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Please Unsubscribe! Part II

Written by Wellness Club on March 23, 2016 – 11:06 am -

By Dr. Myatt and Nurse Mark

 

In our last HealthBeat News Newsletter we told you to “unsubscribe” – WOW – did that get some attention!

We actually had four people who took our “advice” unsubscribed – “duh, because you told me to...” But dozens of readers emailed to ask “what the heck?” and told us that they have no intention of unsubscribing as long as we keep on doing HealthBeat Newsletters. Thanks for your vote of confidence! We knew most of you would “get it.”

So what are we really saying? We are trying to get across the idea that you should pick perhaps two to four of the most relevant health newsletters and drop the rest. Unless you are very careful in your interpretation of the dozens and even hundreds of competing newsletters and viewpoints out there, it is easy to become overwhelmed and confused with “information overload.” That, plus a lot of what is out in the world is unsupported and unproven bunk. We know because WE get these newsletters just to learn what kinds of information and pseudo-information is filling your inbox.

It is easy to get swept up in the latest armchair theory or glowing report based on a mouse study, and because we know that you – our savvy HealthBeat News readers – are seeing these same pseudo-scientific studies and breathless reports, we need to be ready for your questions. To do that we read or review a number of both conventional and holistic medical journals and newsletters. Here are some, but not all, of the publications we follow:

In conventional medicine, we monitor the following journals and websites daily:

NOTE: Medscape, Practice Update and Pubmed each have multiple sub-specialties that we monitor, Including Oncology, Cardiology, Internal Medicine, Primary care, Diabetes Care, Senior Care and Fertility.

In the field of holistic medicine, we subscribe to and monitor the following publications:

So, do we recommend that you follow all these newsletters and websites as well?

Heavens no! You would make yourself crazy! That’s what we were saying in our last HealthBeat News – pick the one, two or three of them, that are most relevant you and drop the rest. We review them all because we have to – it’s our job – and yes, sometimes we feel like it makes us a little crazy too.

For example, should you read New England Journal of Medicine or JAMA every day? Probably not, unless you enjoy really dry, boring research articles. But we do, because this is the source that the lay press will misquote and build silly articles around.

What about Medscape or Web MD? Maybe, but remember, these are conventional medicine – they are mainly geared to discussing things that can be addressed with prescription drugs or surgery. You won’t find much there that is alternative.

We keep up with all the latest drugs and surgeries and conventional procedures. Why? Two big reasons. First, some of them are highly effective and should not be dismissed just because they are conventional. Second, since we offer alternatives, we need to know, alternative to what? Alternatives are most valuable when conventional medicine is ineffective. I would not try to steer someone away from a conventional treatment that is safe and effective. In fact, I need to be “in the know” because I prescribe such effective treatments!

And what about the alternative newsletters and websites?

Joe Mercola is one of the biggest and best known. Is Joe always right? We don’t think so, and we have taken him to task in the past over microwave ovens and magnesium stearate for example.

In fact, as Joe has gotten bigger, it has become clear that he is no longer writing his own articles, and apparent to us that he may not be proof-reading them consistently before they are published – we have seen some glaring examples of strange science… But Joe has a good take on GMOs and vaccines to name just a couple…

Who else is there? All the newsletters we follow are valuable to us, or we wouldn’t follow them. Does that mean they are all always right? Certainly not – but they each have their strengths.

For example, if you want to know about cancer you might read Ralph Moss. For neurological and Parkinson’s information Marty Hinz is good. Life Extension Foundation is a great generalist, and their articles tend to be well-researched, but you’ll quickly notice that each and every new issue touts at least five new “breakthroughs.” Can there be that many new vitamins or herbs or combinations of vitamins and herbs “discovered” each month? No. LEF is just really good at finding new ways to market old products in new ways and new products before they are solidly proven.

After you have been following all these many websites and authors for long enough you’ll notice that they each have their strong points and areas of expertise, and they often have some subjects or even pet peeves that would be better advised to leave alone since they tend to embarrass themselves with bad or non-existent science when they go there.

You’ll also notice that a number are really just high-pressure sales sites in disguise – with breathless reports of “breakthroughs” that you just must have: “click here to order your supply today!” More on that later – to be commercial is not necessarily to be evil…

Then there is a warning for those who might like to visit specialty association websites like the NEJM (New England Journal of Medicine) or maybe ASRM (the American Society of Reproductive Medicine) if your interest is fertility / infertility issues. These are great resources – as long as you have the scientific and medical background and knowledge to be able to correctly interpret the mountains of brain-numbing data available there. If you are a little weak on statistical analysis, organic chemistry, biochemistry, human anatomy and physiology, pathophysiology, genomics, neurology, or a dozen other specialized subjects, all you’ll do is make yourself crazy. You might even come away with some really wrong-headed, even dangerous ideas.

