This will begin some of our case studies, just how we use lifestyle changes and nutritional supplements for common health issues that conventional doctors treat first with a prescription med,\u00a0often a second medication added to deal with side effects from the first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Phyllis B. was a long time patient of mine, whose medical problems, generally minor, were long under control and who came in only for annual check-ups. As I\u2019d just seen her last month, today\u2019s visit obviously meant some new problem had emerged.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m here for Kirk,\u201d she began. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019d only met her husband Kirk once, years earlier. An accountant, as I remembered. The phrase, \u201cKirk never goes to doctors\u201d, had stuck in my mind. Apparently, he\u2019d recently been going to a doctor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAt Kirk\u2019s office, they did one of the blood pressure screening things \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was going to interrupt, \u201cI know, I know, they found high blood pressure and you\u2019re worried,\u201d because doctors always interrupt their patients, finish their sentences, and so forth. We can\u2019t help it. We the ultimate \u2018know-alls\u2019. But I\u2019m working on this bad habit and kept my mouth shut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey found high blood pressure. I\u2019m worried about him because he was sent to the doctor near the office who convinced him to start some pills. Now his blood pressure is down, but he\u2019s not the same man.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMeaning?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFor one thing, they also found high cholesterol and now he\u2019s depressed at the prospect of taking a bunch of pills for the rest of his life. For another, I can see he\u2019s not as energetic, he\u2019s become absent minded and now he says his muscles hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I said, \u201cWell, that and the absent mindedness could be side effects from the cholesterol med. Will he come in to see me? For someone who doesn\u2019t like doctors, two physicians in his life might be a culture shock.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo, he\u2019ll come. He liked how you helped me without any prescription drugs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kirk did try to look cheerful when he arrived but it had been years since I\u2019d seen him and barely recognized him because of all the weight he\u2019d put on. I guessed he was now also prediabetic and this was confirmed on the lab tests he handed me. I couldn\u2019t think of any accountant jokes to cheer him up so we went right down to business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He showed me the numbers from the office Health Fair where his high blood pressure was first found. They really weren\u2019t all that bad, and I told him so immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with this,\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe doctor said it was pretty bad. The cholesterol, I mean. He wants to start me on some medicine for it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Like his blood pressure, his cholesterol levels were mildly elevated. I thought his doctor must be a \u2018cup-half-empty\u2019 sort of person. Me, I\u2019m more optimistic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I did want to be tactful, however.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cListen, Kirk, I agree with your other doctor that if left alone, as-is and untreated, your blood pressure and your cholesterol could potentially knock ten years off your life. Another test on this list, called Hemoglobin A-1-c shows that you\u2019re just on the risk of being diabetic.\u00a0Those are the statistics, pure and simple. You\u2019re not smoking anymore, are you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow did you know I used to smoke?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You wrote, \u201cQuit 15 years ago\u201d, on your intake form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He laughed embarrassedly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How about cannabis?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEven longer ago.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I pointed out that recent research<\/a> has shown that if you smoke or eat cannabis on a daily basis (for non medical reasons) you will significantly increase your risk for a stroke or a heart attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So Phyllis, Kirk and I plotted out a lifestyle program that I knew would improve his numbers if Kirk followed our instructions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLook\u201d, I began. \u201cI\u2019ll make this pure and simple. You\u2019ve got what we term \u2018lifestyle\u2019 diseases. Your lifestyle basically stinks. You have no business eating Philadelphia Cheese Steaks for lunch. You never exercise, and walking around your office does not count. And now your body is sending messages that it\u2019s very disappointed in you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo here\u2019s what you can do. First, go from here to a pharmacy and purchase your own blood pressure unit. Take it to work, place it next to your computer screen and at least once a day, record your blood pressure. Get a notebook for this and bring it along on every visit to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSince I don\u2019t want to offend your other doctor, just come in here for some sessions with our nutritionist, Olivia Darrow.<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kirk interrupted me. \u201cI only saw him once, and that couldn\u2019t have been for more than ten minutes. I\u2019ll be coming here if that\u2019s okay.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I continued, \u201cI assume Phyllis does the cooking and you the eating, so ask her to attend a few of these nutrition sessions. You\u2019re going to live by something called the DASH diet<\/a> which stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, one more thing, and this is that hard part. I would like you to go over to the health club near your office and hire a personal fitness trainer. It\u2019s an out of pocket expense but you can probably finagle a tax deduction out of it for health related purposes. You need cardio, core and muscle strength training. The health club guy will know what to do. I\u2019ll start you on some supplements and herbs that will protect your heart and lower your cholesterol a little but you may not need them at all in a few weeks. When your blood pressure is nice and low, I\u2019ll trim away the prescription meds.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kirk moaned, \u201cThis is a lot to do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Phyllis (gently) punched his arm, \u201cJust this morning you were wondering if you\u2019d live long enough to see your grandchildren graduate high school. Don\u2019t complain!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n From me, \u201cIt only seems that way because you\u2019re starting from zero, doing nothing at all for your health to actually taking some positive steps. You\u2019d be surprised how many of your accountant buddies pay attention to what they eat or stop at a health club three or four times a week. All this will soon be second nature to you, especially when you start seeing the pounds come off and your numbers improve.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And of course, Kirk DID do well. I knew he would. First, he had Phyllis as his wife and she wanted her old Kirk back. She became an extraordinary cook, not only reducing the salt and fat in his diet but inventing new ways to get Kirk his five servings of fruit and veggies each day. His packed portion controlled lunches were the envy of his office. His personal fitness trainer toned up muscles Kirk hadn’t used since college and his clothing salesmen prospered as Kirk shrank from a 42 to a 36 waist.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n When Phyllis came in a few months later for her annual physical, she brought a copy of Kirk’s at-home blood pressure readings, his weight, and his cholesterol levels. \u201cThese are with no medications at all. My husband, the health nut!\u201d Supplements for blood pressure:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Supplements for cholesterol:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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