Food Over Medicine (14 page)
Read Food Over Medicine Online
Authors: Pamela A. Popper,Glen Merzer
GM:
I didn’t know that hepatitis C isn’t as much of a threat if you’re on this diet because—
PP:
Because it doesn’t progress. A major problem in the health care business is the tendency to want to get rid of disease at almost any cost. Sometimes in the process of getting rid of it we kill the patient; this is often the case with cancer. Many times it’s better to just keep the disease at bay because if it doesn’t progress, it can’t kill you.
GM:
And that’s a lesson that many are learning with prostate cancer.
PP:
Yeah. I’ve seen a lot of people who are not cured, but they’re not dying, either. Martin’s a good example of that. His HCV RNA, a measure of his hepatitis viral load, actually declined between 2006 and 2011, from 6.74 to 6.21, respectively. His ALT (alanine transaminase), a liver enzyme whose increased levels mirror worsening disease, similarly declined from 87 to 75 in the same period. As aggressive as his hepatitis was, he could have been either on interferon therapy or dead by now, and he’s neither of those things. The failure rate for the usual drug treatment is quite high, around 60 percent, and there are serious side effects; there are good reasons to avoid this treatment. Instead of fighting that losing battle, he’s out surfing and living life—and loving it. His doctors used to nag him to try new medications, but he stuck with the program. Since it’s now clear that the condition is not worsening, his doctors have learned to leave him alone.
MARTIN IN HIS OWN WORDS
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I contracted hepatitis C many years ago from intravenous drug use. I have been clean for many years, but, of course, I am still concerned about this illness. My traditional doctors recommended a one-year treatment program with interferon, but I was reluctant to do this because of the side effects and the fact that the treatment is often not very effective.
I decided to look for alternatives and, shortly after, I met Dr. Pam Popper at a health conference. After listening to her speak, I was convinced that diet was a big influence on health and decided to consult with her. After doing so, I adopted the plant-based diet she recommended with a few additional suggestions to address the hepatitis C. The results have been amazing. The hepatitis C has been arrested (my viral load decreased and then has remained constant ever since), my cholesterol went from 182 to 151, and my homocysteine was lowered to 8. At the age of sixty-five, I am healthier than I was at twenty-five. I also followed Dr. Pam’s advice about exercise——I do aerobic exercise, lift weights, and practice yoga for flexibility.
I’m glad I did not subject myself to drug treatment——the results from the diet are much better, and there were no risks involved.
PP:
Ellen Seigel is an interesting story. There are two reasons I wanted to talk about her. The first is that, unlike most members of The Wellness Forum who join because they have health issues, Ellen really had no diseases or conditions. She did want to lose some weight, but mainly she just decided she wanted to stay healthy. Her story is also interesting because her husband, by contrast, did have some health issues and he initially chose not to adopt the diet. I think this is a situation many people face; they are ready for change, but their spouse or significant other is not, which can make life more difficult.
I met Ellen when she moved to Columbus from New York. Some mutual friends suggested that she come to my yoga studio and get to know me. She did, we became friends, and as a result, she joined The Wellness Forum. She adopted the plant-based diet, started working out with me at our gym, and continued to come to yoga.
Her husband, however, was not ready to change his eating habits or to exercise.
Over a period of about a year, Ellen’s physical appearance changed a lot—she lost a lot of weight and developed that bright-eyed, energetic “I’m a plant eater” look we’ve all seen. Her husband continued to eat animal foods and stay on his meds.
Ellen is a therapist and has been married for forty years, so she knew better than to try to tell Gary what to do. Eventually, her patience paid off. Gary started eating more plant food, he lost weight, and his cholesterol and blood pressure went down; now the plant-based diet is one more thing they share.
ELLEN SEIGEL IN HER OWN WORDS
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I had been practicing yoga off and on for a year or so. When my son went away to college, I searched for studios in Columbus so I could take a class when visiting. I discovered The Wellness Forum hot yoga; those classes are what eventually led me to meeting Dr. Popper.
