A Testimonial You Must Read!

Well, after receiving this e-mail last evening I just couldn’t help myself.  It brought tears to my eyes so I just had to share it with you.  Diabetes Type 2 has become so common that I fear people assume they simply have to live with it.  I will certainly not ramble on about everything you already know about diabetes.  Today I merely wanted to point out a couple of things for you to consider when it comes to health and wellness.  First and foremost many people assume, since I am the founder of a health and wellness company, that my thoughts and ideas regarding health are extreme.

Here is the reality, there are instances where in rare situations we come across people who are very ill and at that point we may recommend a vegan lifestyle for two to three months simply as a “detox” to get on the road to recovery.  Here is the simple truth of the matter, you do not have to make drastic changes in your life to experience quick results.  As you know, since most of you are on the program, you can eat most of all the foods that  you desire such as meat, fish, poultry, carbohydrates; and still stay on the path of great health.  For the majority of people good health does not require a “detox”.  Good health will simply mean the deletion of a few poisonous items from your lifestyle.  The big no-no’s of course are the items that we consider to be poisonous such as the chemicals in processed foods.  In fact my friends, if you make just one minor change, for instance substitute water for soda; that will even change your life dramatically.

Without further ado I would like to share with you, the e-mail that prompted the blog today.  Please bear in mind that what is so remarkable about this e-mail is that this woman began our program barely two weeks ago.  Additionally, this is not intended as a promotion for our program, but more importantly to promote what I consider to be my mission in life and that is my goal to strive for “a poison free world”.

“Thanks so much for working with me. I was so excited yesterday because it was the first time in a very long time that my sugar level was in the 90s with no medication. I contributed this to the new way that I am eating and yesterday I finally included exercise into my day. I walked for about 40 minutes. Of course this will be my motivation to continue down this path.

My sugar level is doing so much better. It continues to come down.

To tell you the truth Vicky I was very discourage about my diabetes. I was not checking my sugar level on a regular basis because it was mostly in the 200 range and I didn’t really want to know how high it was. I was abusing my body and this was having a negative impact on my life overall. I was always tired and didn’t feel great. I thought I would be unhappy changing my choices of the foods I just loved (potatoes chips, soda, processed and sugary foods). However, I am actually really enjoying my new foods such as oatmeal, fish, brown rice, home made salad dressing, and lots of great vegetables. I can’t leave out how happy I am that I haven’t been drinking sodas. Drinking water now feels so right to me. I feel so much better! I really look forward in the near future of being totally off of my diabetic medication.

A big thanks to Jack who initiated the conversation with me about Studio V and connected us together. Please feel free to share my excitement with others who may benefit from my experience.”

Thank you, responses like this are the reason we do what we do every moment of every day at Studio V Health.

Make it a fantastic, healthy day everyone.

Best Regards,

Vicky

SICKNESS CARE, ANYONE?

A Blog from The Panel of Experts

By Dr. Michael L. Smith – Functional Medicine – Nutrition and Chiropractic HEALTHcare.

To put it simply, America’s healthcare is failing. The United States spends more money on health care per capita than any other country in the world and yet over 17 million Americans suffer from diabetes and two thirds are overweight. The statistics for heart disease prevalence still rank at the top of the list and have changed little over the past thirty years. To make matters worse,  one third of our youth as a result of poor dietary habits and decreased exercise are falling prey to a form of diabetes that used to be seen only in adults and as a result if current trends continue, that same generation will experience a shorter lifespan than their parents generation!   Of the approximately 300 million people in this country, half will be taking a prescription drug on a weekly basis for some type of health problem.

The centers for Medicare and Medicaid reported that in 2000 we spent over $140 billion dollars on prescription drugs and in 2010 the numbers have approached $180 billion dollars per year. It has been estimated that over 3 billion prescriptions were written in 2010. But even though the United States spends more money on health care per capita than does any country in the world, The World Health Organization in 2000 ranked the U.S. health care system first in both responsiveness and cost, but an astounding 37th in overall performance and 72nd in overall health among the 191 member nations included in the study. Our health care system is clearly not the best in the world, even though we spend the most money on it. In fact, Americans spend more on drugs than do all the people in  Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom combined!

In a 2002 article appearing in the Journal of the Americam Medical Association (JAMA), by Barbara Starfield, M.D. she stated that physician error, medication error and adverse events from drugs or surgery kill over 225,000 people per year. That makes our health care system the third leading cause of death in the United States, behind only cancer and heart disease (Starfield,B. “Is U.S. health really the best in the world?” JAMA 284 (2000): 483-485. Even with the use of approved medicinesand their correct administration, over 100,000 people die every year from unintended drug reactions. In a report that analyzed thirty-nine separate studies, approximately 7%  (one out of fifteen) of all hospitalized patients have experienced a serious adverse drug reaction which required hospitalization, prolonged hospitalization, is permanently disabling or results in death. Lazarou J, et al “Incidence of adverse drug reactons in hospitalized patients” JAMA 279 (1998): 1200-1205.

Perhaps more subtle, but certainly serious, are the drug induced nutritional deficiencies that are created from the medicines we routinely take. Conventional medicine tends to overlook these “minor” concerns.

COMMON NUTRIENT DEPLETING DRUGS:

• Aspirin depletes folic acid, iron, potassium and vitamin C.
• Antibiotics deplete Lactobacillus acidophilus, bifidobacterium bifidum and other “probiotics”, vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B12, Vit. C, Vit. K, biotin, potassium, magnesium, zinc and inositol.
• Acid Blockers (Prevasid, Prilosec, Nexium etc.) deplete vitamins A, B1, B12, folic acid, chromium and iron.
• Beta Blockers (Atenolol, Tenormin, Toprol, Inderal etc.) deplete CoQ10.
• Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) deplete vitamin C, K, folic acid and iron.
• Estrogens ((Estrace, Premarin) deplete magnesium, omega-3-fatty acids, vit. B1, and zinc.
• Oral contraceptives deplete beta-carotene,vitamins B1, B3, B5, B6, B12, C, biotin, magnesium and zinc
• Many Anti-depressants deplete vitamins B2, B6, calcium, magnesium and CoQ10.
• Corticosteroids (cortisone, predisone etc.) deplete calcium, folic acid, magnesium, potassium, selenium, vit. C, vit. D, and zinc.
• Glucophage (diabetes) depletes vit. B12.
• Statins (Lipitor, Zocor, etc) deplete CoQ10.

Whenever a patient presents to my office, I always consider what medications the patient is taking and what are the potential deficiencies that may be created if the patient is taking any drugs.. A special functional blood test to measure the patient’s nutrient status can be very important in determining what is either in balance or out of balance and may be a very important factor in their health care. It is just as important to advise the patient to avoid certain foods or supplements that may be contraindicated when they are taking their medications.This will ensure that the medication(s) are able to accomplish their intended outcomes and the patients’ health won’t be compromised further. The end result is a healthier and happier patient.