Test Your Well Water!

Well Water: Safe or Unsafe?

People are very proud of their well water.  When you hear someone say, "we're on well water", the pride and maybe slight pity for people on city water is evident in their facial expression and the lack of need to say more.  I almost never hear people go on about their water--about test results, about the way it tastes. Just simply "We're on well water," with a smile, as if that answers all my questions about their health.

Over the years, I have asked people to test their well water because they were having unanswerable health problems.  The tests revealed elevated levels of arsenic, sulphur, iron, aluminum, copper, and lead.  These can all lead to health problems. Arsenic can cause eczema and cancer, sulphur can cause skin irritation and rectal itching, iron can accumulate in the liver causing multiple deleterious effects including liver failure, aluminum is associated with Alzheimers and other neurological issues, copper causes neurological issues and displaces zinc, lead can cause low IQ in children, other neurodevelopmental problems, stunted growth, fatigue and brain fog.

One patient came to me with many neurological symptoms and exhaustion.  Although her diagnoses were many, one of them was lyme disease.  They live on acreage and she sees ticks around all the time.  She went to a lyme specialist for 3 years with little positive effect on her symptoms.  She returned to our clinic to deal with other diagnoses, as the lyme treatments had been exhausted.  During the three years she had been gone, she had been experiencing serious brain fog and muscle contractions which almost seemed seizure like at night in bed. Her arms would contract up and her hands would go into fists while her legs had charley horses and her face contorted into twitches and grimaces.  When she came back to me, I asked her to get her well water checked.  She didn't want to because she thought the well water had not changed since they had it tested 4 years prior.  I asked her to send me the old results but advised on getting new ones.

The results astounded me.  The well was contaminated with three metals.  Aluminum and lead were in the elevated range and copper was above the EPA critical amount.  There was even a warning with an exclamation point on the test result showing that the copper level was unacceptable for human consumption.  Yet she had been drinking this water the entire four years since the test and for many years before that! The only time she had felt better during her lyme treatment was when she moved to Seattle to do 3 months of hyperbaric oxygen treatments.  Obviously, she was not drinking her well water during this time. Copper toxicity causes brain fog, muscle cramps, facial twitches and grimaces and seizure like contractions of the upper limbs specifically with the thumbs contracted in and hands clenched in a fist.  Clearly lyme disease was not the only source of her neurological problems.

Even if you do not use chemicals on your land, the heavy metals could be in your aquifer from a prior resident, nearby manufacturing plant, or a close neighboring farm.

Here is how contaminants get into your well water.  The above picture is only showing a few sources of contamination on the average farm.  Bacteria and pharmaceuticals can come from septic, bacteria from livestock, diesel fuel used to leak lead but now still can leak sulphur into the water table. Because of environmental laws, lead was removed in 1995. Diesel fuel still has elevated sulphur which new laws have been enacted to reduce.

In addition, fungicides, herbicides, and pesticides can make it in to the water table and therefore the private well.  Copper is used as a fungicide on many crops including grains, apples, peaches, blueberries, raspberries and many others. It also reduces algae formation, so it is used directly on standing water sources such as ponds.  However, household water copper contamination usually comes from deteriorating copper pipes.  Any home that has copper piping throughout can have copper contamination in the water, especially if the pH of the water is acidic (below pH of 7).  In fact, this patient's water was very acidic at 5.4 pH.  The water test had that noted as well.  I do not know where the water was drawn from for the water test. If it was drawn from the indoor taps, the copper could be coming from pipes. If it was drawn directly from the well, then the patient's copper consumption can be much higher than the well water test suggests, if they have copper piping.

Normally, the required tests for well water only check for bacteria.  Many times you have to ask for your well water to be checked for minerals and heavy metals or you will never know your well is contaminated. Most counties offer an extended water test panel for an additional $100-$200 above the normal bacteria count test.  It is definitely worth it. Test your well water!

Best Gluten Free Oat Waffle recipe

Last night at Chucks Produce an enticing aroma filled the education kitchen and drifted through the cracks in the doorway, into the produce section and met the stacks of red ripe local strawberries:  Fresh baked waffles!  The lucky few who came (as well as a few who came for the class that met right after) got to have hot waffles with ripe local strawberries and homemade whipped cream. Best of all--the waffles were gluten free!

