The Secret Disease That s Wrecking Your Health

Transcription

1 The Secret Disease That s Wrecking Your Health Dr. Richard Gerhauser, M.D. Copyright by Health Sense Publishing, 1119 St. Paul St., Baltimore, MD All rights reserved. No part of this report may be reproduced by any means or for any reason without the consent of the publisher. The information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy cannot be guaranteed. All material in this publication is provided for information only and may not be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action or inaction should be taken based solely on the contents of this publication; readers should consult a health professional on any matter relating to their health. The information and opinions provided in this publication are believed to be accurate and sound based on the best judgment available to the authors, but readers who fail to consult with appropriate health authorities assume the risk of any injuries. The publisher is not responsible for errors or omissions. The material in this report has not been approved by the Food & Drug Administration. The products discussed are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

2 The Secret Disease That s Wrecking Your Health Over the years, I have seen countless patients in my office with a similar set of symptoms. I m talking about: Fatigue Weight gain Depressed mood Dry skin Cold extremities Poor circulation Constipation Thinning hair Elevated cholesterol Frequent infections Headaches Puffiness in the face or extremities Chronic pain, and A feeling of anxiety or even panic. Their health is literally going down the tubes! Maybe you re in the same boat yourself. And many of these poor folks have been put through the wringer by the mainstream medical establishment. They ve been prescribed antidepressants, sedatives, pain medications, cholesterol-lowering drugs, frequent antibiotics, and maybe even some weight-loss pill. And guess what? Nothing worked. In medical school, we were taught that many of these symptoms are typical of thyroid disease or low thyroid function. But nine times out of 10, when I have checked the thyroid hormones levels like the TSH, free T3, free T4, and thyroid antibodies, they are in the normal range. But it may be time to look at thyroid testing in a whole different way. 2 THE SECRET DISEASE THAT S WREKCING YOUR HEALTH

3 Because even if your tests have come back normal, you may still be suffering from a significant thyroid problem. And this undiagnosed condition could slowly be destroying your health. A Breakthrough in Thyroid Testing Years ago, I was listening to an audio CD of a medical conference where Dr. Jonathan Wright was speaking about a way of diagnosing low thyroid using a simple test of metabolism and body temperature. Dr. Wright mentioned a landmark book, Hypothyroidism: The Unsuspected Illness written by Dr. Broda Barnes. In the book, Dr. Barnes used the basal temperature (your temperature taken during rest) method in his practice, and through his own research determined what a normal temperature was supposed to be. He found, through treating thousands of patients, that the basal temperature method was very reliable in identifying hypothyroid sufferers who may not have been properly diagnosed any other way. If the temperature of a patient was below normal and they had symptoms, then he or she was a candidate for a trial of thyroid hormone therapy. And here s the best part the thyroid treatments worked like a charm. Patients health improved and their illnesses began to clear up practically overnight! The changes were so revolutionary that Dr. Barnes came to believe that diagnosed and undiagnosed low thyroid were actually the reason for the epidemic of heart disease, and he even wrote a book titled Solved: The Riddle of Heart Attacks. He found that none of his patients who were treated for low thyroid function developed heart disease. What s Causing the Low-Thyroid Epidemic? Dr. Barnes believed that the reason for the epidemic of low thyroid might be attributed to low-thyroid children now living to reproduce THE SECRET DISEASE THAT S WREKCING YOUR HEALTH 3

4 after the advent of antibiotics. Before antibiotics, children with low thyroid would usually die from infections because of poor function of their immune system. Effectively, they were culled from the herd. After antibiotics, the pneumonia that would have killed a child is treated and he or she survives and reproduces, passing on the genetic propensity for hypothyroidism. Another alternative explanation for thyroid problems is the lack of iodine in our diets, and the fact that we re surrounded by foods and chemicals that deplete our iodine levels. Iodine is not only beneficial for the thyroid, but increases the excretion of toxic metals like mercury and lead. Diseases associated with iodine deficiency include: Thyroid disease Chronic fatigue Fibromyalgia Depressed immune function Goiter Infertility Increased infant mortality, and Breast and prostate cancer. So do you have an iodine deficiency that may be causing thyroid problems and undermining your health? There s a good chance you do. Iodine deficiency appears to be widespread. NHANES (the National Health and Nutrition Survey) data shows that iodine levels dropped 50 percent in the American population from 1971 to Are Your Iodine Levels Plummeting? Why are we so often at risk for low iodine? First off, iodized salt is a poor source of iodine. 4 THE SECRET DISEASE THAT S WREKCING YOUR HEALTH

