3 Ways to eliminate a common and very costly energy thief.

I have looked over hundreds of the worst possible health conditions.  You name it, these were people suffering and really freaked out.  I might say hopeless, but there was still a glimmer and a fight, or they wouldn’t have crossed my path. 

 

What is the “common denominator” in seriously crappy health?

Diminished production of ATP…OK, more straight forward…your energy sucks.

ATP is cellular energy.  You are just a bunch of cells…when those cells can’t make energy, you suffer…you suffer whatever grandma or grandpa had.  That’s the genetic effect.

But, if you don’t have a problem making energy…you “miss out” on the lousy diseases your family endures.

Ok, so without further delay…the 3 ways to eliminate becoming your grandma or grandpa.

1.       Blood sugar regulation:  Nothing screws up energy production more than your blood sugar swinging up…then down…then up…   In fact, when we study people over 100 years old, the ONE factor that was consistent in these folks…still showing energy at 100…was tightly regulated blood sugar.  And, these people are active participants in life…one lady still looking good and writing for her paper at 103.  Another still playing rounds of golf with his great grand kids at 104.  Our expectations for longevity are severely limited because we don’t follow these three simple rules!

2.       CRP:  This is a marker for inflammation, and per research, can simply be lowered by B vitamins, fish oils, magnesium, and zinc.  If you aren’t willing to take such a simple test, and take such simple precautions, you have undeniably EARNED your future…which, with a high CRP includes dementia, pain, cancer, heart disease and diabetes.  Wow, what a lovely thought. 

3.       Homocysteine:  Another blood marker for inflammation.  Another simple solution…also treated by B Vitamins.  This is like anemia…if you walk around anemic, and low energy because you lack the basic ability to provide oxygen to your cells…you are nutrient deficient.  Nutrient deficiency causes the same cellular damage as radiation overdose…proven via research by Ames, UCal Berkley…look it up.   SIMPLE WAYS TO ELIMINATE ENERGY DEPLETION!!

I know that most doctors don’t talk this way, or about these things.  So, your defense is ignorance…up until now.  Now that you know, whatchu gonna do bout it!?  

Now, go take charge of your health!

Best,

DrStone

Expectations in Medicine

This is a recurring topic in our clinic. It goes something like this… “My doctor told me that I will always have this ______.” (Fill in the blank with your problem)


“Your neuropathy is forever. Your thyroid disorder is forever. Your pain is forever. Your dizziness is forever. Your fatigue is forever. Your Sjogrens, Rheumatoid Arthritis (any autoimmune disorder) is forever. Your High Blood Pressure is forever. Your Diabetes is forever…etc., etc.!”

“We don’t know why you have it…it is probably genetic. It can be managed effectively with _____.” (insert commercial for Pharmaceutical).

Excuse the language…but…BULL$#!@!

The fact is that your condition is not fully understood…medically. The fact is that NOTHING medicine does HEALS anything. You can’t take a foreign chemical and expect your (bone, heart, muscles, etc.) to heal. Healing comes from soothing your internal stress physiology…generally immune, lack of oxygen, too much inflammation, swelling, lack of energy…and then providing nutrients that REPAIR. Drugs don’t repair…NUTRIENTS repair.

WHY…WHY…WHY would we ever accept this BS? We all need to read Dr. Andrew Weil’s classic book… “Spontaneous Healing.” I am seriously considering REQUIRING it before I perform an initial examination…on anyone.

You HAVE to be cleansed of the BELIEF…and it is only a belief, really more of a “mind virus,” that there are limitations to our healing! Well, you don’t have to be…you can accept it and stay where you are…progressively deteriorating.

Dr. Weil clearly illustrates that a combination of believing in LIMITLESS POSSIBILITIES, plus a nourishing of your body…can heal the most devastating diseases.

His book is designed much like mine…big picture concept…case study…big picture concept…case study, etc. His case studies will blow your mind. People given 2 weeks to live….sent home to die. Something shifted in them…they all decided that this was not acceptable to them. They all said…BULL$#!@!! I will not take this prognosis. I will take care of it myself. And they did. Astounding doctors who saw, with their own eyes, bones that were so riddled with cancer, nothing could be done…and only months later, they couldn’t find the cancer.

And that is my best patient…fed up, disgusted with the prognosis, the fear…believing in a greater potential, and finally…appearing at my door. There, I can provide them the understanding and application of nourishing your body…soothing and repairing…watching the miracle of healing take place…and becoming the NEXT GREAT STORY!

You won’t show up, you won’t be the next great story…until you change this belief!

Go to Amazon…you can get the book for a penny!

Doing the Impossible

I was recently preparing for a lecture, and came across an oldie, but goodie…research study. 


I wondered how many people even know this bit of information, that has the potential to turn our belief systems about a certain, and very common, disease upside down.

The study was published in 1984, and changed the way natural medicine was practiced. Of course, it didn’t make the slightest impact in the protocols of pharmaceutical medicine. (by the way, I think I will refer to the two fields as natural medicine and pharmaceutical medicine…that sounds more accurate and descriptive, and…if you know the name of my book, you know who I think is “alternative.”)

Now, I know that the discussion of “research” might not get you too excited. But, listen up…if you haven’t heard this one…it’s pretty cool, and truly might make you wonder what the heck pharmaceutical medicine is doing with this all too common disease.

So what is this all about?

The study was from the American Diabetes Association’s medical journal, entitled, simply…Diabetes. Or “The Diabetes Journal.”

