[Daniel]

Hey ,

Does he has nasal congestion without flu like symptoms? If so allergies and food sensitivities can still play a role. They can also contribute to eczema. This handout provides several root causes of eczema and they are in line to earlier mentioned advises as well.

Postnasal drip can also cause nasal congestion. In the majority of cases a reaction to milk products (also the lactose free versions) can contribute to postnasal drip. Eliminating milk products entirely might be something you could start with.

Your right about sweat. Some infants can get rashes if they sweat and the sweat ducts are obstructed. This can also happen when they sweat more then normal for example, when it’s hot and humid or if they’re overdressed.

Parasites can also cause itching and skin problems. A simple white blood cell differentiation could provide more insight. With parasites a class of white blood cells called eosinophils are often elevated. Stool tests can also be done to examine if parasites are at play. The condition there is that the parasites must be in the stool to be detected.

The way the rashes present themselves can also provide clues to what could be at play, but this needs to be assessed by someone with the proper training like a dermatologist.

I hope you have some starting points to work with.

I can imagine your worries, but with everything at play in his young life, he is very lucky to have you!

[Daniel]

Hey ,

Thank you for sharing this! There are some other advice I would like to give you:

WBC or White Bloodcel Count
I do see a white blood cell count and although these numbers might seem normal because they are in the reference range, I still wonder about a full differential. A WBC differential looks at a range of different types of white blood cells. I actually wrote a tip earlier about this topic which you can find here. It is for you to find out since simmering infections can make it harder for iron to be absorbed.

Hydrochlorothiazide & High Blood pressure.
The diuretic hydrochlorothiazide definitely could have influenced the measurements, changing the lab values a bit and masking a true iron deficiency. If you like to use iron supplements, be aware that iron can decrease the absorption of hydrochlorothiazide.

I’m glad to hear you have started a workout routine! This can defenitly help you with blood pressure issues. I usually see improvements within 2-3 months. It al depends on where your blood pressure comes from. The higher the levels, the longer it can take, but you are for sure on the good road!

Elevated Cholesterol values
Cholesterol can be elevated for different reasons. Dietary reasons are one of them since the main function of LDL and HDL is transporting lipids and lipid like structures.

But there are other reasons worth exploring in your specific case. With these numbers, to me, there are clues visible with imbalances in thyroid hormone production (which can cause high blood pressure and elevations in cholesterol).  Only a full thyroid panel will provide you with more insight. Here is a video on which lab markers are important to measure. It can provide you with a different angle on how to approach your specific situation.

There is much more to say about this topic, but let me ask you this first before I dive deeper into this topic. Are you experiencing hypo- or hyperthyroid symptoms? And if you are experiencing one of the 2, are you also using medications for this?

Vitamin D & B12
With my clients I usually aim for serum vitamin values in the upper half of the reference range at least. For vitamin B12 I usually aim for serum levels above the 600. For vitamin D I would aim for serum levels of 50. Here is a handout that I love and gives you recommendations on how to achieve this. Retesting serum vitamin D levels after no more then 2-3 months is something I recommend since there are some genetic differences between how people absorb and transport vitamin D.

Vitamin B6
Your liver enzymes are a bit on the lower end. Normally low liver enzymes is considered a good thing since elevations indicate some damage to liver cells. But low (but still normal) levels can indicate a need for vitamin B6. Of course the other tests (like the OAT) can provide you more information on vitamin B6 status.

Once you have the other labs returned I would be curious to take a look at them as well! If you feel like sharing, please do!

[Daniel]

Hey ,

I’m sorry to hear! I can imagine that you’re worried.

Being new in this world can be quite a challenge for the immune system. Every infection is new and the immune system is really busy learning how to deal with all these viruses and microbes that are out there. This is why kids can become sicker easily.

Targeted food choices can help to provide nutrients that are important for the immune system. Nutrients like vitamin A, zinc and vitamin B12 are important for the formation of white blood cells. Vitamin D of course is also important since it regulates up to 5 percent of our genes and a lot of them are related to immune function.

Although most of the vitamin D we make we can get from the sun, some food sources like salmon and eggs do contain vitamin D as well.

Vitamin A you can find for example in orange vegetables like sweet potatoes, carrots and butternut squash. Also, spinach, bell peppers and broccoli are great sources of vitamin A.

Zinc can be found in beef, lamb, poultry, eggs, legumes, cashew and almond nuts and pumpkin seeds.

Vitamin b12 can be found in animal sources like fish, beef, poultry and eggs.

