Functional Medicine

DYSBIOSIS & PROBIOTICS

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PROBIOTICS? 

With the discovery of the microbiome, a new frontier in science and health care was born. While still in its infancy, there is compelling evidence suggesting numerous health benefits of taking probiotics. While the benefits of probiotics were once thought to be restricted to gut and digestive health, new research on the gut-brain axis is connecting our microbiome to the health of the brain, immunity, bone density, blood sugar, mood and even our intuition – and this is the short list.

Transient vs. Colonizing Probiotics

There are two basic types of probiotics: transient and colonizing. The vast majority of all the probiotics on the market are transient probiotics, which transit through the gut but do not make a permanent or lasting change to the microbiome. There are plenty of studies supporting the numerous health benefits of transient probiotics, but once you stop taking them the microbiome generally returns to its original state before probiotic use. The health benefits gleaned are unfortunately dependent on continuous use of transient probiotics.

Colonizing probiotics, while still very rare in the marketplace, actually adhere to the gut wall, become permanent residents, and build microbial diversity. In one study, a colonizing probiotic called Bifidobacterium lactis HN019 was shown to adhere to the gut wall and increase microbial diversity in a study group of subjects over 60 years of age. While the science studying our microbes is still in its infancy, it is clear that diversity matters. Westerners have significantly less microbial diversity than other cultures around the world.

I HAVE FOUND THIS COLONIZING PROBIOTIC TO BE THE BEST

Prescript-Assist combines 29 nutrient rich, soil-based, pH-resistant organisms with Leonardite prebiotic to increase the amount of beneficial gastrointestinal micro-flora found in the GI Tract. This supplement also corrects the damage that antibiotics cause, helping the GI track return to a healthy state. In other words, Prescript-Assist helps to re-establish the normal balance of “good” and “bad” bacteria in the intestine. Leonardite prebiotic, also a soil-based organism, enables the probiotic organisms to thrive and prosper in the intestines.

Some of the Advantages of Taking Prescript-Assist Include:

  • Enhanced GI Survival of Prebiotic/Probiotics
  • 29 Proven Symbiotic Strains
  • Supported by Prebiotics
  • Backed by Peer Reviewed, Published Clinical Studies
  • No Known Side Effects
  • No Refrigeration Required
  • Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, and Vegan

Basic Viability vs. Engineered Delivery

Most probiotic supplements on the market today rely on 1 or 2 strains of fragile, lactic-acid based bacteria. Prescript-Assist is different. Unlike other probiotics, Prescript-Assist has inherent viability. That means the species selected for inclusion are naturally adapted for survival in the human GI tract. Among the 29 beneficial organisms found in Prescript-Assist are a class of bacteria commonly referred to as “spore-formers”. In addition, Prescript-Assist contains Bacillus subtilis: A proven probiotic species found in traditional foods.

A Four-Step Plan

A logical strategy for a probiotic regime would be to introduce colonizing microbes into the gut and digestive tract that support microbial diversity, and ultimately promote digestive self-sufficiency. In an effort to accomplish this, I suggest a four-step comprehensive plan for perfect gut health:

Step 1: Support the intestinal mucus membranes by introducing prebiotic soluble fiber to create the best possible environment for healthy microbes to thrive.

Step 2: Introduce healthy, colonizing probiotics that will remove undesirable, non-functional microbes and simultaneously make way for new beneficial, permanent residents to proliferate.

Step 3: After the gut is primed, boost colonizing microbes to complete the process of achieving thriving microbial diversity.

Step 4: Maintain with colonizing probiotics as needed and small amounts of fermented foods.
fermented

Lower Back Pain and Dysbiosis

 

Chronic lower back pain has a lot to do with chronically tensed belly and pelvis muscles. Why do you tense there? One reason could have to do with what you eat.

If you have chronical or recurrent pain in the lower back, you need to look at different factors to find a solution.

Several Rolfing sessions with body pattern awareness combined with 30 minutes of brisk walking 7 days a week can reduce the problems dramatically.

LOWER BACK PAIN IS NOT AN ISOLATED PROBLEM
Often chronical pain in various parts of the moving body has to do with chronically tensed muscles – this also applies to the lower back. But you must remember, that the lower back is not only the lower part of the back, it is also the back part of the pelvis, that is connected with the rest of the body in a complicated and fine network of muscles, bones, ligaments, connecting tissue etc.

That is why it is often of no use to look at lower back problems as an isolated phenomena. We are multi-dimensional beings.  There is a lot going on!

TUMMY SIZE AND GUT FLORA
On top of looking at your general movement pattern, it can be relevant to look at what this pelvis contains. A big part of it contains the gut! No surprice, but have you ever given your gut flora a thought? The gut contains about 2 kg of bacteria, which is vital for our survival.

Good health is dependent on this gut flora´s balance. There are beneficial, opportunistic and dysbiotic bacteria. If the balance of these types of bacteria is not beneficial and dysbiotic, it means that the gut wall it is vulnerable and a typical symptom of that is what is known as leaky gut. A leaky gut can´t handle certain food. If you have a dysbiotic gut flora, you might know perfectly well, that you have certain food intolerance, but you might also not know what more food you might have difficulty in digesting.

One of the symptoms of a more or less dysbiotic gut flora is bloating. You know – just a little or a lot every day, maybe beginning at the same time every day, maybe it starts at different times.

BLOATING MAKES YOU TENSE
What makes the problem worse is, that being bloated can make you tense in the inner pelvic muscles. You don´t necessarily know it, because, in terms of muscle sensation, the bloatedness makes you partly numb in that area and you can´t control all the inner pelvis muscles consciously. You aren’t using the appropriate muscles for movement (like your psoas!) because you can’t “find” it.

Additionally dysbiosis creates inflammation in the small and large intestine, which basically are suspended from your lower vertebrae.  This extra strain creates susceptibility and eventually can disorganize your spine and pelvic causing pain, stiffness and discomfort.

Nutritional Therapies Practitioner ~ N.T.P.

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In additon to being a bodyworker utilizing Rolfing and Craniosacral Therapy, and a Nationally Certified Classical Homeopath, I am excited to announce that I am a
Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner (N.T.P.)

What is a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner?

A Nutritional Therapy Practitioner (NTP) is trained and certified through the Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA). NTPs do not diagnose or treat disease. Instead, NTPs help clients improve health and vitality by addressing six foundations:

Diet
Digestion
Blood sugar balance
Mineral balance
Fatty acid balance
Hydration

N.T.P.s focus on the biochemical individuality of each client.

N.T.P.s use a variety of tools to create a personalized nutrition program unique to each client.

Nutritional Therapy Gives Your Body What It Needs to Thrive

Food is not just something delicious we eat every day. Food is the basic building block of health. Our bodies must get important nutrients from the things we eat in order to be healthy. If what we eat does not contain enough of these nutrients, our bodies will have to do without something they need, and eventually our health will suffer.

This can take the form of decreased energy, health problems, and even weight gain as the body tries to get enough nutrition by over-eating nutrient-poor foods. Getting a solid nutrition program in place will help you be successful with a new eating plan.

A Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, or N.T.P., is a specialist within the holistic nutrition health field. An N.T.P. uses functional nutrition, which looks for the root cause of a dysfuntion and not just its symptoms.

We advise whole foods, traditional cooking and preparation techniques for meals, and offer supplements when needed. We are trained in anatomy and physiology, and use a hands-on physical evaluation called a Functional Evaluation, along with lingual-neuro testing. These combined techniques allow us to make a customized nutrition plan to address your specific needs.

I chose this modality because of the functional component ~ not just the hands-on assessment tool (Functional Evaluation) but also the lingual-neuro testing. This is not applied kinesiology.

Let me explain a bit more…

Functional Evaluation (FE)

Nutritional Therapy Practitioners (NTP) have many tools that they use to assess overall balance and nutritional status within the body. One of these tools is the Functional Evaluation.

The Functional Evaluation involves a series of palpations and other clinical assessment tests (such as pulse, blood pressure, pH of saliva, etc) that help NTPs identify specific areas of functional deficiencies.

