Dr. Rob's Health Explosion

Before becoming a chiropractor, I found myself looking at lists of vitamins thinking what in the world should I be taking? How much should I be taking? Am I taking the right stuff for my body?

Now that I am a chiropractor, those are the same questions that are presented to me on a weekly basis. From the research I’ve done, I can generally tell a person what they should be taking, but that’s not good enough in my mind. I like to have some kind of proof as to what the patient should be taking. This started my hunt for some way to effective analyze my patient’s nutritional status and then have a customized report with the objective information on it.

I first started with Pharmanex. They have a biophotonic scanner that uses lasers to measure the level of a certain group of antioxidants to show you whether or not you are lacking. This was ok but just testing one group of antioxidants wasn’t good enough for me and the supplements were way too expensive for most of my patients, and they are a MLM company which doesn’t sit too well with a lot of people.

My next endeavor, which I’m still a part of, was Science Based Nutrition. This company is the real deal. They use a health history questionnaire, physical exam information, blood tests, hair analysis, and any other test you can run. All the information is put together to see everything that is out of whack and then the patient is given a report with a list of vitamins to take over the next 2 months to get things moving back into “healthy” ranges. The only problem with this method is the rather large up-front, out of pocket cost to the patient for all the testing and the amount of vitamins a person usually has to start taking.

So now I have finally found it. A company who offers nutritional analysis that can be done in the privacy of your own home. A company who also takes the time to research everything they do to make sure the patients are receiving the benefits for what they are spending their money on. This company is United Medical Network.

The have a nutrition analysis program that is extremely cost effective for the individual and will still offer customized recommendations for each patient. They start with the most thorough health history questionnaire I have ever seen. The test they use for your body is a 24-hour urine analysis. This will show how your body is doing metabolically. The test kit comes with everything you need to complete the test and ship it to the lab for evaluation. This information is put together and various supplements are recommended. The report will also list the vitamins in order of importance. All of this is done for only $79. I even do a free phone consultation with you to go over any findings or medications you might be taking that could interact with vitamins or talk about the weather.

I recommend getting tested at least every 6 months to make sure things are either improving or staying at healthy levels. As I frequently say, it is a huge mistake to wait until your body starts breaking down (having symptoms) to take care of it. That would be like never brushing your teeth until you got a tooth ache. All of us would say that is silly but it’s the truth.

Go check out the website and get a kit so you can rest comfortably knowing that the supplements you are taking are the right ones in the right amount. The last thing I want you to do is waste your money.

www.onlinenutritionanalysis.com

Douglas Labs Vitamin D

When I came into work this morning and pulled up my homepage on the internet, one of the top stories was entitled “Studies: Millions of U.S. Kids Lacking Vitamin D.” I immediately clicked on the link to read the article. The first two paragraphs are as follows:

“Millions of U.S. children have disturbingly low Vitamin D levels, possibly increasing their risk for bone problems, heart disease, diabetes and other ailments, according to two new studies that provide the first national assessment of the crucial nutrient in young Americans.

About 9 percent of those ages 1 through 21 — about 7.6 million children, adolescents and young adults — have Vitamin D levels so low they could be considered deficient, while an additional 61 percent — 50.8 million — have higher levels, but still low enough to be insufficient, according to the analysis of federal data being released Monday.”

This is a HUGE problem and kids are being set up for failure. Parents in general are taking a back seat to their children’s health. It is assumed that they are getting all the vitamins and nutrients they need in their Poptarts, school lunches, and happy meals.

According to the article, about 70% of children have insufficient amounts of the super important vitamin in their bodies. You think we have health problems now?! Just wait and see what happens if nothing is done to correct this problem. Heart disease, cancer, viral infections, and so on will go through the roof.

I am not trying to point a finger at anyone and say you stink as a parent. I’m only trying to raise your awareness of a very serious problem that could easily go overlooked and have damaging effects to your child’s health. I have 3 kids of my own and never really thought about this vitamin until Dr. Mercola started touting it’s importance recently, so I’m preaching to myself at the same time.

I’m sure by now you’re thinking to yourself, “So how do I make sure my child is getting enough of the good stuff?” I’m so glad you asked.

First, we need to turn off all the video games and cartoons and get kids outside playing. It’s not the playing part for the vitamin D but the sun exposure. Your body will naturally make the vitamin when your skin sees the light of day. In fact, one theory behind why the flu is more prevalent in the winter is because of dips in the general populations vitamin D levels from keeping skin covered up.

Getting kids more active will have a lot of positive health benefits besides boosting their vitamin D levels. It will also help their bodies develop neurologically, promote a healthier immune system, and help prevent type 2 diabetes. Of course, regular exercise for kids does a lot more for their body then just those few things. I just wanted to hit some highlights.

Second, you need to find a high quality Vitamin D supplements for your kiddos. I say high quality because that is important in the world of supplements. In general, vitamins and herbs are still very loosely regulated. Brand X in the grocery store doesn’t always make sure that what they have in their pills match what the label says on the outside and the vitamin in said pills aren’t always of a good absorbable form of whatever you are taking. If you don’t take the time to know who you are buying your supplements from then you are literally urinating or pooping your money away.

I would also like to point out that there is no 1 company that is the “best” with a secret formula to get you more vitamin D. There are several companies that produce quality vitamins. The company I recommend is web-based because I can’t find any brands in the grocery stores that are reliable.

I hope that I have raised the awareness of at least 1 person. Have an excellent day!

Douglas Labs Vitamin D

When I came into work this morning and pulled up my homepage on the internet, one of the top stories was entitled “Studies: Millions of U.S. Kids Lacking Vitamin D.” I immediately clicked on the link to read the article. The first two paragraphs are as follows:

“Millions of U.S. children have disturbingly low Vitamin D levels, possibly increasing their risk for bone problems, heart disease, diabetes and other ailments, according to two new studies that provide the first national assessment of the crucial nutrient in young Americans.

About 9 percent of those ages 1 through 21 — about 7.6 million children, adolescents and young adults — have Vitamin D levels so low they could be considered deficient, while an additional 61 percent — 50.8 million — have higher levels, but still low enough to be insufficient, according to the analysis of federal data being released Monday.”

This is a HUGE problem and kids are being set up for failure. Parents in general are taking a back seat to their children’s health. It is assumed that they are getting all the vitamins and nutrients they need in their Poptarts, school lunches, and happy meals.

According to the article, about 70% of children have insufficient amounts of the super important vitamin in their bodies. You think we have health problems now?! Just wait and see what happens if nothing is done to correct this problem. Heart disease, cancer, viral infections, and so on will go through the roof.

I am not trying to point a finger at anyone and say you stink as a parent. I’m only trying to raise your awareness of a very serious problem that could easily go overlooked and have damaging effects to your child’s health. I have 3 kids of my own and never really thought about this vitamin until Dr. Mercola started touting it’s importance recently, so I’m preaching to myself at the same time.

I’m sure by now you’re thinking to yourself, “So how do I make sure my child is getting enough of the good stuff?” I’m so glad you asked.

First, we need to turn off all the video games and cartoons and get kids outside playing. It’s not the playing part for the vitamin D but the sun exposure. Your body will naturally make the vitamin when your skin sees the light of day. In fact, one theory behind why the flu is more prevalent in the winter is because of dips in the general populations vitamin D levels from keeping skin covered up.

Getting kids more active will have a lot of positive health benefits besides boosting their vitamin D levels. It will also help their bodies develop neurologically, promote a healthier immune system, and help prevent type 2 diabetes. Of course, regular exercise for kids does a lot more for their body then just those few things. I just wanted to hit some highlights.

Second, you need to find a high quality Vitamin D supplements for your kiddos. I say high quality because that is important in the world of supplements. In general, vitamins and herbs are still very loosely regulated. Brand X in the grocery store doesn’t always make sure that what they have in their pills match what the label says on the outside and the vitamin in said pills aren’t always of a good absorbable form of whatever you are taking. If you don’t take the time to know who you are buying your supplements from then you are literally urinating or pooping your money away.

I would also like to point out that there is no 1 company that is the “best” with a secret formula to get you more vitamin D. There are several companies that produce quality vitamins. The company I recommend is web-based because I can’t find any brands in the grocery stores that are reliable.

I hope that I have raised the awareness of at least 1 person. Have an excellent day!