“Pre-Conception Healthcare”

If you are thinking about getting pregnant having a complete blood panel done BEFORE you get pregnant may be the best thing you can do to assure a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby. In fact, many holistic physicians feel a complete physical should be required before you become pregnant as well as testing for metal toxicity, molds, electromagnetic fields and STD testing.

Let’s start with the most important test first. You should have your Thyroid tested. This does not mean getting just a TSH reading this means getting a complete thyroid panel including Free T3 and Free T4. Hypothyroidism in an expectant mother can lead to miscarriage of the fetus, a lower IQ of the child as they grow and potentially Down’s Syndrome.

Correcting your hypothyroid condition may be as simple as correcting underfunctioning adrenal glands (can be checked with a saliva hormone test) as according to Joe Mercola it is often the cause of an under functioning thyroid gland. If adrenal health is adequate but your T3 and T4 are not normal or your TSH is higher than a reading of 2 (normal is between 1 and 2)then you may need to take Dessicated Thyroid (Armour, Nature-Throid, Westhroid) but under most circumstances do not fall for the advice to take synthetic T4 only (Synthroid, or the generic Levothyroxine) as it has been my experience that that is a slippery slope to taking more and more thyroid medication with no possibility of resolution or improvement.

Next have your Vitamin D3 (25 OH(D)) levels tested. You should have a level near or exceeding 50 ng/ml to stay healthy and provide an environment that is healthy for the fetus to develop in. It is thought in certain circles that low Vitamin D3 levels in the mother could lead to autism in the baby and this would not be noticed until the child is nearing their third birthday.

If your levels are low it may be prescribed by your physician that you take doses up to 50,000 mg until your levels are 50 ng/ml or above. These are hefty doses and are generally only taken over a few months, a week at a time until your levels are normal. If your levels are low do not attempt to get pregnant until your levels are at least 50 ng/ml and do not take these high doses without a physician monitoring your D levels.

Toxins are a very real threat to the health of your unborn child Mercury being chief among these toxins that can harm your fetus.  There are tests for heavy metal toxicity and if you have amalgam fillings you should have these safely removed and replaced before considering pregnancy.

Should tests for metal toxicity show that you have toxic levels you need to know the metals that you have accumulated and then follow detoxification protocol including removal of silver fillings. Taking chlorella, drinking Cilantro tea or taking Cilantro tincture is an easy thing to do and will cause your body to get rid of the heavy metals. Far Infrared Sauna will also aid the detoxification process and allows the toxins to exit via your skin instead of poisoning your already challenged liver.

Dr. Deitrich Klinghardt recommends an Electro-magnetic field test before getting pregnant. This means testing the areas where you sleep and work for EM fields and protecting yourself from the affects of EMFs. He recommends turning the fuses off to the electricity in your bedroom at night, he will not allow cordless phones in the homes of his patients planning on becoming pregnant and feels strongly that exposing the unborn fetus to undue EMF stress is a huge contributor to behavioral problems in children not to mention cancers and other devastating problems. He does recommend a netting that can be put around your bed much like a mosquito netting that will stop the onslaught of EMF waves which sounds exotic to me but I can see the benefit since I have a “techy” husband who will not turn off the cell phones at night and leaves them by his side at all times not to mention the cordless phones that dot our countertops throughout the house.

It all sounds terribly difficult but it is not impossible and going in to your pregnancy with a healthy body could and will save you years and years of problems or perhaps better said, challenges with your as of now unborn, hopefully unconceived child. You really must dare to conceive the inconceivable.

An Idea to Warm Up To

My naturopath and I were having a discussion several weeks ago regarding health and healing and I finally asked her to tell me in a nutshell the one thing she would recommend I invest in to optimize my health. She didn’t hesitate one moment and answered “The far-infrared sauna”.

She actually told me about the far-infrared sauna at my first visit and piqued my curiosity but as there was not one available in my area I was unable to pursue it as a healthy addition to my life. I pondered this for several months and looked in to buying one for home use which seemed a good idea but then I came upon an even better idea I would provide a far-infrared sauna to anyone interested in using it as a healing aid or just to maintain their health. This summer I am opening a business in Stillwater, Minnesota that will provide all of the benefits of far-infrared sauna without the investment of money and space to have one at home.

“What is a far-infrared sauna?” you ask. As succinctly as possible I will attempt to answer that question.

According to Sunlight Sauna’s (http://www.sunlightsaunas.com) website “far infrared light(FIR) is part of the sun’s invisible spectrum and since it can’t be seen it is experienced as heat. One of far infrared light’s characteristics is the ability to easily penetrate human tissue. When this happens  it creates a natural resonance, which has many beneficial properties.  Dr. Toshiko Yamazaki, M.D. owns a clinic in japan where she has done extensive research on the therapeutic uses of far-infrared. In her book, “The Science of Far-Infrared Therapies” she explains that one of the reasons FIR has beneficial results in a variety of illnesses is the ability of FIR waves to remove toxins which are often at the core of many health problems.

The far-infrared sauna looks like a traditional sauna and mine is made of basswood to provide the best hypoallergenic properties but in appearance it will be as pleasant as sitting in any sauna. The infrared sauna differs from a traditional sauna in several ways but I feel the primary difference is that far-infrared has healing properties due to its ability to penetrate human tissue more deeply thus exciting existing cellular water molecules, breaking them down and allowing the cells to excrete the toxins that have accumulated. A traditional sauna uses extreme heat(150 degrees+) and humidity to make a person sweat and release some toxins. Far-infrared uses much lower temperatures (110 degrees F-130 F) but more effectively allows the body to release accumulated toxins because it heats from the inside out.

Far-infrared sauna therapy has been studied quite extensively(particularly in Japan where it has been in use for many years) and found to be quite  therapeutic in treating conditions as diverse as artherosclerosis and fibromyalgia. It can be effectively used to help people with debilitating arthritis or who suffer with psoriasis. It aides in weight loss and is equivalent to 30 minutes of aerobic activity (but who wants to sit in a sauna instead of exercise I want to use it in addition not as a substitution for exercise). It helps clarify skin that is troubled by acne and helps build collagen in skin like mine that has lost some of its elasticity. It has been used to detoxify former drug users by L Ron Hubbard and less well known but every bit as important to me it has helped a friend of mine lessen the pain and debilitating affects of an injury to her groin.

Will I be able to make such claims to the people who use my facility? Of course not, there are far too many lawyers out there looking for business and far too many people willing to give them their business. I feel confident however that I have the information to prove that the far-infrared sauna is a great healer and I simply want to provide those who are looking to maximize their potential for good health with the tool to achieve their goal.