Dr. Roman is out of the office this week while at the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, annual AHVMA Retreat, hosted by the Council of Elders August 23-26, 2011.
Archive for August, 2011
AHVMA Retreat
Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011Another Good Reason to Go Organic
Friday, August 19th, 2011
According to Scientific American this week not only Cargill, but also our government has some responsibility for problems with food safety. In fact the government is being cited by some as having knowledge of the fact that antibiotic resistant Salmonella in poultry existed. It would seem that over use of antibiotics has led to the current crisis, and may be destined to be repeated if practices are not changed.
The well publicized turkey recall was one of the largest ever. In a self defeating cycle, the bacteria which is immune to common drugs has been on the rise on meat producing farms. In fact Scientific American goes on to say that the bulk of U.S. antibiotics are used in factory farming.
A proposal which suggests that “by going organic, poultry farms can cut the amount of antibiotic resistant bacteria in a single generation by nearly five times, according to a new study published online this week in Environmental Health Perspectives.” (more…)
All About Irritable Bowel: Solving it Naturally, Who Needs Drugs?
Tuesday, August 16th, 2011
Peppermint
Irritable bowel is a common medical issue in both animals and humans. By looking at the cause of the issue and then strengthening the gut, one can actually bring the case to cure. The intestinal tract provides about 70% of the immune system’s support. It also is intricately controlled by the nervous system. Moreover, the GI tract depends significantly on the live flora or naturally occurring bugs or bacteria in the gut. Treating the GI tract naturally allows the body to reboot itself and regain intestinal health. On the other hand, not allowing the body to fight its own battle is a set-up for chronic conditions and lifelong dependence on drug therapy with all its side effects and long-term damage.
Just to review the GI anatomy, we first have the mouth with the salivary glands and the physical mastication of the teeth and jaws. In humans, saliva plays an important part in that it contains amylase, which helps convert starch to the simple sugar maltose. Unlike the saliva of humans, the saliva of dogs and cats really only supplies lubrication for the passage of food and does not have any significant enzymatic activity. In addition to supplying lubrication, the saliva helps in removing heat from the body, as does the panting process. Another important part of the GI tract is the esophagus, a muscular tube that propels the food, after the swallowing, from the mouth to the stomach. With the peristalsis wave, the bolus is pushed through the relaxed lower esophageal sphincter into the stomach, and then the sphincter is closed to prevent reflux. (more…)
News: Study Shows Flouride Lowers IQ
Friday, August 12th, 2011
Dr. Roman wanted to share this story from this page as this week’s important subject. Study Finds That Flouride Lowers IQ. Today over at the Blog of Dr. Mercola who has made significant milestones in his mission to bring people practical solutions to their health problems. Who is a New York Times Best Selling Author, Dr. Mercola was also voted the 2009 Ultimate Wellness Game Changer by the Huffington Post, and has been featured in TIME magazine, LA Times, CNN, Fox News, ABC News, Today Show, CBS’s Washington Unplugged with Sharyl Attkisson, and other major media resources.
The CDC wants us to believe it’s safe. But 24 studies have reported an association between this drink and reduced IQ in children – in fact, some children could have their mental development impaired by drinking as little as one glass on a daily basis.
Additionally, many pet foods contqin “meal” which contains many toxic materials for pets including flouride in high concentrations.
This information has been know and debated since 1995, when neurotoxicologist and former Director of toxicology at Forsyth Dental Center in Boston, Dr. Phyllis Mullenix published research showing that fluoride built up in the brains of animals when exposed to moderate levels. Damage to the brain occurred and the behavior patterns of the animals was adversely effected. Offspring of pregnant animals receiving relatively low doses of fluoride showed permanent effects to the brain which were seen as hyperactivity (ADD-like symptoms). Young animals and adult animals given fluoride experienced the opposite effect — hypoactivity or sluggishness. The toxic effects of fluoride on the central nervous system was subsequently confirmed by previously-classified government research. Two new epidemiological studies which tend to confirm fluoride’s neurotoxic effects on the brain have shown that children exposed to higher levels of fluoride had lower IQs. Source: HolisticMed
August is Pet Nutrition Month
Tuesday, August 9th, 2011
The Honest Kitchen Zeal
This month nutrition is featured as the centerfold in the Dr. DoMore calendar. With the advice of your vet at MASH you can get recipes for home nutrition which will vary protein carbohydrate, and vegetable proportions to individualize the pet food to the needs of your dog or cat. Additional vegetables in the diet can offer extra protection from cancer. Certain carbohydrates in pet diets have been associated with diabetes, cancer and allergies. Many dogs have become gluten sensitive as have their human companions. Avoiding gluten grains like wheat and barley can be helpful to gluten sensitive animals. Quinoa, millet and buckwheat are good substitutes. Balancing the amount of carbohydrates and grains with appropriate amounts of chopped and puréed vegetables such as broccoli, butternut squash, kale, spinach, sprouts, and carrots will provide improved and wholesome nutrition.
