Dear friend,

We are excited to bring you the first in the Vis Vitality and Wellness Newsletter series. We are now combining our efforts to bring you twice the amount of the most current, accurate information in natural health.

Do You Have Any Questions?

We will be adding a “Ask the Doctors” section in upcoming issues, in which we will provide answers for your individual health questions. Simply email your question to either of us and it will be featured in an upcoming issue.

We look forward to hearing from you!

The response to last month’s article, “Functional Blood Chemistry Analysis”, was so remarkable that we decided to provide you with even more valuable information to unlock the secrets of your current health status.

The video we are about to show you interprets a laboratory report of one of our recent patients. Like you, she has been to the doctor because she was feeling less a little run down, but was consistently told she was fine. When we functionally evaluated a blood chemistry panel, we found things no other doctor had told her before.

In this video, you will be able to see:

• Just how easy it is for disease states to be overlooked with the current conventional method of lab testing and interpretation.
• How your symptoms may relate to nutritional deficiencies and imbalances that can be revealed in your blood test.
• How to finally make sense of your own lab tests

(Continued below . . .)

A Quick Review

If you have not read it already, we encourage you to visit our May Newsletter to read, “Functional Blood Chemistry Analysis." However, here’s a brief summary the article.

Blood chemistry has been used for many years because of its capacity to objectively and reliably provide a snapshot certain aspects of a person's physiology. However, it is only as effective as it's interpretation and, the ability to effectively use it as a tool to improve health largely depends on two variables.

1. Fewer Blood Markers – Today, doctors are running blood chemistry panels that include fewer blood markers then they used 10 years ago, primarily due to restrictions placed on them by insurance companies and HMOs. Decisions are now being made based on how to lower the cost per patient, rather than raising the quality of their care. The patient ultimately suffers because important pathologies can be completely missed.


2. Larger Reference Range – We refer to the reference range commonly used by doctors today as the "Pathological Range", because it looks for disease, not health. The data used to create this range is collected from the population that most often visit doctors, meaning sick, unhealthy and chronically ill people. Healthy people do not often go to the doctor, so their blood work plays a very small role in creating today's reference range. In other words, when you get a blood chemistry run today, your level of health is being compared to a relatively unhealthy population.

We chose to run complete blood panel on all of our patients and evaluate the results using a Functional Reference Range, which is a tighter range of values based on healthy physiology parameters, not sick ones. Doing so allows us to look for health and preserve health before disease starts.

We strongly encourage you to take health into your own hands, which usually begins with education. Watch this video and let us know what you think.

Click here to watch the 11 minute on-line presentation about Functional Blood Chemistry Analysis. (http://www.drbryanpwalsh.com/blood_chemistry.html)

Chances are you or someone you know has been diagnosed with hypothyroidism or has been experiencing the typical hypothyroid symptoms including:

• Fatigue
• Weight Gain
• Constipation
• Depression
• Poor circulation and numbness in hands and feet

It is estimated that as many at 30 percent of the population has some type of hypothyroid-type condition, but even more startling is the fact that up to 80 percent of hypothyroid patients have an autoimmune condition called Hashimoto's disease.

Hashimoto's disease is a condition where the immune system attacks and destroys it's own thyroid tissue, leading to a number of unpleasant symptoms. Unlike typical hypothyroid-type conditions, Hashimoto's can also have hyperthyroid symptoms, meaning the there is too much stimulation of the thyroid gland, leading to symptoms of inward trembling, anxiety, palpatations and insomnia.

If you experience any of the following, you may want to be tested for Hashimoto's disease:

• You are not responding to your current thyroid medication.
• You have changed to different thyroid medications and you still feel don’t feel well.
• Your doctor has had to increase your thyroid medication repeatedly.
• You have symptoms of high and low thyroid function
  • High thyroid symptoms: anxiety, palpitations, insomnia
  • Low thyroid symptoms: fatigue, weight gain, intolerance to cold, constipation

Two Problems

The first issue we see today is a lack of adequate diagnosis for Hashimoto's disease by conventional doctors and alternative doctors alike. There is considerable misunderstanding when it comes to thyroid conditions in general, and because of this Hashimoto's is often missed.

The second major issue - and this is a biggie - is that when Hashimoto's is found, it is often not treated correctly. Hashimoto's diesease is an autoimmune condition meaning the immune system is not working properly. Hashimoto's disease is not a thyroid issue; the thyroid gland is what is being attacked. Put another way, if you were driving down a road covered with nails and your tires kept popping, would you keep changing the tires or would you try to fix the road? Treating the tires would not fix the problem. Clearing the road would.

