Sam - you need to get on an eating plan that includes plenty of protein and healthy fats and eliminate all starchy carbs and sugary items and alcohol. Once you have enough protein, the highs and lows of blood glucose levels will even out and you won't have these low-blood sugar events. You are either hypoglycemic, insulin resistant, or both. This can often be the result of poor eating hby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Gregg - My own experience with "strong pulse or heart rate" in the early waking hours was the result of hypoglycemia. Because that frequently is a trigger for AF (because of the adrenaline surge that accompanies hypoglycemia), it is important to evaluate what you eat at the evening meal and how long you go between your last meal and breakfast. This ties in with hypoglycemia. A protein-basedby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Kay - profuse sweating and orthostatic hypotension, low heart rate and blood pressure are common symptoms that go along with low-functioning or adrenal burnout and often along with that is hypothyroidism even when lab numbers check out in the "normal" range. Adrenal function can be tested for cortisol production by a 24-hour saliva collection - see Genova Diagnostics. I've beeby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hans - the weird thing about this ongoing problem is that before ablation, I was a golfer and did a lot of suntime. I'm still out in the sun some but we think it has to do with the aging skin's ability to convert D3 as it is supposed to do. Aging again. Darn!by Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Incidentally - if one takes enough Omega 3 fish oil, the ear wax problem goes away. I was told that and once I increased to 6 grams a day, the buildup went away. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hi Kay - Good to stay away from kelp as you are correct about the MSG - free glutamate issue. Some may not be bothered by it, but since free glutamates are excitoxins and we worry about brain health, why unnecessarily ingest it. Pure Encapsulations has a potassium iodine product that is just 100 micrograms which she could add to any multi vitamin that does not already contain iodine from kelpby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hi Kagey and thanks for your concern. Yes, if I have more breakthrough arrhythmia, I'll definitely be signing up for a second ablation. All's good so far though. I've been helping my son pack his stuff and I do mean stuff for his move to Austin, Texas. It's been a long haul and I'm exhausted but we accomplished the deed and the movers are here today. Amen. The goby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Good response, Hans, thanks. On the vitamin D issue, my functional medicine MD tested my 25 OH D levels. My level 18 and at the very minimum, she wanted to see them at 50-55; she has since changed her thoughts to higher levels - in the 70-75 range. I began taking 2000 IU D3 daily and tests indicated an increase to 36; I increased dosage to 4000 IU and managed to get into the mid 40's.by Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Benj - that's certainly good advice and I've typically done that periodically....however after the last professional cleaning, I believe the solution was contaminated and I ended up with a low-grade infection in my ear that created vertigo that resolve for about three months. I plan to change doctors should I decide to do that again. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Bob - this all goes once again to knowledge and skill of the EP doing the ablation. It could also be influenced by the equipment available to detect the foci or drivers for ablation - and it's also mentioned frequently that the burns may not be close enough together, or deep enough to completely stop the communication between the gap junctions. In some people who have especially thick heaby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Dick - Dr. Holsworth says the 100 mcg dose is the dose you are looking for but also says that the patient should be supervised by his medical professional. He has consulted by phone with doctors of patients on warfarin who want to take vitamin K2 along with warfarin so they can work out a dosing regimen. On the Lifeline Screening - I believe the idea is that if calcifications are found in the pby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Sounds as if you are doing the right thing, Sharon. Rest/sleep is very restorative so just take it easy. I hope you recover quickly. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Thanks, Brian. When I mentioned it to Dr. Holsworth, he said he had not heard of that and made the same comment as your findings. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
James - I've tried it - totally ineffective for me. But others do claim it works. You have to be careful if you do it yourself. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Bob - based on my recent and lengthy post about bias in studies funded by impartial sources, I'd be suspect if any data on any drug without reading the full, unabridged report and knowing who funded the study. I think today, generic tolerances are probably worse than 6 - 10 years ago and they weren't all that good then. <; I would think that as you say - start with one source ofby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Iron overload or hemochromatosis is not a topic I research regularly, but a recent bulletin came through stating that that Procter and Gamble are developing a topical chelator of iron related to Desferoxamine. It extended the average life span of rodents 20% while making them far less likely to wrinkle or show age related skin changes including discolorations and skin cancers and less likely to bby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
