The Center for Disease Prevention & Reversal Blog

Many of my patients complain of having "no interest". While a small percentage of the population identify as "asexual", the majority of us do not and losing one's sex drive altogether can be disquieting. Sex drive often wanes as we age but it should not disappear completely.

There are physical and psychological reasons for a diminished sex drive and or response.
Among the physical contributors are chronic inflammation, not enough exercise, excessive exercise, prescriptions medications, poor dietary patterns, and fatigue. These contributing factors can all be easily reversed.

Low cholesterol can lead to a decrease in DHEA and sex hormones, especially testosterone as cholesterol is necessary for the production of stress and sex hormones. Chronic stress can also lead to low DHEA and sex hormones as stress utilizes all the precursor hormone (pregnanolone) made from cholesterol to produce the stress hormones. DHEA or pregnanolone supplementation can be helpful but so is turning off the stress response. Reflex biofeedback can do this almost immediately.

Psychological factors that contribute to diminished libido include anxiety, chronic stress, depression, guilt, grief and shock. While therapy is helpful and often necessary, it may not restore libido if the autonomic nervous system is stuck with high sympathetic (fight and flight) tone. Sometimes people find themselves not being able to "turn of" and reflex biofeedback is a very quick way of bringing up the parasympathetic (rest and relaxation) arm of the autonomic nervous system. Other treatments that work are acupuncture, homeopathy, breath work, yoga, meditation, massage and so on. I have found that the RITM SCENAR, a reflex biofeedback device, works the quickest and has the longest lasting results.

A combination of exercise, eating a non-inflammatory diet, adequate sleep and meditation can achieve the balance desired for a healthy libido and sexual response. Sexual response is two-fold and involves both arms of the autonomic system; the parasympathetic system controls the arousal phase and the sympathetic controls the orgasmic phase.

I recommend staying "active" as it helps with balancing the autonomic nervous system. Whether my patients are in a relationship or not, I might recommend equipment. Just like having special equipment in order to enhance one's experience cooking in the kitchen, or in a sport, equipment in the bedroom can enhance the experience whether one is alone or partnered in the endeavor. For incredibly engineered and designed equipment, I recommend shopping at Lelo.com. Lelo is a swedish company (how surprising) that takes its' products seriously and has some the best designed products on the market.

Oxidative damage is something everyone has heard of but might not really understand.
The patients I see in my Chicago area office often show me the anti-oxidants they are taking with great delight. They know the supplements are somehow combatting the negative effects of bad things they might be exposed to.

Oxidative damage can come from many sources: radiation of all sorts which includes background radioisotopes that are always around, excessive solar radiation especially when the ozone layer is damaged or in high altitudes and specific foods and chemicals that have reactive oxygen. Heavy metals can be a big contributor.

Oxydation is necessary and our body creates compounds that lead to oxidation in specific situations such as in infections when our immune system uses oxidative compounds to its benefit in order to kill dangerous bacteria.

Our bodies also produce oxidative compounds with excessive exercise, but the overall benefit is positive as this also stimulates high amounts of anti-oxidants in the body as well given good nutritional status.

The caveat is chronic and repetitive oxidative damage causes illness. And oxidative damage in infants can lead to neurological and behavioral problems.

Studies have shown that casein( an ingredient in dairy), and gluten ( a compound in un-sprouted wheat, rye and barley) prevent the absorption of an amino acid called cysteine. Cysteine is a vital constituent in the formation of glutathione a very powerful anti-oxidant.

Gluten also leads to a leaky gut and a leaky brain. This and the reduced glutathione could be a major contributing factor in children with autistic spectrum disorders and could be the reason that these children do better off of gluten and dairy.

It's important to note that the receptors in the brain for casein and gluten are similar to the receptors in the brain for opiods such as morphine and heroin and therefore the desire for these compounds can be very strong despite that they might be doing harm. The intake of morphine and other opiod compounds such as those in prescription pain relievers also reduce cysteine and therefore anti-oxidant capabilities.

Reducing the inflammatory state that most pain patients are in via dietary changes and supplements and using an FDA approved prescription device called SCENAR which balances the autonomic nervous system input as well as altering the firing of pain fibers, is the most effective and immediate way to reduce the need for pain medication.

We are bombarded by commercials about statins to lower cholesterol levels. We're made to believe that cholesterol is a bad thing and needs to be reduced as much as possible.

Numerous studies show the benefit of a healthy cholesterol profile. In fact, a recent study looking at muscle mass gain from exercise, showed that those with higher circulating cholesterol gained more muscle mass than those with lower cholesterol or on cholesterol lowering medications.

Low cholesterol levels are increasingly associated with increased risks for depression, anxiety, cancer, infection suicidal ideation and low libido.

There are numerous studies showing this link but the authors are all hesitant to say stop taking your statins as most patients are diagnosed as having statin deficiencies by their physicians.

