Preventing Breast Caner #2

Years ago I went to a seminar where Dr. Jeffery Bland and Dr. Joseph Pizzorno were presenting research that they were conducting on fats and their relationship to breast cancer. The research model was to use mice that had been bred to easily develop mammary cancer. At that time the thought was that all fats would increase the growth of the cancer and hasten the death of the rats in the study.

What they observed was that all dietary fats did not produce the same results. To their amazement the rats that were fed Omega three fish oils and the rats fed ground flaxseed not only lived the longest they also outlived the control group! Flaxseed are a source of alpha-linolenic acid that most people can convert to the EPA and DHA found in fish oils.

Time has proven this preliminary study to be very accurate. It is common knowledge in the nutrition world that Omega three oils can have a protective effect against breast cancer.  Supplementing with 2-4 mg of Omega three-rich fish oils AND finding a way to incorporate ground flaxseed (that includes lignans) at 2 Tablespoons per day is another great way to help breast health.

The mechanisms as to why they are protective might be that the lignans (fiber) in the flaxseed help to modulate estrogens in the body. Omega Three oils are generally deficient in the American diet so most people are generally deficient in this essential oil. What it does for you is to modulate the inflammatory response. Bringing down inflammation is important because inflammation increases cellular damage and mutations that promote cancer.

There are dietary sources of fish oils that include sardines, herring and mackerel. Most Americans shun the “stinky little fish ” that our grandparents ate.  Cold water fish such as Alaskan cod and salmon are another good source. Farm-raised atlantic salmon are NOT a good source of the beneficial oils.  Incorporating nuts and seeds such as sunflower seed, walnuts, and pecans into the diet are another source of these oils.

Little changes in the diet, done consistently, can make a huge difference in your health.

Be Well, Make Good Choices.

Preventing Breast Cancer with Iodine?

While there are never guartentees when we talk about preventing disease there are many things that are known that will help you to stack the cards in your favor.
In this article I am going to share with you one of the many specific things that are known about breast health.
Iodine: The current recommended daily allowance (that was established in the 1930′s based on what we now know to be faulty science) is 150 mcg (micrograms). Most Americans are lucky if they get 50 mcg daily. This is because we tend to eat very few products from the sea. We eat almost no seaweed and limited amounts of fish. The source of iodine for most people is iodized salt and many people limit the amount of salt they eat or have switched to non-iodized salts.
So why is iodine important? Iodine is essential for thyroid functioning, healthy breasts, healthy uterus and healthy prostate functioning.

If you want a book-length discussion on the role iodine plays there is a book availible on Amazon “Breast Cancer and Iodine: How to prevent and How to survive Breast Cancer” by Dr. David Derry M.D.,Ph.D.

In this book he explains how iodine prevents stage one cancer cells from morphing into stage 2 and beyond.  He also shares some great demograhic information. The Japanese who eat a tradional diet that includes a lot of seaweed get about 13 mg (miligrams) of iodine daily and have corresponding low levels of breast cancer.

I hope you picked up on the difference between 50 mcg and 13 mg! Nobody says that you have to get 13 mg a day  but how about 3mg? or 7mg? I recommend that you start insuring adaquate iodine intake either by eating more seaweed (think sushi bar salad), taking seaweed supplements or taking a potassium iodide suppplement.

Another way to get it is to use topical iodine and paint it on the skin. The more the body needs it, the quicker it will be absorbed.  It can be put directly on breast tissue and will help the body dissolve fibroids. This is not new cutting edge information.  Forty years ago a Naturopath shared this information with me (right out of the Mayo Clinic I believe) and it worked like a charm to get rid of my “lumpy fibroids”. Cheap, easy and a smart thing to do.

Most people feel better ( a little more energy) when taking iodine because it supports thyroid functioning.

There are always exceptions.  Some people who take it feel worse.  Those people often are suffering from an auto-immune disease that is attacking the thyroid (Hashimoto’s thyroiditis). In which case, listen to your body and don’t  supplement with it.

Iodine is one of those minerals that many if not most Americans are deficient in.  It is a simple way to start stacking the odds in your favor….