Even Dr. Myatt and myself, with over 50 years in medicine between us, find ourselves going back to our textbooks and reference works as we try to absorb some of this information, to be sure that we are understanding it correctly. Dr. Myatt is known to pick up the phone and call the lead researcher on any medical article she has questions about.

Our advice? Don’t try to read it all! Let us do that – it’s our day-job, and yes, sometimes it makes us a little crazy! But we’ll be sure to let you know when something important and valuable comes up – you can be sure you are getting the wheat and not the chaff. Pick a few favorites that are relevant to your interests, and enjoy – you will get more out of that than you will by trying to chase every shiny object that the internet offers.

We hope you’ll continue to keep us on your short list! We spend many hours and do a lot of hard work and deep research to bring you our HealthBeat News articles, we use a highly reputable service to email your HealthBeat Newsletter to you, and maintain the server space and security services needed to house the Dr. Myatt’s Wellness Club website with its volumes of freely available information and the HealthBeatNews website with even more free information. But all that time and technology is not free – it has to be supported somehow – so yes, we hope that you’ll see fit to buy your vitamins and supplements from us in exchange for all the good information we bring to you.

Yes we write articles telling you about the benefits of certain supplements, and yes, we sell them. Is that evil? We don’t think so – it keeps a roof over our heads and allows us to bring you these HealthBeat News articles.

And yes again, you can probably go to your local health-food store or even a Big Box discount store and buy cheaper – sometimes ‘way cheaper – but please do be cautious and be sure you are getting the same top quality supplements that Dr. Myatt’s Wellness Club offers. Please review our article Wasting Money to Save Money? Who’s Watching Your Back? for more information about the false economy of ‘bargain brand’ supplements.


Posted in Opinion | Comments Off

The Myth Of The One-A-Day Multiple Vitamin

Written by Wellness Club on August 18, 2015 – 11:18 am -

By Nurse Mark

“But it’s so many pills…”

We hear that refrain so often… People call us to bargain and wheedle and negotiate over how often and how many Maxi Multi capsules they can take and still get all the benefits.

Believe me – if we could cram all the vitamins, minerals, trace minerals and other ingredients that go into making Maxi Multi the best available Optimal Dose daily multiple vitamin into fewer, smaller capsules, we sure would!

But folks, there is no way that a full compliment of optimal-dose vitamins and minerals and trace minerals can be made to fit into one single tablet or capsule of any size that could possibly be consumed by you or me – it’s just not possible, no matter how hard you squeeze it! An Optimal Daily Dose multiple vitamin will require from six to nine capsules daily.

To learn more about what an Optimal Dose Daily Multivitamin formula should look like please check out Dr. Myatt’s Maxi Multi – a standard by which you can judge your current multiple vitamin.

“Well, gimme one good reason I should swallow that many capsules that often!” (Maxi Multi is 3 caps, 3 times daily – this is hard ? )

Just One? Howzabout A Baker’s Dozen Proven Reasons to take a Good Multiple Vitamin…

While conventional medicine and newspaper headlines continue to preach that nutritional supplementation isn’t important, the results of medical research shows just the opposite. Here are some medical findings that should convince you to keep taking a high-quality, optimal potency multiple vitamin/mineral supplement. If you’re not sure what an “optimal potency” formula consists of or what you should be taking for your age and sex, refer to The Wellness Club web site’s nutritional supplements page for an up-to-date ingredient list and optimal dose recommendations.

