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“Why Don’t I Feel Good?” Functional Medicine Goes Beyond Only Ensuring the Absence of Disease

“Why Don’t I Feel Good?” Functional Medicine Goes Beyond Only Ensuring the Absence of Disease

by: Mel Schottenstein, NMD, MBD, FICT

More people are looking for Functional Medicine Practitioners because conventional medicine leaves many patients looking for answers and relief.

Even after multiple prescriptions, several tests, and many of those 8–10 minute doctor visits, someone suffering an ailment can be left asking themselves, “Why don’t I feel good?”

If a patient complains long enough, they may receive a psychiatrist referral from their doctor.

This is not a critique of conventional Western medicine, which is responsible for saving thousands of lives on a daily basis. Instead, I want to focus on the patients for whom conventional medicine hasn’t provided the answers or relief they were expecting.

For that sizable group of patients, finding a practitioner of functional medicine can be invaluable. Functional medicine is a personalized and integrative approach to health care that involves understanding the prevention, management, and root causes of complex chronic disease.

Dr. Mel Schottenstein discusses the additional certifications and education that is required of functional medicine practitioners.

By taking the best aspects from conventional medicine, naturopathic, genomic, integrative, and various other modalities, it offers one of the most comprehensive and effective approaches to health care in the 21st century.

The focus is the patient and their unique presentation and response. Practitioners of functional medicine are flexible and results-driven, using whichever medical approach suits the personalized needs of the patient and addresses the cause of their problem.

Some critics who don’t understand functional medicine say it rejects conventional medicine, but that is untrue for the majority of practitioners. According to the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM), the leading provider for functional medicine education to health care practitioners in the world, more than 75 percent of their current trainee’s have an underlying training in conventional medicine as a medical doctor, doctor of osteopathy, nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant. They don’t throw a way those years of conventional medical training, rather, they educate themselves further in order to add more tools to their toolbox when evaluating and treating their patients.

Lacking Motivation? Balancing Your Hormones Could Be the Answer.

Lacking Motivation? Balancing Your Hormones Could Be the Answer.
by: Steve Nunn, MPAS, PA-C, DFAAPA

What do optimized hormones have to do with motivation to workout??? EVERYTHING.

Balancing your hormones creates a positive domino effect

If you’re dealing with constant fatigue, it’s hard to get motivated to workout. One of the many benefits of hormone optimization is better sleep. With better sleep, you’re less tired throughout the day and often have more energy to apply to all aspects of your life, including, exercising more regularly.

 

Why is Exercise So Important?

Exercise has many obvious benefits, but it also can help you feel better, have more energy and even add years to your life! The health benefits of regular exercise and physical activity are hard to ignore- and everyone can benefit from it, regardless of sex, age or physical ability.

Here are seven ways exercise can lead to a happier, healthier you:

1. Manage Your Weight

Exercise can help you maintain a healthy weight. How much activity is needed? ANY activity is better than none at all, and consistency is key. Make small changes and just get more active throughout your day — take the stairs instead of the elevator or walk the dog for 30 minutes instead of 15.

2. Help Combat Disease and other Health Conditions

No matter your current weight, being active actually increases your LDL (good) cholesteroland it decreases unhealthy triglycerides. This one-two punch keeps your blood flowing smoothly, which decreases your risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Regularly exercise to help prevent or manage:

  • Stroke

  • Metabolic syndrome

  • High blood pressure

  • Type 2 diabetes

  • Depression

  • Anxiety

  • Many types of cancer

  • Arthritis

3. Improve Your Mood AND Cognitive Function

Feeling depressed or stressed? Physical activity can help you feel happier, more relaxed and less anxious. It also can give you a confidence boost when you start appreciating the changes in your appearance.

4. Boost Your Energy

Out of breath after that flight of stairs? Can’t keep up with your kids or grandkids? Regular physical activity can improve your muscle strength ,boost your endurance and help your cardiovascular system work more efficiently. And when your heart and lung health improve, you have more energy to tackle daily chores.

