Dr. Julie's Blog

Objectivity Counts For Something

Why do I have a soapbox on vaccinations?  Why, I'm the perfect person to have a soapbox on vaccinations!

I was raised according to the western medical model in the 1950's, 60's and 70's.  In my recollection, my mother demonstrated a pretty decent balance between what she felt was best for us and what the family doctor told her.  For instance, when it came time for one of my brothers to have his tonsils out and the pediatrician offered her a "volume discount," if she included me and our other brother for tonsillectomies of our own on the same surgery day, she politely declined (way to go mom!).  However, because she was raised during a time when polio was a constant threat, the relatively new medical wave of vaccinations seemed like a really good idea to her.......so we were vaccinated.

I never really had any reason to question my own vaccinations (until much later), but I had begun to hear rumblings of troublesome reactions and even more disturbing research having to do with the vaccines that were current while I was in chiropractic college.  I knew that I wanted to have children of my own, so my ears naturally perked up, and I began to read and ask questions.  In the early going, my research and inquiries were completely selfish exercises ~ it was all about what was best for me, my future kids, and my future family.

Fast forward 10 years ~

Now married, but unable to have children, and with more than ten years of research under my belt.......Just exactly what was I going to do with all of this great, if complex and thorny information about vaccinations?

That's when the teacher in me fully blossomed.

Who better than me to bring this information to as many people as possible?  I knew that there were young couples struggling with the same questions that I'd had back then, every day.

On the topic of vaccinations I am passionate, well-read, and now completely objective.  As Dr. Phil might say:  I don't have a dog in this fight.  I am not paid (nor am I influenced) by anyone for my opinion, I am not running for political office, I don't have a child who has been injured by a vaccine, and I have a wide variety of resources at my disposal to keep myself up to date with this vast and ever-changing topic.

As always, I ask that when you read what I have to say about vaccinations ~ check my sources, spend some time looking at my links, and follow the money.  I would never ask you to substitute my judgement for your own.  It won't be hard to for anyone who reads this blog to discern where I stand on vaccinations, but don't let my passion alone make this decision for you.  Let this be the beginning of your education.

Good luck.  Much more later.

Chiropractic & Kids ~ Resource List & Visit Guidelines

Is it safe?  Does it work?  Check out these websites and read up on it for yourself.

www.chiroweb.com ~ especially anything by Peter N. Fysh, D.C., or Joan Fallon, D.C.

www.icpa4kids.org ~ International Chiropractic Pediatrics Association

www.worldchiropracticalliance.org ~ especially Richard A. Pistolese, and Drs. Stuart & Theresa Warner

Well Child Care Guidelines:

Birth - 12 Months

• During the first two weeks after delivery
• When the child can support and lift its own head
• When the child begins to sit
• When the child begins to crawl
• When the child begins to stand
• When the child begins to walk

1 - 5 Years

• Six to Eight check ups per year

5 - 18 Years

• Twelve check ups per year

These guidelines are based broadly on the expected or typical incidence of events which might cause a child's spine to become unbalanced.  For example, every time your infant reaches a new physical milestone, his or her spine should be checked.  My recommendations for children 5 through 18 are the minimum number of visits that should occur given the physical stresses of school backpacks and book bags, study habits, computer time, tv time, etc.

There are events which should cause an increase in visit frequency.  Obviously, the intensity of a child's visit schedule will increase for one who is sick, injured (including vehicle collisions ~ whether you think they got hurt or not, falls, rough-housing, sports injuries, etc.), involved in athletics, or under unusual amounts of stress (including emotional stress), and any new medical diagnosis or medication. 

Other conditions which might cause a child's visit frequency to increase include postural distortions, congenital anomalies (such as hip dysplasia, scoliosis, or torticollis), "growing pains," pelvic unleveling, and unequal legs.

Still not sure about whether or not your child should be checked by a chiropractor?  Try these easy home evaluations:

1. Have your child fill his backpack or book bag with a typical load.  Weigh the backpack or book bag.  Weigh the child.  If the weight of the backpack or book bag is more than 10-15% of the weight of the child it is too heavy and he should be checked as soon as possible.  You should also probably chat with him about how much stuff he really, really needs to carry around in that thing.
2. Have your child stand up straight (but comfortable ~ no forced posture) in front of you.  Watch her as she puts her backpack or book bag on.  Did you see that rounding of her shoulders and the forward movement of her head and neck as her body shifts to balance out the load?  She should be checked right away.  By the way, if she's been carrying that pack or bag off of only one shoulder...ever ~ time for an adjustment!
3. Have your child lie face-down on a bed.  His ankles and feet should be hanging off of one edge of the bed, and he should rest his forehead on back of his hands so that his nose is straight down toward the mattress.  Stand at his feet and look down.  Without touching his feet or legs, notice:  Does one leg looks shorter than the other, or is one foot turned in or out more than the other?  Any asymmetry here means that his spine needs to be checked by a chiropractor.

