Daniel
Forum Replies Created
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Hey @Nathalie Khoury,
Full reports will always give us more detailed information.
Personally, when it comes to children, I like to work with food-based options as much as possible. In the library of B Better, you can also find a supplement protocol for children. Just click here!
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Hey @Nathalie Khoury,
I often recommend to my clients a mix of Vitamin A Palmitate (this is the form of vitamin A found in animal foods like liver, eggs and cheese) and Beta Carotene (this is a precursor of vitamin A found in plants). This supplement from Klaire Labs is a liquid form that you could try.
The benefit of animal-based vitamin A is that it’s ready to use by the body. Beta carotene needs to be converted and due to genetics, not everyone is equally good at that.
Elderberry drops have some (limited) research backing up that they can ease fever symptoms in children. The benefits seem to be the greatest when started within 24 to 48 hours after the symptoms begin. You could try and see if it benefits your child.
The second part of your question is not easy to answer. I like my clients to be higher in the reference range when it comes to vitamin B12 (above 600 ng/ml). This video dives deeper into details about measuring vitamin B12. I think you will find it interesting.
High levels of vitamin B12 like yours I haven’t seen without the use of supplements though. I do think it is important that you find out what would cause these high levels. It can be as simple as changing your food pattern. Check the labels of your foods as well. Perhaps some of the foods you are consuming contain a hidden source of vitamin B12.
Vitamin B12 is stored in the liver. In some cases, it can happen that the cells of the liver get damaged and vitamin B12 is spilt in the blood. This can also cause elevations in serum levels. It is less likely, but it happens. If you are experiencing symptoms, ask your doctor if he can rule out liver problems.
Another possibility is the units in your labs. You mentioned 2 different values. Do they have the same units? Sometimes serum B12 is measured in ng/ml and sometimes B12 is measured in pmol/l. Those numbers cannot be compared 1 on 1. Although your B12 went up, without units it’s hard to understand how much the elevations exactly are.
I hope this answer provides you with some clarity!
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Hey @Naveed Aslam,
I’ve touched on this in your other question, but in short, sure! Chronic stress can cause low testosterone. The body prioritizes survival above reproduction!
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Hey @Naveed Aslam,
I’m not 100 percent sure what your endocrinologist is trying to find out, therefore I will give you some testosterone basics. My main focus will be on what to measure if your endocrinologist wants to rule out
low testosterone or
prostate issues
Testosterone basics:
There are different forms of testosterone in the body. Most doctors will usually measure total testosterone and free testosterone. Free testosterone is the unbound hormone that has the most influence on your body, but that’s usually a very small percentage of the total testosterone (1-3 percent!)
SHBG
Testosterone can be bound to proteins. Sex Hormone Binding Globulin or SHBG for short binds very tightly to testosterone. It can be high or low because of other hormone imbalances (insulin resistance and thyroid hormone imbalances for example)SHBG can therefore be an insightful marker.
DHEA
The body makes androgens from a precursor hormone called DHEA. DHEA is to create other hormones as well (like estrogen). Since DHEA is a precursor it can be an insightful marker.
Luteinizing Hormone
If testosterone is low, this could be caused by a problem in the testicles (this is called primary hypogonadism). In this case, the brain is “yelling” to the testicle to make testosterone by secreting a hormone called LH (Luteinizing Hormone). High values of LH and low testosterone values can therefore indicate this is a brain problem… and the most common reason for that is stress and sleep problems.PSA
PSA or Prostate Specific Antigen is often used to assess prostate issues. I’ve written about it before in a different post (just click here). The risk is usually determined by measuring the ratio between total PSA and free PSA.
Summary
The endocrinologist might have a certain goal in mind, but to evaluate testosterone levels or possible problems with prostate health here is a summary of the values that I’ve talked about:Total testosterone
Free testosterone
SHBG
DHEA
LH
Total PSA/free PSA ratio
I hope this information will be of use!
