Living Well with Cancer

Sarah Giardenelli, ND, MSOM, LAc

Ken Brown, LMT

What is Naturopathic Medicine?

A primary health care profession which emphasizes the prevention and treatment of disease using natural methods as a first line of therapy

What is Naturopathic Medicine?

Naturopathic Doctors (NDs) specialize in the maintenance of optimal health, prevention of chronic disease, and promotion of the body’s inherent self-healing process.

What is Naturopathic Medicine?

How is it different from:

Conventional Western Medicine?

Osteopathic Medicine?

Chiropractic Medicine?

Naturopathic Medicine in the U.S.

Late 1880s: Introduced to U.S. from by Benedict Lust, MD

Mid-1920s: 20+ Naturopathic medical schools in the U.S. & NDs were licensed in a majority of states

1930s: Decline of naturopathic medicine with advent of antibiotics & polio vaccine

1960s: Renewed interest in natural medicine with discovery of side effects from DES, thalidomide

Clinical Training & Licensure

4-year medical program at accredited institutions Prerequisites: Bachelor’s degree with pre-

medical science coursework

First 2 years: Basic Science courses

Last 2 years: Clinical Rotations

National licensing exams required to practice in that have licensing laws for naturopathic doctors.

Naturopathic Scope of Training

Nutrition Lifestyle Counseling Botanical (Herbal) Medicine Physical Medicine

Manipulation Physiotherapy Hydrotherapy

Laboratory Diagnosis & Diagnostic Imaging

Homeopathy Pharmacology Minor Surgery Natural Childbirth

The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest her or his patients in the care of

the human frame, in a proper diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease.

Thomas Edison

(1847-1931)

Modern health issues

Fatigue

Depression

Skin disorders

Allergies

Inflammatory conditions

Insomnia

Hypertension

Infertility

Digestive complaints

Pelvic pain

Menopausal symptoms

Migraines

Cancer

Conventional Model of Healthcare

Individual is separated into parts

Treatment begins AFTER symptoms appear

Cure is removal of pathology

What is this?

How can you treat the whole personif you are focused on one part?

Naturopathic Model of Healthcare

Healing Power of Nature

First do no Harm

Treat the Whole Person

Doctor as Teacher

Prevention

Treat the Cause

Naturopathic Model of Healthcare

Individual is a unique person affected by their varied life experiences

Pathology is the LAST expression of a disease process

Prevention is treating the individual BEFORE symptoms occur

The presenting statesummarizes the past and determines the future.

The River of Health

Where are you?

Where would you like to be?

Health is about BALANCE

Health Potential

Stressor Response

ResponseStressor

Disease DeathAdequate function

Any of these mayaffect Homeostasis

and one’s stateof Wellness

A Model of Wellness

Heredity Environment Mental / emotional

Nutrition Structure

Physical body

Biochemistry

Energy / spirit

Where Do you Start?

With What you Have Control

Over…

Nutrition

Sleep

Breathing/ Mindfulness/ Flow

Hydration

Movement

Being in nature

Adrenal support

“You are what you eat.”

Americans spend more per capita on junk

food than any other country

Spend more on diet products than any other

country

Most widely advertised foods are those high

in calories and low in nutrition

Confusion/ distraction with fad diets

Eating Ancestrally

Often overlooked factor

Genetically we are programed based on thousands of years

of environmental adaptation of our ancestors to their

environment

Example: Eskimos, very high protein and high fat diet vs

those in tropical regions with rich vegetable based deit

Scientist Weston A. Prise, DDS demonstrated this

Found diets of indigenous people to be tremendously

varied, dependent on geography, climate, and edibles

naturally available.

Found degenerative disease occurred when people stray

from their traditional diets

Mediterranean Diet

Incorporates abundance of food from plant

sources, including fruits, vegetables, whole

grains, whole-grain breads, beans, nuts, and

seeds.

Minimally processed & mostly seasonally

fresh & locally grown foods

Olive oil as principle fat, replacing other

fats & oils & daily olive consumption

Mediterranean diet

Moderate amount of wine with meals; 1-2

glasses a day with meals for men and 1-2

per day for women

Fresh fruit as typical daily dessert; limited

amount of high sugar and saturated fat

sweets, and if consumed from whole food

sweetening agents

Total dietary fat from 25-34% with

saturated fat between 7-10% of total

calories

Mediterranean Diet

Eat moderate amounts of high-quality cheese &

yogurt daily

Consume moderate amounts of fish & eggs, and if

desired, poultry and/ or wild meats from 0-3

servings per week

Red meat a few times or just one time per month,

if desired, unless iron deficient, then can be eaten

a few times per week until iron reaches normal

Organically grown or wild foods as possible

Mediterranean diet

“Among individuals aged 70 to 90 years,

adherence to a Mediterranean diet and

healthful lifestyle is associated with a more

than 50% lower rate of all-causes and cause-

specific mortality.”

Pathways of Elimination

Skin: largest

organ of the body; excretes nitrogen and electrolytes

Lungs:surface area the size of a tennis court; excretes CO2

and water

GI: excretes

digestive waste, bile and heavy metals

Kidney: filters

1,200 ml of blood every minute

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

Skin Lungs GI

*Every minute about 1,200 ml of

blood flows through the kidneys.