I love this waffles recipe because it is simple: no tapioca flour, no xanthan gum, no potato starch.  Just oat flour. I like oats because they are high in fiber, high in silica (feeds the bones, hair, skin and nails), and it's easy on the GI tract.  These waffles taste great--most people like them better than regular waffles!

To get a truly authentic waffle texture (not grainy, fluffy) use Bob's Red Mill oat flour and buttermilk.  Bob's Red Mill oat flour is finely ground.  HOWEVER, the Bob's oat flour is NOT guaranteed gluten free. It is made from regular oats in the regular facility.  To make completely gluten free oat flour, simply get the Bob's Red Mill gluten free oats and grind them in a coffee grinder set to the espresso or fine setting. The result will not be as fine as the factory ground oats, but in the waffle recipe, it does not matter.  If you have a Vitamix, you will be able to make a more finely ground flour.

We used almond milk in case there was someone present who could not have dairy. Of course, the whipped cream is dairy, but you could substitute Cool Whip if desired (even though it's not a healthy substitution). In addition the recipe uses honey or maple syrup rather than sugar and coconut oil rather than vegetable oil.  This recipe is a healthy option for breakfast or dessert.  Keep this on hand for a quick dessert when berries are in season.  It only takes about 10 minutes to make a batch of waffles!

Oat Waffle recipe

Preheat waffle iron

1 1/2 cups oat flour
1 tablespoon baking powder (aluminum free is recommended)
1/8 tsp salt
3 heaping tablespoons ground flax seeds (this is optional, but gives more fiber and essential fatty acids to the recipe)

Mix the above dry ingredients in a medium sized mixing bowl. Then add:

1 cup milk (buttermilk or almond milk or other milk substitute)
2 eggs
2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
2 tablespoons honey or real maple syrup

Mix batter until well incorporated. Don't worry about overmixing. It doesn't matter in a waffle recipe.  Pour into waffle iron (don't overfill).  Wait until steam has subsided, that is when waffles are done.

Top with freshly sliced ripe strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and top with whipped cream.  Yum!

Oxalic acid--What is it and how does it affect your health?

Oxalic acid is a crystalline organic substance found naturally in many plants and foods.  The oxalic acid and the oxalate crystals that it forms can irritate the tissues of the body or even form stones. Here are some organs that can be affected by oxalates:

kidneys:  kidney stones can form from oxalates and are called oxalate stones.  This typically occurs in people who are eating foods high in oxalates and not drinking enough water.

bladder: intestitial cystitis (inflammation of the bladder) can be caused by oxalates/oxalic acid.  The symptoms are similar to a bladder infection (urgent need to urinate, urinating often, bladder or pelvic pain) but without the presence of bacteria in the urine.

lungs: low lung function and even asthmatic type symptoms can be attributed to oxalic acid.  it was found that levels of oxalic acid is often high in the bronchi of people with certain pulmonary conditions
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/4051310

What food are high in oxalates?

Spinach: if you steam or otherwise cook spinach and other greens, the oxalic acid dissolves and does not create problems. The trouble happens when people are eating alot of raw spinach, other raw greens.  This can especially happen when people put fresh greens in their smoothies or drink juiced greens.  I do not recommend doing green smoothies. Many of my patients who do these end up being sensitive to oxalates--especially children.  An adult friend of mine did get oxalate kidney stones. He ate spinach salad every dinner and did not drink any water--he preferred soda and beer.  If he had drank alot of water, he may have avoided the stones.

Beet greens  (remember to cook them)
Collard greens (cooking them breaks down the oxalic acid)
Parsley
Chives
Cassava
Amaranth
Radish
Carrots
Beans, dried
Rhubarb
Wheat bran
Strawberries
Almonds (some sources state)
sesame (some sources state)


Remember, these foods are not dangerous, but they do contain high levels of oxalic acid. If not cooked or if consumed in large quantities, the crystals could cause trouble in the body.  A study was done to determine the effect of cooking on removing oxalates from food:

J Agric Food Chem. 2005 Apr 20;53(8):3027-30.

Effect of different cooking methods on vegetable oxalate content.

Chai W, Liebman M.

