Are You Taking Medication for Acid Reflux? If so, you may be deficient in vitamins B12

One of the most common types of over-the-counter medications my patients take are medications for reducing acid reflux. Unfortunately, over time, this can lead to some health challenges which include, difficulty digesting food, malabsorption, and nutritional deficiencies. This is because without adequate stomach acid it becomes impossible to digest our food properly.

Our stomach usually produces stomach acid via Parietal cells. Medications that block the release of stomach acid from Parietal cells also block something else called “intrinsic factor.” Intrinsic factor is a carrier protein that the parietal cells release into the stomach when we eat foods that contain B12 (such as animal products). However, when people take acid-blockers they can also block the parietal cells from releasing intrinsic factor; making it impossible to absorb vitamin B!2. Consequently, long-term use of acid blockers can result in B12 deficiency and I advice my patients who are unable to get off acid blockers to supplement with B12.

If your doctor has placed you on an acid blocker, speak to him/her about B12. B12 is a very important vitamin that is vital for several processes in the body. B12 gives us energy, helps in DNA synthesis, and protects our nerve cells. B12 is also helpful in red blood cell division. People with low levels of B12 often experience a medical condition called “neuropathy”, or pain in the nerves (often in the feet and hands). they may also experience a form of anemia where red blood cells continue to grow but do not divide called “megaloblastic anemia.”

If you are concerned about getting enough B12, and you are taking an acid-blocker, I recommend taking a sublingual B12. This is a B12 that you can take under the tongue bypassing the stomach so that it can be absorbed more easily. B12 sublingual is sold in 500mcg, 1mg and 5mg dosages. I also advice taking the form methylcobalamine as it is of higher quality than the cheaper quality cyanocobalamine.

Feeling Depressed? Try Taking Niacin

Feeling a bit blue lately? You might want to think about adding an inexpensive supplement to your diet everyday. Niacin (also known as B3) is a readily available over-the-counter supplement that has been found to improve mood in some people.

In fact, one of the first signs of vitamin B3 deficiency is anxiety and depression. Why would that be? Simple really, when we aren’t getting enough B3, our bodies may become deficient in an important neuro-transmitter called “serotonin.” Serotonin helps relieve stress and anxiety—so when we are low— we can become overly anxious and depressed.

More recently, taking high dosages of niacin has become popular; due to the fact that niacin has a lipid lowering effect and has been shown to be effective in helping to increase HDL (good cholesterol).

Niacin deficiency has been noted in people who suffer from alcoholism and in cultures that rely heavily on a corn-based diet (where the niacin is not easily digested unless the corn has been specially treated). Extreme deficiency of niacin causes a medical condition known as “pellagra.” pellagra is characterized by dermatitis, scaling of the skin, diarrhea, a swollen beefy red tongue, emotionally erratic behavior, and mental confusion.

Niacin can be purchased in 100 mg tablets. However, if taking this much niacin causes you to have side effects, like hot flushes, you may try 250 mg-500 mg Slo-Niacin or no-flush niacin currently on the market.

Another option, that I prefer, is to have people simply start taking a B-Complex that includes niacin; as well as other important B vitamins, like B12 and folic acid, also found to improve mood.

Foods high in niacin include lean meats, legumes, like peanuts and lentils. Niacin is also found in small quantities in grains, vegetables and fruit.

The simplest and easiest changes to our diets can have the most amazing impact on our moods and well-being. We sometimes see young people, after they go away to college, become depressed. And I believe part of that change in mood may be due to bad dietary choices. By educating our children early on about the importance of diet to our health and well-being, hopefully, these deficiencies can be avoided.