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Hey Naveed Aslam,
Part of your question didn’t came along, so I’ll answer your question the best way I can. If you have a dust mite allergy, your immune system thinks dust mite proteins are harmful invaders. It tries to get them out of your body by releasing histamine, which causes dust mite allergy symptoms. Reducing the amount of allergens will help reduce the symptoms. Easy practical things he can do are:
he can ventilate areas by opening windows once a day
Washing sheets, blankets and pillowcases at 60 degrees (this will kill dust mite)
Using hypoallergenic pillows
Vacuum and clean the house every 2-3 days
Remove dust
Remove carpeting if that’s an option
Flushing sinuses with a prepared saltwater solution (saline) can help reduce thickened mucus in the sinuses by flushing out irritants. If you’re making the saline solution yourself, make sure the water is contaminant-free by using distilled or boiled water.
Some supplements can help with the histamine produced by the immune cells. Usually, I recommend my clients to use between 500-1000 mg of Quercetin daily for a few weeks and see if this helps reduce symptoms. Bromelain can increase the absorption of Quercetin. Quercetin Supplements combined with bromelain can therefore be beneficial. Be aware though: Quercetin is contraindicated in people using antibiotics, and blood thinners. If your brother uses one of these medications he should NOT be using quercetin.
Stinging nettle leaves can make histamine receptors less sensitive and help as well. Because its mode of action is different from quercetin, the 2 can be a powerful combination.
Nutrients that support the immune system could play a helpful role as well. The most important nutrients are vitamin D, vitamin A, B vitamins, zinc and vitamin C.
I hope this helps!
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Hey @Toujan Al Shurafa,
Elevations in antibodies usually mean there is some form of auto-immune activation. What kind of auto-immune issue the test doesn’t tell, but a doctor could help you there.
From a functional medicine perspective, the next step is finding out what could contribute to the development of auto-immune disease. There is a great movie in the B Better library that goes in-depth on what these thyroid markers mean and what other tests you could consider.
Just click here!
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Hey @Annie Sye,
I understand why you are worried. Unfortunately, I don’t know any substance that blocks THC. According to some research, CBD can slow down the THC peaks because it binds to the same receptors, but as a result, the THC stays longer in the system.
The research however shows mixed results.
The best “cure” is to help him understand that THC can worsen his condition and that he is taking health risks.
Sometimes it could help to understand people’s need for spiritual experiences. What is it he hopes to get out of the experience? Is he seeking some form of healing? Is he seeking deeper insight into himself?
If you know what moves him, you could perhaps find better alternatives that might help him better.
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Hey @Sara Almansoori,
Based on these labs I can understand why you would feel tired. However, the weight loss would be unexpected.
These labs show that your brain tries to activate your thyroid by releasing TSH. It does that by producing a lot of it since your thyroid seems not to respond very well. It’s like your brain is trying to yell to your thyroid gland “Do something!”. That’s why you see elevations in TSH.
The thyroid gland for some reason is not responding to that. The hormones fT4 and fT3 that help run your metabolism are low. Especially fT3 is low, which is the active form of thyroid hormone. fT4 is a precursor for fT3.
This could be the reason why you feel tired, but most people with a slow thyroid complain about gaining weight.
Based on these labs doctors will usually prescribe more thyroid hormones, not less.
Do you know what reason your doctor had to prescribe fewer medications?
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Hey @Reshmika Chandrashekar,
I’m glad you’ve reached out! These labs can tell us quite a bit. Some values on these labs are a bit more subtle and could be easily missed. I will focus on your labs and give you some ideas on what you could do. Since I’m not based in the UAE, I can’t answer all your questions unfortunately.
Iron
Your labs show some signs of low iron. All your iron markers are at the low end of the reference range making it harder to transport oxygen (which is necessary for burning fat). The lab starts with the haemoglobin values. They are on the lower end of the reference range as well. In some cases, people can already experience symptoms of anemia (dizziness, brain fog, poor concentration, tiredness, cold hands & feet, shortness of breath tingling sensations in the arms/legs, etc). Perhaps some symptoms sound familiar. The amount of red blood cells (RBC count) is also on the lower end. This in combination with the suboptimally low hemoglobin makes anemic symptoms more likely.
Iron is also a necessary mineral for optimal thyroid function, but I’ll come back to that.
Reasons why Iron could be low:
Not enough iron in the diet
Problems with absorption (low stomach acid or a chronic simmering infection. In the last case the body tries to sequester iron away from the blood bacteria and viruses use iron as well to multiply)
Iron loss due to:
Heavy menstrual periods (blood loss causes the body to have to make new quantities of red blood cells quickly episodically, and without sufficient stored iron, the body will struggle to make larger, healthy RBCs).