In this study, the researchers partially destroyed the pancreases of a group of rats. (sorry to the animal lovers…I like the results, not the methods), causing a metabolic state similar to type 1 diabetes in humans. Talk to any insulin dependent diabetic, Type 1 or 2, and get a feel for the misery they endure if you don’t know what that is like.

They then split the group into 2, and treated one group with niacinamide, and the other group with saline (salt water). I honestly didn’t think the placebo effect was too common in animals, but I guess the researchers didn’t want the rats knowing if they were getting treated or not.

They followed the rats for many weeks, and at the end of the trial the niacinamide fed rats had much more stable blood sugar…AND the pancreas tissue had regenerated. It grew back. The pancreas was dead, and it returned to life. It did not in the saline fed rats.

The heart cells then named the pancreas cells a messiah and savior, the liver cells built a temple for these resurrected pancreas cells, and the skin cells claimed it was the cells of the intestines that raised the dead, and a small war broke out. (KIDDING!!)

Seriously, I wish this potential was more widely known. As I was reading this study over again, it occurred to me that almost nobody knows this. And that’s too bad…really.

My disclaimer on this study is that these rats arrived in a diabetic state via a scalpel…and the scalpel was removed after the damage was done…so…the cause of the damage in either type of diabetes must be resolved prior to this miracle resurrection becoming possible. But that can be done…change in lifestyle, treat the immune system, stress hormones…etc. Then bring on the miracle.

I wonder how many insulin dependent diabetics would be interested in this now 25 year old study?? I wonder how many people with hypoglycemia…I wonder how many people with any chronic condition that is affected by blood sugar regulation?? (Cancer, PCOS, Neuropathy, Thyroid Disorders, etc., etc.)

Treating Symptoms, VS the Cause of ALL Disease

Symptoms are the problem.

I bet you took a double take at that simple and erroneous message.

Patients “get it” that symptoms aren’t the problem. They want to know “why” they have symptoms.

Why then, is medicine so (apparently) focused on managing symptoms? Most of the medications they prescribe are symptom oriented. I think there is some confusion as to what is the symptom and what is the disease.

Is high blood pressure a symptom or disease? Is menstrual cramping a symptom or a disease? Is polycystic ovaries a symptom or disease? Is cancer a symptom or disease?

I guess it all depends on your definition of what constitutes a disease. You could make a case that they all are diseases, or at least conditions…and you could make the case that they are all symptoms.

I will make the case that all disease, any named condition, and every symptom ever experienced is caused by the process known best as stress.

Let’s look at that…could the body fail if there was no stress? Only stress overload will compromise a healthy body and brain toward dysfunction and disease. There HAS to be a stress component.

So, do we primarily begin to treat the variety of levels of stress? I happen to know that that doesn’t work. Maybe sometimes, but not even most of the time.

Do we have to dissect out the cause of stress? Is it emotional turmoil…blood sugar variations (would you call that a stress? I would!)…our toxic environment…infections…pain (that is very stressful)…pollen (would you call that stress? I wouldn’t, unless your immune system is unbalanced.)…job, marriage, and parenting pressure…abuse…poor diet…??? What else?

I have simplified this question, by creating 4 categories of stress.

1. Physical Pain or Discomfort (Trauma or repetitive strain)

2. Diet, especially sugar, refined flour, and trans fats

3. Inflammation

4. Emotional Trauma and Strain

Now it seems a bit more manageable. But is this the final answer? Is everything caused by the four sources of stress? In a general sense…I would say yes.

Now, if you have a disease, condition, or symptom…which of the four categories might you be suffering from. This is way easier to sift through than the 1600+ pages of the Medical Bible of named diseases, the Merck Manual.

And, can you treat each of these? Of course you can. So can you locate and “cure” your condition, which is caused by one of these four insults? Or two…or three…or four of the four. Think about it…if the cause of the stress that caused your disease, condition, or symptom is resolved…what happens to the disease, condition, or symptom?

I would say it is cured…but, legally I can’t say cure because medicine owns the word cure…so I guess I will just relish in your improved health!

I will tackle these four causes of stress in more detail in future articles.

The First Cause of Stress and Disease

Physical Pain or Discomfort (Trauma or repetitive strain)


Last article, I proposed that all diseases, conditions, and symptoms are the result of some form of stress overloading your body, and provided the four categories of stress.

The benefit to this line of thinking is that instead of trying to fit yourself into one of the 12,000 plus named conditions, you have four. And these four categories refer directly to the cause of the 12,000 plus named diseases, so whatever you want to call it, I would rather treat the cause.

This category begins with a straightforward assessment. Hmmm…that knee is dislocated, perhaps a cause of the pain…or was it the tree that he ran into?

I won’t even get into the blatantly obvious, and this is really more about figuring out causes for conditions that don’t present obviously. Most Fibromyalgia suffers didn’t run into a tree. So what did they run into.

Fibromyalgia is actually one of my focuses, as the “poster child disease” of “what the heck is going on here. “ And, fibromyalgia has an association to trauma. Often a whiplash injury, as in the case of my wife Sonya’s mother (You can read her story on my website under the fibromyalgia heading…click on the “personal message.”).

The even more subtle trauma to our bodies is the repetitive strain of work, play, and gravity. I often comment to my patients during our initial visit that they have a “BAD relationship with gravity!” I have a full length mirror in my exam room to show them the myriad of postural stressors that are STRESSFUL, every moment they are resisting the field of gravity. Sure, they are slight (and some not so slight), but if you walk around this way, stand around this way, for hours every day…month after month…year after year…something will give.