Some of the food sources above can contain salmonella like eggs, fish and poultry. Also, dairy products can contain salmonella. Cooking & preparing them will prevent exposure, but make sure your hands are disinfected when you help feed your kid.

Salmonella and Enteropathogenic E.coli
Symptoms of these infections overlap and symptoms you should watch out for are stomach cramps, vomiting, fever and diarrhea.

Salmonella and E. Coli infections do happen more often in kids, but without symptoms there is no need for worries. A lot of people do carry these microbes for life without any problem as well. But if there are symptoms like diarrhea consult your healthcare provider.

Red spots
It is hard to say what causes the red spots. But I could give you some alternative angles to explore. With red spots in the back and stomach area, allergies (and food sensitivities) can also be at play. Nickel allergy for example can cause red spots on places where buttons are.  Did you ever do some allergy testing? 

Some fabrics in clothing can cause skin problems as well. Wool, silk, and synthetic fibres can cause rashes. Have you ruled these out as well?

Sometimes a sensitive skin can also be easily irritated. Soaps, detergents, wipes… if you are using them, replace them with allergen-free options and see if the rashes become less.

I hope this gives you some other angles to explore as well!

[Daniel]

Hey ,

The upper tolerable intake of mastic gum isn’t well studied. We do know it is well tolerated. Dosages used in most research are between 1 and 3 grams and in these ranges benefits have been found.

Some people do get some reactions from it (headaches, upset stomach and dizziness for example) so it would be wise to go slow and easy here. You can try a new dosage 2-3 weeks and see how you react.

But if you don’t experience differences, you probably or going over the most effective dosage for you and higher dosages won’t help you!

[Daniel]

Hey ,

A colonoscopy? Wauw! Would you like to share with us why you get a colonoscopy? 

Gatorade is used to replace electrolytes, so any supplement containing electrolytes can help, but it would be wise to discuss this with your doctor as well!

[Daniel]

Hey ,

It is because it is daily that I am thinking it could be related to cortisol. The primary function of cortisol is not actually related to stress. Cortisol’s primary function is regulating blood sugars.

When we wake up, for example, we need energy. Since we have been fasting for 8 hours after a good night of sleep, we need the energy to fuel our bodies. This is why cortisol peaks in the morning. That peak can in some people be dysregulated: In some people, it can peak too high, in some people the peak is too low. In both cases, it can create health problems which are typically more ‘visible’ in the morning.

A second clue why cortisol might play a role is that anger contributes to the worsening of the symptoms in the morning. Cortisol elevates when the body perceives a threat. The body reasons that a fight or flight might be a possible scenario and tries to create more blood sugars so that we can defend or fight better. When the anger is gone, it can still influence our cortisol levels the next day for 2 primary reasons:
1. It takes time to break down cortisol and bring it back to lower levels.
2. Even when anger is gone, the way we feel and reflect after anger can also influence cortisol levels. Sometimes people might experience that they felt treated unfairly or aren’t being heard for example. Sometimes the anger is expressed, but the anger isn’t gone. Sometimes people might experience that their reaction was too strong and doubts and feelings of regret can still influence our feelings of safety, which means that cortisol levels can still be altered the next day.

These aren’t the only things that influence cortisol levels, but they might come on top of some other dynamic at play which might worsen the symptoms. The initial imbalance in cortisol is in this case a symptom of something else the body tries to manage, for example:
• Allergen exposure (including food sensitivities)
• Too much exercise, or a physical trauma
• Emotional Trauma
• Overuse of stimulants (caffeine, sugar, some people are sensitive to theobromine in chocolate)
• Toxins (inclusive overuse of medications)
• Insulin resistance and obesity
• Inflammation
• Insufficient sleep, sleep apnea and shift work.
• Insufficient calorie intake.
• A low-carb diet (since the body now needs to create sugar and this is the primary function of cortisol)

The art is then to find what causes the dysbalance in cortisol while managing the things that challenge the cortisol levels further.

To help you with that:

The GI symptoms could cause imbalances in cortisol levels and imbalances in cortisol levels can cause GI symptoms. Helping the body digest the food might bring some relief.

There is a handout right here with solutions to bloating. This video here explains how digestive enzymes can help digestion. Burping can also be a sign of low stomach acid. The hydrochloric acid dosage challenge can be something you could do to explore that option.

I hope this answers some of your questions and also provides you with a starting point on how to progress further!

[Daniel]

Hey ,

Thank you for sharing your labs! Is this the full report? Or are there more lab values assessed? If there is more, it would help you to provide you with more answers.

