Dr. Ingrid Pincott's

NATUROPATHIC WISDOM NOTES

Spring 1998

Volume 4, Number 2

Your Own Space . . .

"You must have a room or a certain hour of the day or so where you do not know what was in the morning paper ... a place where you can simply experience and bring forth what you are, and what you might be. At first you may find nothing's happening. But if you have a sacred place and use it ... take advantage of it ... something will happen."

.....Joseph Campbell

Meditation Technique

Is the Year of the Tiger and big changes in your life causing you some fear and anxiety? Try the following "Fear Room Exercise" from How to Master Change in Your Life by Mary Carroll Moore:

Close your eyes and breath deeply for a few moments to relax any tension inside. Imagine you're looking through a window into a small room. It's dark inside and filled with fog, a fog so dense that it's hard for you to make out the shapes of any objects.

Behind you is a large truck. A machine is being unloaded by some burly men. They wheel the machine up to a hole in the outside wall of the room and attach a long tube like a vacuum cleaner hose. One of them flicks a switch and you watch as all the fog is slowly sucked out of the room.

Then they unhook the machine, load it back onto the truck, and drive off.

Walk into the room and look around. The fog is completely gone. There's a pleasant fragrance in the air and a light, pleasing sound you can barely hear.

Go to each of the five large windows in the room and open the shades, allowing the sunshine to flood in. Look around the room. What is left?

Imagine in your pocket there is a special gift to help you through this change. Reach into your pocket and pull out the gift. Place it in the center of the newly cleaned room.

(The room symbolizes the emotions and mind that are filled with fear).

Recommended Books

· Simple Abundance, A Daybook of Comfort and Joy, by Sarah Ban Breathnach. A great way to start the day. If you buy it soon, go back to the beginning and read to the present date. These exercises, you won't want to miss!

National Kidney Month

March is National Kidney Month. Some symptoms to watch for which may alert you to kidney stress are: incontinence, frequency, cloudy or odorous urine, and having to get up in the night to urinate, thoracic back pain. According to Chinese medicine, some other symptoms relating to deficient kidney energy are water retention, fatigue, depression, coldness and pain in the lower back and knees, weakening of the bones and teeth, hair loss, defness and tinnitus, shortness of breath, diarrhea, constipation, or prolapsed rectum.

The most effective thing you can do to help your kidneys along is to drink 8-12 glasses of purified water every day. Other aids are cranberry juice, which contains lignans which attach to the bacteria E. Coli to facilitate its excretion from the body during an infection; juniper berries, which also cleanse the urine; herbs such as uva ursi, couch grass and goldenrod.

Are You Getting Enough Sleep?

People need to view sleep as significant and as necessary as nutrition and exercise according to Dr. James McFarlane, a sleep specialist in Toronto. Even missing an hour of sleep can have an impact as a British Columbia study shows an increased number of accidents the week after daylight savings time changes. Statistics Canada shows that one in five men and one in four women regularly have a problem going to sleep or staying asleep. More than three-quarters of Canadians lose at least more than an hour's sleep a week, which leads to the following symptoms: irritability, fatal collisions, ability to fall asleep anywhere, any time; the same poor health as many shift workers suffer, such as increased stress and digestive problems.

Dr. James Maas in his book Power Sleep, says most people need more than eight hours, that few people perform well on as little as four or five.

.....Vancouver Sun, February 21, 1998, page B11

According to a recent article in the American Psychological Association Monitor, watching humorous videos boosted the immune system of students at the University of California well into the next day, long after they had stopped laughing. Who said laughter wasn't the best medicine?

.....New Woman Magazine, January 1998

SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) is characterized by a sensitivity to decreased light and includes symptoms such as lack of energy, decreased libido, overeating, oversleeping, disturbed concentration and social withdrawal. For the treatment of SAD, David Amery, MD, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Washington, stated that even on a cloudy day, outdoor light can be up to ten times brighter than indoor light. He recommends getting 30 minutes of walking outdoors in natural light which can help beat off the blues that can last well into spring.

