Ear Infections and Antibiotics

On November 16th, the Journal of the American Medical Association published a study asserting that antibiotics only moderately increase the rate of cure of ear infections, while also significantly increasing the risk of side effects, including diarrhea and rashes. It found that 80 out of 100 children would recover in a few days without antibiotics, while 91 out of 100 would recover with antibiotics. The children in the study who did not take antibiotics relied on agents to reduce pain and fever during their ear infections.

The reasoning behind this is simple. Ear infections can be divided into three main types. Acute otitis media (AOM), or an acute infection of the middle ear, is the most common type of ear infection in children. Another type is acute otitis media with effusion, in which the area behind the eardrum fills with fluid.

And otitis externa is an infection of the outer ear, more commonly called "swimmer's ear," due to its prominence amongst swimmers. Of these, otitis externa is the only one caused mainly by bacteria. AOM may be caused by bacteria or viruses, while AOM with effusion is caused by viruses. Antibiotics are only effective against bacterial infections.

This is an interesting conundrum. Parents who take their suffering children to the doctor do not particularly like to hear that their child does not need an antibiotic. They expect to walk out with something in their hand that will address the infection. The thing is, ear infections can often be successfully and naturally treated at home. Employing the following measures can contribute to quick resolution of an ear infection.

• Use warming socks. This is perhaps the most important treatment for an ear infection. Make sure your child's feet are warm by either having your child take a warm bath or shower, or just a simple foot bath. (If your child has a fever, you probably can skip this step.) Wring out a pair of cotton socks in cold water until they are just damp. Put them on your child's feet, then put a pair of wool socks on top of them. Immediately have your child go to bed or take a nap. This will increase lymphatic flow away from the ear and drain it quickly. It will also stimulate a fever. And your child will sleep deeply and comfortably. (If you're a parent, you know just how blessed this can be!)
• Fast. Remember when doctors used to say "don't take anything by mouth, except for liquids"? This is it. There are a few exceptions to this rule, like chicken broth or miso soup (my personal favorite). Otherwise, when someone has a fever, usually their appetite is suppressed. The body needs all the energy it can to fight that infection, and since digestion takes 60% of a body's energy, this makes sense.
• Drink. Water is, of course, highly recommended here. But often, people with fevers are also dehydrated and sweating out precious electrolytes. As stated above, chicken soup and miso soup are excellent choices to help with replenishing electrolytes.
• Rest. Again, an ailing person's body is trying to fight an infection, so the more a person can rest, the better off they will be. (This does not include lying down and watching stimulating TV shows!)
• Gentle movement. If your child can move around a bit (i.e., walk), this may help move blood around and help him or her to feel better. But this is only to your child's tolerance; do not force them to move if they don't want to.
• Avoid medicines that reduce fevers. Considering that I recommend using warming socks that stimulate a fever, this should make sense. Bacteria and viruses often are destroyed in temperatures above 102 degrees. If you can maintain a high fever, your body will be able to mount a more effective response. Taking anti-inflammatories blunt your body's immune response and may prolong ear infections. Read more information here on why fevers are good, when and how to lower a fever safely and naturally, and when to go to a hospital if a fever goes too high.
• Consider vitamin D. There is often a high correlation between an inadequate immune system and low levels of vitamin D. The easiest way to increase one's vitamin D, of course, is to sunbathe regularly, exposing plenty of skin to the sun. But at this time of year, it's often too cold to do this, and vitamin D supplementation comes in handy. For children, the guideline is 1,000 IUs per 25 pounds of body weight.

Some people swear by other remedies like garlic oil or hydrogen peroxide placed in the ear. But these are NOT recommended if there is a perforated eardrum.

If your child is prone to repeated ear infections, this may be a reason to see a naturopathic doctor in your area. Naturopathic doctors can address not only the reason why your child suffers ear infections regularly, but can also recommend measures to support your child's health in general. And the healthier your child can be today, the healthier they will be in the future.

Best wishes for a season free of ear infections. But if your child does end up getting an ear infection, you now have powerful tools to treat it effectively!

My Vision for Naturopathic Medicine

A year ago, I went to an open house at a clinic near my old office in south Denver. Among the attendees was a medical doctor who called himself a holistic doctor. He was telling an interested chiropractor about what he does for patients (his example: diabetes, working with insulin, but also with diet and lifestyle). The chiropractor immediately said, “That’s good to know. I’ve been looking for someone to refer patients to. I have some that are dealing with autoimmune conditions and some pain that I can’t really control, and…do you have a card?”