Type II Diabetes Can Be Reversed with Diet

In a recent article I read in the BBC, it was pointed out that Diabetes type II can be reversed in people, who have only had the disease for a short amount of time, if they go on a restricted diet of 600Kcals a day.
While this may be good news for many people, I have found that similar benefits can be attained by putting people on a whole food based diet (80 percent vegan 20 percent lean animal protein), on a restricted diet of between 1400 and 1700 calories a day with moderate exercise,
I do not feel that treating obesity, or type II diabetes, is very complicated.
What I find is difficult for people, is learning to change the patterns of diet and lifestyle that they have established for years that lead to the disease itself.
One of the things that I learned when I received my Anthropology degree is the importance of community and ritual in peoples lives. These rituals become patterns that comfort us and give us a sense of who we are in the world.
For a person with a drinking problem, for example, the ritual might be sitting on a bar stool talking to the same group of people and having the same drinks over the course of several years. The bar, and the people, become the community and environment that the person has come to feel safe in, even if the activity they have chosen is ultimately unhealthy, the familiarity of the environment has made it both a safe zone and a source of comfort and community. The ritual of drinking may be comforting for its own sake, but it is also an addiction that is harmful to ones health.
I do not think that we can address real change in a person's life if we do not address the fact that we are asking a person to find a new set of rituals and give up old ones that are not longer healthy for them.
In the case of the alcoholic, we are also asking a person to give up the only community they may have. However, once we are able to help a person see the extent to which they may have to change their life's patterns and habits in order to heal it. People become far more realistic about what they need to do in order to change their lives. And begin to seek out new rituals and a new community that better mirrors the type of life they wish to live.

Trying to Stay Healthy? Try drinking coffee

For those people who truly love coffee, as I do, the idea that coffee could actually be good for you is a welcome relief. Among the many benefits attributed to coffee include, possible reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, diabetes type II, cirrhosis of the liver, and gout.

There are several different species of coffee. The most common, Coffea canephora, commonly referred to as “Robusta,” is the form we most often see in common brands available at your local supermarket. This type of coffee is often high in caffeine and fairly inexpensive to produce. A more prized form of coffee is the C. arabica. Originally found in the highlands of Ethiopia, and the Sudan, this is the form most often used to make espresso. C. arabica is lower in caffeine and considered more flavorful and more expensive. Because we are fairly serious about coffee in our house—we only buy the C. arabica variety. And while it is thought that unfiltered coffee contains ingredients, called diterpenes, thought to slightly elevate LDL cholesterol, we use a French Press and never filter our coffee with a paper filter. This is because, in addition to removing diterpenes, paper filters also remove beneficial antioxidants thought to have numerous health benefits.

Studies have shown that people who consume a moderate amount of coffee everyday, around 3-5 cups a day, are at decreased risk for developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease type II diabetes and prostate cancer.

A few cups of coffee a day can also be helpful in alleviating mild depression and can act as a “pick me up,” when you are having trouble starting your day.

Coffee is also high in antioxidents. These are substances that help repair cell damage. In fact, coffee has more anti-oxidants in it per cup that just about any drink on the market.

The greatest health risk associated with drinking coffee appears to be acid reflux. A condition that may be alleviated by choosing coffee that has a lower acidity level.

If you are a naturally nervous person and easily stressed, you may try switching to decaffeinated coffee. However, decaffeinated coffee does not hold that same health benefits.

So if you are someone who loves coffee as much as I do—enjoy your 2-4 cups a day there are many health benefits you can enjoy without giving up one of the worlds favorite beverages.

Natural Remedies for Protection from Radiation Exposure

I have been receiving a rash of phone calls over the last couple of days, both by the press and from my patients, asking me to address concerns regarding the possibility of the United States being exposed to radioactive fall out should there be a major leak of radiation from Japans crippled nuclear power plants. I have also received phone calls from concerned citizens and doctors asking if I know where they can get Potassium Iodide (KI) .

In the event of exposure to high amounts of radiation the CDC is currently recommending the following dosages for KI:

-Adults should take 130 mg (one 130 mg tablet OR two 65 mg tablets OR two mL of solution).Women who are breastfeeding should take the adult dose of 130 mg.

-Children between 3 and 18 years of age should take 65 mg (one 65 mg tablet OR 1 mL of solution).

-Children who are adult size (greater than or equal to 150 pounds) should take the full adult dose, regardless of their age.

-Infants and children between 1 month and 3 years of age should take 32 mg (½ of a 65 mg tablet OR ½ mL of solution). This dose is for both nursing and non-nursing infants and children.

-Newborns from birth to 1 month of age should be given 16 mg (¼ of a 65 mg tablet or ¼ mL of solution). This dose is for both nursing and non-nursing newborn infants. These dosages should not continue after 14 days.

However, many doctors, including myself, our concerned that people will begin taking KI when no real risk of contamination exist. The problem is that high amounts of KI, over an extended period of time, can be toxic to the thyroid. The purpose of taking KI, is that it blocks the thyroid from taking up radioactive Iodide in the atmosphere that can cause cancer.