My previous health/fitness background can be summed up in one word: inconsistency. I had been a vegetarian on and off for years and I never exercised regularly. I joined The Wellness Forum and took the Wellness 101 class with the tender attitude of, “I’ll let this information wash through me and I’ll see what sticks.” I had schooled myself on “so-called” nutrition over the years and now was ready to take in new information. I was pleasantly surprised; I felt the new ideas were registering. I was making changes gradually. All of a sudden, the idea hit me that I couldn’t go on weighing 165 pounds. Gradual was no longer enough. I retook the Wellness 101 class and started to strictly follow the program. I also began to train with Pam. I participated in yoga regularly and lost twenty to twenty-five pounds within a short time. I never in my life felt “athletic,” so I was delighted and surprised when I was awarded with “yoga student of the month”!
I worked hard during yoga to see and embrace the benefits of working with my body while relaxing my mind. It’s always wise to keep your spirits up and look for ways to turn challenges you’ve undertaken (changing to dietary excellence and exercise) into fun, enjoyment, and gratification.
While I continue to remain consistent with this dietary excellence, I still eat a little too much——it all tastes so good. I am continuing to improve both my eating and yoga practice. My family is amazed and impressed with the consistency of my eating right and exercising. The key to this, I believe, is keeping my active connection with “everything” Wellness Forum.
My husband, Gary, was not one to be a vegetarian or to exercise. Gary had three stents put in fifteen years ago and never felt the need to drastically modify his eating or his relaxed, sedentary lifestyle. At my invitation, he agreed to take the Wellness 101 class with me. I was happily surprised that he agreed. He also heard Pam talk at a few of the WF dinners and then, after we saw
Forks Over Knives,
I witnessed the most amazing transformation in him. He started to take brisk walks for an hour daily, significantly reduced his consumption of animal foods, lost fifteen pounds, and reduced his medications significantly. He even orders pizza without the cheese … and finds it satisfactory. I’m impressed!
While Gary had good reasons to change, I never thought he’d ever change. So I worked on myself. One of the things that tickles me the most is Gary saying, “I’m fixing salad. Can I cut some up for you?” I have a new closeness with my husband in an area I least expected. Sharing the food preparation and dietary excellence is amazing and wonderful.
My advice to anyone who is considering this type of change is to take yourself seriously and get moving on it——the sooner the better. A healthy and happy life awaits you. I was fortunate enough to change my ways when my only problem was being overweight——I did not have other serious diseases. And don’t make your plans based on others, even those close to you. In my case, my husband was not interested at all and eventually joined me because he saw the wisdom in it for himself. Sometimes someone has to go first, and maybe that someone needs to be you.
PP:
Cat Timmons has an inspiring story. This one goes back a long time; we’ve been following her for a while. She joined The Wellness Forum in her early thirties when she was battling leukemia. She was receiving chemotherapy, which was making her worse. The leukemia was also getting worse; the situation had progressed to the place where she had a lot of infection in her mouth (cancer patients often get infections because of the chemotherapy). As a result of the infection of her mouth, her teeth were starting to break off at the root. She couldn’t chew. She was in devastatingly poor health and went to the doctor, who told her it was worse than ever. Cat went home, got on her knees on the floor of her house, and prayed to God, “I’m going to die unless something else happens and if I’m destined to live, please send something my way because I really do want to live, God. And if you’re up there, hearing me, send something.”
She went to a networking meeting the next day and met somebody who works for The Wellness Forum. She came to The Wellness Forum, adopted the low-fat, plant-based diet, while continuing her chemotherapy treatments, and made remarkable progress. She had to puree all her food because her teeth were so compromised that she couldn’t chew. In six weeks, the situation turned around enough that she wanted to stop the chemotherapy treatment. Her husband was concerned and her doctors were hysterical because they believed that chemotherapy was her only hope; they attributed the success she’d had to the chemo, not the diet. She got them to agree that she could stay off the drugs for a week and see what happened; she promised to go back on chemo if her condition deteriorated. But her condition continued to improve, so she never went back on the chemo.
In time, she made a complete recovery from the leukemia. She eventually had implants; now her whole mouth is fully restored. But when a woman undergoes chemotherapy, she undergoes early menopause. Cat was only in her thirties when this happened, and was clearly never going to have any children. Well, she stayed with the low-fat, plant-based diet and eventually the menopause reversed itself. She now has a four-year-old. We call these kids who weren’t supposed to be born Wellness Forum babies; we all feel like they’re our own. Every time Cat comes into the office with this kid, he’s fawned over by all our people because he really is a miracle baby. So that’s Cat’s story; she’s just living her life now. This is all really behind her. She even testified in front of an Ohio legislative committee about allowing nondieticians to talk about nutrition. She testified the day after she had surgery for the implants and said, “I want to tell you something. Two years ago I was almost dead and yesterday I underwent all this surgery and yet today I can stand up and tell you my story. So you need to pay attention.”
