Help needed for poor circulation to legs - Red necrosis (updated 26/01/15)

Before intervention

Hi Gary,

I was browsing through your website and saw your article on leg circulation:

I have the exact same ailment which seems to be getting progressively worse. I take 13.5mg of warfarin per day due to multiple blood clots, which has in effect cause much of the problems in my legs. I suppose, my venous issues are compounded with varicose veins which have increasingly developed due to incompetent valves.

Before intervention

I have seen many GPs who are seemingly baffled at how to manage my condition. The prescription so far has been compression stockings which I have learned actually cut off the circulation and cellular respiration in the legs causing ulcers to remain open indefinitely. I have since banished the stockings and applied zinc oxide regularly which has healed up the ulcers. Now I am left with the red necrosis like the gentleman in the above link, which is slowly creeping up my legs.

If I could get the condition that gentleman's legs healed to it would be heaven!


___________________________
Gary:


A few years have passed and I can report that the gentleman who owns the legs in this photo is now well into his 70's and his legs are better than ever.  He is a regular walker and in good health.

After intervention

When he first came to see me, he was in distress and I was shocked at the state his legs were in.  My, how things have changed!

Let's be real about this condition: It is indicative of seriously poor circulation to the legs and this may be a precursor to eventual lower leg amputation.  To beat it, we can not afford to mess about.

The nutrition interventions I may recommend depend upon each individual's special circumstances and must also be mindful of what medications they may be on.  For example: Vitamin E may augment the anti clotting effects of Warfarin, so the obvious action is to reduce the amount of Warfarin if we decide to give you vitamin E (This may need the cooperation of your Dr).

The big breakthrough, of late, is iodine deficiency which we can now test for.

After intervention

By far the best first action is to obtain a Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis (HTMA) and possibly a Thyrodine test (contact me by phone to discuss).  I am not keen on giving you a "One Size - Fits All" list of advice for a serious health issue.  We must get it right.

For example: You may be lacking zinc but you may actually have too much; you may need more vitamin C but then again it may be copper you need more of.  You may have far too much calcium in your soft tissues and not enough magnesium.  Do you need more fat and protein?  Who knows?  The only way we can know for sure is through the HTMA.

So, the first step you will need about a gram of natural undyed hair that you send to Pacific Health.  The process of analysis takes 3-4 weeks from the date you send in the hair sample.  Once you have your copy of the report you need to contact me to arrange a time to go through the report together.  If you do not live in Wellington, New Zealand, then we can do this either over the phone or with Skype (I prefer Skype).

Oh! - It might be worth taking several photos of your legs so that you have something to refer to in a year or so from now.  Improvements can be very subtle and easily missed.  Photos do the job well and can be matched with other measures such as distanced walked with comfort.

_______________________________________

More related articles:

http://blog.garymoller.com/2015/01/first-aid-treatment-for-severe-ankle.html

http://blog.garymoller.com/2015/01/my-ankle-fracture-dislocation-two-weeks.html

http://blog.garymoller.com/2008/01/how-to-prevent-deep-vein-thrombosis-in.html

http://blog.garymoller.com/2008/09/do-natural-health-therapies-work.html

About this website

The advice in these articles is given freely without promise or obligation.  Its all about giving you and your family the tools and information to take control of your health and fitness.  Please give me your support by subscribing to my free email updates. Please encourage your family and friends to do the same. While we may not always be able to compete with the big operators on price, we aim to more than compensate through personal service!




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Client feedback: "There has been a marked improvement in the psoriasis"

"Hi Gary.
Just to let you know that after increasing the Iodine there has been a marked improvement in the psoriasis to the extent that there is very little left. 

And the diet has been relaxed with no ill effects.

Now this may be coincidence or the detoxing or everything but what a GREAT result!

So thank you for the surprise Christmas present and our BEST wishes to yourselves for well being and happiness this Christmas.

Cheers"
(name withheld)
____________________________

Gary:
This is not coincidence, in my opinion, but the result of patience, a lot of persistence on the behalf of the person - plus the benefit of scientific testing to guide the process (in this case, the ICL Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis and the Nutrisearch Thyrodine tests).

Psoriasis, by the way, is closely linked with a number of interesting factors, that show up with these tests, including poor thyroid, adrenal and liver function - and toxic element exposures such as lead and arsenic (which explains why psoriasis is very common among people who work with metals and chemicals - farmers, engineers, mechanics, carpenters, electricians, painters and even plumbers.  Think people who use firearms - lead).

