WHO ARE YOU?

WHO ARE YOU?

ASK YOURSELF: 'What do I want my life to become? I fail when I don't know what I want or don't want. To win, I must prepare by listening, organizing, reading, expanding my thoughts, and finally taking action. When you know what must be done, just do it. It will help me learn and grow. Would it make any difference if I started over? Do all I can. People ask: “Why do you do so many things?” I say,” How can you do so few? I can only achieve a part of what I dream. Why go for the bronze when I can get the gold. “I can't be like someone else if I am developing my potential. Why be in someone else's shadows? Time to be confident of my new road of life.”

Practicing physician in Michigan since 1958, retired 2013, former Medical Director, Acupuncture Institute of Michigan. Published author of two best seller Amazon books: "keep Loving, Keep Living, No Quitting" (2021) and "Almost Home"(2022).   As a medical physician for over 63 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read between the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As a former medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture  very complimentary.  Visit drneedlesblogspot.com At the end of each blog see a complete alphabetical list of over 300 of my weekly blogs 

ICU GUIDELINES

Government guidelines recommend cutting out tests and treatments.  New government approved guidelines recommend cutting out tests and treatments.   It is based on “Evidence Based Medicine.” Facts are twisted to show today’s procedures and treatments are not necessary.  Medical personnel and your doctor are being trained in Obama-Care.

Doctor training involves discussing end-of-life issues, the savings of reimbursement dollars from labeled “ineffective treatments, and paying more attention to alternative withholdings strategies to meet family needs, are aimed to show you the medical profession still cares about you, the patient.

Doctors are not required today to provide all life-sustaining measures possible. They must only accomplish treatment goals within the bounds of accepted medical practice. A doctor does not have to write a futile order, like IV nutrition. Even when a treatment might prolong life by giving antibiotics or IDs, the patient has a right to refuse and the doctor has an obligation not to provide this service.

Medicines will be stopped, drying agents will be given, but you will be given good lip and mouth care to leave your thirst. You will be told dehydration improves endorphin release and you will have an improved mood.

You are given enteral nutrition to improve your strength and avoid starving to death. Many people feel that you are weak because you are not eating. They also feel if you do not eat you will die.

The new guidelines want to administer fluids subcutaneously.   They will tell you it eliminates the need for skills to locate a vein, and avoids the risk of infection, clot, bleeding, when IDs are given.   Has anyone seen this treatment to be used in the past?

 Incidentally, no medical technician needs to administer this procedure. A large needle is put in the belly or thigh and 3 quarts of fluid are given every day.  Each quart contains something different. One has more salt, one has less salt, and a third has equal amounts of salt and water.

If you have cancer that can’t be reversed, you are told the causes of the anorexia also cannot be reversed.   Gastrostomy feedings are no longer popular since suddenly they are found to increase the risk for aspiration rather than reduce it. You are told feeding tubes result in increased mortality, and these tubes are associated with infection, swelling, obstruction, and desperation pneumonia. 

In summary, the new guidelines show that there is no evidence enteral nutrition will improve the quality of life for survival of your sick family member.

By providing training in discussing the end-of-life issues, the reimbursement dollars of ineffective treatment, will be saved, and spending more attention on alternative withholdings strategies to meet family needs shows they care for you the patient.

Is withdrawing or withholding hydration and nutrition euthanasia? 

 It is a decision and action that allows cancer to progress on its natural course. The action is not to seek death and end-of-life? Contrasting, euthanasia actively seeks to end a patient’s life.

The doctor must use the means necessary to accomplish the intent.  Heavy doses of opioids are given for pain, sedatives for sleep, and other treatments controlling symptoms with dosing guidelines to promote death.  Death is not the treatment, since the aim is to relieve the symptoms; it does not intentionally caused death.

Today’s guidelines state that there is no evidence artificial nutrition alone improves functional ability or energy, relieves fatigue, or improves survival, it is a cancer responsible for your anorexia and weight loss.

 We know that large doses of opioids to relieve pain also result in respiratory arrest. These large doses are permitted as appropriate, if the intent and doses given are titrated to the patient’s needs.  (Who defines needs?).

 COMMUNICATING THE BAD NEWS 

 The guidelines encourage doctors to follow a six-step protocol, called SPIKES.   If a treatment has no chance of achieving an intended benefit, it need not be offered (the example given is: like CPR on a body with a head severed).   Doctors are told patients want to discuss treatment decisions even if the benefits are zero. Talking about this builds trust and doctors must sharpen their persuasive skills when they discussed withholding treatment.

 The first discussion is about general goals of care. The doctor is to discuss specific treatment preferences in light of whether they will help achieve the overall goal (who defines the goal).  

An end-of-life nurse specialist, a part of the healthcare team, will continue the discussion and prevent some conflicts within the team. They will spend additional time talking to the patient and family. The team will give emotional support to both family and patients.

 Despite all this discussion, the doctors still must write the medical order and assume full responsibility for its accuracy.

Doctors find it hard to discuss withholding artificial feeding and hydration. They have not been trained to do so. Food and water were symbols of caring. Withholding hydration was always seen as neglect by the family the patient, and all caregivers.

 The doctor must get familiar with the new policies and statutes their hospital is establishing.  Many doctors presume their hospital had a specific policy on hydration, reflecting state and federal laws.   Doctors must now be reminded that no state requires artificial nutrition and hydration when a cancer patient cannot eat.  Most states leave those decisions to the doctor and his patient.  So it’s legally safe to withhold hydration.

