BLOG

I will be talking at Central Family Practice on Tuesday night, December 9th, 2008 on FIVE NATURAL TREATMENTS EVERY CANCER PATIENT SHOULD KNOW ABOUT.

If you or a loved one is dealing with cancer…this talk is for you

Where:  Central Family Practice - 801 W. 34th Street #102, Austin, TX  78705

When:  Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 6:30 - 8 p.m.

Who:  Cancer patients and friends/family; Cancer care providers interested in natural therapies

What:  Dr. Galloway, ND will discuss natural treatments and their safe use during cancer treatment.

How:  $10 optional entry fee at door.  You can just come to the event, or if you wish to get more info, please call 512-695-2342.

Natural Treatments can help a cancer patient:

• improve digestion and absorption of necessary nutrients

• reduce chemo and radiation side effects and actually improve the cancer killing effect of these standard treatments

• improve immune function

• improve quality of life

• get better sleep

• reduce chances of cancer growth and metastasis

Also…if you can’t come to this special event, but want the information, please call Jeanne Galloway at 695-2342 and we’ll talk.

Have a great, healthy day!

Jeanne

Often, a complaint by patients currently undergoing treatment is that they are suffering from insomnia.  Insomnia, or restless sleeping has two broad categories:  problems with sleep onset or with sleep maintenance.  If you have trouble getting to sleep you probably have a different set of problems versus the person who goes to sleep well, but wakes frequently in the night.

Of all the issues facing patients, sleep can be the hardest to treat, even without cancer meds on board.

A few possibilities from the natural perspective include:

1. Exercise — studies have shown that mild to moderate exercise earlier in the day can improve sleep quality later.
2. Blood sugar maintenance — if your blood sugar drops too low in the night it can cause you to wake.  To prevent this, you may want to have small snack an hour before bed with protein and carbs.  For example, a “Nut Thins” cracker with a little hummus, or goat cheese;  or an apple and almond butter.
3. Improving your “sleep hygiene” — keep the room completely dark or wear eye cover; remove electronic equipment that may be near your bed or near your head; make sure your pets don’t sleep with you…they may be waking you; reduce activity an hour before bed - try to read calming material, or listen to calming music, take a warm bath with lavender oil.
4. Caffeine and alcohol can induce insomnia.  So, no caffeine after 4 pm and no more than one drink in the evenings.
5. Try yoga…a study at MD Anderson in Houston found that women undergoing radiation therapy had less insomnia if they participated in yoga classes.
6. Eating a well balanced diet can help by providing adequate proteins to help form serotonin and other neurotransmitters necessary for healthy levels of sleep.  Good fats such as avocados, fish oils, nut butters can help by providing essential fatty acids that generate healthy brain activity.  Eating whole grains and fresh veggies and fruit provide carbohydrates that provide fuel for your brain.  If you can, avoid sugary foods and those with many chemical additives…these can add to the unhealthy stimulation of your brain and trouble your sleep.

Spend time relaxing.  Spend time with those you love.  Breathe.  Live to your fullest.  Get a good night’s sleep.  Call your naturopathic physician for other ideas that can help you get the sleep you need.

L-Carnitine, a supplement that is commonly sold in the U.S. to increase energy and to help build muscles in weight lifters has been shown to decrease fatigue in cancer patients treated with chemo agents Cisplatin and Ifosfamide.  50 patients received 4 grams of L-Carnitine a day for seven days.  At the end of this time 45 of these patients reported less fatigue.  The effect of just seven days of L-Carnitine lasted in these patients until their next round of chemo. (Grazino, et al., British Journal of Cancer, 2002.)

Studies have shown that many advanced cancer patients are actually deficient in L-Carnitine.  (Cruciani, et al, Journal of Pain Symptom Management, 2006)

L-Carnitine can help reduce sleeplessness, fatigue and depression in cancer patients.

The recommended dose is 4 grams a day.