The tests were selected by the founders of the Nutritional Therapy Association following the research of a variety of functional medicine practitioners including Dr. Frank Chapman, Dr. George Goodheart, Dr. Robert Ridler, and Dr. Terrance Bennett, to name just a few.

The FE is not invasive and not painful, however we do look for a tenderness rating for each reflex and palpation point.

The Functional Evaluation is not used therapeutically. Rather, it is a tool used for assessment, to gather information. It allows the practitioner to use the innate wisdom of the body to show where it is experiencing distress/imbalance and what it needs to be in balance. It allows the client’s body to convey these needs to the practitioner.

In summary, the Functional Evaluation technique allows me to address the nutritional needs of you, my client, as we assess your biochemical individuality and make tailored diet and lifestyle recommendations.

Lingual-Neuro Testing (LNT)

The second part of the Functional Evaluation involves Lingual-Neuro Testing (LNT)

Lingual-Neuro Testing (LNT) is a valuable biofeedback tool that enables the health care provider to determine the usefulness of a nutritional supplement before it is dispensed to the client. LNT accesses the body’s innate ability to discriminate between what it needs, and what it does not need, in order to correct a specific problem–a weak organ or a nutritional deficiency, for example. This simple and effective technique makes the difference between a generic nutritional therapy plan and a personalized one.

The phenomenon that is observed with LNT represents:

The existence of physiologic indicators, like the heart rate, that reflect specific body functions and their relative health.
The powerful connection between the sensory function of the mouth and the brain, or central nervous system (CNS).
The ability of the CNS to recognize the value of what is in the mouth (i.e. a nutritional supplement).
The tendency of the CNS to immediately change a physiologic indicator in response and proportional to the recognized value of a particular nutrient.

There are three fundamental questions the practitioner needs to address with each client to provide effective nutritional therapy:

Is there a functional deficiency?
What particular nutrient will work for that client?
When is the client sufficient?

LNT enables the practitioner, once an assessment is complete, to address these questions by measuring the client’s response to therapy options that other people with a similar condition have benefited from. By personalizing an otherwise generic “cookie cutter” approach to healthcare, LNT can improve client outcomes and reduce the possibility of uncomfortable side effects.

There are two types of physiologic indicators, those that respond to LNT, and those that change only gradually over time in response to improvement in health.

The latter indicators are dependable milestones that mark a client’s position on their road to recovery. Although the presence of uncomfortable symptoms is useful in determining how and to what degree a client’s health is compromised, and was the motivation for the client to come in for care in the first place, a lack of symptoms does not mean good health.

In fact, the resolution of symptoms is an indication that the client is only half way to complete health recovery. Beyond that, physiologic indicators are necessary to determine client status, and should be checked regularly to confirm progress.

The LNT goes hand-in-hand with the Functional Evaluation. It is a special feedback mechanism based on the neurological response of how the tastebuds communicate with the brain and through the central nervous system.

All together, the Functional Evaluation and Lingual-Neuro Testing, along with the Food Journal review, Nutritional Health Assessment analysis and detailed health history allow the N.T.P. to provide you with well-guided recommendations for diet, nutrition and lifestyle based on your biochemically individual needs.

Homeopathic Flu Vaccination

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The Flu. Be informed about your options.

No one wants to get sick with the flu. These days you can’t miss the conversation and controversy happening about vaccinations. You also can’t miss the massive public campaign that makes us believe that this year’s vaccine is the sure way to avoid this contagious viral disease. In fact if you find yourself in Wallgreens, you can join a program to get points toward your purchases if you get vaccinated!

So what are we supposed to do? Does the flu vaccination really “protect” us from getting sick? Or does the shot actually create an internal environment that opens us up to infection and sickness?

As a practitioner of natural medicine therapies, particularly homeopathy, the answer is clear. Don’t get the flu vaccination if at all possible.