Source

Department of Family and Consumer Sciences (Nutrition), Department 3354, University of Wyoming, 1000 East University Avenue, Laramie, Wyoming 82071, USA.

Abstract

Approximately 75% of all kidney stones are composed primarily of calcium oxalate, and hyperoxaluria is a primary risk factor for this disorder. Nine types of raw and cooked vegetables were analyzed for oxalate using an enzymatic method. There was a high proportion of water-soluble oxalate in most of the tested raw vegetables. Boiling markedly reduced soluble oxalate content by 30-87% and was more effective than steaming (5-53%) and baking (used only for potatoes, no oxalate loss). An assessment of the oxalate content of cooking water used for boiling and steaming revealed an approximately 100% recovery of oxalate losses. The losses of insoluble oxalate during cooking varied greatly, ranging from 0 to 74%. Because soluble sources of oxalate appear to be better absorbed than insoluble sources, employing cooking methods that significantly reduce soluble oxalate may be an effective strategy for decreasing oxaluria in individuals predisposed to the development of kidney stones.

Other sources of oxalates:

Bacteria: bacteria produce oxalic acid when digesting carbohydrates.  This could be one of the factors contributing to IBS.  Most people with IBS do better on a low carb diet.  Could they be sensitive to oxalic acid?

Aspgergillus (pictured above): this is a fungus that can wreak havoc on the respiratory system.  Many people get chronic sinusitis, bronchitis, or asthma from overexposure to aspergillus.  Aspergillus creates oxalic acid.  High amounts of oxalic acid were found in the bronchiol lavages of people with aspergillosus lung infections.

Here in our office, allergy to oxalic acid sometimes comes up in muscle testing.  Oxalic acid sensitivity cannot be tested by blood allergy tests.  I have had several patients with interstitial cystitis show as sensitive to oxalic acid. Children who test sensitive have been given green smoothies--homemade smoothies with raw kale and spinach in them.

So remember, cook spinach and tough greens before eating them.  If you insist on eating them raw, drink lots of water daily.

If you would like to get tested for sensitivities, call the office at 360-573-2273

Patient Results

A patient that was in the office yesterday suggested that I post stories from patients who have gotten great results with their treatment plans. This would encourage people that are in at the start or middle of a treatment plan, or help people come in (she's had a hard time convincing her friends to go ahead and make an appointment).  So  here are two stories, just from yesterday and today of patients who have had great results from their treatment plans:

the first patient works in a beauty salon as a nail technician.  She had recently started getting red swollen rashes on her face.  In addition she had numbness and tingling sensations in her hands. She also felt tired in the mornings and on days off but managed to rally on workdays, having good energy throughout the day when needed. In addition to being around hair chemicals, laquers and nail polish thinners daily, she was in the process of renovating her kitchen, stripping and sanding her cupboards herself.  She was taking no medications or supplements at the time.

I tested her for environmental sensitivities and she was sensitive to solvents, turpentine, mold, dust, and spices.  Certainly these could cause an allergic skin reaction and a buildup of toxins could explain the neuropathy (numbness and tingling) in her hands.  The numbness could also have been a sign of carpal tunnel syndrome (which is usually caused by lack of B vitamins) or a pinched nerve in the neck.

I did an NAET allergy treatment for solvents, put her on a supplement that aids the detoxification of solvents from the body, a high dose B complex, and gave her a homeopathic remedy that matched the stinging, hot, red rashes.  I instructed her to come in for more allergy elimination treatments and a follow up.  I didn't hear from her for six months.

She came in yesterday saying that the reason she hadn't been back was that her symptoms were resolved!  The homeopathic had worked immediately for the rash so she had come in to the office to purchase more of it.  Her numbness and tingling were gone and when I mentioned the fatigue, she didn't even remember that it had been a complaint in the first place.  The reason she came back was she had a similar rash on her neck that had been on her face before.  I reminded her of the allergies we had not treated and we embarked on finishing the treatment plan.

Patient number two had originally come in for neck pain that was chronic for years.  She needed chiropractic adjustments monthly and massages weekly in order to keep the pain and tension down to a manageable level.  She was tired of maintaining this regimen and asked what I could do for longer term results or at least give her some advice on what she could do at home.  She had already done NAET allergy treatments in the past for hayfever and felt that her allergies were well under control.  She has a lot of work stress with long hours and knows that some of her neck tension comes from this but some from an unknown chronic problem.