CAT TIMMONS IN HER OWN WORDS
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Things were going well in my life. I had money, success, an expanding business, family, friends, a decent home, plus time to play and enjoy life.
Then, in 2002, I contracted a viral infection in my sinuses. My doctors began treating me for a sinus infection. I consumed several rounds of antibiotics. X-rays and CAT scans showed that the infection was spreading throughout my facial features, specifically my jawbones. The infection was causing deterioration of my jaw and teeth. A biopsy of the infected area soon revealed cancerous cells.
At this point, the doctors did not want to perform surgery to remove the infection because of the fear of exposing the cancerous cells to other parts of my body. They wanted to try to find a medicine that would eliminate the infection. But none worked. So ultimately, the infection mutated and spread throughout my body: a cancer called acute lymphatic leukemia.
This diagnosis changed the treatment plan altogether. Now my new doctors wanted to treat me with chemotherapy. Soon after, I became physically unable to keep up with my daily routine. I was tired, sick to my stomach, feverish, and mentally confused. I was told that these symptoms were normal in my condition.
I began to lose jobs because I could not keep up with the work. My medical bills began to pile up because my insurance would pay only a portion of the actual cost. My prescription co-pays rose to $3,000 each for a four- to six-week supply of medicine. And I was feeling worse instead of better. That’s when the depression began to set in.
My heart was in turmoil. I was a good person, and yet my life was being dismantled and taken away. Everything I had worked so hard for was being stripped from me. My life savings, my clients, my possessions, my mental stability, my health——all gone.
A business associate introduced me to someone who worked at The Wellness Forum who became my “wellness coach” and talked to me about how important diet was in regaining my health, and that I had to work on my mind, body, and spirit if I wanted to get well. I made a personal choice to begin changing my eating habits and attempted to begin healing through nutrition and herbal therapy.
During the next several weeks, I implemented a powerful blend of natural plant foods into my diet. And I stuck to it. Every day, for every meal, I blended these foods into a smoothie. I had already been on a liquid diet for months, so this was easy for me to implement. Six weeks to the day, I woke up and I actually felt better. I began to feel new hope and excitement.
Now I had to make a decision whether to continue chemotherapy or to stop this treatment and rely completely on food, herbs, and faith. My family begged me not to stop the doctor’s treatment plan because they were concerned for my health. So I made a deal with them——give me just one week. I will do what I want to do for one week. If my blood tests were worse, then I would continue with the chemotherapy. If my blood tests were the same or better, then they were to leave me alone and let me continue with alternatives. Agreed.
The doctor said, with anger, that if I were to stop treatment now, I would certainly die. Since I was so sick, so broke, and three days from losing my home, death did not seem like a bad alternative to me.
One week later, my blood tests were just slightly better. Not worse, though! I received my family’s blessing to continue my own treatment plan. A couple of months later, my blood tests showed great improvements. My infection and my cancer cells were beginning to dissolve.
One year later, I was infection free and cancer free! Not only that but my allergies were going away, my arthritis was improving, and many other ailments were nonexistent.
But the story doesn’t end there. When I was a teenager, I had many surgeries to eliminate cysts in my uterus and ovaries. I was left with 90 percent scar tissue. I was told that having children would be impossible. Well, with just six months of healing from my last surgery, I found out that I was pregnant. I was in shock. When I told my husband, there was silence. He then said that whatever decision I make, he would support me. I told my husband that the decision has already been made. God would not put me through all this only to let me and my unborn child die now. So, as my doctors explained the serious dangers of this pregnancy and the case for terminating it, my faith just became stronger.
As part of the high-risk pregnancy, we had an opportunity to evaluate my uterus. To our amazement, the doctors could find no scar tissue. They even had my old X-rays showing the scar tissue. Now there was none. As we began to try to explain this, we realized that some herbs I was taking had actually healed the scarring and enhanced my fertility.
At thirty-nine years of age, after eighteen years of marriage, I delivered a beautiful, healthy baby boy. My son is now four years old. Along with us, he eats all natural, organic foods, and he likes it.
I am now working part-time from home and raising my son. I always look forward to sharing with him how to be healthy and happy.