Cliff's Weekly Papers Archives

Cliff's holistic health papers 14D, 15D posted

Hi,
Dr. Stoll has suggested I post each week 2 of my holistic health papers. This week (posted
below): Paper 14D, Heart disease; atherosclerosis; Paper 15D, The adrenal glands.

Cliff

Health Musings (Paper 14D, Atherosclerosis; heart problems)

by Clifford S. Garner, Ph.D.


Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the USA, with over a million deaths a
year, and with increasing incidence of some forms of heart disease. Half of all heart attack patients
die from their first attack or shortly thereafter, and many of the other half lead a life of popping
pills and practicing self denial. The annual cost of cardiovascular disease in the USA is about $109
billion. There is so much wrong with the orthodox medical approach to heart problems, and so
much helpful about the approach of alternative medicine, that it is hard to know where to begin.
The subject is too vast to treat in this paper in detail.
As with other health issues and diseases, heart problems arise from our attitudes, how we
handle emotional stress, smoking, poor lifestyle, bad eating habits, and lack of appropriate
physical exercise. Louise Hay states that the heart represents the center of love and security, and
that heart attacks and other heart problems are associated with squeezing joy out of the heart in
favor of money and position, with longstanding emotional problems, a belief in strain and stress,
and hardening of the heart. Consider the many idiomatic expressions used in everyday speech:
“broken hearted,” “my heart leaped with joy,” “heartless.” “half-hearted,” “big hearted.” “soft
hearted,” “cold hearted,” “their hearts were one,” “her heart goes out to...,” etc. Dethlefsen and
Dahlke in their fascinating book, “The Healing Power of Illness,” Element, Inc., Rockport, MA,
1991 (translated from the German by Peter Lemesurier), point out that the physical heart is
divided into two by the heart’s inner wall, just as the heartbeat has a double sound. At birth, as we
draw our first breath and enter into a world of polarity, the dividing wall closes automatically by
reflex action, and the one chamber and the one circulation suddenly become two. Heart (feeling)
and head (understanding) need to be in harmonious balance. The wholly intellectual person comes
across as one-sided and cold; persons living wholly from their feelings seem vague and confused.
When both functions complement each other the person seems “rounded.” Heart symptoms force
us to “listen to our hearts” once again, instead of listening only with our heads, so common to
heart patients according to Dethlefsen and Dahlke. The Chinese Law of Five Elements associates
heart problems with the Heart Meridian in the Fire Element, with relevant emotions such as hate,
insecurity, self doubt, lack of forgiveness, lack of joy, etc.
Commonly, atherosclerosis precedes heart disease. Inner arterial walls harden and thicken
due to deposits of fatty substances, calcium salts, etc. The resulting narrowing of the arteries,
including the coronary arteries that supply the heart muscles and the carotid arteries that supply
the brain, reduces blood flow--the former leads to coronary heart disease and ultimately to angina
and myocardial infarctions (heart attacks), the latter to cerebrovascular disease and strokes. The
medical profession’s obsession with cholesterol and avoiding saturated fats, whether from meat,
poultry, fish, milk, butter, coconut, avocado, etc., and the public’s slavish following of their
advice has contributed to a greater incidence of both cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease.
Cholesterol-lowering measures in the USA now runs to $60 billion annually, and is a very
profitable scam considering that they have not reduced heart disease. The subject is too vast to
treat here, but consider the following comments from experts in the field. William Castelli,
Director of the Farmingham Heart Study (world’s largest): “In Farmingham, Massachusetts, the
more saturated fat one ate, the more cholesterol one ate, the more calories one ate, the lower
people’s cholesterol. We find that the people who ate the most cholesterol, the most saturated
fat,..weighed the least and were the most physically active.” Michael DeBakey, MD, famous heart
surgeon, “An analysis of cholesterol values...in 1,700 patients with atherosclerotic disease
revealed no definite correlation between serum cholesterol levels and the nature and extent of the
atherosclerotic disease.” Michael Gurr, PhD, famous chemist researcher in fats: “Whatever causes
coronary heart disease, it is not primarily a high intake of saturated fat.” Ronald Krauss, MD,
head of the Molecular Medical Research Program and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
“...studies in which cholesterol levels were lowered through either diet or drugs have consistently
resulted in a greater number of deaths in the treatment groups than in controls—deaths from
stroke, cancer, intestinal disorders, accident and suicide.” Russell Smith, PhD, author of a
coronary heart disease study, “The relevant literature on coronary heart disease is permeated with
fraudulent material that is designed to convert negative evidence into positive evidence with
respect to the lipid hypothesis [theory that saturated fats cause atherosclerosis and coronary heart
disease].” Parenthetically, let me remark that there is a tremendous amount of “agenda research,”
in which because of financial support from interested companies, etc., the results are slanted in the
company’s favor. You are much better off healthwise with butter, other animal fats, fish and fish
oils, virgin or extra virgin olive oil, flax oil, sesame, coconut and palm oils as sources of fats than
with corn oil, soy oil, cottonseed oil, margarine, processed salad oils, and all hydrogenated or
partly hydrogenated oils. The latter have harmful trans fatty acids which themselves cause
atherosclerosis among other problems. Nearly all supermarket breads and other baked goods, as
well as some health food store baked items, contain these trans fatty acids. The current “no fat”
or “low fat” fad is in itself harmful, for we need the above good fats to be healthy. Fake fats, like
Olestra™, with their tendencies toward gastrointestinal upset, cramping and diarrhea, and
increase in prostate cancer, flush the fat-soluble nutrients like vitamins A and E, carotenoids, etc.,
out of the body; Americans are already deficient in these fat-soluble nutrients. Fat blockers, like
FibreNet™, absorb these essential fat-soluble nutrients. It is now known that lipoprotein(a),
Lp(a), blood levels provide a good risk factor for atherosclerosis, and that cholesterol-lowering
drugs do little to address Lp(a) levels, whereas testosterone reduces Lp(a) in men at least. Other
important risk factors for atherosclerosis and some forms of heart disease include C-reactive
protein blood levels, certain infections (especially Chlamydia pneumoniae, and perhaps
Helicobacter pylori), and abnormalities resulting in increased activation of blood clotting factors
are important, and for all of which the billions of dollars spent annually for cholesterol-lowering
drugs are wasted.