Be Well….Choose Life

 

 

Depression and Acupuncture

Depression is a nasty, silent condition that many people struggle with that sucks the joy out of life and can make every day a chore. Anti-depressants have been a help for many people .. especially for people who are suffering from what is called “situational depression”. This might happen after a major loss of some kind and will eventually resovle itself. Serotonin Selective Reuptake Inhibitors better known as SSRI’s trick the body into thinking that it has more serotonin (a calming neurotransmitter) than it really does. As I said , this can help in the short run but problems often arise when these drugs are used for long periods of time. This is because the drugs often actually deplete the amount of serotonin available in the body as time goes on. So a common senario is that someone will be put on an SSRI and it will work like a charm but six months later they will need to double the dose to get the same effect. And six months after that they may need to try a different drug because the first one doeesn’t work at all.

So what will work? From an Oriental Medicine point of view the answer is always that the individual needs to treated for THEIR energy imbalances.

So depression sometimes comes from grief and is affecting the lung channel. Often is is coming from stagnant liver QI and maybe surpressed anger or intense frustration is the issue. Acupuncture can be very helpful in moving this stuck emotion and energy.

From a bio-chemical point of view adding some tryptophan or 5-HTP as a supplement daily supplement will aid in helping the body make more serotonin. These should be taken on an empty stomach.

Really stubborn depression can be the result of food allergies! Gluten is one of the main suspects but it is not alone. Milk, eggs, soy are also right up there in causing long term problems.

How do you figure out what is the problem? Traditional skin tests are worthless in identifing food allergies. One of the best clues is to identify what you are addicted to. Allergies and addiction are two sides of the same coin. Can’t image living without your pasta and bread? You have usually found you answer…. at least part of it.

If you want to experiment on your own then go off the suspect food for AT LEAST 2 WEEKS and then re-introduce it two times in the same day. Often you will have a noticable reaction shortly thereafter.. Could be a headache, bowel distress, joint pain…. something. Your body will talk to you….

For all of you that are suffering from depression know that there is hope for long term control and sometimes a cure if you will look at all of your options.

Be Well….

Acupuncture and Infertility

Infertility seems to rampant in this day and age and Western Medicine can offer some pretty amazing alternatives–for a hefty price.

Oriental Medicine has a less heroic, but often effective ways of helping couples conceive –with a much smaller investment.

The beauty of Oriental Medicine is that it is a theory of health. There is an understanding of how the body works when it is healthy.

I like to think of it as a dance between the various energies (organs) of the body. If you understand the dance and know what each organ is supposed to be doing you can often pinpoint the weak link and then use acupuncture, herbs and /or nutrition to remedy the problem. If all systems are set to “go”…well nature takes its course.
The menstrual cycle is an intricate dance between the liver (responsible for clearing the various hormones so it controls the periodicity of the cycle). As in “Is your cycle 28 days or longer or shorter?” The spleen (pancreas or digestion) is responsible for producing the “blood” (the lining of the uterus). The Kidney energy (endocrine system) is responsible for producing the egg. All must be working together for a woman to be fertile.

Sometimes the problem is a structural one where the uterus is tipped or there just isn’t enough blood flow to the uterus to maintain a pregnancy.

In many instances, infertile couples working with a good Oriental Practioner can , in three to six months time, put the systems back in order and naturally get pregnant. It certainly should be the first therapy that a couple seeks if they are having difficulty conceiving. I’ve seen it work many, many times in my practice. Be Well!
Sometim

Beware of Levaquin

I don’t usually go around bad-mouthing drugs. But every good rule sometimes needs to be broken, especially it can help many people avoid a LOT of suffering.

It has come to my attention that the drug Levaquin ( a very potent anti-biotic) has a black-box warning on it. This needs to be taken very seriously, as I have several patients who have serious and lasting side effects from using the drug.

Hopefully if you are taking care of yourself (which includes getting regular, at least seasonal, acupuncture) you can avoid getting serious infections that includes the use of any anti-biotics. But as we all know the world is not perfect and sometimes even with the best preventative care we end up with a serious infection that needs to be treated with an anti-biotic. Just remember you have choices!

In my opinion, Levaquin should be the first to cross off your list. In my practice I have seen a number of cases of serious after- effects from the use of Levaquin.

When my elderly mother (who remained sharp-as-a-tack till the day she passed) used it she began to halluncinate. This is a common side effect that is reported in my limited experience. As far a I know this resolves itself once the drug is discontinued.

The after-effects that I am most concerned about is the reported tendonitis that sometimes afflicts persons after they have taken the drug. It does not go away.. in fact it only gets worse as time goes on. Painful achilles tendon, painful feet, painful shoulders, swelling of the lower legs are some of the syndromes that have been reported to me.