 A doctor must ask the patient and family what they understand.   He must make sense to them about the patient’s eating, drinking, and disease patterns.   If a family member says: “ Mom would get better if she ate”, the doctor must review why mom is weak. When the family went to hydrate their loved one, the doctor must explain how normal dying occurs.

 The selling continues by doctors saying:

 “Can we review our overall goals for your care?

 Let me tell you what I understand you want as we plan your care.”

 The doctor must talk about the general medical condition and if the patient has advanced cancer, let the family understand the overall situation. They will be told the expected course of the cancer, and told everything that is meaningful to them is not reversible.   Finally specific life sustaining treatment preferences are discussed.

 A well-meaning doctor might say: “do you want us to do everything? “ A misleading question like this must be avoided. Everything is too broad, and misinterpreted, especially when the family believes everything has not in fact been done.

 The family must see that improved energy and strength will not occur with artificial fluids, and above all will not accomplish the hospital’s medical goals.  The family must understand that the goals for artificial nutrition are appropriate.

 Specific treatment preferences must be discussed in a language the family will understand. Perhaps a translator is necessary who is trained in the skills.   Information must be given small doses daily. The decisions made must be reinforced.   The team must check for reactions, ask the family for questions, and clarify misunderstandings. In other words, diplomacy is the rule of the day.

 It is quite confusing to ask families to decide about specific treatment preferences.  Doctors must not state that all possible therapies will be offered, but the can choose some medical items from a menu, as in a restaurant.

 Contemporary medical care requires, a fundamental ethical principle called “informed consent.”   Patients deserve a clear, complete understanding of all therapies proposed for them. Some want to know all the details, and others prefer to do nothing.

The doctor must be prepared to simplify the aspects of hydration that conforms to the principle of informed consent including: the problems of the treatments, what’s involved in the treatment, what happens if the patient decides not to have the treatment, the benefits of the treatment, and the burdens created by the treatment.   The patient is then given a patient’ family education handout during these sessions.

 What if the family of the patient says: “ don’t want mom to starve to death, dehydration is a miserable way to die, and we can’t just let her die”.   The family must be reminded these are goals for the family and not goals for the patient.    The family may believe there loved one’s lack of appetite and oral intake of fluids is causing the patient’s level of disability.

 The programmed doctor must answer: “Cancer is taking all your mom’s strength and her heart is so weak. This is what causes her to lose her appetite and feel so tired. I understand why you think that, but mom is dying of cancer, not starvation”. The family must know that a dry mouth will not improve with intravenous fluids, but will be more likely helped with oral lubricants and lemon swabs.

The doctor will be programmed to say:” I wish things were different”, acknowledge the situation, and then become silent.  He then will turn the emotional support to other friendly members of the healthcare team.   Since emotions are challenging, other better-trained members of the healthcare team will assist.

 A well-articulated and understood plan will be established. It may be simply, will be discussed again at the next visit, or the team will convene a family meeting to discuss the proposed treatment plan.   Discussion will include social work, a chaplain intervention, notifying a key family member from out of town to come in preparation for opium death, and organizing the nursing staff for the end of life protocols.

 If the doctor is forced to give a time limited trial of artificial nutrition and hydration, he must set a measure of success: We will see if mom feels stronger or can resume eating for the next two weeks. “ Just tolerating the feeding is not a good endpoint.

 The plan must be documented and spread around, to the healthcare team, so the entire team can work in an organized fashion.   The doctor, after writing the appropriate orders, must document the discussion in the medical records, and talk about the plan to the health care end-of-life team.

 Families change their goals and treatment priorities periodically.   After being presented with a situation and information, the family must know that the plan can change at any time. How to change it is not discussed.

COMMENTARY

Your mom may feel very lonely as she fights for her life in an intensive care unit.  She may be curled up in a blanket, the hospital blinds remain closed, and she sees herself at the edge of the world.   Today, many people have few friends, are very lonely, cut off from their family, few friends, and the real world outside of the hospital. 

A hospital filled with doctors, nurses, and healthcare professionals, does not help relieve the loneliness of dying. Friends do not visit because they can’t handle their friends suffering.  They are not alone, but they feel alone—it’s not like dying in your own bed at home.

Loneliness contributes to weakened immune system and a lack of desire to fight for life. We humans have evolved to depend on each other.   Since we do not connect with others, we are more likely to die without support.   Our desire to fight loneliness is as strong as our need to eat, drink, and relieve pain.  We all seek companionship and fear being ostracized—a hospital ICU does not provide this.

We all seek support in whatever way possible. A hospital is cold when one is alone.  Few Americans today die at home with their family around them.  Now with the hospital no longer providing medical help, it makes more sense to die at home among your compassionate family.

We are all going to die, but our culture dreads death.  We all seek the latest new treatment that might add months to our lives.  After all, if it is something new, why not try it.  Maybe it will help, just maybe! Now the guidelines remind us:  there is no hope.

Most of us now must consider shifting our primary attention to compassion and palliation of pain, rather than dreaming about medical intervention.  After all, Medicare says: “we all must die sooner or later! “ 

What do you think?

