forms of detoxification that exist, depending upon our needs and our state of health. 

Let’s start with water.  Water can be a great detoxifying agent for our organs.  Water should be filtered free and clean of pathogens, chemicals and heavy metals.
Far infrared saunas are another great source of detoxification.  Far infrared sauna therapy effectively assists and restores the body’s own elimination mechanism by heating heavy metals and toxins out of fat cells.  The unique quality is that they can eliminate a wide array of toxins such as pesticides and plastics, and are not limited to metal binding tendencies of chelating agents.  As with other types of saunas or even hot tubs, those with health issues such as cardiovascular disease should seek the advice of their primary care physician before use of such a device.    

  
Chelation is something you may and may not have heard of.  Chelation is essentially delivering a molecule into the body that will bind to minerals and heavy metals and eliminate them from the body via urine and feces.  There are many common nutrients that actually have the ability to chelate.  Such nutrients are Coenzyme Q10, bear garlic, vitamin C, alpha lipoic acid, chlorella, and others.   The most effective forms of chelation are through intravenous administration, oral capsules and liquid, and a newer mode of delivery, rectal suppositories.
I.V. chelation, historically has been the gold standard, though are both time and cost intensive.  There is also belief that I.V. chelation may place an undo burden on certain organs of the body such as the kidneys.  With I.V. chelation it is very important to find a practitioner versed and experienced in such practice. 
Recently two products have been released, Detoxamin and Kelatox.  These are rectal EDTA chelating suppositories with promising results in some cases equaling that of I.V. chelation.  In addition they are easier, less time consuming, and much more cost efficient. 

At the time of writing this post, both Detoxamin and Kelatox were classified as a non-prescription items though I do recommend speaking with a practitioner versed in the field of toxin removal first.  

 In our practice we utilize topical mud packs as well as oral nutrient supplementation for such removal of toxins and heavy metals.Heavy metal detoxification is something that can and should be assessed for a number of different conditions of health.  If heavy metal chelation is chosen, it is very important to do so with a practitioner versed in such detoxification practices. 

One should assess the biological pathways of detoxification.  If biological pathways of detoxification are not working adequately such as the kidney’s, liver, and gut, it is important to balance these areas before embarking on a detoxification protocol.  One does not want to get into the practice of recycling their own toxins, nor do we want to place an uneeded stress upon organs such as the kidneys.

In Health

R-n-A

An article that has recently been released through the Assosciated Press states that pain medication use is on a dramatic rise.

The article states that the amount of five major painkillers sold at retail establishments rose 90 percent between 1997 and 2005, according to an Associated Press analysis of statistics from the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Why do you think this is?  Are more people getting in accidents?  Are more children playing outside these days and not playing video games, thus more injuries?

Doubt it!

We feel this is a perfect representation of how our inner world health affects our outter world health.  This represents a lot of pain that is being felt within peoples lives.  More information on the inner game of health that relates to you outter health can be found in our New Book, Health Warrior..Conquering the Inner Game of Heath.

Let us look at the addiciton potential.  These pain relievers are highly addicting.  I have seen this more times than I wish working in the retail pharmacy setting.  What is a source of addiction, aside from the physical element?  Self Esteem!  In our book we speak about the identiy of illness and how this can unravel to other issues such as addiction.

What we really need to do here is begin playing our inner game.  There are so many tools that we can use to prevent such situations. 

Thanks goodness we have the emergency pain management system that we have in our country.  The problem is that the system tends to fail us when we need to convert to the maintence and preventative health mode.

In Health,

R-n-A

Environmental toxins are an area of medicine that very little attention is given to.  We are living in a toxic world on a toxic planet.  Due to the industrialization of our planet there is practically no place on earth that has remained pristine.  Measurable levels of toxins have been found hundreds of feet down in ice burgs in the artic circle, isolated areas of the Caribbean sea, desolate regions of great body’s of desert and area’s not attainable or serviced by roadways such as the great lakes region by the Canadian boarder.
How do environmental toxins find there way into such isolation?  Great clouds of toxins exhumed by incinerators, power plants, and actions of pesticide control can be carried by wind currents and cloud masses across the globe.  They seep from the soil into our lakes and rivers and get carried downstream to other towns and larger bodies of water. 