Weight Loss, Health, And Food ~ My Personal Rules Of Thumb

Anyone who knows me knows that I struggle with my weight... ....it's been a battle my entire adult life and it is a struggle that continues still.  I don't know, maybe I'll always be this way.  What I do know is that I am unwilling to sacrifice my health to lose weight.  I did that once several years ago ~ I was taking diet pills and working 3 jobs, on my feet approximately 16 hours each day, 6 days each week.  Anyone would loose weight under those conditions, right?  And I did.  The only other 2 times that I lost a significant amount of weight was when I got sick... really sick ~ once in 1989 and once in 2005.  I'm back up near my all-time high weight, and I can't recommend either one of these as a good strategy.

So, in the absence of both serious illness and fad dieting ~ that multi-million dollar industry of pill pushers & plans, of instruction books & boxed "food," of fasts & fat flushes, of restrictions & radical eliminations of entire food groups.......What's left?  As a society we're fatter and sicker than we've ever been.......What's that all about?

These questions have inspired me to learn as much as I can about nutrition and weight, and nutrition and health.  And, as you might expect, my research has ultimately helped me construct another of my favorite soapboxes:

THAT'S NOT REALLY FOOD, YOU KNOW

The first thing is the industrialization of our food supply, I think.......That gradual process over the last several decades by which our food supply has increasingly become a corporate commodity ~ more and more removed from local choice and control.  It was a barely noticeable trend for many years and it came clad in the costume of convenience.

Imagine being a housewife in the 1950's, when the tv dinner hit the grocery store shelf.......or a teenager in the 1970's when the fast food drive-through window became a staple in everybody's town.  Oh!  The freedom and independence that came with these brilliant time-savers!  Who wouldn't love progress like that?

Imagine next how easy it was in the face of all this progress to cast the small Mom & Pop grocery store and local farmers and farmers' markets as quaint but out of date and unfashionable relics of America's rural past.  Mom & Pop and the farmers cooperated (as if they had any choice), and disappeared... ....almost completely.

It was a true coup.

Then came the politicalization of our food supply.  As the political lobbies for a few of the biggest ranching and farming groups grew stronger and more influential, it became more and more difficult for politicians to do the right thing.......when they could actually figure out when that was.

Imagine a highly placed politician reading what appears to be a reliable report about an alleged connection between eating animal fat and having heart disease.  He suggests during a speech or press conference that perhaps American citizens should cut down on their consumption of beef.  Holy Cow!!  The ranching lobby is beside itself, set its machine into motion, and the politician never sees the inside of an elective office again.  Remember here to follow the money!  Dairy lobby, corn lobby, sugar lobby, soy lobby, beef lobby ~ all are operating with virtual impunity because they receive tacit approval of their tactics from a political machine that recognizes their power to influence voters, and is only concerned with the next election.

It is this impunity, I believe, that also accounts for the fact that a pound of organic produce costs an American family more than a pound of Twinkies, or a pound of Oreos, or a pound of macaroni and cheese.  How is it that the food from the earth costs more than the synthetic, manufactured, over-processed chemical creations of the American industrial food machine?  Let's face it ~ the organic produce ~ a collection of leaves and roots and seed pods is actual food, with real nutritional value, while the Twinkies and Oreos and mac & cheese are clever concoctions of petrochemicals, highly refined carbohydrates, preservatives, colorings, and flashy marketing that barely resemble food but that we've been lead to believe are the same as food...only with out all those pesky natural nutrients.

Both the organic produce and the synthetic food-like substances will fill a hungry stomach, but only one will provide the nutrients that a body needs for healthy growth, brain development, immune system function, and metabolism.  Given our blistering schedules and a dazzling sales job, the organic produce currently looses, every time, to the quicker fix of a cheaper box, bag, or can from the pantry.

Please don't misunderstand my point ~ I'm not pushing organic produce as the answer to our declining overall health and increasing waistlines.  That would be an oversimplification.  This is just one example of how crazy our food choices have become.  In a society where the 99-cent cheeseburger is a viable meal selection, any solution is going to be complex and difficult.

