While
I have not written a Health Bulletin since the fall of 2000, this summer I feel
compelled to share some noteworthy developments…
STAYING ON THE PROGRAM
I
am noticing a trend of patients that had been successful with our nutritional
program who have not followed up and have fallen off their routine. In several cases, after a few years a major
health challenge occurs and they want guidance and support once again.
The
typical scenario is that they had done well but are no longer following a
prudent diet, stopped using supplements that are therapeutic and uniquely
chosen for their needs, or they just got out of the habit and never made the
call back. A nutritional program is never a quick fix that only requires a
period of diligence and then can be discontinued. Rather, health programs are ongoing - they
need adjustments as you transition to different demands and stages of your
life. We have never done much in the way
of phone recalls in part because we are too busy, but more because I felt the
patient must take responsibility for their care. This is idealistic and perhaps selfish on my
part. I was hoping to establish a relationship
that was indeed long-term. We are going
to make time to reach out to the patients we felt we had made a positive impact
in their health and the relationship was mutual.
OPTIMAL HEALTH
To
paraphrase from an earlier health bulletin, one of the great challenges is what
to do when someone says they "feel well." How does one know for sure the depth and
integrity of their health? Are there
trends indicating better health or are there subtle signs of degeneration
evident that are being overlooked or mistakenly attributed to “getting older?”
How hard do I look for imbalances? How do I know that what you may perceive as
"normal" is a state of optimal
health? How do I alter the earliest
signs of trouble even when you are not bothered? How do I convince you that feeling well or
being symptom-free is not in fact the same as being in biochemical and hormonal
balance? I know that a "routine
physical exam" is almost useless in preventive care. While it does occasionally detect disease
early/earlier, this is not preventive care.
You
don't catch disease. Major illnesses in
general don't just happen all of a sudden.
They develop when your body has failed to adapt/respond. For example,
it's well-known that the first symptom of heart disease for many people is a
heart attack, often a fatal one. Heart
disease doesn't occur randomly or even suddenly unless it is associated with
trauma. Cancer, most forms of arthritis,
osteoporosis, weight gain, loss of mental sharpness, etc. all take years to
manifest and ultimately disrupt/interfere with your life. Know where you are and the depth of your
health. Assessing your risk is an area
I’m trying to improve.
WEIGHT REDUCTION PROGRAM
The
Ultra-Lite technique is working consistently and patients are hitting their
goal weights. Excessive fat is not just
a cosmetic issue – there are significant increases in the likelihood or
association of extra weight to cancer, heart disease, diabetes, etc. We have about 80 patients that have
participated in Ultra-Lite. All of those
who followed the recommendations have lost weight. Some have shed a large amount (75+ pounds)
and others only needed to reduce the last 5-10 pounds that just doesn’t come
off. Most have kept the weight off. Ultra-Lite is not like most weight reduction
programs for which you buy horrible tasting food substitutes with no chance of
maintaining it after you resume regular food.
I particularly like the program because it uses foods that are part of
the Page (Protein-Vegetables) Food Plan that is key to long term health. Patty Thetford oversees the program and there
are almost no medical conditions in which the program is not effective or
safe. Of course, a nutritional support
program tailored to you will make it easier and more effective. You don’t even need to be a patient to
participate. For those of you who started Ultra-Lite the updated maintenance
program just arrived and should make it easier for you to continue to shed
extra weight.
NEUROTRANSMITTERS
The widespread use of Prozac,
Paxil, Celexa, Lexapro, Zoloft, Effexor, etc. confirms the epidemic of mood
disorders due to serotonin and catecholamine insufficiency. While these medications have been very
effective for improving mood, they do not solve the actual deficiency of
neurotransmitters. These medications do
not address the many other symptoms caused by or associated with low levels of
serotonin and/or norepinephrine including panic attacks, insomnia, sleep
disorders, PMS, fibromyalgia, obesity, anorexia, bulimia, “hypoglycemia,”
chronic pain states, migraines, etc. In
addition to anxiety and depression, replenishing neurotransmitters has made a
dramatic improvement for a wide variety of conditions including attention
deficit, obsessions, memory impairment, tics, as well as cravings of
carbohydrates, caffeine, and chocolate.