I understand that the soft tissue is being attacked at a cellular level. I believe that an auto-immune process somehow gets set up.

Obviously this does not happen to everyone. It happens often enough and is debilitating enough that if I had a choice I would not use it.
I just thought that you might like to know my experience so that you can make an informed choice the next time you need and anti-biotic. (Hope that you never do).

If you do have a problem you should know that Acupuncture can be helpful as well as specific supplements.

One specific supplement that would be very helpful would be Vitamin D. Vitamin D will help to calm the immune system. You want a dosage of between 2000 IU to 5000 IU once every day. Of course Fish Oils (Omega 3 fatty acids),(especially EPA) daily in the amounts of 3000 IU to 4000IU will help bring down the infamatory response. Just be sure that you are not taking a blood thinning drug before you start Fish Oil as Fish Oils will also thin the blood. Any thing that is a good anti-oxidant (Vit C, Vit E, CoQ10, Ginger etc…) can also be helpful in bring down inflamation.

There is a lot more that you can do supplement -wise but you really should be working with a knowledgable person that can help you customize your program.
So be an informed consumer! Be Well!

Fatigue – Tired all the time?

Fatigue is one of the most common symptom that people come in to see a doctor about. It is often a part of many chronic conditions.
The challenge for the doctor is to figure out the cause of the fatigue. Most likely it is caused not from one single thing but from several things that come together to sap your energy.
The challenge for the patient is to find a doctor that is willing to take the time to find the root causes of the fatigue.
Some of the usual suspects are low thyroid function, low adrenal function, chronic infection and or focal point infection (as in teeth), food allergies, gluten sensitivities, low oxygen, sleep depravation, liver congestion, low glucose, candida overgrowth, low amino acids, low serotonin, low enzymes…etc…
I think that you get the idea. Fatigue can come from many places and sometimes it takes some time and work to unravel the mystery.
If you are a sufferer then find a good doctor Western or Oriental or Alternative to work with you and be patient. And be compliant! Help yourself by getting moderate exercise, develop[ good eating habits and good sleeping habits. Let go of the past and forgive. Tap into your passion and seek to find your joy in life. Don’t isolate yourself and keep a log of ;how you feel each day looking for patterns. Focus on the progress made as you heal. Often you did not become fatigued over night and your recovery will be a journey back to health. Stay hopeful!
Every symptom has a cause and if there is a cause then there is a cure!

Save Your Brain!

I spent a lovely Sunday afternoon at a seminar with Dr. Pearlmutter M.D. listening to fascinating research on Brain Health.
Here are some of the most useful pearls:
Fish Oils, particularly DHA must be taken on a daily basis. Eat sardines, wild caught Salmon or high quality fish oils every day! It can help your moods, bring down inflammation, feed your brain and save you from a heart attack.
Exercise! There is no substitute for getting the blood circulating on a daily basis. It cuts the risk of dementia.
Cut calories! Consider an occasional fast! obesity is a risk factor for Parkinson’s Disease.
Eat curry! The spices in curry help to bring down inflammation.
Brain fog is really an inflamed gut!
Consider being tested for gluten sensitivity. People who are gluten sensitive are more likely to suffer from a wide range of brain and mental disorders from ADD to depression and anxiety to Alzheimer’s Disease.
Get enough Vit D. Sunshine or supplement.

Have a plan to detoxify your body of environmental poisons. Farmers who have a lot of exposure to pesticides have a much greater risk of Parkinson’s disease. Fasting, sauna’s, steam baths, periodic liver cleanses and ionic foot baths are all good methods of helping the body to rid itself of toxins.

Develop your spirituality and friendships. They will also help to preserve your brain function.

Last but not least use it or lose it! 

Develop your spirituality.

Unexpected Kindness

Yesterday I was on my way into the post office with my arms loaded with boxes to be mailed and a very elderly man was almost at the bottom of the steep stairs that I was about to go up. I watched as he carefully turned around and headed back up the stairs. My thought was that he had forgotten something and had to go back into the post office to get it. I soon realized that his mission was to open the door for me. I was so touched by his kindness and thanked him. He never said a word, but his actions said volumes about how a simple act can brighten someones day.
In an increasingly busy and often rude and impersonal world he was a reminder to me that we can each have an impact and be an ambassador of peace and goodwill.

May this be an encouragment to each of you to do well whatever you are doing, be kind to your self and to everyone you meet. You may make someones day!