This is a good way to ration health care.  New are government approved guidelines recommend cutting out tests and treatments.  It is based on “Evidence Based Medicine.” Facts are twisted to show today’s procedures and treatments are not necessary.  If you are on the wrong side of the “evidence”, too bad1 by saying:  “Yearly screenings are not necessary, your insurance will not have to pay for them,” now that Obama- care is implemented

SOURCES

 EPEC™-O: Education in Palliative and End-of-life Care for Oncology (Module 11: Withdrawing Nutrition, Hydration Copyright The EPEC™ Project, Chicago, Ill, 2005).   

 (The EPEC™ Project, receives major funding from the National Cancer Institute, and the Lance Armstrong Foundation).

President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office; 1983. 

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DENYING MEDICAL RX

 The new  game plan is to change your thinking without fighting you. Deep down, most of us believe the more medical care we get the better we will be.  You are now denied any medical treatment that gives you modified benefits.   We all want the most aggressive treatment possible, and certainly don’t want our medical care restricted or rationed.

This resulted in our new Obama health  care reform  game plan to change your thinking without fighting you.  They now continue to tell you that the new medical reform will give you the best possible medical careno matter what the cost.

 But how can the government get you to say no to medical care? When MRI breast care screening recommendations were restrictive, it created a firestorm.   The health care reformists realized they must change their approach in restricting your health care.

 They now continue to tell you that the new medical reform will give you the best possible medical care no matter what the cost.   They remind you that our current system will continue to give you more care, but you must ask: “Is that care becoming worse or better?”This resulted in our new Obama health care reform  game plan to change your thinking without fighting you.

CHANGING YOUR THINKING

Medicare, hospitals doctors, and the media, are now flooding you more information.   Cost-cutting Medicare servants, to cut down medical costs, are giving you more choices and more control, resulting in more confusion. You are told that the economics of medicine is changing and you will be rewarded you with much better care rather than simply more care.

To change your thinking, you are being programmed to learn more about the “new evidence “that shows what treatments work and what don’t. You are told that all the data in the past is incomplete or unavailable.  They claim that more than half of medical treatments lack clear evidence of effectiveness.   The media bombards you with quotes of recent published articles telling you that prostate cancer, inflammatory diseases, back pain, CT scans and MRIs are not effective.   Twisted statistics show that Cesarean sections have skyrocketed with little benefits to babies and are more burdensome to others.

The next step is to give you available facts about treatments. They will give you information about potential benefits and risks and sway you to choose less invasive care.   Initially you may want aggressive care, and are willing to accept the risks and side effects from the treatment.

 Being told preventing prostate cancer is very marginal, you might decide the risk of incontinence and impotence is not worth it. The new message for men is that if you have prostate cancer, you will never die from it, but you will become impotent and incontinent because of this aggressive treatment.

Today, says the government, everyone gets bypass surgery and stents because it is popular and people believe it will reduce heart attacks.  They will tell you the new evidence strongly shows none of this treatment is necessary, and aspirin and a healthy diet works equally just as well.  You might decide to leave an intensive care unit call it quits, and enter a hospice to end your life.

COMMENTARY

Unnecessary care causes a lot of pain and even death. 15,000 people each year are projected to die eventually from radiation they get from just a single CT scan. But how many of you are successfully treated because of the scan.

 We all know that when hospitals and drug makers get a blank check from Medicare the costs skyrocket.   Rationing and denying medical claims will free up resources for other services like education, and reduce the Medicare deficit.

When the tax subsidies for health insurance shrink, we will all realize that medical care is not free.   Doctors, who will deny you expensive medical care, will be labeled preferred doctors and they will be financially rewarded by higher Medicare payments.

Down the line, you will be denied any medical treatment that gives you modified benefits, but for now just getting you to say no is the best solution for lowering medical costs.  What comes next will be even more painful.
Code

FLUORIDE IS KILLING US

FLUORIDE IS KILLING US 


Fluoride is killing us adults.  It’s time to eliminate fluoridation.  More children are swallowing toothpaste, getting fluoride in their soft drinks, fruit juices,  and dental fluoride  application, and are getting fluoride intoxication by the age of eight.  

The government is now recommending reducing the level of fluoride in drinking water by 40%.  After 65 years of fluoridation in 64% of American families,, researchers find  that over 40% of our children before the age of 15 have spotting or streaking under their teeth( up by 50% over  The last decade). The fluoride makes the tooth enamel  become harder and more opaque.   The light bouncing off the the enamel  causes spots and streaks to occur.    Tooth This collagen is disrupted resulting in pits and  parts of the tooth breaking away.   After the age of eight, teeth are fully formed, and fluoride is of no value.

 Fluoride  is a central nervous system toxin and affects human brains in low doses.  It allows aluminum cross the barrier. It blocks magnesium ions that are necessary body enzymes systems.  Fluoride goes into the bone osteoblasts and blocks collagen formation, Making the bones more brittle, Resulting in osteoporosis.. Tendons, spinal ligaments, and cartilage become mineralized.

 Seniors get a lot of fluoride from antidepressants, osteoporosis medication, antibiotics Cipro, Prozac, anti-cholesterol drug Lipton, pain relievers Celebrex, and general anesthetics.  Fluoride, by  disrupting collagen metabolism, results in calcification of ligaments tendons muscle and thyroid cartilage. This skin wrinkles because of this breakdown. The cells in the walls of arteries start producing imperfect collegen and causes hardening of the arteries.  The immune system becomes confused, causing it to attack its own body tissues and blocking antibody formation. This prevents your white blood cells from destroying bacteria that enter the body.