  1. Harvard researchers have found that sub-optimal levels of folic acid, vitamins B6 and B12 are a risk factor for heart disease and colon and breast cancers.
    (Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) June 19, 2002)
  2. A six-month study showing that folic acid, vitamin B12 and vitamin B6 helped prevent recurrence of blocked arteries in patients who have undergone coronary angioplasty.
    (Journal of the American Medical Association, August 28, 2002)
  3. Vitamin K is a critical nutrient for skeletal integrity, with evidence of vitamin K supplementation reducing bone loss in healthy postmenopausal women and a significant positive relationship between vitamin K status and indices of bone health in men.
    (24th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research, September 20 – 24, 2002, San Antonio, Texas)
  4. Alzheimer’s disease: Association with zinc deficiency and cerebral vitamin B12 deficiency.
    (Journal of Orthol. Psychiatry (CANADA), 1984, 13/2 (97-104))
  5. Supplementation of the elderly with vitamin E has been shown to enhance immune response, delay onset of Alzheimer’s disease, and increase resistance to oxidative injury associated with exercise.
    (Proc Nutr Soc. 2002;61:165-171)
  6. Vitamin E intake, from foods or supplements, is associated with less cognitive decline with age.
    (Arch Neurol. 2002;59:1125-1132)
  7. Researchers at Cambridge University in England looked at serum vitamin C and how long people lived. People who had the lowest levels of vitamin C were twice as likely to die compared to those with the highest serum vitamin C levels. This study was based on the findings from over 19,000 people.
    (Lancet 2001; 357:657-63)
  8. 26.4% of esophageal and gastric cancers are attributable to low selenium levels.
    (Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Mark et al., 2000)
  9. Calcium supplementation is associated with a significant – though moderate – reduction in the risk of recurrent colorectal adenomas. The effect of calcium was independent of initial dietary fat and calcium intake.
    (N Engl J Med (United States) Jan 14 1999, 340 (2) p101-7.)
  10. Data from the Nurses’ Health Study conducted at the Harvard Medical School showed that long-term supplementation with folic acid reduces the risk of colon cancer by 75% in women! 90,000 women participated in the Nurses’ Health Study, making this an especially significant finding. The authors of this study explained that folic acid obtained from supplements had a stronger protective effect against colon cancer than folic acid consumed in the diet.
    (Annals of Internal Medicine (1998; 129:517-524)
  11. Regarding asthma, the lowest intakes of vitamin C and manganese (a trace mineral not to be confused with magnesium) were associated with more than five-fold increased risks of bronchial reactivity. Decreasing intakes of magnesium were also significantly associated with an increased risk of hyper-reactivity.
    (Thorax (United Kingdom), 1997, 52/2 (166-170))
  12. Antioxidant supplements reduce the risk of cataract. One study evaluated 410 men for 3 years to ascertain the association between serum vitamin E and the development of cortical lens opacities (cataracts). The men with the lowest level of serum vitamin E had a 3.7 times greater risk of this form of cataract compared to men with the highest serum level of vitamin E.
    (American Journal of Epidemiology Sept. 1996)
  13. Encouraging moderate exercise and dietary supplementation with calcium and vitamin D are the major nonpharmacological management measures used to prevent and treat osteoporosis.
    (Drugs and Aging (New Zealand), 1996, 9/6 (472-477)
  14. Nutrient intake of patients with rheumatoid arthritis is deficient in pyridoxine (vitamin B-6), zinc, copper, and magnesium.
    (Journal of Rheumatology (Canada), 1996, 23/6 (990-994))

OK, OK… a “Baker’s Dozen” is thirteen, and I just listed fourteen good reasons to take an Optimal Dose Daily Multiple Vitamin. So how many good reasons do you need?


Posted in Nutrition and Health | Comments Off

The Straight Scoop On Quality – In Articles, Supplements, And Medical Care.

Written by Wellness Club on August 5, 2015 – 9:22 am -

By Nurse Mark

 

This week I’m going to address a couple of customer / patient comments, and some thoughts that those comments bring to mind.

While these may be somewhat different issues, they are also related – so bear with me.

First there was a nasty-gram that accompanied an "unsubscribe" order from last week’s HealthBeat News report on citicoline.

The writer, from Australia no less, bashed us as being "ugly Americans" for insulting her by discussing in depth a supplement that we also happen to sell. This is not the first time we’ve been taken to task for writing about something that we also sell – I guess the thought that we might make a nickel of profit from by selling a health-giving substance just really upsets some people.

She then went on to tell us that we had offended her by writing too extensively about citicoline – that we had "talked down" to her somehow by discussing it’s uses and benefits in a lengthy, fully-referenced article. She told us that if we couldn’t "sell" her on something within the first paragraph, then anything more than that simply insulted her.

Ouch!

Now I know that recent research  has shown that the average attention span of an American has now reached an astounding low of 8 seconds – fully one second less than a goldfish – but really, I believed better of our Healthbeat News readers which is why we offer you in-depth, fully researched articles and not just flashy sales "puff-pieces."

Next there were some questions from someone who is considering taking one of the infrequently available spots in Dr. Myatt’s concierge medical practice. As most of our readers know, Dr. Myatt has for a number of years been limiting her practice to around a dozen or so patients at any given time. Most of her private practice patients stay under her intensive care for 6 months to a year or even longer, but when they achieve their health goals and "graduate" to less intensive needs Dr. Myatt can offer an opportunity to work with her to someone new. This is a big, life-changing commitment for most people and it is not unusual for folks to have questions.

Here are a few of these recent questions, and my answers to them:

Question: what are your payment plans?

Many of Dr. Myatt’s patients prefer to make a single payment. Having said that, others may pay quarterly, or monthly, or in some other arrangement.

