We are happy to see you here and can’t wait to embrace you in our warm and helpful community where you can find real solutions for your symptoms that might have been holding your life back for years. In Mind Body Spirit Center Our Mission is to: • Provide easy to use, non invasive tools to help you to identify the root causes of your symptoms. • Offer healthy solutions to eliminate the underlying origins of your illnesses. • Help you to rejuvenate your health without having to undergo heavy pharmaceutical treatments. • Provide ongoing analysis and commentary on the most recent research in the field of health. • Welcome you to the community where we can hold your hand on the journey to the healthy, even more beautiful you. [gravityform id="1" name="New Test"]
You may have heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day—and new science reveals that it can actually be lifesaving, particularly for men. Men who regularly skip breakfast are at 27 percent higher risk of suffering a heart attack or fatal coronary disease, compared to those who eat a morning meal daily, according to a new study of male health professionals published in Circulation. The researchers tracked 26,902 initially healthy men, ages 45 to 82, over a 16-year period. "Skipping breakfast may lead to one or more risk factors, including obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes, which may in turn lead to a heart attack over time," said Leah E. Cahill, Ph.D., study lead author and Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health in a statement. Female Breakfast Skippers Also at Risk A new, very large study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that women who skipped breakfast even once a week were 20 percent more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who ate a meal every morning. The study looked at data from more than 45,000 women who were initially free of cancer, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes, and assessed their eating patterns over a six-year period. Those who chose to forego breakfast but ate frequently (four or more times a day) had a greater risk of developing diabetes, while a lower body mass index (BMI) seemed to mitigate some of the danger associated with irregular breakfast consumption. Translation: skipping breakfast isn’t a smart idea for anyone, but seems to be even more harmful for those who are overweight. Link to Diabetes and Insulin Resistance Another recent large scale study, which also used data from the over 29,000 participants in the male health professionals study, reveals a similar effect on men. Researchers noted that men who skipped breakfast had a 21 percent higher risk of developing diabetes. Other researchers have come to similar conclusions, hypothesizing that breakfast may play a role in stabilizing blood sugar levels throughout the day. In fact, a new but much smaller study showed that eating breakfast reduces overall diabetes risk for overweight women. Insulin levels were higher after missing breakfast, and researchers believe that missing that meal may lead to insulin resistance, the root cause of type 2 diabetes. Skipping Breakfast Also Linked to Mood, Memory, and Metabolic Syndrome The risk of diabetes isn’t the only thing that’s changed based on whether or not someone eats breakfast. Forgoing the most important meal of the day can have negative effects on your mood, memory and energy levels, at least until you get a bite to eat during lunchtime. And the bad habit of skipping breakfast is also linked to weight gain, particularly around the midsection, as well as high blood pressure and metabolic syndrome.
Men who take vitamin C supplements may have an increased risk for developing kidney stones, according to a new study. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is a water-soluble vitamin that is necessary for the formation of collagen in bones, cartilage, muscle and blood vessels. It also helps the body absorb iron. Dietary sources of vitamin C include fruits and vegetables, particularly citrus fruits, such as oranges. Many uses for vitamin C have been proposed, but few have been found to be beneficial in scientific studies. In particular, research on asthma, cancer and diabetes remains inconclusive, and no benefits have been found for the prevention of cataracts or heart disease. The use of vitamin C in the prevention or treatment of the common cold and respiratory infections remains controversial, and research is ongoing. In a new study, researchers reviewed data on 48,850 men from the Cohort of Swedish Men to assess the potential link between vitamin C supplementation and kidney stone risk. Data on vitamin C supplement use was collected through questionnaires. Data on men who had a history of kidney stones and reported using supplements other than vitamin C were excluded from the analysis. Kidney stone cases were collected through registry data. Throughout the 11 year follow-up period, 436 men developed their first case of kidney stones. The researchers found that vitamin C supplement use was significantly linked to twice the risk of developing kidney stones when compared to men who did not take supplements. However, the authors noted that a link between multivitamin use and kidney stones was lacking
A recent study suggests that high iron intake may reduce the risk for premenstrual syndrome (PMS). PMS is a group of symptoms that start one to two weeks before the period. Four out of 10 menstruating women experience PMS. There have been as many as 150 symptoms associated with PMS. Most women have at least some symptoms of PMS, and the symptoms go away after their periods start. The most common symptoms are: irritability, anxiety, depression, headache, bloating, fatigue or excessive tiredness, feelings of hostility and anger, and food cravings, especially for chocolate or sweet and salty foods. Iron is an essential mineral and an important component of proteins involved in oxygen transport and metabolism. Iron is also essential in the synthesis of neurotransmitters such as dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin. Approximately 15 percent of the body's iron is stored for future needs and mobilized when dietary intake is inadequate. The body usually maintains normal iron status by controlling the amount of iron absorbed from food. There are two forms of dietary iron: heme and nonheme. Sources of heme iron include meat, fish and poultry. Sources of nonheme iron, which is not absorbed as well as heme iron, include beans, lentils, flours, cereals and grain products. In a recent study, researchers analyzed data on women from the Nurses' Health Study II. At the beginning of the study, none of the participants reported having PMS symptoms. After 10 years, the researchers identified 1,057 women with PMS and 1,968 without. Data on iron intake and other minerals was collected through questionnaires throughout the study. The researchers found, after adjusting the data for other factors including calcium intake, that women with the highest nonheme iron intake had a 36 percent reduced risk of developing PMS when compared to those with the lowest intake. Conversely, high potassium intake was linked to an increased risk for PMS. Significant links with magnesium, manganese and sodium consumption were lacking. In addition to iron, there is some evidence that taking vitamin B6 may improve symptoms of PMS such as mastalgia (breast pain or tenderness) and PMS-related depression or anxiety in some patients. Additionally, initial research suggests that ginkgo may relieve PMS-associated symptoms, including emotional upset.