As with all the content on my blog I am hoping to be very clear.  Nothing written here is to be taken as a prescription, or a promise of cure.  These studies provide clues to how L-Carnitine may help the cancer patient, however, you must work directly with a medical school trained Naturopathic Physician or other medical practitioner before using any herbal or other supplemental program, especially if you are on chemo or radiation.  You are welcome to contact me for additional info.

ND’s from around the nation converged upon Washington DC in May to talk with Senators and Representatives about some issues of great importance to the wellness and healthcare of our nation.

One issue of great importance is the need to shift our current medical system from a disease based model to a wellness based system.

MDs primarily are looking for diseases. Of course, this is useful, but how much better if every American were being evaluated for their wellness status?

NDs are the only doctoral-level medical specialists that are trained to listen to patients, put together a comprehensive view of their current wellness and develop a plan that allows the patient to take charge of their health by creating an environment that improves body, mind and spirit.

NDs put forth a proposal in DC to support what is called a ‘concurrent resolution’ that says we need to move the nation’s medical focus toward wellness. More insurance plans will not solve our crisis. More doctors will not necessarily solve our dilemma. Having doctors that listen, who work to discover the underlying cause of disease, and who then focus on wellness for patients is the key to making a system that truly promotes a healthier America.

Get on the phone and contact your representative today and tell them that you want them to work with the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) to work toward a healthier America. You can also email or call me to get involved.

Be WELL!

One of the biggest tips I give people who are looking for good ways to add years to their life and more spring to their step is to try out an ancient grain called “quinoa”. It is from Central America and is pronounced “keen-nwah”.

This grain has been used for centuries by our neighbors in Central and South America, but just in the last 10 years or so has this important source of protein become more prevalent in the marketplace in the United States.

Quinoa is a grain that is unique because, unlike rice or beans, it is consider a complete protein. All the amino acids that are necessary for you to survive are contained within this one little grain. If you just eat rice or just eat beans you do not get the same full protein mix. That is why so many cultures mix rice with beans…by mixing them or serving them together you get a full protein.

Quinoa ranks high in my book of recommendations because it is easy to make, full of nutrients and tastes great. You cook it exactly the same way you cook rice. I make mine in a rice cooker, sometimes I even put 1/2 rice and 1/2 quinoa in the cooker.

Kids love it because it is round with a tiny little band that encircles it…many children call it “eating the rings of Saturn” because the grain, when cooked looks like a miniature version of the planet Saturn!

Most health food stores can show you where they stock quinoa, and even some chain grocery stores are beginning to carry it in their “healthy food” section or in the grain section.

Look for great recipes on line and experiment with this great grain! If you find a good recipe, email it to me.

Do Naturopathic Doctors have a role to play in the care of Breast Cancer patients?

I am asked on occasion to talk at large gatherings. Sometimes this public speaking happens among people who already have a great deal of information about natural medicine and how it helps provide holistic medicine for a wide variety of medical conditions. Other times I may be at a corporate speaking engagement where the audience has limited knowledge of naturopathic medicine and holistic strategies for wellness.At both kinds of events, since I often speak on integrative breast cancer care, I am asked how a natural doctor can impact such a serious disease as cancer.

I am so glad to be able to answer with great enthusiasm that the naturopathic physician is able to provide support for women with breast cancer in several key ways:

First, overturning breast cancer requires a rigorous immune system. Naturopathic medicine is very good at helping to promote a stronger “cancer surveillance system” so that cancer cells can more easily be killed off by the body’s own defense system.

Second, treating breast cancer with oncological tools such as surgery, chemo and radiation have great successes in cancer treatment, but also do a great job at damaging healthy tissues. Medical-school trained Naturopathic Physicians can help reduce side effects from standard oncological treatments with herbs and nutrients that do not interfere with your chemo/radiation. Thirdly, cachexia, or muscle wasting is a major problem with cancer patients.