Question: Are you able to prescribe medication through a traditional pharmacy?

Yes, Dr. Myatt is an NMD – a Naturopathic Medical Doctor – and has all the privileges of any other Medical Doctor. That is, she has a DEA number and can prescribe allopathic patent medicines including scheduled (narcotic) drugs if necessary, she can order lab tests and other diagnostic procedures, and even commit surgery. She is in a better position because of her expanded knowledge, skill, and experience to prescribe thyroid and hormone (especially natural thyroid and  bio-identical hormone) therapy than most “conventional” or allopathic doctors. (This patient was especially interested in Dr. Myatt’s thyroid and hormone programs.)

Question: how long have you been doing concierge medicine?

Dr. Myatt began sharply limiting her practice about a decade ago and found that it allowed her to provide much better care and obtain better patient outcomes, so she has continued to do so and has found that around a dozen intensive patients at any one time is a perfect number.

Question: And is any of this billable to insurance?

Every insurance plan allows for different services to be billed. Many plans allow “discretionary” spending by the insured for non-allopathic medical expenses as do most “Medical Savings Plans.” You would need to enquire of your insurance plan for answers to these questions.

We do not participate in any insurance plans as we have found that 1.) most insurance plans are interested in covering allopathic medical treatment only, and , 2.) the amount of time and bureaucratic paperwork involved in satisfying insurance billing requirements requires a doctor to rely on a production line – like practice model that does not encourage the kind of intensive and individualized care that Dr. Myatt wishes to provide.

Dr. Myatt recognizes that medical care is expensive and she will insist that you also maintain a relationship with an allopathic “insurance doctor” so that if / when Dr. Myatt recommends something that can be covered by your insurance plan (diagnostics, tests, prescriptions, etc.) your “insurance doc” can be called upon to order these things for you.

Question: Are the supplements you suggest purchase through your wellness club or are they something I get on my own?

We have a broad range of supplements available through The Wellness Club.

Dr. Myatt began the supplement side of The Wellness Club many years ago when she found that often her patients were not getting the results she wanted from her recommendations. It became apparent that many were using sub-standard supplements in terms of potency and purity and because of this the suggested supplements were not effective.

She began supplying carefully selected supplements to address this problem and immediately noted improved patient outcomes.
She formulates many of her own supplements, and all of the items she offers are subject to an extremely rigorous Quality Control audit. She is known amongst suppliers and manufacturers (behind her back, they believe) as “The Dragon Lady” because of her unwillingness to compromise on quality.

As always, Dr. Myatt’s patients (and you, our HealthBeat readers) are welcome to obtain supplements anywhere. We offer a variety of supplements that we have vetted for quality and purity, but we also recognize that you might find something similar at Billy-Bob’s Big Box Bargain Basement And Warehouse Outlet at a lower cost. But please be careful – Did Billy-Bob do an extensive Quality Control Audit on those vitamins like Dr. Myatt, or did he get a really great deal on cargo salvaged from the truck that overturned on the interstate last year and sat in a hot warehouse waiting to be released by the insurance company?

Don’t laugh, it happens!

We have written about quality in the supplement industry before: Wasting Money to Save Money? Who’s Watching Your Back?

We reference the importance of quality often in our articles because it is so important to your health and your pocketbook both. Here is what Dr. Myatt had to say in a recent article "7 mistakes people make when taking supplements"

"I’ve said this so many times that I feel like a broken record, but still a lot of folks just don’t get it. So I’ll keep saying it.
The nutritional supplement industry is the Wild West for quality. Although things are improving, it is still a jungle out there. More expensive isn’t always better but also be careful of products that are "bargain basement." Our saying at The Wellness Club is "the most expensive supplement is the one that doesn’t work." If you paid $1.99 for two months’ worth of pixie dust, and it doesn’t do anything for you, then you haven’t saved a bunch of money. You’ve wasted $1.99. "

So, there you have it – a purely informative HealthBeat News article. No products were offered for sale in the making of this article. Hopefully no feelings were offended.

But – stay tuned, because we are planning to offer you money for giving us a piece of your mind. Here’s the plan: Since we want to give you, our readers what you want and you know what you want better than we do, we are going to be doing a survey very soon to ask you just exactly what you want from us in HealthBeat News.

We’ll give you an opportunity to tell us what you want, what you don’t want, and how you want it. And we’re going to pay you for your time. How fair is that?
Watch for it… coming soon.

