Archive for the ‘Take Control Naturally’ Category
Treating Fibromyalgia with Nutrition
I was asked about treatments for Fibromyalgia. Pain clinics have injections and pharmaceuticals that often help, but not always enough. I approach from a different angle.
Fibromyalgia is a collection of many different maladies that are magnifying each other. They are very difficult to untangle. Treating all aspects of the pain is the key to success.
I have actually “cured” fibromyalgia only 4 times, but usually I can decrease the pain enough that other measures will work better than before.
The key is understanding that pain often is nerves misbehaving, magnifying the intensity of unpleasant stimuli. This is neuropathy or neuralgia. These conditions are made much worse by nutritional deficits.
B1, B6, B12 and Folate are key nutrients for nerve function. Controlling diabetes is also important. Low calcium, potassium or magnesium cause cramping and pain. These should ALL be checked.
Vitamin D is often overlooked as essential for nerve function. Low vitamin D will cause depression, malaise, nerve malfunction and increased pain. I aim for a vitamin D level of 70 ng/ml – higher than needed for bone health, but completely safe. If your level is very low you may need megadoses, well above 5000 IU daily.
Take Control Naturally with Vitamin D3, as well as B1, B6, B12, Folate, Calcium, Potassium and Magnesium.
Jay Ginther, MD
National Osteoporosis Prevention Month
May is National Osteoporosis Month. That should be National Osteoporosis Prevention Month. Or perhaps National Bone Health Optimization Month.
Click on the helpful link to National Osteoporosis Foundation to learn more.
Take Control Naturally by following the posts from earlier this year. And get a Complete Bone Health Evaluation.
Jay Ginther, MD
I Want to Treat My Bone Health Entirely Naturally ….
“I want to treat my bone health entirely naturally – without any “artificial” medications.” That might be possible if you are among the less than half of all women not destined to suffer one or more fragility fractures without medication. Your odds are certainly better if you take all the measures outlined over the past weeks.
Years ago Osteoporosis was rarely a problem. 100 years ago most people died before age 65. 200 years ago most people died before age 40. We live too long to avoid the natural decline in bone health. (I would rather live long and deal with medications).
When I was in medical school (45 years ago) we lived entirely naturally in terms of bone health. Most woman, and some men, became stooped forward with “humpback” kyphosis until they fell, broke a hip and either died or were shipped to a nursing home forever. There was nothing we could do to prevent that.
Now we know a bunch of natural things we can do to postpone that scenario, but we cannot prevent it entirely in many people without adding medication. Adding medication may be “cheating”, but I would rather stay active and enjoy life.
Take Control Naturally as long as you can, but evaluate your bone health periodically and add osteoporosis medication when your fracture risk rises.
Jay Ginther, MD
If You Don’t Take Care of Your Body, Where Are You Going To Live? – Part 10 – Evaluate
So how do you find out what aspects of your bone health are pretty good already, what will be easy to fix, and what will take some real work? Start with a Complete Bone Health Evaluation.
DXA is about 1/3 of the story and should include both hips and spine. When you are as old as I am, the spine probably is too arthritic to be really accurate, but helps complete the picture. If you have had a total hip replacement, you should use the non-dominant forearm.
VFA will pick up many persons at increased fracture risk who are missed by DXA alone. You should ask for VFA, especially if you or a parent have kyphosis (humpback) or have lost height.
The FRAX calculation picks up different individuals at high fracture risk.
Blood tests should include CBC, CMP, TSH, PTH, and 25-hydroxy Vitamin D as a start. Further testing may be needed.
A medical history and examination focused on bone issues is a critical part of the full consultation. We allot a minimum of 30 minutes for discussion. Often a follow-up visit is needed to be sure both we and our patients are clear on the whole picture.
DXA alone misses over half of the individuals who need to improve their bone health. Get a Complete Bone Health Evaluation.
Jay Ginther, MD