Recent surgery or injury causing significant bleeding.
Excessive vitamin A supplementation
Thyroid Hormones
Your free T3 and free T4 are at the low end of the reference range as well. There is an overlap in symptoms with anemia. Hair loss, constipation, and thinning of the eyebrows… these are symptoms that differ from anemia. With a sluggish thyroid, you might be more sensitive to cold as well. The difference is that you might feel cold in the entire body instead of the hands and feet only.
Useful follow-up labs to rule out autoimmune issues is measuring your thyroid antibodies. I’ll give you a link to a movie where you can learn all about what thyroid markers paint a more complete picture of your thyroid health. Just click here.
Signs of insufficiencies from certain nutrients are present as well. I’m talking about the next nutrients: zinc, vitamin B6, folate and B12. Using a supplement could be helpful. Make sure the B vitamins are present in the bioactive form by choosing a B complex or a multivitamin containing methylated B vitamins. A good B vitamin complex I often recommend to my clients is Basic B from Thorne.
Immune function
Just like the amount of red blood cells, the amount of white blood cells is low. We need the same nutrients to produce white and red blood cells. I’m referring specifically to vitamin D, B vitamins, and vitamin A Low RBC and WBC count can sometimes be an indication of mercury present in your body. Do you have amalgam fillings?
Exposure to mercury could also lead to candida overgrowth. In this case, the overgrowth could have a protective function since candida can absorb mercury.
Your eosinophils (a type of white blood cells) are elevated. There can be many reasons for this. Something going on in the gut can be a reason! However, keep in mind that eosinophils can also elevate when you have allergies, athma or are exposed to parasites.
In the case of an infection, iron supplements might make infections worse, so be careful.
Mold
You’ve mentioned it already: since you’re suspicious of mold, I would follow your intuition here. If you can’t get rid of mold at the moment, reducing your exposure to it is a big win. Make sure you vent your home daily. Providing your immune system with the right nutrients is helpful as well. If you’re trying to detox: detoxing should be done when you’re body is in a place of strength. If you’re experiencing a lot of debilitating symptoms, I would recommend you work on these first before you add detoxifying supplements to the protocol.
What you can do to help detoxification is drink a lot of water, focus on food-based approaches and make sure you aren’t constipated.
I get the sense you’ve already explored our mold course, however, if I’m mistaken, I would recommend you watch it entirely. Just click here to get there.
I hope this will help you a step further. Let me know if you’ve got any questions!
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Hey @Yasmin Kottait,
I’m sorry to hear your 13 months is struggling, but you are already doing a great job with the vitamin D, probiotics and vitamin C. With antibiotics, I usually recommend a blend that also contains the protective yeast species S. Boullardii. Yeast is not so much affected by the antibiotics. The drugs do, however, wipe out the bacterial competition which can allow yeast to thrive/surge.
You can find more information on how to choose probiotics HERE if you are unsure if you’ve chosen the right formula.
If you are worried about the coughing: with pneumonia I wouldn’t recommend using something like cough medicine even if it’s natural. The phlegm comes from the longs and coughing helps the body to get rid of the infection.
I’m not exactly sure how long he is experiencing symptoms. Usually with treatment, most types of bacterial pneumonia are cured in 1–2 weeks. During that time, make sure he drinks enough and he gets enough rest!
I hope he gets well soon!
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Hey @KK,
When it comes to workout tips for your son, the most important tips are quite simple: make sure he hydrates well and make sure he replenishes his electrolytes. Listening to his body is also important. If he feels fastly fatigued or sore and tired during his workout he should definitely take it slow. Taking pre-workouts might dehydrate him as well and I wouldn’t recommend them.
If he likes intense workouts and you’re afraid his health might suffer again. You could explain to him that continuously giving it all in the gym might even lead to lesser results. I’m not opposed to heavy workouts, but I do tell my clients that if they start working out after a long break, they risk starting heavier as needed. This is because when you return to your workout routine, you already have the experience of how working out should feel.
However, the body isn’t adapted to this lifestyle anymore.
Another downside is that if he is focussed on building strength and muscles he is going to make progress in the future more difficult.
The body adapts to the way you’re training. If the start is aggressive and the body adapts to this, you need a different training stimulus that ‘shocks’ the muscles into developing more strength and muscle growth. If you’re giving it all you’ve got from day 1, it becomes much harder to shock muscles in the future.
A more easy start will have the benefit that there is more room to shock the muscles and he might see better muscle growth and strength development during the year.
As he progresses in his training, the body will also be better able to handle the stress of intense workouts because the body will try to adapt to his new lifestyle.
He could also pay attention to how he feels after a workout. Once you are done with the strength training workout, you should feel tired, but not exhausted. This might be different if he competes in sports, but if his main goal is to build strength and grow muscles, this is perfect.
Extreme workouts will cause longer recovery times. Being “under recovered” is why a lot of people who work hard in the gym don’t progress in the gym.
I hope these tips will help him to give the results he wants while staying healthy at the same time!
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Hey @Annie Sye,
It’s hard to judge Hoffer’s train of thought. However, I can tell that I wouldn’t recommend trying out some of these dosages of supplements yourself.
Dosing supplements & why it is hard to recommend protocols
The upper tolerable limit for Selenium, for example, is 400 mcg. Above these dosages, people can experience symptoms. I can imagine that supplementing with higher dosages can be considered if someone is deficient in selenium. But you will need to know for sure if you’re considering these dosages.
The same story for vitamin B6: 1000 mg of vitamin B6 is not without risk. Even much lower dosages aren’t without risk. High dosages of vitamin B6 can cause irriversible nerve damage. Vitamin B6 is also necessary for neurotransmitter production. Since Schizophrenia is a disease in which neurotransmitter imbalances are often documented, high dosages of B6 can influence that balance. Especially because with Schizophrenia glutamate imbalances play often a role, adding vitamin B6 could worsen that imbalance.
Don’t get me wrong: I think vitamin B6 can be a good supplement, but start low and slow with the dosage and I see many potential benefits. Still, with my clients I would always recommend the low & slow approach (5mg daily for example). We know that people with glutamate imbalances can experience anxiety, irritability and restlessness when B6 supplements are used.
As a rule of thumb, in functional medicine we first like to know:
What possible systems in the body are out of balance? Do we have labs? What other symptoms are there?
Based on that we make recommendations on lifestyle, nutrition and supplements.
Let me give you an example: if someone can’t methylate well (which we see regurlary in Schizophrenia patients), nutrient deficiencies in vitamin B12, folate, B6 or B2 can play a role. If someone is deficient in B12 only, methylation could be impaired. Supplementing with B6 or folate won’t help.
This is where labs play a role: we first need to know what might be at play in this person to make recommendations.
Are there perhaps labs you could share with us? If so, we could help you by giving you more targeted advice.
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Hey @Rhondine sorrell,
If the implants look like they were leaking, I think you made the right call. I’m not sure how long your implants were there (if they are there for a long time then the next advice might not apply and you can just scroll down). Sometimes Botox is used to help implement implants. But Botox in some cases can also cause some symptoms:
Fever
superficial reddening of the skin
bruising
swelling
drooping eyelid or brow
other skin discolourations
If your doctor believes there is a possibility these symptoms might have been caused by removing the implants causing the Botox to release in the body, the antibiotics won’t work.
Then again, it could also be a simple fever – and in that case, antibiotics won’t work either. In that case, go down to the section called “immune support”
Post-surgery:
Post surgery there are some steps you could take to help heal the body. You can find them in this handout.Detoxification:
You mentioned that your implants looked leaky. If you want to help your body detoxify you can. In your specific case, I would recommend starting with a food-based approach. Ramping up detoxification should be done from a place of strength. When toxins are broken down by the liver, the intermediate metabolites are often more toxic than the toxins. Supporting the body with supplements that ramp up detoxification can cause more harm.However, you can still support your body. Take time to heal. Drink plenty of water, and make sure you aren’t constipated. The liver dumps bile in the stool. This helps you to get rid of waste products in your body. You should have at least one bowel movement per day.
If you aren’t constipated, you can go to the next step: choose the right foods! This handout helps you make targeted choices to support your liver and liver health.
Another way to support your body with detoxification is by eating Cruciferous Vegetables. You can find a list in the handout called Cruciferous Vegetables Natural Detoxifiers.
