by Debra Arko Novotny | Apr 6, 2017 | Functional Medicine, Nutrition
Supplements are confusing. Which one do you need and how much now to add to the confusion you have to think about which ‘form’ is right for you. I hope to take a boring topic and make it useful and fun. Did you know there are Nine different types of Magnesium and they’re not all great for you but you need this supplement!
You might say I eat nuts and beans so I don’t need to take a pill. Maybe you eat brown rice, salads, or whole wheat bread too but are you absorbing this co-factor that regulates so many things! Okay so you’re thinking like what Deb?
Why We Need Magnesium
“Magnesium is a co-factor in more than 300 enzyme systems that regulate diverse biochemical reactions in the body, including protein synthesis, muscle and nerve function, blood glucose control, and blood pressure regulation. Taking one of the different types of magnesium is required for energy production, oxidative phosphorylation, and glycolysis.[1]”
I guess it’s pretty important. I take it and knowing which kind was best for me took some time so I hope this article helps you. If you’re still lost then come see me as a patient or become a health coaching client by Skype or phone. Both are affordable!
Consiptation
The Quick And Dirty List Of Nine Different Types Of Magnesium
- Magnesium Amino Acid Chelate – the mineral form combined with an amino acid. It’s not your best bet.
- Magnesium Oxide – This is not your right one either. You’ve likely seen this on the shelf it’s magnesia.
- Magnesium Citrate – now we’re getting somewhere. This is the salt of citric acid and it works great for constipation and to prevent kidney stones. Still there may be better ones out there for you.
- Magnesium Orotate this is the best because our bodies can absorb it. All plants and animals use this to create RNA and DNA so it’s important for us humans. It provides us with energy and all the others things we want from this cofactor. It’s hard to find a good quality but I do have it available for my patient.
- Magnesium Lactate is great for digestive issues but should be avoided if you have kidney disease or kidney related problems. It’s the mineral by the way.
- Magnesium Glycinate, Malate & Taurates another three types are the most available. They each act differently and you should check with your alternative practitioner to know which is right for you.
Magn
esium And Calcium Working Together
There’s a ton of research for decades now recommending that we take calcium and magnesium together. More recently the ratio has changed. Because we do get some calcium from our diet and rarely get magnesium it’s important that you use a 1 to 1 ratio. Unfortunately, it’s hard to find a supplement made properly.
For a top-notch blend, I recommend a super blend of various types of this vitamin that is inexpensive for the best absorption. My other favorite source of this co-factor contains organic spinach and also available through our office for patients and online health coaching clients. To learn how to become a office patient or virtual client, contact our office. Both these are by professional-medical recommendation and we are happy to assist you with enrolling as a virtual client.
[1] https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/
by Debra Arko Novotny | Jul 18, 2016 | Acupuncture, Functional Medicine
Any type of pain is no laughing matter. It can ruin your day even your week. When you are dealing with chronic neck pain, it’s a lifetime struggle to stay fit and enjoy life too. As a health care provider, I see many patients with different types of discomfort. Some of it nearly beyond a person’s ability to cope.
Neck pain comes with its own unique problems like stiffness, or trouble sleeping. Rarely is this problem a ‘stand alone’ issue. It interferes with many parts of our life and it shouldn’t.
5 Ways Dealing with Chronic Neck Pain Works
- Maybe you’ve invested in expensive pillows only to wake with headaches and neck pain. Night’s can be long when you shift all every 30 or 45 minutes trying to find a way your cervical spine feels relaxed. By morning you wake exhausted. I once invested in a $100 pillow just to stop my own neck pain, it didn’t do much. Yet changing your pillow can have significant benefits.
Chronic Neck Pain and Fitness
2. Not all patients complain about sleep problems along with their discomfort some have problems staying fit with chronic neck pain. I personally have trouble lifting weights; many times neck muscles become stiffer as you try to do a standard workout. So what can you do to sleep better, and do the fitness program you like best?
My discovery and that of the majority of my patients take it slow and go light. Use lighter weight freestyle works best in most cases. For women 3-10 pounds. Men do well up to 35 lbs. If you’re shaking your head why bother, it’s a start. The right moves can make the difference with these lighter routines.
Stay away from bodybuilding moves where you lift your arms above your shoulders lifting heavy weights. This will help reduce pain. Ask your trainer or Accent On Health for some alternatives. Use a 10 to 20-minute upper body program.
Chronic Neck Pain and Acupuncture or Dry Needling
- One of my clients injured years ago when he fell down stairs at work had messed up his knees. Later he realized his neck was hard and stiff too. By then he’d changed careers, but the pain and tightness continued. In Colorado, a qualified acupuncturist or Chinese Medicine professional are fully trained to provide you with acupuncture and dry needling. Insurance covers these in office visits with us too!
So what can you expect for results? Most patients even ones with chronic pain in the neck found acupuncture reduced the pain by 70-99%. Many discover they maintain the relief for 4-6 weeks or more and then schedule ‘tune-ups’ like you do with dental cleaning, car oil changes, or getting manicures and pedicures. The best part is health insurance covers acupuncture OR dry needling. Let our office make a quick inquiry for you dry needling uses a specific code.