Cholesterol levels can be too low. Levels below 150 lead to twice the risk for brain
hemorrhage and strokes, three times the risk of liver cancer, four times the risk of obstructive lung
disease, and twice the risk of committing suicide. Cholesterol-lowering drugs are almost never a
good idea because of many severe side effects. The common anticholesterol drugs Questran,
Zocor, and Mevacor are on Dr. Julian Whitaker’s 1996 10 Most Dangerous Drugs List, with side
effects including liver toxicity, bleeding disorders, vision problems, gastrointestinal upset, and
muscle inflammation. Other harmful cholesterol-lowering drugs include Colestid, Lopid, and
Atromid-S (actually increases the death rate by 29%). Although cholesterol and its “bad” LDL
form are not significant problems, if you do want to reduce them safely nutrition such as inositol
hexanicotinate (Thorne Research “Niasafe,” a nonflushing form of vitamin B3, 600-1,800 mg a
day) and the herb gugulipid (e.g., Enzymatic Therapy “Gugu Plus #860 P.S.E. has gugulipid,
inositol hexanicotinate, ginger root, chromium polynicotinate, and vitamin C, maybe 3 a day) are
effective.
It isn’t high cholesterol anyhow, it’s high homocysteine. Homocysteine is a blood amino
acid which in high levels is a major factor in heart disease (as well as in Alzheimer’s and
Parkinson’s syndromes, schizophrenia, mental decline, depression, strokes, alcoholism, multiple
sclerosis, leukemia, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, non-insulin dependent diabetes,
diabetic nephropathy and retinopathy, rheumatoid arthritis, neural tube defects, low birthrates,
premature birth, spontaneous abortions, osteoporosis, kidney failure, and psoriasis, and recent
studies show a possible link with colorectal cancer). Apparently most MDs and testing labs
consider blood serum levels of 5 to 15 micromoles per liter to be “normal,” but research indicates
that risk of coronary artery disease (CAD) and heart attacks begins to increase at levels above 6.5,
and a level of 10 corresponds to roughly a doubling of CAD risk and of 15 to a quadrupling of
CAD risk. Homocysteine appears to function in part by inducing oxidation of cholesterol to
oxidized cholesterol (oxysterols), found in high-temperature cooking of cholesterol-containing
foods such as scrambled eggs and hamburgers, and which are significant factors in producing
atherosclerosis. I’m not aware of what medical drugs, if any, are used to lower homocysteine
levels in the blood. Clearly, high levels are due to a deficiency of any of the three B-complex
nutrients, namely, folic acid and vitamins B6 and B12 (white-flour breads, etc., rob the body of B
vitamins and other nutrients, contributing to high levels of homocysteine). Folic acid and vitamins
B6 and B12 are needed for conversion of homocysteine to the harmless cystathionine. Some
people need vitamin B6 in the active pyridoxal-5-phosphate form, and occasionally
trimethylglycine (TMG) may also be needed. A small percentage of people apparently do not
convert folic acid into its active form, tetrahydro folate THF, and may need folic acid in the 5-
formyl THF, or folinic acid, form. Betaine and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) are also helpful in
lowering homocysteine levels.
Aside from the well-known role of stress, smoking, consumption of junk food, etc.,
research indicates that chlorination of municipal water supplies (instead of harmless ozonization,
used in some European cities) is damaging to arteries, as well as increasing cancer risks, etc.
Another factor is the drinking of homogenized cow’s milk (essentially all marketed milk in the
USA). Cow’s milk has an enzyme called xanthine oxidase, and homogenization protects this
enzyme from human digestive juices so that it is absorbed into the blood stream where it damages
arterial walls and promotes atherosclerosis. Incidence of heart disease around the world correlates
with intake of homogenized cow’s milk, but not with intake of butter, cheeses, and yogurts, which
contain little or no xanthine oxidase. Also, cow’s milk is a common allergen, and people with
blood types O, A and AB appear not to handle cow’s milk and many other dairy items well.
Another important contribution to atherosclerosis and heart problems is from food allergies (see
our Paper 20D), which can cause plaque formation in arteries, constriction of coronary arteries,
and release histamines that can damage arterial lining.
