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Mad as a Hatter: Does It Matter?

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If you think I’m talking about the character in Alice in Wonderland, think again. In today’s blog, I’m going to discuss how toxins, particularly heavy metals (like mercury) could affect everything, including our mental health. The phrase “mad as a hatter” was coined in the early 19th century when “hatters” or people who were making hats started experiencing uncontrollable trembling and appeared insane. Apparently, the hatters were using glue that contained mercury at the time. Mercury toxicity can manifest as loss of appetite, fatigue, depression, emotional instability, peripheral numbness, tremors, poor memory and cognitive function, decreased senses of touch, taste, hearing and vision, and neuromuscular disorders. High levels have also been implicated in acute myocardial infarction. All the symptoms just mentioned  are quite common. Therefore, it’s always a great idea to rule out the presence of (heavy metal) toxins in anyone experiencing the said symptoms or anyone who has a possible exposure to mercury (and that means all of us). Mercury is now found all over the place, including our air (esp. surrounding coal-powered plants), food and water supply. In fact, common sources include fish (all fish now, compared to just large fish during previous years), dental amalgams, skin lightening agents (very common in Asia), some hemorrhoidal creams, some vaccines, medical instruments such as thermometers and sphygmomanometers, batteries, electrodes, some fertilizers, the paper industry and finally, the gold industry. In fact, there were recent reports in the news of mercury/lead toxicity in parts of Nigeria where people are involved in gold mining.

To test if someone has elevated levels of metals, particularly mercury, one can have a blood, hair or (provocative) urine testing done with chelating agents like DMSA or DMPS ( although others may use EDTA or other natural chelating agents). A blood specimen is usually used to determine acute exposure while hair and urinary testing informs us more of chronic exposure. Labs that perform the latter tests include Doctor’s Data and Genova Diagnostics. In Asia, I would imagine that Vitech Pro, a company based in Bangkok, is the one that performs these tests. Regular blood tests for mercury could be performed at any reputable lab like Quest or LabCorp. What do you do if your levels are elevated? Besides avoidance of possible sources (kinda difficult nowadays), the accepted form of treatment is a process called chelation therapy.  This has to be done properly however. Otherwise, further damage can be done. Natural oral chelating agents include vitamin C, alpha lipoic acid, garlic, cilantro, onions, chlorella and some therapeutic-grade essential oils. EDTA is available in oral (least effective), suppository and injectable forms. Other chelating agents include penicillamine (for copper toxocity), deferoxamine (for iron poisoning), dimercaprol (for arsenic, mercury and lead), DMSA and DMPS. It is important to individualize treatment in any case. Factors such as kidney and liver function, nutritional deficiencies, allergies, and general patient constitution should all be taken into account when one embarks on a cleansing or detoxification program. For more information, please check out the American College for Advancement in Medicine web site, http://www.acam.org. and the American Academy of Environmental Medicine web site, http://www.aaemonline.org.

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Toxins Are Making You Fat…

Excess adipose tissue around a male's mid-section.

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It’s that time of the year again when people make New Year’s resolutions (that they can hopefully stick with until the motivation goes south). Perhaps, the best thing to do is to plan ahead but take things a day at a time. If things don’t go your way or to put it another way, if you blow it, just forget about it and go back on your merry way. No use crying over spilt milk, as the old saying goes.

One of the most common New Year’s resolutions is to lose weight. It’s not as easy as it used to be when simply cutting down caloric intake could do the trick. Nowadays, one has to consider the role that toxicity, stress, hormonal imbalance, inflammation, food sensitivities, and yes, even chronic pathogens, play in people’s health problems, including that of obesity.

Let’s first discuss the role of toxins in the obesity epidemic. Toxins are natural or man-made products that could wreak havoc on our physiology. With well-functioning organs of elimination, it’s not usually a problem. However, since we’re dealing with so many toxins in our food, air and water, it’s important that we assist these organs of detoxification and elimination in any way we can. Vitamins, minerals, herbs, essential oils, and homeopathic remedies are among the things we could use to facilitate that. Other activities that could help include exercise, fasting, massage, dry skin brushing, enemas/colon hydrotherapy, and Ayurverdic practices such as pranayama and abhyanga.

Toxins, if not metabolized and excreted, could accumulate and affect every system in the body. The once thought to be impenetrable blood-brain-barrier (protecting the brain) could actually be “infiltrated” by circulating toxins.

One popular theory behind the accumulation of fat in certain areas of the body is that these fat cells are actually trying to protect vital organs from these toxins. It’s a adaptive mechanism, if I may put it that way. Toxins are basically stored in fatty tissues. These toxins are subsequently released during a weight loss program. This explains why most people feel bad in an unsupervised, non-holistic weight management program. A holistic approach would consider adding a liver support protocol, among other things. It’s also wise to have someone’s baseline body composition measured prior to starting a program. Doing this initially and at regular intervals during the program guarantees that a person is losing fat and not muscle tissue.