I will continue to write about this topic in future posts.  For now, though, here are a few of my Rules Of Thumb for getting on a better track, nutritionally speaking:

1. Baby Steps ~ Make whatever small changes you can, and then stick to them.  Choose your changes because they are the right thing to do, not just because you think you should.  Real change happens slowly.  As you get good at each new habit another new and healthier habit will become obvious as your next baby step.

2. Eat Your Food As Nouns Rather Than Adjectives ~ Choose the apple rather than the apple turnover, the zucchini instead of the zucchini bread, the strawberries rather than the strawberry ice cream.  The whole food item (the noun) is always going to be the better choice.

3. Eat Whole Foods ~ These are easy to identify.  Whole foods rarely require an ingredient label; tend to be found on the perimeter of the grocery store (as opposed to the inner aisles); are perishable (as opposed to the 50-or-so-year shelf life of a Twinkie); are not bagged, boxed, or canned; do not make health claims on their packaging; and usually require some prep time before eating.

4. No Chemical Romance ~ Any substance that sports a label that requires a degree in chemistry to decipher probably isn't food.

5. Decrease sugars, decrease sweeteners ~ This goes for all sugars and sweeteners... even the more natural, less processed ones.  However, the top two suspects to remove from your menu right away are all forms of corn syrup and all artificial sweeteners.  These additives have a way of deranging metabolism in a way that causes all kinds of health problems.  Following my Rule Of Thumb #3 (Eat Whole Foods) will completely eliminate this problem.......no whole food contains either corn syrup or any artificial sweetener.  Just in case, though ~ here is a short list of sweeteners that will be healthy replacements for what you may currently be using:  organic raw honey, Rapadura, organic raw agave nectar, organic maple syrup, organic molasses.

6. Get Acquainted With Local Farmers And Ranchers...And Then Support Them ~ Visit one of the many farmers' markets that have made a big comeback in cities across this country.  Get friendly with a local, trusted raw dairy farmer.  Find out who lovingly raises and humanely butchers local, grass-fed ranch animals.  More  effort for you than leaving your money at the Wal-Mart or Sam's Club that occupies your backyard?  You bet!  But well worth it for your improved health!

Before I wrap up this post, I have to give credit where credit is due.  The bulk of the information that I have shared here I learned from one of the following people or organizations:

Michael Pollen ~ Anything he writes is a gem, but the articles that I've read most recently were Unhappy Meals, published in the NYTimes in January 2007, and You Are What You Grow, also from the NYTimes in April 2007.

Sally Fallon ~ Founder of the Weston A Price Foundation for Wise Traditions in Food, Farming and the Healing Arts, a nonprofit nutrition education foundation based in Washington, DC, and editor of the Foundation's quarterly magazine.  She also founded A Campaign for Real Milk, dedicated to creating consumer awareness of the health benefits of clean, whole unpasteurized milk from grass-fed cows.  She is a journalist, chef, nutrition researcher, homemaker and community activist. She is also the author of Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats.

Marc David ~ author of The Slow Down Diet:  Eating For Pleasure, Energy, and Weight Loss.

And the statement about eating your foods as nouns rather than adjectives came from an excerpt that I read about a book called The Triple Whammy Cure...I think.  I have been unable to find that excerpt again, and I haven't had a chance to read the book, so I'm relying on my memory for this reference.

Good Luck!...More later.

More Great Links!!

Wisdom Dance ~ Kim Pentecost is an intuitive consultant, teacher and international speaker. Her compassionate wisdom speaks right to the heart of complex issues. She illuminates personal and business relationships with gentle humor. She understands the interweaving of understanding, growth and healing. Her gifts will help empower you to find and walk your own unique Spiritual path.  Through WisdomDance, Kim offers workshops, retreat classes, including  a teleclass entitled Every Day Spirituality. She is a columnist for the regional Colorado publication, the Healing Path, presents at conferences nationwide, on empowerment and Spirituality, and has been interviewed on TV and radio throughout the US. Her latest gift to the world is a guided meditation CD entitled In-Body Mediation -Foundational Meditations for Every Day Life.