Think of that relative with scoliosis…don’t they suffer with chronic aches and pains. In severe scoliosis, the twisting and turning of the spine shifts the posture, and gravity becomes a major stressor…and always wins…if you have ever seen an elderly person crumpled up with scoliosis.

Most (all?) of us have more subtle postural shifts, perhaps resulting from poor arches in the feet, injuries and scars sustained during a lifetime, or simply deconditioning…a nice word for out of shape.

I use the old chiropractic analogy of holding a bowling ball. If you hold a bowling ball straight up over your elbow, it doesn’t strain your bicep…but if you stretch your arm out from the shoulder, the further you go, the more impossible it becomes to hold that ball up. It is a good analogy, because your head actually weighs about the same as your bowling ball.

And we wonder why we “hold our stress” in our backs or shoulders. That’s not your bosses fault, it is gravity whipping your butt.

I love these types of stresses, because, thanks to one of my greatest professors, Dr. Walter Schmitt, I have an awesome technique to correct these abnormal postures resulting from the accumulation of injuries over a lifetime.

He calls it Injury Recall Technique, and it is so simple, yet effective, it amazes and dazzles the patients I have used it on. Literally, in moments, pain can be relieved, postural shifts can change, that you can see and feel.

Unfortunately, most of my patients have one or more of the other categories of stress, that take a bit more time to shift away from or out of, so my “miracles” are few and far between.

The Second Cause of Stress and Disease

Diet, especially sugar, refined flour, and trans fats

Yes, your diet. And don’t tell me you don’t know what you should eat. You know that a Little Debbie isn’t good food, and broccoli is good food.

I see too many people act helpless to eat a good diet, and I just won’t have it. Well, I do have it…I am a softy, so I encourage and correct, encourage and correct, with the hopes that they will “get it” sooner or later.

But it is frustrating to see people feel and act helpless to know what to eat.

There is an art to eating a healthy diet, and you can have your cake and eat it too. Yes, I will say it…in moderation. Moderation and “paying off” your indulgences is the path to de-stressing your diet.

You see, when you eat junk food, foods laden with sugar, white flour, or trans fats, you stress your blood glucose regulation. This system involves the whole digestive tract, pancreas, adrenal, thyroid and pituitary glands, and all the cells this system is feeding. And the food provides ENERGY. Energy is FUN.

You feel great when you have abundant energy from a good diet and a healthy system.

If we take an extreme…you never eat healthy food…you ALWAYS eat fast food, junk food, sugar, artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives…you have NO chance of de-stressing your body. You will succumb to disease, and you will die prematurely. From what depends on your genetics…diabetes, cancer, heart disease…

And the reason is stress. It is stressful to eat junk food…if you could take a microscope to your insides, you would see cells screaming and crying, fighting for their lives, trying their best to make do with a natural disaster. You should never do that to your cells. You should love your cells.

But remember, I said you can have your cake and eat it too. That means you don’t have to be perfect. There is no such thing as perfect. I teach my clients to “pay it off.”

What does that mean?

Well, if you have pizza and beer night, have a salad first. Go for a walk the next morning. Do 50 pushups. Eat a bunch of fiber. Take some extra fish oils. Eat a chicken breast with your pizza, or some broccoli. Take some extra B vitamins, Liver support nutrients, antioxidants, inflammation support…

Pay it off!

And, you will become bankrupt if you have to pay it off every day or every meal. You can’t compensate for a total lack of essential nutrients, massive sugar overload, and flooding your system with chemicals.

More great news…eating healthy and supporting your cells isn’t that difficult. I can walk someone through the process of making just a few different choices, focusing a little bit differently, and finding your healthy diet, in just a few weeks…as long as you/they are willing.

It is vastly more difficult to shift the stressed out hormonal system, including insulin, back to a healthy state. Generally, by the time I get these stressed out folks, their thyroid, adrenals, pituitary and pancreas have been affected, along with steroid hormones, those specific to gender.

It takes more effort…we have to be closer to perfect…and we have to flood the body with essential nutrients and herbs that will sustain and stimulate internal functions. But, it can always be accomplished!

The Third Cause of Stress and Disease

Inflammation

The body will only shift from normalcy (health) in response to a stress. Normalcy for the body is a state called homeostasis, or balance. If you are in good physical balance, you can take a fair bit of stress. But, once shifted off balance, your ability to endure stress becomes less and less.

Think about this from a purely physical standpoint. Let’s say that I talked you into letting me punch you in the shoulder as hard as I can. If you agreed, you would probably position yourself in a fashion that increases your center of balance. You would widen your stance, perhaps lean into the forth coming “stress,” and maximize your stability. And, you might be able to take my punch. I was a golden gloves boxer for several weeks in high school however, so I wouldn’t take me up on this challenge.

Point being, stress shifts us from center, and if you knew you were going to be enduring a great stress, your best asset would be a strong center.

Inflammation is my third stressor, and my third cause of imbalance. These imbalances lead to every known condition and symptom you have ever heard of, so this is important.

Inflammation is familiar to us. Time magazine and Newsweek have both done front cover articles on the topic of inflammation. We have all experienced acute inflammation with an injury, such as a sprained ankle.

Inflammation consists, in part, of hormone like chemicals that function as a message to your nervous system that the body is sick or in danger. It’s that simple…inflammation = sick or danger. Sick or danger to the brain means activating our stress response. Either get the immune defenses MOVING…which actually puts us in bed…OR…get the heart (oxygen) and energy MOVING…which puts us into overdrive. This is the familiar fight or flee response.