10 Tips to Cure Bad Breath Whether it's a fleeting case of morning breath or a lingering bout with halitosis, everyone has bad breath sometimes. Unfortunately, for as easy as it is to get bad breath, getting rid of it can be a lot more complicated. For some, employing a toothbrush, floss and mouthwash more frequently to remove plaque, the nearly invisible film of bacteria that contributes to bad breath, will do the trick. For others, a professional cleaning to remove stuck-on tartar, which is hardened plaque, will be necessary. Others still will discover that cavities and gum disease are at the root of their bad breath problems. Occasionally, bad breath is due to something in the lungs or gastrointestinal tract, or to a systemic infection. Some health problems, such as sinus infections or diabetes, can also cause bad breath. And sometimes it just comes down to what you ate for dinner. Here are a few tips to help you to feel and smell fresh: 10: Brush and Floss 9: Clean Your Tongue 8: Wet Your Whistle – stay well hydrated. You need plenty of saliva because it helps clean your mouth; it's naturally antibacterial, and it washes away food particles. 7: Don't Rely on Mints - Although mouth odor is often associated with gum disease or tooth decay, it can occasionally signal health problems such as respiratory or sinus infections, bronchitis, diabetes or malfunctions of the liver or kidney. Mints will not help you in solving health issues. 6: Know the Culinary Culprits - High-protein and low-carb diets, while a possible boon to your waist size, aren't great for your breath. Eating fewer than 100 grams of carbohydrates a day triggers a condition known as ketosis, a metabolic state that causes your body to burn fat instead of sugar. Ketosis is notorious for causing bad breath. 5: Rinse After Eating and Drinking 4: Use Nature's Cures - Chlorophyll is the green pigment that allows plants to photosynthesize energy from light. It can also help neutralize internal body odors, thereby reducing the smells that emanate from the body -- including bad breath. Also, parsley may not be your idea of dessert, but chewing a little after a meal could do wonders for your breath. 3: Eat to Smell Sweet - here are certain foods that smell good -- and that make your breath smell good, too. Take fruits high in vitamin C, for example. Melons, berries and citrus fruits such as oranges are packed with vitamin C, something that doesn't sit well with the bacteria in your mouth. Instead of continuing to reproduce, the bacteria will begin to die. And the more C-laden fruits you eat, the more oral germs you'll kill. Also, raw apple slices may be a great way to end a meal and get your breath back on track. 2: Skip the Cigarettes 1: Visit Your Dentist
Are you an executive for a large corporation or a small business owner who is working hard to be successful while keeping an eye on the budget? The financial fitness of any business is dependent on the health of the employees, managers, executives and owners. The three biggest challenges in the workplace today are absenteeism, decreased productivity and decreased presenteeism. Presenteeism is the increasing phenomena in the U.S. workplace where workers are on the job physically, but suffering from chronic disease, pain or other physical or psychological issues. It’s not enough in this hyper-competitive 21st century suffering global economy to get workers just to show up—they need to be healthy, pain-free and happily engaged. The Statistics are Telling Employees showing up for work on a multitude of pain or mood-altering drugs significantly impacts business success. All these scenarios greatly reduce the employees’ optimal level of productivity and increase the health care costs of the company. A Gallop study showed that employees with thriving overall well-being have 41 percent lower health care costs than those with moderate levels of well-being, and 62 percent lower costs than those with low levels of well-being. Additionally people with thriving well-being have a 35 percent lower turnover than those with a low level of well-being. Robison, Jennifer “The Business Case for Well Being.” Gallup Business Journal, June, 2010. Other research shows that 15 percent of the workforce is actively disengaged. These unhappy, unhealthy people go to work making each other unhappy. The actively disengaged group of workers cost companies $350 billion a year! Another part of the American work force, 57 percent, is disengaged and showing up for work to just get through the day, without achieving nearly their potential for the success of the company. Consequently, only 28 percent of the workers are actively engaged. This is a tremendous loss of human potential and a major obstacle to a company’s optimal performance and bottom line. Robison, Jennifer “Despite the Downturn, Employees Remain Engaged.” Gallup Business Journal, January, 2010. What Integrative Medicine Can Do As a physician with a MBA I was senior management and medical director at the University of Minnesota Hospital and Clinics responsible for 42 clinics, 325 employees and a multimillion dollar budget. The health care costs were enormous and the health of the employees while providing world class health care was a challenge. Having been ill in the past, suffering from complications and misdiagnoses, I personally know the impact of symptoms and disease on costs and lost revenue. Today I am fortunate to be very healthy and have an integrative medicine center with healthy employees. It is by its nature an environment that promotes health and wellness and is supported by education. Integrative medicine is rapidly finding a place in corporate America. Its benefits and values are well-matched to the employer. Today 80 percent of health care cost is for chronic illnesses. The CDC reports that chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and arthritis are among the most common, costly and preventable of all health care problems in the U.S. This is where integrative medicine excels! More than 50 U.S. academic medical centers now feature some form of an integrative medicine program. Integrative medicine is personalized care—assessing and treating the mind, body and spirit using natural approaches whenever possible. The key is finding the root cause of disease or illness. Two dozen quality studies indicate the cost-effectiveness of delivering integrative health care. This research was well-described in a piece in the Huffington Post by John Weeks, editor-publisher of The Integrator Blog. The Corporate Health Improvement Program (CHIP) is located at the University of Arizona and includes members such as Corning, Ford, IBM, Kimberly Clark, NASA, Nestle and Knight Ridder. In numerous randomized controlled trials for the past 10 years, Dean Ornish, MD, has found that people with severe coronary heart disease were able to halt disease progression or reverse it without drugs or surgery by making comprehensive lifestyle changes. These findings were published in The Journal of American Medical Association, Lancet and other major medical journals. According to the American Heart Association, in 2006 1.3 million coronary angioplasty procedures were performed at an average cost of $48,399 per procedure, or more than $60 billion total; and 448,000 coronary bypass operations were performed at a cost of $99,743 per surgery—more than $44 billion total. It is no wonder our health care costs continue to sky rocket. Prevention is Key What can we do rather than the costly invasive surgical procedures and drugs? The INTERHEART cardiology study published in Lancet followed 30,000 men and women on six continents and found that changing lifestyle could prevent at least 90 percent of all heart disease! It is easier and less expensive to prevent the onset of disease than it is to treat it once the disease has developed. Nearly 60 percent of all after-tax profit is spent on corporate health benefits. Eighty percent of these costs are spent on 10 percent of the employees. Healthy employees save their employers money. • Duke Prospective Health reports a $2,200 per employee per year savings from an integrative approach. • Penny George Institute reports their inpatient integrative care initiative is saving $2,000 per patient per hospital stay at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, part of the Allina system. Of note, I initiated and developed this program as Senior Management and Director of Integrative Medicine at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in 2002. • Parker Hannifin, a large global company, offers integrative medicine to their 60,000 employees. I am privileged to be a credentialed physician for the self-insured program to help them decrease their health care costs and improve their employee’s health. Today more 100 million Americans receive their health care benefits through self-insured companies. Emerging Trend Self-insured employers are adding integrative health care services as an extension to their wellness and prevention program. Savings Direct medical cost-savings can occur via integrative health care delivery. Efficacy The three-legged stool—nutrition, exercise and stress reduction are known to support typical outcomes like pain reduction, weight loss, sleep and quality of life, resulting in decreased absenteeism, improved productivity and decreased presenteeism. Whether you are an employee or an executive working for a Fortune 500 company or a small business, investing in your health is the best investment you can make. Integrative medicine is wealth—it is the key for healthy, productive, happy workers. Your financial fitness depends on it. Written By: DR. Sharon Norling, MBA
Penis is an anatomical term—and, of course, much more—the penis is a barometer of a man’s health.
While the life-expectancy gap between men and women has decreased, it's no secret men need to pay more attention to their bodies. They tend to smoke and drink more than women. They don't seek medical help as often. Some men define themselves by their work, which can add to stress.
Erectile dysfunction (ED), the inability to achieve or maintain an erection more than 20 percent of the time, can be viewed as a reason for men to pay more attention. When there is trouble down there, there may be trouble elsewhere.
ED becomes more common as men age but male sexual dysfunction is not a natural part of aging.
What Causes a Slow Penis?
It may mean your blood vessels are clogged from atherosclerosis. It may mean you have nerve damage from diabetes.
Problems with erections may stem from medications, chronic illnesses, hormonal imbalance, mood disorders, poor blood flow to the penis, drinking too much alcohol or being too tired.
If you have difficulty achieving or maintaining an erection you may want to take a look inside your medicine cabinet. Medications account for 25 percent of ED.
Medications can create ED, but the medications reflect that you are not in good health and as a result your penis is affected.
Medications (the Anti’s):
• Antihypertensive drugs.
• Antidepressants.
• Anti-anxiety medication
• Anti-inflammatory drugs.
• Muscle relaxants.
Low-testosterone
Bob came into my office the same as many other men—his wife made him. Bob was just not himself. Previously the couple had enjoyed a frequent, fulfilling sex life. But during the last year Bob seemed less interested, more tired, and had difficulty having an erection. He had been prescribed Viagra but it was not as effective as both of them wanted.
Bob was in good health but he had never had his testosterone checked. When I ordered the lab, the results were 250 ng/dl—below the normal range.
After evaluating for other causes that might be contributing to Bob’s symptoms, it was clear his symptoms were due to low-testosterone (Low T). Bob was placed on bio-identical testosterone and the following month he cheerfully reported he was feeling like an 18-year-old and he and his wife were going on their second honeymoon!
Could It Be You?
Are you tired? Have you lost your edge—your sense of vitality—your mojo? Does sex feel like work, or maybe it doesn’t work out anymore? Is your mood blah? Have you put on weight even though you don’t seem to be eating any more than you ever did?
Maybe it’s your age. Or maybe—just maybe you have a medical condition called Low T.
According to Dr. Abraham Morgantaler, associate clinical professor of Harvard Medical School, Low T is incredibly common. His book, Testosterone for Life, is filled with information and shows low-testosterone is related to the increase in prostate cancer.
I recently heard Morgantaler speak and I recommend his book. Testosterone declines as men age, beginning around age 35. Men with Low T have decreased sexual desire, erectile dysfunction and difficulty achieving orgasm.
Associated Symptoms
Men experience fatigue, lack of motivation, mood changes and depression, and may lack motivation. Women tell me, “My husband is so crabby. He never used to be like that.”
Physically, men experience a loss in strength and less muscle tone. This is coupled with increased weight and an accumulation of abdominal fat.