Cholesterol –The truth

Isn’t is odd that most people know their cholesterol number on their blood work?  Probably more than know their blood type! (O, A, B or AB) It is as odd as if people were walking around and knew the tire pressure in only their back right tire. The power of propaganda! Cholesterol is but one of many blood markers that can give us clues as to what is going on in the body. It certainly is not nearly as important as the makers of cholesterol lowering drugs would have us believe. 

First off, who decided that healthy cholesterol levels should be below 200?  Most blood tests are reported ”normal” if the number comes within 2 standard deviations of the mean (average) of everyone who gets a blood test. (I’m not suggesting that this is the best way to read blood work but that is how it is currently done.) But not Cholesterol. 200 is an arbitrary number that keeps being pushed lower and lower. There is no hard scientific evidence that taking drugs to keep the number below 200 prevents anything for people who have not had a heart attack.  In fact, there are some researchers who have studied blood chemistries for their whole careers looking for “optimal” blood values, (as opposed to “normal” blood values) who believe that optimal cholesterol is closer to 225 than to 200!

Did you know that over 50% of the people who die of a heart attack DO NOT have elevated cholesterol? 

Cholesterol and saturated fats have become dirty words in our society. We have come to associate both with unhealthy life-styles and set-ups for heart attacks.  But there is a lot of mis-information out there in information-land. 

Think about it…what did your ancestors eat a century ago?  If they were living on a farm chances are that they were eating a lot of whole milk, butter, eggs, pork and beef. Certainly that would have been true 2 centuries ago.  Yet heart disease didn’t begin to rise until the twentieth century. The fact is we evolved eating saturated fats.  Our body knows what to do with them.  Young women who are infertile are often lacking those good Omega 6 fats found in whole milk and eggs. They are needed to make brains and eyes! Cholesterol is the precursor to all of our hormones.

There are some researchers who believe that the real issue in heart disease is not cholesterol but rather inflammation in the body. When there is inflammation then the body starts to produce more cholesterol to do more repair work.

Sort of like: I have a crazy man running around my house with a hammer knocking holes in the walls (Low level infections, too many free radicals).  So I hire a plasterer (Cholesterol) to run behind him fixing the holes. Then I blame the plasterer for making a mess (clogging my arteries). The blood marker for inflammation in the body is C-reactive protein. Probably a much more valuable marker of heart disease than Cholesterol.

My problem with statin drugs (drugs that lower Cholesterol) are that they are very hard on the liver. They also tend to wipe out your COEnzyme Q-10 (CoQ10). CoQ10 is necessary for the cell to utilize oxygen. Oxygen is necessary for the cell to manufacture ATP, the energy packet of the cell. Responsible doctors often check for the signs of liver damage when their patients are on statin drugs.  From a Chinese Medicine point of view one of the contributing factors to too high cholesterol levels is a congested or stagnant liver.

So let me see if I have this straight….. your liver is congested so your cholesterol is too high, so you take a drug that further stresses the liver…Looks like you will have to be on this drug forever! Good news if you are selling the drug.

Forgive me for the sarcasm.  Statins certainly have their place for people who have already had a heart attack. They are also appropriate for people who have very high cholesterol levels who cannot bring them down to modest ranges doing other things (that I will talk about in a minute). I do believe that they are way over-used in the current medical climate. There is even talk of putting 12-year-old children on Statins (for the rest of their lives!)in an effort to prevent heart disease.

Common Sense….. not so common. You must control your weight. Each person must take responsibility for their own health.  Exercise is not optional. You must move. You must do some weight-bearing exercise to build muscle.You need fresh air and sunshine. You need good sleep and rest. You need water. You need to eat whole, fresh foods that are minimally processed.  Vegetables and fruits, nut and seeds, clean proteins and beans are your friends.  Fiber and anti-oxidants (Vitamin  C & E & etc…) are essential. A few whole grains to round out a good diet. Fish Oil will raise the “good, slippery” (HDL) fats in your blood stream that are protective, along with exercise.  Did I say exercise? Avoid trans-fats like the plague. (Fried foods as in donuts…) Avoid the “whites”; white sugar, white flour, white rice, alcohol.

If you do these things on a regular basis you will keep your weight in check. So what do you do if Cholesterol levels really start to rise?  You might consider Red Yeast Rice which is a Chinese herb that will help to bring down the number.  It is a natural statin with fewer side effects.  You will still need to supplement with CoQ10.