I had to leave the open house very shortly thereafter. I was thoroughly offended that he would not consider one of us, who are the original and real holistic doctors, as someone to refer to. (Check out my website for more information about naturopathic doctors and their educational standards.) I understand that this chiropractor was not educated as to who we are and what we do, but the disconnect between what I know and his complete ignorance about our medicine just shook me. For the rest of the night, I ended up very angry and jealous of medical doctors (and for a short while, even contemplated going to medical school to become an MD so “I could show them!”).

I drew upon this experience as a springboard for my vision…a world in which naturopathic doctors, above all other health care professionals, are considered first as holistic doctors. A world in which people know about naturopathic doctors as a matter of course. A world where we’re seen as experts in not just natural medicine, but health in general. A world where we can claim our role as primary care physicians, and where we can reconcile our education to that role. A world where we regularly order labs, perform physical exams, and work in tandem with other health care professionals for the ultimate benefit of the patient.

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Think of me as your primary care provider, the one you turn to first for whatever ailments you may have, just like the medical doctor you see right now.
Think of me as your primary care provider, the one who really gets to know you.
Now also think of me as your primary care provider, the one who uses powerful, effective, natural means that your body recognizes and needs, to promote your health with a minimum of side effects.

I am that primary care provider who may keep you away from short office visits that are impersonal and do not honor who you are.
I am that primary care provider who may keep you away from unnecessary, invasive surgery.
I am that primary care provider who may keep you away from drugs that help a symptom but miss the cause and ultimately make you sicker.

I am that primary care provider who will take what I know of the human body and how it works, and work with you with the materials that have nurtured us for thousands of years, from which we have grown and flourished to become the beautiful beings that we are.
I am that primary care provider who will ultimately provide you with the best knowledge and the best tools with which you can carve out the best health for yourself possible.

Think of me as your primary care provider.

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Do you have health issues that aren't being adequately addressed by conventional medicine? Naturopathic care may be the answer you're looking for. Visit my website for more information about naturopathic medicine, and begin your journey toward optimal health!

Water bottles: plastic vs. glass

As I mention in this video, it is prudent to stay away from plastic water bottles that leach out bisphenol A, or BPA. For those of you who are curious about which water bottles those are, they're the ones that seem virtually indestructible - the prototypical Nalgene water bottles. Ironically, Nalgene water bottles were originally marketed as water bottles that would not leach plastic byproducts. They once were seen as the environmentally sound brand. Oops.

So what is the big deal about BPA? Studies have linked it to a number of estrogen-sensitive conditions: obesity, breast cancer (even the CDC acknowledges this), premature onset of puberty in girls (the average age of menarche, or a woman’s first menstrual cycle, has dropped by at least one year, if not more, over the past 50 years or so), gynecomastia (development of breast tissue in males) and birth defects. BPA was actually used as a estrogen mimicker in lab tests during the 1930s before diethylstilbestrol (DES) replaced it as a stronger estrogen substitute. (Babies were exposed to DES when their mothers took it to prevent miscarriages. Unfortunately, we discovered that “DES daughters” experienced a greater risk of vaginal and cervical cancer, infertility, and pregnancy complications. It was subsequently taken off the market years ago. But I digress.)

Which plastics leach BPA? Apparently, the hard plastics (like Nalgene) that are imprinted with the number 7 inside the recycling symbol are the ones to avoid. According to this website, plastic #7 is a catch-all for “miscellaneous plastics.” This includes Tupperware. Often, plastic #7 is not recyclable.

There are a few arguments against studies showing the dangers of BPA. First, some studies have shown that BPA doesn’t really increase the risk of, say, cancer. These studies, though, don’t take into account the synergy that occurs when other compounds interact with BPA, and the combination can be particularly dangerous. (Also consider that adipose tissue, or fat, in itself tends to favor the production of estrogen. Being obese may also act synergistically with BPA. With obesity being rampant in society today, this issue becomes even more vital to address.) One could also argue that these studies have all been performed on rats and not humans. Unfortunately, humans are often more sensitive to toxins than rats, particularly when fetuses are exposed to them. BPA is no exception. (And who would willingly undergo a study that exposes them to a potentially carcinogenic substance?)

Stick with glass water bottles if you're looking for an environmentally sound alternative to plastic water bottles. If you want to get something more stylish and perhaps more resilient than glass, there are many companies that sell excellent metal water bottles. Like glass, these water bottles do not leach out harmful substances, and they are completely recyclable after being used. They just cost a bit more.

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Do you have health issues that aren't being adequately addressed by conventional medicine? Naturopathic care may be the answer you're looking for. Visit my website for more information about naturopathic medicine, and begin your journey toward optimal health!

Article commentary: Can These Foods Prevent Diabetes?

