Photo by Mai Le.

Got a question for us? Drop your tricky, random, wacky or plain confusing health question into the Suggest-O-Matic, leave a comment, or tag your tweets with #wellwire and our team of experts will answer them in this weekly column.

Q: More than ever my patients are asking about alternative hormone replacement. Many are concerned about developing reproductive and associated cancers or adding something seemingly un-natural to their bodies after never having used medication their entire lives. What course of action do you suggest to your patients? -Dr. Charlotte R., UCLA, Second Year Resident Women’s Health

A: This is a great question! I’m glad to hear that more patients are becoming proactive before they dive into synthetic hormone replacement. This is a topic of great debate among health care professionals. I steer both providers and patients to the ethical, sociological and physiological concerns to sum it up.

Why Not Synthetic?

• Upsets genetic expression in fetal development and adulthood
• Increases risk of reproductive cancers such as ovarian, uterine, and breast
• Decreases the natural immune response
• Exacerbates pre-existing auto-immune and endocrine issues
• Ethical concerns involving the production of and harmful environmental affects
• In-activates healthy stores of hormones already present

Consider Before any Hormone Treatment

• Insist on a complete and comprehensive saliva test measuring hormone levels
• Rule out thyroid and other endocrine issues
• Synthetic-proof your food and drinking water supply
• Treatment with bio-identical hormone replacement and lifestyle changes

Christine M. Dionese L.Ac. specializes in integrative medicine, medical journalism and was the VP of marketing at WellWire LLC. Visit her wellness and lifestyle blog, Reaching Beyond Now.

Photo by Hamed Saber.

Cancer.
ITP.
Burst appendix.
Hit and run.

That was 1989, not my greatest year. A life-threatening illness, a rare bleeding disorder, a burst appendix and infection. Then, to add injury to injury, as I was walking across Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, I was hit by a ’57 Chevy.

I was 32 and very fit, and I recovered, physically. Meanwhile I was thinking, Why me? Will I die? Will my doctors cure me? I wasn’t thinking, I want to become a naturopathic doctor and work with cancer patients. But I did.

And it was during this time in my life, from 1989 to 1996, that I began to think like a doctor. I began to question life, death, medicine, the strength and fragility of my body, and the influence of my mind and spirit. Most importantly, I sought out my own answers when the answers presented weren’t satisfying, lasting, or curative. Quite simply, my illnesses forced me to think outside of the box.

So, I applied to naturopathic medical school. I didn’t know what to expect. In my first week of lectures at the National College of Natural Medicine, my world rocked. Dr. Zeff was teaching a totally new way of medicine: it made perfect sense but I had never heard it presented in this way: the body knows how to heal.

It sounded simple, natural and beautiful. As I heard him talk, and as I watched him pound the podium with his fist, I realized that he knew things that I wanted to know. I asked to be his student and he graciously agreed. I apprenticed with him outside of medical school for 5 years, and something came to light: A knowing that people can heal and a sense of how it happens. I knew it in the marrow of my bones that every one has, at any moment, the possibility to heal.

But when I began my own medical practice, an interesting thing began to happen, especially after the first few years when I thought I had enough experience to really understand cancer treatment and natural medicine. I began to question and examine my dogma–my stringent beliefs and exclusive commitment to my ideas about what natural medicine was, and how it should be practiced. My dogma was being challenged because my clinical experience did not match my ideas of how things should be–how natural medicine was accepted in oncology, what patients could and would do with natural therapies, and of course the outcomes. More than I liked, I saw people die. It made me question. Did my interventions make a difference? When they died, did I fail? How about if they died in peace? Slowly, I had to question the black and white world of curing, and entertain the very real and very uncertain world of healing, but now in the role of doctor. If I could not cure cancer, what was I doing? If I was involved in the healing process, what was I doing, and why was I doing it? There was a lot of uncertain territory ahead.

After 11 years of walking in this uncertain territory, this is what I am certain of: I don’t absolutely know what is right or wrong for any given patient at any given time. I don’t always know if I can help and some days now I don’t know if I even need to help, other than to listen. I do know that Grace, or magic, or healing, or whatever you call it, exists. I know that I am a part of that process but also that I am not–a doctor is both witness and participant.

I have seen the exact same diagnosis turn some people’s lives into hell, and some people’s lives into heaven.

I think that medicine is the profession where people pay to heal you.

I think that when I don’t need to heal anymore, I will cease being a doctor.