 

http://www.statisticbrain.com/attention-span-statistics

http://healthbeatnews.com/wasting-money-to-save-money-whos-watching-your-back/

http://healthbeatnews.com/?s=bargain


Posted in Medical (Disease) Insurance, Nutrition and Health, Opinion | Comments Off

7 mistakes people make when taking supplements

Written by Wellness Club on May 26, 2015 – 12:52 pm -

By Dr. Dana Myatt

 

7 mistakes people make when taking supplements Lots of people take vitamins and supplements with the very best of intentions. Yet they often find themselves disappointed with the results (or more to the point lack of results) and give up or even believe that vitamins and supplements are a “waste of money.” Here is a list of some of the common mistakes I see people making when taking supplements:

1.) Taking "Pixie dust" doses (doses too low).

Here’s a little pop quiz for you. If you have a heavy cart that will need four horses to pull, and you hitch up two horses and find the cart doesn’t move, does this mean you have weak or lazy horses? I’ll give you a minute to think about this…

The correct answer is "No." Your horses are probably fine, but you have two instead of the needed four, hence, they can’t get the job done.

When a study shows that it takes a 200mg of selenium per day to offer optimal immune support, and you take 50mg per day, don’t be surprised if the supplement doesn’t work as expected. The dose is too low.

Also keep in mind that there is no "optimal potency One-Per-Day" multivitamin. The pixie dust doses in a one or two per day multiple are the lowest amounts needed to prevent severe deficiency disease. For example, you’ll get just enough vitamin C to prevent scurvy.

If you want to maximize benefit, then you’ll want what I call "optimal doses." These are the doses shown in studies not only to protect from severe deficiency diseases but also to protect against "higher level" problems like heart disease and diabetes.

For multiple vitamins, expect to take 6-9 caps total per day to get optimal doses of nutrients.

Note that using an optimal dose multiple like this will save you from taking a lot of separate formulas.

2.) Not taking supplements consistently.

Studies that show benefit from supplements, especially multiple vitamin/mineral supplements, also show that these benefits are seen in people who take the supplement consistently over a long period of time.

"Consistency is key." One day on, three days off, one-half day on, a week off. You get the idea. This kind of "hit-and-miss" approach has not been proven to have nearly as much benefit as consistency.

If you think about it, this makes sense. Your body needs what it needs every day. It doesn’t take a day off from needing certain nutrients. By taking supplements consistently, you’ll also achieve the "optimal doses" as discussed above.

How about "I break for illness" (and vacations, or company visiting, or stress… blah, blah, blah). Your body actually uses nutrients at a higher rate during many illnesses. Unless nausea or inability to take them is an issue, continuing during illness is the best course of action.

As for vacations (and stress)? This is when your immune system is under greater threat. Many of the nutrients in your multiple help keep your immunity in top form. Travel, company and stressful times are actually when supplemental nutrients are more valuable yet amazingly, this is when many people take a "vacation" from their vitamins.

3.) Taking inferior quality products.

I’ve said this so many times that I feel like a broken record, but still a lot of folks just don’t get it. So I’ll keep saying it.

The nutritional supplement industry is the Wild West for quality. Although things are improving, it is still a jungle out there. More expensive isn’t always better but also be careful of products that are "bargain basement." Our saying at The Wellness Club is "the most expensive supplement is the one that doesn’t work." If you paid $1.99 for two months worth of pixie dust, and it doesn’t do anything for you, then you haven’t saved a bunch of money. You’ve wasted $1.99.

Here’s some back-story on The Wellness Club. Years ago when I was in private practice in an office, I noticed than a lot of patients who should be getting better with my recommendations were NOT getting better. Was it me? Did I prescribe the correct thing?

I started researching various companies and their quality control measures and decided to carry some of the "best of the best" supplements in my office. They cost more, but I knew they were the right formulas in the right potencies and purity. Patients who took these "doctor’s only" formulas had a much higher success rate than those who bought things willy-nilly or based on price at the health food store.

That’s when I realized that quality makes a big difference and just because a label makes a claim doesn’t mean that is what is really in the bottle (or that it’s pure).

So I started The Wellness Club, not as a way to get rich (good thing!) but as a way to make these "doctor’s only" brands available to my patients around the country who couldn’t pop into my office to buy them.

"But the lady at the health food store said this was a good brand." Really? How does she know? Try this experiment:

Ask just ONE question from my 15-page vendor quality audit. Try something like, "does this manufacturer do independent testing of raw materials or do they rely on certificates of analysis from the suppliers"? The health food store lady will look at you like you just debarked the Mothership from Mars. Why? Because she probably doesn’t even understand the question much less have an answer for you. So the "this is a good brand" from someone who doesn’t know is worth…. what?

[Nurse Mark's Note: Dr. Myatt is known in the nutritional supplement industry as "The Dragon Lady," a title she accepts proudly. She is called that because her quality standards are high and uncompromising. She has turned down many supplements, raw materials and manufacturers because they don't meet her standards.]