“… All postmenopausal women can benefit from non-pharmacologic interventions to reduce the risk of fracture, including a balanced diet with adequate intake of calcium and vitamin D, regular exercise, measures to prevent falls or to minimize their impact, smoking cessation and moderation of alcohol intake.” – M.F. Delaney, American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Bones. They are so important, and so often over looked… Osteoporosis is the most common bone disease in humans. It is characterized by decreased bone mass, which results in thinner, weaker bones that can often lead to a risk of fracture. Approximately 44 million American men and women, ages 50 and older, have osteoporosis (severe bone loss) or osteopenia (mild bone loss) with women being affected about twice as often as men. However, this statistic may be a result of a lack of diagnosis in men. In fact, it is estimated that 78 percent of osteoporosis in America is undiagnosed. Osteoporosis is associated with 1.5 million fractures a year; of this total, about 300,000 are hip fractures, the most serious complication of osteoporosis. In the year following a hip fracture, 20 percent of the affected patients will die, 25 percent will be confined to long-term care facilities and 50 percent will experience long-term loss of mobility. The good news is that osteoporosis can be prevented and reversed.
Risk Factors for Osteoporosis (Partial List):
Age
Folate: Getting enough folate (a B-complex vitamin) is a lot easier than it used to be because so many grain products including bread, cereal, rice and pasta are now fortified with folic acid, a synthetic form of folate. Naturally occurring folate can be found in foods such as spinach, citrus fruits and romaine lettuce. Another option is to take a multivitamin with 400 mcg of folic acid, which will also help keep your bones strong.
Fish Oil: The University of California San Diego (UCSD) conducted research showing a high ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 that was associated with lower BMD at the hip in both sexes. Other research suggests Omega 3 has a positive effect in bone health. Omega 3 increases the absorption of calcium and reduces calcium excretion while increasing calcium deposition in bone. Omega 3 fatty acids can be found in most cold water fish such as salmon, tuna, sardines and mackerel. It is also found in walnuts.
Calcium: Though calcium is a component of the mineral crystals that make up bone, bone health concerns much more than just proper calcium intake. In fact, though milk has often been cited as an excellent source of calcium, the Harvard Nurses’ Health Study of 77,761 women found that nurses who drank two or more glasses of milk daily actually suffered 1.5 times as many hip fractures than those who drank just one glass per day. Furthermore, people in countries with the highest consumption of dairy, (i.e., Scandinavians and northern Europeans) have the highest rate of osteoporosis. This may be due to the fact that milk is an animal based protein that can increase the excretion of calcium. However, supplementation of calcium has been shown to reduce bone loss when taken with Vitamin D because calcium citrate is better absorbed.
Vitamin D3 (Cholecalciferol): In recent years, much attention has been focused on the need for increased levels of calcium. It is now generally accepted that much greater attention should be focused on vitamin D. It stimulates calcium absorption, slows bone loss, increases bone formation and reduces the risk of fractures due to falls. Because vitamin D is produced when ultraviolet rays from the sun come into contact with skin, people who stay out of the sun, who wear excessive sunscreen or who live in the northern latitudes are at risk for vitamin D deficiency. In addition, aging decreases a person’s ability to synthesize vitamin D in the skin.
Results from five research trials on vitamin D found that supplementation with 700 to 800 IU of vitamin D per day decreased the number of hip fractures by 26 percent, while 400 IU per day was ineffective. The Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine established a “safe upper limit” of 2,000 IU per day in 1997, but more recent research suggests that up to 4,000 IU of vitamin D per day is safe for the average person. If you are concerned that you may be deficient in Vitamin D, ask your physician to order the lab test 25(OH) D also known as 25 hydroxy-vitamin D.
Magnesium: This mineral is important for bone mineralization. In a clinical trial in postmenopausal women, magnesium supplementation increased bone mineral density by up to eight percent in some participants.
Copper: Laboratory research has found that copper promotes bone mineralization and decreases bone loss. There is also more of a risk for osteoporosis if your diet is deficient in copper.
Strontium: Strontium has recently come into vogue as a “natural” dietary supplement for bone health. While research is currently being carried out in Europe and the United States regarding strontium, it is limited to pharmaceutical/drug studies on the specific compound strontium ranelate. However, the use of strontium is not without possible side effects. In an observational study in Turkey, high soil strontium concentrations were associated with rickets in children. While it is worth mentioning at this time, significant research is still lacking on the safety and efficacy of strontium.
Exercise: Weight-bearing exercise four times a week plus strength training/weight training twice a week is recommended. Persons suffering with this disease should see a physical therapist trained in therapeutic programs designed for individuals with osteoporosis. It is a matter of “move it or lose it.”
If you have a concern about your bone health or have been diagnosed with osteoporosis or osteopenia, see your physician for additional recommendations and pharmaceutical options.
Are you anxious, depressed, lack energy, craving carbohydrates, having difficulty sleeping or experiencing brain fog? You may have a neurotransmitter (NT) imbalance. This imbalance can result in mental, emotional, and physical changes.
Millions of Americans are experiencing depression and unhappiness, yet commonly, they are simply prescribed the band-aid of a pharmaceutical drug. In looking at American society today, one might believe there is a massive epidemic of Prozac deficiency! Before any treatment is given it is important to test.
The good news is that there are FDA certified speciality labs that measure the levels of serotonin, GABA, nor-epinephrine, epinephrine, dopamine, glutamate and cortisol. I think it is a misguided practice to treat if you don’t know what you are treating. We wouldn’t treat cholesterol without a lab, we wouldn’t treat thyroid conditions without a lab nor would we give insulin to a diabetic without knowing the blood sugar levels.
Once the test results indicate the specific imbalance a person can be treated as an individual. Most neurotransmitters are made from protein or amino acids and nutrient co-factors. A safe and effective way to raise neurotransmitter levels is to give your body these building blocks it needs to make them.
There is a wide range of therapeutic lifestyle choices to enhance our well-being and balance our calming happy hormones. Happiness and optimal health have their own biochemistry. Find out how you can balance your body and brain. You deserve to feel happy, calm, energetic, well rested, focused and pain free.
Each year 250,000 people die due to medical errors. That is equivalent to a 3 jumbo jets crashing every two days.
My mother had severe stomach pains. She went to many doctors. They told her, “There is nothing wrong with you.” She was dismissed. They prescribed an antipsychotic medication, Thorazine medication. Within a year she died of stomach and esophageal cancer. She was 38 years old. I was 12.
Years later, my elderly father was diagnosed with colon cancer after months of a delayed diagnosis. He was healthy for his age and still had his great sense of humor. After surgery he never regained consciousness. I asked, “why?”. “What happened? Even as a physician I never got an answer. “It could have been a stroke,” I was told.
I stayed with him in the ICU for days. Then I went home to get some rest. After I fell asleep the phone rang. It was his doctor. Dr. M. told me my dad had died. Of course, I felt terrible. I wasn’t there. I had left. I called my sons to ask them to be pall-bearers. I dozed a little. In the early morning I called the hospital to let them know the name of the funeral home. I said, “I am calling about Stan Norling.” The nurse said, “he is doing better, his blood pressure is up and he is stable.”
To read more...
It’s 2013. Are you still suffering from illness and symptoms after years of medical care and pharmaceutical drugs? Perhaps it is time for another assessment and to explore new evidenced-based options. You deserve to live your best life.
Today we are in the midst of an epidemic of chronic disease. Alarming projections published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) suggest future generations may have shorter, less healthy lives if the current trends continue.
So how are we to regain control of our health issues and what specialty in medicine is appropriate to accomplish this? The answer is Functional Medicine.
How is it different than just the conventional approach and how can it help you?
Functional Medicine is an advanced medical specialty which involves:
Are you excited about the holidays? Perhaps you have some “mixed” feelings as you look forward to family, friends and all the celebrations. You love the season and the festivities but may be thinking, “I wish I felt better.” If only you had more energy, more focus, were sleeping better, had less pain, and were experiencing less anxiety and depression. While the foods are a big part of the celebrations, you wish you had fewer cravings and that your stomach felt better.
You are not alone. The good news is these symptoms have solutions.