Currently, while radiation has not hit the shores of the United States, I am recommending that people keep KI in their emergency disaster earthquake ready kits simply as a precaution. I am not recommending they start taking it–as it simply poses too many health risk–except in the event that we experience radioactive fall out.

Here is what KI cannot do, it cannot protect your body, and its organs, from the severe and devastating consequences of high dose radiation exposure. Long term exposure to radiation can lead to several medical problems. If the radiation exposure is high enough it can lead to death within a few days or weeks. Lower dose radiation, over time, can lead to various types of cancers such as Thyroid, Lung, Skin, Multiple myeloma, Breast Cancer, and Stomach Cancer.

Natural remedies to protect the body from radiation do exist, and they are not harmful to the body. The most noted case of natural treatments for radiation exposure come from Dr Tatsuichiro Akizuki MD, who was the Director of the Department of Internal Medicine at St. Francis Hospital in Nagasaki, a hospital that was 2 miles from the atomic bomb blast. Operating with only a generator for power, the hospital was only able to feed its patients brown rice, Miso soup and seaweed. Akizuki noted that none of his staff or patients succumbed to radiation sickness. This diet offered protection from radiation exposure probably for a few reasons. First, the seaweed contained high amounts of iodine, which protected the thyroid from radiation. The second is that miso soup (a fermented soy bean paste popular in Japanese cooking), contains an ingredient known as Zybocin. Zybocin was discovered in 1972 and is believed to be an agent that can bind to radioactive elements and help rid it from the body.

Because radiation can cause substances known as Reactive Oxidative Species or ROS–they can cause damage to our cells and lead to cancer. Therefore, any foods high in antioxidants can be beneficial. these include the antioxidants themselves, Vitamin E (Avoid DL-alpha-Tocopheral as it is synthetic), Beta Carotene, Vitamin C, Selenium and Zinc. Foods high in antioxidants include vegetables, green tea, berries, like blueberries and pomegranates, and greens products like spirulina and chlorella.

The Anti-Radiation Diet

Believe it or not, there is such a diet. We recommend the following foods (they can be taken daily and will not harm you).

* Miso Soup Daily

* Spirulina, chlorella and algaes (like kelp) for their anti-oxidant properties and their high mineral and Iodide content.

*Brassica Vegetables (these are vegetables in the mustard family that help protect the liver and include kale, broccoli, mustard greens, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, turnips and rutabagas)

*Minerals like Potassium, Calcium and Mineral rich foods

*Cod liver oil and olive oil

*Drink plenty of green tea

* Consider taking supplements like Reishi, Astragalus, Panex ginsing, Rhodiola, and Ashwaganda, these herbs protect immune health and are strong anti-oxidants. these plants can both protect the body from making carcinogenic (cancer causing substances), as well as protect the cells from developing into cancer in the first place.

*Avoid junk food and processed foods like sweets. These foods burn quickly (creating oxidative stress to the cells) are not nutritious and can add additional strain to the body as it attempts to rid itself of toxins.

Hopefully, these precautions will be unnecessary but by presenting the best possible, and safest options, for protecting ourselves, we can be better informed and better prepared should such an emergency ever happen.

Turmeric May Help Reverse the Damaging Effects of Stroke

In a recent article in BBC News, it was reported that the spice Turmeric--commonly used in curry--may fight the damaging effects of stroke.

This is not the first time turmeric has been researched for its many health benefits. Turmeric may also be helpful in reducing risk for heart disease, Alzheimer's disease and a host of other diseases commonly seen as a result of chronic inflammation and degeneration.

Recent research, which was published by Ceder-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and presented at the American Stroke Association's annual conference, presented evidence that a drug derived from turmeric--may help repair cells in the brain that govern the movement of muscles.

While Turmeric by itself cannot cross the blood brain barrier without a fat like gee--the new trial drug (known as CNB-001) has been modified to reach brain cells and help protect them from the damaging effects of stroke. And is thought to help when administered up to three hours after stroke has occurred.

The trial was originally conducted using rabbits with promising results--while clinical testing on humans has not yet been scheduled.

Does Your Child Suffer From PTSD?