So, if you are inflamed, your physiology, your internal environment, is stressed out. And you can’t walk away, go for a drive, or zone out in front of the TV to avoid this stress…it’s inside you, and goes wherever you go…including to bed with you.

It is this type of stress that has the greatest consequence to our health. A fight with your spouse is NOTHING in comparison when taken to the cellular level. With inflammation, your cells are afraid of dying. This ignites a hardwired neurological response, altering every function you can think of…hormones, digestion, circulation (why do you think some blood pressure meds block adrenaline?), brain function, and immune function…as well as the normal process of healing and repair.

So, where does this inflammation come from? The quick answer is diet (inflammatory foods), infections (many infections are relatively quiet compared to the flu or common cold), and toxicity (detox nutrients, along with hormone products are the most commonly prescribed in our office).

It is a very complex system, with unfamiliar names, so it would probably be more confusing to try to describe the actual processes and chemicals, unless you want to go to medical school, but there is a simple way to see if you are inflamed…there is a diagnostic lab test, called C-Reactive Protein (CRP), which is gaining popularity, so you may have heard of it…that is a blood marker (identifier) of inflammation.

This is so easy and inexpensive to test, there is no reason why anyone with a chronic condition should NOT know their CRP levels, or anyone at all for that matter. Mine is under 1…that is the ideal level for de-stressing your body. When you get higher than one, the lab report TELLS YOU, right on the paper, that your risk of death is increased!

CRP levels are far more important than cholesterol numbers, but with the discovery of Statin drugs, and the potential of profit, millions in advertising dollars have made it clear that you need to know your cholesterol levels.

CRP can ONLY be treated nutritionally, (short of taking Prednisone, which is a very dangerous drug), so you don’t hear as much about it unless you actually read what researchers are saying about it. And researchers are shouting (in effect) that this is the most valuable, most critical number you should know, if you desire health and longevity, or freedom from disease and pain.

The Fourth Cause of Stress and Disease

Emotional Stress and Strain.
A couple shocking realities that you might not know about emotional stress (of life…job, parents, spouse, children, money, etc.):

1. Stress is most often helpful to our growth and health.

2. Stress isn’t the experience, it’s the meaning you make, and the lessons you take, from your experience.

“What… stress…helpful? You must be out of your mind!”

That is the reality. Your life stress activates healthy response mechanisms that strengthen your body and brain. Much like our little immune challenges, colds and other infections, they actually make you stronger and more resilient.

Much of our internal stress from life’s experiences comes from what we make of it. If we have been trained (by our parents and educators) to be helpless or hopeless, victim or loser, or always on the short end of bad luck…we are going to find almost any situation or experience stressful. If we have been taught that we can figure out anything, we’re winners in winning or losing, and life has a strange way of working out…we are going to endure almost any situation or experience.

And, this is still one of my four categories, so it isn’t all just lessons and growth. Chronic unresolved stress, abuse, trauma, loss, etc., do add up and contribute to our stress load. At some point, either in intensity or longevity, the emotional stress starts to break us down.

With the patients I treat, who have been “through the mill” looking for help, if emotional stress wasn’t an initiating trigger for their health problems, it sooner or later becomes a sustaining factor, as hopelessness creeps in as they go from doctor to doctor, not seeing any improvement in their condition.

The initial point I wanted to make clear is…stress is not the enemy. It is the inability to resolve stress that wears us down, including beginning the cycle of dysfunction, disease, and disability.

So what do we do about life? I have a fairly simple formula to resolve stress, at least enough to return health, and, patient willing, into that wonderful place called happiness. One disclaimer though…life still challenges us, even from that state of happiness.

My simple formula is to treat any perceived threats to survival. Those are mostly the metabolic states such as hypoglycemia, anemia, and immune activation. By the time we clean up the body, life is looking and feeling easier. Next, I use the Dr. Dan Amen brain typing protocols to identify and actively treat the areas of the brain that are stuck, and ultimately keep us in our stress.

Just a quick summary…

1. Frontal Cortex: This part of our brain, located as you might guess, right in the front, helps us see ourselves as whole and powerful, to organize our desires and goals, and maintain focus toward those desires (that feels good to know you are working toward something great!) When this area of the brain gets stuck, we feel depressed, lack focus, experience low self esteem, and don’t know what the heck we want from life.

2. Limbic System: This part of the brain holds our values and principles. It is what helps us emotionally make choices in life. When this area gets stuck, we find ourselves in bad habits, feeling depressed and conflicted, and powerless.

3. Basal Ganglia: This part of the brain holds our beliefs about ourselves, others, and life in general. It has a tuning in effect on life, helping us find more of what we believe in. When this area gets stuck, we feel anxious, even fearful, often predicting poor or the outright worst outcomes, and, of course, we find we were right.

4. Cingulate Gyrus: This area of the brain is our systems analysis. It records what is working (or not) and adjusts our behavior to move towards our desires. When this area gets stuck, we are stuck…think of the psychiatric level of stuckness in this area…OCD. We are unable to make different choices, or can’t see other possibilities, and spin our tires endlessly on the same struggle.

5. Temporal Lobes: This part of our brain moves into interpersonal relationships…accountability and communication. When this area gets stuck, we find ourselves slightly paranoid, feeling unsupported, and have to do everything ourselves…feeling alone or lonely. We often express this as anger or even rage towards others.

In order to move forward in life, we must achieve connection and activation in all these neural areas. By knowing where we are stuck neurologically, we can make adjustments to our nutrition, actions, and even beliefs, allowing the “circuit” to be closed, all areas activated, and forward progress resumed…kind of like getting enough pull on your stuck car, and feeling that relief of “it’s over.” Stress relief!