Balancing your body’s various systems is a delicate dance and one that requires experience and information. Finding the answers to your health is a process of putting together the pieces of the puzzle.
The key is finding the cause of the symptoms. It is a matter of testing, not guessing.
If your symptoms are due to a:
"Sharon Norling is a shining star in the new medicine. She brings laughter, joy and healing to all who see her. Read this book and benefit from her experience." Gregory A. Plotnikoff, MD, MTS, FACP Co-author, Trust Your Gut
YOUR DOCTOR IS WRONG
Dr. Sharon Norling, a medical doctor authority, tells the untold medical truths.
This book is a must read if you have been dismissed, misdiagnosed, or your symptoms have just been treated like the tip of the iceberg with pharmaceutical drugs.
Your Doctor is Wrong is filled with patient stories, life- saving information, and medical journal citations.
It is tainted with humor!
Buy this book and receive your FREE GIFTS!
www.drsharonnorlingfreeproducts.com
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In this book you will find:
How Susan went from depression and weight gain to getting her health back in just a few months!
How to get rid of anxiety, depression, joint pain, headaches, heartburn, and sinusitis without pharmaceutical drugs.
The truth about toxins in our food and personal care products.
How to find the root cause of your symptoms.
Hormones and Sex; Facts not fiction.
"Dr. Norling systemically outlines the process to health, wholeness and transformation. Thinking outside the accepted 'norm' box is the only way to improve and take control of our own health. Your Doctor is Wrong is empowering! It's your path to optimal health." David Villarreal, DDS Certified Biological Dentist (IABDM)
Chapters include:
Hormones
Sex
Food Allergies
Toxins
Addictions
Mood Disorders
Heart Disease...
and more
When you read Your Doctor is Wrong, you will find the facts. You will find the answers. You will find the hope.
You owe it to yourself and your family to buy this book!
Find:
Right Doctor
Right Tests
Right Care
Right Energy
Right Diagnosis
Right Food
Right Therapy
Right Facts
Right Advocate
Click here to buy!!
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REPORTS
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We joke about our addiction to chocolate, or shopping the sales, but addiction is an intensely private, personal and confronting affliction as difficult to explain as it is to treat. This is a complex issue—much more complicated than simply drawing on willpower.
We have all been touched by addictions either personally or professionally. Maybe it is someone you know—a loved one—or maybe it’s you. Addiction is an equal-opportunity affliction affecting people without regard to their economic circumstance, education, race, geography, IQ or any other factor.
The time has come to stop pushing addiction into the dark corners and stigmatizing those who suffer from the disease. Today addicts are from all walks of life. They are well-educated and respected individuals such as CEOs, doctors, lawyers, businesspeople, housewives and their beloved family members.
Alcohol and Drug (Prescribed and Illegal) Addiction
Each year abuse of illicit drugs and alcohol contributes to the death of more than 100,000 in the U.S. The consequences of drug and alcohol abuse—medical, social, economic and criminal—are vast and varied and affect people of all ages. The vast majority of addicts (96.5 percent) start their first substance use before age 21 when the brain is still developing.
Unfortunately, 95.6 cents of every dollar spent by federal, state and local governments on risky substance use and addiction pay for the consequences; only 1.9 cents are spent for prevention and treatment according to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University this year.
Prescription medications are increasingly being abused or used for non-medical purposes. This practice can not only be addictive, but in some cases lethal. A recent study in Florida published in 2008 found three times as many people were killed by legal drugs as by cocaine, heroin and all methamphetamines combined.
Commonly abused classes of prescription drugs include painkillers, sedatives and stimulants. Many people mistakenly believe these medications are safe, even when used illicitly, because they are prescribed by physicians. They are not.
Among the most disturbing aspects of this emerging trend is its prevalence among teenagers and young adults. Almost one in 10 high school seniors report non-medical use of Vicodin. Most teenagers start their drug use by using their parents’ prescriptions found at home.
Views of Addiction Have Evolved
Throughout much of the past century, scientists studying drug abuse labored in the shadows of powerful myths and misconceptions about the nature of addiction. When scientists began to study addictive behavior in the 1930s, addicts were thought to be morally flawed and lacking in willpower. Those views shaped society’s responses to drug abuse, treating it as a moral failing rather than a health problem, which led to an emphasis on punitive rather than preventive and therapeutic actions.
Today, thanks to science, our views and responses to drug abuse have changed dramatically. Groundbreaking discoveries about the brain have revolutionized our understanding of drug addiction, enabling us to respond effectively to the problem.
Researchers and scientists continue to put the puzzle pieces of this complex disease together. Addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease characterized by compulsive drug-seeking and use, despite harmful consequences.
It is considered a brain disease because drugs change the brain; they change its structure and the way it works. These changes can be long-lasting, and can lead to the harmful behaviors seen in people who abuse drugs.
Can Addiction be Cured? Is Relapse Inevitable?
The brain has plasticity and can be healed. Relapse is not inevitable. One thing becoming clearer is that addiction has not only psychological, social, environmental and genetic components, but also biochemical neurotransmitter (NT) imbalances.
The biochemical NT imbalances may precipitate self-medicating with drugs and alcohol. Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), has said, “I’ve studied alcohol, cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, marijuana and more recently, obesity. There’s a pattern in compulsion. I’ve never come across a single person that was addicted that wanted to be addicted. Something has happened in their brains that has led them to that process.”
It is fundamental to the recovery process that the underlying cause(s) of the addiction is identified and treated.
Researchers have identified many biological and environmental factors and are beginning to search for the genetic variations that contribute to the development and progression of the disease.
Scientists use this knowledge to develop effective prevention and treatment approaches that can reduce the toll drug abuse takes on individuals, families and communities.
Multiple Factors Operate Together to Result in Addiction
No single factor determines whether or not a person will become addicted to drugs. Scientists estimate genetic factors account for between 40 and 60 percent of a person’s vulnerability to addiction, including the effects of environment on gene expression and function.
But just because an individual has a family history of substance abuse does not mean the gene will be expressed (activated). Genes are like light switches; they can be turned on and they can be turned off. However, the vulnerability increases with environmental, social and biochemical or neurotransmitter imbalances.
Alcohol and drugs are viewed as a quick and easy way to change ordinary, everyday reality from unbearable to bearable.
What’s Happens in an Addicted Person’s Brain?
A variety of brain effects occur with addiction. Neurotransmitters (NT) become deficient. Low levels of serotonin cause cravings, lack of motivation, pain, insomnia, anxiety and depression. Deficient levels of gamma amino butyric acid (GABA), which is needed for proper functioning of the brain and nervous system, cause anxiety, restlessness and insomnia. Individuals with low GABA tend to worry a lot.
Deficiencies or elevations of many specific NTs have a significant impact on mental, emotional and behavioral functioning. Chronic exposure to drugs disrupts the way critical brain structures interact to control behavior—behavior specifically related to drug abuse.
Everyone wants to feel good, but if your NTs are out of balance and you feel anxious, depressed, experience pain, have insomnia, fatigue, have cravings and lack motivation you are much more at risk for addictions and relapse.
There is a Way to Get Relief—After Being Tested
All these conditions can make a person more vulnerable to seek sex, prescription medications, illegal drugs or alcohol to relieve their symptoms. Therefore, it makes perfect sense to test your NTs. The imbalances can be corrected by using specific, targeted amino acids and nutrients, which is what the body uses to build and rebalance the brain.
The results are the relief of symptoms without side effects and people are less likely to become addicted to substances.
Did you know psychiatry is the only medical specialty that does not test the human brain? FDA neurotransmitter lab testing is readily available but most doctors just prescribe without testing the NTs.
We would not give insulin without testing the blood sugar; we wouldn’t prescribe thyroid replacement without testing thyroid function or treat other conditions without testing.
Writing a prescription for Zoloft, Lexapro, Celexa, Wellbutrin, Paxil, Prozac, or any mood-altering drug without NT lab results is often a misguided practice. Physicians also prescribe drugs like methadone, Suboxone or naltrexone, essentially substituting one addictive drug for another.
The fact is, antidepressants only temporarily increase the concentration of NTs in the space between two nerves (while simultaneously destroying some of the enzymes that feed the NTs), resulting in long-term depletion within the secreting nerve cell. They are not the best answer.
Let’s Turn to Some Solutions
What builds and balances neurotransmitters? Some of the many therapies include amino acids, nutrients, exercise, hypnotherapy, meditation, energy healing, acupuncture and education. All are valuable in setting the individual on a path to optimal health.
Addiction is a family problem and family therapy is critical. Family members suffer along with the addict in ways that are difficult to describe. Many times the neurotransmitters of family members also have become imbalanced.
Addicts and their families need to have the chance to regain their successful and happy life. Every life is a life worth saving.
Why the Public Needs to Update Its Views of Addiction
Public attitudes about addiction are out of sync with science. At Columbia University, the Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse discovered through their NABAS survey that the public does not recognize the role of genetics and biological factors in the development of addiction.
Of the respondents, 60 percent identified mutual support programs as a treatment intervention. Patients face formidable barriers to receiving addiction treatment due to misunderstanding of the disease, negative public attitudes and behavior toward those with the disease, and negative perceptions of the treatment process.
Many times the only things that stop addicted individuals from seeking a new life are ignorant actions and words of others and concern for how they would be labeled and perceived.
For some, treatment can be a long-term process involving multiple interventions and regular monitoring. However, for many others, an understanding of what led them to their addictions in the first place and having their NTs balanced can give them the motivation, focus and the energy to be more healthy and productive.
The key to recovery is not a simple one-size-fits-all program, which is often overrated and many times unsuccessful. Successful recovery is greater in programs that are comprehensive, customized to the individual and that return the addict to an overall state of health.
Today there is hope for the addict and alcoholic:
By GARY TAUBES. New York Times, Sunday Edition. June 2, 2012 THE first time I questioned the conventional wisdom on the nature of a healthy diet, I was in my salad days, almost 40 years ago, and the subject was salt. Researchers were claiming that salt supplementation was unnecessary after strenuous exercise, and this advice was being passed on by health reporters. All I knew was that I had played high school football in suburban Maryland, sweating profusely through double sessions in the swamp like 90-degree days of August. Without salt pills, I couldn’t make it through a two-hour practice; I couldn’t walk across the parking lot afterward without cramping. While sports nutritionists have since come around to recommend that we should indeed replenish salt when we sweat it out in physical activity, the message that we should avoid salt at all other times remains strong. Salt consumption is said to raise blood pressure, cause hypertension and increase the risk of premature death. This is why the Department of Agriculture’s dietary guidelines still consider salt Public Enemy No. 1, coming before fats, sugars and alcohol. It’s why the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has suggested that reducing salt consumption is as critical to long-term health as quitting cigarettes. And yet, this eat-less-salt argument has been surprisingly controversial — and difficult to defend. Not because the food industry opposes it, but because the actual evidence to support it has always been so weak. When I spent the better part of a year researching the state of the salt science back in 1998 — already a quarter century into the eat-less-salt recommendations — journal editors and public health administrators were still remarkably candid in their assessment of how flimsy the evidence was implicating salt as the cause of hypertension. “You can say without any shadow of a doubt,” as I was told then by Drummond Rennie, an editor for The Journal of the American Medical Association, that the authorities pushing the eat-less-salt message had “made a commitment to salt education that goes way beyond the scientific facts.” While, back then, the evidence merely failed to demonstrate that salt was harmful, the evidence from studies published over the past two years actually suggests that restricting how much salt we eat can increase our likelihood of dying prematurely. Put simply, the possibility has been raised that if we were to eat as little salt as the U.S.D.A. and the C.D.C. recommend, we’d be harming rather than helping ourselves. WHY have we been told that salt is so deadly? Well, the advice has always sounded reasonable. It has what nutritionists like to call “biological plausibility.” Eat more salt and your body retains water to maintain a stable concentration of sodium in your blood. This is why eating salty food tends to make us thirsty: we drink more; we retain water. The result can be a temporary increase in blood pressure, which will persist until our kidneys eliminate both salt and water. The scientific question is whether this temporary phenomenon translates to chronic problems: if we eat too much salt for years, does it raise our blood pressure, cause hypertension, then strokes, and then kill us prematurely? It makes sense, but it’s only a hypothesis. The reason scientists do experiments is to find out if hypotheses are true. In 1972, when the National Institutes of Health introduced the National High Blood Pressure Education Program to help prevent hypertension, no meaningful experiments had yet been done. The best evidence on the connection between salt and hypertension came from two pieces of research. One was the observation that populations that ate little salt had virtually no hypertension. But those populations didn’t eat a lot of things — sugar, for instance — and any one of those could have been the causal factor. The second was a strain of “salt-sensitive” rats that reliably developed hypertension on a high-salt diet. The catch was that “high salt” to these rats was 60 times more than what the average American consumes. Still, the program was founded to help prevent hypertension, and prevention programs require preventive measures to recommend. Eating less salt seemed to be the only available option at the time, short of losing weight. Although researchers quietly acknowledged that the data were “inconclusive and contradictory” or “inconsistent and contradictory” — two quotes from the cardiologist Jeremiah Stamler, a leading proponent of the eat-less-salt campaign, in 1967 and 1981 — publicly, the link between salt and blood pressure was upgraded from hypothesis to fact. In the years since, the N.I.H. has spent enormous sums of money on studies to test the hypothesis, and those studies have singularly failed to make the evidence any more conclusive. Instead, the organizations advocating salt restriction today — the U.S.D.A., the Institute of Medicine, the C.D.C. and the N.I.H. — all essentially rely on the results from a 30-day trial of salt, the 2001 DASH-Sodium study. It suggested that eating significantly less salt would modestly lower blood pressure; it said nothing about whether this would reduce hypertension, prevent heart disease or lengthen life. While influential, that trial was just one of many. When researchers have looked at all the relevant trials and tried to make sense of them, they’ve continued to support Dr. Stamler’s “inconsistent and contradictory” assessment. Last year, two such “meta-analyses” were published by the Cochrane Collaboration, an international nonprofit organization founded to conduct unbiased reviews of medical evidence. The first of the two reviews concluded that cutting back “the amount of salt eaten reduces blood pressure, but there is insufficient evidence to confirm the predicted reductions in people dying prematurely or suffering cardiovascular disease.” The second concluded that “we do not know if low salt diets improve or worsen health outcomes.” The idea that eating less salt can worsen health outcomes may sound bizarre, but it also has biological plausibility and is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year too. A paper in The New England Journal of Medicine, 1972, reported that the less salt people ate, the higher their levels of a substance secreted by the kidneys, called renin, which set off a physiological cascade of events that seemed to end with an increased risk of heart disease. In this scenario: eat less salt, secrete more renin, get heart disease, and die prematurely. With nearly everyone focused on the supposed benefits of salt restriction, little research was done to look at the potential dangers. But four years ago, Italian researchers began publishing the results from a series of clinical trials, all of which reported that, among patients with heart failure, reducing salt consumption increased the risk of death. Those trials have been followed by a slew of studies suggesting that reducing sodium to anything like what government policy refers to as a “safe upper limit” is likely to do more harm than good. These covered some 100,000 people in more than 30 countries and showed that salt consumption is remarkably stable among populations over time. In the United States, for instance, it has remained constant for the last 50 years, despite 40 years of the eat-less-salt message. The average salt intake in these populations — what could be called the normal salt intake — was one and a half teaspoons a day, almost 50 percent above what federal agencies consider a safe upper limit for healthy Americans under 50, and more than double what the policy advises for those who aren’t so young or healthy. This consistency, between populations and over time, suggests that how much salt we eat is determined by physiological demands, not diet choices. One could still argue that all these people should reduce their salt intake to prevent hypertension, except for the fact that four of these studies — involving Type 1 diabetics, Type 2 diabetics, healthy Europeans and patients with chronic heart failure — reported that the people eating salt at the lower limit of normal were more likely to have heart disease than those eating smack in the middle of the normal range, effectively what the 1972 paper would have predicted. Proponents of the eat-less-salt campaign tend to deal with this contradictory evidence by implying that anyone raising it is a shill for the food industry and doesn’t care about saving lives. An N.I.H. administrator told me back in 1998 that to publicly question the science on salt was to play into the hands of the industry. “As long as there are things in the media that say the salt controversy continues,” he said, “they win.” When several agencies, including the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration, held a hearing last November to discuss how to go about getting Americans to eat less salt (as opposed to whether or not we should eat less salt), these proponents argued that the latest reports suggesting damage from lower-salt diets should simply be ignored. Lawrence Appel, an epidemiologist and a co-author of the DASH-Sodium trial, said “there is nothing really new.” According to the cardiologist Graham MacGregor, who has been promoting low-salt diets since the 1980s, the studies were no more than “a minor irritation that causes us a bit of aggravation.” This attitude that studies that go against prevailing beliefs should be ignored on the basis that, well, they go against prevailing beliefs, has been the norm for the anti-salt campaign for decades. Maybe now the prevailing beliefs should be changed. The British scientist and educator Thomas Huxley, known as Darwin’s bulldog for his advocacy of evolution, may have put it best back in 1860. “My business,” he wrote, “is to teach my aspirations to conform themselves to fact, not to try and make facts harmonize with my aspirations.”
