It’s a lighthearted poke at the challenge of helping ourselves, but there is some truth in it. Much of what I do in a day is helping people to understand that they must, “Stop it.” Stop eating a food that is not good for them. Stop sitting on the couch and not moving. Stop smoking. Stop thinking thoughts that are harmful and make them unhappy.

There are all kinds of reasons for why we do the things that we do, but sometimes we really do need to just…stop. Not always easy. But almost always true.  -Tara

Before Enlightenment, chop wood carry water.
After Enlightenment, chop wood carry water.

It’s occurred to me that for best health, we might just as easily replace “Enlightenment” with “retirement”.

It’s not uncommon for me to hear my patients, friends and family say things like, “We should move into a single story house when we retire so we don’t have to worry about stairs,” or “I’m not going to walk outside in the winter in case I fall.” On the surface, these statements seem sensible. But are they?

In the book Healthy at 100, John Robbins talks about the “long lived” ones around the world–the groups of people who not only live the longest, but also live the healthiest for the longest. What do they have in common? They remain vigorously active, socially relevant and engaged in day-to-day work and life well into their old age.

Of course, “staying active” isn’t exactly breaking news. The real secret of these cultures, I think, is that they continue to live in circumstances that demand they stay active and engaged. The live on the sides of mountains, don’t (or can’t) retire, and work, walk and live in tight communities until they very end. They live in a world that doesn’t let them retire, withdraw, eat crap, watch tv and do nothing.

Is it possible we need to follow that lead? To retire to seven-story homes, not one-story ones? Or to not retire at all? Maybe we need to create circumstances that force us to stay active and engaged, as opposed to ones that give us the option of letting ourselves deteriorate.

Maybe retirement shouldn’t be about having to do less. Maybe it should be about having to do more.

Chop wood, carry water. It might be that simple.

Statins are used to reduce LDL or “bad” cholesterol, in order to reduce or prevent atherosclerosis, and in turn decrease heart attack and stroke.

The new warnings include that statin drugs can cause hyperglycemia (too much sugar in the blood) and increase the risk of developing Type II diabetes.

That’s great. Except for the fact that everyone with type 2 diabetes is already prescribed a statin drug to help manage, “heart risk”.

If you’re asking yourself why it’s standard procedure to prescribe something to every diabetic that can increase blood sugar, you’re not alone. And while that standard may change, it’s not the only confusing thing about statins.

The Truth About Statins

Beyond side-effects, here are three things you should know about statins, taken from Chris Kresser. His writing an excellent resource for laypersons wishing to understand the issue:

1. Statin drugs do not reduce the risk of death in 95% of the population, including healthy men with no pre-existing heart disease, women of any age, and the elderly.
2. Statin drugs do reduce mortality for young and middle-aged men with pre-existing heart disease, but the benefit is small and not without significant adverse effects, risks and costs.
3. Aspirin works just as well as statins do for preventing heart disease, and is 20 times more cost effective.

 Source: http://chriskresser.com/the-truth-about-statin-drugs

But that, still is only part of the story. Why, even for the tiny slice of the population for which statins have a small benefit, do we use them at all, when we know that heart disease is a lifestyle problem?

Over 90% of heart disease is preventable by diet and lifestyle change. (source) Taking statins, unfortunately, is not a lifestyle change.

That high cholesterol you’re worried about is a sign that something in your body is out of balance.  Imbalanced hormones, imbalanced diet and exercise, or smoking that caused heavy metal toxicity. This is the problem to deal with. Balance your hormones, change your lifestyle, stop smoking and detox heavy metals from your body through chelation.

Lifestyle change doesn’t need much of a warning label. It just works.

It made me wonder, though: Why do we eat so much of it?  In many ways, wheat itself isn’t really that tasty!

•  Is it really the pasta we like? Or is it the sauce and the parmesan cheese?
•  Do we really love wraps? Or is it just a convenient way to get other food from the plate to our mouths?
•  Are pancakes really that delicious? Or do they just do a great job of carrying syrup?
• Do we love cereal? Or just the sugar and milk and nuts and raisins?

The sandwich isn’t really about the bread, is it? It’s about delivering the  meat and condiments and garnishes to your mouth. The more I think about it, wheat is often just the spoon. It’s a way of carrying the stuff we really like to our mouths. And you wouldn’t eat a spoon, right?

Next time you’re eating, ask yourself, “Do I really want this wheat? Or am I eating the spoon?”

Brown the following in a pan:

• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1-1.5 lb organic, grass fed ground beef

Then add it, and everything below, to a crock-pot:

• ½ cauliflower, diced
• 1 can chick peas, drained
• ¾-1 c frozen organic peas
• 1 carton of organic vegetable stock
• ½ cup spaghetti sauce or 1 can tomato paste
• 1 heaping tbsp of Patak’s Madras curry paste
• 1 heaping tbsp of Patak’s Biriani curry paste

Cook on low overnight, or all day.

