What Molecular Biology, the MTHFR Gene and Your Pet’s Brain Have in Common

What Molecular Biology, the MTHFR Gene and Your Pet’s Brain Have in Common

by | HA! for Diseases, HA! Staying Healthy

Our companion animals give us unconditional love and support. They deserve the best that we can give them. Unfortunately many of them are living shorter lives. They’re also suffering from more serious and stubborn dis-eases. Things that just keep coming back and getting worse over time.

Dogs and cats are able to have long and healthy lives because of their ability to interact in a life-sustaining way with their environments. Their responses to external stressors keep them healthy or make them sick. The genes are only partially responsible for these reactions.

What you do matters even more! Behavior problems, seizures, and even brain tumors can be prevented and helped by the choices that you make every day.

For example, a dog can be playing with his friends and get a little wound which bleeds a bit but then clots and heals. Why? Because his complex clotting mechanism is working properly. However if the same pup has the genetic variation that causes Von Willebrand’s disease (VWD), the bleeding may not stop. The fun play is over and you have to rush to the veterinary hospital to get help. Some dogs have even bled to death due to this and other bleeding defects. Similar to hemophilia.

However, most animals with VWD are able to have normal lives. Why? Because just like a light switch, genes and the proteins they code for can be turned on or off. This is what are called epi-genetic influences. Many environmental factors effect genetic expression.

Things you do every day like vaccinating, medication use, feeding, and symptom suppression can modify the genes. 

“Nutrigenomics” is the scientific term for this. Everyone can learn more about it from Dr. Dodds’ great 2015 book “Canine Nutrigenomics: The New Science of Feeding Your Dog of Optimum Health”. Guardians of cats, horses, and any living being can also benefit. This is not just about dogs.

In human animals, one of these genes causes an enzyme to be made that adds a very important little piece onto other chemicals in the body. This is called methylation. Abnormalities of methylation can cause symptoms of serious brain and behavioral imbalance ranging from obsessive compulsive disorders to schizophrenia and even brain tumors.

The thing is, that even if the gene is abnormal, the methylation process can be normal. That’s because, like VWD and many other genetic abnormalities, the disease it can cause can be prevented. Even once a dis-ease is active it can be helped. This is known as the gene’s “penetrance”. The result, or penetration of any gene can be modified through epigenetic and nutrigenomic influences.

You can make a huge difference in your pet’s quality and length of life. Every Holistic Action! that you take will help.

Many behavior and brain problems can easily be helped. Take advantage of epigenetics and start today. Feed fresh food, increase environmental stimulation, exercise and socialization.

Even though MTHFR abnormalities have not yet been documented in companion animals, adding methyl donors will also help. These can be found in dark green leafy vegetables and supplements like betaine and dimethylglycine. This simple action alone can reduce (and stop) seizures. You’ll also be helping the whole body function better.

Be well,

Dr. Jeff

 

How Your Pet’s Behavior is Related to Brain Dis-eases Like Seizures

How Your Pet’s Behavior is Related to Brain Dis-eases Like Seizures

by | HA! for Diseases, HA! Pet Behavior, HA! Seizures

Some of you have asked, how behavior problems and brain dis-eases (“dis-ease” is another way of saying imbalance) are connected.

That’s an easy one!

All parts of your pet’s body work together as a system. Not like a car made up of separate parts. A car may function normally with a broken tail light or window. You may not even know that there is a problem. This is not true of a computer or an animal.

The living being is a unified whole (as in “holistic”). Sensitive feedback mechanisms connect every part of the body.  For example, it is the brain that sees and hears. The bacteria that live in the guts effect the immune system and emotions! All parts of the body work together.

separation anxiety in a dog with brain disease curable with Holistic ActionsMeet Daphne

Daphne is a great example. She’s a six year young rescue Border Collie. Four years ago she started developing some fearful behavior. As the years went on, her odd behavior and fears worsened. She became over-sensitive to many noises and other environmental stimuli.

Then she started having seizures and was diagnosed with epilepsy. Her seizures were directly related to her odd behaviors, anxieties and fears.

