Complimentary http://www.deserthealthnews.com/ May/June 2014 what’s inside Medical News 3 May is Stroke Awareness Month Terry Wahls, MD, is an Assistant Chief of Staff at Iowa lacking in those with autoimmune diseases such as MS. City VA Health Care and clinical professor of medicine at She added electrical stimulation therapy (e-stim) after the University of Iowa. She has practiced medicine for researching this protocol as used on paralysis due to over 30 years and is board-certified in internal medicine. acute spinal injury, and eliminated Like most physicians, Dr. Wahls toxins from her environment. Natural Options treated her patients’ ailments with Her decline slowed, and in 11 drugs and surgical procedures, November of 2007, her online Gluten-Free with Tiffany until she herself was diagnosed research led her to the Institute for with primary progressive multiple Functional Medicine. Functional sclerosis in 2000, and conventional medicine differs from mainstream medicine began to fail her. medicine in its willingness to employ Even though she was working treatments which may not be well Integrated Practices with top specialists in the field at evidenced by clinical research.1 Its goal 15 the Cleveland Clinic and had tried is to provide clinicians with a better numerous medications, by 2007 way to care for people with complex Is Testosterone Therapy she was confined to a recliner or chronic disease by looking at the in Men Harmful? bed and could walk only a few interaction between genetics, diet, steps with two canes. hormone balance, toxin exposure, As a decorated athlete in her infections and psychological factors youth, Dr. Wahls could not accept which contribute to the development of disease or improvement of one’s what her life had become and 2 Health & Beauty throughout her decline continued health and vitality. 20 to research and look for answers. “Although it wasn’t the way I Breast Implant She focused on animal studies Terry Wahls, MD: From wheelchair to was trained,” says Wahls, “it made that had not yet progressed to wellness through nutrition and exercise sense to me. It was all logical and Technology Advances human trial related to brain biology, scientifically supported, so it resonated biochemistry, and autoimmune disease. She tried dietary with me as a doctor, but it also fit into the context of my changes, adding meat and Paleo principles after being a experience as an MS patient.” vegetarian for twenty years, and supplements based on She learned that she could improve the condition of Financial Health specific nutrients she had identified that are commonly Continued on page 16 21 Retirement Planning: Never Too Early To Start Senior Health 22 My Head is Spinning! Fresh Cuisine 24 Health is a choice, but when access to 4-day free medical clinic entitled the Coachella Valley The Flavor of Essense: health care is a challenge, that choice can become a Expedition. This past April, over 500 health care luxury. For some, the choice comes down to a dental professionals came together with over 700 general Two Bunch Palms filling for your child or food on the table; a pair of volunteers to provide close to 2,000 people with over glasses for your spouse or paying rent; a doctor’s $900,000 in medical, dental, vision, acupuncture, and appointment co-pay or bus fare for the week. chiropractic care. The Affordable Care Act For Goldenvoice, it is a way Fitness is working to change that, to give back to the local people 25 but experts estimate that in and community that support Kinesiotape™ for Injuries 2024 when the ACA is fully their world-renowned festivals; implemented, there will for California CareForce, an still be 31 million without extension of the California insurance they can afford Association of Oral and (for more on this see page 7). Maxillofacial Surgeons, it is the Family Health first in many they hope to do To ease that burden and statewide; for the over 1,200 26 offer a bit of relief to Valley volunteers who turned out, DRD Swim Scholarships residents in need, California the work was rewarding and CareForce and Goldenvoice Mayor Pro Tem Sam Torres welcomes CVE to Indio uplifting; and for the 1,964 Available Through May 30th have established an annual and is fit for new pair of glasses Continued on page 10 www.desertregional.com/diabetes ® 2 Desert Health May/June 2014 News from the Valley’s Integrated Health Community There is so PO Box 802 MUCH MORE! La Quinta CA 92253 (760) 238.0245 @ www.DesertHealthNews.com FOUNDER & PUBLISHER Lauren Del Sarto When amazing things come DESERT [email protected] together with great ease, you is Desert AIDS Project, and to share LEAD EDITOR know they were meant to be. the perspective of those affected, HEALTH Jo Ann Steadman And with awareness, you become we welcome Steve Bolerjack in Living