Naturopathic physicians are ideal in this capacity as they are required in their four year medical school experience to take many, many hours of diet and nutrition courses. Most medical schools require NO diet and nutrition classes for the MDs that graduate. This is remarkably bad for patient wellness as the general practitioner is likely to be the only care giver most people will be able to see. It has been proven over and over that if a physician encourages a lifestyle change the patient is more likely to do it than if anyone else in their life tells them the same info. MDs need to catch up and learn about nutrition’s importance in patient care.

There are so many techniques that Naturopathic Physicians are specialized in using that can help the cancer patient live a healthier, more productive, cancer free life. If you know of someone who is facing a cancer diagnosis, contact me. Let’s talk about options.

Today I launch what I hope is a valuable resource to my patients, clients and family members of those I work with. I’m going to be talking a great deal about a concept I am proposing to the health world…”Appropriate Medicine™” The focus of my blog will be cancer prevention, natural looks at oncological support and survivor wellness ideas. I will try to provide a voice of reason in an otherwise “wild west” natural medicine environment.Alternative, complementary, natural, adjunctive…what do those terms mean?We have been stuck for too long in our society looking at “standard” or “M.D.” medical care versus alternative, “Naturopathic” care. Such a dichotomy is not helpful to patients, to practitioners or to our health care system.What I propose is a new term – “Appropriate Medicine”. Let’s talk about what this means. If I am hit by a truck I would prefer that I be taken (quickly) to a hospital where I hope that the ER staff will provide me with the highest level of pharmaceutical and/or surgical care I can receive. A bag of herbs may not be appropriate at that moment. On the other hand…if I am having the beginnings of gall bladder pains, is it appropriate to put me right into a surgical suite and have my gall bladder removed? A gastroenterologist with no training in the ways that natural and alternative medicine can reduce gallbladder concerns would say, “Sure.” I disagree. In this case, the appropriate course of action is to use a “bag of herbs” to reduce gallbladder discomfort and also to look at food intake, digestive ability and other lifestyle measures.  So…America…(and the world)…let’s re-evaluate our thoughts and our words. Natural medicine is no more “Alternative” than Standard medical techniques. All of them are Appropriate Medicine in the right context.

Meta-Analysis Shows Increased BMI Linked to Several Types of Cancer. A meta-analysis in Lancet finds a strong link between increased body mass index and cancer risk. Examining some 140 publications comprising data on over 280,000 incident cases, the researchers found strong links between a five-unit increase in BMI and the risk, in men, for esophageal, thyroid, colon, and renal cancers. In women, the strongest associations were with endometrial, gallbladder, esophageal, and renal cancers. Editorialists, praising the study’s strict selection criteria, say the link between BMI and cancer “might be mediated by changes in circulating concentrations of endogenous hormones,” and cite other possibilities. They write that several other questions remain unanswered, including whether weight loss can reduce risks or influence prognosis. Lancet article is here.

Dr. Galloway’s Response to This Article

Although meta-analysis techniques are best at showing trends rather than proving hard science, I agree with this view. It makes sense that what goes into the body and how the body processes it will determine the health of cell populations within the body. Garbage in, Garbage Out — to coin a phrase from the computer industry. Cancer has been shown again and again to be a misfire in the cell cycle. When a cell no longer has the message to die it will continue living and reproducing repeatedly…this is the modus operandi of cancer. Foods that are harmful to the body include processed sugars, red meats, alcohol, high fat foods, saturated fats, deep fried foods. The Standard American Diet that is full of processed foods, red meats and refined grains is turning our population into a land of large, starving, craving people. It is no wonder that the inflammatory, oxidating quality of these foods damages cells and leads to the formation of cancer. Let’s make a point of losing weight, eating well and eating to live, not living to eat. Print out Doctor Galloway’s Shopping List to Prevent Cancer Handout for free. It gives you a great list of foods you need in your shopping cart every week. Call or come see me to talk specifically about how you can have a cancer preventive diet.