When these actions take place on a daily basis there is a build up of environmental toxic sludge that accumulates providing our environment with a sustained release toxic pill that is guaranteed to affect future generations at an ever catastrophic rate.
Environmental toxins come in the form of plastics, pesticides, heavy metals, insecticides, herbicides, and volatile hydrocarbons.  Such toxins find there way to us commonly through an avenue called out gassing.  Out gassing is essentially these volatile chemicals exuding themselves from the objects they have been used to create or which they permeate.  This gives credence to the statement that nothing is inert or dead. 
Sources of these chemical surround us, inside and out, all of the time.  From the water we drink from the pipes or plastic bottles that the water comes through; the carpets in our houses and paint on the walls; aluminum in baking powder, salt and sugar; heavy metals in the foods that we eat, the mercury fillings in our mouths; cadmium in the batteries in our laptops and cell phones as well as the cigarettes we may choose to smoke; aluminum in our deodorants, the fluoride in our toothpaste; plastics and hydrocarbons from the mattresses and pillows that we sleep on; trichloroethylene from our dry cleaned clothes; pesticides in our lawn and on our produce; the plastic wrap that used to package our foods and the Styrofoam that holds our coffee and tea; plastics in computers, stereos, car’s and appliances; exhaust on the roadways as well as the heated up roadways from hot weather and heavy traffic.
A naysayer towards the practice of environmental toxicity might say that the body can handle a toxin without a problem because they come from each source in such small amounts.  This might be true if we were receiving toxins from minimal sources, but as you can see from above, toxins abound.  Are bodies have not been created to have the ability to metabolize these toxins, nor have our body’s modified themselves through evolutionary channels.  As the body encounters a toxin, if it cannot metabolize the toxin through the liver or the kidney’s, it stores it in areas such as fat cells, and major organs such as the liver, spleen, heart, thyroid and kidneys.  Without proper detoxification our bodies will continue to store these chemicals and heavy metals until the bioaccumulation compromises our physiological and psychological health and leads to chronic disease.
Studies have shown that most of us have between 400 and 800 chemical residues stored in our cells.  EPA studies reveal that 100% of people tested have dioxins, PCB’s, dichlorobenzene, and xylene in their fat cells.  One particular study had shown that 89% of people where burdened by carcinogenic benzene and 93% by another carcinogen, percholoethylene, measured in their exhaled breath.  These numbers should be sufficient evidence to any doubter that environmental toxicity is of epidemic proportions.
Toxic overload can be the cause of almost all of the prevalent health imbalances of today.  Headaches; skin conditions; allergies; inflammatory and autoimmune diseases such as cancers, lupus, arteriosclerosis and arthritis; chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia; hormone disruptions and imbalances such as endometriosis, PMS, and thyroiditis, infertility; cardiac conditions such as elevated blood pressure, heart disease, arrhythmias, sudden heart attacks; behavioral conditions such as ADD and ADHD; neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis, ALS, and Parkinson’s disease; depression; neuropathy’s; the list is endless.

Often when we think of food allergen we might think of an immediate reaction to a known time of contact. What we might not think of as a result of a food allergen is ear infections, sinus infections, behavioral problems, skin irritations, and more.

Common foods to provoke food reactions are soy, corn, sugar, gluten, milk, and more. Have you ever heard a mother or someone describe a child’s random screaming as “blood curdling?” Can we take this a little further into the realm of symbolism and look at something like milk? What happens when milk goes bad? It curdles. Can we make the assumption that as if our bodies do not adequately break down the milk protein, it can “go bad” in our system, or cause ill resulted reactions such as behavioral issues, allergens, or results such as blood curdling screams?

We must also keep in mind that often it is the foods that we crave that can tend to have a problem over us. There is believed to be some type of addiction of bio feed back mechanism that leads us to want what is not necessarily good for us.

So how can we address such situations? First of all if it is not a crisis allergic reaction, let’s try to avoid suppressing the symptoms through such avenues as anti-histamines, steroids, and behavior modifying drugs. If you or your practitioner thinks that food allergens might be a cause, a food rotation diet can be attempted. This essentially entails rotating out of the diet all foods that have a high potential for causing allergic reactions. Then slowly at a minimum 1 week at a time incorporate one type of food back in. If one begins to develop signs and symptoms of an allergy, then back off the food and reintroduce another.

Sometimes food rotation diets might be a terrific challenge. For a teenager or younger child in school where such provoking foods are common, this might seem difficult. In such cases an allergy test can be performed. Such highly accurate tests are the ALLCAT test and the ELISA ACT test.

I feel it is important to keep one thing in mind, as spoken by Hippocrates, “Let thy food by thy medicine and thy medicine by thy food.” This not only gives a glimpse on how we should choose to fill our diets with the right foods, but to also let us pause and take a closer look at what we are considering to be our medicines.

As with everything in life, it is very important to look at the symbolism of what lies in front of you.  In the practice of retail pharmacy it is quite easy to notice certain trends and habits of prescribing.  Over the last few years the prescribing of anti-yeast/fungal medications has increased dramatically.  I believe this is due to the number of newer antifungal products that are now on the market as well as an enormous increase of yeast driven infections.  The most common strain of yeast that causes a need for medical intervention is Candida Albicans.
Even though yeast infections have been recognized for a long time, they were never much of a concern to the medical community until after the 1940’s.  The 1940’s were a very pivotal point in medicine with the introduction of the antibiotic penicillin.  At first, penicillin seemed to be a magic bullet, treating infections that often led to debilitating conditions and even death.  Pharmaceutical financial interests then began to peak, and along with the ever growing time and stress oriented society, inappropriate prescribing techniques became more common.  This has continued a cycle of developing broader antibiotics at ever escalating financial rates.  Resistance issues towards antibiotics then emerged. 

