Time to embrace the promise of virtual health care

During this pandemic telemedicine and virtual visits have become new buzzwords. I was curious what the science was saying about telemedicine before COVID19. I appreciated this article because it supports what I already felt was true. While there is still work to be done in perfecting the process, as a whole telemedicine is a hassle free and convenient tool that offers a seamless remedy for the already onus task of carving out the time for all the things we need in life. I think you will find it interesting.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6422776/

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Liposomes for Drug Delivery

I have had several friends and patients ask me recently to explain the liposomal version of supplements. When a nutraceutical or pharmaceutical is delivered in the liposomal form this means it has been designed using phospholipid bilayers to create an advanced technology that delivers active molecules to the site of action. Now… there is a whole lot of science speak that could be said about this… but it suffices to say that the modification of these liposomes makes poorly soluble agents more soluble, creates more endothelial permeability and extravasation to the target area, and better retention and furthermore has been shown to improve the therapeutic efficacy of cancer drugs while reducing or modulating their toxicity profile. These two articles are interesting and do a good job of explaining how liposomes work and why you might want to consider them.

https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/liposomes-for-drug-delivery-2155-952X276.pdf

Here is another article that is interesting:

https://mct.aacrjournals.org/content/5/7/1639 

And I felt the supplement company, Quicksilver, did a great job explaining how liposomes work and the importance of ingredients and size and number of layers of liposomes in relationship to absorption and bioavailability. 

https://www.quicksilverscientific.com/quicksilver-delivery-systems/

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Boosting the anti-inflammatory action of the immune system

I tell people all the time that inflammation and a healthy immune system are never a result of a harmonious relationship. The immune system, when functioning well, does a great job of being anti-inflammatory. However, researchers have identified a molecular switch that causes macrophages to clean up cellular debris caused by infections instead of contributing to inflammation and tissue injury. This is harnessing potential!

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190731102220.htm

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Without Effective Meds, Clinicians Explore Nutrition-Based Treatments for COVID

Has COVID changed the face of medicine? I dare say it has forever changed the face of medicine. And in many ways I believe this is a good thing. People have become more aware than ever of the importance of wellness, a healthy immune system and the consequences of not caring for their bodies. This article points out that nutritional and medicinal botanical approaches have been embraced and these natural therapies are gaining the attention of prominent holistic and functional medicine practitioners and organizations and even mainstream medicine is having to take a look outside of pharmaceutical approaches. This article talks also about micronutrients that support the immune system and how they have performed.

https://holisticprimarycare.net/topics/topics-a-g/functional-medicine/2135-without-effective-meds-clinicians-explore-nutrition-based-treatments-for-covid.html

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The Virome: 10 Facts about Viruses You Might Not Know

After your over the virus it’s gone right? No… not really and honestly with some viruses we are not sure still how they are working. The Epstein Barr Virus is latent in the body but can become chronic and when so it is cyclical and never goes away. Also it causes or increases the risk of other diseases such as lupus, MS, rheumatoid arthritis, IBS, diabetes, celiac disease, mono, cancer… honestly we just don’t know. Most people don’t realize that viruses are one of the most serious threats to our health. There are 380 trillion viruses inside the average human body and while most are harmless… some are deadly. Remember eboli and HIV are viruses. Viruses are like terrorist hijackers; they invade our normal cells, use them to multiply, divide and mutate and while doing this they kill, damage or change the host cell and they can attack/target areas of the body. They mutate and evolve more rapidly than any bacteria, plant or animal genome and honestly we know very little in the whole scheme of things about viruses, we are learning more and more all the time but have a long ways to go. Viruses can become pandemic as we know from our current experience with COVID 19 but most don’t realize they can become endemic also. There is a very real chance that COVID 19 will become endemic much like influenza so it could be around for a very long time.

https://holisticprimarycare.net/topics/topics-a-g/functional-medicine/2134-the-virome-10-facts-about-viruses-you-might-not-know.html

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Time to Change Standard of Care to Include Screening for Common Disease-Inducing Toxicants

I wish this article were free, however its not, and its rare that I include one that’s not. I have included this because this abstract (and the article if you choose to read it) touches on something near and dear to my heart… toxicants and how they affect our health. The abstract, however brief, says it all. Research has shown that metal and chemical toxins that contaminate the environment cause disease and result in high levels of toxins. These levels are indisputably high enough to cause disease. Screening for these toxins should be part of early detection and prevention of disease. In the Comprehensive Health Screenings and Analysis I offer we screen for these things and take steps to reverse damage and prevent future disease. We have to take steps to embrace prevention and not rely on cures once the damage is done.

http://imjournal.com/abstracts/9869.html – abstract only

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GERD: Weighing Benefits and Risks of Treatment Options

15 million people take an acid reducer, proton pump inhibitor (PPI) such as omeprazole (Prilosec), Lansoprazole (Prevacid) or esomeprazole (Nexium) or H2 blocker such as famotidine (Pepcid) or cimetidine (Tagament) for gastric reflux disease (GERD). Do you realize that researchers have linked PPIs to adverse health issues such as bone fractures, kidney disease and pneumonia when used long term? Recommendations are for low doses for short periods of time. These drugs were not designed for long term use at increasing dosages. Before making a decision to take one of these medications I encourage you to read this article, do your own research, and investigate less invasive holistic approaches for your reflux issues. First embrace approaches that our bodies can also embrace, that which it is familiar with such as food and lifestyle changes.

https://www.ifm.org/news-insights/gut-alternatives-ppis-h2-blockers/