There also appears to be a link between psoriasis and fungal and/or viral infections (I think its a fungal infection because it responds to natural antifungal and antiviral nutritional interventions - not drugs).

Iodine has well documented viral and fungal antiseptic properties and is one of the mix of therapies employed.

(I'm about to start generalising; but I am talking about what is the rule and not the exception)

So, why doesn't your doctor (most doctors - I mean - of course there are always a few exceptions)   use these unfunded tests and use these cheap "natural therapies", preferring, instead, to rely on mostly ineffective, expensive patent drugs that are, almost without exception, fraught with numerous and often dangerous side-effects?  

The answer is simple:   

Medical education, especially continuing medical education after graduation, is dominated by Big Pharma. 

Doctors are very busy people: In order to keep practicing as a doctor, a doctor must earn a minimum number of CME points (Continuing Medical Education = CME).  If a course is not certified for CME credits, few busy doctors are going to attend - Full stop!

Big Pharma fund the medical conferences and most, if not just about all, of the CME training courses, they completely, or partially fund most of the medical research projects and they mostly fund the course presenters for CME.  Its pretty much a closed shop for mainstream medicine and it shows in the shunning of natural therapies that can not be packaged into a high-value patent medicine for Big Pharma.

A health practitioner, like myself, is unlikely to be invited to run a course about how to use and interpret the scientific testing that I have become proficient in.  Why?  Because these tests measure a person's state of health, rather than disease (there is a subtle yet important difference), and shows how to keep a person well and without the need for patent drugs.  That's not good for business if you are in the drugs business.

The latest attempt by medicine to counter the growing disillusionment in symptom-driven medicine and the growing trend by their patients to seek "natural therapies" is for a doctor to call oneself an "integrative", or "holistic" medical practitioner.    This is a laughable claim in the majority of cases.  It is a cunning marketing manoeuvre that is akin to the wolf in sheep clothing.  Drugs are then dished out under the pretence that they are "natural therapies", or natural products, or their synthetic analogue, are prescribed in massive and potentially megadoses - Things no responsible "natural therapist" would ever do!

Would you ever give a potted tomato plant a month of fertiliser and water in a single hit and then leave it for a month?

Would you ever give a healthy human being, let alone an ill one, a months worth of vitamins in a single dose?

Of course the answer is "NO!" Because its nuts - you'll kill the tomato plant for sure.  What about the human?  But your holistic/integrative doctor might just do it.

A current example which I find infuriating is vitamin D.  Vitamin D supplementation was resisted for decades by the medical profession, despite the clear evidence that the Sun Smart message had created a global epidemic of vitamin D deficiency-related disorders.   

Reason: Natural vitamin D can not be patented. But the resistance has been replaced in the last few years with enthusiastic prescribing of vitamin D.  With the development of synthetic analogues of vitamin D such as Ergocalciferol, doctors are now dishing out megadoses of these drugs (these are not natural forms of vitamin D but potentially toxic analogues) with gay abandon and without any testing of an individual patient's vitamin D status.  What we are talking about is giving a patient a month's wort of synthetic D in a single dose!  One group of medical researchers even experimented with giving elderly women a dose of 250,000iu!  The results can be disastrous to health, as any person with a skerrit of common sense, let alone medical training, will know:

http://blog.garymoller.com/2011/06/is-monthly-administration-of-50000iu.html

This woman's GP prescribed 350,000iu of synthetic vitamin D in a single week:
http://blog.garymoller.com/2012/12/widespread-over-dosing-patients-with.html

This sort of prescribing is nutritional nonsense that has no health benefit while risking serious risk harm.  Its medically indefensible.  Especially if there is no regular testing to monitor vitamin D status.

Iodine Deficiency: 91% of the New Zealand population

Iodine is an element of the universe and, as such, can not be patented as a drug.  The same goes for vitamin C - it can not be patented in its natural form.  So, these are seldom used as a medical therapy, despite the enormous wealth of research documenting their numerous therapeutic qualities.  Nothing will change until a patent version is developed and then the irresponsible rush will be on to capitalise the monetary return.  Incidentally, as soon as drug goes off-patent, it usually disappears off the market and is replaced by the next patented medicine designed to fill the gap.  Even in little New Zealand this is a billion dollar business that almost totally dominates health care.