Many smokers deny that smoking hurts them, or that their smoke harms others. Research
done on 12,863 men and women from four USA cities, performed at Wake Forest University in
North Carolina, showed that increased thickness of the carotid artery wall (leading to decreased
blood flow) was directly linked to tobacco smoke exposure. The thickness decreased in the order:
1) smokers, 2) ex-smokers, 3) persons exposed to secondhand smoke, 4) non-smokers with little
exposure to secondhand smoke. The carotid artery was studied because of the ease of
measurement by ultrasound technique; it’s a safe bet the results would be similar with the
coronary arteries. As little as one hour a week of exposure to tobacco smoke causes significant
arterial damage.
Let’s consider next surgery and invasive medical methods for diagnosing and treating
atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.
Angiography, used in diagnosis, and balloon or stint angioplasty used as a “corrective”
procedure, are dangerous and largely ineffective. According to an article in the December 1999
“Health Freedom News,” a man who was having heart spasms and what appeared to the MDs as a
heart attack was wheeled into surgery for “selective coronary angiography” (instead of first trying
an IV of magnesium sulfate, known to stop heart spasms), during which irreversible damage was
done: the arterial line inserted accidentally went through the right coronary artery, and with the
patient drowning in his own blood and with his life in jeopardy, the surgeons sliced his leg to get a
vein to replace the artery they had just damaged and laid open his chest so they could stitch in the
vein, thus turning what could have been a routine test into open heart surgery, and resulting in a
$200,000 bill–apparently this is not all that uncommon. Angiography involves inserting a catheter
into a leg artery (in the groin usually) and threading it back up to the small openings leading off
the two main arteries of the heart, then injecting a contrast dye and taking a series of X-ray
pictures (the radiation dose is typically equal to that of 10,000 chest X-rays). The procedure is
uncomfortable and potentially very harmful, costs at least $1,000 and necessitates at least a day’s
hospitalization. When angiograms are compared with autopsy findings, over 80% of the
angiograms are found to be inaccurate. Angiograms given to different radiologists come up with
different interpretations 38% of the time, and when angiograms are given back to the original
radiologists without their being told they had interpreted them previously, their second evaluation
differs from their first in 32% of the cases. Moreover, following angiography 46% of patients who
later had a heart attack had normal angiograms.
Aside from the inaccuracy of angiography, the procedure can trigger a heart attack or
stroke (1% death rate), damage the arterial wall, bringing on atherosclerosis, and if the test shows
a problem, or is misinterpreted as a problem, the cardiologist is likely to scare the patient into an
immediate or early bypass operation. EKGs and the radiothallium stress test are likewise
inaccurate. Blockages “identified” by angiography correlate poorly with arterial blood flow.
Perhaps the best medical diagnostic alternatives are echocardiography and PET scans.
Balloon angioplasty (percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, PTCA) is a
procedure in which the catheter is pushed clear into the coronary arteries themselves, and on
reaching a blockage, an attached balloon is released to press the plaque against the arterial wall.
All kinds of damage can result, including to the walls, hemorrhage, blood clots, heart attack,
stroke, bacterial infection, and even death (about 3% mortality, plus 5% “need” of emergency
bypass operation). Arteries reclose at a rate of 35% in six months, and often one angioplasty after
another is “needed” (a university colleague of mine has had six angioplasties over the course of
several years, and is still in bad shape). Angioplasty brings a greater risk of future surgery than for
persons who avoid it, and a greater risk of dying sooner (with typical right-heart catheterization
there is a 24% greater risk of dying within one month). An article in the September 18, 1996,
Journal of the American Medical Association showed no benefit from catheterization, and
recommended that the whole procedure be banned. Incidentally, without angioplasty, in most
cases ancillary circulation develops around a narrowed or blocked coronary artery, often too small
to be visible in an angiogram, and which improves blood flow into the heart muscles.
Surgical bypass operations became common in the early 1970s. In 1977 the taxpayer-
funded Veterans Administration Cooperative Study (VACS) was published, showing that 596
males with heart disease randomly assigned to bypass or medication only had the same survival
rate three years later. A later taxpayer-funded bypass study, the Coronary Artery Surgery Study
(CASS), of 780 patients with greater than 75% blockage in one, two, or three of the heart’s main
arteries, assigned as in the above study, showed no difference in mortality after five years; ten
years later a follow-up of the CASS patients still showed no difference. Bypass is about the most
traumatic form of surgery known, and the trauma is psychological and mental as well as physical.
Bypass leads to a major stroke in 1 to 5% of patients under age 65; over age 65 there is a 33%
risk of stroke, heart attack, coma, kidney failure, or death. Bypass accelerates atherosclerosis and
future heart attacks. About 300,000 persons underwent bypass surgery in 1995.
One surgical procedure that is seemingly superior to bypass is an experimental procedure
called transmyocardial laser revascularization, TMLR. A small incision is made in the left chest
and a high-intensity cold laser beam is inserted to drill small holes on the ventricular cavity wall,
allowing an increased blood flow into the heart muscle; surprisingly, the holes do not reclose in
the several years of study. However, The FDA recently rejected this procedure.
A non-invasive alterative to bypass surgery is called enhanced external counterpulsation,
EECP, a mechanical therapy in which the patient is on a flat table and a body stocking is strapped
on from the ankles to just below the waist; with each beat of the heart the stocking is contracted,
forcing blood up the legs through the veins back to the heart, thus increasing the blood flow
throughout the body to the heart muscle and brain (allegedly, this feels like a vigorous massage).