Step away from the needle or nasal spray. The needle vaccines do not contain any live viruses, and so they have to contain formaldehyde, Thimerosl, antibiotics, aluminum and Squalene. FluMist, the nasally administered live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV), reproduces in the upper throat of the vaccine recipient and basically causes general flu symptoms. So you get the vaccine, and you get sick. Plus, because it is a live virus vaccine, it is suggested to stay away from immune-compromised people for three weeks – because you are contagious. Seriously?

Even the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in the United States reports that “…influenza vaccines are still among the least effective immunizing agents available, and this seems to be particularly true for elderly recipients.” It is important to be aware that officially, the flu shot will reduce the likelihood of an infection, but not guarantee immunity! Also remember, the flu is caused by a virus and therefore will not respond to antibiotic treatment. Antibiotics are usually prescribed for secondary bacterial infections such as sinus infection or bacterial pneumonia.

Dr. Jefferson, (co-) author of various research studies on the influenza vaccine for the renowned Cochrane Collaboration, a highly reputable international institution that analyses clinical research, asserted that flu vaccination indeed slightly reduced cases of confirmed influenza, but that the number of adults who experienced flu-like diseases (presumably caused by other than the influenza virus) increased. The number of sick days or hospitalizations over all did not change.

So what do I suggest?

Stay Healthy and Vital
Get Individual Constitutional Homeopathic Care
Take the Influenzinum 2015-2016 Homeopathic remedy.

Being healthy decreases your susceptibility to catching the flu. Eat a variety of vegetables (best cooked in the colder weather), less fruit (too yin), stay hydrated, get enough sleep, move your body daily at least 30 minutes, get out in the sunshine whenever possible to make Vitamin D (especially here in Minnesota), and spend time in the wisdom of your heart.

Constitutional Homeopathic care is the cornerstone of wellness. The goal is to strengthen your immune system and increase your capacity to stay healthy and vital. This individualized care means that remedies are catered to you. Contact me to talk about what makes sense for you.

Influenzinum 2015-2016 is an alternative that offers a safe and effective prevention against influenza.

The Influenzinum homeopathic remedy has been used around the world for decades. In 1998 the French Society of Homeopathy conducted a survey of 23 homeopathic doctors concerning their use of Influenzinum for the prevention of the flu (Coulamy, 1998). The survey included use of Influenzinum over a 10 year period (1987-1998) in 453 patients. Results of the survey were remarkable. In approximately 90 percent of the cases no instances of the flu occurred when Influenzinum was used preventively for all ages 2 and older. In the survey, no side effects were noted in 97% of the cases, while 3% experienced mild nasal discharge.

Homeopathic prevention for past infectious diseases, such as cholera and influenza, are in the public record and have been proven highly effective. In one case involving vaccination against meningitis, out of 18,640 children homeopathically immunized during an epidemic, only 4 cases were recorded (0.0002 percent), while out of some 6,340 non-vaccinated children 17 cases of meningitis were recorded (0.003 percent, or almost 10 times the rate of infection). No system of vaccination can provide a 100% guarantee of protection, as factors such as nutrition, stress and predisposing factors also come into play. However, the homeopathic immunization is unique in being free of side-effects, being gentle (administered orally), and highly effective.

If you are already under Homeopathic Constitutional care, you may still want to receive the Influenzinum remedy to have in your “medicine cabinet.” Because you have an individualized remedy, you receive very specific care ~ but you may also need the Influenzinum remedy.

If you have received the current Flu vaccine, this remedy can help “clear” the effects, and help your immune system get back to normal.

If you currently have the flu, there are dozens of homeopathic remedies to help you get well more quickly, and back to your life, so give me a call! Influenzinum may be just what you need.

Influenzinum™ instead of the Flu Shot. This homeopathic medicine has been prepared according to the standards of the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States since 1957. Influenzinum is the only homeopathic flu remedy that is updated each year based on the recommendations of the World Health Organization. It contains a dilution of the same three viral strains as the conventional Flu Vaccine.

This homeopathic Flu preparation dilutes the three viral strains to 1 part per billion without the need for mercury as a preservative and infuses the medicine into tiny pellets that dissolve easily in the mouth. This homeopathic method of preparing the vaccine greatly reduces the risk of side effects.

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