The Knee Bone’s Connected to the Shin Bone

The other day I was seeing a patient who had been referred to the Physical Therapy Department for knee pain. As we discussed her symptoms, she mentioned that she also had frequent shin pain. She wondered if it had anything to do with her knee. I smiled to myself and thought, “She hit the nail on the head”.

You Don’t Need to be an Athlete to have Shin Problems

There is a misconception that shin pain is most commonly seen only in athletes.  Research now shows that there is an increasing amount of non-athletes who experience it too. While such pain is medically labeled as ‘shin splints’, there are a variety of causative factors that contribute to this problem.

Among athletes, the causes range from poor stretching techniques and training, to improper shoes and technique. In the non-athlete, the most common culprits are inadequate activity and flexibility of the calf muscle.

The calf muscle is a combination of two muscles. The names of the muscles are a mouthful – soleus and gastrocnemius – but suffice to say that both muscles join near the ankle into one common tendon and attach at the heel. One of the main functions of this important muscle group is its acts like a pump for pushing all the blood from the legs up into the heart – an extremely important job.

Did You Know that Shin Pain Can Affect Your Heart?

If this muscle group did not exist or did not work well, all the blood circulating to the legs would stay down there because of gravity. And once the blood stayed pooled in one location, it would clot and not flow well back to the heart. Obviously that is serious, so the moral of the story is that we need our leg ‘pumps’ to be active and well functioning.

In the San Francisco bay area, where HealthNOW is located, 90% of occupations involve the computer industry in some fashion. Such jobs require people to sit at their desks for long periods of time. The distance walked in a day can be quite minimal and is highly inadequate for the health of the calf muscles.

The result is that the calf pumps get lazy and sluggish because they are not asked to work for most of the day. Another consequence is that the muscle gets tighter and less flexible.

Why Does the Pain Start?

Now imagine it’s the weekend and the computer professional takes a walk along the beach. His calves now have to work doubly hard to maintain the constant pump action plus stretch and flex as a result of being on the sand. Because these muscles are not used to working this hard, other muscles of the shin and ankles come to its rescue. They try to help by contracting harder to keep up with the mechanics of walking on the sand. That’s really not their job but they are being called into service as a backup. Our computer professional enjoys the stroll at the beach but when he comes back home, he realizes his shins are painful and that lasts for days.  He wonders why and how, but pays little attention until the next time he’s in pain.

Does this sound familiar? Does this sound like you?

Physical Therapy has the Answer

In certain instances, the shin issues are neglected to such an extent that it causes further problems with knee and hip pain. As a physical therapist, I know that shin pain should not be ignored. Even if periodic, shin pain with standing and walking needs to be evaluated and examined.

After a comprehensive physical therapy evaluation that reveals the exact mechanism of the problem, I usually begin care with a lot of manual therapy for the shins, calf, ankle, and in some cases the knee. I have found that manual techniques get faster results – something we are all interested in.

After we deliver in-house therapy, patients are then instructed on how to perform exercises at home. For some the focus is stretching routines, while others require strengthening, or training with balance and coordination. Some patients need a changes in footwear and orthotics (foot inserts that are custom made).

Shin Pain can become Quite Serious

As with most things in the human body, ignoring shin pain is a bad idea. For some, the inflammation of the muscle gets so severe in the muscles that they start compressing nerves and arteries. This problem is called ‘ compartment syndrome’ and can be very debilitating.

If you get occasional or chronic shin pain please allow me to evaluate it for you. As a doctor of physical therapy and orthopedic certified specialist I am highly qualified to ascertain the real root cause and recommend a treatment protocol that will be effective.

Please let me know if this information was useful and feel free to ask questions.

In health,

Dr Rupa Chakravarty, DPT, OCS
Director of HealthNOW Physical Therapy

Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Dr Rupa Chakravarty & HealthNOW Medical Center and a clickable link back to this page.

What is Autoimmune Disease?

What’s the third leading cause of death in the U.S.? Hint: It’s not what you think. Most of us know that heart disease leads the list at number 1 and cancer is number 2 but autoimmune disease, when taken as a whole, is number 3. Autoimmune disease encompasses a group of over 100 diseases including type II diabetes, M.S., rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid disease, eczema, psoriasis, celiac disease, etc. What they all have in common is that the immune system in these patients, regardless of which autoimmune disease they have, begins to attack the body itself instead of a foreign invader as it was designed.