I think healing is knowing deep in the marrow of your bones that there is nothing to do, nothing to change, nothing to fix, and then doing absolutely everything you can to make it better. Some days that makes me scared and some days that makes me smile. Today, it makes me smile.

Dr. Ken Weizer has a hospital-based naturopathic practice in the Providence Integrative Medicine Cancer Centers, teaches oncology at the National College of Natural Medicine, and lectures on cancer care at Nike. He lives in a co-housing community in Portland, Oregon where he is slowly but surely learning to cook.

Courtesy of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Radon is an odorless, colorless, tasteless gas formed from the natural breakdown of uranium. The gas is found naturally in certain soils around the United States. It enters buildings through cracks in concrete floors and walls, and especially builds up in basements.

Decaying radon produces radioactive particles that can enter the lungs and cause damage, including cancer, over time. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) calls radon the second-leading cause of lung cancer after smoking.

The risk is greater in smokers and people with higher long-term exposure.

Natural emanations

Radon occurs everywhere, but some areas have soil types with higher levels. Do you live in a potentially high-radon area? The EPA has a national map of radon zones, as does the U.S. Geological Survey. Oregon’s Department of Health Services lists statistical radon levels by county and by zip code. These numbers don’t answer the question about your home, but can give you an idea of what’s going on around you.

Home radon testing

Home tests are easy and inexpensive. On-line coupons from the National Safety Council help defray costs, and detailed instructions are included in the test kits.

The first recommended test costs about $10. Place it in the living area of the lowest level of your house (usually the basement), leave it there for two to three days, and then send the kit into a lab for analysis. The more intensive, long-term test—only recommended if the shorter-term test comes up high—is $20 and stays in place for 90 days.

Radon levels are measured in picocuries per liter (pCi/L) of air. Outdoor air radon levels are usually 0.4 pCi/L, and indoor air in the United States averages about 1.3 pCi/L.

The EPA recommends action if your home test shows an average above 4 pCi/L. If short-term results are 4-10 pCi/L, a long-term test is recommended. If the average is higher, the EPA recommends a second short-term test to verify results. If the second test is still higher than 4 pCi/L, it’s time to find how radon’s entering your home and take steps to keep it out.

Knowledge is power

Knowledge conquers fear and action conquers despair so test your home and take action if necessary. Radon’s effects are cumulative, meaning the risks increase the longer and higher the exposure. The sooner you get your home tested and fixed, if necessary, the lower your risks will be.

Everyone in the United States is exposed to some level of radon every day. In fact, radon exposure is the biggest source of radiation exposure in the country, according to the EPA, five times greater than medical x-rays, for example. Radon is not benign, but it can be mitigated.

Fixing problems

Radon enters your home through cracks and joints in your foundation nearest the soil. The gas gets sucked in when, as is usually the case, air pressure inside the house is lower than air pressure outside. All radon mitigation systems involve increasing pressure inside the house so that radon stays out. Some methods involve sucking the radon out through a sump pump or under-slab pump. Others use fans to pull radon up through a pipe and release it outside. Installing these systems varies depending on the type of structure. Online cost estimates range from $800 to $2,500.

Health effects

Naturopathic philosophy holds that the body is wise in its responses to stressors, and that our bodies naturally want to move toward health. Naturopathic therapies promote optimal health by providing specific nutritional support, encouraging elimination of toxins on the organismal and cellular levels, and supporting healthy lung tissue.

Learn more

Oregon’s Department of Health Services has a special section devoted to radon, the Oregon Radiation Protection Services. Their site offers detailed information about the gas and its health risks, lists companies that measure and mitigate it, and offers test-kit coupons from that National Safety Council.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has “A Citizen’s Guide to Radon,” available in printed or on-line form, explaining what the gas does, how to test for it, what to do about it, and contacts for further information. See also EPA’s “Consumer’s Guide to Radon Reduction.”

Want to get geeky? Check out geological information on radon from the U.S. Geological Survey.

The National Safety Council also has a radon information page.

The EPA has a national map of radon zones, as does the U.S. Geological Survey. State health departments (find yours here) offer more detailed information about your area.

To talk to a real person about your issues, try these numbers:

• National Hispanic Indoor Air Quality Hotline: (866) 528-3187
• National Radon Hotline: (800) 767-7236
• National Radon Helpline:(800) 557-2366
• National Radon Fix-It Line: (800) 644-6999

Dr. Orna Izakson, ND, RH (AHG) is a naturopathic physician, herbalist, gardener and writer. She specializes in respiratory issues, mood and women's health at Celilo Natural Health Center in Portland, Oregon.