LynxCare ~ The Lynx Collaborative Care Network ~ Lynxcare provides the following services for their participants:  Medical  Record Summary ~documents and communication ~ Lynx organizes a person’s entire medical record, producing a concise and accurate summary of current concerns and past history. This Health Summary allows participants to share their information whenever needed. Consulting Services ~ research & navigation ~ Lynx researchers find the best available evidence and treatment options in mainstream medicine, as well as complementary and alternative medicine; and articulate the questions and concerns patients need for informed decision-making at home and abroad.  Medical Review & Analysis ~ Lynx advises participants about the relevant effects and interactions of current medications, supplements, and remedies.  Reminders ~ Lynx professionals help participants and their providers follow up on care plans, reducing the chance of vital information being delayed or lost.  If you or anyone you know is dealing with any complex medical condition, contact this amazing group.  They will strive to empower you to manage your interactions with medical practitioners most effectively.

Bead For Life ~ Ugandan women turn colorful recycled paper, into beautiful beads. This beauty becomes income, food, medicine, school fees, and hope. It is a small miracle. Members are women with children living on less than two dollars a day. Many have fled the war in Northern Uganda. Others live with HIV or other serious health challenges.  All profits from BeadforLife are invested in community development projects that generate income and help people escape extreme poverty.  Shop at their beautiful or schedule your own in-home party!

Ebert Family Farm ~ This is the dairy farm where I get my raw milk, cream, butter, yogurt, and cheese.  They also sell locally raised eggs and meats.  My friends Kres and Julie Ebert are in charge of this family-owned farm in Eastern Colorado, and they are great advocates for Colorado families who value the health benefits of clean raw dairy products.  Check out this website to learn about becoming a share holder in the greatest little dairy herd around!  They make a weekly delivery to a central location in Denver, but families are always welcome to visit their Byers farm for a little bit of fresh air and education.

Dore Achievement Centers ~ DORE helps children and adults affected by learning and attention difficulties achieve their full potential. Whether you've been formally diagnosed or you are living with symptoms associated with dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADD or AD/HD, the DORE Program might be beneficial. Over the past five years, their exercise-based programs have been used by more than 50,000 children and adults.

From Julie to Dr. Julie

I've said for a long time that the 2 most common reasons that people become chiropractors are:  They've either grown up in a chiropractic family, or they have a really bad spine for some reason, and a chiropractor has saved them from a life of pain and disability.  This is the story of my journey to becoming a chiropractor.

In the autumn of 1984, I was 25 years old, just a couple of years out of college, and working in my chosen field.  I was a dresser in the Wardrobe Department at the Denver Center Theatre Company.  I wasn't making much money, but it was a blast.

While I was out running errands one day, driving near a local shopping mall, I had to swerve my car to avoid another car that was pushing me out of my lane.  My swerve caused me to rear end a third car that had stopped in front of me.......and I hit it hard.  I was vaguely aware that my head had snapped forward and backward forcefully, but it wasn't until I tasted blood in my mouth that I realized I had hit the steering wheel with my chin.  I don't think that I actually lost consciousness, but my vision went black for just a second or two, and then my head was splitting with pain.

As I waited for the ambulance to arrive, I was able to determine that the bleeding was coming from the inside of my lower lip.  All of my teeth were in tact, and other than a really fierce headache, I was in one piece.  After hearing my version of what had happened, the EMTs taped my head to a board to keep my neck still, and off I went to the nearest ER.  A doctor there examined and stitch up my lip, told me to take Tylenol, and sent me home.  It didn't occur to me until years later that I had come in taped to a backboard, and the ER doc hadn't even mentioned an x-ray...for my neck, my head, or my jaw!

When my father and my brother went to pick up my car the next day, they said that the force with which my chin hit the steering wheel had broken it, and the car was not driveable.  Ohhhhh ~ that's why my head and neck hurt so much!

After a couple of weeks, the stitches came out, and the doctor told me that my neck pain and headaches would go away eventually.......just keep taking those pills as needed and learn to live with it.

A year later I was worse rather than better.  My headaches occured daily and were so bad at times I could hardly see. There were evenings when I barely made it through work before I collapsed in exhaustion and pain.  Ibuprofin and sleep usually helped, but it really wasn't much of a life.  I was 26 but I felt 70.  Things looked and felt pretty hopeless from where I was standing.......or lying down.

At some point I remembered that I had a friend from high school whose older brother had become a chiropractor.  From my very first visit to his office I knew he would tell me the truth about whether I had to “learn to live with it” as I had been told.

He was confident that he could help me, so I started seeing him for adjustments 3 or 4 times a week.  His adjustments were gentle and comfortable, and above all else...effective. After the second week my headaches were reduced to about 1 per week.  I continued to get better with treatments over the next few months until I was feeling like myself again, and look!...no pills!  And no more learning to live with it.