Key Facts that should get your Attention:

1. The incidence of autoimmune disease is on a dangerous upswing; it’s been doubling every 15 years for the past 75 years.
2. You could have the beginnings of autoimmune disease and not know it for 5 to 15 + years because traditional testing is not very sensitive.
3. When you have one autoimmune disease you a more likely to develop more.
4. If there are any autoimmune diseases in your family you are also more likely to develop one as there is a genetic component.

Why is the Incidence of Autoimmune Disease Escalating?

Autoimmune disease has risen from all but obscurity to the number 3 leading cause of death. We mentioned that there is a genetic component but we know that genes do not alter themselves that quickly. The meteoric rise in autoimmune disease cannot be explained by genetic change. Rather, it is strongly suspected that environment is the actual cause.

What about our environment is causing the radical increase? The health of the digestive tract, specifically the small intestine is the culprit according to research findings. We mentioned earlier that in autoimmune disease the immune system gets confused somehow and starts to attack the body instead of a foreign invader.

Why would that occur? The mechanism begins in the gut because that’s where 70% of the immune system is housed. It is believed that the immune system gets overwhelmed by the presence of food sensitivities such as gluten intolerance or chronic infections and literally begins to make mistakes due to the abundant stress that it thrown at it.

‘Red Hat’ Mechanism Explained

The best way to explain what happens is with an analogy. Imagine every time you saw a red hat it meant that was an enemy and you needed to attack it. And let’s say there were a lot of red hats and you were very busy attacking them most of the day. In fact it seemed that every time you turned around there was another red hat. After a while you would be primed to see red hats and attack them and you would be in an ‘attack mode’ most of the time therefore. Now imagine one day you saw an orange-red hat. It wasn’t pure red, it was a little different. But you are in attack mode and you think, “close enough to red, I’m going to attack it”.

This is what occurs in the body and the scientific name for it is molecular mimicy. The immune system is in a chronic attack mode due to the presence of a food sensitivity or infection, then one day something similar runs across its path and it is so close to what the immune system ‘knows’ to be bad  that it attacks it as well. The problem was that is the ‘thing that looked like the bad guy’ was actually an innocent body part like the heart, thyroid, pancreas, brain, skin, etc.

Unfortunately, however, once the immune system starts attacking the body part, it continues. The good news is that it can, most likely, be stopped. The bad news is that traditional testing is so insensitive for autoimmune disease that the diseases can literally be ‘brewing’ for over a decade before the first test shows positive. As you can imagine, a full decade or more of the immune system attacking a body part has takes quite a toll on the body.

What’s the Answer?

There are actually several. We are fortunate enough, here at HealthNOW Medical Center, to have a team in our clinical nutrition department that understands how to address autoimmune disease from the inside out and at its root cause level. We have had excellent success in this area. We are also fortunate enough to have out our disposal a brand new lab test that is a much more sensitive in determining if autoimmune tendencies are occurring and where precisely in the body they are happening. Trust me, this is a big breakthrough.

A Program that Works

So in addition to utilizing the above new test we would follow this program:

• First, you need to ensure that there are no chronic stressors burdening your immune system. This would consist of chronic food sensitivities such as gluten intolerance or infections.

• Second you need to heal any damage that occurred to your small intestine, the organ that houses the vast bulk of your immune system – this is known as a leaky gut.

• Third you will need to determine if any autoimmune tendencies are occurring and in which parts of the body so they can be monitored.

• Fourth, you need to remove any other potential stressors to your immune system from such things as toxicities or hormonal imbalance.

That might sound like a lot but it’s not really. Plus, understand that a program like the above can not only prevent you from developing autoimmune disease but it can reverse any that you do have, plus prevent the development of future disease – no small feat!

Mainstream Medicine Offers only Drugs to Mask the Symptoms

You should also understand that there is, according to mainstream medicine, no ‘cure’ for autoimmune disease. The treatment is suppression of the immune system with drugs and the ingestion of other medications with extremely dangerous side effects. And no cure is offered. The only things that the drug therapies offer is a slowing of a disease which is thought to be unstoppable.