5. Sleep Better

Having trouble going to sleep or staying asleep? Exercising regularly can help you fall asleep faster and deepen your sleep. HINT: Don’t exercise too close to bedtime, or you may be too energized to go to sleep.

6. Put the Spark Back into Your Sex Life

When you feel too tired or lack confidence in your physical appears, it’s hard to be “in the mood.” Regular physical activity can improve energy levels and increase your confidence about your physical appearance.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!

Regular physical activity may enhance arousal for women. And men who exercise regularly are less likely to have problems with erectile dysfunction than are men who don’t exercise.

7. Exercise can be fun … and social!

Find something that you truly enjoy doing and where you can connect with others.

So take a dance class, hit the hiking trails or join a soccer team. Find a physical activity you enjoy, and just do it.

The bottom line on exercise

Exercise and physical activity are great ways to feel better, boost your health and have fun. So, get moving on the path to a healthier, happier YOU!

Remember to check with your doctor before starting a new exercise program, especially if you have any concerns about your fitness, haven’t exercised for a long time, have chronic health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes or arthritis.

Benefits of BHRT in Perimenopause & Menopause

Many women find perimenopause and menopause symptoms take them by surprise. Some don’t go to the doctor until they are in the throes of fatigue, mood swings, low sex drive and hot flashes to name a few. They are remiss to seek treatment because they’ve heard that solutions such as hormone replacement therapy may be hazardous to their health. So they white-knuckle it in silence. We had the opportunity of interviewing an expert, Dr. Gino Tutera, who spent many years investigating ways to help women during menopause feel normal during this tough time in life. Dr. Tutera found hormone replacement methods were the best way to help women during their menopausal years before creating his unique pellet therapy approach. He is SottoPelle® Founder and Medical Director of SottoPelle Hormone Replacement Therapy. Following are his answers to the questions we asked him, to inform our readers. He explained that all hormone replacement therapies are not the same.

BHRT benefits in perimenopause & menopause

You can feel better about yourself again

Viva Fifty.- How and when should women consult a doctor about their peri-menopausal or menopausal symptoms?
Dr. Gino Tutera.- Women should not wait until symptoms strike before checking their hormone levels. As we age, our hormone levels decline. Recent studies show that women are experiencing peri-menopause and menopause at much earlier ages than expected. By age 40, most women are totally depleted of normal levels of estrogen and have lost nearly all their progesterone and more than half of their testosterone. These fluctuating levels can lead to more serious health issues since many diseases are correlated with hormonal imbalances. Estrogen impacts cognitive function and testosterone affects the heart, breast and bones. In order to protect their health, women need to check their hormonal balance regularly starting at age 40.

Viva Fifty.- What are bio-identical hormones in layperson language and how can women benefit from them?
Dr. Tutera.- Bio-identical hormones (BHRT) are natural, plant-derived compounds that have the same molecular structure as those made by the human body – as opposed to other traditional forms of hormone therapy (HRT), which are synthetic, or pharmaceutical. The molecular structure of bio-identical hormones is identical to the hormones produced naturally by the human body, hence the name. Therefore they are better assimilated without the dangerous side effects associated with synthetic hormones.

Viva Fifty.- How many years can women take these hormones and how costly are they?Dr. Tutera.- Hormonal imbalances can strike a woman at any age and are not reserved just for older women in menopause. The need for hormones all depends each individual woman’s levels and a simple blood test is used to measure that. Since bio-identical hormones are natural without the harmful side effects of pharmaceutical hormones, there is no limit to the time frame in which a woman can take them if she needs them. Since our food, water and environment are loaded with toxic chemicals, this disrupts the body’s delicate endocrine system which leads to hormonal balance. Women can protect their health by maintaining proper hormonal balance at any age.

The cost for bio-identical hormone therapy is around $300 with the pellet method and lasts an average of 3-4 months. So the monthly cost is $75. The blood test costs vary depending on what lab is used but generally run less than $100 and is usually covered by most health insurance.