Photo by tijmen van dobbenburgh.

The media has propelled estrogen-mimicking chemical bisphenol A (BPA) to the forefront of health news. It’s ubiquitous, and it’s likely in your body.

The chemical, developed as an estrogen replacement, is commonly used to harden plastics such, most commonly polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins. It’s been linked to various cancers, diabetes, heart disease and digestive problems. The polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins are often used in plastic helmets and goggles, computers, kitchen appliances, medical devices, adult toys, and the packaging for some foods and drinks—including soda cans, water bottles and baby bottles. This month Consumer Reports and the watchdogs at the Milwaukee, Wisc., Journal Sentinel found BPA leaching into commercially canned foods (it’s in the lining).

And last week Linda Birnbaum, director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program, told the Journal Sentinel that consumers should be concerned. Here’s a roundup that many products containing BPA, along with links to safer alternatives.

To learn more about BPA, read “Chasing Molecules: Poisonous Products, Human Health, and the Promise of Green Chemistry” by Elizabeth Grossman.

So what’s a health-conscious person to do? Eat more fresh food, of course. Or preserve your own in good old-fashioned glass jar. Here are some books that will teach you to safely and easily preserve the summer’s bounty from your garden, farmer’s market or local store.

• Stocking Up, 3rd Edition, by Carol Hupping is one of the most recommended books on safe canning and includes great recipes.
• Wild Fermentation, by Sandor Katz focuses on fermentation as a preservation method.
• Complete Guide to Home Canning and Preserving, the US Department of Agriculture’s classic.

Canning is fun for the whole family, and the results can make thoughtful, thrifty holiday and hostess gifts. It’s also clearly the healthiest choice.

Dr. Orna Izakson, ND, RH (AHG) is a naturopathic physician, herbalist, gardener and writer. She specializes in respiratory issues, mood and women's health at Celilo Natural Health Center in Portland, Oregon.

Photo by Lidal-K.

We’re trained to feel for lumps or bumps in our breasts. Breast cancers often start with a single cell that replicates into a lump, but did you know that not all breast cancers form a bump?

Inflammatory breast cancer is easily confused with a breast infection because it attacks the lymph ducts. It causes fluid to back up and turn the skin red or swollen.

Many women mistake this for mastitis which commonly occurs when breast feeding. Inflammatory breast cancer doesn’t respond to medication or traditional infection treatments. And while it’s not common (affecting 1-6% of women in the United States), it is aggressive.

Common symptoms include redness, pain, swelling, thickened and itchy skin, bruising, sudden nipple retraction and warm to the touch nipples. Mammograms and ultrasounds are the imaging of choice for typical breast concerns. However, there are no lumps with inflammatory breast cancer so you would need a breast biopsy.

Please remember that not all skin changes are breast cancer! You may have mastitis, eczema, recent trauma, allergic reaction, psoriasis or a candida infection (particularly under your breasts).

Because October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we want women to know about all types of breast cancer. If you experience any breast or nipple changes always call your health care provider. This is true especially if you have been self-treating and the symptoms are still not going away.

For more information:

www.cancer.org

www.ibcresearch.org

www.eraseibc.org

Dr. Carrie Jones has practices in Tigard and Sherwood, Oregon where she focuses in all aspects of women's health. She is an adjunct professor at the National College of Natural Medicine, and writes and speaks regularly on the subject of women's medicine.

Photo by Bah Humbug.

I had an English neighbor who wagged his finger disapprovingly when they first came out with 1G cellphones, circa 1997. “Cancer,” he spat. Even cordless phones with a high enough frequency were off limits. What’s the new iPhone, 3G?

I was watching the news last night, and they had a piece on the dangers on cellphones. Cellphones are so ubiquitous that to even think they cause harm is perhaps blasphemous. But what if? 

My argument to the grim critics of the information age has always been that this type of radiation is homogenous on this planet. TV, radio, microwaves- they’re all over the place. Whether or not you use cell phones, we are bathing in enormous amount of this type of radiation. Clearly people that live under power lines have an increased risk of cancer, so who’s to say the accumulation of cellphone radiation at such close proximity is benign. Perhaps its time to rethink this a little.

I don’t want to go through all the scientific literature and studies because there is so much claiming doom and so much claiming ponies and rainbows. Common sense would say cellphones are potentially a compact DNA mutating weapon. But are we just so far in denial because of the incredible convenience of cellphones?

I”m not about to give up mine, lets be honest. But here’s a list of the 20 highest radiation cellphones, and one of the lowest. Start with this, then patiently await lunar colonization and a utopic radiation free world.

Regardless of which phone you choose, don’t use your cellphone and drive at the same time unless you have a headset. (Bluetooth headsets mean more radio waves). 

Photo by hamed parham.

Here’s your safest alternative: an iCarrierPigeon

Photo by So P.

Or the more compact iCarrierPigeon mini (now shoots video)

Dr. Nishant Rao is a co-founder of WellWire.com. He is a well-traveled naturopathic doctor and new father, practicing an integrative approach to create wellness in and around Los Angeles. Become a patient or discover his practice.

Photo by wishuponacupcake zoha n.

When it comes to breast cancer women can’t control certain risk factors like their age, genetics, age of first period, and age of menopause onset. Good news ladies: there are just as many things that you can control to reduce your risk of getting breast cancer:

• Estrogen exposure. Your female hormones, estrogen and progesterone, are very much a part of you being a woman but they like to be in balance. When estrogen becomes more dominant, you start to develop symptoms such as PMS, heavier periods, longer periods, cysts and fibroids, and painful breasts. When estrogen goes really crazy, it can actually stimulate breast cancer. Limit your contact with hormones such as the birth control pill or hormone replacement therapy and avoid environmental estrogen-like chemicals such as parabens and plastics. Choose hormone-free meat and dairy.

• Alcohol consumption. It’s true ladies, anything beyond 2 drinks per week raises your estrogen and more than 1 drink per day significantly raises your breast cancer risk.  In fact, the new 2009 American Institute for Cancer Research/World Cancer Research Fund’s report specifically calls out alcohol intake as a problem. Limit your alcohol intake and go for liver friendly foods such as onions, garlic, dark leafy greens, artichokes, beets, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts.

• Body fat and weight. The same report that discussed alcohol also discusses the link between your weight and your cancer risk. Be as lean as possible within your correct body-mass-index. Fat tissue has the ability to turn testosterone into estrogen so the more fat you have the more estrogen you are producing. Exercising most days of the week and eating a healthy, organic, hormone-free diet full of vegetables, fruits and lean meats can help you reduce your risk.

• Low Vitamin D. When was the last time you checked your levels? Research has shown a direct correlation between low vitamin D and breast cancer risk. Ask your doctor to test your 25,OH,Vitamin D3, and aim for levels above 50ng/ml.

• Diet. The American Institute for Cancer Research/World Cancer Research Fund reported that “38% of cases of breast cancer in the United States could be prevented through diet, activity, and healthy weight.” Cancer feeds on sugar- that’s how it grows. If you stick to a healthy, organic diet (see Forget Food Trends, Eat the Rainbow) then you’ll mostly avoid excess chemicals, herbicides, pesticides, trans-fats and high sugared morsels.

Do what you can to keep yourself healthy and live a long and healthy life.

Reference:  World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research. The Second Expert Report, Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity, and the Prevention of Cancer: A Global Perspective. Washington, DC: AICR; 2009.

Dr. Carrie Jones has practices in Tigard and Sherwood, Oregon where she focuses in all aspects of women's health. She is an adjunct professor at the National College of Natural Medicine, and writes and speaks regularly on the subject of women's medicine.

Photo by saragoldsmith.

Getting sun on a regular basis is part of a healthy routine, like getting all of your fruits and veggies, taking your daily multi-vitamin, and flossing! Your body needs the sunlight to make an essential super nutrient that goes by the name of Vitamin D. The bad news is that sunscreen as low as SPF 15 blocks most of the skin’s production of vitamin D. That means going out in the sun while wearing sunscreen doesn’t count! With the sunscreen craze these days, some of us rarely get the true, unfiltered sun exposure that we need. It’s no wonder that a whole lot of docs are finding their patients deficient in this critical vitamin!

If you’re part of the Vitamin D deficiency club you’re missing out. Here’s what Vitamin D does for us:

• Prevents cancer
• Supports bone health and prevents osteoporosis
• Increases immunity
• Increases energy
• Lifts the mood

Summer Health Homework Rx: get your daily dose of Vitamin D! All you need is 15-30 minutes of moderate sun exposure a few times a week on your face, hands, arms or legs. And remember, NO SUNSCREEN! Of course, if you plan on spending a long period of time under intense sun, please do cover up, wear a hat, and get your sunscreen on!