4.) Taking supplements not well-supported by research.

This falls under the category of "you can fool a lot of the people a lot of the time."

Glossy ads with slick copywriting sell products. Unfortunately, many of the promises made about supplements fall far short of the actual research. "Two lab rats lost weight on a bathtub full of raspberry ketones" does not constitute a breakthrough.

Don’t fall for slick and glossy. Do your due diligence. Is the supplement really supported by good research?

We at Wellness Club spend a lot of hours per day researching the medical literature in order to bring you the "inside story" about what works and what is over-hyped. I invite you to use our website with its many "look-’em-up" features and references as a good place to begin your fact-finding. www.DrMyattsWellnessClub.com

5.) Supplements before diet.

There is a reason we call non-food sources of nutrients "supplements." That is because they are designed to augment — supplement — an otherwise healthy diet.

Some people mistakenly believe that they can eat an inferior diet and make up the difference with supplements. While taking supplements might help mitigate some of the effects of poor diet, the biggest benefits from supplements are seen in people who eat well AND take their vitamins.

6.) Timing, Part I (with or without meals).

For the most part, supplements should be taken with meals. This is especially true of multiple vitamin/mineral formulas. The reason is two-fold.

First, some of the nutrients in a multiple, such as vitamin A, E, and D are "fat soluble." This means they dissolve and are absorbed in the presence of fat. So taking them with a meal that contains some fat will aid assimilation.

Second, the act of eating elicits hydrochloric acid and pancreatic digestive enzymes. These digestive factors help with assimilation of nutrients. Calcium, for example, requires stomach acid in order to be assimilated. When you take nutrients on an empty stomach, these are no digestive enzymes or stomach acids present to help assimilation. Not only will the formula be less absorbable, but it will be more likely to cause stomach upset.

Timing, Part II (how many times per day).

If you can only see your way clear to take supplements once per day, then once is certainly better than not taking them at all.

If, however, you can take them twice per day (breakfast and dinner, for example) or better yet, three times per day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner), you will get additional benefit.

Some nutrients such as B complex vitamins and vitamin C are water soluble. This means that after a dose, they are processed, blood levels elevate and then they are excreted in the urine. By taking these nutrients two or three times per day, blood levels remain at optimal levels throughout the day.

Again, multiple doses are better but taking your multiple all at once is better than not taking it at all.

7.) Taking "add-ons" before basics (not taking a multiple but taking a bunch of misc. stuff).

Your body needs an array of vitamins and minerals. These are called "essential" not only because they are essential to life but also because they must be obtained from outside the body (food or supplements). If your body manufactures a needed substance, even if it is essential to life, it is not called "essential": that is, if it can be manufactured internally.

Vitamins, minerals and trace minerals are "essential." We must have them and if we go without for too long, physical disease or dysfunction result. This means that vitamins, minerals and trace minerals are the "basics" of what we must have. For this reason, they are also the most important nutrients to supplement.

I often see people taking a variety of "add-ons," meaning nutrients that are not essential, but still not taking a good multiple vitamin/mineral formula. This is like putting a spoiler on your hot-rod but neglecting to put fuel in the tank!

First things first. Before you go spending a fortune on a lot of different, non-essential supplements, make sure you are taking an optimal potency multiple vitamin and mineral supplement. In fact, if you are only going to take one thing, make it your multiple. If you can take two things, take a multiple plus fish oil (essential fatty acids).

And One More – as a bonus…

8.) Treating symptoms instead of the cause.

We do this a lot in conventional medicine; putting a band-aid on a disease instead of trying to fix it at the level of cause. I’m not against band-aids. I’ll take aspirin or ibuprophen on occasion for a headache or extreme pain if my natural measures have failed.

But if that headache or pain were a regular occurrence, bet the farm that I wouldn’t continue taking aspirin without trying to discover the cause of my pain or problem. That is a foundational principle of naturopathic medicine and one of the places where naturopathy differs from conventional medicine.

Now back to supplements. Some people take supplements but are using them in "allopathic" ways. For example, taking white willow bark instead of aspirin for pain might be more natural but the underlying philosophy is the same as conventional medicine: treat the symptom.

Remember that any pain or abnormality that persists has a cause and a symptom treatment is unlikely to be addressing that cause. I caution against using natural remedies long-term in a "treat the symptom," in band-aid fashion. Remember the roots and look for the cause.