You might consider fairly high doses of Vitamin B-3 (Niacin). Know that if you take high doses of niacin you are likely to get a “niacin flush”. You get a bright red flushing of the skin that lasts for 10 to 15 minutes. It is not an allergic reaction. It is because niacin is a vasodialator.  You can also get forms of niacin that are that are flush-free.

Increasing your fiber is one easy way to give the body a way to get rid of excess Cholesterol.  One rule of thumb is to try to eat at least a half cup of beans every day to get enough fiber.

Vitamin C with bioflavinoids will help the body to get rid of excess Cholesterol.

You might want to consider a liver-cleanse that is really a liver tune-up.  Alternative practitioners like Nutritionists, Naturopaths, Chiropractors and Acupuncturists have speciality supplements that are protein shakes that are designed to give the liver everything it needs to clean itself out and to make it more efficient.

A word about triglycerides.  If that number is too high it simply means that you are eating too many carbohydrates (not fats) for what you need.  The excess carbohydrates are being converted to triglycerides for storage.  For most people that is the answer.

Be a responsible, educated consumer.  Know the risks and benefits of any drug that you are prescribed. Ask for the evidence that the drug is necessary and effective.  Look for not just a second opinion but an alternative opinion as well.  Know what your options are. Live responsibly. Live well.

Pre and Post Operative Nutrition

There are some simple things that each of us can do in order to optimize our chances for a safe, effective surgical procedure.

The first thing may seem like an oxymoron, but really isn’t. You want to be as strong and as healthy as you can be going into a surgery. Many surgeries have some lee-way as to when they are done. Hip replacements, shoulder repairs, even hysterectomies are often scheduled months out so that you, as the patient, have time to optimize your nutrition status and health before the actual surgery.

When I work with my patients pre-surgery, and we have the luxury of time, I always assess their immune status, adrenal strength, protein intake, liver function and bowel status. 

Assessing immune status includes making sure that the patient’s immune system is as balanced and strong as possible. Checking the status of Vitamin D, calcium, and bioflavonoids are a few of the building blocks that are important for a strong immune system.  Sometimes I will treat Candida yeast overgrowths, or Helicobacter pylori infections to take some chronic stress off the immune system if it is appropriate. 

In Chinese Medicine, the adrenals are where the “fire of life” resides.  It is also where the deep immunity of a person is found.  Many people are walking around with exhausted adrenals and complain that fatigue is a major issue along with chronic sleep issues.  Testing for adrenal function is often appropriate and can help pinpoint the extent of the dysfunction and identify an appropriate healing strategy. Strong adrenals ensure that you will have energy to recover and heal quickly. 

The most important thing that you can do to ensure strong adrenals is to stabilize your blood sugar levels by eating small, frequent meals. This means eating every three to four hours during the day. Be sure to include at least 15 grams of protein with each meal and snack.  Minimizing your intake of simple carbohydrates is important. A simple way to think about this is to avoid the “whites”: white sugar, white bread, white rice. 

Paying attention to your protein intake before and after surgery is also important to insure that you will have the building blocks needed for tissue repair.  Soy, whey and fish protein will give you high quality, easy to digest protein that won’t overload your digestive system.

Even if my patients have only a few weeks before surgery the #1 thing that I will have them do is a liver “tune-up”.  If you think about it, it is the liver that has to process or clear all the drugs and anesthesia that are put into your system when you have surgery.  Most of us have sluggish liver function from a Chinese Medicine point of view. I use a “medical food” designed for the liver and have them take it several weeks before the surgery and again once they get home.  Milk thistle, dandelion, beets and artichoke are herbs and foods that will all benefit the liver.   

Note:  Follow your surgeon’s instructions to the letter concerning supplement use before and immediately after surgery. Different surgeries require the use of different drugs and some are not compatible with supplements.  

Last but not least you want to make sure that your bowels are cleaned out before surgery.  If you have regular and complete bowel movements you are ready to go.  If you are one of the millions who suffer from sluggish bowels or suffer from constipation you may want to take a mild laxative such as milk of magnesia several days before your surgery, but not the night before.

Everyone would do well to eat intentionally “light” the day or two before surgery.  The reason for this is that you do not want your energies to be bogged down with digestion and excess “sludge” that needs to be eliminated. Soups, salads, cooked vegetables and small amounts of high quality protein are the best menu items. 

After surgery, add light foods first, go back to supporting your liver and make sure that you have regular meals with high quality protein. 

Be Well!

Dr. Anne Chew

Acu-Choice Healthcare ~ http://bit.ly/9kgmat