What treatment is available, via medicine, often is less to do with what is best for the ill patient and more to do with what is good for business.  Sadly.

So, for psoriasis, for example: Because there is not an effective patent drug for the condition, a patient will not be offered an effective natural, non-patent, alternative that deals with the underlying causes.  Instead, they may be prescribed a combination of harmful patent drugs such as Prednisone and Methotrexate - Treating the symptoms and not the causes, while risking generating a whole raft of new problems for the poor patient!

About this website 

The advice in these articles is given freely without promise or obligation. Its all about giving you and your family the tools and information to take control of your health and fitness.

Candida and Fungal Infections? Gary Moller recommends you explore this programme: Click Here!

How to send in a submission on The Natural Health Products Bill in just a few minutes

SUBMISSIONS

On The Natural Health Products Bill

Submissions are due by 24 Feb 2012

We have been getting quite a few enquiries about The Natural Health Products Bill

The more people who make a submission the more likely the government is to respond to our concerns.

Just so things are clear, there are two bills that have been causing public concern The Food Bill, and The Natural Health Products Bill. Although they are separate bills they both apply to many of the same things because the line between a food and a supplement is blurred.

The Food Bill was a 378 page bill that was introduced to parliament in 2010. Very few people were aware of it and there were only 66 written submissions on it. It is about to go up for it’s second reading very soon and unless there is a public outcry, it could soon be law.

To find out more about its dangers and what else you can do about it, go to: NZ Food Security   

The Natural Health Products Bill is a 38 page bill that aims to regulate vitamins, minerals, herbs etc as a different class of products, distinct from foods or pharmaceutical medicines. Like the Food Bill this is being rushed through, but this bill is one that we can still make submissions on for a few more days. Submissions on the Natural Health Products Bill are due by 24 Feb 2012

Both bills are long documents that are deliberately vague in their wording. The Natural Health Products Bill is what is known as a “thin" bill. The current Natural Health Products Bill also gives wide powers to whoever is charged with administering it.

A bill that is long and vague is very difficult to make a coherent submission on. The biggest danger of these bills is not what is actually said, but what is not said. In the Natural Health Products Bill, the lack of detail and wide powers given to those charged with administering it means that this bill could later be used or twisted by the government to mean almost anything.
A key aim of The Natural Health Products Bill is to establish a Natural Health Products Regulator within the Ministry of Health, and make it a legal requirement to apply for a licence to manufacture natural health products in NZ. This will certainly create increased costs for manufacturers, distributors and consumers, and reduce the range of products available.
It’s important for the future of natural health products in NZ that as many people as possible make a submission on this bill, and if the government are going to write a long vague bill we may as well write a large number of vague submissions.
Only 66 submissions on the Food Bill was a poor result, though not really surprising given that the bill was incomprehensible and very few people knew about it. But we are aware of the Natural Health Products Bill, and the key thing here is not what to say in your submission; it’s the sheer number of submissions received. Our raw milk submissions numbered over 1600 which was pretty good – this is an even larger issue, so get a submission sent in urgently.

---

How to send in a submission in just a few minutes – here’s a sample submission template

(this is a very short version – we have a longer one online , and remember to personalise this a little to make it unique)

To the Health Select Committee, NZ House of Representatives

Re: Proposed Natural Health Products Bill



I am a natural health products consumer and I am seriously concerned about aspects of the proposed bill.

I request that the bill incorporates the proposals developed by the NZ Health Trust, consumer groups and NZ natural health industry groups. I am concerned that the tabled Natural Health Products Bill in its current form does not include most of these proposals.

I am concerned that the current proposal for the NZ natural health products industry to have to bear most of the costs of the Natural Health Products Regulator will cause an increase in the price of natural health products that would make many natural health products unaffordable. High compliance costs for businesses that manufacture or distribute natural health products also have the potential to drive many small companies out of business and this would lead to decreased choice and less competition within the natural health products market in NZ.

I believe that it is important that natural health products in NZ continue to be regulated by the NZ Natural Health Products Regulator, if NZ and Australia develop a joint agency to regulate pharmaceutical drugs and medical devices

[If you like, add statements here about how you and your family have benefited from the use of natural health products.]