Because lab testing is not that helpful, I use a questionnaire that
helps predict your imbalances and needs.
When the brain is healthy, the rest of the body has a chance to follow.
THE LOW CARB DIET
The
shift in popularity from low fat to low carbohydrates fueled by the media has
many people confused as to what constitutes the best diet. I have always and continue to advocate what
we call the Page Fundamental diet that emphasizes protein and vegetables. All of the popular diets today are
derivatives of this diet – Atkins, South
Beach, Susanne Somers,
Zone, etc. The difference is that the
basis for the Page diet is balancing a fundamental biochemical ratio, the
calcium-phosphorus ratio. This
biochemical balance was found by Weston Price, DDS who studied the health of
people in various cultures all over the world.
What became evident is that those cultures that were free of
degenerative diseases such as heart disease, cancer, arthritis, aberrant
behavior, depression, crime, etc. had calcium: phosphorus ratios of 10:4. What was amazing is that every culture,
whether it be Aborigines or from rural Scandinavia,
the ratio was the same. Melvin Page, DDS found that when his patients ate
protein and vegetables, the ratio of calcium: phosphorus improved toward this
ideal. Hence we use the “PAGE FOOD PLAN.”
PHYSICAL THERAPY
Many
of you have found out how powerful physical
therapy is with our Registered Physical Therapist. We continue to see breakthroughs in a variety
of problems involving surgical adhesions, hiatal hernias, musculoskeletal
injuries, muscular pain, detoxication, etc.
One of the secrets to our success is the use of specialized electronic
instruments (Acuscope/Myopulse) that provide the body the healing frequencies. These are very different than the non-healing
techniques used by most other physical therapists and chiropractors such as
inferential treatments, ultrasound, TENS, etc.
Our unique Acuscope/Myopulse techniques, lymphatic and muscular massage,
manual release techniques, and specific nutritional support makes the
difference.
NEW MEDICAL DOCTOR
I
am training Mandy Cunanan, D.O. to pick up where Dr. Grant left off in managing
children with developmental delay issues.
His heart is in the right place, and he has a back-ground with children. He should be an excellent addition to the
staff. He is already adding new insights
to our “DAN plus more” approach. More about him will be posted on the website
soon.
WWW.DRKASLOW.COM
My
web-site is operational in a very
simple format. It has been updated and
expanded. I hope you find it helpful.
BLUE BINDER NOTES
Whenever
an interesting article or news item becomes available that I think is worth you
taking a look at, a copy on blue paper will be put in a blue binder in each of
the exam rooms for you to review while you wait. Look for it in the magazine rack. Recent interesting examples include
information on the West Nile Virus, exercises that stimulate fat loss, etc.
TERMINATION OF PPO CONTRACTS
On
August 17, 2004 I will terminate my network participation in Blue Shield-United Healthcare. After a
review of a few files, Blue Shield has essentially considered my consultations
with you to be worthy of about $20-$35.
Obviously we operate in a different paradigm – I’m striving for health
care and they are only interested in crisis management. Susan has signed on as a Blue Shield provider
so this will make it easier financially.
In addition, my contract with Aetna will be
terminated as of August 1, 2004. I will
most likely stop participation in all PPO plans by year’s end due to ever
increasing administrative hassles that take more and more of my time away from
providing patient care. However, we will
continue to bill most of these carriers for you as a courtesy. As we get more experience with their
reimbursement, we hope to predict the changes you may expect. See my website
for more information.
PLEASE UPDATE OUR FILES
To
better communicate with you, we ask that you update your work, mobile and
facsimile phone numbers and your e-mail
address. We may need to contact you
for appointment changes, urgent news, lab reports, etc.
As
ever,
Jeremy E. Kaslow, M.D., F.A.C.P.,
F.A.C.A.A.I.
