You don’t just wake up one day and become diabetic.  In fact, there are virtually no symptoms that you may experience in early stages or in the pre-diabetes stage.  But then one day your annual blood tests come back and your doctor tells you that your Glucose was too high and your Hemoglobin A1C was over 6.4%.  What does that mean?  Where does that come from?  Why wasn’t I warned?  Now what?  All these questions may be going through your head at the time, but what you are about to find out is that there are hidden factors behind medications, diets, the foods we eat, and even hormones that may be contributing to the rise of the diabetic epidemic.  Diabetes does not have to be a progressive disease and can be controlled or even reversed with just a few changes to your lifestyle habits.  Even when you think you are exercising enough and eating the right foods, you may have been misinformed or maybe just “in the dark”...

In a recently published large international study the findings show that taking a low-dose aspirin as a preventative for heart attack or stroke is no longer recommended for adults age 70 or over, according to guidelines released in March 2019.

The new recommendations that were issued by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association, are a reversal of previous guidance that endorsed taking a baby aspirin daily to prevent cardiovascular problems in adults over age 50.  The two groups agreed that in older adults with low risk and no prior history of MI (heart attack) or stroke, the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding outweighed any heart benefit.

The changes come on the heels of the international study’s findings that even at low doses, long-term use of aspirin may be harmful, without providing any benefit, for older people who have not already had a heart attack or stroke.

Dr. Roger Blumenthal, co-chair of the 2019 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Primary...

Nearly 25 million American adults suffer from pain on a daily basis and 23 million report experiencing severe pain.¹In fact, pain affects more Americans than diabetes, heart disease and cancer combined and is cited as the most common reason Americans access health care.

Pain is a major contributor to health care costs and a leading cause of disability.² The WHO, or World Health Organization estimates at least half adult population in the world experienced at least one headache in the past year.³ In the U.S. nearly 70 million prescriptions are written and 30 billion doses are consumed when over-the-counter (OTC) NSAIDS are included.⁴ Although they may appear safe as they are sold in local convenience stores, by conservative estimates, over 105,000 people are hospitalized every year from side effects of these drugs and over 16,000 have died.⁵ Long-term side effects from NSAIDS are varied, but research demonstrates short-term use significantly increases your...

Thyroid medication topped the list of prescription drugs dispensed in the United States in 2015.  For many, symptoms are not improving when put on thyroid medication by their doctor; however, most of these people still affirm that they are tired, exhausted, and have trouble getting motivated.¹

“It’s a strong signal that this is an overused medication,” said Dr. Juan Brito, an endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic. “Some people really need this medicine, but not the vast majority of people who are taking it.”

As people age, they tend to see their doctors more.  Many patients will have the complaints of fatigue, low energy, weight gain, constipation, mental “fogginess”, etc. Clinicians will typically order a Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) and T4 blood tests as part of a routine panel.  The pituitary gland detects low thyroid function, which is indicated with low T4 and more so with T3 Free.  In response to low thyroid...

• Migraine is one of the most common health conditions in the world—more prevalent than diabetes, epilepsy and asthma combined. A little less than 15 percent of the world’s population suffer with migraines
• An observational study recently found that people who get migraines have a different blood vessel structure in their brains compared to those who do not get migraines, causing greater asymmetry in hemispheric cerebral blood flow
• Environmental factors appear to play a significant role in triggering a migraine attack. This includes certain foods and drinks, hormonal changes, stress, external stimuli like scents or lights, dehydration and changes in sleep cycle
• Both aspartame and MSG are notorious for causing headaches and triggering migraines. Aspartame can also trigger other neurological symptoms such as visual disturbances and tingling in the extremities
• Preventing migraines begins by avoiding the triggers. Most often this means eating healthy whole foods (avoiding most...

A common upper respiratory disease called Pertussis many often know as Whooping Cough. You may have even heard of it as the “100 day cough”? This is a lingering disease that starts off with cold-like symptoms such as runny nose, a mild fever, and maybe a cough. These mild symptoms last for almost 2 weeks and then, as the disease develops, you may notice a worsening rapid cough with high pitched “whoop” sound accompanied by fatigue and sometimes vomiting due to the extreme coughing.  This disease is extremely contagious by breathing in the bacteria that are present in droplets released when an infected person coughs or sneezes. The person who is infected is contagious for up to 3 weeks!  And the worst part is…they may not even know they have it.

Infants are at risk for most severe complications including pneumonia and seizures because their immune systems are underdeveloped.  But, since the disease starts off more like a cold, it is often...

“Overall, the results indicate that the medical profession is doing a poor job of appropriately prescribing opioid painkillers. Even though the rates have leveled off, we have a long way to go in improving medical care so these are not as overprescribed as they are currently … [T]here are a lot of leftover medications. In many cases, physicians could write smaller prescriptions, or avoid them completely for those who benefit from ibuprofen or acetaminophen.”

– Dr. Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse ⁽¹⁾

Prescription opioids are medications that are typically prescribed by dentists, family doctors and hospitals as a response to acute pain.  The medication is only supposed to be used for a short period of time, but studies have found those who are prescribed opioids can take them from 2 weeks to 10 years or more. Opioids are chemically similar to endorphins, which is a substance our body makes naturally to relieve...

Many health care professionals are recommending that their patients who are “baby boomers” get tested for Hepatitis C.  Did you know that 1 in 30 baby boomers are infected with Hepatitis C and don’t even know it?  In 2012, the CDC amended testing recommendations to include one-time Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) testing for all persons born between 1945-1965 regardless of other risk factors.¹ In fact, people in this age group are 5 times more likely than any other age groups that have HCV.²   But why? 

Let’s first discuss what Hepatitis C Virus is exactly.  Hepatitis C is a blood-borne disease which was only just discovered in 1989.  Much of the affected population carries no symptoms and therefore don’t even know they have it.  Hepatitis C affects the liver and can cause severe liver damage or cirrhosis.  Hepatitis C is transmitted by recreational drug use involving...

The Cholesterol Theory:

THE MEETING OF SCIENCE AND POLITICAL INFLUENCE

For the better part of the last 50 years or more, we have been told to fear cholesterol and saturated fat as the cause of heart disease.1 Cholesterol is not the enemy and this newsletter will help to prove that fact.  The vast majority of the information regarding cholesterol (as public enemy #1) has been the result of political persuasiveness rather than solid scientific evidence.

“Cholesterol is the most decorated molecule in history, having contributed to 13 Nobel prizes.” It is generally accepted that Dr. Nikolai Anichkov, the Russian physiologist, was the first to induce atherosclerosis by feeding rabbits a diet laden with cholesterol.  He is therefore credited with originating the cholesterol hypothesis.  It is quite clear that the focus of preventative cardiology for the last half century has been lifestyle modification and cholesterol reduction.²  The research study...

“Let Food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food” – Hippocrates

What is a Paleo Diet?

The Paleo Diet is one of the latest and hottest lifestyle trends to date. Celebrities endorse it some and restaurants are starting to serve Paleo style foods to keep their customers satisfied.

The Term “Paleo” is short for Paleolithic, an era that occurred at least 2.6 million years ago, and generally refers to the “caveman” lifestyle in regards to the popular diet. It is a nutritional approach that focuses only on foods that were available to humans during that period. Typically, these foods are high in nutrients, unprocessed and without artificial colors or additives.

The purpose of this lifestyle is to return our eating habits to a prehistoric state as it is hypothesized that our ancestors were unaffected by medical conditions experienced today. The foods they ate actually supplied the body with the right nutrients and allowed it to properly adapt to...