Earlier this year, iconic folk singer Joni Mitchell was found unconscious in her California home and immediately hospitalized. Although she was subsequently discharged and seems to be doing well (in late June her spokesperson said she’d experienced an aneurysm), the hospitalization revealed that she’d been plagued for years with Morgellons Disease. She describes her experience […]
Young Docs Vote To Suppress Alternative Medicine Info
Disappointing, but not surprising. In what’s been called a thinly veiled rebuke of physician media star Mehmet Oz, MD, delegates at this month’s meeting of the American Medical Association (AMA) supported resolutions that endeavor to hold physicians responsible for advice they dispense via the media. One of the resolutions, sponsored by residents and medical students, […]
A Nutritional Supplement For Memory That Actually Works
You walk into a room, pause, stare blankly ahead, and ask yourself, “What did I come in here for?” Seeing a familiar face in the theatre lobby, you exchange socially acceptable kindnesses and now the first act is ruined as you wrack your brain trying to remember the person’s name so you don’t embarrass yourself […]
Will You Live Another Five Years?
Of course you might not want to know the answer to that. Or, having worked diligently on healthful eating and regular exercise, you may want to know if it will all pay off. Now, in a joint project between Swedish statisticians and a half million (!) volunteers in the UK, there’s a simple questionnaire that […]
Magnesium Deficiency: The Real Emperor of All Maladies?
A great title, isn’t it? I wish it were mine. I happily give credit to article’s author, George Lundberg, MD, a physician known to virtually every doctor in the US as the longtime editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) before he was fired in 1999. The AMA disapproved of his publishing […]
Nutritional Treatments For Mental Health
If you’ve experienced depression, anxiety, or ADD or if you’re just curious about why everyone you know seems to be taking a mental health med these days, you might want to glance at “America’s State of Mind,” a report on our current and incredibly pervasive use of psychiatric drugs. With more than 20% of us […]
On Good Bacteria, Enemas, And Your Health
In certain cultures, like middle class Jews growing up in Hyde Park in the 1950s, everyone remembers being chased through their home by a well-meaning mom armed with an enema bag. “Dr. Nachman said you needed this for a poopy!” I am tearful, dressed only in whity-tighties until caught in the steel grip of my […]
How Safe Is Your Sushi?
There’s been some completely unnecessary bickering between conventional and integrative physicians the past few years over mercury, and to a lesser extent lead and other toxic metals like arsenic and cadmium. While everyone agrees that these substances are poisonous, they aren’t unanimous on the best ways to diagnose and treat toxic metal poisonings. However, there’s […]
Are Lifestyle Changes Impossible?
Many years ago, I became exhausted dealing with a friend who ignored my advice on living a healthy lifestyle. His attitude toward exercise was similar to Oscar Wilde’s “I often take exercise. Why only yesterday I had breakfast in bed.” His attitude toward food, especially restaurant food, seemed too often that he didn’t care if […]
B12 Deficiency: Still America’s #1 Missed Diagnosis
Over the years of writing Health Tips, I was surprised to discover that one I’d written a few years ago about vitamin B12 deficiency had received the most comments and questions from readers. Since there have been some interesting developments in both the diagnosis and treatment of B12 deficiency, and since B12 deficiency remains so […]
Understanding Leaky Gut
If you read much about health, you know about controversial diagnoses. The list might start with candida overgrowth, food sensitivities, and toxic mold syndrome and end with adrenal fatigue, heavy metal toxicity, chronic Lyme, and multiple chemical sensitivity syndrome. Because controversial conditions aren’t routinely covered in medical textbooks, they can easily fly under the radar […]
How Many Women With PMS Does It Take To Screw In A Light Bulb?
(Snarl your answer) “JUST ONE! ME! HEY, BUDDY–YOU GOT SOME SORT OF PROBLEM WITH THAT?!” Ah, PMS. Even if you don’t ever want a baby let’s see if we can fix things so you don’t have to put up with this crap for 30 years. I can write about PMS, and over the years have […]
Toxic Black Mold: Ugly, Yes, But Really How Dangerous?
I think black mold makes us nervous because we can see it, clinging to the bottom of the shower curtain, lurking in the corners of the recently flooded basement. You almost expect it to throb or make a vaguely humming noise. However, far more dangerous as a home hazard is the radioactive gas radon, but […]
Doctors Warn of New Dangers From…
It must be tough out there, being an intelligent person trying to keep track of what’s good for you and what’s not. Virtually every time I open a newspaper or see the news on TV or online, someone, somewhere, is issuing a new health warning. But really, how “dangerous” are these warnings and just how […]
A Computer Has Been Programmed To Medicate You
This will be scary. Sometime in the near future you may find yourself signing for an unexpected package. Opening it, you’ll see a prescription drug bottle with your name on it, your family doctor the prescribing physician. From the label, you’ll find you’ve received a three-month supply with three refills, meaning this prescription is good […]
When Your ER Visit For A Cold Becomes A 17-Page Fax To Me
The very idea that a bad cold you have checked out in the emergency room translates into thousands of dollars in health care expenses–and 17 pages of medical records faxed to me–should tell you something’s wrong with the health care system. I’ll explain how this happens, but first here are two of the most common […]
Vaccines, GMOs, and Big Pharma, All In One Film
Last week I received an email invitation to watch a free screening of Bought, subtitled “The Truth Behind Vaccines, Big Pharma, and Your Food.” Since all three are pretty hot topics, I settled back for what I knew would be one of those feel-bad movies. You know what I mean. Moonstruck is a feel-good movie, […]
Homeopathy and Children
About 25 years ago, when my boys started being born and getting acquainted with Chicago–and also before I became involved with alternative medicine–the oldest began to get ear infections. At the time, I was medical director of a big group of very conventional doctors and had access to some really good pediatricians. My son was […]
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety and Depression
If you’re troubled by chronic anxiety, panic attacks, or depression, you may be put off by pill-popping treatments. Maybe you had a bad experience in the past or you’re concerned about side effects. All in all, you’d rather not feel nostalgic about your libido or gain a single ounce. You know that psychotherapy makes the […]
Chronic Anxiety Speeds Aging (Plus Steps To Take Now)
A diagnosis of anxiety covers a lot of territory. Psychologists organize patients suffering symptoms of anxiety into groups that include generalized anxiety disorder (with or without panic attacks), obsessive-compulsive disorders, social anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders, and the various phobias (heights, snakes, germs, etc.). However, the symptoms are all pretty much the same. According to […]