One More Why!

Have you ever had the experience of a inquisitive child, wondering endlessly why everything is the way it is…?

“Momma, why is the grass green?” You come up with something amazing about chlorophyll causing the green color.

“Why?” You remember the term photosynthesis, and half make up how chlorophyll makes energy from light…

“Why?” Getting a little frustrated, you explain that that is just the way it works.

One more… “Why?” Why is that the way that it works?

I have been thinking about the distinction between what I do, and call Functional Medicine…and what you are accustomed to, what I call Mainstream Medicine.

The effective difference is that Functional Medicine CAN locate the underlying cause of chronic conditions, where Mainstream Medicine admits that it lacks the understanding of why most chronic diseases occur in the first place.

Is the diagnostic process so much different? I have contended that it is…and I may be wrong. The difference truly lies in the “One More Why.”

For instance…both sciences agree that Diabetes is low insulin production due to damage of the pancreas, or a “resistance” to the insulin that you produce. Mainstream Medicine says, “that is just the way it works.” Functional Medicine simply asks (one more) “Why?” And then digs deeper into how insulin is produced and interacts with muscle cells and other cells to produce energy.

What we find, in asking that one more why, is a multitude of possibilities. Perhaps the patient is stressed out, and surges of the hormone cortisol have caused insulin resistance. Perhaps the patient is infected with a bacteria, yeast, or even parasite, that has caused an immune imbalance resulting in an autoimmune destruction of the pancreas. Perhaps the little glucose converting energy factories, called mitochondria have been damaged as a result of mercury or lead exposure. Perhaps the patient is slightly deficient in the trace mineral chromium, or vanadium, or magnesium. Perhaps the patient suffers from heartburn, also known as reflux, and has been prescribed an antacid, which prevents absorption of zinc, which is another essential trace mineral for blood glucose control…and the heartburn is caused from an erosion in the stomach from taking pain pills to treat knee pain, and the knee pain is caused by a fallen arch in the foot, and the fallen arch is caused by overtraining in cross country running.

Is the patient’s diabetes then a compensation for the need for rest and treatment of the muscles of the foot? I would say so, at least in an indirect fashion.

And, of course, the diabetes could be a result of eating too many trans fats and processed carbohydrates, along with a lack of nutritionally sound food such as protein and vegetables.

The exciting prospect of this “One More Why,” is that the next answer is the solution to the problem. We can correct and imbalanced diet and nutrient deficiencies, as long as the patient is willing. We can correct stress hormones, infections, toxicity, even stomach erosions and foot muscle imbalances.

We can actually find and correct the underlying dysfunctions for chronic disease, leading to a resolution and an end of treatment.

If we stop at, “That is just the way it works,” we are stuck…not completely…you can still take the medications that help control blood glucose, but you will always be a diabetic, and you will always depend on the medications.

I realize that some people will take charge themselves and change their diet, possibly even to the point of no longer “qualifying” for diabetes…they asked the “one more why” themselves. I also know of people who eat and exercise “perfectly” and continue to struggle with blood glucose control, along with low energy and other symptoms…they asked the “one more why,” but didn’t have the diagnostic know how to really get to the bottom of it.

This can be expanded to nearly every condition: High blood pressure is caused by fluid retention and/or narrowed or constricted blood vessels…WHY? Neuropathy is caused by damage to the nerves in the feet and hands…WHY (are they damaged)? Heart attacks are caused by clogged arteries…WHY (are they clogged)? Autoimmune diseases are caused by the immune system attacking your tissues…WHY (does the immune system attack)?

Functional Medicine asks and answers that “one more why” for many chronic conditions such as these. Functional Medicine doesn’t accept that “that is just the way it works (let’s manage the problem with medication).” Functional Medicine has the unique tools (natural medicine) that work on the “one more why,” so we are eager to ask, eager to correct the underlying problem, and open minded enough to consider your immune system, your foot, your medications you take, your diet, your nutritional intake, your stress levels, and your digestion, circulation, hormones, and even your brain.

If you have read my book, this is just another aspect of the process I describe…Starting with asking how we can move toward health…diagnosing the process (one more why), observing the interactions of different systems and functions of the body, and honoring adaptations, such as the foot example. Which all results in a new expectation…not “owning” a disease or condition…rather, expecting that you CAN heal, that you can move past this problem, just like any other. Perhaps freedom…or independence.

That is the result of “One More Why!”

I have lived life fully…I have a disease named after me!

The first quote in my book, from an excited patient, thanks me for not being a specialist. She says, “These days, with everyone being a specialist, no one seems to be connecting the dots. Thanks for caring for the whole person…”

In a medical world where a doctors greatest success and acknowledgement is having a disease named after them, we have a shortage on treating the basics. No, I really haven’t had a disease named after me, and I think it would be a dubious honor.

In my world, I actually find more joy and satisfaction in finding solutions, than new problems to name.

And this…is my second solution to America’s health care crises. Find solutions, not problems.

In my book, in chapter 2, I discuss the concept of functional diagnostics versus pathology diagnosis. I bet the majority of people reading this recognize the term pathology… “take this down to pathology…” “here is the pathology report…” and probably have no idea what I am talking about when I say functional.

Functional Diagnostics is the quest for the solution…Medical Diagnosis is the quest for pathology (the problem). Pathology is merely a tissue change associated with a disease…bone spurs, degenerated disc, tumor, clot, bleed, fatty deposits in arteries, tissue death (called necrosis), broken bone, abnormal cells that can be identified visually…if I light a match and hold it to your skin, do you want to identify the scorched flesh, or the idiot holding a match to your arm?