.....New Woman Magazine, January 1998

Now that spring is here, do you realize how the dark winter has affected you? Consider full spectrum lighting for your home and office, where you spend the most time. Watch for information regarding full spectrum lighting in my fourth quarter newsletter. These light bulbs are available in fluroescent style or regular bulb style. Begin to save for them now.

Dr. Robert Thiel, ND, found in his reflex analysis of chronic fatigue patients that the following causations and treatment resulted in 99.01% improvement in 60 days: thyroid 57.4%; adrenal 33.7%; hypoglycemia 29.7%; hemoglobin and blood deficiencies 24.8 and 10.9% respectively; heart 15.8%; and the remainder were yeast, strep, staph, parasite, and viral.

.....ANMA & AANC Journal 1(3):17-19, 1996

Chronic migraine headaches have been linked with low circulating melatonin concentrations, and it has been recently shown that Feverfew, a herb often used effectively for the treatment of migraines , in addition to containing parthenolids, also contains small amounts of melatonin.

.....Lancet, 1997; 350:1598-1599

Janet Daling, a medical researcher at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington, along with her colleagues, found a 50% increase in the incidence of breast cancer among women who had had abortions. This increase was seen in studies from around the world in populations with the widest differences in race, diet, socio-economic and lifestyle factors. She has found her research refuted because this viewpoint is seen as a threat to women's freedom to have abortions. She is in fact pro choice and only wants to share this risk factor.

.....Wall Street Journal editorial, Feb 28, 1997

The number of Americans who died from medication error between the years of l983-1993 has increased 260% according to Dr. David Phillips of the University of California at San Diego. Among out patients that number soared to 850%, the largest as a result of anesthesia drugs. This trend was continuing in 1994, says Dr. Phillips.

.....Globe and Mail, March 7, 1998

The superantioxidant, green tea, has an active polyphenolic compound ingredient called EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate) and is 100 times more effective than Vitamin C and 25 times better than Vitamin E in protecting cells from oxidative damage that is associated with diseases such as cancer, heart disease, arthritis and aging. To receive adequate dosage, 4-6 cups a day must be consumed or 800-1200 mgs per day. You may purchase the equivalent in capsules or freeze-dried form. Scientific Botanicals available from your naturopathic physician, has provided unsurpassed quality freeze-dried green tea that is made instantly by adding 8oz hot water to 1/8 tsp. This method of taking green tea is a good source of the 8-12 cups of water required daily. Do not mix with milk, as this binds with the active ingredient EGCG to make it less effective. Using a small amount of honey to sweeten or mixing with other herbal teas such as peppermint or spearmint is quite acceptable. Herbs are made up of a complex of ingredients that work synergistically together, and if only the active ingredients are extracted and standardized, some of the beneficial cofactors of the herb are not included in these extracts and are simply not as effective. An example is St. John's Wort. The antidepressant effect has been found to NOT correlate with the hypercin content, although this is the so-called active ingredient in many standardized St. John's Wort products on the market.

.....Townsend Newsletter for Doctors and Patients

Feb/Mar 1998

It is recommended that you use a good quality herbal tincture in the liquid form to obtain the best results.

- ed.

Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension Study showed that fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products providing increased intake of calcium, magnesium and potassium produced an antihypertensive effect comparable to that achieved through prescription drugs and this intervention would reduce the cost of therapy and avoid potential side effects that occur with some medications.

.....Free Rad Biol Med 1997; 23(5):793-803

Diet Tips

Now that your naturopathic physician has you off coffee, what are you doing with that cappuccino maker you got for Christmas? TEECCINO Vanilla Nut Flavour, a caffeine free herbal beverage, brews up very nicely and vitasoy soy milk froths up pretty good for that yummy topping. Look for it in your favorite health food store.

LIME AND ALMOND SALAD

Arrange 3-4 butter lettuce leaves in a circle on a dinner-size plate.

Place 1/4 cup bite-size cubes of goat cheese in the center.

Arrange 8 wedge-shaped hot house tomato pieces around the goat cheese.

Sprinkle 2 tbsp lightly roasted almond slices on top of goat cheese.

