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Atherosclerosis: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

I used to work in a supplement store, and I had people come in all the time asking for things that would “clear their arteries” because their doctor said it put them at risk for a stroke. This is absolutely true, but unfortunately there’s also no magic supplement that will help “unclog” those arteries. The best approach is through a combination of lifestyle, diet, and potentially supplementation if warranted. To understand how to approach atherosclerosis, we first have to know what exactly it is.

What is atherosclerosis? (The Ugly)

The basic bottom line is that atherosclerosis is a disease of inflammation and immune system activation. It involves a series of steps that start with your risk factors (many of the things I have mentioned this month already on my Instagram posts) and end in restricted blood flow due to plaque formation [1]:

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By Dr. Priscilla Tang, Naturopathic Doctor, ago

Five Ways to Take Care of Your Heart

Since February has been arbitrarily designated “Heart Health Month”, I thought articles around heart health would be fitting. It’s an extremely important organ, and unfortunately cardiovascular morbidity affects the majority of our North American population. Whether in the form of hypertension, high cholesterol, coronary artery disease (CAD), atherosclerosis, etc, the good news is you can do something about it.

Here are some things you can do to help support your heart:

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By Dr. Priscilla Tang, Naturopathic Doctor, ago

Top 3 Things You Should Know About Lab Testing

Part of my “east meets west” approach to medicine involves the use of lab testing. Naturopathic doctors can order labs that MDs can (such as cholesterol, blood glucose, creatinine (to help assess kidney function), iron, thyroid, etc) and additional ones that family doctors don’t have access to (such as food sensitivities, saliva and urine hormone testing (a more accurate measurement of hormones vs. blood), stool and bacterial overgrowth analysis, etc). However, I don’t believe in using a lab test for each and every treatment. Individualized medicine is the cornerstone of naturopathic medicine! While lab testing is a fantastic tool that I believe in to get quantifiable measurements to help guide treatment and track progress, it can be tricky to navigate.

Here are some things to keep in mind before you do any lab test:

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By Dr. Priscilla Tang, Naturopathic Doctor, ago

“But what IS a naturopathic doctor, really?”

The beautiful (and sometimes frustrating) thing about naturopathic medicine is that each naturopathic doctor (ND) practices differently, so it can be difficult to know what to expect. You can go to 10 different NDs, each with a different way of treating and approaching care, and they can all be effective. This because naturopathic medicine is based on individualized treatment, and while NDs are all trained in a variety of modalities (herbal medicine, homeopathy, Traditional Chinese medicine, etc), each ND has a different experience with each one.

Another confusing aspect is that naturopathic medicine is not regulated everywhere. In Canada, the term “naturopathic doctor” is protected by law only in Ontario and British Columbia. This means that if you find a registered ND in either of these two provinces, you can be sure they have the proper education, passed all their licensing exams, and are governed by a regulatory body that helps to protect the public.

So… when I get asked “what is naturopathic medicine?”, my response is always “Good question.”

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By Dr. Priscilla Tang, Naturopathic Doctor, ago