Identification of pathology is quite effective in acute care… “the femur is protruding from the thigh, several arteries are severed…scalpel…” but is of little use in chronic disease.

In fact, many, if not most, chronic diseases lack pathological findings. What is the pathology report for fibromyalgia, neuropathy, dizziness, Raynaud’s disease (Hi Dr. Raynaud!), diabetes, fatigue…often there is nothing. “We don’t know why this condition exists, it is most probably genetic.”

While I love to blame my parents for all my problems, it doesn’t do me any good. And, I am kidding if you didn’t catch that. It is true, that parents love to pass on their flaws, and they all have them, so we all have flaws. I like to look at "our flaws" as our weakest link, and what should we do with the weakest link…I would say, either support it, or don’t stress it.

So if your mom and grandmother both had breast cancer, don’t take synthetic hormones. If your family has diabetes, watch the sugar, and support the process of sugar metabolism (which is completely nutritional...no drugs required).

Functional Diagnostics not only reveals the process for healing, but also the process for wellness. So, we’ve talked enough about what it isn’t…what is it??

We said it is the search for solutions. It considers pathology, but asks why is there pathology. This concept, although foreign, is actually less complex than pathology.

Let’s say you are constipated…that’s always fun to talk about. It could be a massive tumor in your colon, you swallowed a tennis ball, stuck a baseball bat up your bottom…and what does the medical doctor do…barium study and colonoscopy. “Nope, no tumor, no tennis ball, no baseball bat, why don’t you drink some water, if that doesn’t work, try this laxative.”

A functional diagnostician would begin with big picture…how does one poop? Do you eat food? Ok, then... the next consideration is nervous system tone. If you have ever been driving, looking desperately for the next gas station to relieve yourself…and suddenly someone cuts you off, narrowly missing your bumper…hmmm, no more poop! The urge is gone…and unless it was tooooo close, the poop is NOT gone. Where did it go? The nervous system, in stress, decreases bowel movement…literally shuts it down, eliminating the urge, stopping traffic wherever it happens to be (even knocking on the door).

What would cause stress that would affect your intestines in that fashion, without the near miss or near death? This is functional diagnosis! It could be inflammation in the intestines, which could be infection, or food sensitivity, or nutrient deficiency, or over acidity, or over alkalinity (the opposite of acidity), or toxicity, or hormone imbalance, or, on the odd chance, it could be a tumor. We don’t miss that by diagnosing functionally, because it disrupts function!

You are now one step closer to health, simply, by focusing on the solution, not the problem!

The Intention of Health

The questions we ask ourselves are immensely important. There is a little “nut” (seriously, it looks like an almond) in our brain, called the thalamus, that “tunes in” to the questions we are asking. I liken it to a radio station that picks up whatever channel we are listening to, and of course, we don’t hear the channels you aren’t listening to.

Yeah, so…? Well, the reason this is so important, is if you ask over and over, “what’s wrong with me?”…you will literally find what is wrong with you, because it picks up all information entering the brain that has to do with what is wrong with you. So you might want to be careful of the questions you ask…

Why don’t people like me? Why does this always happen to me? Why am I sick? Why do I always screw thing up? Why are all my relationships failing?

You will find more and more whys, that you really don’t want to find. It’s basic neurology. It’s hardwired into your brain…and your brain is your experience.

How about a simple rewording…How do I always run into friendly people? Why do I always come up with the solution I am looking for? How can I achieve better and better health?

Your “nut” will tune into whatever question you are asking, and find the answer.

How does this relate to health, diagnosis, and treatment of chronic conditions? Medicine was developed through acute care, and the questioning process of acute care is, “what is wrong and how do we manage it?” Great…that process has saved millions of lives.

Now, enter the age of chronic disease. We don’t die of acute infections like in days gone by. Sanitation played a huge part, including doctors washing their hands after cadaver lab (which was ridiculed as an idea when first introduced!), as well as the invention of antibiotics.

Now, people die of cancer, heart disease, and diabetes (along with its many complications). Diseases of aging…diseases of lifestyle…diseases of stress and sugar.

These diseases all require treatment…but the treatment can no longer be management of symptoms. Well it can be, and our (Full) assisted living facilities and nursing homes are good evidence of the use of management type treatments. These folks often are taking over 10 different medications to manage heartburn, thin their blood, decrease their blood pressure, manage their blood sugar, pain, sleep, anxiety, depression…you get the picture.

The problem lies in the acute care questioning. “What’s the problem and how do we manage it?”

Are you ready…here is the solution to America’s health care crisis. Instead of that question, doctors must begin asking, “How do we return (restore) HEALTH?” Same circumstances…heart disease, cancer, diabetes…but different question.

There are doctors out there asking this question. They don’t go by the “medical playbook,” which refers to the protocols established by the (acute care based) American Medical Association. And they don’t treat acute cases...they treat chronic conditions. They keep people out of the nursing homes, by finding a solution that restores health, wherever possible. (and, although you don’t know it, your expectations of what can be accomplished are based on the acute care model, not the chronic care model I am suggesting)

One simple question…one different question…that changes the way we see things. And that includes the patient and the doctor. Think about it, if you never ask the question, you will never find it. Neurology and that nut in your brain guarantees it. If you do ask the question (How do we restore health?), neurology guarantees that you see everything after that question differently.

Einstein first posed this concept, with his question, “Do you live in a hostile, or a friendly universe?”…the world changes with your answer.

Makes you think, doesn’t it?

