I first heard this phrase in medical school, but physicians have been using the phrase “hardening of the arteries” to describe the slow decline and death of old people probably since they started dissecting bodies in Ancient Greece. If you’ve got a few spare hours and a yellow highlighter, you might want to print out […]
Tag: cardiovascular disease
Enzymes for Health and Longevity
Until we got our plumbing overhauled, we’d been experiencing some real problems at WholeHealth Chicago, including clogged toilet drains that had bested some of Chicago’s top plumbers. After power rodding and chemicals, followed by actual pipe replacement, in the end we got everything working and didn’t have to send patients to the carwash next door […]
Case Study: High Blood Pressure
Phyllis B. was a longtime patient of mine whose medical problems were happily under control and who usually came in only for annual check-ups. As I’d just seen her last month, I expected today’s visit meant some new problem had emerged. “I’m here for Kirk,” she began. I’d only met her husband once, years earlier. […]
When Your Thyroid Medication Isn’t Working
Let’s start with two thyroid facts: The diagnosis of hypothyroidism (low levels of thyroid hormone) is missed by most physicians. Patients arrive with obvious symptoms of hypothyroidism every doctor learned in medical school, among them sensitivity to cold, weight gain, dry skin, fatigue, and constipation. The doctor listens, sometimes attentively, and then orders a TSH […]
Fish Oil: Finally Some Solid Answers
In the 1970s, epidemiologic studies discovered that Inuit (the indigenous people of the Arctic regions Canada, Alaska, and Greenland), whose diet was extremely rich in fish, had a much lower rate of heart disease than Americans and Europeans. Scientists attributed this to the omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in fish, which seemed to protect and […]
You’ll Never Relax In Front Of Your TV Again
More than 30 years ago, I read a book that influenced my entire life. Four Arguments For The Elimination Of Television was much discussed, a best seller, and is still in print. The author, an ad executive named Jerry Mander, didn’t spend much time on program content. That had been addressed 17 years earlier when […]
A Blood Test That Could Save Your Life
One of the most challenging decisions a primary care physician faces concerns preventing a heart attack in a patient who has risk factors, such as high cholesterol, and iffy symptoms like shoulder pain or shortness of breath. As a doctor, you’re uncertain whether or not you should work on the risk factors or send your […]
“Club Med” Diet
Posted 04/15/2013 I was surprised to learn that the much-revered Mediterranean Diet went back nearly 70 years to the work of American physician Ancel Keys, MD, stationed in Italy during World War II. Keys, who died in 2004 at age 100 (!), noted the very low incidence of heart disease and the excellent longevity among […]