The fact that autoimmune disease is increasing dramatically is a dangerous sign. But the good news is that we have tools to detect it, prevent it potentially, and treat it with good success. And isn’t it interesting that it mostly comes down to the health of your digestive tract?!

If you or someone you care about has an autoimmune disease or has a family history of autoimmune disease, you can really help. Show them this post and encourage them to contact us for more information. Autoimmune diseases are ‘going viral’ but they don’t need to. Some basic changes in diet and lifestyle can impact them in a big way and our clinical nutrition department works with such patients regularly. Plus our new lab test will give us tremendous insight into where such changes may be occurring.

Please call us if you’re interested in a free health analysis. We are here to help and would be delighted to do so. Our destination clinic treats patients from across the country and internationally so you don’t need to live locally to receive help. Call us at 408-733-0400.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN
Founder of HealthNOW Medical Center
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”
Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What you don’t know may be killing you!”

Permission is granted to re-post this article in its entirety with credit to Dr Vikki Petersen & HealthNOW Medical Center and a clickable link back to this page. Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN is founder of HealthNOW Medical Center and the author of “The Gluten Effect” and eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What you don’t know may be killing you”.  She has been featured in national magazines, international medical journals and is a frequent headlined speaker.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=owu3K88quFQ

www.youtube.com/watch?v=99Tz6ZR9sCY

www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dYHSKwIPk0

www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9VRRFZmZ2A

Is Corn Creating Inflammation Similar to Gluten?

I have had many questions come in regarding the safety of ingesting corn if one is gluten intolerant. These questions stem from several blogs on the subject. Most of the blogs focused on a single study out of the journal Gut – An International Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology from 2005, wherein the researchers were observing, in a small group of celiac disease patients, the inflammation created by rectal introduction of gluten as compared to corn, which they were using as a control.

In other words the researchers used corn as the ‘innocent grain’ and were comparing the results to gluten – the known ‘bad guy’ for celiac.

The researchers were surprised to learn that the celiac group (13 participants total) reacted not only to the gluten in an inflammatory fashion but so to the corn. The corn reaction was not as intense as that of gluten but it was still higher than in the control group (18 participants total).

Is the take-away from this single study that corn is unsafe for all those who suffer from gluten intolerance? Not necessarily.

Am I a big proponent of corn in the diet? Again no.

The Corn was Contaminated with Gluten

Let’s look at this further. One ‘fly in the ointment’ of this study was that the researchers, upon being confronted with so many celiac disease participants reacting to corn in their study, decided to check the corn for cross-contamination. Sure enough the corn was found to have 82 ppm of gluten in it due to cross-contamination. Now 82 ppm is well beneath the 200 ppm that is used to legally call a food ‘gluten-free’ but I probably don’t need to tell you, especially if you have celiac disease, that many celiacs can ‘perceive’ the presence of that much gluten and do react to it.

Certainly the study would have been more accurate had the corn been tested beforehand and found to have negligible if any gluten contamination.

The other big question that we don’t clearly know the answer to is if 82 ppm of gluten delivered directly into the rectum (that was the approach they used in this study) isn’t more intense and perhaps more on par with over 200 ppm of gluten when the latter is ingested orally and goes through the intense acid of the stomach before entering the intestine and finally getting to the rectum.

We just don’t know if that level of gluten contamination in the corn and its method of introduction into these participants’ bodies wasn’t enough to act like a mild gluten challenge in its own right. The authors had a similar concern and I quote: “It cannot be excluded that the small amounts of gluten present in the corn preparation induced an inflammatory reaction as the mucosal patch technique [rectal introduction] is very sensitive.”

Using a Single Study to ‘Prove’ a Point is Dangerous

Once again, I’m not a big fan of corn and I will discuss why below, but to use this single study as ‘proof’ that corn gluten is bad and dangerous for all those with celiac disease, is likely inaccurate and overly inflammatory.

Also using the terminology ‘corn gluten’ to potentially confuse people with gluten intolerance that corn is to be avoided in the same way as wheat, rye and barley is likely adding a greater burden to an already challenging diet than is absolutely necessary.