If we look at studies and healthy physiology carefully, we can find that healthy people (people who are still insulin sensitive) have large bouyant LDL particles. As people become more insulin resistant and therefore closer to being a diabetic, they develop smaller LDL particles that are dense. Small, dense LDL particles are atherogenic, meaning they can lead to plaque in the vessels.

The biggest risk factor for a sudden cardiac event or MI, is small dense LDL and elevated levels of C reactive Protein, not high levels of LDL. Yet, the majority of physicians do not even test for these things. The reason being high levels can be lowered with statins. The treatment for an elevated C reactive protein( or CRP) and dense LDL are not treated with a single pharmaceutical. And, since the pharmaceutical industry has spent billions "educating" physicians how to handle cholesterol issues, they focused on the single issue they had a drug for.

LDL levels can be affected by particle size which is actually more important than the number. Low cholesterol is often associated with small dense LDL. Particle size is dependent upon a few things, one of them being insulin resistance or IR.
IR is related to how much insulin is needed to handle a specific amount of carbohydrate or sugar. The more needed, for a certain amount due to resistance or attenuation, the greater the risk of triglyceride and VLDL formation and hence small dense LDL.

In my Chicago area office, I always use a Lipid subfraction test on my patients. A standard lipid profile is missing vital information.

I treat small dense LDL and elevated CRP levels with a combination of dietary and lifestyle changes. If the LDL is very small and dense, I might recommend a liver cleanse
as the IR occurs at the liver..

If you have not had a lipid subfraction test, you don't know your real cardiac profile or risks.

Over the last decade, we have seen acid blockers go from requiring a prescription to over the counter. The commercials for them depict them as benign in side effect and beneficial
as taking a vitamin C drink for the common cold.

While the packaging inserts for this classification of drug is enough to scare your socks off, no one is paying attention, especially the doctors who recommend them like they do drinking more water.

The normal PH of our stomach is highly acidic. This is to allow enzymes form our pancreas to work efficiently in breaking down proteins and for absorption of minerals that would otherwise not be absorbed. Another function of our stomach acid is to kill the normal bacteria that live in our mouths or that we might ingest.
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Stomach acid is also necessary for the absorption of vitamin B12, an extremely important vitamin. Deficiency of which leads to anemia and a whole host of diseases.

The small intestine, relative to the colon, is supposed to be almost bacteria free. The colon is home to billions of beneficial bacteria. The small intestine remains low on bacteria in large part due to the acidity of the stomach.

When an acid blocker is taken with any regularity, proteins are not digested, minerals are not absorbed and bacteria enter and flourish in the small intestines. One of the possible side effects of proteins being poorly absorbed is an increase in food allergies. One of the definite side effects of protein malabsorption is a decrease in muscle mass and therefore bone mass. Studies have shown that women who take acid blockers during pregnancy have babies with a 5 times greater risk for asthma.

When minerals are not absorbed, again we see a decrease in bone mass and strength.

When excessive bacteria in introduced into the small bowel, we see bacterial overgrowth with foul breath, gas and bloating as obvious and not so pretty side effects.

When the stomach has a decrease in acid on a regular basis, the bacteria H. Pylori is allowed to flourish. H. Pylori has been implicated as a trigger for stomach cancer.

While the pharmaceutical companies would have you believe that it is a normal daily function to take acid blockers, it is anything but. In addition, the acid blockers do not stop the reflux, in fact, they increase reflux do to the slower gastric digestion when acid is removed form the picture.

The blockers just remover the acid and hence the sensation of burning form the picture.

There are numerous reasons why people have acid reflux and there are many ways to determine the cause(s) and very simple treatments. I have successfully treated many patients with reflux in my Chicago area office and continue to do so.

What is most surprising is this went form being a common scenario in my adult patients, but in the last few years, I have seen this with increasing frequency in pediatric patients.

What I hope to see less of in the future is patients with osteoporosis, allergies, fatigue,
muscle waisting, gluten intolerance and H. Pylori associated stomach cancer because of this foolish and misguided daily practice.

One of the most common complaints driving women to my Evanston office is the complaint of feeling anxious and crazy toward the latter half of the patients' cycle.

This can also be seen in newly menopausal women as well.

Often patients relate the difficult they have in falling or staying asleep, the irritability or short fuse they feel, especially towards family, and the weight gain in their mid-section.

This new feeling is disquieting and can make woman feel as though they are losing the self they have always known to a new, less desirable self.

What is actually happening is the balance of estrogens to progesterone is shifting and contrary to popular belief, the estrogens are in excess relative to the progesterone. This is one event that can increase anxiety as progesterone is one of the most potent anti-anxiety compounds produced.

Another event that seems to be occurring is the autonomic nervous system often appears to be in stuck in "fight and flight" and the patient feels stressed even when there is nothing to stress about.