If your immune system is attacking the thyroid gland, treating the thyroid will do little to help the condition. Just ask anyone with Hashimoto's that is taking thyroid replacement therapy. Instead, the focus must be on the immune system so it stops attacking the thyroid gland. This is something we rarely see done in medicine today.

To validate the fact that it is the immune system that requires attention, not the thyroid, consider the fact that pernicious anemia and celiac disease, both autoimmune conditions, are strongly correlated with Hashimoto's disease. It's a case of the immune system gone haywire and it attacks numerous tissues simultaneously.

What To Do

First of all, if you suspect Hashimoto's disease, you need to get the appropriate tests run. A simple blood test is required..

If you test positive for Hashimoto's, the following list of options might help. They are not specific treatments, but rather they are practices based on scientific literature that have been shown to help patients with this disease.. Hashimoto's is a very complex disease, but these are some basic recomendations that warrant consideration.

1. Eliminate gluten from your diet - there is a strong correlation between gluten and Hashimoto's.
2. Consider getting your Vitamin D levels tested, and then taking the appropriate amount of Vitamin D. This nutrient, along with nutrients that support glutathione (a potent antioxidant) can help support Regulatory T Cells, which are important components of your immune system that can help calm down the attack on your thyroid.
3. Manage insulin through diet and exercise. This is critical.
4. Do not use supplemental iodine despite what you might read elsewhere. The scientific literature is pretty clear about this.
5. Clean up the gut, eliminate food sensitivities and balance bacteria.  Recent studies show gastrointestinal lipopolysaccharides can stimulate expression of thyroglobulin, which will make Hashimoto's worse.  Other gut infections may lead to an exacerbation of symptoms and flare-ups.
6. Consider balancing the adrenal glands if cortisol and stress is an issue. Hyper- or hypofunctioning adrenals can negatively affect the gut, insulin, and immune system, despite your best efforts.   

Hashimoto's, like many autoimmune diseases, is a complex condition that is becoming more and more prevalent today.. Catching it early and treating it effectively may help prevent unnecessary suffering down the road. If you have any questions about this condition, or you know someone that might benefit from this information, please feel free to forward our information, and this article, to them.

Alyssa Hall

A 25 year old female came to us with a desire to lose weight - approximately 100 lbs - and with most cases of excess weight, there was more to her symptoms than poor diet and lack of exercise.

Her blood chemistry displayed signs of blood sugar imbalance, insulin resistance, anemia, poor detoxification ability, adrenal hypofunction, magnesium deficiency, and hypochlorhydria (low stomach acid). As if all that wasn’t enough, she was battling with severe anxiety.

She began a nutritional and exercise plan to regulate her metabolic imbalances and came in weekly for Emotional Freedom Technique sessions to work through her anxiety. In two short months she has tremendously improved her eating habits, made great strides in understanding herself and her emotions, and lost 20 pounds.

Her unbelievable efforts not only changed the number on the scale but more importantly, have changed her life.

Great job Alyssa! Keep up the good work!

"I started seeing Dr. Julie a couple of months ago to help me lose weight.  As with all things I have tried to help me lose weight I was excited though skeptical.  I couldn't be happier that I made this investment into myself.  It's worth every penny.  For a long time I had been trying to see doctors about why I'm tired and why I'm overweight and why I have anxiety among other things.  All the tests they ran always came back normal, but I knew something wasn't right.  When I came to see Julie I felt very welcomed.  She spent a very long time with me my first visit to find out my concerns and my back ground.  She did relevant blood work that showed what my body needed.  It was missing stuff (I knew it! - I knew there had to be a reason for my issues and there was).  With the guidance, supplements, and meetings that I had with Julie I am well on my way to improving myself.  My weight has improved, my energy has improved, my anxiety has improved and I'm still improving.  She teaches and informs you about your body's needs.  She gives you the tools you need to succeed long term.  I look forward to continue working with Julie.  I would recommend her to anyone that wants to improve how they feel physically and mentally.  Thanks Julie!"

Enjoy a happy and healthy month of June.

Dr. Julie Kniess 443-867-7619 julie@drjuliekniess.com	Dr. Bryan P. Walsh 443-458-8307 bryan@drbryanpwalsh.com