The third and last handout provides you with a list of foods containing glutathione. Glutathione is a powerful antioxidant made inside your body. It is also crucial for detoxification.
Immune support
If the doctor believes your body might have been weakened by the operation and because of that, your body is more susceptible to infections, you could help your body by supporting your immune system. In that case, this handout would be interesting to read. You will find the nutrients that your body needs to support the immune system at the end of the handout. With fever, you can also look here for tips.Antibiotics
If for some reason antibiotics are recommended… we sometimes need these interventions unfortunately. That doesn’t mean we can’t support the body. You can find how to support the body before, during and after antibiotics right here.I hope you have enough information to make educated choices. Please let us know how things develop!
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@Annie Sye reduction in oxidative stress may influence neurotransmitter balance. Schizophrenia is associated with neurodegenrative processes, meaning that the nerve health in time could degenerate. The presence of oxidative stress (and toxins) can contribute to this process. Reducing oxidative stress can slow down the degeneration of nerves.
I’ve chosen to give you some nutrients that in general show positive clinical effects in Schizophrenia patients. Vitamin C can help reduce negative symptoms in schizophrenia patients. I’m quoting this study here for you:
“Baseline symptoms and vitamin C levels were not correlated. Higher baseline vitamin C levels were associated with more improvement in negative symptoms”
It is a small study, but usually small studies are done to see if there is a signal – which they did.
Vitamin E can help with some of the negative effects of medications. The evidence of vitamin E helping with reducing negative symptoms is less strong, but the literature I’ve seen is not talking about worsening of symptoms. In studies in which vitamin E helped, vitamin E was often combined with vitamin C and omega 3s.
I think you could safely try these supplements.
I’m linking you to an interesting page on WebMD as well (just click here)
Proposition 65 warning
Since I’m based in Europe, could you help me with website/list of products in which I could search for which product has a proposition 65 warning? This will make the right choice for supplements easier! -
Hey @KK
I’m so sorry to hear. I can imagine you are quite worried!
Elevations in CK can be expected as a result of working out. Strong elevations and dark urine can be an indication of Rhabdomyolysis. Usually, I would expect these symptoms as a result of extreme workouts or prolonged strenuous efforts. Other symptoms that might present are:
Muscle swelling
Weak muscles
Tender and sore muscles
and of course brown, red or tea-colored pee
Rhabdomyolysis
I don’t know what kind of strength training your son did, but it is more usual to see this type of health problem with marathon runners or other sports that require prolonged effort.
With Rhabdomyolysis caused by intensive workouts, your son needs to stay hydrated and replenish electrolytes daily. Also, a journal of symptoms might help. Worsening of symptoms like vomiting, abdominal pain, fever, swollen feet, weak muscles and sore muscles could indicate a progression of the condition. If symptoms become progressive, contact your nephrologist immediately! The good news is that your nephrologist thinks of a mild version of Rhabdomyolysis indicating your son isn’t in immediate danger. But I do recommend that he check his symptoms.
Although workouts can cause Rhabdomyolysis and perhaps the most likely, it isn’t the only cause of Rhabdomyolysis. Depending on the cause, different approaches should be taken,
Kidney function
At the moment of drawing blood, the lab values that evaluate kidney function look pretty good. This means that if there is some kidney damage, the damage isn’t enough to impair kidney function. That’s good news! That doesn’t mean there isn’t any kidney damage, but it does mean that the damage didn’t result in function loss. This was at the time of measurement (4 days after the first symptoms presented). It could be that your nephrologist might want to retest these lab values, just to be sure his kidney function is still ok.Pus cells
Although his white blood cell differential doesn’t immediately give an indication of an infection, pus cells were found in the urine. Pus cells in the urine mean that there were some white blood cells present in the urine. Sometimes the urine will smell like ammonia. This would fit more with a UTI. Although UTIs are the most common cause of pus cells in the urine, some other infections can cause pus cells as well. Your nephrologist will know how to deal with that.In the case of an infection, staying hydrated is really important as well. If your son is sexually active, you could recommend him to pee directly after sex to clear bacteria from the urinary tract. I’m not sure what herbal remedies you’ve used, but following the tips in this handout can be helpful as well.
Once it is clear what caused the dark urine, we might be able to give you more targeted advice.