Do you wish you could look younger without injecting your face with a toxin like Botox? Ads now are seen for “facial rejuvenation” using stem cells. Do you have a painful joint or illness which maybe not be getting better? Are stem cells an option?
Newspapers, magazines, radio and TV shows such as 60 minutes, CNN and The Doctors have recently reported on stem cells. The history of research on adult stem cells began about 50 years ago. In fact, blood forming stem cells from bone marrow have been used in transplants for 40 years. Scientists now have evidence that stem cells exist in the brain and the heart. It was not until the 1990s that scientists agreed that the adult brain does contain stem cells that are able to generate the brain's nerve cells.
Stem cells are a class of undifferentiated cells that are able to differentiate into specialized cell types. Commonly, stem cells come from two main sources:
* Embryonic stem cells
* Adult stem cells
Embryonic stem cells;
Embryonic stem cells, as their name suggests, are derived from embryos. Most embryonic stem cells are derived from embryos that develop from eggs that have been fertilized in cell cultures in fertility clinics’ laboratories and then donated for research purposes with informed consent of the donors. They are not derived from eggs fertilized in a woman's body.
Diseases that might be treated by transplanting cells generated from human embryonic stem cells include Parkinson’s, diabetes, traumatic spinal cord injury, muscular dystrophy, heart disease, and vision and hearing loss.
Adult stem cells;
Adult or somatic stem cells exist throughout the body after embryonic development and are found inside of different types of tissue. These stem cells have been found in tissues such as the brain, bone marrow, blood, blood vessels, teeth, testis, skeletal muscles, skin, and the liver. They remain in a quiescent or non-dividing state for years until activated by disease or tissue injury.
Adult stem cells can divide or self-renew indefinitely, enabling them to generate a range of cell types from the originating organ or even regenerate the entire original organ. It is generally thought that adult stem cells are limited in their ability to differentiate based on their tissue of origin, but there is some evidence to suggest that they can differentiate to become other cell types according to the Mayo Clinic. There have been significant advances in work with adult stem cells, and more studies are under way.
Today stem cells can be obtained by drawing blood from a vein. The blood is then sent to a specific lab were the particles can be separated from the blood. These can then be given back to the individual intravenously or injected directly in a joint. In the past stems cells were most often harvested from bone marrow, embryos, or fat cells. If the stem cells are harvested from another individual there is a risk developing an auto-immune reaction (rejection) in the individual receiving the stem cells. However, today the technology has advanced so stem cells can be drawn from the person and given back to the same individual.
What are stem cells, and why are they important?
Stem cells differ from other kinds of cells in the body. Stem cells have the remarkable potential to develop into many different cell types in the body during early life and growth. In addition, in many tissues they serve as a sort of internal repair system, dividing basically without limit to replenish other cells. When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential either to remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialized function, such as a muscle cell, a red blood cell, or a brain cell.
Stem cells are important for living organisms for many reasons. In some adult tissues, such as bone marrow, muscle, and brain, discrete populations of adult stem cells generate replacements for cells that are lost through normal wear and tear, injury, or disease. Professional athletes have used stem cells to repair injuries or damage from wear and tear.
Regenerating the cartilage-making process in the body has become a primary goal in orthopedic medicine. A small molecule dubbed kartogenin encourages stem cells to take on the characteristics of cells that make cartilage, a new study shows. The findings in Science provide new clues in the long-running effort to find ways to regenerate cartilage, a central puzzle in the battle against osteoarthritis.
Given their unique regenerative abilities, stem cells offer new potentials for treating diseases. However, much work remains to be done in the laboratory and the clinic to understand how to use these cells for cell based therapies to treat disease. Research on stem cells continues to advance knowledge about how healthy cells replace damaged cells in adult organisms. Stem cell research is one of the most fascinating areas of contemporary biology.
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) research on adult stem cells has generated a great deal of excitement. The primary roles of adult stem cells in a living organism are to maintain and repair the tissue in which they are found. Scientists have found adult stem cells in many more tissues than they once thought possible. This finding has led researchers and clinicians to ask whether adult stem cells could be used for transplants. Stem cells may prove to be just the answer to regenerate the body from head to toe.
While the research continues the clinical use is still considered experimental. As noted the stem cell therapy is effective for many conditions but is not an FDA approved treatment for any condition. It is provided as a service and as a practice of medicine and the results varies from individual to individual.
Written By Dr. Sharon Norling, MBA
Guest Blog: Written by: Hypnotherapist Patricia Lynn Belkowitz, C.Ht., EFT-CC, and Reiki Master Claire Staffa. Are you suffering? “Chronic pain is a problem that has reached near epidemic proportions,” said Edward Covington, M.D., director of the Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program at the Cleveland Clinic. “The ‘can do, can cope’ spirit of Americans can lead to untreated chronic pain, which has a severe impact on people’s work, personal relationships, hobbies, and even sex, and can greatly diminish their quality of life. In addition to physical disability, it may also lead to irritability, anxiety, or depression.” Do you endure discomfort to the point that it is affecting the way you live your life? Are you sick and tired of conventional methods of pain management? Are you taking pills that aren’t effective? Is your medication creating negative side effects? Are you ready to try something new? Perhaps it is time to consider an integrative approach to healing… a new way based on ancient methods. Are you aware of Hypno-Reiki? Hypno-Reiki is a combination of two powerful methods of healing, Hypnosis and Reiki. Each method has proven to be effective, but when used together, the modality has great potential. Hypnosis is a deep state of relaxation, or altered state of consciousness created by focused attention. For thousands of years, it has been used as an effective method for relief of physical pain and discomfort. In the hypnotic state, we are open to positive suggestions and imagery which will create change. It is an ideal time to implement other therapeutic modalities, such as Reiki, because our whole system is primed to healing. Reiki, a healing practice originated in Japan, is a non-invasive, gentle modality which translates to “spiritually guided life force energy or universal healing energy”. It helps the body’s natural ability to heal itself though the flow and focusing of energy. The Center for Disease Control reports in 2002 that 62% of U.S. adults had used some form of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM), often in conjunction with other alternative and conventional medical treatments. The 2007 National Health Interview Survey, which included a comprehensive survey of CAM use by Americans, found that “people use Reiki for relaxation, stress reduction, and symptom relief, in efforts to improve overall health and well-being. Reiki has been used by people with anxiety, chronic pain, HIV/AIDS, and other health conditions, as well as by people recovering from surgery or experiencing side effects from treatments.” Hypnotherapy can help with the perception of pain, by changing the expectation. In studies about how the human brain and nervous system work, Dr. Kenneth Casey, a professor of neurology at the University of Michigan and a neurology consultant to the VA Health Care System in Ann Arbor states that “the brain has mechanisms to directly control what we feel, it actively controls the flow of sensory information that results in our perceptions.” In fact, key regions of the brain appear to react as much to the expectation of pain as much as they do to actual painful stimulation. The mind can alter the feeling of pain by substituting another feeling such as heat, tingling, numbness. It can also divert the location of pain to another body part, thereby allowing relief. In a January 5, 2004 article by Benedict Carey, The Los Angeles Times reports “the brain can virtually shut down pain signals when preoccupied.” At that point, the body’s energy system is aligned with thoughts of health and wellness. The body-mind connection is fully functioning while in the state of hypnosis. The mind doesn’t know the difference between what is imagined and what is perceived as reality. When Reiki is administered to someone in the hypnotic state, the benefits are magnified. The