Health Tech Resources: Meal Planning

I often prescribe diet changes to patients for treatment of conditions, weight loss or for general overall health. Diet changes are challenging because often people have trouble finding new foods that they like to prepare and eat. Here are some meal planning resources that can support diet changes for long-term success. Making Meal Planning Easier The Fresh 20 This is an easy-to-use meal planning service that helps you increase your intake of vegetables and whole foods and/or avoid dairy or gluten. For $1.50-2.00 per week, you get a shopping list with 20 items and recipes for a week's worth of

The Many Causes of Diarrhea: Individualized Treatment for IBS-D

I am surprised by how many people receive a diagnosis of IBS-D (diarrhea type) without ever getting dietary counseling about elimination diets or avoidance of dairy products. People with IBS-D are often prescribed antidiarrheals like Immodium. When people with IBS come to see me, I ask them questions about their diet and the age of onset of their symptoms as well as any known triggers. I have had two cases of long-term undiagnosed Giardia infections that caused intermittent diarrhea but the vast majority of the patients I see for IBS have great improvements with diet changes or digestive support. The

Experiencing Adult Onset Food Allergies?

A recent article in the New York Times brought my attention to a study that is currently in process about adult-onset food allergies. I have seen many patients who develop allergic symptoms later in life. When I suggest that the symptoms may be related to a food, people often respond with “but I have eaten this all my life.” I am glad to see that researchers are looking into the question of how and why food allergies develop because I often see patients with severe and life-altering symptoms from immune reactions to foods. There is a significant difference between food

Premenstrual Syndrome

I see many women who have heavy, irregular, or painful periods and do not mention PMS because they assume that PMS is “normal.” Premenstrual syndrome symptoms such as migraines, irritability, fatigue, and depression indicate that there is an underlying hormonal imbalance and there are many natural therapies that correct hormonal imbalances. Short-Term Treatments for Premenstrual Syndrome In conventional medicine, PMS is treated with birth control pills or antidepressants and these work well for many people. I think of these treatments as short-term treatments because if estrogen and progesterone remain out of balance, the woman will someday experience heavy periods, painful

Coconut Oil: Good for Cooking but No Miracle Cure

The American Heart Association (AHA) recently came out with a presidential advisory that coconut oil should be avoided for heart health due to its saturated fat content. Meanwhile, many people in the natural medicine community have been promoting coconut oil as a great way to lose weight based on an extrapolation of research done by Marie-Pierre St-Onge, Ph.D. at Columbia University. So where is the truth? The answer is somewhere in the middle. Coconut Oil & Saturated Fats It’s important to note that saturated fats got a bad reputation in part due to hydrogenated fats (also known as trans fats)

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