Because while I think you should skip the sunscreen sometimes, there are some really good reasons to wear it (like a little something called skin cancer). Risk factors for skin cancer don’t include a walk on the beach. They do include your complexion type, family history, chemical/radiation exposure, and the timing and duration of sun exposure. Sudden exposure of intense sun causing a sunburn is much more dangerous than moderate gradual exposure.

Here’s how to shop for the right sunscreen:

Avoid wearing chemical sunscreens which have toxic effects when absorbed by the skin. Check the labels to avoid sunscreens containing the following chemical active ingredients (which cause free radical cellular damage, have estrogenic effects, may lead to cancer, and interfere with sexual development):

• Avobenzone
• Cinnamates (cinoxate, ethylhexyl p-methoxycinnamate, octocrylene, octyl methoxycinnamate)
• Octinoxate
• Octocrylene
• Oxybenzone, dixoybenzone
• PABA
• Padimate-O
• Salicylates (ethylhexyl salicylate, homosalate, octyl salicylate)

Or, instead of memorizing the  list of crazy chemicals to avoid, just look for a safe physical sunscreen with either of the following non-toxic active ingredients:

• Zinc Oxide
  
• Titanium Oxide

Since the physical sunscreens block with a physical reflective barrier, many of them go on fairly thick and leave a slightly white tint (which I think is a fair trade for a product that wont cause mutagenic effects on your DNA). A few brands I love are:

• Badger SPF 30 Sunscreen For Face & Body
• California Baby No Fragrance SPF30+ Sunscreen Lotion
• Devita Solar Protective Moisturizer 30 (goes on very light and is great for the face!)

If you have a favorite Zinc or Titanium based sunscreen that you like and goes on well, please share. But for now, close your laptop and remember, sun is like chocolate: great in moderation!

Dr. Nishant Rao is a co-founder of WellWire.com. He is a well-traveled naturopathic doctor and new father, practicing an integrative approach to create wellness in and around Los Angeles. Become a patient or discover his practice.

Photo by matticgn.

The ease of sliding a fried egg (runny yolk right!) out of a small non stick pan early in the morning while you’re still half asleep is a convenience that is not going to be easy to give up, but here’s why you have to throw them out.

The slick surfaces of these pans contain a chemical called perflurooctanoic acid, or PFOA.  In 2006  The United States EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) ordered all manufactures of PFOA’s to reduce production by  95% by 2010, and completely eliminate them by 2015.  So at this point it basically gives the consumer an additional year’s dose of a chemical known to cause cancer, reproductive problems and flu like symptoms including headaches and runny noses.  

There are no reasons to continue your exposure.  The chemical will soon have the notorious honor of being placed in the same category as mercury and lead as far as its impact on the human body.

If you heat a non-stick pan and you have a pet bird nearby they will drop dead.  Out cold in a few minutes from the toxic fumes.  Amazing that people continue to argue that birds have sensitive respiratory tracts as the reason and that it has nothing to do with the fumes from the chemical being harmful to humans.  Isn’t that why they used canaries in old 1900′s mine shafts to test for gas at a pre-lethal human threshold and as an early warning system?  Ridiculous argument.  

This argument is nothing new. The battle between the chemical manufactures such as Dupont and environmental activists has been going on for decades with no resolution until 2006. Uma Chowdhry, Dupont’s vice president of research and development, told ABC’s 20/20, “You get some fumes, yes, and you get a flu-like symptom, which is reversible.”  Well, at least they are now starting to admit to some of the allegations – but its far too late.

Remember it’s never too late to go back basics.  Besides, I seriously doubt the next generation of chemical alternatives for non-stick pans come 2010-2015 will be without its hidden side effects. I don’t recommend ever cooking with aluminium for several other reasons (will post something on this later).  The following will never go out of style, and your food will actually cook better and caramelize/brown appropriately in these pans:

• Stainless steel – Mine still somehow stains
• Cast Iron – This is the original non stick pan when seasoned correctly (Use lard)
• Ceramic – Just ceramic.

P.S. An often overlooked, hidden source of this chemical are microwave popcorn bags.  Due to the heat the same danger of chemical off gassing is present.

Dr. Nishant Rao is a co-founder of WellWire.com. He is a well-traveled naturopathic doctor and new father, practicing an integrative approach to create wellness in and around Los Angeles. Become a patient or discover his practice.