Although she didn't want to explore allergies, some symptoms prompted me to think of metals.  We tested her and she was sensitive to metals. She was wearing a lot of metal jewelry--several earrings, a necklace, bracelets and a metal watch.  She also had a few amalgam fillings in her mouth which we discussed.  Her symptoms matched a certain homeopathic remedy often given for neck tension and pain.  We did an NAET treatment for metals and I gave her a dose of the homeopathic pellets. I instructed her to refrain from wearing metal jewelry for the time being and to do more metal treatments at home. I didn't hear from her for a month.

She called today to order more of the homeopathic. It had worked incredibly overnight.  She had awaken the day after our visit without any neck pain or tension at all.  She used a second dose of the homeopathic I gave her a week or so later and felt that it really released the tension and pain immediately.  She was pleased that homeopathic medicine is so inexpensive and without side effects and can be taken at home as often as needed.  She had been really afraid that going to a naturopathic doctor would mean embarking on a really expensive and lengthy treatment plan.

I had to update this blogpost a few hours later to include another great patient result today.  The third patient is an 11 year old girl diagnosed with autoimmune iritis and idiopathic juvenile arthritis.  She also had headaches daily.  She had been put on a strong dosage of steroids, methotrexate, and an experimental medicine.  It took a year to find this drug cocktail to make the iritis calm down. Every time they tried to cut back on the steroids, her iritis came back.  Mom really wanted her to come off of the steroids since it was causing weight gain, stretch marks, and fatigue.

On the first visit, we found allergies to gluten, casein, DNA, pollen, and flowers. The gluten was most likely to be causing the headaches and autoimmune condition.  I put her on a gluten free dairy free diet.   I suggested tapering off the steroids after being on the diet for 2 weeks.  They came back after three weeks to get an NAET allergy treatment for casein so she could add dairy back into her diet.

At the return visit at 4 weeks, the girl had no headaches and no iritis even though they had completely discontinued steroids.  Their M.D. insisted she stay on the experimental drug since she was in a study which paid for the drug, and he decreased the methotrexate by 20%.  We talked about tapering off methotrexate and started NAET treatments for DNA.

Now ideally, for all of these patients the first visits would be the start of a health journey in which we address various symptoms, health concerns, and lifestyle factors as quickly as possible and end up with a much healthier patient in the end. Many times when the initial complaints the patient came in for are remedied, as in the patients above, they don't come back for a long time.  It's important to remember all of your health concerns and stick with a doctor, being sure to come in for follow ups so they know how you're doing and can prevent as well as treat other illnesses that arise.  Even so, the above cases are very encouraging that naturopathic medical care really works, sometimes even with the very first treatment plan.

If you're still not sure if naturopathic medicine is right for you, come in for a free 15 minute consult where you can ask more questions about the services offered, whether your insurance covers our visits, and more.  360-573-2273.  Go to www.drsherylwagner.com    for more information.

NAET

NAET

Just got back from the annual NAET Symposium.  NAET practitioners from all over the world attended, hailing from Europe, India, Japan, and Australia.  NAET, short for Nambudripads Allergy Elimination Technique, was created by Dr. Devi Nambudripad in 1983.  She used to be allergic to most foods and discovered that a simple accupressure treatment could clear an allergy.  She has trained people in this technique for over 20 years.  Over 12,000 practitioners have learned to do NAET worldwide. Many practitioners at the symposium gave talks on patient cases or how they are using NAET in their practices.  All of us have seen allergic responses such as hayfever and skin conditions completely eliminated by NAET.  However, two doctors had particularly interesting presentations.

One doctor from India uses NAET with HIV positive orphans.  Normally babies born HIV positive suffer from poor growth, chronic illness and repeated infections.  With NAET, Sister Naina has brought the children out of sickness and into wellness.  Despite their HIV status remaining, the children are healthy, grow well, and do not even get the colds and coughs that non-HIV positive children get.  This is without anti-viral medication. What a success!