Generalized Medicine for Peripheral Neuropathy

What the heck is generalized medicine? In short, it is the ability to diagnose multiple systems, such as the hormones and digestive system, regardless of the presenting symptom. It is an awareness of what any shift in body chemistry can do to all other functions.

A shift in the hormone cortisol can and will affect your heart, brain, joints, liver, thyroid, etc. But, in specialized medicine, if you have joint pain, you probably will never make it to the endocrine (hormone) specialist, because you have an orthopedic problem. Hmmm.

Let’s look at your condition as seen by specialist medicine…

Peripheral Neuropathy…you belong to the neurology specialty.

What Causes Peripheral Neuropathy? (By WEBMD)

Many things can cause peripheral neuropathies so it is often difficult to know the cause. Neuropathies occur by one of three methods:

Acquired neuropathies are caused by environmental factors such as toxins, trauma, illness, or infection. Known causes of acquired neuropathies include:

Diabetes - responsible for many cases of peripheral neuropathy

Several rare inherited diseases

Alcoholism

Poor nutrition or vitamin deficiency

Herniated discs in the back

Certain kinds of cancer

Conditions where nerves are mistakenly attacked by the body’s own immune system or damaged by an overaggressive response to injury

Certain medications

Kidney or thyroid disease

Infections such as Lyme disease, shingles, or AIDS

Idiopathic neuropathies are from an unknown cause. As many as one-third of all neuropathies are classified in this way.



That’s the causes…here are the treatments:



 Pain relievers. Mild symptoms may be relieved by over-the-counter pain medications. For more severe symptoms, your doctor may recommend prescription painkillers. Drugs containing opiates, such as codeine, can lead to dependence, constipation or sedation, so these drugs are generally prescribed only when other treatments fail.

 Anti-seizure medications. Drugs such as gabapentin (Neurontin), topiramate (Topamax), pregabalin (Lyrica), carbamazepine (Tegretol) and phenytoin (Dilantin) were originally developed to treat epilepsy. However, doctors often also prescribe them for nerve pain. Side effects may include drowsiness and dizziness.

 Antidepressants. Tricyclic antidepressant medications, such as amitriptyline and nortriptyline (Pamelor), were originally developed to treat depression. However, they have been found to help relieve pain by interfering with chemical processes in your brain and spinal cord that cause you to feel pain. The serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor duloxetine (Cymbalta) also has proved effective for peripheral neuropathy caused by diabetes. Side effects may include nausea, drowsiness, dizziness, decreased appetite and constipation.

Ok, you already know this if you have peripheral neuropathy. But, do you see the disconnect here? They even talk about potential causes, but all the treatments are symptom based. Epilepsy drugs? Antidepressants? Pain meds??

I talk about the five metabolic causes of PN: Anemia, allergy, high cortisol, high insulin, and energy (ATP) production impairment. Throw in a physical cause we are all guilty of…lack of body stimulation through movement, and the net result is PN.

To correct peripheral neuropathy, you have to be a hormone doctor, immune doctor, hematologist, and nutritionist. You have to be a generalist!

A study that confirms our need for hormonal help…

Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Vol 76, 554-558 “Overall, these results suggest that diabetic neuropathy is associated with a specific and persistent increase in the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary- adrenal axis. (high cortisol)” National Library of Medicine

And how do we treat that?

“The results suggest that chronic oral administration of phosphatidylserine may counteract stress-induced activation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis in man”. Eur J Clin Pharmacol. 1992;42(4):385-8.

For the non-researchers…this is research stating that high cortisol can cause peripheral neuropathy, AND, another study stating that the nutrient phosphatidyl serine can lower cortisol.

But, if you don’t have high cortisol this supplement will do next to nothing.

That’s science…diagnose the cause, treat the cause, resolve the problem.

Yours in Health,

Dr. Todd Stone

Generalized Medicine?

Do you ever wonder why medicine is so specialized? The assumption is that you are getting a higher level of care when you see a specialist. They “specialize” in my problem!

What do you suppose that these doctors are taught in Medical school that the rest of them aren’t? Is there a special book?

This may run counter to everything you know about medicine…If I had a health problem, something chronic and serious…I would want the doctor who could see the BIG picture of how all my parts and pieces work together…I would want a generalist.

You probably have heard the saying, “A specialist is someone who knows more and more about less and less, until finally they know everything about nothing.”

Yup, for me, I would find a generalist. Why, you may ask? (Good question!)

While I am not a medical doctor, and practice medicine as a generalist (my bias revealed!), I had to study all the same conditions and diagnostic procedures that are the focus of medical school. In fact, at one point, I resolved to study the entire Merck Manual of Medicine (over 1600 pages long). It didn’t take me long to start skimming though…and then finally, I put the book down in disgust.

What I realized was the people we place in high regard and trust with our most valuable possession (that’s arguably our health), admittedly do not know what causes the vast majority of the conditions in this book (which is updated yearly to include all known diseases and conditions). They don’t know. They say so right in this book.

I am not satisfied until I know why something happens. I believe there is a reason for everything. This book, which is one of the most highly regarded texts in medicine, simply says “I don’t know” and then focuses the remaining waste of ink on the list of drugs that might suppress the symptoms of whatever problem they are discussing.

FROM WEBMD: (My comments in italics)

Essential Hypertension

In as many as 95% of reported high blood pressure cases in the United States, the underlying cause cannot be determined. This type of high blood pressure is called essential hypertension.

Secondary Hypertension

When a direct cause for high blood pressure can be identified, the condition is described as secondary hypertension. Among the known causes of secondary hypertension, kidney disease ranks highest.

