Functional Approaches to Pain Management: Highlights of the 15th Symposium on Functional Medicine

Pain is a highly individual experience, and therefore demands a personalized approach for its management. For each patient, various psychosocial, biomedical, and environmental factors converge to produce pain that is unique to that individual.

Oximation in Practice: Listen for the Fuse, Don’t Wait for the Bomb

Whether you’re looking at arthritis or atherosclerosis, psoriasis or sinusitis, asthma or acne, the “usual suspects” of inflammation and oxidative damage, aka “oximation” show up in the affec

Some of the most important things I learned in medical school I learned from an oncologist, Dr. Phillip Perriman. He stressed the importance of keeping up with medical research by reading journals, and gave me my first exposure to the power of fruits and vegetables to influence cancer risk.

GGT: An Accurate, Inexpensive Predictor of Cardiometabolic Risk

Gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT) is a hepatic enzyme that indicates levels of oxidative stress in the liver. A large body of research suggests that it can also predict onset of insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. At under $10 per test, it could be a very valuable asset in clinical practice.

IDA Medical Foundation Seeks to “Democratize” Prevention

Cutting edge early risk detection tests and preventive medicine have become the privilege of the wealthy. Dr. James Ehrlich, a pioneer in cardiovascular risk assessment, hopes to change that with his new Identify Disease in Advance Foundation, which will bring state-of-the-art preventive medicine to people who can least afford it but would most benefit from it.

Chronic Fatigue, Cardiomyopathy & Oxidative Stress: New Thinking Opens New Approaches

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), one of the most vexing conditions for patients and doctors alike, reflects a state of oxygen toxicity, and management of oxidative stress appears to be a key to reversing the fatigue, pain, and neuropsychological complaints associated with this disorder, says Paul R. Cheney, MD, PhD, a pioneer in the clinical research of CFS.

Breast Thermography: Can It Open a Window for Breast Cancer Prevention?

Breast thermography is safe, radiation-free, relatively inexpensive, and it can detect early and possibly reversible metabolic and vascular changes associated with later growth of breast cancer. Though underutilized in the US, it is poised for a resurgence.

Electrodermal Testing: What It Can and Cannot Tell

Based on the idea that organ system functions are reflected in galvanic currents on the skin surface, electrodermal testing has become a very popular “alternative” diagnostic technique. Available data suggest that there are electrical currents on the skin, and one study shows that ET can, indeed, detect internal problems. But data are scant, and there’s no evidence this controversial technique can identify specific causes of internal problems, as ET practitioners often claim it can.

Hypothyroidism: Very Common But Easily Missed

Hypothyroidism is very common, and it has serious health consequences, including cardiovascular disease, obesity, menorrhagia, infertility, polycystic ovarian syndrome, depression, psoriasis, and urticaria. But you’ll often miss it if you rely solely on conventional diagnostic criteria.

When Doing the Right Thing Means Choosing the Lesser of a Few Evils

Greater eco-consciousness means making better choices about the materials we use. But sometimes, there are no clear-cut “good” substitutes for toxic materials, and the choice comes down to selecting the least impactful of available options. Case in point: compact fluorescent lightbulbs which save energy but contain mercury.

Hair Analysis, Antioxidant Testing: Popular with Patients, But Are They Clinically Valid?

In their effort to get a grip on their health, many people are utilizing “alternative” diagnostic tests that claim to identify nutrient deficiencies, environmental toxins, and disease risk factors. Some of these tests are backed good science, others are not, but even the legitimate ones may not be able to provide the type of guidance that patients are seeking. In Part One of this series, Cathy Creger Rosenbaum looks at hair analysis and antioxidant testing.