Yours sincerely,

[Your name]

Ian Gregson & Deb Gully
Wellington Chapter
Weston A Price Foundation 

12 Queens Drive
Kilbirnie
Wellington 6022
New Zealand 

Ph 04 934 6366

_______________________________________

About this website

The advice in these articles is given freely without promise or obligation.  Its all about giving you and your family the tools and information to take control of your health and fitness.

Here is an update about how natural therapies really do work

Natural therapies really do work when matched to a person's specific needs and given plenty of time and patience.

Please go here to see the original photographs of these legs and judge for yourself the remarkable turnaround that this man has achieved with a few vitamins, minerals, diet changes and massage.

He is an enthusiastic walker, proud again to show off his long legs!

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Poor Circulation to Legs - Natural Therapies continue to work their magic

"Hi Gary
I hope you had a great Christmas with the family.

I thought I would show you these great pictures compared to June of  those legs.  There is a big difference."

"F"

_____________________

Gary:

The first two photos are of "F's" legs which were in dire trouble earlier this year.  Medical interventions were failing to stem the deteriorating

 condition of his legs.  We began a programme based on nutrition and self massage.  The last two photos were taken late December 2008.

The results speak for themselves.

For the original article, please go here.....

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Do natural health therapies really work?

"Gary I have to give you a very big thank you for coming up with a programme of natural products etc which cured the problem of itchiness and greatly reduced the discoloration on my legs which initially was increasing in size.

The GP and skin specialist failed to improve the condition over a year with products meant to heal from the outside, whereas your programme started from the inside with great results in four months." 

"F"

Let me begin by saying that there is 

no "cure" as such.  It is better to think of good ongoing management.

The kind of condition he is referring to is a combination of nutrient starvation and poor circulation.  It is unsightly and can become increasingly uncomfortable and painful.  It can be embarrassing when getting about with bare legs, such as when out walking. 

"F" never thought he would ever wear shorts again when out walking.

 Left to progress, as it inevitably will, the consequences can be amputation.  Conventional treatment does not address the underlying causes.

Now and then there is a real hoop-la 

when some expert comes out with 

evidence that "this or that" supplement or natural therapy doesn't work.

The truth is that natural therapies and some nutrition supplements do work when done well. This means a thorough assessment by a person with a good knowledge of human 

physiology, health conditions and a good understanding of conventional medical treatments and their alternatives. Natural therapies take time, so patience is a requirement. 

They are not "cure-alls". Success is 

never guaranteed. Handing out a pile of supplements across the counter of 

a retail store is not good health care, either and probably serves to discredit natural alternatives to 

pharmaceuticals which dominate subsidised health care.

Natural Therapies often work

The photos in this article tell it all: 

They are before and after shots of the legs of our active man in his 70's. A few months ago "F" was facing what could have become the fight of his life: Progressive tissue breakdown due to increasingly poor circulation through the lower legs. This can progress to amputation.

I began by a couple of assessments to try as best one can to determine what nutrition and lifestyle factors may be at play to be causing the poor circulation and the tissue breakdown.

"F" began with an Active Elements prescription, all of the fat soluble vitamins and a few other nutritional aids to top up the body for a while. He made a few key changes to his diet, including

more quality protein, essential fatty acids and rich antioxidant foods like blackberries. I showed him how to massage the legs to get the fluids flowing and he did this daily using a natural skin moisturiser (Refer to his comments later in this article).

The before and after photos show "F's" legs, first on the 2nd June 08 and again on 29 September 08. What they show is a dramatic improvement in the state of health of what were a set of increasingly precarious pins.

Giving credit where its due, "F" has to be congratulated for having the confidence to go with my advice and to persist consistently. After all, his condition was most uncomfortable and not a good look, so it is most tempting to go for the quick-fix in desperation.  Natural therapies usually take a lot more time and effort to deal with the underlying causes as compared to pharmaceuticals that deal only with the symptoms.

Comments from "F"

"I thought I should mention that since the first visit to you I am not using sugar in tea nor coffee, with the result about 8 teaspoons less sugar per day.  I have switched to silver top milk,  butter, cream and blackberries every morning and have butter with my greens.  Each day over the past four months I took wheatgerm oil, cod liver oil, Vitamin D and Lechithin.

The other things I think helped  is the compressed stockings worn every day and using a 24 hour moisturiser "Avena" immediately after showering.  