Acupuncture Injection Therapy Better Than Cortisone
- Remember my client with the fall? With acupuncture, we achieved a 60% reduction in pain and an increase in movement of 45%. That’s good since the injury was very old and there is degeneration, but he wanted to try acupuncture injections to see how much better his chronic neck pain would improve.
The great news – he is over 90% pain-free! He has about 80% better movement, and his tightness is gone.
How’s Your Micronutrients?
5. As strange as it sounds you are what you eat and sometimes you’re not. Recently a client came in struggling with insomnia and nothing else. She proudly announced that she had no other problems. So we did a micronutrient test and a Methylation test. These two together revealed a large problem with her ability to absorb minerals in her food or orally. These are genetic problems that are treated in our office. It had taken four months before she began to sleep something she had never done more than 45 minutes at a time her entire life.
So what does this have to do with chronic neck pain? She referred many people some with various types of pain all who had problems with their micronutrients, hormones, or methylation. Sometimes we do acupuncture, add fitness and still don’t fix our discomfort because our body can’t restore balance if our ability to absorb our food is low or our hormones are off.
Personally, I don’t know why you have chronic neck pain my job is to help you find out and get you feeling better. Don’t give up on yourself. Don’t buy into the story that you’re getting old or pain happens with age. This isn’t true! Many of these people are in their 60’s or older. Dealing with chronic neck pain can be difficult some things can improve it and help you.
Find out more by calling our offce. Call today!
720-515-4602
images from BigStock and by John Arano, Jesper Aggergaard, and rawpixel on Unsplash
by Debra Arko Novotny | Feb 11, 2016 | Functional Medicine, Nutrition, Products
Why Consider Medical Foods
Chronic pain can change your life. It can make you feel exhausted as you try to live normally. Western pharmaceuticals only worsen your ability to function.The use of medical foods is on the rise with many but first lets talk a little about chronic pain. Wondering what means your pain is chronic? Here is a short list:
- Chronic pain is any pain that lasts more than 12 weeks.
- An injury such as a back sprain can become Chronic.
- An illness or viral infection also can be the cause.
- Often there is no apparent cause of the pain. It gradually begins or starts suddenly.
Chronic Pain And The Nervous System
Chronic pain is different from acute pain because it affects the nervous system. It is a disease of the nervous structures, the nutrients, amino acids, and the neurotransmitter metabolism. This is why medical foods are far more useful but what are these metabolic arrangements.
Our nervous system relays messages of pain to our brain. These are throbbing, stabbing, and piercing discomfort. The message flows from muscles, ligaments, bones, and joints. It destroys your sense of who you are because you cannot think about much else.
Amino Acids play a significant part in our cells, muscles and tissues carrying out essential functions like giving our cells their shape. With depletion or break down you may have tendon pain. They are also necessary for healing and repairing wounds, tissue, and muscles, bones, skin and hair. Amino acids help with the removal of all kinds of waste deposits produced in connection with the metabolism.
Let’s not forget nutrients. If your body does not get enough all things within your body, begin to break down. There is something called methylation and if you cannot absorb all the minerals and vitamin in your food or supplements taking them does not matter.
With nutrition, the thing to remember is if you have chronic pain most of the nutrients are going to combat tissue damage and inflammation. B vitamins, for instance, assist with stress relief, hormones, and other physical processes. If they are being used to relieve the pressure of your discomfort, there’s little for other functions.
The Role Of Neurotransmitters
A brain chemical called neurotransmitters communicate data between our body and brain. They become important because they convey messages amongst nerve cells. Your using neurotransmitters right now. They are used to tell your heart to beat, your lungs to breathe, and your stomach to digest. They are so important that low levels make you feel foggy minded, you cannot sleep, and emotionally you are not yourself. Weight is affected keeping you from being able to lose weight.
It is not only your pain keeping you awake at night your brain needs neurotransmitters to work properly.
For over a decade scientific research has taken place focusing on these underlying physiologic changes created by chronic pain. This study revealed that individual amino acid based medical foods improve your body’s ability to reduce pain and inflammation.
Clinical success with medical food such as Teramine, Treadone, and Percura. Success using medical food results in reducing pain, inflammation, and improving your daily function.
Teramine, Treadone, and Percura are not drugs. They are designed to supply the nervous system with the necessary fuel to deal with the high demands of a body in deep pain. These substances tested in multiple studies are useful without dangerous side-effects.
Accent On Health Wellness uses medical foods to fight chronic pain and other disabling health problems. Our office found that these natural pharma nutrients help many of our patients. Are you ready to learn more? Contact our office.
Statements and images here are in part are taken from Physician Therapeutics – a targeted medical pharma company. http://www.ptlcentral.com/
Find out more by calling our offce. Call today!