 

Learn More about:

Maxi Multi – An Optimal Dose daily multiple vitamin

Maxi Marine O3 – Ultra-high potency fish oil providing optimal amounts of Omega 3 fatty acids

 

References:

1. Fortmann SP, Burda BU, Senger CA, Lin JS, Whitlock EP. Vitamin and mineral supplements in the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer: an updated systematic evidence review for the US Preventive Services Task Force. Ann Intern Med. 2013 Dec 17;159(12):824-34.
2. El-Kadiki A, Sutton AJ. Role of multivitamins and mineral supplements in preventing infections in elderly people: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.BMJ. 2005 Apr 16;330(7496):871
3. Bailey RL, Fakhouri TH, Park Y, et al. Multivitamin-mineral use is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease mortality among women in the United States. J Nutr. 2015 Mar;145(3):572-8.
4.) Dong JY, Iso H, Kitamura A, Tamakoshi A; Japan Collaborative Cohort Study Group.
Multivitamin use and risk of stroke mortality: the Japan collaborative cohort study. Stroke. 2015 May;46(5):1167-72.
5.)Li K, Kaaks R, Linseisen J, Rohrmann S. Vitamin/mineral supplementation and cancer, cardiovascular, and all-cause mortality in a German prospective cohort (EPIC-Heidelberg). Eur J Nutr. 2012 Jun;51(4):407-13.
6.) Watkins ML, Erickson JD, Thun MJ, Mulinare J, Heath CW Jr. Multivitamin use and mortality in a large prospective study. Am J Epidemiol. 2000 Jul 15;152(2):149-62.
7.) Erin S. LeBlanc, MD, MPH; Nancy Perrin, PhD; Jeffery D. Johnson, PhD; Annie Ballatore, MS; Teresa Hillier, MD, MS. Over-the-Counter and Compounded Vitamin D: Is Potency What We Expect? JAMA Intern Med. 2013;173(7):585-586.


Posted in Nutrition and Health | Comments Off

My $123 Hip Replacement

Written by Wellness Club on May 5, 2015 – 6:29 pm -

By Dr. Dana Myatt

 

I’m a better doctor now — and much more sympathetic — since I started having hip pain in March of 2014.

It started subtly at first, a little stitch in my right hip that I noticed after my morning walk. "Probably just more walking than I’m used to," I’d tell myself.

My $123 Hip Replacement Over the next several months, the pain became much worse. Sometimes it was in my hip, other times my low back. Sometimes it was both. Sometimes it would radiate to my knee and even my ankle and foot.

At first, my beloved bromelain would help. When that stopped working, I tried my favorite NSAID, ibuprofen. Same thing — a little help, then nothing.

By now, the pain was getting severe. Instead of dogging me only after walks, it would wake me up in the middle of the night. No amount of  changing positions seemed to help. The ache was deep and gnawing and interfered with my sleep.

I used my IRest “TENS” unit, did back and hip exercises and stretching, took all the right supplements, thought good thoughts. Nothing seemed to make much difference.

Deciding it was time to get help, I saw a naturopath who is one of the best spinal manipulators (kind of like chiropractic) I know. All naturpoaths are trained in spinal and visceral manipulation by the way.

He manipulated me two times a week for a few weeks and sent me home with back exercises (which I had already started on my own). I did them. His manipulations and exercises helped a little, but not for very long. The nightime deep ache continued. Driving my car became torture.

"Dr Nick" suggested I get a back and hip x-ray, which I agreed to. One of the signs of bone cancer or cancer that has metastasized to bone is a deep, unrelenting ache. I won’t say I feared for the worst (it’s not my style), but the pain had become so constant and relentless that the thought crossed my mind. So I wrote myself lab orders and had x-rays taken.

The results were good news and bad news. The good news? No evidence of bone disease like cancer or osteoporosis. My hip joints were fine. I have a slight anatomical "difference" from side-to-side, but this is so common that it’s the rule, not the exception. Nothing Big Bad wrong to explain my pain, and that was good. But nothing seen to help me know how to cure it, and that was disappointing. Still, I was relieved that this brutal pain wasn’t a cancer – which can also gnaw deeply. "No news was good news," sort of.

I all but stopped my daily walks since they only aggravated the condition. I found myself hobbling like some old people that I feel sorry for.

Nurse Mark is a Genius

I was lamenting my condition to Nurse Mark who has has worked everything from the emergency ward to hospice, with orthopedics in between. It was his orthopedic experience and his insistent genius that saved me.

Nurse Mark told me the story of when he admitted a little old lady who was scheduled to have first one, and then probably the other hip replaced. Mrs. Rossi (we’ll call her that) had been very active, walking everywhere: To the store for each day’s groceries, to attend Mass, to visit friends and family. That was "had been," because for the past year she had been crippled with hip pain that nothing — not drugs, not physiotherapy, not massage — had helped. This once active and independent lady was now barely able to shuffle using a walker for support. New hips seemed the only solution.