The prescribing and use oral contraceptives and immune suppressive treatments such as corticosteroids have played an integral role in the growth yeast based infections as well.  The end result today, billions of dollars later, include missed diagnosis’s, weakened immune systems, and in what we will be looking at in this article, the explosion of a yeast laden society. 
I believe yeast or fungal overgrowth is much more prevalent than most health professionals and general population realize.  Having a problem with yeast overgrowth is not the sole problem of those with jock or vaginal infections, infections of the skin and nails, or even oral thrush.  Over growth of yeast can impact basically all systems of the body.  For this reason, symptoms of a yeast or fungal burden can present as digestive issues, issues with concentration, lack of energy, chronic fatigue, weight gain, ADD, Autism, and much more.
So what are the reasons for such an overgrowth of yeast in this society?  Not just over the past few years, but over the past few months, I have been noticing a tremendous increase in antifungal medications being prescribed to both men and women.  One of the most common of these medications goes by the trade name Diflucan, or its recent generic release, fluconazole.  So why such an increase over the past few months?  I believe we have to look at this on a few different levels. 

We are in the summer season here in the northern hemisphere.  As with many regions of the northern hemisphere, the summer season brings an increase in humidity.  During these seasons people begin spending more time outdoors as well as in the water.  Moisture bring rise to yeasts and funguses.  As I have noticed the mushrooms popping up in my lawn I have noticed a larger amount of people coming in for medications to treat yeast and fungal infections.  This is an important realization of how we integrally relate within our environment.
Another insult to our systems that breeds the growth of yeast is heavy metal toxicity, mainly mercury.  When mercury enters the body, yeast acts to protect the body and begins to replicate to encompass the mercury.  The more mercury, the more yeast.  We know some of the main exposures to mercury such as preservatives in vaccines, and amalgam dental fillings.  Mercury toxicity can possibly be the sole reason for reocurring yeast infections.  Infection gets cleared, though even with a healthy diet, candida keeps growing and proliferating to protect the body from yeast.

Looking at this environmental issue a little deeper is the problem with molds in houses. This has gained much attention over the last decade or more.  Could this be a direct relation to what we notice in our environment, from toxic insults, and an area that we have not spoke of yet, diet?  Remember our outer worlds reflect our inner worlds; we are the micro of the macro.
Now let’s look at diet, for I believe in the case of yeast, an unhealthy diet can be public enemy number one.  Signs and symptoms of such a diet might include cravings for white flour food products and sweets.  We must look at what feeds the yeast and allows it to grow.  Then we must remove these substances form our diets, thus starving the yeast.  Often in the case of yeast, one of the main culprits is sugar.  We can go on and on about the health consequences of refined sugars and carbohydrates, but to keep it simple, sugars feed yeast.  Yeast thrives on sugar, it’s like a Las Vegas all you can eat buffet.  Other agents that yeast can thrive off of are fermented foods.  Foods such as beer, wine, cheeses (especially hard cheeses), fruits and fruit juices, vinegar, yeast risen breads and more.  I understand that we have to be practical.  The amount of foods that can feed yeast is almost incomprehensible, so I must say moderation in moderation.  If you have a known ecology that is overburden by yeast, you will want to take such conscious measures in altering your diet to let the yeast die off.  One must be warned of a yeast die off reaction.  This can often cause feelings of ill health such as headaches, malaise, and body aches.  This can last from a few days to a week. 
It is important, as with any ill health condition, to look at the gut.  Supplementing with beneficial bacteria, such as acidophilus to clean up the gut and create a healthy self preserving environment will be of great benefit.  A diet rich in fresh, whole foods such as vegetables and organic meats is important.  There are a number of nutraceuticals that can be used successfully in a yeast eradication program as well as a number of supplements recommended to protect the body if the more powerful pharmaceutical agents are used. 

Successful natural ingredients include Cats Claw, Caprylic Acid, Grape Fruit Seed extract, Aloe Vera, Garlic and Olive Leaf. For this I recommend a consultation with a qualified health care professional to optimally guide the patient towards balanced health.  Such a practitioner will know the proper tests to identify the presence of yeast as well.  If someone was to go the root of pharmaceutical agents we must look to protect the liver, for most of these products can be offensive to the organ.  Supplementing with alpha lipoic acid and milk thistle can be of benefit here.

Aside from nutritional supplementation, in most cases we have great success with such as natural anti-bacterials and natural flora supplementation, what are dietary ways we can treat acne?

Usually it comes down to what foods to avoid.  There is one food group, that when avoided can make a tremendous difference in the quality of ones skin and appearance.  Aside from skin effects, taking this food group out of ones diet can help with ear infections, chronic sinusites and upper respiratory infections, and even stubborn weight loss.

 Do you know what food group we are speaking about?  It is recommended by our failed food pyramid.  The marketing campaings will tell you that it helps build strong bones.  It is usually filled with hormones and anti-biotics. 

….and lastly, most poeple who have an intolerance to it, will CRAVE it!!!!!!!

 If you, or someone that you love is having a battle with acne, and all of the antibiotics and multitude of skin care products are not helping, try avoiding it for a few weeks.

See what improvements that you notice.  If cheese is your thing or a number of other dairy type products, try goat products, goat cheese, yogurt and more.

 As far as milk, goat milk, rice milk, and almond milk are great choices.

In Health,

 R-n-A