Of Forests and Fallen TreesIf a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound? The age old philosophical riddle posited by George Berkeley and debated by philosophy students for generations has profound ethical connotations for medicine and life. At the root of this question is […]
Are women more sensitive to pain? The question has been bandied about for years. Study after study answers affirmatively. Yes, women are more sensitive to pain. Not only that, women experience more pain than men for similar injuries and require more pain medication to achieve the same level of relief. And oh, by the way, […]
For as long as I have been studying endometriosis, I have suspected that endometriosis represented a protective cascade, one that has either gone awry or was incapable of fully eliminating or adapting to an internal stressor. To me, endometriosis behaves like cancer; not the cancer of aberrant oncogenes and tumor suppressors, though they are factors, […]
For some time now, we have been covering all the ways in which thiamine deficiency influences disease. The primary mechanisms are through the down regulation of mitochondrial enzymes critical for ATP production. The lack of thiamine impairs mitochondrial functioning significantly leading to complex, debilitating, chronic, and sometimes, deadly illnesses. With mitochondrial energy a requisite for […]
A few weeks ago, I had the great pleasure of delivering a keynote address at the Midwifery Today Conference in Eugene, Oregon. As requested, here are my notes and the presentation deck. Enjoy. Presentation NotesBefore we begin, I’d like to preface this talk with one of my favorite quotes by Maya Angelou: “You did then what […]
Hyperemesis gravidarum, more commonly known as severe morning sickness, is the type of intractable vomiting that lasts well beyond morning and well after the first trimester. It affects up to 2% percent of all pregnant women and often leads to serious maternal and fetal health complications, including mortality. Although many theories abound, hormone changes and […]