This opens up collateral circulation. Usually 35 one-hour treatments are given, twice a day; often
showing positive results in three or four weeks. The procedure helps erase damage from bypass
surgery. A full course typically costs $7,500, compared with $40,000 to $60,000 for bypass
surgery. This procedure was developed in 1955 at Harvard University in 1955 and used
successfully with thousands of heart trouble patients.
Another excellent alternative is intravenous EDTA chelation. EDTA
(ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid} in aqueous solution together with appropriate vitamins and
minerals is slowly dripped into an arm vein to remove arterial plaque and heavy metal toxicity,
usually for two to three hours several times a week. Often some 20 to 40 treatments are needed at
a total cost of $3,000 to $4,000; improvement is often noted even after only 5 or 6 sessions.
For women, especially over age 50, diagnosis of a heart attack is often missed, because the
symptoms for women are different than for men. Atypical symptoms include nausea, stomach
pain, heartburn, shortness of breath, pain in the jaw and/or left hand. Treadmill stress tests give
more false positives than for men, and an abnormal EKG for a man might be normal for a woman.
Diabetes is a greater risk for heart disease in women than in men. On the other hand, women often
can reverse heart disease more easily than men.
For patients on digitalis (Lanoxin), 40% don’t need it and 20% have severe side effects
(the therapeutic dose for making the heart beat stronger is very close to the toxic dose, and does
nothing to strengthen the heart).
Listening to quiet music for at least 20 minutes a day after a heart attack normalizes the
heart rhythm and reduces the level of stress hormones.
Congestive heart failure (CHF) is the most common cause of hospitalization for people
over age 65 (822,000 people in the USA were so hospitalized in 1992). CHF will kill more than
50,000 people this year, and cost more than $50 billion, and the incidence of CHF is on the
increase. CHF is heart muscle weakness, resulting in reduced blood pumping, leading to
exhaustion, mental confusion, and a racing heart (tachycardia). Aside from causation by various
medical drugs, including beta blockers and high blood pressure drugs, a common cause is a lack
of certain B vitamins, which in turn causes reduced nerve conductivity to the heart and severe
weakness of the heart muscle. Vitamins B1 and B4 are main nutrients for heart muscle action.
Vitamin B4 has apparently never been synthesized and seems to be available only in certain plants.
Synthetic B1 cannot compensate for the lack of B4 in the average American diet. Phytochemicals
from plants and plant food concentrates often outperform synthetic nutrients. Standard Process
Labs Cataplex B is the only nutritional supplement containing B4 as well as other B vitamins, so
far as I know. A CHF patient experiencing a racing heart will have the heart calm down in 15
minutes on chewing 6 to 9 Cataplex B tablets, but not with a synthetic B complex or B1. For
continued treatment, add 12 to 15 Standard Process Cardio-Plus, 3 to 6 of their Folic Acid B12
(contains stomach intrinsic factor, without which there is poor digestion and absorption), and 6 of
their Organic Minerals per day--this will help many heart problems, not just CHF. Other factors
for CHF include low thyroid (see our Paper 9D) and low adrenal function(see our Paper 15D).
The orthodox medical approach to CHF is to whip the heart with powerful and harmful drugs to
keep the congestion at bay, plus more drugs to address the tachycardia, and meanwhile the heart
gets weaker because it is not getting the essential B vitamins.
Mitral valve prolapse (MVP, in which one or both of the valve flaps connecting the left
atrium and left ventricle in the heart is enlarged, preventing them from opening and closing
properly) is one of the more misdiagnosed conditions in modern medicine, and recent research
shows it is much less common and much less serious than thought years ago– large numbers of
people in the past were accordingly subjected to totally unnecessary anxiety, dangerous
medications, not to mention discrimination by insurance companies. Some dentists still insist on
megadoses of antibiotics prior to some dental work or surgery to “prevent” infection of the mitral
valve.
Problems such as heart palpitations and arrhythmias (including fibrillations and
tachycardias) are not treated well medically, and are often due to high blood pressure medications.
Natural arrhythmias (non-medication-induced) usually are not all that harmful, except that they
are likely to cause the person to return to their MD who will probably put them on still more
medications, such as blood thinners, to “fight” the arrythmias. It is better to address abnormal
blood pressure by alternative means. E.g., arrythmias with high blood pressure can be treated
with Standard Process Cardio-Plus (maybe 2-5 3 times daily with food; if blood pressure is
naturally low (without drugs), there may well be a deficiency of B vitamins (including B4, not
found in synthetic B vitamins, and best obtained as Standard Process Cataplex B, maybe 12 a day)
and possibly adrenal weakness–instead of Cardio-Plus, the same dosage of Standard Process
Vasculin is then more appropriate, plus 1-3 3 times daily with food of Standard Process Drenamin
if there seems to be adrenal weakness (see our paper 15D on the adrenals). Vitamin B4,
according to medical literature, is critically important for people with a weak heart, fibrillations,
arrythmias, palpitations, tachycardia, bradycardia (slow heart beat), heart block, heart failure, or
cardiomyopathy (heart graphs repeatedly confirm this). Dietary sources of B4 are not common:
liver, bovine pancreas, pork kidney, yeast, properly cold-processed wheat germ. Standard
Process Cataplex B is by far the best source. Incidentally, real vitamin E (with all its synergens)
and Coenzyme Q10 occur naturally in the foods from which Cataplex B and Cardio-Plus are
made.