Serve with diced avocado.  Add sour cream if you like. Enjoy!

-Tara

It’s also not that surprising. The human body is a complex web of physiology and biochemistry. To make it even more challenging, that web changes from individual to individual, and from day to day, depending on our environment or lifestyle choices.

And of course, doctors are only human. We only know what we know, and it’s impossible to know everything. As a result, our opinions are usually based on what we know best. Surgeons tend to cut. Medical doctors tend to drug. Naturopathic doctors tend to supplement. We’re all carrying our own hammers, and seeing most problems as nails.

What Varying Opinions Mean for You

This diversity of opinion, however, is something you can turn to your advantage.

• Listen to all… While not every opinion might be the right answer–in fact, they usually all can’t be–there may be wisdom in many of them that you can put to use.
• ….but be a healthy skeptic. Understand that doctors aren’t perfect, have their own biases, and are working with something incredibly complex. Don’t take anything as gospel truth. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, to heed alarm bells in your head, and to remember that, in the end, you get to decide what happens with your care.
• Look for the opinion you want. One friend, when told he was dying and should get his affairs in order, decided instead to get more opinions. Two doctors later he had what he wanted to hear: that he was going to live. And years later, he’s still here…

What we know about the body for sure?  It needs good food, clean water, sunshine, exercise, fresh air, a purpose and connection to others. Opinions may differ, but I think that’s one you can take to the bank.

A 55-year old man recently came into the clinic with symptoms of severe phlegm in his throat every time he ate.  His stomach was always uncomfortable, he was sensitive to his environment, and he couldn’t swallow properly. Years of appointments, tests and discomfort had finally led him to our office.

A simple lab test helped us diagnose a severe food intolerance to diary, eggs and gluten. After five weeks of maintaining a diet free of those foods, all his symptoms resolved.

These were symptoms he had lived with for years. They were also symptoms that, according to conventional medicine, had nothing to do with food. But as we’re all discovering, food is medicine, and sometimes our chronic, longstanding health complaints are as simple as changing what we put in our mouths.

There’s really a simple 3 step process at work when it comes to a suspected food intolerance:

1. Get a food intolerance test. The cost is reasonable, and while you can easily experiment on your own with adding and removing foods from your diet, the test narrows the field so you’re not randomly eliminating foods for months and months.
2. Do an elimination diet. Remove any suspected foods for 4 weeks. Dairy, wheat, gluten, sugar, eggs, yeast are the most common culprits.
3. Reintroduce the foods slowly. If you’ve eliminated multiple groups, you’ll need to reintroduce them one at a time. Watch your symptoms closely.

Once the body balances, some people are able to eventually tolerate foods they once couldn’t. Others may have to avoid them permanently. The end result in both cases is the same, though: a much happier stomach!

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving. A couple of quick clinic updates you might find interesting, including a new resource by request!

-Tara

New Face: Lori Prest, RN

Please join us in welcoming Lori Prest, RN to the StoneTree Naturopathic Team.  Lori is our new colon hydrotherapist and brings many years of experience in the world of complementary medicine to our team here in Collingwood.

StoneTree has been offering colon hydrotherapy for the past 3 years.  This safe and effective treatment tool is a powerful method of detoxifying the liver, as the bowel is responsible for getting rid of the body’s fat soluble toxins.

Fall is one of the best times to detoxify to boost both your energy levels and immune function for the coming winter months.  If you are interested in learning more about colon hydrotherapy contact the office at 705-444-5331.

Our Archived Articles, Now Online

We’ve written dozens of articles for various publications over the years, and we get frequent requests for them. You can now find the growing collection here:

http://stonetreeclinic.com/about/articles/

We’ll be adding more over the next week as we get everything compiled online.

Enjoy!

North American midwives help by lending their expertise to train the Haitian women on the ground – that means they can continue to provide care once the volunteering professionals have left. This training creates a true legacy gift!

Lily has set a goal of fundraising $1500 before she leaves which will pay the full tuition for one Haitian woman to learn these valuable, lifesaving skills.

Here is how StoneTree Clinic wants to help. On September 12th – our next Well Woman Visit day will be by donation ONLY.

What does that mean?  The regular $135 fee for our Well Woman visit, which includes a breast exam, gynecological exam and Pap smear is waived. You decide what you would like to contribute to Midwives for Haiti.

No donation is too small. Many of us know women who have been avoiding getting a Pap or a breast exam done for years for all kinds of reasons. This is an opportunity to visit an all-female environment, with warm sheets and hot tea to do something important for women’s health. At the same time, you’ll be supporting the health of less advantaged Haitian women.

Call the clinic at 705-444-5331 to book your appointment today – the more the merrier!!