Five Reasons Corn is Not on My ‘Good Food’ List

Now that’s not to say that corn reactions, in their own right, don’t occur, they certainly do. And in my clinical experience I see them more often than previously. Let’s look at some potential reasons why:

1. Corn is the second largest food source suffering from GMO (genetic modification) – therefore it is not the same substance that Mother Nature created and, in this country, you’ll be fairly hard put to find ‘untainted’ corn.
2. Corn does share something in common with gluten and that is both are not readily digestible.
3. Corn is high in starch and low in nutrients, making it far from an ideal food.
4. High fructose corn sweeteners are not only a source of obesity and diabetes but in the manufacturing process there are actually mercury residues. Heavy metals are extremely toxic to the human body.
5. Corn, because it is cheap and puts on weight readily, is being used as a staple to feed the animals we eat, such as cattle, chicken and even fish. (You have to know that corn would never be a native food for something that lives in water, yet we use it because it’s inexpensive.) This diet of corn creates ‘unhealthy’ meat that we in turn ingest when we eat the animal. Eating corn-fed meat has been linked to increased obesity, heart disease and diabetes in humans. While the hormones and chemicals also being fed to these animals should be taken into consideration, it is well established that grain fed animals are less healthy than their grass fed counterparts.

What Do I Recommend for You?

The first step is to determine if you are gluten intolerant. There are blood tests for celiac disease (tTG) and a comprehensive blood test for gluten sensitivity, indicators of celiac disease and a wheat allergy offered by Cyrex Labs.

In order to not join the majority of celiacs who remove gluten from their diet and still don’t heal their intestines, it’s critical that you look into the secondary effects of gluten and properly treat those effects that are having a direct negative effect on your health. The secondary effects include:

1. Find out if there are any other foods that you are sensitive to beyond gluten. Fondly enough, our two biggest GMO foods, soy and corn are frequently found as food sensitivities.
2. Discover if you have any cross-reactive food reactions. This would be found through a blood test. It is crucial to discover if any of these are present as they ‘act’ like gluten as far as your immune system is concerned. Common cross-reactive foods are dairy products, coffee, milk chocolate, oats and yeast. Several non-gluten grains are also on the list of potentials, including corn. But do understand that these are not gluten-containing foods but rather foods that have a similar protein structure that you body’s immune system can ‘confuse’ for gluten.
3. Testing for the presence of possible pathogenic organisms in the gut is also part of the secondary effects of gluten. If organisms such as parasites, bacteria, amoebas and the like are present, you will not heal your intestine.
4. Measuring if any nutrients are deficient is another component. Vitamin and mineral deficiencies are common, especially with celiac disease.
5. Discovering if the good bacteria in the gut are healthy and balanced in their population is an additional facet that is a must when healing the gut.
6. Testing for a leaky gut so that the steps you take to heal it can be objectively measured to show improvement with future testing, is the final step.
7. Embark on a truly healthy diet. This would include:                                                                                                         •Organic beans and legumes
   •Fresh nuts and seeds
   •Healthy oils
   •Moderate use of whole, organic, non-gluten grains such as rice, quinoa, etc
   •Clean, spring water
   •Exercise

This list does not include high fructose corn sweeteners, GMO corn, GMO soy, artificial sweeteners, coffee, grain fed animal meat, gluten or dairy products.

I hope this was helpful and clears up any confusion that has arisen during the recent discussions revolving around corn gluten. While corn certainly isn’t a ‘health food’, the zero tolerance policy we have to adopt with avoiding gluten is likely unnecessary with organic corn. But… I certainly wouldn’t make corn a part of my daily diet and avoid GMO at all costs.

What are your thoughts? Let me know.

Please share this with your family and friends and anyone who is gluten intolerant. Let me know of any questions that arise – I’m here to help.

Our destination clinic sees patients from across the country and internationally, making it possible to be treated even if you don’t live locally. If you would like a free health analysis please call us at 408-733-0400.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN
Founder of HealthNOW Medical Center
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”
Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What you don’t know may be killing you!”