This paper is already too long, so I’ll close with mentioning some additional nutrients and
some acupressure and other self-help items. Of all organs, the heart responds most easily to good
nutrition. Remember that if you are on heart medication or high blood pressure drugs to wean
yourself off them gradually under medical supervision; to do otherwise is dangerous.
Helpful nutrients in addition to the above include the following, taken with meals unless
noted otherwise (dosages are given in a few cases, but the need, brand, and dosage are best
determined by an experienced kinesiologist or with a pendulum). As good sources of natural
vitamin A, B, C, E and calcium, etc., Standard Process Labs Cataplex E2 (6 a day), B6
Niacinamide (8 a day), Cataplex A-C-P (6 a day), Calsol (6 a day), Parotid (12 a day), and maybe
Orchex (3 a day). Very good is Coenzyme Q10 (200 mg twice a day), quercetin (kwair’see-tin,
100 to 300 mg a day, best with 150 mg bromolain; Enzymatic Therapy Quercezyme Plus #357 is
excellent), potassium magnesium aspartate, L-carnitine (500-1000 mg twice a day on an empty
stomach), omega 3 and omega 6 essential fatty acids from 1 to 2 tablespoons daily of flax oil (see
our Paper 13D) or fish oils, trimethylglycine (1,000 mg a day), and a good digestive such as 3 to
6 of Standard Process Labs Zypan. Carotenoids and bioflavonoids are very helpful as are trace
minerals such as selenium, zinc, chromium, copper, silicon, and iodine. The herb hawthorne berry
extract, and cayenne pepper in large amounts are most helpful–both, along with red clover
blossom, cactus grandiflorus, motherwort, garlic bulb, and Jamaican ginger rhizome, are in the
excellent Heart Formula of Dr. Richard Schulze, which is available through the American
Botanical Pharmacy, 1-800-437-2362. The diet should emphasize fruits, vegetables, whole
grains, nuts, garlic, and ginger, with little or no sugar or processed food.
Acupuncture and acupressure may be useful. If you have an acupuncture chart, rub CV
17, H 7, CX 6, LI 4, SP 6, ST 36, and K 1, among others. Rub the neurolymphatic points
between ribs two and three just off the breastbone, and hold for several minutes the neurovascular
reflex at GV 21 (anterior fontanel, or baby’s soft spot). Tai Chi can be helpful.
!

DISCLAIMER:
Information and procedures given are reported for educational purposes only. The author
is not directly or indirectly dispensing medical advice. Although the author believes this
information and these procedures to be valid, persons using them do so entirely at their own risk.

Cliff Garner, Ph.D., is a holistic health facilitator and professional kinesiology practitioner. He
may be reached by telephone or fax at (505) 525-1089 or by email at kosmik@totacc.com

Health Musings (Paper 15D, The adrenal glands)

by Clifford S. Garner, Ph.D.

In this paper we tell you about the adrenal glands, alternative ways of checking on their
dysfunction, and what to do about it. Adrenal disorders are common because the adrenals are so
sensitive to stress. Louise Hay ascribes adrenal problems in part to anxiety, defeatism, and no
longer caring for oneself. The Chinese Law of Five Elements (used in acupuncture and meridian
therapy) associates the adrenals with the Triple Warmer meridian of the Fire Element, for which
key emotions include despair and despondency, loneliness and heaviness.
The adrenals are two golf-ball-sized glands, one on top of each kidney. Each consists of a
core, the adrenal medulla, and an outer layer, the adrenal cortex.
Many nerves run from the sympathetic nervous system to special medulla cells which secrete
epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline) on stimulation by these nerves.
These two hormones travel throughout the body via the circulatory system. Some of their more
important functions, many related to the "fight or flight" response, include: 1) Increasing cellular
metabolic rates; 2) Releasing glucose from the liver, thus raising blood sugar levels; 3) Breaking
down glucose in muscles; 4) Increasing muscle strength and mental alertness; 5) Increasing blood
flow to muscles, while at the same time decreasing flow to organs not in use at the time; 6)
Dilating blood vessels to the heart and skeleton, while constricting most other vessels; 7)
Increasing blood pressure; 8) Dilating bronchials (why epinephrine injections are given in
asthmatic attacks). Many involuntary body functions, such as respiration, heart rate, digestion,
etc., are controlled by adrenal medulla hormones.
The adrenal cortex secretes a different group of some 40 hormones collectively called
corticosteroids, which are formed from cholesterol. These exist in three major forms,
glucocorticoids, mineralcorticoids, and 17-ketosteroids. Generally speaking, these hormones
help regulate protein and carbohydrate metabolism, metabolism of salt and water, and contribute
in a major way to the body’s response to stress.
The glucocorticoids consist mainly of three hormones, cortisone (often used by MDs to treat
inflammation and allergies by suppressing the immune system), corticosterone, and cortisol.