Anyway, a natural result of detoxifying the body is fat loss. Therefore, anyone considering losing weight should begin with getting rid of junk internally (from their bodies) and from their environment (basic clean food, air and water).

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Autoimmune Diseases: Immune System Gone Loco?

Peppermint and Corsican mint plant (cropped) P...

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One of the most interesting concepts that I’ve learned is that so-called “autoimmune diseases” are caused by accumulation of toxins in the whole body (that means including the brain, which, we are led to believe is impermeable like an iron curtain because of the blood brain barrier). This is in contrast to the general belief that autoimmune diseases are caused by an “immune system gone haywire”. Standard treatments include the use of anti-inflammatories such as NSAID’s and steroids. If they don’t work, then the use of immuno-suppressive agents are next in line. Makes sense if you just want to address the symptoms of inflammation. However, doesn’t it make more sense to try to find out the cause of why the immune system’s gone haywire? Toxins from the environment including heavy metals, pesticides, synthetic hormones and microorganisms, as well as toxins produced from internal metabolism, all contribute to these toxic burden. Well-functioning detoxification organs help our bodies eliminate these toxic build up. However, there are those people who just aren’t able to keep up with the elimination of these wastes. Thus, symptoms of toxicity start to appear. These include allergies, asthma, digestive problems, fatigue, headaches, insomnia, joint pain, mood swings, skin problems and weight changes. Therefore, it makes sense to help rid the body of toxins and these can be done in different ways. Simple detoxification “procedures” that someone could easily incorporate include fasting, drinking more water, eating a plant-based diet, deep breathing and exercise. Other detox programs may need the guidance and support of a nutritionally-minded physician or other holistic practitioners. Nutritional supplements to support the organs of elimination and drainage such as kidneys, liver, lymphatics, lungs, colon and skin, all go a long way in improving someone’s over-all health. As far as auto-immune illnesses are concerned, natural anti-inflammatories can be used for symptomatic treatment while waiting for the “detox treatments” take effect. These include your essential fatty acids (from fish oil or krill oil or for vegetarians, flax seed oil), curcumin, and peppermint oil, among many others.

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We Need Bugs….

The good ones, that is. In a recent article in Scientific American magazine, it was reported that prophylactic bacteria may protect critically ill patients against pneumonia. The study was done at the Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska and was subsequently published earlier this month at the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. This is great considering that you rarely hear about preventive medicine in mainstream medical journals. Good bacteria such as Lactobacillus and Bifodibacterium are part of the body’s normal flora. Their numbers can decrease due to factors such as antibiotic intake, NSAID use, and even just by drinking tap water (chlorinated and fluoridated). When this imbalance between good and bad bacteria happens, conditions such as antibiotic-related diarrhea, small bowel bacterial overgrowth, candidiasis and “leaky gut syndrome” could occur. Symptoms of these conditions could range from gas, bloating, food sensitivities, allergies, joint pains, muscle aches, fatigue and brain fog. It’s really important to take probiotics on a regular basis nowadays (even without a history of taking antibiotics or NSAID’s because our water supply is not as safe as it used to be). Typical water purification methods usually remove particulate matter and certain microbes. It does nothing however for removal of heavy metals (lead, mercury, arsenic, etc.), VOC’s (volatile organic chemicals), certain bacteria (such as Cryptosporidium), and mostly importantly, pharmaceutical drugs (from people flushing them in the toilet, etc). It certainly won’t hurt to invest in a good water purification system. Remember, most water sold in plastic containers may just be filtered municipal water. Let’s not even get into that now! I’ll save that rant for another day. How about that? In the meantime, take a good probiotic supplement daily and make sure to stay hydrated with pure water. By the way, the probiotic that I use is called Life 5.

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Your Best Defense…..

Traditional Chinese medicine shop in Tsim Sha ...

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….is a healthy immune system. Every day, we encounter billions of germs. Not every one gets sick, however. Ever wonder why others fall deathly ill while others seem to be resistant to illness? The answer to that is a healthy immune system. We can nurture our immune system through a nutritious diet, pure water intake, stress reduction, sun exposure, adequate sleep and rest, exercise, the use of therapeutic grade essential oils (lemon, clove, cinnamon, etc.) and exposure to the earth’s electromagnetic fields. Easy to say, huh? Ways to lower our immune systems are easier to do and most people seem to have no trouble doing it. Fast food/highly refined diet, high-stress lifestyle, dehydration, inadequate sleep and rest, exposure to harmful EMF’s and negativity are just some of these.
In traditional Chinese medicine, practitioners were only compensated if their clients are well or stay well. They don’t get paid if their client’s get sick. Sounds like an interesting concept. However, it does make more sense. Keep someone healthy so they could fight off any illness and practitioners get paid well. It’s a win-win situation if you think about it.

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