I fell in love with the idea that I might be able to do this for other people.  Approximately 6 months later, I was a student at Palmer Chiropractic College in Davenport, Iowa, and that's how Julie became Dr. Julie.

Dem Bones...

May is National Osteoporosis Prevention Month.

I've filed this post under my "Big Pharmachine" category because the things that I say here ~ all of the criticisms and judgements, both stated and implied will apply to all of the shenanigans of the pharmaceutical giants.  With a few exceptions ~ osteoporosis drugs to vaccinations to flu shots to pain medications, arthritis drugs, cholesterol drugs, high blood pressure drugs, reflux drugs, antibacterial products... ....it's all a big game for the big pharmachine.  Even if the theory behind each drug or procedure is sound, the big pharmachine has managed to shrink each one down to the lowest common denominator ~ greed.  Greed and quality healthcare don't belong together and they don't work together.  I don't think any of these drugs are working on a widespread basis...really.  All drugs "work" at the expense of one or more natural biological process(es) ~ they are designed to intentionally short-circuit the built-in wisdom of our bodies. And if you or someone you love is dependent on anything the big pharmachine produces.......my intent here is not to further your pain but to give you a jumping off place, from which you might find a light at the end of the tunnel.  It's all about your education.

My family, friends, patients, colleagues, will recognize this as perhaps my most familiar soapbox.  I spend a lot of time reading, thinking, and talking about the big pharmachine.  I accept that much of what I write here will sound like the rantings of a conspiracy theorist to someone who is not familiar with my passion on this subject.  It's what happens when a small player like me, with only my gut feeling, my research, and my passion comes up against a machine this big and rich and powerful.  All I ask is that you read my post in its entirety with an open mind; check my sources; pursue the link trail; and follow the money...above all, follow the money.  As you read, ask yourself these questions:  "Who stands to loose the most if any or all of this is true?"  And:  "Will I (you), as the health consumer gain anything if I come to believe that any or all of this is true?"

My main source for information today is the article "Bones of Contention," by James Keough, in the April 2007 issue of Alternative Medicine .  He brings together many different and diverse experts, articles, and studies in this one article.  This is a lengthy, but valuable article ~ well worth the time.

Keogh's discussion is centered on the topic of how the big pharmachine managed to make osteoporosis front page news in the early 1980's, following the discovery that synthetic estrogens (primarily Ayerst's Premarin) tended to cause endometrial cancer in women who were instructed to take it for symptoms and "problems" of menopause during the 1960's and 70's.  As you might expect, estrogen sales dropped and stayed down, leading Ayerst to hire a "top public relations firm in 1982 to market osteoporosis to the public using TV, radio, and magazine ads.  An old woman with a dowager's hump was the comapaign's poster child.  Prior to this effort...77 percent of women had never heard of osteoporosis."

Keogh goes on to describe how the marketing geniuses and the newly formed National Osteporosis Foundation proceeded to design machines to detect osteoporosis and then set about establishing new definitions for this dread disease and its brand new precursor, osteopenia.  The true definition of osteoporosis is complex, and includes terminology which focuses on brittle weak bones that fracture easily.  The new definition, chosen to benefit the new publicity campaign is the vastly diluted phrase "low bone density."  As a result of this change, the phrase "low bone density" was promoted from being just one of a long list of risk factors to the full definition of osteoporosis.  "Low bone density" became the disease.

The first of many problems with this new definition of the disease is that there is no correlation between low bone density alone and bone fractures.  Scientists in study after study have concluded that fracture risk cannot be determined by bone density. 

Next, the machines which are held up as the "gold standard" for bone density testing (known as DEXA ~ for dual energy x-ray absorbtiometry), measure the bone density of subjects against the "average peak bone mass of a healthy young Caucasian woman."  How does this make sense for a non-Caucasion woman, or a non-young woman, or someone with a chronic health condition, or a man?  As it turns out, peak bone mass varies widely depending on one's ethnicity, one's age (it is normal to loose bone density as we age ~ this is not a pathological process), where one lives, and the season of the year.  Add to that the fact that DEXA machine manufacturers don't follow any one standard for calibrating their machines...meaning that the average peak bone mass varies depending on the brand of the machine ~ makes this a completely useless measurement.  And doctors are using results from these machines to prescribe drugs which disrupt the natural process of bone remodeling and have very serious side effects.