Source: Gut. 2005; 54:769-774. http://gut.bmj.com/content/54/6/769.full

Permission is granted to re-post this article in its entirety with credit to Dr Vikki Petersen & HealthNOW Medical Center and a clickable link back to this page. Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN is founder of HealthNOW Medical Center and the author of “The Gluten Effect” and eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What you don’t know may be killing you”.  She has been featured in national magazines, international medical journals and is a frequent headlined speaker.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnBtBw_U9NA

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kPmSevdszA

Your Teeth could be Telling you that you have a Disease

White spots, discolorations and undersized teeth can be unsightly, and most adults with the financial ability utilize crowns or veneers to solve the aesthetics of the problem. While a pretty white covering might make the patient happier when they look in the mirror, ignoring the root cause of those enamel defects could shorten your life! Sound dramatic? It’s not if you realize those defects could indicate undiagnosed celiac disease.

Celiac disease, affecting 1 to 4% of the population, is an autoimmune disease known to shorten the lifespan of those affected. Plus, as an autoimmune disease, having celiac increases your risk of developing other autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, eczema, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis. Cancer incidence also increases with celiac disease.

Almost 90% of Celiacs have Tooth Enamel Defects

Children who have enamel defects are assumed to have developed the problem from fluoride, a mother who took tetracycline (an antiobiotic) or from an illness early on in childhood. While those are all possible, it is important to realize that celiac disease is highly associated with dental enamel defects. According to a reference book, ‘up to 89%’ of people with celiac disease exhibit enamel problems – that is a huge percentage.

Everything from white spots to undersized teeth to yellowing teeth to teeth with grooves or pitting on permanent teeth should all raise a red-flag for potential celiac disease. The longer a patient has celiac disease, the more likely they will suffer severe health issues. Therefore, it is critical that parents and dentists alike appreciate what such tooth disorders can signal. It goes far beyond appearance.

A collaborative study between a dentist, Ted Malahias, DDS and leading celiac researcher Peter Green, MD revealed that the enamel defects in children most likely occurred due to the onset of the disease while the dental enamel was forming. They concluded that dentists and all physicians, for that matter, increase their education to understand this strong association.

Of course the deficiency of vitamin D and calcium that can occur secondary to celiac disease add ‘insult to injury’ and can well hasten dental cavity formation.

‘Silent’ Celiac Disease could be Expressed only in Your Teeth

Celiac disease can, unfortunately, be silent. A study of 128 adult patients following a gluten-free diet revealed that dental enamel changes in permanent teeth may be the only observable symptoms of otherwise ‘silent’ celiac disease.

The sad facts are that we only diagnose 3 to 5% of all the Americans suffering from celiac disease. It is an extremely poor diagnosis rate and anything we can do to increase awareness will go a long way to improving the health status of those suffering.

Educate Your Dentist and Doctor

So look at your child’s teeth and your own. Unless you have a very savvy dentist you will likely have to educate him or her about what enamel defects could mean. But please consider showing this post to your dentist. I guarantee that during the course of their practice they will successfully diagnose someone suffering from celiac disease as a result. The only way we are going to increase awareness is to develop a grass roots movement.

I am committed to increasing awareness of both celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. Please help me.

My destination clinic treats patients from across the country and internationally. The good news is that you don’t need to live locally to get treated.

If you or someone you care about is not enjoying good health, please contact me for a free health analysis. We are here to help. Call 408-733-0400.

To your good health,

Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN
Founder of HealthNOW Medical Center
Co-author of “The Gluten Effect”
Author of the eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What you don’t know may be killing you!”

References:

1. “Recognizing Celiac Disease” by Cleo Libonati
2. National Institutes of Health. http://celiac.nih.gov/DentalEnamel.aspx
3. Refuat Hapeh Vehashinayim. (Israeli Medical Journal) “The relationship between celiac disease (CD) and dental problems”.2011 Oct;28(4):12-8, 37.

Permission is granted to re-post this article in its entirety with credit to Dr Vikki Petersen & HealthNOW Medical Center and a clickable link back to this page. Dr Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN is founder of HealthNOW Medical Center and the author of “The Gluten Effect” and eBook: “Gluten Intolerance – What you don’t know may be killing you”.  She has been featured in national magazines, international medical journals and is a frequent headlined speaker.