David - yes to the damage of the small intestine - but another consideration is that if it doesn't completely dissolve, then it lies there and the irritation can cause an erosion in the intestine. That was in a health clip that I recall from a while back. Newer information may refute that finding but it pays to investigate thoroughly. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Denver - Great news. Thanks for posting. I hope it lasts forever for you. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Excerpt of review article: "Measuring symptom response to empirical PPI therapy is of little value in distinguishing primary care patients who have GERD. Clinicians sometimes diagnose gastroesophageal reflux disease by evaluating symptom response to empirical therapy with a proton-pump inhibitor (PPI), but is this so-called "PPI test" reliable?" Reference:by Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
This is one of those serendipitous experiences I just had to report. In the produce area, my supermarket has a bank or tiered layer of fresh greens - in this case it was green leaf lettuceĀ about 3 feet wide and at least 3 feet high. Bright, perky, moist curly lettuce with the root end buried and out of sight so all that was visible were these curly tops in almost a blanket of these inviting mby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Dick - I just posted this article by Ralph Holsworth, DO, in another thread which may be helpful in your questions. Regarding screening for blood vessel calcifications - Lifeline Screenings operate throughout the country and is one way to determine calcifications (not aorta or deep tissue) but carotid and other vascular tissue in limb. It's about $100 and I believe some insurances cover it.by Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hi David! One of the downsides to aspirin is stomach irritation. It is, after all, acetylsalicylic acid. It's interesting that you take the enteric-coated product and it is so powerful it still affects the stomach. Do you always take aspirin with meals to help avoid over-acidity? I find I cannot tolerate much aspirin and definitely not every day as it does make my stomach burn. Iby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Jimmy - it's a lot to take in so go slowly and try to see what addresses your specific situation. We are all different and a remedy for one may be totally wrong for another. Good luck. Be patient. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Valda - Dr. Natale, here in the US had recommended Dr. Davies as a suitable contact when we were looking for a reliable contact previously. I hope you have success in consulting with him. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Gregg- First, I'm not a doctor. Elderly people on warfarin is a scary area to me for a number of reasons. It's difficult for a friend to do a total assessment of health and risk factors for your friend, other than just knowing the age and the afib factor. Although the indications seem to be that afibbers over age 75 should be on warfarin, at age 86 and especially with a tendency for nose/siby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Mike F - are you sure your test was on leukocytes? They are white blood cells and I've not read in the Exatest literature that it is a subsitute for analyzing the red blood cell magnesium content so I'm not sure your test results are relevant. Note that they even say the RBC magnesium evaluation is not adequate - but my doctor and others think it is close enough to be relevant. Howeby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
James - No, these are not holistic doctors; they are top of the line conventional medicine experts called Electrophysiologists and are highly skilled and regarded as such by peers in this field. If you want an integrative cardiologist - my choice would be drive to the Toledo, Ohio area to consult with James C. Roberts MD FACC Go here to his website: If I have further problems with myby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Thanks Peter - the reason I've seen given most often for not using the additional testing - for instance for risk factors for cardiovascular disease - ferritin, fibrinogen, homocysteine, C-reactive protein and Lipoprotein (a) and the new one, LPP - Lipoprotein Particle Profile - is indeed, cost..... many doctors work under the constraints of cost containment with health insurance companiesby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Very often, stomach gas comes from the fact that food is not being broken down in the stomach due to lack of stomach acid and/or digestive enzymes. You may want to consider experimenting with some digestive enzymes to see what improvements you notice. Some people can't adequately digest carbohydrates and gas is created almost immediately. Others can't digest fats and/or proteins andby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Jim - I totally agree that some 'holistic type' doctors charge way too much for treatments and supplements. I also agree that upcharging supplements by 100% seems unreasonable and I become very annoyed when practitioners push their supplements over other brands. About two years ago, I went with a friend to hear a local MD who was starting an IV chelation practice. He had all the toby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM