Radio Naturopath Episode 470: Long Haul Lyme, Sunscreen and Exfolation, Hot Cocoa and Other Hot Drinks

Today I reviewed my most recent naturopathic visit and my ongoing plan to help my chronic Lyme. I'm in  it for the long haul! I reminded people not only to hydrate in the cold weather, but to apply sunscreen and lip balm with SPF,  because you can still get wind and sunburned in cold weather. We also talked about some lovely hot beverages to enjoy this time of year, including hot cocoa, golden milk, and tea, and their benefits.

And we talked about the incidence of osteoarthritis in the US.

Radio Naturopath Episode 468: 2024 Thanksgiving: Gratitude, First Nation Traditions, Recipes

This week, the show was played the day before Thanksgiving, at a time where people are starting to make their Thanksgiving preparations, or God forbid, traveling to wherever they're going for Thanksgiving. I made it a Thanksgiving companion episode! I talked about various ways to experience and express gratitude, such as sincere Thank yous, writing a gratitude journal, and mindfully identifying things in your environment for which to be grateful. I also talked about honoring First Nation folks and decolonization. I also talked about some Native American dishes to share at Thanksgiving, such as wild rice dishes, quinoa, and the Three Sisters, beans, corn, and winter squash. I made both!

Radio Naturopath Episode 460: Lisinopril finally! More Weight Loss Basics

This week, I talk about my jump to the Dark Side. Well, not really. Hey, did you know that the term "going to the Dark Side" was popularized by Star Wars? I'm going to try another BLOOD PRESSURE MEDICATION, and hopefully this time I can take it and stay on it! We're going to try low dose lisinopril, an ACE inhibitor. The more I talked with various cycling friends, the  more of them I discovered were taking it, feeling fine, and enjoying riding their bikes as much as they liked! So my PCP prescribed it, and first dose will go down the hatch tonight. I'll report on how I'm feeling, hoping for no dizziness!

We continued the series on weight loss, some basic good advice on lifestyle choices that can help. Drinking water, reducing carbs, reducing stress, eating produce and fiber, all good! All of those things are basic habits that are great for healing from anything. Ron also read off some calorie, fat and sugar content of some very large coffee-based drinks available at a popular regional establishment. A large version of one of them had 1100 calories! Pair that with a glazed jelly stick, and that's all your calories for the day! We particularly talked about Neuropeptide Y, which gets stimulated when you eat fat and starch or sugar together. It turns off your satiety signals, so you wind up eating most of the pizza, or the entire pint of ice cream! So avoiding large portions of fat and sugar together is a good idea. 

Radio Naturopath Episode 450: Brain Freeze, Hydration, Summer Heat, Bug Spray

I thought it would be useful to review help for surviving the heat. We talked about BRAIN FREEZE, which has real medical causes but is generally not a terribly serious condition! We also talked about hydration, how to keep cool in the heat, natural sunscreens like titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, and natural insect repellents like lavender, garlic, cinnamon, lemon eucalyptus, and rose geranium. It's that time of year!

Radio Naturopath Episode 443: Lifestyle Changes to Lower Blood Pressure

This week, I started talking about the very important topic of hypertension, high blood pressure. Our focus this week was on basic lifestyle things to do to lower blood pressure. Some of it is SHOCKING! Stuff like: eat more vegetables and fruit, eat more clean protein, drink more water, get more exercise, stop smoking, do stress reducing activities like deep breathing, leisure walks in nature, yoga, and meditation, and get good quality and quantity of sleep. WHO WOULDA THUNKIT??? It's so important that we'll pick up on this next week, and include actual supplements that help with blood pressure. 

Radio Naturopath Episode 432: Lyme/Bartonella and Antibiotics, Natural Help for That Winter Cold

This week I talked about how I went to The Dark Side, and added an antibiotic to my Lyme/Bartonella protocol. I wanted to go after the active organisms that were nagging at me and giving me more tremors. I am continuing to take my Buhner herbs and modified citrus pectin, and added saccharomyces boulardii for extra protection. So far so good! Somewhat less tremors and better mood. I still don't feel done but I understand this is a long haul. 

Ron has a cold, and so far I don't! I thought it was timely to discuss how to prevent and treat colds. The usual: rest, nutrition, hydration, Epsom salt baths, herbs and vitamins, neti pot, nasal spray, gargle, the Wet Sock Treatment and throat compress. Do less stuff and take it easy!

Radio Naturopath Episode 431: Help for the Lyme-Bartonella Herx, Aging Gracefully, Ageism

This week, I talked about the slug through healing a long term illness and how frustrating it can be. Are my symptoms part of the healing process? Or are they evidence that I'm not doing enough? Should  I be doing something else? Should I justg be patient? So hard to know! I talked about the concern with adding antibiotics to a long term tick borne illness protoocol.

We continued with our series on healthy aging, talked about more things that are helpful such as staying active, drinking water, getting proper rest, having a positive attitude. We also discussed the problem with ageism, how there is an excess of it in the United States but not so much in other countries, like Japan, where they have terrific longevity. The most important thing is to have a positive outlook on aging!

Radio Naturopath Episode 404: Evaluation of Chest Pain, All About Atherosclerosis

This week, we reminded people to stay hydrated because IT'S HOT OUT THERE. Water, electrolytes, salt, shade, AC, swimming, all good! We moved on to the differential diagnosis of chest pain and how patients are evaluated if they have it. Word to the wise: go straight to the ER. If you're having a heart attack, they are better equipped to treat you if you go to the hospital. It could be just a muscle spasm, but it might be a heart attack or blood clot, which are life threatening. Nobody will think you went unnecessarily! Just go! We then talked about atherosclerosis, what and where it is, and how it's treated conventionally. We'll talk about natural treatments next week.

Radio Naturopath Episode 379: Happy New Year! Easy Resolutions for 2023; Weight Loss 101

Today, of course, I talked about New Year's resolutions, things people can resolve to do but aren't gargantuan and you don't feel like you've failed at them after two weeks. They are more things that take a little effort once in a while, like volunteering at a food pantry, creating a gratitude journal and writing in it only when you feel like it, and resolving to exercise because it feels good and not because you feel like you have to. Doing bite-sized self-improvement actions can be really helpful! Another one I emphasized is that it's OK to rest MORE, take some down time and do less stuff. Restoration and rejuvenation are really important this time of year!

I also reviewed the basic principles of fat loss, as I like to do periodically, and people are definitely interested in that this time of year. The most important thing? REST! It lowers cortisol, reducing blood sugar and insulin and making restorative hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone more available. The LEAST? Supplements. Fat loss happens in an enviroment of caloric restriction and hormonal balance. Supplements can only go so far in helping with that; you have to change what you do.

Radio Naturopath Episode 377: Winter Hydration, Healthy Natural Sweeteners

A patient came in recently and talked about how she forgets to drink water, especially this time of year. I reminded everyone how important that is, and encouraged keeping water around, flavoring it, choosing a temperature that works for you, and more. I also reminded people of a few healthy tips for dry hair!

Then we finished the topic of sweeteners, and talked about the health benefits of some natural caloric sweeteners. You still need to keep your added sugar consumption low, but there are actual nutrients in sweeteners like coconut sugar, real maple syrup, raw honey, and blackstrap molasses.