overwhelmed with gratitude. with HIV. EVENT MANAGER EDITOR/WRITER A year ago, I had the privilege I also feel amazingly grateful for NEWS of meeting Dr. Terry Wahls and to the large number of you who are Doris Steadman hear her incredible story. I knew we ® making personal choices to improve GRAPHIC DESIGN had to feature her in Desert Health , your own health. Our past issue on .COM and planned it for this issue. Little M.Kay Design Wheat Belly was so well-received, [email protected] did I know that this timing would we brought on nutritionist Tiffany present the opportunity to bring Dalton to provide you with tips and WEB MASTER her to the Desert for both a public ideas in Gluten-Free with Tiffany. SEARCH Benjamin Katz Creative and a clinicians’ presentation – at no [email protected] cost to attendees. Over 1.6 million In researching our lead feature on have viewed her Tedx Talk, and she MS, I found Act for MS, the Desert’s TOPICS DISTRIBUTION has thousands of followers and only support organization for locals J. Scott Driscoll, Richard Whitehill affected with this condition (see hundreds of success stories for The Home delivery Wahls Protocol. page 25). I would be remiss not to mention this wonderful organization MEET OUR subscriptions available! If you know anyone with an and its many inspiring members. Visit DesertHealthNews.com autoimmune deficiency – or who The large number of serendipitous or call (760) 238.0245 treats those who do – please events that occurred between us DOCTORS Distribution: Desert Health® is distributed encourage them to attend this life- introduced me to many of them, and at 350+ locations throughout the Coachella changing event. makes the opportunity to bring Dr. Valley including, but not limited to, grocery stores, doctors’ offices, medical buildings, I feel the same gratitude towards the Wahls to our Valley that much more cafes and restaurants, spas, fitness centers growth of integrated health care here special for me. and clubhouses. in the Valley, and with this issue, we are We hope you find many inspiring Ask Desert Health® is a California Corporation. All proud to welcome a new column by rights reserved. Reproduction in any form, in and informational words on our whole or in part, without the written consent Jeralyn Brossfield, MD: The Paradigm pages. Thank you so very much for of the Publisher is prohibited. The opinions ® QUestIons Shift in Medicine Today. Her first reading Desert Health . Please keep and views expressed in these pages are those editorial features her presentation your calls and messages coming. of the writer or persons interviewed and not to Eisenhower’s Trustees and Board necessarily those of Desert Health®. Desert We love hearing from you! Health® hereby expressly limits its liability of Directors on the necessity of resulting from any and all misprints, errors and/ incorporating wellness in the medical With appreciation ~ SIGN UP or inaccuracies any advertisement or editorial center’s business model. may contain. One organization which knows the Printed on paper from sustainably FOR OUR grown and farmed evergreens power of integrated health care Lauren Del Sarto Publisher Follow Us for NEWSLETTER Updates & Events! www.DesertHealthNews.com May/June 2014 Medical News 3 News from the Valley’s Integrated Health Community May is Stroke Awareness Month Are you aware of how lucky we are? By Lauren Del Sarto Randal Bonnell of Banning went to bed at 11:30pm on a Thursday night and awoke the next morning with half his body paralyzed. His wife, Vickie, heard a noise around 4:45am and realized that her 55 year-old husband had fallen out of bed. Although he said he felt fine, Randall wasn’t speaking clearly and couldn’t lift his arm. Recognizing the signs of stroke, Vickie dialed 911. Although there were closer hospitals, Vickie, an occupational therapist, knew that Desert Regional Medical Center had a state-of-the-art stroke center and requested that he be taken there instead. Upon arrival, they met Dr. Asif Taqi and his team of neuroscience professionals. Because they couldn’t identify the exact time of Randall’s stroke, he was not a candidate for IV-tPA, medication that when administered within 3 hours of a stroke can minimize, and even reverse, damage. However, using the Stroke Center’s advanced neuroimaging, Dr. Taqi was able to promptly identify a significant area of Randal’s brain that was still salvageable The Valley is lucky to have Dr. Asif Taqi and his expert team if the clot could be removed by at Desert Regional’s high-tech Stroke Center a thrombectomy, a procedure that goes through the groin artery into the brain and removes the clot to potentially reverse the happening stroke. Randal underwent an emergency thrombectomy in Desert Regional’s advanced bi-plane angiosuite which proved successful.