*Average excretion is approx. 1 L

per day (189 L/day are

reabsorbed).*Ibid.

Volume

(ml/day)

Surface Area

(sq. meters)

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

Kidney

EXCRETORY SYSTEMS:

Urinary: (Kidney) Excretes nitrogen compounds, toxins, water, & electrolytes.

Integument: (Skin) Excretes nitrogen compounds, water, and electrolytes.

Respiratory: (Lung) Excretes carbon dioxide and water.

Digestive: (GI) Excretes digestive wastes, bile pigments and heavy metal salts.Thibodeau GA, Patton KT. Anatomy & Physiology 3rd Edition, 1993.

Major Excretory Organs

Lymphatic System

Removes the waste products from every cell and system in your body

Relies entirely on MOVEMENT and BREATHING for circulation

Deep breathing

Resets CNS tone relaxing blood vessels, lowering blood pressure, slowing heart rate and generally reducing stress in the body

4 second inhale followed by pause, and 8 second exhale

GOAL: 100 per day!

Water

How much water should you drink?

Water is an essential nutrient to every tissue in our body, needs vary according to the individual

HALF your weight in OUNCES

Movement

Hydrotherapy

Alternating application of hot and cold water stimulates blood and lymph flow within the body

Enhances immune system

3 minutes of hot water followed by 30 seconds of cold QuickTime™ and a

TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.

Castor oil packsKey to lymphatic health!

Dry skin brushing

Aids in mechanically pumping the lymph fluid through circulation

Sleep

If you get less than 8 hours of sleep per night you are operating impaired and your alertness, productivity and creativity will be affected

It is between the 7th and 8th hours of sleep that we achieve REM(dream state) where our minds restore themselves

Sleep in complete darkness!

Sunshine

At least 20 minutes a day

Stimulates vitamin D which can help to ward off a number of diseases including osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, depression and cancers of the colon, prostate and breast

Healthy Digestion

“The road to health is paved with good intestines”

Feeds every cell of every system in your body

Chew your food!

Better eating made simple

Eat a variety of whole foods

Eat multiple colors with every meal

Proper portion

Balance blood sugar

Anti-inflammatory

Food is your best medicine

Wild fish

Sardines

Yogurt

Free range eggs

Nuts / butters

Coconut milk

Avocado

Seaweed

Dark chocolate

Ground flax seeds

Cinnamon

Garlic

Onion

Spices

Whole grains

Mushrooms

Extra virgin olive oil

Real organic butter

“The Dirty Dozen” and “Clean Fifteen” EWG’s

original list of the most and least pesticide contaminated fruits & veggies

Can’t Afford Organic?

Food Avoidances

Added sugar – ’s biotransformation

Beef and dairy products that are not organic

High Omega-6 PUFAs (most liquid

vegetable oils)

Trans fats

Alcohol

Caffeine

Nitrites found in cured meats

Sugar substitutes

Your Home Environment Affects

Your Internal Environment

Fill your home and office with plants

Hang pictures of nature on your walls

Avoidance in the Home

Do not smoke (especially indoors)

Do not use/ store any chemicals (house cleaning products, air fresheners, detergents, cleansers, etc.) in your living space

Leave shoes at the door to avoid tracking pollutants into the house

In lieu of dry cleaning (to avoid perchloroethylene): Woolite, eco-friendly “dry” cleaners (some are silicone-based – see www.greenearthcleaning.com), or air out for 2 wks prior to wearing or hanging up in the closet.

Avoidance in the Home

Consider purchasing a radon test kit

Make your own cheap, but effective green cleaners

Clean out air ducts – dust binds toxins.

Do not use conventional pesticides in the home or garden

Do NOT microwave food in plastic containers.

Note that various phthalates from plastic packaging also leach into fatty foods.

Consider repackaging food in glass, ceramic, or stoneware containers.

Natural therapies

Energetic medicine: Homeopathy /

Chinese medicine

Physical medicine:

Hydrotherapy / manipulation

Nutrition

Adjunct practices: OB / minor surgery

Counseling

Botanical medicine

Referrals

Chronic Stress

Major contributor to all disease

Adrenal stress disrupts the HPA axis

Adrenal stress reduces conversion of T4 to T3

Adrenal stress promotes autoimmunity by

weakening immune barriers

Adrenal stress causes thyroid hormone

resistance

Adrenal stress causes hormonal imbalances

Balancing the Adrenals

Avoid or at least greatly minimize stimulants

Stabilize blood sugar (via a moderate or low-carb diet)

Practice stress management, relaxation, and other mindfulness

techniques

Have fun, laugh and make pleasure a regular part of your life

Avoid dietary causes of inflammation

Ensure adequate intake of DHA & EPA (from fish)

Specific nutrients (ie phosphatidyl serine) and adaptogenic

herbals (ie Panax ginseng, Siberian ginseng, Ashwagandha and

Rhodiola rosea ) can be helpful, but need to be matched

appropriately to the individual.

Where are you?

Where would you like to be?