Examination of her 5-day diet diary reveals excessive consumption of processed, high carbohydrate foods such as macaroni and cheese, sugary cereal, crackers, diet soda and weekly consumption of shellfish (her husband is a lobsterman). Her diet of 1-2 servings of vegetables per day demonstrates low plant intake. She does not take any supplementation of vitamins or minerals and has recently come off of a 10-day antibiotic regimen. Cassandra cur- rently takes two medications at maximum doses to help control her blood sugar and has been told that she will need to begin injecting herself with insulin daily if she cannot get her blood sugar into acceptable ranges by her next doctor’s visit. Upon further questioning, she reveals that she is embarrassed about her excessive gas, which includes flatulence after meals. Now lets compare Cassandra’s symptoms with the
negative environmental influences listed earlier in the article.
1. Diet: Increased consumption of high carbohydrate processed food, aka the Standard American Diet (SAD). This diet promotes inflammation, increases blood sugar levels and contains almost zero nutrient content. 2. Food Sensitivities: Testing revealed that she was
having an immune reaction to multiple foods including dairy, eggs and wheat, all of which she was consuming multiple times per day. 3. Xenobiotic Exposure: No testing was performed but
it was safe to assume she had been exposed to and accu- mulated environmental toxins from her weekly consump- tion of shellfish. I am also going to include Medication Ex- posure in this section. The medication that she was taking to control her blood sugar secondarily results in Vitamin B12 depletion. This vitamin depletion commonly results in neuropathy symptoms - burning, tingling and numbness being the most common. (This demonstrates one of the most common, and frustrating things about the increased utilization of medications: depletion of essential nutrients for normal biochemical function resulting in perpetuation of the disease process. Basically we take a medication to change a symptom or a lab value and that medication plays into physiological changes which results in more disease, or additional symptoms). 4. Microbial Dysbiosis: She recently finished a 10-day antibiotic regimen. Antibiotics are not selective to just the “bad” bacteria. They also disrupt the normal bacterial flora
in our gastrointestinal tract. Her embarrassing symptom of excessive gas can be tied to this bacterial disruption. 5. Hormonal Imbalance: Testing revealed that her hor- mone, Insulin, which is responsible for control of blood sugar, was severely increased. Insulin is secreted in re- sponse to glucose (blood sugar) and stimulates absorption of glucose by the cells. In Cassandra’s case however she constantly over stimulated her body’s cells with increased blood sugar and therefore insulin, resulting in Insulin resis- tance or her body’s inability to hear the signal of insulin. 6. Mental Stress: In addition to the stress of not feeling well because of escalating health issues and having the responsibility of caring for three children, Cassandra was also stressed about family finances. Her husband provided the only income, which was increasingly being depleted by the cost of her health care, not the least of which was pharmaceuticals. The plan that Cassandra received to address the causes detected resulted in major modifications to her lifestyle. Dietary changes included decreased processed carbo- hydrate consumption; increased nutrient intake through whole foods; increased hydration through clean water; discontinuation of diet soda; supplementation with vita- mins, nutrients and healthy fats; re-inoculation of good bacteria in the GI tract; and referral to a financial special- ist who helped reallocate her family’s funds and provided access to aid from government programs. With this plan Cassandra was able, within 10 weeks, to reverse some of her symptoms and lessen the intensity of others, improve her glucose numbers to almost normal and decrease her dosage of diabetes medication. This case study illustrates that by using a Functional Medicine approach to understand all of the different physiological and biochemical influences that drive chronic disease the clinician can prepare an effective treatment plan that prioritizes and successfully addresses many different underlying causes of chronic disease. Most importantly, however, is the opportunity to truly get your health restored by eliminating the negative environmental influences that sustain chronic disease.
Your Health Detective, Dr. Rudy Mueller, DC IFMCP. See ad on page 19.
20 Essential Living Maine ~ October 2014
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30