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

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Neti Pots and Sinus Rinses for Relief of Sinus Pain

Neti Pots and other forms of sinus rinses are a great way to relieve sinus pain and pressure. Some studies suggest that doing sinus irrigation every day helps to shorten the duration of sinusitis and prevent infection in people with chronic sinusitis (To look at a recent review of treatments for sinusitis including nasal irrigation: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26325561). Neti Pots More Effective Many people are given antibiotics unnecessarily for the treatment of sinusitis. Based on studies showing no decrease in severity or duration of sinusitis with antibiotic treatment (because most sinusitis is viral or allergic), antibiotics are only recommended after 10 days of

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Allergy Medications: Possible Increased Risk of Dementia

A new study published in Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) shows that certain allergy medications including diphenhydramine (Benadryl) may be related to changes in cognitive ability, brain deterioration and an increased risk of developing dementia. The reason that I wrote “may be related to” instead of “cause” is that the study shows that there is a strong correlation between people taking these medications and these outcomes. This does not mean that there is a definite causal relationship (in other words, we do not know if these medications cause dementia). News shows will often overstate the findings of a

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Prevention and Treatment of Bug Bites

DEET “The current American Academy of Pediatrics and Center for Disease Control recommendation for children older than 2 months of age is to use 10% to 30% DEET. DEET should not be used on children younger than 2 months of age.” (2016 Summer Safety Tips, AAP). Some animal studies showed increased risk of seizure and neurological damage so many people are concerned about using DEET. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) says: “After reviewing the evidence, EWG has concluded that DEET is generally safer than many people assume and remains a viable option for people in areas infested with disease-carrying pests.”

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Seasonal Allergies

When people ask me how I treat allergies, I often answer “it depends.” As a functional medicine doctor, I treat the cause of the symptoms instead of managing the symptoms. Because even seasonal allergies can have many different possible causes, there are also many possible treatments. Seasonal Allergies In pharmaceutical medicine, seasonal allergies are treated with an antihistamine. Antihistamines block the signal that your immune cells send out when they encounter an allergen. The antihistamines stop the allergic response at one of the last steps of the process. In functional medicine, seasonal allergies are treated based on asking why the

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Integrative Medicine, Functional Medicine, Complementary Medicine, Alternative Medicine Conventional Medicine, Naturopathic Medicine, Holistic Medicine….What DO they all mean?

It can be confusing! So let’s define some terms…at Third Stone Integrative Health Center, we practice functional medicine, and integrate our approach with other specialists. Functional Medicine Functional medicine means asking, “Why is this symptom happening?” When the doctor asks, “why?” instead of just treating the symptom, the underlying cause of the symptom can be determined. Knowing the underlying cause guides us to the treatments that work more deeply and more completely because they address the root of the problem. For example, if you have high blood pressure, a conventional doctor will typically prescribe a medication to lower the blood

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Third Stone Integrative Health Center
3 Wildwood Medical Center
Essex, CT 06426
860-661-4662

2720 Homestead Rd, #30
Park City, UT 84098
435-252-9799

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