At first her fears and seizures were rare, but over time they became more and more frequent. As her health worsened, her previously joyful life got smaller and smaller. She had to stop participating in her favorite agility classes, hikes, etc.

However, now that her seizures are under better control she is starting to get her life back. And her behavior is better. Why? Because the seizures, like other brain dis-eases, are directly related to her behavior.

And there are very specific Holistic Actions! that you can take today which can help. You can learn more about how to help your pets with behavior problems and brain dis-eases by joining Holistic Actions! Academy.

Be well,

Dr. Jeff

 

You Can Learn Your Pet’s Language

by | HA! Holistic Medical Decision Making (HMDM), HA! Staying Healthy

Nature can be seen expressing herself just by looking.

Symptoms are the natural language of your pet’s body.

It seems intuitive to work with nature and in accord with the body.

So why don’t more people listen to symptoms and work with them?

Once we learn about the exquisite effectiveness and elegance of doing so we don’t want to stop.

But there’s a problem.

It’s not easy at first. No one likes something different or difficult.

But the learning curve is short.

At first, learning to recognize and use symptoms is like a foreign language.

But it gets much easier. And natural.

Speaking the native language is always the most effective way to communicate. You can give your pet a better life by communicating more effectively. Better communication usually equates to better treatment outcomes.

Recognizing, respecting and using the language of symptoms allows you to understand your pet’s health better than any laboratory test.

In the US and some other younger cultures, Vitality (aka Chi, Prana, the Life Force) is seen as an old and out dated concept. But adopting it can transform health care. And save you thousands of dollars.

Vitalism in medicine was discarded along with the advent of the modern scientific methods. But holistic veterinarians understand that the vital force allows the body to function.

So how effective could this old concept really be?

Some of the cultures that still use this concept are among the most long-lived around the world. Recognizing and working through symptoms is what allows the traditional (but not the “modern”) doctors in China to only charge patients for keeping you healthy. Wellness care. Not dis-ease treatment.

If you get sick, traditional doctors in China feel they have failed at their job. They only get paid if they keep you healthy.

You too can become more effective in your wellness care and dis-ease management. Listen to and respect your pet’s symptoms. Help your pets today by learning the language of their bodies. You don’t need medical training to listen to it. Read this article for the exact ways to understand and record your pet’s symptoms.

Stay balanced and connected.

Dr. Jeff

Symptoms Are The Path To Healing

Symptoms Are The Path To Healing

by | HA! for Diseases, HA! Holistic Medical Decision Making (HMDM), HA! Staying Healthy

Main take home message:Acute symptoms reflect internal health. How you treat them really matters.

Let’s look at one of the very best ways to help your companion animals today while improving their overall health.

That is – understanding signs and symptoms. You do not need to be a doctor to do this.

All you need to do is to learn how to describe symptom details. Working with the clues that your pets bodies are giving you will help them get better. Without the frequent relapses that are so common nowadays!

Here’s a real life situation to better understand the Holistic Actions! approach to treating symptoms while improving health. This one happens to be in a human animal.

Amy’s Case

Amy (Dr. Jeff’s wife) woke up with a badly swollen lip. Her lower lip was twice its usual size. This sudden odd symptom was doubly strange because only half of it was swollen.

  • She was fine when she went to sleep.
  • She hadn’t eaten any unusual foods.
  • Maybe something bit her overnight?
  • What did Amy’s swollen lip symptom mean? And what should be done about it?

Amy’s swollen lip was a fabulous observable sign. Her body was saying something. That’s the simple message that signs and symptoms convey.

Simple?

Anyone that can communicate can do it!

You don’t need a doctorate to understand the symptom language of the body. Don’t worry about all of the internal physiologic complexity. It is however helpful to know that the physiologic changes that result in symptoms are secondary to an underlying cause. The primary abnormality is simple and can be understood by all.

Conventional medicine either ignores the underlying cause or calls them “triggers”. Triggers are things like foods, pollens, stress, etc.

Holistically however we look at all of the underlying causes. We see that most dis-ease symptoms are caused by an energetic imbalance. This knowledge is thousands of years old. It is the basis for modern medicine in India, China, and many other countries.