 Fluoride was used until 1950 to treat overactive thyroids. By causing low thyroid function, it adds to our obesity problem. It is also a toxic sedative, once given to prisoners in Nazi death camps, in WW11, to calm them down and make them easier to handle. Fluoride also accumulates in the brain and has caused learning disabilities.

 Sure it kills bacteria on your teeth that cause tooth decay, but so does common sodium bicarbonate. .  By causing a great deal of damage and seniors, this powerful toxin should certainly be removed from the water.  Perhaps our Hollywood smiles would last longer, and we would not need whiteners  for our teeth.  We might find less osteoporosis, less obesity, and .......read full article

Search Amazon.com for fluoride

As a medical physician for over 51 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read betwwen the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As an practicing medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture are very complimentary. This results in astounding healing in pain management, addictions to cigarettes and food, and a host of other maladies. Visit drneedles is blogging" at the end of each blog for a complete alphabetical list of all my blogs Visit http://www.americanacupuncture.com/ for more detailed information on mind, body, and spirit healing.

HEALING POWERS OF JOHN OF GOD

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HEALING POWERS OF JOHN OF GOD


The following are excerpts from the Oprah show this month.  Using a powerful acupuncture point  CV 17    Joao a Brazilian healer, shows  the power of activated invisible forces,  (as found in medical acupuncture).


A video screen in a one-story coral building, was playing a video where a man’s chest was being cut open with a rusty paring knife. His eyes were closed and he looked peaceful as blood ran down his white shirt. (acupuncture point: Conception vessel 17 was entered).


A 62 year old Brazilian healer named John of God, in a small town of Abadiania  Brazil, walks barefoot,on a stage,  dressed totally in white,  his eyes scanning the hall with a laser-like focus.


John of God, a Catholic, is known in town as “Joao”.  He is solidly built, and says other spirits borrow his body. and do the healing.   It is these “Entities”, who work through John of God. They are the spirits of deceased doctors, surgeons, masters, and saints.  They use  his  body to channel their energy to Joao’s patients.  He feels a radiant heat which puts his patients  in a state of  spiritual peace and happiness.


 As  his eyes become darker and more intense,his gait becomes stiffens, and Joao  asks any doctors in the room to come forward.  Four medical doctors take the stage and talk  with the healer.


 The woman on stage, has advanced breast cancer, and as the doctors look on, Joao lifts her left breast and makes a vertical incision.   Blood streams down from her chest and he proceeds to pick up a needle and stitch the wound closed. 


As Dr. Oz reviewed the tapes, he explained his theory:  “These actions stimulate aggressive immune responses and dad may be what the healer is doing tapping into a long lost feeling that could be effective in treating other conditions”.


On stage, he next scraps a  knife across a woman’s eyeball back and forth and the patient (from Jackson Michigan: says she can see again.


 Another patient has a Kelly clamp shove up her nostril, It is twisted four times with Joao’s wrist and there is no blood.  She again can breathe. 


Joao  takes no credit for healing and says: “ I’ve never healed anybody.  It is God who heals.”   He practices  medicine without a license, does not charge for his services, and has treated  the president of Peru as well as many  Brazilian mayors,  He is accepted protected, and regarded as a national treasure.


 At 16,  he had a vision of a beautiful woman down by a river who gave him the address of a spiritual center and told him to go there.  He thought the woman was St. Rita of Casa, and the spirit of King Solomon came to him.  He suddenly fainted.and awoke   several hours later,  being told he had healed several people all afternoon. 


Dr. Oz, five years ago, was on “Prime Time Live” segment, that focused on the John of God story.  He examined hours of footage from the healing  tapes, looked at scans and biopsy reports, and he could not explain why an aggressive, very deadly, cancer as a glioblastoma, would disappear.  The radiologist said this was impossible. (We rely on the naked eye for proof of everything. Yet there are countless unseen things that have power–sound waves, microwaves, radio waves, emotions of anger and envy, wind, and the power to love, yet  here people have blind faith, believe without documentation, and are healed).


Edwina  Gaines, tells her story.  A 71-year-old Alabama minister and motivational speaker, she is the author of ”The four spiritual laws of prosperity”,  telling  of her inoperable brain aneurysm (verified by 5 neurosurgeons).  The “Entity healer,Joao,  did his invisible surgery on her in a group meditation setting.  She placed her right hand on her heart, collapsed in exhaustion for 24 hours, and was she should have stitches removed. In eight days    Arriving home, a CT scan revealed her aneurysm was gone. 


 One of the keys to healing is a willingness to change entrenched habits, behaviors, jobs, impossible schedules, and let go of everything that is holding you back. Doing this is a radical almost scary change. 


The healings are all intended to facilitate an individual’s well-being, were told by the entities to write books, get their pilots license, stopped smoking, especially pot. People who smoke pot habit as read or rise and take about a year to heal. It is important to take out the reason why you got sick not just remove some organ. Daily meditation, changing habits improving diets upgrading mindsets all are required. The rest is done, maybe 60% by healing.


If you were shown an iPhone 100 years ago you wouldn’t believe it. Everything is progressing. We know so little and our senses are limited. If you aren’t open to ministry, you’ll never see it.  Most people who come to Joao’s town in Brazil believe this, and skeptics, even Dr Oz,who see this no longer are the same.  This is also true about medical acupuncture.