As Nurse Mark did her pre-operative assessment he noticed the shoes that Mrs. Rossi was wearing. He asked her if she was wearing those same shoes when she had seen her orthopedic surgeon, or when she had gone to her physiotherapy appointments. No she replied, looking at him as if he had two heads. Of course she would “dress up” to visit the physiotherapist and especially the doctor – these were her “everyday” shoes, not her “good” shoes.

Nurse Mark called the orthopedic surgeon (we’ll call him “Dr. Frank”) to discuss Mrs. Rossi’s admitting orders. He artfully asked if Dr. Frank had ever seen Mrs. Rossi in her “everyday” shoes?

Dr. Frank blustered that Mrs. Rossi’s shoes always looked fine to him, and “so what of it?” Nurse Mark explained that he was afraid if Mrs. Rossi were to walk on her “everyday” shoes post-operatively, she might undo all the fine work that Dr. Frank was about to put into her new hip.

Dr. Frank sputtered and grumbled, but that evening when he made pre-operative rounds he ordered Mrs. Rossi to put on her walking shoes and walk for him. Nurse Mark says his face went pale. He ordered her surgery delayed and he asked her family bring in her “good” shoes. When he saw her walk in her “good” shoes, he demanded that she throw away the “everyday” shoes. The old woman complained that “they look fine – lots of wear left!” but the Dr. insisted and ordered the physiotherapist to fit her with a new pair of “everyday” walking shoes. That did the trick and she never did come back for “new hips.”

As I listened to the story, I realized that I had increased my walking since taking up part-time residence in Phoenix. Most mornings I’d walk 3-4 miles on uneven desert ground. Still, my running/walking shoes looked fine. Good for another year at least.

At Nurse Mark’s insistence (I was an easy sell at this point because I was desperate), I went to a local running store that does "gait analysis." They filmed the back of my feet as I walked on a treadmill, then showed me the pictures.

Although my shoes look quite good by "eyeball," I was clearly lop-sided from the back while walking. Close inspection of my shoes (and it did take CLOSE inspection), showed an uneven wear pattern on the heels.

I tried on about twelve pairs of shoes. They had me walk in each to see which felt the best. I finally found one pair that felt good on my feet and almost immediately, my hip felt better. I hoped against hope it wasn’t just a placebo effect that would wear off.

Five Months Later…

After nine months of suffering, I have been pain-free for five months. I still walk; in fact I’m "back in the saddle" with daily walks or bike rides. No pain. No limp. Nada.

Those shoes cost me $123 which, for a simple pair of walkers, seemed a choke at first. In retrospect, it was one of the biggest health bargains of my life.

Two Reports from the Field

Yo, Joe! A friend of ours was limping when we saw his last month. He is obese, and said he "knew" his weight was the reason for his hip pain. It’s true that carrying excess weight puts a strain on joints, but we took a look at his shoes and advised him to get new ones. He did. I talked to him last week: his pain is gone and he no longer limps. Shoes: $158. Being pain-free: priceless.

Stranger in the hardware store. I wanted a picture of a far-advanced example of shoe-wear to show you, but such pics are hard to come by on the internet. Make that "impossible" to come by. Had I known that replacing my own shoes would work miracles, I would have saved the old ones for a photo. Alas, I decided to toss them right away because, as Nurse Mark rightly pointed out, if I kept them I would probably wear them again as "beaters." So out they went.

My $123 Hip ReplacementOne day entering the hardware store I saw a man with a great example of a far-advanced case of shoe wear – he was literally falling off the sides of his shoes. I wanted a photo but didn’t quite know how to ask. (I’m so shy). The man cut in front of me for help, then apologized. I said I’d forgive him if I could have a picture of the back of his shoes. He looked befuddled but agreed. When he asked why we wanted them I showed him the pictures and explained about the back/hip pain.

"Oh my Gosh!" he exclaimed. He bent over and pulled his pants down to show me his lower back. (It’s OK, I’m a doctor). He had a long scar from the older style of low back surgery. I recognized it immediately.

"But," he explained, "I’m still in a lot of pain. I take pain-killers every day."

"I’d get a new pair of shoes," I recommended with full confidence.

"I have a new pair already, and now that I think of it, my back does feel better when I wear them. I just don’t wear them very often because they’re new and they were expensive and I was saving them for special occasions. And besides, these shoes look just fine from the top! I’m going to go home and throw these away and start wearing the new ones. Thank you so much. This was my lucky day to meet you like this!"

I haven’t heard from the fellow but I have a high confidence level that he is feeling much better. Now I’m left to wonder: how many people have gotten hip or knee replacement surgery when what they really needed was a pair of new shoes?


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