Cortisol (also known as hydrocortisone) is the most important, having many functions including:
1) Transporting amino acid building blocks of proteins to the liver where they are converted to
glucose; 2) Increasing blood sugar levels; 3) Decreasing the rate at which cells use glucose; 4)
Helping the body burn fats instead of glucose. If in too great supply, glucocorticoids can raise
serum glucose levels to a point where a diabetes-like condition ensues. Insufficient cortisol
output is associated with many symptoms, including: 1) Craving sweets, soft drinks, fruit juices,
tobacco, marijuana, etc.; 2) Dizziness on standing up too fast; 3) Headaches, blurred vision,
irritability, erratic energy levels; 4) Conditions over time such as Addison’s disease, arthritis,
bursitis, bronchitis, colitis, allergies, and frequent infections. Too much cortisol (common in
people in adrenal exhaustion) increases the rate at which bone and muscle mass is lost (among the
first symptoms of physical aging), cognitive impairment, and many serious diseases, including it
seems diabetes, cancer, stroke, heart problems, ulcers, multiple sclerosis, retinitis pigmentosa, and
Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. Some holistic medical doctors suggest trying to get
cortisol levels in the low end of the normal range for middle-aged people, namely, 7 to 11
mcg/dL.
The most important of the mineralcorticoids is aldosterone, which influences mineral balance,
especially the important sodium-potassium balance--we would die within 2 weeks without
aldosterone. An aldosterone deficiency and the resulting sodium loss is a cause of dehydration,
muscle spasm and twitching, heart palpitations, and increased perspiration, urination, and skin
pigmentation. Too much aldosterone causes higher sodium levels in the extracellular fluids (we
become thirsty) and increased potassium excretion by the kidneys, leading in turn to high blood
pressure, muscle weakness and spasms (possibly convulsions) and an over-alkaline body resulting
in extreme nervousness.
The 17-ketosteroids are sex hormones, of which the main one is the male hormone (androgen)
dehydroepiandrosterone, DHEA. Because of the alleged anti-aging properties of DHEA, many
people are popping DHEA pills like candy. No long-term studies have been done on DHEA or
other popular hormones, and hormone interaction with other hormones is complex. A minority of
holistic MDs, NDs, DCs, and I think taking these hormones long-term at this time is risky; if one
is going to take DHEA, it would seem advisable to first get a lab test on serum DHEA levels, or
even better, cortisol/DHEA ratios, and to monitor them as one ingests DHEA. Actually,
determining cortisol and DHEA levels in saliva is more accurate than in blood or urine–see below
for adrenal stress index (ASI) testing. An acupuncture technique from a holistic MD, Norman
Shealy, called the “Ring of Fire,” in which certain acupoints are activated in sequence daily, has
been shown to increase DHEA levels in chronically ill patients by 50-60% in 12 weeks. Although
needles were used in the research for 20 minutes, a low intensity 670-nm laser can do the job in 5
seconds per point; rubbing the points firmly for several minutes daily will be less effective but still
useful. For those that have an acupuncture chart, the points in sequence (the points on meridians
other than Conception Vessel (CV) and Governing Vessel (GV) are done on both sides of the
body): K-3 (1" up from sole of foot and 2" forward from heel), CV-2 (midline of pubic bone),
CV-6 (1" below navel), BL-22 (just off spine in line with lowest point of rib cage), CV-18
(slightly below middle of breast bone), CX-6 (2"on inside of arms above middle of wrist crease),
LI-18 (on vertical line from front of ear, even with bottom of chin), GV-20 (top of skull on
midline); rubbing wrong points will not be harmful. The Ring of Fire helps in adrenal exhaustion
(see below) and in chronic fatigue.
A major cause of adrenal dysfunction is sudden extreme or chronic prolonged stress. We
tend to think of stress as emotional, but it can be physical (e.g., accidents, surgery, prolonged
illness, especially from a toxic liver and/or congested kidneys), nutritional (e.g., long-term use of
synthetic vitamins–especially ascorbic acid in high dosage, deficiencies or excesses of nutrients,
allergies), environmental (e.g., chemical sensitivities, metal toxicities, electromagnetic fields),
thermal (e.g., prolonged excessive heat or cold), many medical drugs (especially hormones),
overwork, etc., all of which adversely affect the adrenals. The Canadian physician, Dr. Hans
Selye, extensively studied the adrenals and the effect of stress on them. What he called the
"General Adaptation Syndrome" has at least three stages as follows.
The initial response is the "fight or flight" response (or "alarm stage"), designed to address
actual or perceived danger by mobilizing body resources for immediate physical action. The
adrenal medulla secretes epinephrine and other stress-related hormones, overreacting to cope with
the stress. People in this stage often have “glassy” eyes, sometimes with “shiny” skin.
The second stage ("resistance stage") allows the corticosteroids to continue fighting a stressor
long after the short-lived "fight or flight" response has worn off. With chronic stress the adrenals
become overtaxed and depleted. If you are able to learn to reduce stress sufficiently and are
otherwise in at least fairly good health, the adrenals will rebuild themselves and actually grow
larger. People in this second stage often have a substantial amount of the white sclera of one
eyeball showing under the iris, due to one eyeball having rotated up from lack of right-left brain
integration brought on by the stress–this condition leads to poor depth perception and is a
common cause of accidents. If you do not learn stress reduction, you are likely to go into the
third stage, "adrenal exhaustion."