healing power of life force energy is added and the whole body becomes at peace. Though Reiki may be an unfamiliar term and may sound "new-agey," the effectiveness of this ancient treatment has been shown. The International Journal of Behavioral Medicine reviewed 66 clinical trials on biofield therapies. It was concluded that there was strong evidence that biofield therapies such as Reiki help reduce the intensity of pain. Julie Kusiak, MA, a Reiki practitioner in the integrative medicine department at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan, states, "Recent studies on Reiki therapy reflect a broad spectrum of its benefit for pain relief.” Examples cited were decreased anxiety and pain, lower fatigue, reduced depression and better quality of life. Hypnosis and Reiki create profoundly relaxing effects, which make the combination of Hypno-Reiki even more effective for the treatment of anxiety, stress and pain. Hypno-Reiki complements any other form of medical treatment, as there are no contraindications. There is a long history of both scientific and anecdotal evidence to support the use of behavioral and relaxation approaches to treat chronic pain. The American Hospital Association President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock stated, “Complementary and alternative medicine has shown great promise in supporting and stimulating healing. It’s one of the many tools hospitals look to as they continue to create optimal healing environments for the patients they serve.” Much research concludes the effectiveness of hypnosis as an alternative method of healing. Scientific American Mind’s (July, 2005) article titled “The Truth and the Hype of Hypnosis” which stated that “hypnosis has been shown to be a real phenomenon with a variety of therapeutic uses- especially in controlling pain.” The article further cites a meta-analysis published by the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis which found that “the pain relieving effect of hypnosis is often substantial, and in a few cases the degree of relief matches or exceeds that provided by morphine.” In Biofield Therapies:A Best Evidence Synthesis,a systematic review examined 66 clinical studies and found “equivocal evidence for biofield therapies’ effects on fatigue and quality of life for cancer patients, as well as for comprehensive pain outcomes and affect in pain patients, and for decreasing anxiety in cardiovascular patients”. Currently, there is a peer review method for analyzing the state of scientific studies done on Reiki programs in hospitals and clinics. The process is rigorous, impartial and incorporates the best practices for scientific review. Dr Mehmet Oz is a proponent of Reiki and is often quoted as saying, “Reiki has become a sought-after healing art among patients and mainstream medical professionals.” According to a 2008 American Hospital Association survey, 84% of hospitals indicated patient demand as the reason for offering Complementary and Alternative Medicine services because of “clinical effectiveness”. Simply stated, it works. More and more, science tells us that the condition of our body is directly related to our positive thoughts of wellness or our negative thoughts of stress, anxiety and pain. Thoughts are energy. Thoughts create. Your body is a manifestation of the thoughts of your sub-conscious mind. You have the power to change the way you think and to change the way you feel. There is an unlimited supply of “spiritually guided life force energy” available to you to help create your natural state of being, which is a state of well-being. If you are suffering, you can give yourself permission to let go of the pain. You can change your expectations and move toward a better, more joyful life. Perhaps Hypno-Reiki is the way to do it!
It has been said that your brain is your largest sex organ. If your brain is not healthy, your sex life can suffer, too.
Your brain function can affect some really fundamental aspects of your love life. How you treat that special person in your life, the one important to you in a sexual way, can be a good indicator of your brain’s health. Expressing an unkind remark, shortness of temper, withdrawal of affection, along with other unhappy symptoms, often indicate that your brain chemistry is somehow awry. An unhealthy brain can cause all sorts of mental and physical problems. One of the saddest is the loss of the physical and mental sensations of love and affection that are fundamental to your well-being.
The brain only weighs about three pounds and consists of 60% fat, it contains 100 billion nerve cells. As each cell has up to 30,000 connections, there are about 1000 trillion total connections in the brain, more than there are stars in the universe.
No matter what your age or station, an ever-growing body of research shows that you always have a second chance to shine.
The brain fitness term suggests that cognitive abilities can be maintained or improved by exercising the brain the same way physical fitness is improved by exercising the body. There is strong evidence that aspects of brain structure remain plastic throughout life, and that high levels of mental activity are associated with reduced risks of confusion, lack of focus, difficulty thinking and age-related dementia. Eat healthy brain foods like good fats (nuts, salmon, seeds, and avocados) for better sex.
MBSC’s IV nutritional therapy gets nutrients right where they are needed!
You may have heard of IV nutritional therapy and wondered if it could help you. This treatment is also known as a "Myers' Cocktail" after Baltimore physician John Myers.
While this is not a definitive treatment for all diseases, it has the potential to affect many different medical conditions because it tends to enhance the body's immune response, decreases inflammation and repairs cells.
Some of the conditions for which it has been found useful include:
Food is love. Food is comfort.
What Grandma didn’t tell us and probably didn’t know: Food is also sex. Certain foods can light up your lovemaking.
So what foods will help you have mind-blowing sex?
The journey from lifting a fork to increased gratification begins in the brain. “From a psychological standpoint, if you take care of your body by eating well, you’ll have a better attitude about sharing it. You’ll be more open to sensations and experiences,” says Lou Paget, author of several best-selling sex guides, including The Great Lover Playbook. "But if a woman eats well, she’ll feel better about herself and", Paget says, “Her sexual attitude can improve immediately.”
Lynn Edlen-Nezin, Ph.D., a clinical health psychologist who co-wrote Great Food, Great Sex: The Three Food Factors for Sexual Fitness. “You can absolutely eat your way to better sex. As a rule of thumb, what’s good for the heart is good for the genitals,” she explains. “If your plumbing — your heart — is clear above the waist, you’ll also have better blood flow and more sensation below.”
To find arginine in the supermarket, swing by the nut aisle and toss bags of almonds and walnuts into your cart, then cast your eyes toward the seafood counter for salmon, cod and halibut. An added benefit to fish: Omega-3 fatty acids, which can improve cardiovascular health and lower triglycerides and may increase dopamine production and reduce the risk for depression — all pluses for the libido and orgasm potential. Edlen-Nezin recommends salmon and herring. (Non–fish lovers can have omega-3-fortified eggs.)
Load up on antioxidant-rich produce in all colors of the rainbow, including tomatoes, red peppers, garlic, spinach, broccoli, beets, berries and red grapes. Another good source is dark chocolate. In fact, a study of 163 women in The Journal of Sexual Medicine found that those who consumed at least one cube of chocolate daily reported significantly greater desire and better overall sexual function than the individuals who abstained.
“A healthy, balanced diet sets the table for being sexually satisfied,” explains Marrena Lindberg, author of The Orgasmic Diet: A Revolutionary Plan to Lift Your Libido and Bring You to Orgasm.
Increasing your level of “free testosterone” — may fuel friskiness. Because magnesium and zinc counteract the effect of a protein in your blood that binds with the hormone, adding more of these minerals to your diet to help increase the free testosterone circulating in your bloodstream and ramp up your desire. According to the Journal of Clinical Nutrition, “Zinc is an essential nutrient and plays an important role in growth and sexual function.”
Quality fish oil, vitamins, minerals and healthy foods can actually enhance your sex life.
To bring the WOW factor back into your sex life, call the Mind Body Spirit Center 818-707-9355 for a consultation with our nutritionist and get your customized food plan!
Next Blog
Sex 2! Hormones and neurotransmitter that revitalize your sex life!!
Even though heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S., you have more influence in helping to prevent it than you think. Cholesterol levels (good and bad), stress, neurotransmitters, hormones, vitamin D, Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), even tea and chocolate play roles in heart heath you can control.
Cholesterol
Preventing heart disease requires much more than simply screening for high cholesterol. Fifty percent of all people who have a heart attack have normal cholesterol. What’s more, an estimated 80 percent of patients who develop coronary artery disease have cholesterol levels comparable to those in healthy individuals, according to the American Journal of Cardiology.
