Chronic illnesses are by definition not specific to a disease but rather a cluster of symptoms that are usually hard to put a label on. Those symptoms most commonly involve chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, brain fog, depression, or irritability. Progress in health care has allowed to witness a significant decrease of getting contagious diseases, however the past few decades have seen a rising rate of this new type of chronic illnesses. One of the most important reason of this shift is due to the fact that, unlike contagious diseases which usually have one single pathogenic cause, chronic illnesses are usually the product of a combination of multiple factors such as pollution, diet, environmental toxicities or subclinical infections. Because of the omnipresence of chemicals in our food processing chain, clothes/furniture, or cosmetic products, it is very hard to limit exposure to toxicities even when being very careful.
Causes:
It is not rare anymore unfortunately to find lead, mercury, or arsenic in our drinking water, food, dental amalgams and some pesticides. Those chemicals have the ability to chemically bind and accumulate in our organs, such as the brain, kidneys, liver, or bones, and therefore to affect their normal functioning. Pesticides, flame retardants in furniture, chemicals in kitchen appliances, and overuse of disposable plastics (coffee cups) can also affect our endocrine system, leading to hormonal imbalances. Lack of sleep, limited sun exposure, inactivity and work induced stress will affect our immune system and hence make our metabolism less resilient to fight those toxicities.
Diagnosis:
Because it often involves multiple causes, proper diagnosis is critical in order to improve the outcome and maximize the chance of full recovery. Diagnosis has to be done with multiple testings, including blood work, stool and urine analysis, hormonal testing and genetic testing. Each individual health history and presenting symptoms will decide which tests would allow to give the more information and hence identify the causes of the problem.
Treatment:
Our approach consists of the following:
- Detailed environmental history
- Specific toxicities testing
- Remediation of biochemical imbalances using optimal diet and natural supplements
- Lifestyle changes and exercises recommendation to promote elimination of toxicities and enhance metabolic capacity