Using proportionately smaller amounts of fruits in season for rich antioxidants will help reduce inflammation in the body. Examples of fruit you can serve are berries, apples, pears, bananas, kiwi and melon.
Increasing organic plant based foods helps the environment and decreases the number of animals used for pet food. Sustainable farming practices also help with ecology.
Today care givers can find good quality commercial food in “natural” stores. In addition to holistic blends of dry foods and canned foods, there are excellent freeze dried and dehydrated diets, as well as frozen raw meat diets, and cooked meat diets. Like Zeal from The Honest Kitchen.
Good, wholesome nutrition is always at the center of every healing option, and for that reason, nutrition was used to represent the center of the calendar by being a centerfold.
Pet Food Recipe of the Week: Books for Pet Food Basics
Friday, August 5th, 2011
Dr. Roman is very busy this week taking care of emergency cases 
So I will pitch in today and talk about my experiences with food karma and animals. I learned much from a holistic vet named Dr. Stephen Tobin as he took care of my animals. Later after I moved, I took my dogs to another vet who passed on. And in time those two dogs also went to the other side. I kept studying holistic pet care at home along with becoming a Reiki Master.
One person who I learned a great deal from is author Diane Stein. I’ve read The Natural Remedy Book for Dogs and Cats, All Women Are Healers, and The Natural Remedy Book for Women, as well as the cornerstone book Essential Reiki which I used as a textbook for my Reiki students for many years. Don’t forget, Dr. Basko has a great book out too, which we referenced last time.
When I bring my new dogs to Dr. Roman, she gives many guidelines and suggestions for how to handle their nutrition which is tailor made just for them. That is the best way to do nutritional advice for your animals so take them over to MASH for that.
Like me, you may enjoy additional reading on the subjects of pet wellness and spirituality. Did you know that most of the stuff that is used to make up grocery store pet food was going to be garbage? That’s right, even though it might be in pretty or cute packaging and say “natural” or something, don’t be fooled. The ingredients are things that wouldn’t even make it into a hot dog. I won’t gross you out with the details here, you can look it up for yourself. But those hideous practices haven’t stopped.
I don’t know about you, but my dogs are the most precious people in the world to me, and I want them to have the best of everything like any child should. I wouldn’t give them anything that isn’t good enough for me to eat or better. I feel they deserve the best quality of life possible.
Corn and wheat which makes up too much of the ‘off the shelf pet chow’, along with sawdust, can cause a host of problems and food allergies for pets. Dogs and cats need the right balance of meat, vegetables and grains. Meats should always be human food grade, and organic. No hormones, steroids, chemicals, pesticides or antibiotics should be in there, and for you too. Beef, lamb and chicken are ok. Eggs fish, cottage cheese, yogurt and tofu can make up part of the ingredients for a good diet. (We are taking a break from turkey products for now due to the latest news.) Dr. Roman often suggests looking into a raw diet too.
The first step to having healthy pets is the one thing we do for them for sure each day, which is to put food down. The bond of trust that we have with our animals begins there at the start of their lives. It began for humans many centuries ago when we shared our meals with their wolf-dog ancestors in exchange for their help with hunting and protecting our hearth.
Today life has become more complicated, and with it has come more dangers for us and our animal companions. The lives we lead now makes cancer more of a likelihood for us as well as our pets. We need to think of them each day, and in each meal as we do the rest of our family. Hopefully, in a way that will prevent avoidable dis-eases coming from inferior quality pet foods.
~MASH Geek