I was browsing MSN.com today and found an article by Prevention entitled "Can These Foods Prevent Diabetes?" I always look at these online articles with more than a pinch of skepticism, since some of the information in them can be misleading or downright wrong. Although there is some good information here, this article is not an exception. Let's evaluate the foods Prevention has chosen to be good for diabetes.

1. Coffee. Yes, there is evidence that the caffeine in coffee can increase insulin receptor sensitivity, thus helping to decrease the risk of diabetes. But that's only part of the story. Caffeine also increases the amount of cortisol in the body. Cortisol is the body's main stress hormone, normally secreted during the "fight or flight" response during times of acute stress. But if cortisol is elevated chronically (say, with stressful jobs or when ingesting high amounts of caffeine), it can result in increased abdominal fat and increased blood glucose levels, neither of which are desirable if you're trying to avoid diabetes. Besides, not many people regularly drink coffee black, with no sugar or cream or flavored syrup. That mocha frap or caramel latte will really undermine any efforts to prevent diabetes.
2. Vitamin D. I have no issues with this one. Vitamin D deficiency is endemic in our culture, and has been linked with a variety of chronic diseases, including diabetes. But even the highest food sources of vitamin D are insufficient to bring our body's stores of this hormone back to normal. (And yes, I did say hormone. Strictly speaking, vitamin D is not a vitamin.) Even if you take a daily vitamin D supplement including 5,000 or 10,000 IUs, it's possible that weeks or even months will go by before levels normalize, depending on the extent of the deficiency. The best way to get vitamin D back to normal is to get lots of sunshine exposure to as much skin as possible...much like our ancestors did. Just avoid excessive sun exposure leading to sunburns. In times when you cannot get sun exposure, taking high doses of vitamin D is recommended; 5,000 IU is a good daily dose, and overdosing is highly unlikely. (For more information, check out the Vitamin D Council's website.)
3. Low-fat dairy foods. First off, what in the world is ice cream doing on a list of foods that can prevent diabetes - even if it's low-fat ice cream? Yipes! This sends a terrible message. But on to low-fat dairy foods of all sorts. The study referenced by this article may or may not be accurate; even the study's author admits that people who eat low-fat dairy foods tend to have healthier dietary habits in general. If calcium is the key nutrient here (and evidence thus far doesn't really show that this is the case), then dairy foods like cheese and yogurt are indeed the best sources for calcium. (Incidentally, there is evidence linking dairy intake among young children to type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune condition also known as insulin dependent diabetes.)
4. Cinnamon. In many alternative health circles, cinnamon has been accepted as an effective blood sugar moderator, and it is now easy to find supplements for diabetes that include either powdered cinnamon or cinnamon extract. It may take a long time before cinnamon is accepted by mainstream medicine as an effective treatment for blood sugar control. But in the meantime, it certainly doesn't hurt to include cinnamon in more liberal amounts in your diet, either. Try pork chops with a cinnamon rub, or add cinnamon to your morning oatmeal.
5. General dietary modifications. No problems here. I agree with this article's recommendations: Stop drinking sweetened drinks and substitute tea and water. Switch from refined grains to their unrefined brothers and sisters. Keep protein sources lean, and add more legumes to the diet. Eliminate trans fats. Increase intake of fish and nuts. And despite what the title of this part of the article says ("Eat for your genes"), these modifications are beneficial regardless of what your ancestry may be.
6. Carrots. If the active components here are carotenoids, then why stop at carrots? Taste the rainbow of fruits, vegetables, and spices! The brighter and more vivid the food, the better off you will be. Carotenoids are especially high in yellow/orange foods (like carrots, sweet potatoes, mangoes, and apricots), red/pink foods (tomatoes, salmon, cayenne, and pink grapefruit), and green foods (spinach, kale, and collard greens). Since carotenoids are fat-soluble, it is a good idea to eat them in combination with a healthy oil (such as olive oil) or butter to optimize absorption.
7. Fiber. The link between high fiber intake and decreased blood sugar surges is well-established - particularly for soluble fiber. It can slow the ability of the intestines to absorb sugars that are the result of normal digestion of carbohydrates. Shoot for 40 grams of fiber a day from foods like apples and oatmeal...with cinnamon!
8. Seeds. The key nutrient here is magnesium. And much like vitamin D, magnesium deficiency is rampant in society today. There is actually stronger evidence that magnesium can help prevent diabetes more than chromium (often viewed as the classic nutrient to take when trying to moderate blood glucose). Sunflower seeds may be a good source, as the article points out, but leafy greens, cashews, almonds, most legumes, and even chocolate chips (in moderation!) contain more magnesium.

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Do you have health issues that aren't being adequately addressed by conventional medicine? Naturopathic care may be the answer you're looking for. Visit my website for more information about naturopathic medicine, and begin your journey toward optimal health!