Adrenal exhaustion is reached when there is no reserve capacity to handle stress without
"going to pieces." This may mean total collapse of body function or of specific organs or glands,
especially the heart and adrenals, and impairment of blood vessels and the immune system,
whatever is inherently weak. Loss of potassium becomes extreme and depletion of
glucocorticoids becomes severe, often "instantly" leading to low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)
symptoms, and a tendency for greater and longer lasting illness, and even to "nervous
breakdown." This condition is not easy to reverse, even with holistic methods. People in this
third stage tend to have both eyes showing much white sclera under the irises. If the hair is
beginning to turn gray or white this is usually a sign of weak adrenals about to enter exhaustion,
which is likely to show up 6 to 12 months later. Another indicator is if one feels tired within an
hour after eating (this can also indicate allergy to what was eaten), even becoming sleepy. People
who need coffee to get through the day usually have exhausted adrenals, and the coffee drunk late
in the day usually makes them jittery.
There are many good stress management and emotional stress release techniques, including
the more elaborate ones of PKP kinesiology. In Paper 1D we described a simple effective
emotional stress release procedure. A friend recently called my attention to an excellent 1997
book, "Deep Healing," by Emmett E. Miller, MD, which presents many ideas for healing yourself
including stress management. Dr. Miller has produced excellent audiotapes for relaxation, stress
reduction, etc.
Other causes of adrenal dysfunction include: 1) Frequent over-consumption of sugar
(including in most processed foods}, honey, maple syrup, fruit juices, soft drinks, all of which
stress the pancreas as well as the adrenals, caffeine, alcohol, marijuana, tobacco, etc.; 2) Fasting,
which further overtaxes weak adrenals as they attempt to maintain blood sugar levels; 3) Overuse
of cortisone injections for medical treatment of arthritis, asthma, etc., or hydrocortisone creams
for skin rash and itching--these deplete both the adrenals and the immune system; 4) Spinal
vertebral misalignment, especially of C 7 and T 10, and ankle subluxation; 5) Allergies; 6)
Pituitary dysfunction (the pituitary controls adrenal hormone secretion, especially the anterior
pituitary hormone adrenal corticotrophic hormone, ACTH); 7) Tuberculosis. Avoidance of high
glycemic-index foods is important in the adrenal stress syndrome; 8) Dental “silver” fillings (half
toxic mercury) and root canals play an extremely important role, as has been shown by Hal
Huggins, DDS.
As seen, adrenal dysfunction is complex, whether it is underactivity (hypoadrenia) or
overactivity (hyperadrenia). Sometimes when the adrenal cortex is underactive for a longer time
a rare adrenal disorder called "Addison's disease" may develop, in which discoloration and dark
pigmentation of the skin is seen, especially of elbows, knees, skin folds, scars, mouth, vagina, and
in freckles (President John Kennedy had Addison’s disease, and rumors circulated that autopsy of
his body showed a nearly complete atrophy of his adrenals). Other symptoms include lessening of
body hair in armpits and groin, appetite loss, chronic fatigue, constantly feeling cold, lowered
resistance to colds and other infections, weak ligaments, blood pressure problems, asthma, etc.
Many MDs tend to consider Addison’s disease as “incurable,” but with the proper diet, nutrition
and patience it can be overcome. Sometimes a rare disease called “Cushing’s Syndrome” may
occur from an overactive adrenal cortex and a suppressed immune system. People with Cushing's
Syndrome usually are heavy in the abdomen, buttocks and face, but with very thin arms and legs,
and the face can get acne-like sores, swollen eyelids, and body hair overgrowth is common
(women may grow a moustache or even a beard). Louise Hay lists severe emotional malnutrition
and self-anger as causative factors in Addison's disease, and overproduction of crushing ideas and
a feeling of being overpowered as factors in Cushing's Syndrome.
Medical diagnosis and treatment of adrenal disease is too complex to discuss here, except to
note that surgery may be used in hyperadrenia, and drugs such as hydrocortisone and
fluorocortisone used in hypoadrenia, which not only have a poor success rate, but also a tendency
in long-term use to affect the adrenals adversely and to cause other problems. If you want more
information on the medical approach, a good source is the Internet or a recent edition of the
"Merck Manual."
Turning to alternative ways of checking your adrenals, a good test for hypoadrenia is the
Ragland test, which you can do on yourself if you have a blood pressure measuring device. After
lying on your back relaxed for 5 minutes with the blood pressure cuff in place, but not inflated,
take your blood pressure (or have someone take it for you). Leaving the uninflated cuff in place,
quickly stand up and immediately take the pressure again (be careful of dizziness if this is a
problem for you). Your systolic blood pressure (the higher of the two numbers, 130/80 e.g,)
should rise 5-15 (mm of mercury) on standing if there is no hypoadrenia. If the systolic pressure
falls, hypoadrenia is probable, with a greater decrease tending to correlate with a greater degree
of hypoadrenia; a drop of 5 points or less corresponds to mild adrenal weakness; a drop in the 5
to 10 point range means substantial hypoadrenia; more than 10 points suggests the person is
bordering on adrenal failure. It is good to repeat the test a day or so later.
Another test is to stand and hang your arms along your sides for several minutes; the veins in
the backs of your hands will swell with blood and protrude. Now slowly raise either hand to heart
level, keeping it there–if the protruding veins disappear within 2 to 5 seconds after your hand is at
heart level, you almost surely have weak adrenals, your blood volume being low and your tissues
dehydrated. People with very strong adrenals can even raise their hand over their head and the
protruding veins will still not disappear.