You can donate to the non-profit organization supporting the treatment of these orphans by clicking the link below:
http://www.naet-europe.com/en/naet-association.html

Children in developed countries are suffering from an different epidemic: autism.  Another presenter gave his report on a scientific study he recently published regarding the treatment of autistic children with NAET.  The study had a treatment group and a control group.  23 out of 29 autistic children treated with NAET recovered enough to be mainstreamed into regular classes at school.  Here is an interview shown on Fox News about that study:



NAET can be used for almost any disease.  Many symptoms we don't consider to be allergic responses stem from sensitivities to foods, chemicals, substances, and even emotions and other people.  The week of the conference, I had been experiencing muscle tightness in my neck on the right side and neck pain.  On day four of my trip, we moved to a hotel for the conference, an accupuncturist in the vendor area that day gave me a treatment in my neck which completely released the muscle tension and resolved the pain.  The same day I also started to use the pens provided by the hotel.  My neck felt better the entire day and into the next.  Halfway through the next day, I lost my hotel pen, which happened to be all plastic, so I reached into my purse for the pen I had been using--a pen with both plastic and metal on the outside.

After taking notes with my pen for about an hour, I began to experience a return of my neck pain.  Also the muscles along the thumb and forefinger were crampy and sore.  Could this be an allergy to the pen?  I had my neighbor, another NAET practioner, test me and sure enough, I was allergic (or sensitive) to the metal on the pen.  I switched back to an all plastic pen and the soreness in my hand as well as the neck pain disappeared.  Now I need to get treated with NAET for sensitivity to metals.  I can't begin to think how many massages, accupuncture treatments or chiropractic visits I may have had if I kept using that pen! It would also be a good idea to check sensitivities to jewelry I wear--perhaps some of my necklaces or earings have been creating neck pain by local contact with the metal to which I'm allergic.

To find out more about NAET, read "Say Goodbye to Illness" by Dr. Nampudripad.  This book is available at our office or on Amazon.com.  Or if you're ready to get tested and treated, call our office at 360-573-2273.  For more locations and information, go to www.drsherylwagner.com.    If you are not in the Northwest near either of my offices, go to www.NAET.com to find a practitioner in your area.

no wheat, no disease?

Many people have found the miracle cure for ailments from eczema to diabetes: eliminate wheat from the diet. Dr. William Davis discovered the benefits of eliminating wheat from his diet, used this prescription with multiple patients who also had good results. This experience culminated in a new book: "Wheat Belly". In this book Dr. Davis explains the glycemic index of foods and the dangers of wheat in particular--even "healthy whole grain wheat". Click on the link below to watch Dr. Davis give an explanation of his findings:

http://www.cbn.com/media/player/index.aspx?s=/mp4/SUS213_DrWilliamDavis_101711_WS

For years we have been told that cholesterol and fat are the dangerous food ingredients to eliminate from the diet. Supposedly, eliminating these decreases the chance of getting heart disease. However, in the last 20 years since we've heard this prescription purported in the U.S., rates of obesity, pre-diabetes, diabetes, and other diseases leading to coronary artery disease have skyrocketed.

In addition other diseases have been on the rise as well: migraines, auto immune disorders, gastrointestinal disorders. Many people have found that eliminating wheat by avoiding all gluten containing foods has helped with these disorders. "Gluten-free" is the new slogan. However, Dr. Davis explains that although going gluten free can help with some diseases, consuming lots of high glycemic gluten free foods will not decrease the chance of blood sugar disorders or help you lose weight.

While going wheat free or gluten free, it is important to continue good food practices such as decreasing or eliminating completely refined flours from your diet. Many gluten free foods and recipes contain or call for tapioca flour, corn starch, and other high glycemic refined foods that can cause your blood sugar to spike. This happens espcially when combined with sugar such as in pancakes, cookies, and cakes where these flours are typically used.

In addition to raising blood sugar, these simple starches can feed bacteria and yeast that may be at the root of your stomach issues. So if you are going gluten free or wheat free because of constipation, diarrhea, pain or indigestion, make sure you are using whole food flours such as coconut flour, almond meal, and whole grains in limited quantity (such as brown rice flour) for your wheat free recipes.

You may think it's no fun to try going wheat free, but when you see the benefits such as weight loss, pain relief, and less need for medications you will be willing to put in the effort and extra cost of making delicious wheat free foods.

Check out Dr. Davis book and check out my gluten free cooking videos at www.vimeo.com/channels/healherenow