Funny you mention iron coming back as ‘normal’. A lot of iron markers are indeed in the reference range, but just barely.

A lack of iron can contribute to a lower MCH, MCHC and also cause platelets to elevate.

In my opinion, getting your iron up would be wise. Iron can be low because of dietary insufficiencies, low stomach acid, gut inflammation and even chronic infections can play a role. Looking at your full CBC could help us rule out chronic infections for example.

With iron deficiency, you could also experience different types of symptoms. Fatigue, shortness of breath, looking pale, cold hands and feet, hair loss, brittle nails, a sore tongue, headaches… all these can be symptoms of an iron deficiency. Are there symptoms you recognize?

It might be a good idea to follow how your platelets develop in the next year to rule out other issues. 

Are you taking medications for your high blood pressure? Diuretics for example dehydrate, which causes some lab values to become more elevated and therefore mask a potential iron deficiency.

Did you already read this handout? It sums up the root causes of hypertension and might help you to lower your blood pressure in a natural way.

I hope this answers your question… but I can imagine it might lead to more questions. If this is the case, please share!

[Daniel]

Hey ,

I’m glad to hear that the situation improved! And he is lucky to have a mother like you! The first thing that sticks out for me is that both situations could be related to stress hormones. Since Bernadette knows the case better (and has kids!), she might be able to look at it from a different angle

Why it might be hard to describe the feelings in his core.
Would you describe your son as someone who is well in touch with his feeling? I’m asking because I get the sense that describing the feelings he has in his core is hard for him. Having a good description might help us give a better sense of what might be at play.

There are other reasons why someone might not be able to describe their feelings. He might for example miss the right words. Or he might feel a combination of stuff that might be complex to describe for him.

Here are some questions you could ask:
• The core of the body, depending on who you ask, can be completely different areas. Ask him to place his hands on where he feels the ‘anxiety’ can help you pinpoint better where he feels the discomfort.
• Does he feel there is tension in this area, then muscles are probably related.
• GI distress might be hard to describe sometimes. Does he feel a sort of cramping in the abdominal area? And related to that, how are his stools when he feels his core is like sh**?
• Discomfort in the abdomen may be aching, stabbing, burning, twisting, cramping, dull, or gnawing. Asking more specific questions can help narrow it down.

Anger and anxiety can be related. Anxiety is sometimes described as a low grade of anger. He might not be really upset anymore, but his body still might feel the ‘leftovers’ of the anger. 

Understanding how his anger transforms in his mind can also play a role. Some people feel for example guilty after an angry outburst leaving them with shame or regret. These emotional feelings might end up on top of the physical discomfort making it harder to explain his feelings. If shame is at play he might not want to describe his feelings clearly as well.

Lots of options to explore, I know. But all these emotions can also contribute to imbalances in neurotransmitters and cause him to feel unwell.

Helping him cope with these feelings might be part of the solution.

Stress hormones
Sleep and emotions are both influenced by stress hormones. For example: when we wake up, our stress hormones peak to get our body ready to go. This is called the Cortisol Awakening Response (CAR). It happens after a good night of rest. Dropping back into sleep after you wake up, will lower cortisol levels again. These changes in your regular sleeping pattern shift your body’s neuroendocrine response, which can sometimes lead to nausea.

A second reason why people can feel nausea is low blood sugar and hunger. When he sleeps longer, this could be at play as well.

I hope this helps!

[Daniel]

 hard to say with 100 per cent accuracy without current data, but your folate measurement in February 2023 was 5.88 ug/l. That is in the lower half of the reference range. I know it went up after you started supplementing with B vitamins, but not by much.

A higher dose like 800ug for a few weeks is something you could try with such values. But again, without knowing current serum values, I wouldn’t know what to advise exactly.

[Daniel]

,

I can imagine that the vitamin C could cause the irritation and the heartburn. If you aren’t sure if this supplement is something for you right now, you could also experiment by buying 500 mg of vitamin C and see how that works for you.

If it causes problems, Gastromend is probably not for you.

[Daniel]

,

I wouldn’t stop it because I added TTFD. When it comes to continuing, that answer would be best answered on the basis of your serum levels. I would especially curious about your serum folate levels.

I don’t recommend TTFD often, but people who do use it often feel it influences their concentration positively. It is one of those supplements you can feel working.

The people I did recommend it often report that they feel more focused after an hour. I personally have the same experience. I also feel more focused in my workouts as well.

The pills are very small and are best consumed with meals for optimal absorption.