Another test you can do relates more to deficiency in mineralcorticoids, which control mineral
balances. For nerve impulses to be transmitted properly there must be enough sodium ions
outside the cell and enough potassium inside the cell. In hypoadrenia there may be too much
sodium loss and too much potassium retention. This shows up not only in muscle spasm and
heart palpitation, but also in abnormal eye pupil change. To do the test it is easier to have
someone help you, although you can do it alone with a mirror. Sit in a darkened room for a few
minutes to dark-adapt the eyes, then shine the light from a not-to-strong penlight from about 6
inches away onto the center of one eye, keeping it there for at least 30 seconds. Normally the
light will constrict the pupil (dark center of eye), which will remain constricted. In hypoadrenia
one of three abnormal responses occurs: 1) The pupil opens at once; 2) The pupil yoyos between
closed and open; 3) The pupil closes at first, but reopens within 10-30 seconds of light exposure.
This is why hypoadrenal people often wear dark glasses, complain about bright sunlight, have
difficulty driving at night, etc.
A good test to find the progression of chronic stress through the general adaptation syndrome
(see earlier) is the salivary adrenal stress index test (ASI). Saliva is collected at 7 am, 11 am, 4
pm and 11 pm, and the samples are sent to a special lab. Levels of cortisol, DHEA, and the
sulfated form of DHEA ( DHEAS) are plotted against each other. The prescribing physician must
be trained in interpreting the ASI profile. One such lab is Diagnos-Tech, 1-800-878-3787; they
will send you an ASI kit without charge, and you pay them maybe $80 when you submit the 4
samples to them–they will send you a graph together with therapeutic suggestions.
Dr. Paul Eck, outstanding mineral researcher, has found that imbalance in the sodium-
magnesium ratio is associated with an adrenal disorder (as potassium-calcium imbalance is
associated with thyroid dysfunction, and so on for other mineral ratios and organs or glands), a
low sodium-magnesium ratio slows the adrenals and a high ratio speeds the adrenals. Dr. Eck
interprets hair analyses for mineral imbalances and suggests appropriate nutritional supplements
accordingly. Incidentally, one cannot simply supply the given mineral to boost its ratio, for
changing one mineral level affects all other mineral levels. Rather one has to work indirectly to
support the dysfunctioning organ/gland.
Contact Reflex Analysis, CRA, is another good way of getting information and suggested
nutrition for the adrenals and all other organ/gland/body systems. In the Las Cruces area Regis
Guest, DN, and I are trained in CRA. For readers outside the area, Steve Westin, DC, (704) 692-
6061, has a directory of health practitioners trained in CRA.
Lastly, we turn to what to do for adrenal problems. Much has been implied earlier in this
article about stress reduction, improved lifestyle, avoidance of certain foods and medications, etc.
Following a diet for your blood type (0, A, B, or AB), as explained in the excellent 1996 book,
“Eat Right 4 Your Type," by Peter D'Adamo, ND, should help.
Helpful Touch for Health (TFH) techniques include a 1-minute rubbing daily of
neurolymphatic (NL) points found by going 1 inch to each side of the navel and 2 inches up.
Softly holding with a finger or two for maybe 1 to 5 minutes daily a neurovascular (NV) point on
the midline of the skull, about 5 finger widths above the base of the skull in back should also help,
and even better is to do the rubbing of the NL with one hand and the holding of the NV with the
other hand simultaneously. In adrenal stress the sartorius, gracilis, gastrocnemius and soleus
muscles tend to be weak, and strengthening them with TFH methods helps. Use of the ESR NV
points described in my paper 1D will reduce emotional stress if applied daily. Also a help is to rub
for maybe a minute daily a reflexology point on the sole of each foot at its narrowest width and in
line with the second toes.
Once a day stand in your shower with your back to the spray so it can beat just above the
kidneys for 3 minutes with the hottest water you can stand, then for a half-minute with the coldest
water.
Some potentially helpful nutritional supplements and herbs, best checked for your use with a
pendulum or by a skilled kinesiologist, include per day: vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid or calcium
pantothenate, especially important for the adrenals, 500-2000 mg), vitamin C (3000 mg to bowel
tolerance), a good high-B complex, Standard Process B6-Niacinamide (3-12 tablets), L-tyrosine
(500 mg on an empty stomach), coenzyme Q10 (90 mg), a good adrenal extract or
protomorphogen (Standard Process Drenamin, 6 tablets, or 3 of their Whole Desiccated Adrenal),
minerals such as chromium, copper, magnesium, manganese, potassium, selenium and zinc (say,
as picolinates and/or citrates), and a good digestant such as Standard Process Zypan, maybe 2 at
each meal, and the herbs astragalus, gotu kola, licorice root, hawthorn berry, Korean or Siberian
ginseng, echinacea, and milk thistle. Alpha lipoic acid (thioctic acid) may also help. Check the
pituitary, pineal, hypothalamus and thyroid for possible nutritional need or cranial manipulation.
One way to check potential helpful supplements is to do the Ragland test (see above), then repeat
it with a tablet or capsule of the supplement in the mouth–if helpful, the supplement gives a blood
pressure increase.

DISCLAIMER:
Information and procedures described in this and other “Health Musings” are reported solely
for educational purposes. The author is not directly or indirectly dispensing medical advice.
Although the author believes this information and these procedures to be valuable, persons using
them do so entirely at their own risk.

Cliff Garner, Ph.D., is a holistic health facilitator and a professional kinesiology practitioner. He
may be reached by telephone or fax at (505) 525-1089 or by e-mail at kosmik@totacc.com.