Sprinkle freshly squeezed lime liberally over the entire salad.

BEAN SOUP

Soak 1 package Bob's Bean Mix overnight. Discard water and rinse beans. Cook beans for 3 hours with the following ingredients:

5 quarts purified water            5 cinnamon sticks

6 heaping tsp vegetable            5 bay leaves

  broth powder                     1 organic orange, peeled

4 whole chilies

Once the beans are well cooked, add the following and simmer for an additional hour:

2 (875ml) cans tomatoes             6 Tbsp fresh parsley

1 whole bulb garlic, peeled         3 Tbsp olive oil

1 cup onions                        1 Tbsp salt

1 cup celery                        2 Tbsp chili powder

1 cup carrots                       2 Tbsp basil

3 1/2 Tbsp sesame oil               1 Tbsp cayenne pepper

6 Tbsp tamari                       1 1/2 tsp thyme

Great for freezing in smaller portions for quick and nutritious lunches.

There are 60,000 Canadians believed to be infected with Hepatitis C, a blood virus that causes liver disease. The risk of sexual transmission is low and there is no evidence that it is spread through casual contact, foods, coughing or sneezing. There are some people who have seroconverted to a negative test result after the use of alternative medicine. Contact your naturopathic physician for more information.

Chromium picolinate supplementation combined with exercise may be more beneficial in improving insulin sensitivity than exercise alone. The combination may also reduce coronary heart disease. Disorders of blood sugar metabolism lead to increased oxidative stress and supplementing with antioxidants such as C, E and carotenes resulted in the antioxidative defense in the elderly.

.....Functional Medicine Update, Dec 1997, vol.17, no.12

Canadians for Mercury Relief, is an organization formed in February 1997 whose role is to seek compensation for those Canadians who feel they are suffering ill effects from mercury poisoning and were not warned of the risks before having mercury fillings installed.

36 Toronto Street, #850

Toronto, Ontario M5C 2C5

416-410-6314

Did you know that the British Columbia Naturopathic Association publishes a newsletter which is available by subscription to the public? By joining the BCNA, you are assisting the profession's profile and assisting it to increase government support.

Home monitoring of the blood pressure is becoming an acceptable choice for assessing antihypertensive treatment. Reliance on the in-office blood pressure measurements results in the "white coat syndrome," which may have the result of prescribing antihypertensive treatment in up to 40% of these cases, when in fact, the blood pressure is only elevated in the doctor's office.

.....JAMA, October 1, 1997; 278:1110, 1065-1072

Office Tests Available:

· Salivary hormone testing is now available. Collection is done at home at specific times of the day and mailed to Aeron Lifecycles in California. Different hormones can be tested but the main panel is Estradiol, Progesterone, Testesterone, and DHEA. If your hormonal treatment doesn't seem to be working, this test will isolate the hormone levels and allow treatment to be very specific. Cost $250.00

· Osteoporosis Risk Evaluation Test. Collection of a urine sample at home reveals the levels of two collagen crosslinks found to be specific for bone loss. The test evaluates elevated levels of bone loss before excessive damage occurs. It also monitors the effectiveness of the nutritional supplements you are taking. Bone density tests are usually ordered every 12-18 months. This test gives you a barometer in between the bone density results to evaluate your treatment program. It is not used to diagnose osteoporosis but to measure bone loss. Cost $150.00

In my last newsletter, I failed to give you the 800 number for Lifestyles in Victoria . . . 1-800-937-5433.

-ed.

Upcoming Lectures and Radio Shows

Menopause Naturally

Campbell River Women's Center

April 7, 7:00-8:00pm (call 287-3044)

CFWB Call-in Talk Show

April 28, around 11:10am

The Use of Homeopathy in the Home

Port McNeill: April 16, 6:30-9:30pm (call 956-4144)

Cortez Island: May 7, 10:30am-1:30pm (call 935-6442)

Menopause Naturally / Reversing and

Preventing Osteoporosis

Port Hardy: May 7, 6:00-9:00pm (call 949-2850)