Also Read: Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) helped me be a better mom

BHRT benefits in perimenopause and menopause

You can kiss hot flashes goodbye

Viva Fifty.- Beyond HRT or BHRT, what else can women do to improve their self-image and self-esteem during perimenopause, menopause and beyond?
Dr. Tutera.- Women can learn to love themselves at any age. The best way for women to improve their self-image and self-esteem is to start with inner health and happiness … the beauty that radiates from the inside out.

Body type and self-image for women are undergoing a rapid shift with the dramatic rise in America’s aging population. Today there are 78 million Americans over age 55 and over half of them are women. And one in every three people is over 50. This means vast numbers of women are facing aging issues and experiencing menopause. So the demand for more reasonable body images and role models is changing to serve the needs of this aging female demographic. There has been a louder voice for acceptance for those who do not meet the weight and image standards we see on TV, magazines, social media and basically everywhere.

Dr. Ivanka Prichard, a behavioral psychologist, is one advocate leading a research team to determine if the new “fit-spirational” trends do women’s body image and psychological health more harm than good. “Healthy is the new skinny!” she declares.

Viva Fifty.- What about women´s fear of cancer due to HRT?
Dr. Tutera.-  It’s a misguided perception based on synthetic HRT, not natural BHRT. Some misunderstanding persists around hormones because many people and even doctors don’t realize that there are two different kinds – synthetic and bio-identical.

When the Women’s Health Initiative released a report in 2002 citing the dangerous side effects of synthetic hormones, it gave all hormones a bad reputation. To this day most news reports fail to make this critical distinction between the two different types of hormones and thus all forms of hormones are falsely considered dangerous. BHRT began in Europe in the 1930’s and is backed by over 75 years of research.

Extensive research shows that cancer is associated with synthetic or pharmaceutical HRT. Numerous studies point to the health benefits of BHRT in helping to protect women against breast cancer. Here are four as an example:

Tutera, D. Gambrell, Marked reduction of breast, endometrial and ovarian cancer in users of bio-identical estradiol and testosterone subcutaneous pellets, Maturitas, 2013: “Subcutaneous estradiol and testosterone pellets do not increase the risk of development of any of these cancers and, in fact, may be protective.”

Natrajan and Gabrell, American Journal of OB-GYN, 2002: “Bio-identical estrogen does not increase either recurrence of breast cancer or mortality rates.”

Roger Smith and John Studd, British Journal of Hospital Medicine,1993: “Hormone pellet therapy does not increase the risk of breast cancer incidence.”

Davelarr Study, 1991: “No increase in the incidence of breast cancer during the use of subcutaneous estradiol in women from 1972-mid-1990s… less cancers overall than the control group on no estrogen therapy.”

Benefits of BHRT in menopause and perimenopause

HRT and BHRT are not the same thing

Viva Fifty.- What is the key to effective hormone therapy?
Dr. Tutera.- Sex hormones play a much larger role in our health beyond a reproductive purpose. They are the “control panel” of the human body and impact all organs, tissues and neurotransmitters. In fact, they affect every aspect of our physical and mental well-being and can also help prevent illness, disease and premature aging.

The key to effective hormone therapy lies in the delivery method. Pills, patches, creams, gels, troches and other methods often result in roller coaster surges of hormones. Studies demonstrate that hormone pellets, which are about the size of a grain of rice and slipped under the skin, provide the most effective delivery system because they are monitored naturally by the body’s own heart rate for 24-7 distribution exactly when the body needs it most.

Most synthetic hormones and even some bio-identical hormone pellets offer one-size-fits-all generic doses that are not designed to meet each woman’s unique hormone needs. Every woman doesn’t wear the same size shoe; so why would they all choose the same hormone dose? SottoPelle® Therapy is the only method that uses a proprietary web-based BioCalc® system with precision dosing for each patient’s specific requirements and carefully monitored to manage her hormone balance properly.

Hormone therapy is not just about menopause or for women only! Men lose most of their testosterone by age 50 and need hormonal balance when andropause sets in. Like women, they should have their levels checked before symptoms arrive to protect their health.