Also the doctors did not give me drugs as such only Loratadine tablets to reduce the itch which I rarely took, because it was too late when I had the itch to be of much benefit.  The doctors prescribed  Lemnis Fatty Cream with Hydrocortisone 1%, but that did not help nor did the Lemnis Fatty cream without the Hydrocortisone which the skin specialist prescribed and the wearing of compressed stockings."

Warning: There is always a time and a place for conventional medical treatments and always consult your doctor before changing any treatments and be guided by the advice given.

for my commentary:

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Hospitals - Toxic Workplaces?

"W" who works within the NZ hospital system writes:

The fatal mistake the west has made is wedding itself to expensive treatments then its focus gets political to maintain the funding to keep the expensive systems. Most people grow up and see the hospitals as the only answer when you get really sick. Its so hard wired into their brains - big centers with lots of machines electronics and chemicals are the way to treat serious conditions.

The most important treatment centre starts at the fruit and veg shop and the bulk buy shops. and the health shops. If doctors prescribed fresh fruit, veges, whole food, we would only need hospitals a fraction of the size we have.

I stare out my window at the back of XXX Hospital and look at the main building which has just had two floors added to it. XXX Hospital is due to double in size. And on and on it goes. Auckland hospital is a city in itself.

If people think medical science holds all the answers then they are consigning themselves to early graves and lives full of far more suffering than they should ever have to endure.

Hospitals are just very crude factories processing people as fast as possible, treating symptoms, sticking bandaids on gaping wounds that can't be seen because they are metabolic in nature, caused by incorrect lifestyle heavily influenced by Western beliefs and marketing hype.

Even the health food industry has a lot to answer for trying to label everything possible as a health food. When it has added empty calories in a great deal of its products.

Having come through 12 years of chronic fatigue, I'm better than I have ever been since I was a teenager. And I know that it is not just a case of patient heal thyself, it is up to the patient find the answers and apply them to thyself. I sent a message to my boss about how to alleviate her high blood pressure through conventional methods and included an official result from a health test I had showing my low blood pressure when once I had high blood pressure myself. I received no response whatsoever, these people condemn themselves to an early grave through their narrow minds
_____________________________
Gary Moller comments:
I could not have said this better. Thanks "W". I once had a physiotherapist friend (Sadly she passed away prematurely cancer) who commented that Wellington Hospital was a toxic workplace! I am no fan of hospitals and the over-reliance on pharmaceuticals. The health system, as it is structured and and funded is distorting health care.

Finding a good masseur

I often use massage when helping clients with their injury problems like shin splints and low back pain. It is one of the most effective tools for prevention and recovery from muscluloskeletal injuries.

One of the most frequent requests received is who else, other than myself, can I recommend as a good masseur. This is never easy to answer because there is never one masseur that suits every one and it is impossible to recommend someone in a place other than Wellington. The advice I give is to shop around until you find a masseur who "does it for you". In making this recommendation, I offer a few rules of thumb:

• Ask about their qualifications. Ideally, they should have completed a course that is recognised by the local qualifications authority. However, this is not always the case and you must not be too quick to judge. In some instances, some the best massage therapists I have ever found are either self taught or come out of places like the Pacific Islands, China and Eastern Europe with wierd qualifications (or none at all) that will never receive official recognition in the West.
• Time spent massaging = quality.One of the reasons most physical therapy treatments don't work is because proper treatment takes time. If the therapy (including massage) is less than 30 minutes, or if the therapist relies on fancy machines, drugs and potions, then it probably is not good enough for you. Effective massage requires time spent with the hands on the body. An hour is a good start and 40 minutes ongoing would be acceptable.
• Choose somebody with strong hands. A proper massage is not a tickle and rub: It requires strength and stamina to progressively work into the knotted ligaments, muscles and tendons and to soften and separate them from surrounding structures. This takes time and a lot of energy by the masseur.
• Stay away from masseurs that hurt. While it is essential that the masseur works to break down knots, scars and trigger points, this should be a progressive process. If the masseur dives right in to pummel out a painful trigger point with their elbow and various torture tools, this will only cause the muscle to tense and tighten. A good masseur will carefully and progressively work on the painful spots for as long as 1/2 and hour at a time, steadily increasing the pressure as the muscle relaxes and the knots soften. While this process can be very unpleasant you must be able to relax the muscles; if you feel yourself tensing, crying out in pain, or tears are welling, then the masseur is overdoing it.
• No manipulation! Especially if this is to the neck or any other part of the spine. The only exception is if it is done by a trained professional who has several years of formal training in the procedure. The best professionals for doing this procedure safely and effectively are chiropractors and osteopaths. I am very wary of others, including most physiotherapists and doctors with additional qualifications in spinal manipulation. Their hours of formal training in this potentially hazardous procedure simply do not compare to the training undertaken by a chiropractor or osteopath. When it comes to spinal manipulation, my advice is to stick to the experienced specialist.
• Give it time. Apply the 21 day rule. This means 2-3 massages per week for 3 weeks. If the massage is going to be beneficial, you will know for sure by 21 days. By 21 days, any knots, trigger points and injuries should be noticeably improved; you will be feeling great and will be moving and exercising much more freely and for longer. Ongoing 1-2 massages per week of the hard working areas is one of the most effective ways to keep tthe musculoskeletal system working well.
• Check out your diet while you are at it. If you are troubled with painful knots and general aches and pains, you may have depleted your body of essential nutrients, including B vitamins and minerals, including magnesium. By doing a course of boosting your body's stores of various nutrients, you might be amazed at the difference this makes to how your body feels, especially the way your body handles stress and hard physical activity. All of what you need is available from my store.