The development of IR or insulin resistance seems to intensify around menopause for many women. IR can snowball creating more insulin with a given amount of carbohydrates, which leads to hypoglycemia and then more carbohydrate cravings.

A common question is one regarding the excessive estrogens as the common wisdom is that women stop making estrogen as they approach menopause. This is not true. While cycles may be anovulatory, peripheral conversion of cholesterol into estrogen using the aromatase pathway can be very active.

My patients will tell me they had their levels checked and there is no estrogen, but the lab work they bring in only shows the estradiol or E2 level. The aromatase pathway produces E1 or estrone. Estrone must be degraded into metabolites and depending upon the toxin burden of the liver, the metabolites might be very active and stimulating for tissue growth.

I always perform a complete hormone profile on my patients to get the real picture. Excessive estrogens or their metabolites can be tampered by supplements that help the liver degrade the hormone and by supplements that decrease the activity of the aromatase pathway.

Bio-identical progesterone can be helpful towards the end of the cycle at night for proper balance and sleep restoration.

Reflex biofeedback can be a life saver when it comes to resetting the autonomic nervous system and getting the patient out of the "fight and flight" pattern. I use SCENAR for this with excellent and immediate results.

Sound nutritional support with some simple but powerful dietary changes can make a huge difference in controlling the insulin resistance that often develops, bringing back the waistline and confidence of any patient.

Uterine fibroids are a very common phenomenon among women of all backgrounds.
Women of African decent do have a higher risk of developing fibroids but the incidence rate among women in general during the reproductive years is about 30 %.

A fibroid is a non-malignant growth of tissue in the muscular layer of the uterus and can continue to grow as long as the woman has hormones feeding it. There are theories as to what causes fibroids, estrogen stimulation is the main working theory based on behavior of the tumor to hormone suppression.

Mainstream treatments can consist of hormonal manipulation and often surgery.

The hormonal treatment is typically contraceptive pills, which controls the cycle and the amount of estrogen, or Lupron, which shuts down the whole system and puts the woman into a chemically induced menopause. While this can prove to be effective, the patient often suffers from many objectionable side effects emotionally and physically from being thrown into menopause overnight.

A myomectomy is where just the fibroid itself is removed, or, in the case of a very large fibroid, a hysterectomy, where the total uterus is removed. And while these can be effective as well, they do nothing about the actual cause of the fibroid and having to undergo general surgery when there are less invasive options is not preferable.

In my Evanston office, I manage these patients by taking a careful history, looking at possible dietary, environmental toxin or emotional factors that could be contributing to the growth of the fibroid.

I get a complete hormonal laboratory workup and often suggest many dietary changes.
In addition, I often complete a homeopathic evaluation and perform SCENAR on the uterine acupuncture points which can alleviate any pain or discomfort the patient may have been having from the fibroid.

Supplementation with I3C or DIM as well as herbs to help the liver detoxify the hormones can also be helpful.

There are times, that this is not enough and the patient does need to undergo surgery, but in all fairness, it is almost always when the patient just can't or won't make the necessary dietary changes.

Look for future blogs on hormones in our food chain and how to limit our exposure to them.

One of the many advantages to being a mature doctor is the vast experience one acquires along the way. In my Evanston medical office, I have repeatedly seen a link between lowered sexual function or drive, and impaired autonomic nervous system function.

Often this is the case of a woman going through menopause. The chief complaint might be weight gain, hot flashes, wrinkling skin or insomnia but low libido or sexual response often accompanies these symptoms.

I also see men who complain of poor sexual function or lowered libido and discover they actually have some other complaints concurrently that seem to be associated with autonomic nervous system dysfunction or ANSD.

Once the ANSD is addressed and treated, the sexual function improves enormously and the patient feels relieved to have a part of their self back that had seemed lost.

ANSD can be acquired from longterm stress, acute stress or trauma, physically or psychologically. Typically an increase in sympathetic (the fight and flight arm of the system) tone is noted, especially in men. In women, often the fight and flight or sympathetic arm is shut down and the patient feels depressed and fatigued.

In either case, the employment of a reflex biofeedback device such as SCENAR to assess and treat the sympathetic tone can be an essential ingredient in returning balance, calmness and libido.

In my work in post quake Haiti, I treated dozens if not hundreds of patients suffering from post traumatic stress disorder including many of the responders. I discovered improved mood and emotional function once the autonomic nervous system was balanced.

Both the parasympathetic and the sympathetic systems are needed for sexual arousal and orgasm and they must work together. If one is stuck in an on or off mode, the response is limited or non-existant.

in addition to a tempered response, the adrenals are often affected which can then lead to weight gain, anxiety and fatigue.

Scenar, acupuncture, and meditation are all fabulous adjuncts to nutritional therapies and exercise that can improve the relationship between the sympathetic and the parasympathetic systems.

The use of great diagnostic tools and treatment plans make for a speedy recovery and the return of a healthy sexual response.