A few years ago, our son returned from camp with fever, stiff neck and the worst headache of his life. It took me a second to decide that this was NOT a case for natural medicine and to ship him of to the ER immediately.
Well, he was misdiagnosed, initially. I sat at his hospital bed and saw him slip away. But then a good doctor appeared and made the life-saving diagnosis (I would not have known, not even for the life of my son, I was so thinking-impaired): tularemia. A few days of antibiotics, and our son was fine. A scary experience, more for us than for him - because of his delirium, he has nearly all forgotten.
Tularemia is one of several tick-borne diseases - none of them nice – probably the least likely of them, about one hundred cases a year in the United States. Much more common are: Lyme, Ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, relapsing fever; babesiosis; meningo-encephalitis and Colorado tick fever.
What to do about ticks? All winter those little creatures have been waiting for us, starved for attention – and our blood.
If you go outdoors, you are exposed. Ticks sit on grasses and bushes, ready to drop on us any time. This is what you can do:
• Have a high suspicion: Check yourself for ticks every evening, on your scalp, in body folds, behind the ears.
• Wear long sleeved gear and tucking in pants into socks helps deter them. Light colors are recommended – not sure because ticks like dark colors or that you can better detect them on light colors.
• Wear natural repellents: Citronella, lemon grass, peppermint oil.
• Eat garlic – not sure it works … but then again, it repels vampires.
• For Lyme disease, a tick has to be lodged into your skin for about twenty-four hours before transmitting disease. For tularemia, alas, just a little nick and a trace of saliva suffices.
• Remove ticks immediately (a little tea tree oil or other essential oils will make them relinquish their feeding place voluntarily).
• Watch for symptoms like rashes, fever, joint pains, stiff neck, headaches, nerve palsies, and go to an ER straight away.
• If put on a antibiotic, take it all to the end - untreated, these diseases can lead to life-long debilitation. If it was me, I would also take some GSE (Grapefruit Seed Extract), just to be on the safe side. Also take a probiotic while on antibiotic to protect your gut.
And no, our son did not get bitten by a tick in camp - it happened before and closer to home, in Concord, MA. Read More
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Aches and Pains
May 11, 2010
In my twenties doctors had different explanations about the weird aches and pains I complained of. They were either from aging (in my twenties!!), or they were all in my head, or – poor redheads all over the world! – it was just that redheads had lower pain thresholds.
Research meanwhile has confirmed that redheads have actually higher pain thresholds. Besides, I had a whopping but unrecognized case of gluten intolerance, probably since birth. Took me many years to figure it out.
You, too, might have gluten intolerance. Estimates go that one of one-hundred-five people has, most of them not yet diagnosed. Most of them are blond and blue-eyed – but not all of them (otherwise the diagnosis would be easy!).
Of course, aches and pains can have other causes than celiac disease (another word for gluten intolerance; as is non-tropical sprue). But food is often the culprit - dairy, in my opinion, the worst since it is highly inflammatory (besides fattening). If you have arthritis, tendinitis, bursitis, fasciitis – or any “…itis" in your body, leave out milk and milk products for at least a month, and see if you get better.
Other suspicious foods are nuts (which, on the other hand, are very wholesome if you can tolerate them), nightshades (tomato, potato, eggplant, bell and hot peppers). Food additives can give bad reactions (and should not be in your food in the first place). Food intolerances can be very individual – for some it is an innocuous apple, for others shrimp or peanut or banana. By keeping a food journal you might find out – or help your doctor to find out.
Finding the cause and avoiding the offender, is the first step. On top of it, there are many herbs that reduce inflammation, like turmeric, garlic, rosemary. In fact, so many plants contain inflammation-dousing phyto-nutrients that eating more vegetables and herbs already might give you relief. If you want an herbal preparation, I usually recommend Zyflamend (be sure you have no allergy to any individual herb in there).
A good fish oil (you should not burp up fish!) has excellent anti-inflammatory action. As does olive-oil (unheated) in your salads. And lastly, a good probiotic, to quench the fire in your belly: Most inflammation originates in an inflamed bowel. Read More
Food “Allergies”, Anyone?
April 29, 2010
What we often call food “allergies” might be forms of intolerance with different pathways, physiologically speaking. The poisonous effect of wheat gluten in gluten enteropathy worked via a different mechanism than dairy-induced asthma; or the poison ivy dermatitis; or likely immune-complex regulated arthritis. Science has not totally elucidated these mechanisms; food “allergy” might be the incorrect term but has become common.
The diagnosis is difficult to make and to confirm; but if you don’t even think of allergy, the diagnosis can’t be made. Many physicians are not trained in this. However, you might need professional help if self-observation does not solve the problem. Since all of these conditions can also be caused by far more serious diseases, by all means work with your doctor.
Here is a list of signs that should make you wonder if you have an unrecognized food issue:
Food cravings: The more you like a food the more likely it is that you are allergic to that food. The more frequent you eat a certain food or a food group the more likely is that you will develop an allergy to it.
Fatigue: After a meal you are tired. We all are tired after a heavy meal; but if you are extremely tired even after a smaller meal you should search for an allergy.
Abdominal discomfort after a meal - often within minutes but unfortunately it can even take a day or two - you feel bloated and distressed in your stomach. Diarrhea is already a more severe sign and, if chronic or intermittently recurrent, should be evaluated by a physician. Heartburn seldom is recognized as stemming from food allergies – but it often goes away when you stop eating nightshades (tomato, bell and hot peppers, eggplant, potato), nuts or dairy.
Weakness: About fifteen minutes after a meal lift your arms: If they feel heavy or ache more than usual - compared how light you felt in the morning - this might be a case of allergy.
Musculo-skeletal system: joint, tendon and muscle problems, bursitis, etc. Leave out nuts and dairy. Get evaluated for celiac disease (gluten intolerance).
Mouth: Burning in your mouth, tickling in your throat or sores in your buccal mucosa or on your tongue might signal an allergy.
Bladder: Slow flow of urine can be a sign of food allergy, due to a swelling of the urethra. Or burning of the urethra in males. Or recurrent signs of urinary tract infections – with or without bacteria growing out in culture. Irritable bladder (interstitial cystitis) might respond to leaving out coffee and certain foods.
Thirst! If you are thirstier than other people – always running around with a water bottle in your hand – think allergy.
Other diseases and complaints that might be caused - but not necessarily - by food allergies headaches, asthma, swollen glands, bleeding and inflamed gums, abdominal discomfort and bloating, diarrhea, skin problems and itching of perfectly normal looking skin, recurrent infections (sinus, UTI, etc.), itchy eyes, listlessness and mild depression, obesity and bulimia, anal itch and/or rashes, low blood pressure, dizziness, breast pain - a long list that is probably longer, recurrent phlebitis.
Most common food "allergies" I have encountered in patients: dairy, nightshade (tomato, potato, eggplant, all peppers except black pepper, chili, cayenne, paprika), nuts, wheat, corn, beef, food dyes and food preservatives. But basically every food can become a culprit. If you have pinpointed one food item as allergenic for you, compare it with other items in the same botanical family (like nightshade). Read More