Ok, so at least they know what causes 5% of the cases…

What Causes Chronic Kidney Disease?

Diabetes and high blood pressure are the most common causes of chronic kidney disease (CKD). (Wait, I thought that kidney disease caused high blood pressure?? Let’s see what causes Diabetes)

Causes of Type 2 Diabetes

While not everyone with type 2 diabetes is overweight, obesity and lack of physical activity are two of the most common causes of this form of diabetes. (So lifestyle causes some of the 5% of total cases of high blood pressure)

Unless you have Type 1 Diabetes…

Type 1 Diabetes

Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body's own immune system destroys the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas (called beta cells). Normally, the body's immune system fights off foreign invaders like viruses or bacteria. But for unknown reasons, in people with type 1 diabetes, the immune system attacks various cells in the body.

So…we don’t know why people have hypertension, but in a small percentage it is caused by kidney disease, which is caused by hypertension or diabetes. We still don’t know what causes hypertension, but it causes kidney disease, or does kidney disease cause hypertension…anyway…some people are just obese and don’t exercise, and that causes hypertension…unless it is type 1 diabetes, which we can’t figure out. If only we had a pill to help people lose weight, exercise, and eat right…in any event, I have a pill that blocks high blood pressure, so who really cares!



HOW DOES A GENERALIST DIAGNOSE AND TREAT HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE?

Here is the short list of REAL CAUSES of High Blood Pressure:



1. Low Testosterone (most often secondary to high insulin)
2. High Cortisol
3. Bacterial Infection

4. Viral Infection

5. Toxic exposure (lead, mercury)

6. Essential Fatty Acid Deficiency

7. Magnesium Deficiency

8. Antioxidant Vitamin Deficiency





These can all be tested by a lab…they can all be treated.

Don’t take my word for it, if you are a true skeptic, read this study:

Kawano Y, Matsuoka H, Takishita S, Omae T. Effects of magnesium supplementation in hypertensive patients:assessment by office, home, and ambulatory blood pressures. Hypertension. 1998;32:260-265.

“In the present study, supplementation with Magnesium for 8 weeks significantly lowered BP, with increases in serum Mg concentration…”

This is a study from the National Library of Medicine. This study was performed by scientific method. Controlled and blinded.

My one complaint…the one thing I would do differently as a researcher, would be to actually measure serum or red blood cell Magnesium levels first, see who was low as a baseline, and treat only those that tested low. That is functional medicine. Pharmaceutical medicine takes a group with a symptom (high blood pressure) and gives them magnesium to see if it controls the symptom. The study would have shown much better results if they actually treated only those low in magnesium.

Good example of the thought process of medicine, though. They aren’t so interested in cause, such as a simple test of magnesium levels, they are only interested in symptom suppression.

Do you see why a generalist might be a good thing? When confronted with a simple thing like high blood pressure, you really need to assess your immune system, nutrient status, hormones, and possibly even toxic exposures…IF you want to truly resolve your high blood pressure…or you can just take the high blood pressure pill for the rest of your life. Your choice.

Yours in Health,



Dr. Todd Stone

A Change of Heart

While I continue to educate and (hopefully) inspire, I have decided as well to vent.  Working with traditional medicine, on your health team, has inherent frustrations.  Anytime you suggest that the prevailing "way" could use some assistance, re-direction, or a whole new philosophy...there is resistance.  Resistance from patients as well as doctors.  Resistance from insurance companies, adjustors, and claims analysts. 

There are reports in the media and public opinion that things aren't ok.  We spend too much, the results are less than satisfactory, including the deaths that mount as direct consequences of medical care. 

But when offered a less expensive, safer, and often times more effective approach...the resistence to change emerges.  And, I GET IT...an individuals nervous system prefers stability, even when dysfunctional and causing uncomfortable symptoms.  Collectively the resistance to change is even stronger. 

So, I will complain.  I will complain in an effort to poke holes in the resistance.  I will attempt to complain non-violently, compassionately, and scientifically.  This is a monumental task...to provide inspiration through complaining...but that is what I will attempt to do. 

Some complaints, off the top of my head:

• Last year I got a happy face for my visit per condition statistic, while I got a sad face for my services per visit.  Yes, we get preschool "grades" for our statistical performance as a doctor (from BCBS).  Yet, the only number that should count, didn't count!  That number...can you guess...is how much it cost to resolve a condition.  I "costed" the insurance company less per patient, on average, but I recieved a warning...no, a threat...that I could be kicked off the insurance program if my services per visit didn't decrease. 
• Medicare will not pay for a diagnostic lab I order, because I am not a MD.  They will pay about 38 dollars for my service, regardless of the service provided.  If I spend an hour: $38     If I spend 2 minutes: $38  So what is medicare encouraging me to do??
• Blue Cross / Blue Shield will not pay for a diagnostic lab I order.  Again, because I am not a MD.
• When I call to verify insurance benefits, there is not an option for Chiropractic Benefits...only medicine, pharmaceutical, and dentistry.  We have to hope someone will eventually pick up.  This is Sami's least favorite activity in our office.
• I have to "prove myself" with better and faster results (with patients and insurance companies), at lower pay rates in treatment of the same conditions as medicine.  Women...minorities...can you relate here?!?
• Medical Physicians often disregard the diagnostics that I do...for instance, If I run a panel to diagnose infectious disease, and we decide to treat what we find with meds, which I can't prescribe, many times the patients MD won't look at the lab or prescribe based on the lab. 

Whew...that felt good.  Can you see the silliness in the "way things are??"