Oprah;s magazine Dec.10 should have more on this subject.


Visit www.americanacupuncture for more discussion of controversial medical issues.


As a medical physician for over 51 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read betwwen the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As an practicing medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture are very complimentary. This results in astounding healing in pain management, addictions to cigarettes and food, and a host of other maladies. Visit drneedles is blogging" at the end of each blog for a complete alphabetical list of all my blogs Visit http://www.americanacupuncture.com/ for more detailed information on mind, body, and spirit healing.

THE FUTURE OF MEDICINE IS HERE

THE FUTURE OF MEDICINE  IS HERE
 
Have you recently gone to your doctor and  noticed some changes?  His waiting room is now called  a reception area. He is very concerned in cutting down the cycle time of you the patient, and you are limited to 7 minutes with him.   In the past he was reimbursed for his time and expertise,  but now non-traditional visits are handled by  phone consultations, smart phones, e-mail, or video chats.  The offices want your registration forms  completed by way of mail or computer so everything is available when you come in.  If you require 15 minutes or more, you will put you in  slots where he is not as busy.  His  practice is now being labeled  “patient centered medicine” rather than  "primary care medicine".

His usual jovial personality has changed, and you no longer can engage  in meaningful conversation about you, your health, nor even the state of Obama care.  He asks the questions, and you answer yes or no.

When  your doctor enters the room, he is now carrying a laptop computer.  Sometimes he will  put it on his lap, but  soon notices that the heat may fry his testicles,  and puts the computer on the counter.

 All the information you’re giving him seems overwhelming to him as he mutters under his breath and begins typing.  He  no longer is looking at you, but  remains focused  on the  computer data he needs to place in the registry.    Your visit ends and you wonder: "How on earth can he know what to do for me when I couldn't tell him what was wrong.
 
Charting has become more important than having a quality experience or quality outcome with you, the patient.  Your  doctor is forced to do this,  because of several new payment schemes, with names like “ accountable care organizations”, “global payments”,  and “ and bundled payments”---- all of  which are already in their pilots stages in  Massachusetts, Michigan and California.    The programs all aim for the same result: CAPITATION  ( another name for the old HMO).   To make all this work requires a great deal  of technological infrastructure.   So dear patient:  Your doctor, in order  to play the game,  must pay the price.

The electronic health records (EHR) certainly has benefits.   It signal potential drug reactions, makes prescriptions and notes more legible, and eliminates storing paper charts. The data however is very slow and cumbersome,  And reading it is very difficult,  as your doctor sifts through meaningless data trying to find your important information that will let him treat you properly. 

It is also very expensive. In a midsized practice, we are talking hundreds of thousands of dollars for the hardware and software just to get started.   This does not count the huge  annual service charges each month.  In the face of your doctor getting lower reimbursements for your care, and his rising costs of private practice, many  doctors are abandoning their practices and joining hospital groups.   Your next visit may  no longer be with your doctor, but his surrogate, or a nurse physician-practioner  aid.

 The new health reform bill,  called Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, is now the  law of the land.   The reform bill provides  incentives for doctors and hospitals to do less for you in terms of treatment and diagnosis, and to do more for the government by providing cost-saving data  to provide more quantity and less quality.  The meaningful use criteria for EHR is all spinned as leading to “ quality health improvement”.

 Certainly the  technology industry has a lot to gain. The dollars for your patient care are now being diverted into the pockets of Silicone Valley, the makers of computers and software.  Follow the money trail, and you’ll see who has the ear of Congress.

 These new  payment schemes, and the EHR  that supports it, penalizes your doctor when he interprets your medical findings properly and tries to customize a treatment plan that will work for you. 

 I think that you, the patient, still sees value in quality, individualized care, patient centered care, and compassionate care.  Hopefully you realize a one-size-fits-all approach to medicine will not work.  Regardless, get ready for more big changes in the way your doctor practices medicine.

Visit www.drneedles.com for more discussion of controversial medical issues that affect your health.
 
As a medical physician for over 51 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read between the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As an practicing medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture are very complimentary. This results in astounding healing in pain management, addictions to cigarettes and food, and a host of other maladies. Visit drneedles is blogging" at the end of each blog for a complete alphabetical list of all my blogs

Thanksgiving 2010 Trivia Quiz

  Thanksgiving  2010  Trivia Quiz

 For our Facebook and twitter fans we have a little Thanksgiving quiz today.  Give it your best shot!