The energetic basis for dis-ease is not considered at this time in most of the U.S or Canada. Despite this, many MDs and veterinarians understand dis-ease as an imbalance.

Symptoms are our best way to see, understand and fix that imbalance.

Amy’s swollen lip is observable evidence of an internal imbalance – what MDs would call a symptom. In non-verbal species it is called a sign (so your vet might look at you funny if you tell her about your pet’s symptoms).

The body’s symptomatic response to its’ environment is more important than the trigger. The way any symptom looks is a direct reflection of the individual.

Start Today

Use this important concept by observing and describing symptoms. Doing so will help you resolve them permanently. And at the same time improve health and resistance to all dis-eases.

Correctly interpreting signs and symptoms allows proper treatment of the underlying problem. Long-term health is improved when we treat this underlying tendency to produce specific symptoms. Treating this tendency helps reduce recurrence of the problem. Drug treatment can not help in this way.

For example, many pets are prone to hot spots in one specific location. And what do you mean by a “hot spot” anyway? Is it oozing (yellow, green, clear), is it red, hairless, smelly, etc.

Or maybe the ear “infection” is in one ear but not the other.

The way symptoms look help you put them into context of longer term health.

Back to Amy’s fat lip and why neither of us were too alarmed by it. We both knew that even symptoms that look bad usually are not. As long as B.E.A.M. is normal.

Amy received a single dose of a homeopathic medicine. It was chosen based on all of her symptoms. Not only the swelling. After the dose her lip quickly improved. The swelling symptom was gone altogether after the second dose.

Signs and symptoms should not inspire fear. Instead, they should be understood. Your vet homeopath can help you understand them in the bigger picture of helping your pets have happier and longer lives.

Be well. Keep your pets balanced.

Dr. Jeff

Does Your Dog Really Have Lyme Or Need Anti-biotics?

Does Your Dog Really Have Lyme Or Need Anti-biotics?

by | HA! for Diseases, HA! Lyme

lyme in petsDoes Your Lyme Positive Dog REALLY Need to be Treated for Lyme?

You’re probably familiar with the increase in Lyme disease and ticks. You probably also know that Lyme is a tick-borne illness.

But did you know that Lyme disease is often over diagnosed and over treated? Your pet may test positive, get treated, but not have the disease.

In this post, we’ll cover why that’s common as well as what to do and natural ways to prevent Lyme disease. Let’s first lay things out more clearly.

Why is Lyme a Disease But Not a Dis-ease?

My name is Jeff Feinman. I’m a traditionally trained holistic veterinarian who understands most health problems to actually be imbalances (or dis-eases) in the vital force. However, Lyme and other bacterial and viral diseases are different. They are not just physiologic imbalances.

Infectious diseases like Lyme, Parvo, Distemper, etc. have readily identifiable and transmissible triggers. The Lyme spirochete (a bacteria) can be isolated, grown, cultured, and transmitted. It’s a true dises-causing agent. Non-infectious health challenges like most kidney, liver and hormone dis-eases are not like this.

Natural resistance prevents illness from infectious diseases. Healthy animals with vigorous vitality get sick from Lyme less often.

You may know that dogs are much more likely to develop Lyme disease than cats. Even though some outside cats pick up loads of ticks. Why might that be? Well, cats are generally vaccinated and suppressed less than dogs. They seem to have a more robust immune system and natural resistance to Lyme.

Research studies have shown that vaccination is related to (and can cause) immune dys-function. A strong immune system is the best protector against Lyme and other infections.

The Truth About the Lyme “Epidemic”

The epidemic of Lyme positive animals started around the same time that the in-clinic test for Lyme became popular. A screening test for Lyme started to be included along with routine heartworm testing. In some (“endemic”) areas over 90 percent of all dogs were coming up positive on this test.

When the diagnostic testing became more readily accessible, and more frequently used, the Lyme epidemic began. In reality, Lyme detection became widespread. Not a disease epidemic.

