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Don’t be a Statistic. Medical Mistakes are the Third Leading Cause of Death in the United States.

13502036_10154102429271815_7497922383029815833_n[1]A recent Johns Hopkins study found medical mistakes are the third leading cause of death in the United States, killing between 200,000 and 400,000 per year.

The study does not even consider misdiagnoses, or how many people suffer injuries without dying. We frequently see people who are medicated for what doctors think are diseases, but are actually symptoms with underlying causes. This is why we created the Gluten Free Works Treatment Guide – to improve proper diagnosis and treatment – so you and your doctor could connect the dots between hundreds of symptoms and their causes, causes like nutrient deficiencies that doctors do not recognize.

“Medical mistakes — from surgical disasters to accidental drug overdoses — are the No. 3 cause of death in the U.S., behind cancer and heart disease, two experts argued Wednesday.

They said a careful count of all deaths from preventable medical errors shows between 200,000 and 400,000 people a year die in the U.S. from these mistakes. The only way to get the country to do something about them is to start counting them, Dr. Martin Makary and Michael Daniel of Johns Hopkins University medical school argued.

“We spend a lot of money on cancer and heart disease but we have not even recognized that medical error is the third leading cause of death in the United States,” Makary told NBC News.

“We have not as a country recognized the endemic problem of people dying from the care that they receive rather than the illness or injury for which they seek care.” Read the rest of the story at NBC News. The case report is available at the New England Journal of Medicine. 

Helping Kids With Food Allergies Overcome Anxiety

When you have a child diagnosed with a severe food allergy it can be extremely challenging to help them feel comfortable and safe in social situations.  While living with food allergies may always present challenges there are a few things you can do as a parent to help your child manage their fears and anxieties.

First and foremost…you must try and remain as calm as you can, while still watching out for them.  When you get very worked up  and anxious in front of your child, they feel this and it passes on to them.  Teach them to be cautious and what to watch out for, but

Did you Know – Who Has Celiac Disease?

Who has celiac disease? While you cannot tell just by looking at a person, there are some common issues that can point doctors in the direction of celiac disease. Here is a list of 8… 

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) and Nutritional Deficiencies That Cause It

PMS Nutrition Gluten FreePremenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a female menstrual disorder that occurs regularly around ovulation and subsides within a few days of the onset of menstruation.  PMS affects up to 75% of women during their childbearing years.

Symptoms.  Most women with PMS will have abdominal cramps, be anxious, irritable, sad, emotionally unstable and feel bloated and uncomfortable in the days leading up to their period.  PMS symptoms commonly worsen in the years approaching menopause.

Diagnosis of PMS depends on 5 or more of the symptoms listed below with at least one symptom being one of the first 4:

Heal Your Gut

Celiac Disease (CD) is not curable, but it is manageable by eating a strict gluten free diet.  That may not be enough.

Many suffering from CD still feel ill even after being faithful to a gluten free diet.  Celiac Disease is an autoimmune disease which causes your body to attack and destroy the microvilli and villi in your small intestines.  These are key to the absorption of nutrients from food and are also where many enzymes used in digestion are made.  When these are destroyed, the ability to absorb nutrients decreases and can lead to malnutrition.

This is not all that happens in a damaged intestine.  Gluten can cause the tight junctions, spaces between cells lining the intestines, to be damaged or destroyed allowing larger molecules such as proteins and even microorganisms to pass into the blood stream.

Under normal circumstances, the intestinal wall only permits small particles to pass through the intestinal wall and into the blood stream. When these larger molecules make it through into the blood stream our bodies do not recognize these  larger molecules and an autoimmune response begins.  It is these autoimmune responses that may be the cause of you still feeling ill.  What needs to happen to feel well again, is to heal the gut.

“Add What You Like” Turkey Burgers

Yummy turkey burgers! Healthy AND delicious!

Being sick at a young age and having to go to numerous doctors has made me more aware of my body. I know when I feel great and I know when something’s “off”. When I realized food was the culprit of my illness I was persistent until we got answers. There were times I wanted to back down and settle because I was tired of fighting, but thank god I didn’t.

Although I have an amazing team of doctors supporting me, I have learned I’m my own body’s expert. I know what foods make my stomach hurt and I know what

Celiac Disease, on the Couch

stock-photo-3443895-depression-and-sorrow1-216x300[1]Kathleen (not her real name) came to counseling because of anxiety. After an intake, we identified several areas in her life that sounded like they were contributing to her difficulties. We started working with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, a system that looks at the thought sequence you use, and where a distorted belief can be corrected and thereby relieve suffering.

After teaching her a series of formulas, she was able to apply the principles herself when not in the office with me. This is a very effective psychotherapy intervention, that is so useful that many insurance companies paying for counseling expect to see it as part of a treatment plan. But, it did not seem to offer Kathleen the relief I was expecting. So, we continued looking elsewhere in her life for the source and solution of her anxiety. If it wasn’t her thinking causing it, perhaps it was situational.

I Got Glutened and It’s My Own Fault!

no glutenI sit here writing this post from my bed. It’s 9:39pm and I have been in bed since 4:30pm. My tonsils are so big it hurts to swallow and I feel like I have been in a boxing match where I lost, severely.

I used to get sick like this all the time before I was diagnosed with coeliac disease and I am starting this think that my immune system is a wreck again.

Why? Because I have been slack. Many of those out there with coeliac disease will think I am stupid. I am stupid.

You see at my current job we have staff cafe.