Bone remodeling is a natural, dynamic process that continues all through our lives.  Our skeleton is a living organ system that undergoes a constant breakdown/build up cycle known as remodeling.  Even once our bones have finished all of their growth activities in early adulthood, this remodeling is the maintenance that our bodies perform to keep bones healthy.  One kind of bone cell is responsible for removing old or injured bone, while another makes replacement bone.  New replacement bone is always healthier than old bone.  Osteoporosis drugs suppress one side of this remodeling equation, resulting in an apparent increase in bone density.  Indeed drugs like Fosamax and Actonel halt bone breakdown by as much as 90%.......but eventually bone replacement is reduced by the same amount because it is a process of give & take/death & new life, and our bodies will always balance themselves out to a condition of homeostasis.  These drugs increase bone density at the expense of the stronger and less brittle replacement bone ~ leaving bone that looks sturdy on a DEXA scan, but is actually more fragile because it has missed out on its normal maintenance process.  And this is just one in a long list of side effects.

I can't move on with this post without saying something about the economics of osteoporosis.  According to Keogh, in 2005, American physicians wrote 39 million prescriptions for osteoporosis drugs, including 22 million specifically for Fosamax.  This translates to an incredible $3.2 billion for the big pharmachine Merck from just this one drug in this one year.  He also reports that the global osteoporosis market has been estimated at $6 billion, with a growth rate of 25% per year.  Huge money that brings with it equally huge motivation for the big pharmachine to keep things just as they are.  One PhD quoted in Keogh's article puts it this way:  "It's difficult to have clear thinking when one's financial interest is so great."  And an OB/Gyn is quoted in the same paragraph as saying:  "I rarely criticize the drug companies, but in this case I have to say the publicity about osteoporosis is mostly about profits, not about women's health."

For me, the bottom line from this article is this quote from Mark Helfand, MD, MPH, MS, of Oregon Health and Science University:  "Most of what you can do to prevent osteoporosis...has nothing to do with getting a test or taking a drug."  This statement is not flashy, and it certainly isn't going to make a lot of money for anyone, but it vibrates powerfully with truth.

So now what?

The more wholistic way to acheive long term healthier bone density involves eliminating foods and activities that cause bone loss, and increasing foods and activities that support bone remodeling.

First, healthy activites to encourage strong bones:  bone remodeling works, in large part, on an "as needed" basis ~ meaning that where your muscles put demands on your bones (as in when you exercise), more replacement bone is produced and the bone becomes stronger...more dense there.  While any form of exercise is a good thing, only weight-bearing exercise puts enough of the right kind of stress on bones to encourage increased density in them.  So, while that water aerobics class or walking program will do great things for your heart and lungs, you really need to pick up some light weights and find a yoga, calisthenics, or exercise ball class that  encourages you balance your body weight on your arms at times in order to benefit your bones the most.

Please use caution when you start a new exercise program, and recruit family and friends to join you.  A workout partner is great for making that time speed by, and for holding you accountable for staying dedicated to your new goals.

As for nutritional changes ~ the number one recommendation is also the most far-reaching one.  Metabolic acidosis ~ eating a diet that is too high in sugar, animal protein, and refined carbs (the typical American diet) causes our bodies to become too acidic, and to rob minerals from our bones as it tries to buffer the acidity produced by our diet.  To turn down the acidity in your body, eat more raw, fresh, organic, high-quality fruits and vegetables.  I know, I know!  It's the same old song & dance, but I wouldn't keep doing it if it wasn't the right thing to do.

When choosing supplements to combat osteoporosis, you might be surprised to learn that the most important supplement is vitamin D rather than calcium, (this should make the big dairy industry happy!).  Vitamin D levels are relatively easy to test (a simple blood test), and not hard to supplement.  You can start by spending 15 - 20 minutes each day in the sun, with as much skin exposure as you can manage (NO SUNSCREEN), and/or take vitamin D3, in the form of a good quality cod liver oil (fortunately it is possible to get this in capsules!!).  I recommend that you stay away from synthetic vitamin D (this goes for all synthetic supplements, by the way).

You will need to supplement calcium, but be sure to buy a good quality product that is available for use by your body, (known as bioavailability).  Be aware that more than perhaps any other supplement, calcium suffers from from a lot of public disinformation and inaccurate marketing.  I will write more about this in a subsequent post, but for now just know that you get what you pay for, and my recommendation is to pay as much as you possibly can for a good quality calcium supplement from a reputable company.

The list of things to avoid or eliminate is as follows:  smoking, excess alcohol comsumption, caffeine, strict calorie restriction, drugs, digestive disorders, stress, and endocrine disorders.  James Keogh handles each of these to a fair degree in his article.  For your individual needs and to learn more about my specific recommendations for you, please contact me here .