1  A female turkey is called:  a chick, a cuckoo, a hen, or a rooster.
2. A male turkey is called: a clark, a tom, a larry,  or a harry.
3  A mature turkey has  how many feathers? 1500, 2000, 3500,    5000
4  Oldster keys are produced in the state of: Arkansas,    Minnesota,  Ohio, Kansas, Michigan
5. A wild turkey can run: 5 mph, 15 mph, 25 mph, 45 mph
6. What percentage of American homes eat turkey on Thanksgiving?    50%  66%, 80%, 90%
7. The skin that hangs from a turkey’s neck is called:  a garble, a swag, a wattle, a snark
8. The following percentage of American homes eat turkey on Christmas:  35%, 50%, 66%, 90%
9. Which country eats  the most turkey per year per capita: Spain, Britain, Israel,  United States
10. The best way to defrost a  turkey is: in the microwave, with a hair dryer, in the refrigerator, in cold water
 11. The Pilgrims came to North America in:  1616, 1620, 1648, 1650
 12. The Pilgrims sailed on a ship called: Pinta, Mayflower, Speedwell, Santa Anna
 13. To reach North America, the Pilgrims sailed across the: Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Arctic Ocean
 14. The Pilgrim ship landed in North America at: Cape Cod, Plymouth Rock, Boston,  Portsmouth
 15. Which president named Thanksgiving Day a national holiday: Grant, Roosevelt, Lincoln, Washington
 16. Pilgrim boys and girls  got their schooling from:  natives, British, parents,  religious
 17.  Pilgrims came to America to: trade tea for animal furs, fight Indians, religious freedom,  find gold
 18. Which of the  following Presidents claim Mayflower ancestry: George Washington, George Bush, John Adams, Franklin Roosevelt
19. The Pilgrims came to America from: Scotland, Ireland, Wales, England
  20. What percentage of pilgrims who sailed on the Mayflower survived to celebrate Thanksgiving> 20%, 50%, 75%, 90%
 21. The original Thanksgiving lasted how long?  Three days, seven days, two weeks, two months
 22. How big is the size of the Plymouth Rock?  The size of  a bus, a peanut, a car engine, a car
 23. What drink to the pilgrims bring with them: tea,  coffee, beer, cider
  24.The first football game was started in 1934 by:  Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Jets
 25.  The answers to all the above questions can be found at home page of drneedles.com,   americanacupuncture.com.  


 Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!!
Visit www.americanacupuncture  for the best discussions of current medical issues.

As a medical physician for over 51 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read between the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As an practicing medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture are very complimentary. This results in astounding healing in pain management, addictions to cigarettes and food, and a host of other maladies. Visit drneedles is blogging" at the end of each blog for a complete alphabetical list of all my blogs Visit http://www.americanacupuncture.com/ for more detailed information on mind, body, and spirit healing.

I AM IN CONTROL OF MY EATING

I  AM  IN  CONTROL  OF  MY  EATING

I am in control of myself at all times in all situations.
Whenever I sit down I am determined to achieve my goal. By never giving in and eating right, I will reach the  weight I want.

I really enjoy eating less whether in a restaurant or at home. I don’t have to finish the food in front of me anymore. I eat what I should and never won by it more.

When there is less food on my plate there is less food on my fork. By ordering less when I eat out, and  giving myself smaller portions at home, it keeps me aware of staying with my goal each day. Less on my plate means less on my waist.

I will not allow anyone to influence, tempt or discourage me in any negative way. Reaching my goal was up to me. No one has the right to control my success.

I’m only losing weight for my own reasons; for my life, my future by personal health. No one will tempt me to take one more bite than I should. I am strong, can reach my goal, and am doing it.

A lot of food in front of me is no longer a problem to me. I just say no to the food and yes to my success.

I still enjoy sitting down to eat because it gives me time to conquer my past and create a tremor Here more self-confident future in front of me.

I don’t need someone else to remind me of my goal would keep me from eating something I should not. I’m responsible for myself and no one has to do it for me.

It’s easy for me now to control my weight and my appetite. I enjoy smaller portions, smaller bites, eat slower, am healthier, and more relaxed in every way. Mealtime has turned into achievement time for me.

Visit www.americanacupuncture.com for more discussion of controversial medical issues.

As a medical physician for over 52 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read between the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As an practicing medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture are very complimentary. This results in astounding healing in pain management, addictions to cigarettes and food, and a host of other maladies. Visit drneedles is blogging" at the end of each blog for a complete alphabetical list of all my blogs Visit http://www.americanacupuncture.com/ for more detailed information on mind, body, and spirit healing.

PROCESSED CARBS MAIN CAUSE OF OBESITY

PROCESSED  CARBS  MAIN CAUSE OF OBESITY

Thirty years ago we declared a war against fat. Dietary guidelines for Americans was first published  in 1980 and has been updated every five years.   To prevent heart trouble, we are told to stay away from fats.

 Obesity is no longer a sign of prosperity
 Three times as many adults are now obese compared to 50 years ago and twice as many as 20 years ago. Being heavy was a sign of prosperity and being socially successful in the past. If one was not overweight it showed he could not make his way in life, nor obtain enough to eat. Today however the poorest and least educated American is very obese.

Obesity causes type II diabetes and over 10% of our medical costs. In the last 10 years the costs have risen from $74 billion-$147 billion. Being fat makes you less productive, you take more time off from work because of ailments. Perhaps you cannot walk more than a few yards without refreshing yourself with some fast food or sweet pop. Family meals you see are a thing of the past,  is a great effort.   Kids don’t eat meals with their parents, and many of them only have one parent.

We buy take-home meals and ready prepared foods. They are heated in the microwave and serve as constant snacks. Often there is a need for a decent table to eat at since the TV serves at the dining table. We overindulge, and each feeding makes your appetite grow. Your behavior determines the appetite of the moment. You eat independently of everyone else, and when you eat there is no self control. Your world is very dull and slow-moving compared to the TV excitement. There is no reason to get in the real world when you can satisfy your appetite, which are mined in a vacuum, and have constant entertainment on your coach.

 All fats are not created equal
Yet as you may have noticed, we are not getting any thinner, and heart disease is still our big killer.  We developed the logic that fat is bad, since saturated fat increases bad LDL cholesterol, and if you have high LDL cholesterol you are more likely to get heart disease.