720-515-4602
other images copyrights: Bigstock, Dreamstime, Fotolia
by Debra Arko Novotny | Jan 24, 2016 | Functional Medicine
What You Don’t Know About Thyroid Disorders Could Kill You
Four years ago Karly couldn’t understand why she was gaining so much weight. Most days she told her husband that she felt like she was getting a cold or the flu. Then her hair started falling out. Her symptoms suggested she consider thyroid disorders.
Medical doctors told her nothing was wrong that it was stress. They tested her thyroid telling her is was slightly low but nothing to worry about. She tried another doctor who looked at the results and again told her to go home; new moms often had trouble losing weight.
This was her second child; she went to yet another specialist who told her that worry was causing her hair to fall out.
Thyroid disorders aren’t specific to women. Many suffer from mild to severe conditions that are entirely missed or misdiagnosed.
The American Thyroid Association (ATA) states that “women are five to eight times more likely than men to have thyroid problems and one woman in eight will develop a thyroid disorder during her lifetime. Undiagnosed thyroid disease may put patients at risk for certain serious conditions, such as cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis, and infertility.”
The association goes on to say, “Pregnant women with undiagnosed or inadequately treated hypothyroidism have an increased risk of miscarriage, preterm delivery, and severe developmental problems in their children. Most thyroid diseases are life-long conditions that can be managed with medical attention.”
Don’t take chances always make sure your thyroid is always healthy [menopausal women read more here]; it’s too important to your future.
At 44, Karly said she had trouble with energy and she felt depressed now; was she really just not coping with being a mom of two?
Sometimes mothers are discounted as just being overwhelmed and at other times are given thyroid medication when it’s not their health problem.
It’s important to have a complete Thyroid panel that includes Reverse T3 too. It’s good to test cortisol, and other hormones at the same time. A final recommendation is to test micronutrients as well.
Recently I had a patient who had a low thyroid result on her test. Her Zinc was also deficient and her vitamin A low. Both of these affect the TSH and function of the thyroid. Her medical doctor wanted to place her on a standard prescription for the Thyroid. Instead, she retested with our office including micronutrients. She chose to try natural medicine instead of prescriptions and began feeling better. We retested everything in four months and her thyroid levels had almost normalized. After a year, she was normal and feeling happy and healthy.
Thyroid problems are real, though. Karly’s ‘slightly low’ thyroid was ignored for nearly four years turned out to be much more when we looked at her T3 and other hormone levels. She is slowly feeling better, losing weight, and her depression has lifted.
Her TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) levels were very low while her other thyroid hormone levels (serum thyroxine, or T4, and triiodothyronine, or T3) were way up.
A medical doctor would diagnose this as hyperthyroidism, a thyroid disorder. According to the National Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases Information Service, it affects 1 in 100 Americans. Remember WE DO NOT DIAGNOSIS at our office.
A small gland the thyroid is found at the base of the neck it secretes the hormone, Thyroxine. Like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone it affects our wellbeing.
Your body temperature is regulated by this gland and it keeps your brain clear and your heart pumping in rhythm.
These are the two most common thyroid health problems, Hypothyroidism, and hyperthyroidism. Hypothyroidism causes a slowing of body functions. Cardiovascular issues like high cholesterol or other heart disease are complications; this is why it’s important to treat an imbalance.
Women And Thyroid Disorders
- Typical symptoms of hypothyroidism often are:
- Weight gain
- Dry or brittle hair
- Memory problems
- Irritability and depression
- Higher cholesterol levels
- Fatigue
- Cold intolerance
- Slower heart rate
- Constipation, or sluggish bowel
The Differences Between Hypothyroidism And Hyperthyroidism
Hyperthyroidism, on the other hand, means the thyroid secretes too many hormones. The body systems will speed up.
These are the symptoms of hyperthyroidism:
- Thyroid gland enlargement
- Sleep disturbances
- Fatigue
- Weight loss
- Heat intolerance
- Frequent bowel movements
- Tremors
- Nervousness and irritability
Recently the National American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists recommended narrowing the definition of “normal” TSH to between 0.3 and 3.0. The association also suggested checking other thyroid readings and other hormones.
Women suffer from thyroid related issues more often than men. Most health problems begin in the early thirties. If you have any of these symptoms, know that health insurance often covers these lab tests in our office.
- Family history plays a part too. These are risk factors:
- A history of radiation treatment to the thyroid area
- A family history of thyroid disorder
- Diabetes or another autoimmune disorder
- Hormonal changes, such as those that occur during pregnancy or menopause
- Gender: Women constitute 80 percent of all thyroid cases.
- Age: Incidence of hypothyroidism is higher in menopausal women than in very young women.
Our office does not diagnose illness though we can help you with the proper natural medicine and Chinese Medicine to treat these problems and more. As a specialist in women’s health, our priority is you.
Schedule your appointment with Dr. Deb today!
720-515-4602
Resources: http://www.thyroid.org/media-main/about-hypothyroidism/
Image coypyrights: Fotolia, BigStock
Supplements are confusing. Which one do you need and how much now to add to the confusion you have to think about which ‘form’ is right for you. I hope to take a boring topic and make it useful and fun. Did you know there are Nine different types of Magnesium and they’re not all great for you but you need this supplement!