Women should not wait until symptoms strike before checking their hormone levels. As we age, our hormone levels decline. Recent studies show that women are experiencing peri-menopause and menopause at much earlier ages than expected. #HRT #BHRT #perimenopause #menopause

 

Source: https://www.vivafifty.com/bhrt-benefits-perimenopause-menopause-2874/

5 Myths About Hormone Replacement Therapy

 

 

Whether you’re a man or a woman, talking with your significant other about their health and hormones with a physician is almost always fodder for an argument. The good news is, “It Doesn’t Have To Be That Way®” if the topic is approached with love, compassion, support and understanding. There are ways you can minimize the chance of upsetting the other person’s feelings if you do a little homework first.

If you’re a man, understand that your wife’s mood swings aren’t always caused by a bad day at work or the stress of dealing with the children or the never-ending list of chores at home. Chances are these everyday stressors can be amplified as a result of hormonal imbalance, premenopausal or menopausal. When a women is in menopause her body significantly decreases its production of estrogen and testosterone. In addition to mood swings, your wife may be experiencing fatigue or loss of libido. Other symptoms can include night sweats, hot flashes, unexplained weight gain and irritability. She may not realize she is suffering from hormonal imbalance and may have a hard time asking for help even if she suspects she might be “going through the change.”

Don’t let her be a stoic and suffer in silence. When you feel an openness in her presence, start by telling her she is greatly loved and valued. That you are bringing up a possibly sensitive topic only out of concern for her health. Reassure her that though her symptoms might have affected your relationship, that you are committed in helping her find answers so she can start feeling better, both physically and emotionally. Offer to read the same material with her, if possible, attend her doctor’s appointments with her, let her know you want to understand her condition, but most importantly, show her your support is consistent and constant.

If you are a woman wanting to talk to your male partner about “the change” you suspect is taking place in him, this topic is equally sensitive. We often hear of stories of men going through “mid-life crisis” when they buy the new sports car, start looking at much younger women and often chase things which help them feel more youthful. Some experts believe this phenomenon may actually be caused by a man trying to over-compensate the very qualities the he believes is slipping away from him: his sex appeal and masculinity. When a man reaches their late 30’s to mid-40s, the male body starts to significantly produce less testosterone which causes the man to have decreased libido and energy, loss of mental focus, decreased muscle mass, increased weight gain and an overall compromise in their sense of well-being. For a man, these symptoms also often cause depression. This “change” is often called “male menopause” or now known as “Andropause.”

When a woman addresses a man’s possible hormonal imbalance, the same concepts in positive communication applies regardless of whom is addressing whom. The woman must reassure the man that he is valued and loved and that this sensitive topic is being brought up out of concern for their health and well-being. Let your partner know that you don’t see him less of a man because his body is going through changes that are not in his control. Reassure him that the changes he is going through are common among men and the clinical term is called “andropause.” Read about the topic together and talk about “next steps” in getting him the medical help he needs.

The bottom line is neither the man nor the woman needs to suffer and feel they have debilitating bodies. Your relationship does not have to suffer because of the distance or walls often built between partners due to misunderstandings as a result of hormonal imbalance and mood swings that often follow. Intimacy in the relationship is possible, again. As well as the renewed sense of hope in a healthy, long future together not hindered by any physical, emotional or mental barricades often produced by hormonal imbalance. Your passion for life and each other will only grow with each passing year. But it all starts with today.

When you know something is not quite right with the person you love, it’s only natural you want to help them. Words have the power to build-up a person or to tear them down. Let’s help build the other person up in letting them know there is hope. For the past 20 years SottoPelle has provided thousands of men and women the ability to feel like their selves again. Let us help you and your loved one rebuild the road to happiness and good health.

Dr. Gino Tutera is a pioneer and leader in the field of bio-identical hormone replacement therapy. As a board certified OB/GYN, he has dedicated more than thirty years of his medical career to the clinical study, science and treatment of hormonal imbalance. In 2002, Dr. Tutera founded SottoPelle® Therapy and has since been invited to speak at international medical conventions in front of thousands of fellow physicians. Dr. Tutera has authored three books on the world-renowned methodology of SottoPelle Therapy. His books are sold individually in Spanish and in English in print format or you can download the books electronically. You can purchase them here: https://store.sottopelletherapy.com/shop/books/