5 Studies suggest that only 10 percent of the iodine in iodized salt is bioavailable. In addition, poor farming methods don t replenish iodine in the soil. We have always had a goiter belt in the middle of the USA around the Great Lakes, where iodine is very low in the soil. And, believe it or not, eating too many baked goods can cause an iodine deficiency, too. Bromide is used as an anti-caking compound in baked goods and depletes iodine. In the past, iodine was used as an anti-caking agent, but it was replaced by bromide in the 1980s because of concerns that excessive iodine might be a problem. The ways to keep bromide exposure down include eating organic food, limiting the intake of bakery products, taking supplemental iodine, getting adequate natural salt, and getting optimal amounts of magnesium. In my experience, both as a clinician and personally, I have found both iodine deficiency and thyroid disorders to be very common. Fix Your Thyroid, Fix Your Health Your thyroid tests may have come back normal but that doesn t mean you don t have a problem. My professors in medical school told us, Treat the patient and not the lab. We were not supposed to blindly treat lab results without looking at the patient. My patients have told me countless times they have been informed by their doctors that their thyroid was normal based on a blood test and either they should suffer through their symptoms or maybe try a drug like Prozac. If my patient has a constellation of symptoms that look like low thyroid but the lab tests are normal, could there still be abnormal thyroid function? Does that make sense? THE SECRET DISEASE THAT S WREKCING YOUR HEALTH 5

6 It does when an excellent physician like Dr. Barnes has found an effective treatment through experimenting in his practice. For my patients, it is worth a trial of thyroid hormone. If the symptoms are improved, there is no need for more proof. But, for some people, the prospect of being on a medication like thyroid hormone forever doesn t sound so good either. Fortunately, there s an alternative that you may find attractive. Understanding Wilson s Temperature Syndrome In my search for thyroid solutions, I came across Dr. E. Denis Wilson s work on a disorder he has termed Wilson s Temperature Syndrome, which builds on the work of Dr. Barnes. Dr. Wilson began looking deeper into the collection of hypothyroid symptoms and temperature. His theory is that the problem with low thyroid function comes about because of a stressful event in the patient s life. A survival mechanism kicks in during severe stress to lower metabolism, to conserve energy in order to avoid starvation. The body then makes less T3 (the most potent thyroid hormone) and makes more reverse T3 (which is inactive and blocks the thyroid hormone receptor). Conventional doctors typically treat low thyroid with synthetic T4 (Synthroid, Levoxyl ), which in this situation will be converted to more of the reverse T3. That s a big problem, because in the case of Wilson s Temperature Syndrome, it can make symptoms worse. The solution then is to give T3 in a dose that normalizes your body temperature and allows the excess reverse T3 to be metabolized, which resets your thyroid system. The treatment includes weaning the patient off the T3 medication 6 THE SECRET DISEASE THAT S WREKCING YOUR HEALTH

7 after capturing normal temperature. This doesn t always work, but should be considered before permanent hormone therapy if there are symptoms of Wilson s Temperature Syndrome. And here s the good news You can test for Wilson s Temperature Syndrome yourself! Normal oral temperature is 98.6 degrees F. Dr. Wilson advises checking your temperature three times daily. You should do it three hours after you get up, three hours later and, again, three hours later. If your average temperature over a period of weeks is significantly below the norm, say below 98.2 degrees F, and you have any of the symptoms related to low thyroid, you may benefit from a trial of the Wilson s T3 protocol to correct your thyroid function. Do not overlook the possibility of iodine deficiency as well. It s important to get tested. The iodine loading test may be helpful for determining low iodine levels in the body. Iodoral is an iodine supplement that is used for the loading test. Iodine supplements can be used to treat iodine deficiency under supervision of a physician skilled in nutritional and natural medicine.