[Daniel]

Hey ,

Gastromend-HP is a supplement I often recommend for example with H Pylori. It has a nice blend of gut healing nutrients as well. Can you recall how this supplement felt for you? There is some vitamin C in it, which makes it slightly acidic.

[Daniel]

Hey ,

Because TTFD isn’t depending on transporters, there isn’t a competition issue going on with the other B vitamins. With thiamine, you can dose between the 25 and 100 mg to correct for a mild deficiency.

When it comes to safety: dosing long-term for 300 mg didn’t show problems in studies with diabetic patients.  The supplement I recommended comes in pills containing 100 mg. You can take it daily. With thiamine, no contraindications are known as well.

[Daniel]

Hey ,

I’m so sorry to hear about the Lyme disease. Are you experiencing symptoms? If you do, let us know, and we could provide you with some extra tips!

The good news is that research shows that essential oils can be used to repel ticks. Oils from lemongrass, cedar, peppermint, thyme, and geraniol are often used. A blend like your picture can definitely help.

Some oils might work better against one species and another might work better against another. This makes giving advice difficult, but I would stick to a blend.

This 2012 study compared how a few working components of different oils worked against different species. Carvacrol (found in thyme oil) worked well compared to commercial products, but it gave little protection against the Turkey Tick (A. americanum). Nootkatone (found in oils of the cedar tree) gave better protection.

The chemically synthesized oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) provides also protection. It would be a better choice when it comes to repelling ticks as the natural oil because the working compound is more concentrated.

It is hard to give you some concrete advice on what product would be best. I’m based in Europe and although we have ticks, the market for natural remedies is really small in my country.

Permethrin is a pesticide and can affect you when it is absorbed by the skin or when you inhale it. Really not non-toxic at all. Prolonged or repeated contact can therefore influence your health, but it’s hard to talk about what type of risk you’re taking here. Without alternatives, it is hard to advise you on this since you will have to balance the risk you take with the ticks.

When the oils give you enough protection, I probably wouldn’t use Permethrin. Below I have added the hazardous substance fact sheet of Permethrin so you can make a better educated choice there.

[3422.pdf]

[Daniel]

Hey ,

Your friend is lucky to have you! We have a lot of content on H. Pylori on the platform as well, so we can provide you with a lot of guidance.

Details to your friends specific situation will make the guidance even better. Do you know for example what type of test she did to diagnose H. Pylori? Was it for example a breath test, a blood test or a stool test? Another important piece of information that will provide more personal answers are her symptoms and if she is using medications.

To help you, you could ask her for example if your friend is experiencing symptoms like acid reflux, indigestion, bloating, nausea and vomiting. Pherhaps she is having stomach ulcers as well.

With longer exposure nutrients like iron, vitamin B12 and zinc can be depleted in te body. When iron and vitamin B12 are depleted, people might experience fatigue, concentration problems, hair loss, tingling sensations in the arms and legs, dizziness/lightheadedness, mouth ulcers or an inflamed tongue. A depletion in zinc can also cause concentration problems, slow thyroid symptoms and/or frequently getting sick.

These symptoms could also give more specific information to what your friend should be eating to replete these deficiencies.

Let’s address H. Pylori

There is a video right here that goes into what herbal remedies you can use with an H. Pylori overgrowth. Personally I like to use Matula Tea. GastroMend-HP from Designs for health (click here) is a good supplement that can help reduce H. Pylori. It contains ingredients like Zinc L-carnosine, Mastic Gum and DGL (Deglycyrrhizinated Licorice) which are all ingredients that are researched in patients having an H. Pylori overgrowth.

Foods to avoid
Some foods can irritate the stomach lining. Things like alcohol, coffee, soda for example. Spicy foods are foods I would recommend to avoid as well. Think of hot pepper, curries, salsa’s, miso paste, spicy mustard.. stuff like that. Other foods are more acidic in nature and should be avoided as well. Not only vinegar, citrus fruits, but also cooked tomatoes should be avoided.

Foods to consume
Focus on organic choices and unprocessed foods. Foods that can help with H. Pylori infections are fermented foods like kimchi, sauerkraut and kefir. Garlic, ginger, turmeric, Omega 3 fatty acids are anti-inflammatory and can help as well. Broccoli sprouts provide you with a compound called sulforaphane and have been shown to help protect against the free radicals caused by the H. Pylori overgrowth. 

Like with every infection: make sure the immune system is working effectively. Most people are vitamin D deficient. Zinc and vitamin A are also important nutrients for the immune system.

This handout talks about acid reflux and might also be worth looking into.

I hope this provides you with some clarity on how to address an H. Pylori overgrowth!