We want to believe the world is safe for our children. And perhaps we wish it had been safe for us. But, sadly, it was not. Unfortunately, we live in a world where children are often forced to see the worst of humanity. When that happens a child can become damaged, and this damage can impact them deep into adulthood.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, often simply referred to as PTSD, was first noted in solders suffering an emotionally traumatic event during combat. However, we now know that the vast majority of people who suffer from PTSD are not solders. And that, in fact, are people who contracted the condition in childhood following extremely traumatic events. These events left the child feeling vulnerable and helpless. And can manifest as disorganized or agitated actions, loud inappropriate behavior, learning disabilities, and poor social skills.

Currently in the United States, it is estimated that 8% of the population suffers from PTSD, but the numbers could be far higher.

For a child, this might include witnessing violent or abusive behavior in adults that include physical, mental, or sexual abuse. Even in situations sometimes deemed “mild”, by adult standards, children can be deeply traumatized. An example would be a couple that is going through a difficult divorce, believes that they have adequately protected their child from conflict, only to discover the child has been deeply wounded and traumatized by the experience.

I have noticed with increasing alarm over the years an overlap between the over diagnoses of Attention Deficit Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder and a refusal to consider PTSD as a diagnoses in children; even though the two conditions in children have very similar behaviors. This is not to say that ADD and ADHD are not real disorders. Rather, they are real disorders that have been over-diagnosed in children with PTSD.

Why is this happening? Could it be that we simply refuse to believe that the child has been traumatized? Rather then address this real possibility the child is placed on medications and designated “a patient” and a “problem child”. When, in fact, the child may not be the real problem at all, but merely the innocent recipient of an awful situation.

For many adults this is painful to come to terms with, especially when a parent may have to accept the fact that they, or someone they know and trust, has done something abusive to their child, even unintentionally; that has caused severe trauma.

Because these unfortunate children are never properly diagnosed they are often placed on the wrong set of medications and never receive the treatment they so desperately deserve. Instead, they are often left feeling ashamed of their behavior—believing that they have done something wrong (which only compounds their distress). This is often the case when the child is repeatedly chastised for his/her behavior and made to feel that they are somehow different or bad. Which only reinforces what they may have come to believe themselves following a trauma or experience of abuse.

If you suspect your child may have been wrongly diagnosed with ADD or ADHD, instead of PTSD, here are some of the signs and symptoms to look out for and include the following:

disturbing and intrusive reoccurring thoughts or dreams of the traumatic event. In children this may express itself in violent or repetitive acts of play where the themes of abuse appear.

recurrent nightmares and night terrors. The child may begin to regress, act like a baby, begin bed-wetting, or be afraid to sleep by themselves.

-A Feeling of intense anxiety when placed in certain situation that can trigger memories of the traumatic event. In adults this anxiety can impact our ability to hold down a job, or seek more challenging work opportunities. In children, it can present itself as trouble concentrating in class, learning challenges, or a refusal to go to school.

­- Feeling forced to avoid certain places, people, or situations because they trigger memories or unpleasant feelings of anxiety or helplessness. If the child is being abused at school he may either try to avoid going all together or seem more detached or disturbed when he returns home.

-A feeling of hopelessness about your future. The child may not want to get out of bed, play with other children, and may withdraw for long periods into his own room.

-Sleep disturbances, angry outburst, rages, hyper-vigilance and an exaggerated startle response are not uncommon and may lead to serious problems at school and social settings.

-Last is dissociation, or a child that seems to “live in his own world,” talks to himself,” or spends hours on activities alone making few if any friends.

If you suspect your child has PTSD seek help with a trained professional. Do not attempt to treat on your own. The professional help you seek should be with a licensed therapist trained to treat trauma in children. If you suspect a child is currently being abused you must report it to the authorities immediately—that is the law. Remember, there is help for people who suffer from PTSD— even in people who have had the condition for years. But research shows that the sooner therapy is sought the more likely a person is to recover. For more about PTSD and treatment please visit the following sites.

http://www.mental-health-today.com/ptsd/dsm.htm

http://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/pages/dsm-iv-tr-ptsd.asp

http://www.behavenet.com/capsules/disorders/ptsd.htm

http://aacap.org/page.ww?name=Posttraumatic+Stress+Disorder+%28PTSD%29&section=Facts+for+Families

http://anxiety.emedtv.com/ptsd/ptsd-in-children-p2.html