 The fallacy of this is the assumption that: “ All LDL cholesterol is the same and it is all bad”.  LDL cholesterol comes in a range  of sizes.  Large LDL particles cause no harm. Research shows  that avoiding fat is a miscalculation.   it’s We have been replacing fat with process carbohydrates and this is far worse for our hearts.

 As we switch from a low saturated fat diet to one high in saturated fat, there is an increase in total blood LDL cholesterol.   The rise, however,  is due to  an increased concentration of the large LDL particles, not the small ones.  In other words, saturated fat consumption boosts our harmless LDL particles.  Because the tests ignore particle size, today’s  cholesterol tests are not good indicators of heart disease risk, and  only  predict heart disease risk 70% of the time.   (Since saturated fat  has no double bonds, all of its carbon atoms are saturated with hydrogen atoms and these are neutral for the heart.)   Unsaturated fats that have one double bond ( mono unsaturated fats), as  found in many nuts, are very good for the heart,  Polyunsaturated fats that have multiple double bonds,  as fatty fish, are also very good for the heart.  By substituting mono saturated and polyunsaturated fats for saturated fats, heart disease risks dropped dramatically.   New England Journal of Medicine May 2006

 People who ate most of their daily calories from fat, including saturated fat, had no increase in heart disease later in life. Those who ate the highest amount of vegetable fat, from foods like nuts and olive oil, lowered  their heart disease rate more than those on low-fat diets.  New England Journal of Medicine March 2010

 Glycemic index is the answer to our obesity problem
  If saturated fat does not adversely affect your heart health, what does?  Researchers find a high glycemic index may be the answer. The index reflects the influence  blood sugar levels,  based on how quickly sugare is digested and absorbed.  That means, carbohydrates like cereal, bread, chips and cookies all increase heart risks.

 People who ate the highest glycemic load, (which also measures portion size), had twice the risk of heart disease than those who ate food with the lowest glycemic  load.

 Mixing high glycemic index foods with low glycemic index foods, like a piece of white bread with peanut butter, is healthier than eating is the white bread alone.  If you were on a high fat low carbohydrate diet for eight weeks, your blood concentration of small LDL particles would drop 50%.   If you then went on a high carbohydrate and low-fat diet, you would see an increase spike of 36%.  Also troubling is, that process carbohydrates lower good HDL cholesterol, while saturated fats increase good HDL cholesterol.

 Sugars are not all created equal.
Despite having a lower glycemic index, fructose is less healthy than glucose, since it haa a different structure despite having the same chemical formula  Table sugar is 50% fructose and 50% glucose. High fructose corn syrup is 55% fructose and 45% glucose. 

 Fructose makes you hungrier
Fructose results in a lower insulin response, which results in a lower circulating levels of leptin, (the appetite suppressing hormone), and a higher level of ghrelin, (the appetite boosting hormone), thus increasing your appetite  and putting you at a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease.

 Processed carbohydrates are the cause of obesity
 Our war against fat has made us more addicted to  carbohydrates. As we cut out fat, we typically eat diet foods high in carbohydrates that contain the same number of calories, however  with more corn syrup solids.  Transfatty acids and foods high in omega six, as corn oil and margarine, are very unhealthy, We must start replacing carbs with some fat in our diets.  To get the right nutritional messages, our new guidelines should be simple, targeted, and consistent.

 Other causes of obesity
 People tell you that that is you eat too much and don’t exercise enough. There are however other explanations.

 Birds of a feather flock together.   You tend to mate with someone who has a very similar body type as you and thus pass along genes that contribute to obesity.

The normal activity of your hormones that regulate fat are disrupted by environmental toxins that lead to metabolic changes in your body and weight gain.

 Since you lived in a temperature controlled environment, air conditioning and central heating, you need to burn fewer calories to regulate your thermostat. Instead of your body regulating her temperature by sweating and getting goosebumps, your temperature is always controlled and this causes you to burn less calories.

If you were a smoker and quit, you may still have oral fixations seeking food as a replacement for your cigarettes.

 You can gain a lot of weight from certain drugs that  cause water retention and slow your metabolism.   Examples include: antidepressants, contraceptives, blood pressure pills, antihistamines, diabetes medicines, and mood stabilizers.

 If you just had your baby in your late 30s, you find it more difficult to regain your pre-pregnancy weight.

Our population is aging, our ethnic mix is shuffled, and we are constantly in a group of obese  people.

  We all sit longer then we sleep.  Our sedentary lives  of watching TV, or surfing the Internet, all lead to disease.  We are burning 100 less calories a day than our parents: and it all adds up.   The fat burning lipase enzyme that burns fat stops working and drops 50%.  Just walking around the computer desk for a couple hours would help a lot.

 Removing your tonsils and adenoids  results in a high percentage of kids  suddenly becoming obese by eight years of age.
 Pediatrics 2009: 123: 1095

Most of us are not getting enough sleep, and this increases our hunger and appetite and  cause hormonal changes that lead to weight gain.  Over half the people with sleep apnea are  grossly overweight.   Archives internal medicine September 28, 2010

Your ancestors may have environmentally caused weight gain and these genes are passed on to you and your children.

Skinny  women are less fertile than overweight women. This gives our future generations a better chance to inherit overweight genes.