Almost all Lyme tests only show antibody production. Not Lyme infection. A positive test shows exposure to the ticks that carry Lyme. That’s it. The test is great for proving exposure from but it doesn’t translate into there being an infection.

These Lyme tests are very similar to the familiar Parvo and Distemper titers. They help you decide if your pet is protected from these infections. A positive titer is good. It shows that the immune system is doing its’ job (making antibodies).

But a positive Lyme titer we’re not so happy about. Why? Because we are told that this means disease and the need for anti-biotics. Not true. Just like a positive Parvo titer does not mean that immediate Parvo treatment is needed.

The main difference between Lyme and other titers is that the Lyme titer antibodies are not protective. A positive titer does not translate to protection (unfortunately).

However, when interpreted using the Context and Interpretation method, Lyme titers and other diagnostic testing is useful. It helps make up part of the whole and facilitates good holistic medical decisions. So do the test, but don’t treat based only on the test results. Is your pet showing symptoms of Lyme disease (context!)? Maybe all s/he needs is following up with a more accurate test.

Lyme Testing and The Best (and Worst) Lyme Tests

Few tests actually look for Lyme organisms. Even when one does, the bacteria are rarely found. They hide.

Most tests are only for the antibodies against Lyme. These show an immune response. The most common, “SNAP”, tests are often run in the vet hospital. But these are subjective qualitative tests. Not quantitative (where the result is a definite number). SNAP tests are therefore not as helpful. They are useful for screening but not for deciding whether to treat an asymptomatic positive pup.

If the subjective screening test is positive you should get more definitive information. You need the number. It reflects the number of antibodies. You can currently (2017) do this two ways. There’s one test that gives just one number. That is the Idexx C6 test. Even better is the newer Cornell University Multiplex which reveals multiple numbers.

The Cornell Multiplex is especially useful for monitoring. The multiple immune parameters it measures can better help guide your treatment decisions. But like any test, it needs to be interpreted in context (test result + clinical scenario = context).

In addition to natural exposure, vaccination is the other way to get a positive titer test.
This artificial immune stimulation may or may not be effective. Like the flu shot. Either way, it is scientifically known that vaccination can damage the immune system.

This lack of effectiveness along with the known immune damage from every vaccine, makes vaccination for Lyme less than desirable.

Even the veterinary Lyme specialist Dr. Meryl Littman of the University of Pennsylvania says about Lyme vaccination (when talking about Lyme nephritis and kidney failure in Golden Retrievers and Labradors): “These patients are most likely the very ones we should NOT vaccinate lest we add more complexes or sensitize them for a more intense immune-mediated reaction when they are boostered or exposed naturally.”

Dr. Littman is saying that even though these pups are those most likely to get Lyme-associated kidney failure, we still should not vaccinate them. It’s dangerous.

She says, rather than risk immune damage from vaccinating, focus on promoting vigorous vitality. Vital dogs are less likely to contract Lyme disease.

We therefore see that:

  1. a positive Lyme titer does not equal Lyme Disease and
  2. the Cornell Multiplex is the best test for diagnosis and monitoring.

If you want access to a full course on how to prevent and treat Lyme, buy it here or join Premium or All-Access memberships.

Holistically yours,

Dr. Jeff

 

There Are Risks from Suppressing Skin Dis-eases So Learn Your Holistic Options

There Are Risks from Suppressing Skin Dis-eases So Learn Your Holistic Options

by | HA! for Diseases, HA! Skin

Antibiotics Can’t Hurt. Right?

Sarah was a sweet Maltese. Everyone loved her. She loved everyone and everything. And everyone loved Sarah. Even dog-hating people and anti-social dogs. Her sociability and energy allowed her to have a great life.

Sarah enjoyed long daily walk and playtime. She went to doggy daycare almost every day. She was physically healthy overall. Like her health conscious guardians, she ate a fresh diet and went for routine wellness checks.

The only problem was that she’d periodically develop itchy skin, rashes and red, smelly ears.

Whenever she was not acting “right” in any way, she was rushed to the veterinarian. Anti-biotics and anti-inflammatories were usually prescribed.

After all, they couldn’t hurt, right?