Cholesterol is carried throughout the body in little balls called lipoproteins. It is the lipoproteins, not the cholesterol in them that leads to clogged arteries. Standard cholesterol testing provides only part of the picture, leaving many people with “normal” cholesterol numbers unaware they are still at risk for a heart attack. Prevention of heart disease really means “preventing” disease and should not be confused with early detection using the standard cardiovascular testing. While these tests are important they are “after the fact”. Having a detailed lipoprotein particle profile specialty test gives you and your doctor the information needed to make effective treatment decisions to reduce your risk of heart disease and even a heart attack. This test could save your life.
Coronary artery disease (CAD), one type of heart disease, is the leading cause of heart attacks. The most common cause of CAD is atherosclerosis, a condition that occurs when plaque builds up in the arteries that supply blood to the heart. “About three-quarters of the population older than 30 years has some lesion related to atherosclerosis in the arterial tree. This lesion gets worse almost every day in all these people and will eventually result in closure of a vital artery in half of them, causing their death,” said William P. Castelli, MD, director Framingham Heart Study.
Heart disease, like so many other diseases is primarily caused by inflammation. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is an inflammatory condition like arthritis. A recent article published in Arthritis Rheumatism noted, “Overall, there was a 50 percent increased risk of death in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). When looking at causes of specific deaths, patients with RA had a 59 percent increased risk of dying from ischemic heart disease (heart attack) compared with the general population and a 52 percent increased risk of death due to strokes.” This evidence underscores the urgency of assessing patients with more advanced cardiovascular risk biomarkers than those included in standard lipid panels.
Statins
The National Institutes of Health recommends that if you are diagnosed with high cholesterol you should use lifestyle changes for 12 weeks. If your cholesterol has not lowered after 3 months then consider using a statin. Unfortunately, most physicians do not follow these guidelines. Most physicians reach for the prescription pad and write an order for a statin. A study published in the American Heart Journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, January, 2009 found that nearly two-thirds of patients admitted to hospitals for heart attacks and cardiovascular events had low LDL-cholesterol levels, indicating they were not at high risk for heart problems. Statins should be carefully considered. Statins can also lower your cholesterol to a dangerously low level. An analysis at the University of California at San Francisco of studies on ”a heart drug” showed that 96% of authors with drug company ties showed it to be safe, compared to 37% of authors with no ties. American Medical News. Sept 2000.
Coenzyme Q10
Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is a lipid-soluble antioxidant. CoQ10 is an essential cofactor in the mitochondria which are located in the cell and responsible for energy production. CoQ10 deficiency has been implicated in several clinical disorders including but not limited to heart failure, hypertension, Parkinson’s Disease, and cancer. Statins lower CoQ10. This is a long-overlooked but grave problem. CoQ10 supplementation is essential for anyone on a statin. In the Archives of Neurology, June 2004 research showed that after 14 days of using a statin, the levels of CoQ10 were lowered.
Low Cholesterol
Unfortunately the dangers of low cholesterol have been less well publicized. There is a wealth of articles and health books that discuss how to prevent high cholesterol, but very few on how to prevent or treat abnormally low cholesterol. At an international medical conference in London in November 2010, speakers presented the data showing cholesterol below 160 was associated with doubling the risk of cancer.
Abnormally low levels of cholesterol may indicate:
William Harvey wrote in 1628, "every affection of the mind that is attended either with pain or pleasure, hope or fear, is the cause of an agitation whose influence extends to the heart.”
Are you anxious, depressed, lack energy, craving carbohydrates, having difficulty sleeping or experiencing brain fog? You may have a neurotransmitter (NT) imbalance. This imbalance can result in mental, emotional, and physical changes.
Millions of Americans are experiencing depression and unhappiness, yet commonly, they are simply prescribed the band-aid of a pharmaceutical drug. In looking at American society today, one might believe there is a massive epidemic of Prozac deficiency!
Before any treatment is given it is important to test. The good news is that there are FDA certified specialty labs that measure the levels of serotonin, GABA, nor-epinephrine, epinephrine, dopamine, glutamate and cortisol. I think it is a misguided practice to treat if you don’t know what you are treating. We wouldn’t treat cholesterol without a lab, we wouldn’t treat thyroid conditions without a lab nor would we give insulin to a diabetic without knowing the blood sugar levels.
Once the test results indicate the specific imbalance a person can be treated as an individual. Most neurotransmitters are made from protein or amino acids and nutrient co-factors. A safe and effective way to raise neurotransmitter levels is to give your body these building blocks it needs to make them.
There is a wide range of therapeutic lifestyle choices to enhance our well-being and balance our calming happy hormones. Happiness and optimal health have their own biochemistry. Find out how you can balance your body and brain.
You deserve to feel happy, calm, energetic, well rested, focused and pain free.
Anxiety, depression, difficulty sleeping, pain, fatigue, brain fog, hot flashes, vaginal dryness and low libido as well as lack of energy, carbohydrate cravings, lack of motivation, headaches, muscle weakness, and difficulty losing weight may all be due to estrogen, progesterone, or testosterone deficiency. They may also be due to low thyroid, an adrenal imbalance, or a neurotransmitter imbalance.
Men who experience loss of energy, irritability, loss of muscle mass, weight gain, loss of libido, loss of a morning erection and depression may not just be "growing older." Men may also experience a gradual decline in testosterone or other hormones and notice irritability, decline in libido, osteoporosis, and depression.These symptoms are not just in your head. These are the result of hormonal imbalance and can occur at any age.
Recent research shows that low testosterone can increase the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), insulin resistance and increased mortality from CVD and cancer.
Hormone balance must include the sex hormones of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone but also thyroid, adrenal and neurotransmitter hormones. All these systems and hormones interact and support each other.
To get the best results and achieve optimum health these systems must be tested and treated appropriately using specific targeted natural amino acids, nutrients, and Bio-identical Hormone therapy. Bio-identical Hormones are a natural effective hormone replacement without the side effects of typically prescribed pharmaceutical drugs.
You deserve to feel healthy and happy. Your life depends on it. One of the most important keys to your health and happiness is balancing your hormones. Hormones are in our body for good reasons. All of your moods, emotions, mental function, and physical health are affected by your hormone balance.
Frequently, pharmaceutical drugs are prescribed for mood disorders without satisfactory results and result in many side effects. The side effects are too many to list, but include sedation, lack of coordination, impaired memory and cognition, sexual dysfunction and, after chronic use, physiological dependence and the potential for addiction.These drugs are often prescribed without even testing the neurotransmitters or hormones. Nationally certified and highly respected labs are available to do specialized testing.
Hormones and neurotransmitters can be balanced using natural amino acids and targeted nutrient therapies. The patient and the lab results improve. Bio-identical Hormones are a natural effective hormone replacement. Testing is the key to being able to treat the person as an individual and support their overall well being for optimal health.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
From 7:30 am - 1:00 pm
North Ranch Country Club ** Dress Code - Business Casual - No Denim
4761 Valley Spring Drive, WLV, CA 91362
Come enjoy a Full Breakfast and Life-Changing Presentations featuring:
Sheila Cluff
Joe Price
www.intentionalachievements.com/
Suzanne Cloutier, PhD, CPA
Dr. Sharon Norling
Our Community House of Hope (OCHH) was founded in the fall of 2005 by a group of healthcare professionals and community leaders who came together, all with the common vision of helping the growing numbers of terminally ill in their communities. Each of these founding members have had personal and professional experience with death and dying that has changed them and made them aware of the need to help the many alone and suffering people who need a compassionate caring home as they face their last days.
The OCHH committee members are community leaders who have succeeded in opening a four-bed residential care home in the Conejo Valley. Their Future plan is to build a free-standing, eight-bed, end-of-life residential care home and education center that will serve 360 end-of-life residents annually. They need $5,000,000 to reach this goal.
OCHH is 100% funded by the local community.
Purchase Tickets $75 or Donate here.
Or Call (805) 492-OCHH (6244)
Dr. Sharon Norling's Mind Body Spirit Center is pleased to announce the release of our new website. Our new site has been redesigned with a fresh new look and has been updated with information about our latest services and so much more. Additionally, our new site will provide support and information to our patients as well as the public with articles in the Health Library and a current list of Seminars that will be happening. We invite you to come and take a look and check back often!
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All Rights Reserved
The Mind Body Spirit Center
5655 Lindero Canyon Road #401
Westlake Village, CA 91362
(818) 707-9355