 In the past, it was suggested that obese people who did not have any metabolic problems, did not have any increased risk of morbidity and mortality, and could safely live with their obesity.  A recent study shows this not to be true.

30% of people or obese are insolent resistant, and 40% have two or more metabolic syndrome risk factors. Only 25% are free of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome factors.  So it looks like, if you are obese, and have no medical problems, you are fooling yourself into thinking you are risk free of heart disease.
  Diabetes Care, December 2009

Reducing diets do not work
 We all know that weight loss diets are not sustainable. It is important to work on your eating patterns. Our diets are terrible and most of us eat high-energy foods as chocolates, and fast foods daily.  After dieting, once you start changing your food choices again, you inevitably fail and regain most of the weight you lost. Most of us could lose weight on a diet with high energy foods as well as some restriction of foods along with some aerobic exercising.

Visit www.americanacupuncture.com for more discussion of controversial medical topics.

As a medical physician for over 52 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read betwwen the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As an practicing medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture are very complimentary. This results in astounding healing in pain management, addictions to cigarettes and food, and a host of other maladies. Visit drneedles is blogging" at the end of each blog for a complete alphabetical list of all my blogs Visit http://www.americanacupuncture.com/ for more detailed information on mind, body, and spirit healing.

BROWN CELL TREATMENT FOR OBESITY

BROWN CELL TREATMENT FOR OBESITY

 We all know there’s good and bad cholesterol. It turns out that there is also good and bad fat.

 White fat
 White fat is considered bad. It is distributed to widely throughout the body.  These specialized cells is door lipids or adipocytes. They are defined in childhood and stay steady throughout life. 10% of the cells are renewed each year.  The main determinants of obesity are the number of adipocytes and their societies.

All fat cells in the body stays the same since new cells are offset by an equal loss of cells that die. Losing weight as an adult only shrinks the mass of the cells, which is quickly  recovered by new cells.

 It’s hard to maintain the weight you reached after a reducing diet since the new fat cells that laid down fat after weight reduction need to quickly grow in lipids. The adipocytes start to grow around the age of two and grows  twice as fast in people with obesity. It also stops at the age of 16.

It does have its benefits by storing excess energy and providing us with a layer of insulation that keeps us warm. Too much of it however leads to serious health problems.

 Your body stores excess energy by accumulating weight when you consume more calories than you use. When you’re short on food and your body needs extra energy, white fat does come in handy.

 Brown fat
 Brown fat, the  good fat, Acts like a furnace, consuming calories and generating heat. It burns excess energy to generate heat. It is mostly found in newborns, arranged in little pockets around the shoulders and between the shoulder blades.  It is 5% of an infant’s total body mass.  Brown fat provides extra heat to help babies maintain their core temperatures.  As you age, you have less brown fat. Some people however keep brown fat deposits into adulthood.

 Brown fat is activated by temperature changes in the environment. When the baby is cold, brown fat quickly starts producing heat. The heat is generated by little energy factories, called mitochondria, better glucose fat and other nutrients into energy that the cell can use.

 Brown fat cells are packed with mitochondria, making them very opaque.  Brown  fat cells are more dense than mitochondria and almost all other tissues in the body. The inefficiency of these mitochondria make them valuable. Instead of breaking down nutrients into energy that the brown fat cell can use, if it leaks out most of the energy into the form of heat.

 Small  Capillaries around the cells give the fat its brown color. and  transport the heat energy throughout the baby’s body, maintaining the baby’s core temperature

Commentary
  Most of our weight reduction programs have been targeted towards reducing food intake.  Scientists are now looking for ways to increase the stores of your brown fat and turn  off its metabolism to help you burn calories faster.  If you activate the good that it will help burn off the bad fat.

 It wouldn’t take much as a little bit goes a very long way. Since 3 ounces of brown fat if maximum they stimulated can burn up to 500 calories a day. All of us have small amounts of brown fat around our collarbones and in our necks,  As seen under pets stands and CT scans.  Brown spots show up as hot spots   Women have twice is much as men, but at most only have a half an ounce of brown fat.  Brown fat disappears as we age, and obese people have less than lean people. It is activated by just spending a little time in a cold room.  Exposure to chilly temperatures causes a 15 times increase in the metabolic rate of brown fat than a healthy adult. If this could be activated it would burn at least 9 pounds of white fat each year.

 Researchers are trying to activate brown fat with a drug targeted along the brown fast metabolic pathways. It may be possible to remove a small amount of a person’s brown fat, amplified in a test tube, and transplanted back,  creating your own internal calorie  burning furnace. 

Perhaps just spending more time  outdoors in cool climates could help. If you sat in your home at 60°F versus the comfortable 72 or 80, you might lose weight and help your health. However on the contrary, it might just make you eat more.  A drug might be necessary to increase the metabolic rate also.

 We could tackle obesity, If we could limit the number of adipocytes in children, or reduce the substitution of dead that cells with new ones.  If we could prevent the death of brown cells as we age or reintroduce these cells, we could  also prevent obesity.

Visit www.americanacupuncture.com for more discussion of controversial medical subjects.


As a medical physician for over 52 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read betwen the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As an practicing medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture are very complimentary. This results in astounding healing in pain management, addictions to cigarettes and food, and a host of other maladies. Visit drneedles is blogging" at the end of each blog for a complete alphabetical list of all my blogs Visit http://www.americanacupuncture.com/ for more detailed information on mind, body, and spirit healing