Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
Krill Oil vs Fish Oil Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND One of the most confusing topic’s in the vitamin world is the difference between krill oil and fish oil. I get asked pretty much all the time what exactly is the difference between the 2. …
ORGANIC, GMO/NON-GMO, CONVENTIONAL~ UNDERSTANDING THESE DIETARY TERMS By: Allie Might, FMC, INHC, ATT There are so many different terms when deciding what to eat that it can be confusing. There are also many different opinions on what is good for you and what to …
From A Naturopaths Point of View Part 3
Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND
Self-diagnosis?
One of the most integral parts of a consult with an Invite nutritionist t is knowing exactly what is going on in your body. In other words it’s important to see a doctor, get appropriate tests and finally receive an official diagnosis. However in this day and age medical information is all over the internet. There’s WebMD, Wikipedia and even google itself! The problem with all this easy to access information is that very often people will use this to self-diagnose rather than go to the doctor and receive the tests they need that can help to determine what the diagnosis actually is. This can be a huge problem for a number of reasons.
Let’s start at the beginning, shall we? When we say self-diagnose we refer to the process of diagnosing or identifying a medical condition yourself without a doctor. This is a very bad idea for a number of reasons. Very often a self-diagnosis is wrong. What this means is that when you call you can not only receive wrong advice but cause a delay in getting the actual advice that would help you. (1) This is especially true in cases where your symptoms are not unique and can be a symptoms of many different diagnosis. For example fatigue is such a common symptom that it’s almost impossible to form a diagnosis just based on it!
In some case’s delaying proper treatment can be annoying. For example if you have a misdiagnosed rash it can be annoying but not necessarily life threating. In other case’s delaying proper treatment CAN be dangerous and even life threating. For example you may self-diagnosis panic disorder but actually have a problem with your heart that needs immediate treatment! (1) A personal experience that I can mention is as following. An induvial called Invite for a consult and I responded. They had self-diagnosed as having depression. I advised them to go to a doctor and get appropriate testing done. Well it turns out they had extremely high blood sugar and needed medication to control their diabetes. If I had just recommended things for depression they could have become very ill due to the high blood sugar! This was a prime example of just why a self-diagnose is so dangerous since uncontrolled diabetes can have very severe complications!
Additionally there are often things that we don’t notice about ourselves. It is common for people who diagnose themselves to overlook key symptoms. In some case’s an induvial may miss signs of depression and think they have anxiety. (1) Anther example is when someone who is suffering from dementia thinks that they have depression.
Another concern is the actual websites themselves. In fact search engines often bring up either the most severe ailment possible or the most common. Just because a diagnosis is common doesn’t mean it is correct for you! (1)
So what do I think about self-diagnose as a Naturopathic doctor? Well I think it can be a great idea to get a list of your symptoms ready so when you go to see your doctor you are ready. That being said overall I don’t think that to self-diagnose is a good idea nor do I encourage it. Remember that knowledge is power and knowing exactly what is wrong can help us and your doctor help you!
So what are some things that are good for our overall health?
Our product highlight will be talking about the difference between Krill and Fish Oil. I hope to answer any questions you may have on these fantastic nutrients.
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Alcar with ALA Capsules Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND One of the most popular products here at Invite Health has always been our Alcar with ALA formula. If you have been using Invite’s Alcar with ALA you may notice some changes to it! Now the …
From a Naturopaths Point of View Part 2 Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND Third Party Consultations One of the things we almost always mention is how you can call Invite for a consultation with a qualified nutritionist. You can even go to the website and …
Gluco Hx
Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND
When it comes to helping someone regulate their blood sugar one of my favorite supplements is Gluco Hx. But why is this such a great product? Well let’s get into it, shall we? To start with Gluco Hx is a combination of things that studies show are helpful for regulating blood sugar. In addition to helping blood sugar quite a few of the items in Gluco Hx have other benefits I’ll be talking about.
Chromium is the first nutrient in Gluco Hx. Studies have found that chromium is helpful in reducing insulin resistance and in improving glucose control. Chromium picolinate, the form found in Gluco Hx has been found to be the most effective form for helping with our blood sugar. (1) In addition to helping with blood sugar chromium has been found to help decrease both total cholesterol and LDL levels. Interestingly chromium use is also associated with an increase in HDL, or the good cholesterol. (2) Chromium has been found to help with metabolic syndrome. (3) Studies have also found that chromium can help to regulate blood sugar and cholesterol in those with PCOS. (4) Studies have even found that adding chromium can help improve weight loss and reduce body fat. (4) As you can see chromium has many health benefits!
Alpha Lipoic Acid is another nutrient that is found in Gluco Hx. Studies have found a few benefits to ALA. To start with according to Mount Sinai ALA can lower our blood sugar levels. (5) Studies have found that using ALA can help to reduce insulin resistance. (6) Studies have also found that ALA can help reduce the pain and discomfort associated with neuropathy. (7) This is important since neuropathy is a common complication of high blood sugar.
Gymnema is another nutrient that you will find in Gluco Hx. Studies have found that using gymnema appears to reduce intestinal absorption of sugar. (8) Studies have also found that gymnema can help to reduce blood sugar when used after a meal which results in overall lower blood sugar over time. (9) Gymnema may also stimulate insulin production. (10) Lastly gymnema has been found to help promote healthy cholesterol levels and even help with weight loss. (11) Overall gymnema is a very helpful nutrient for our overall health.
Bitter Melon has a funny name but studies have found it to be very helpful for blood sugar. In fact studies have found that after only 12 weeks of use bitter melon can lower blood sugar in those who are diagnosed with prediabetes. (12) The next nutrient is Fenugreek. When most people think of fenugreek they think of digestive health. But did you know fenugreek is also good for other health concerns as well. In fact studies have found that adding fenugreek can help reduce fasting blood sugar. It’s also been found to help improve glucose tolerance. Lastly studies find that fenugreek can help regulate cholesterol levels. (13) The very last nutrient in Gluco Hx is a mineral called Vanadium. Studies have found that it is very good for blood sugar and even cholesterol levels. (14)
Overall Gluco Hx is a powerful support for those who need help with blood sugar. How do you know if you need this help? The best way to know is to get blood work done. In my clinical experience Gluco Hx is what I call a therapeutic nutrient that you use if you need it. It’s not like a multi that you use for overall general wellness. To determine if Gluco Hx is right for you feel free to reach out to an Invite Nutritionist! Our next topic will be why it is not always appropriate to do what we call third party consultations.
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