One morning, Sarah’s guardians saw a few itchy pimples on her skin. Sarah was acting fine otherwise so they went to the vet after work that night. Just to be safe. An anti-biotic was again prescribed. Sarah’s pimples vanished within a few days.

A few weeks later after work, Sarah started twitching and developed a vacant stare. After lots of tests at the ER and consultation with a neurologist, Sarah was diagnosed with a seizure disorder and idiopathic epilepsy.

This abnormal behavior continued almost every day so Sarah was started on anti-convulsants.The drugs made her pretty lethargic for a few weeks but then she seemed fine. Sarah’s life returned pretty much to normal.

Sarah was lucky. Her health challenge was successfully treated. But could it have been prevented? Many similar stories end badly.

Here’s something simple you can do that can save your beloved companion animal’s life. Try not to suppress skin symptoms. Like Sarah’s pimples.

Are these Skin Symptoms Just the Tip of the Iceberg?

Why not? Because every sign and symptom (see below for the difference between them) has a relative degree of importance. For example, it’s better to have an external symptom such as a skin or ear problem rather than an internal one such as a brain or liver dis-order, e.g. causing seizures.

This seems obvious, right? Uh, uh. Not in today’s reductionistic (where dis-ease is reduced to one part) and mechanistic (the living body is seen like a machine with separate moving parts) medical mindset.

Our common sense, intuition and scientific studies say that, unlike reductionism, life is a connected continuum. Everything is connected. Whole-istically.

Holistic understanding and evaluation of life’s decisions leads to better outcomes. Both for health maintenance as well as dis-ease treatment. After all, you don’t buy a car without exploring your available options. You look at the bigger picture. You collect information, read reviews, and get opinions from others.

Don’t our beloved companion animals deserve the same?

You Can Learn To Make the Best Decisions

(and do what feels right when treating your dogs and cats)

The most effective decisions are made this way. By evaluating all of the available information. Medically speaking, you (and your holistically-oriented doctor) weigh all of the benefits and risks.

In Sarah’s situation for example, was her overall and longer term health considered when treating her skin pimples? Was anti-biotic disruption of her body’s delicate bacterial balance even considered? How about the potential immune and other imbalances secondary to the drug use?

Was a holistic or reductionistic decision made?

Enter Holistic Medical Decision Making (HMDM) and Holistic Options courses and school. You’ll learn the simple framework that will allow you to help decide what is best for your animal companion.

You can do it!

The best decisions are those you make when you have all of the information and consider it holistically.

Holistic medical decisions can lead to better quality and longer lives for our pets.

You don’t need to be medically trained to effectively use this method. There’s only a few things to learn. The relative importance of the symptoms (like skin pimples vs. seizures) is just one of them.

Learn to holistically promote wellness. Not treat isolated symptoms reductionistically.

How you approach and treat symptoms is critical to the quality and length of life. For all beings.

Know Your Treatment Options

Unfortunately, you can’t always rely on your conventionally-oriented family veterinarian or MD to see the bigger picture of health or present them all to you. Especially when it comes to gentle holistic and natural treatments.

But how do you know what to do?

That’s why the Holistic Actions! for Companion Animals Academy and resources are here!

Our online resources are highly reliable and well researched. They will help you make the best holistic medical decisions.

Here you’ll find online courses, audio and video seminars, access to cutting edge research, analysis, etc. available 24/7. They’ll show you the gentle and effective methods that can be used to holistically help . Best of all, at the live group classes and discussion groups, you can ask your specific questions about holistic and homeopathic preservation of health.

Find out more about the Holistic Actions! Academy and Holistic Medical Decision Making method.

Or start by taking the Holistic Essentials course which goes over the five essential parts of the holistic life.

Be well.

Dr. Jeff

PS-A sign is an objective measure of dis-ease, like a blood test result (yes, diagnostic test results are also important when making holistic decisions). A symptom is subjective. Pre-verbal children and non-verbal animals only have signs. Using this definition that is. But is that really the way that life works?

Your child may not yet speak but she sure can still communicate. The same is true for animals.

For simplicity sake, signs and symptoms can be considered together.