Save yourself some money: Once you have learned what works for you by seeing a trained professional and once you are on top of your problems, why not coach your partner or a friend how to do, say, your knotted shoulders? Then return the favour. This sort of contra deal is always welcomed!

Goji Berry ban - an example of what we are in fo

"Goji berries, the latest healthy eating fad, may have to be removed from sale.
...the Food Standards Agency has warned health shops and supermarkets that unless the berry can be shown to have been commonly eaten in the European Union for more than 10 years, sale will have to cease on 23 March.
Importers and manufacturers will then face a two-year reapproval process.
The watchdog accepts there is no immediate threat to health but it must follow the EU rules.
The goji berries, said to help to combat heart disease, cancer and skin damage from the sun, have been eaten for centuries in China and other parts of Asia."
__________________________________
Gary Moller comments:
If New Zealand allows the establishment of the NZ Food Standards Authority, we will face the same ridiculous situation. Of course, the consumer will pay for the additional costs.

Big Pharma, with the assistance of their health bureaucrat buddies and friendly politicians is fighting a campaign to neutralise the most potent threat to their dominance of healthcare dollars - natural therapies, including nutritional and traditional therapies by indigenous peoples. They want you all to be like the patient in the photo to the left!

If you let them win, then your harmless herbal remedies, cheap vitamin C and cheap joint food powder may one day only be available through a doctor's prescription. They will cost a bucket load more than they do now.

Annette King is the Minister in charge. She is a former dental nurse. Has she been sniffing the mercury amalgum? This might explain why she is persisting with this scheme that nobody other than big pharaceuticals want. I understand that premises are already in place and the staff have already been recruited despite the fact that the legislation has yet to be passed. This is a pre-emption of the democratic processes of Parliament.

Please write to the Minister, Annette King, New Zealand Government, Parliament Buildings, New Zealand (No stamp required) and express your concerns about the proposed Therapeutic Goods Agency and why not pay your local MP a visit? They will listen to you.

Is it iliotibial band syndrome - or is it Wobbly wheels syndrome?

"Hi Gary
I did my first marathon in July last year and had very tight ITB bands afterwards. I had a few weeks off then starting running again. When I did my first few runs I developed a shooting pain around my knee. I have been for physio treatment on and off and had a big break from running but I’ve just tried starting back again and the knee pain has come back. It is where my ITB band joins my knee on the outside of my left leg. Do you have any suggestions/advice on how to overcome this injury so I can get back to running again.

Photo: Here is an example of useless therapy in action - Get the cart after the horse please: This patient needs to improve nutritional status first before any kind of physical therapy can be expected to give lasting benefit.

_____________________________________
Gary Moller comments:
Further discussion with this 30'ish very active woman revealed that this injury is just one of a whole succession of injuries over the last few years, all of which have been pushed, prodded, massaged, manipulated or exercised in various way, including the near mandatory fitting of the dreaded orthotics. I have concluded that she is suffering "Wobbly Wheels Syndrome" (WWS). "

I clicked to WWS several years ago because I kept getting inquiries like this: "Gary, I get a week into exercising in the gym and my knee flares up. I rest for a couple of weeks, and go see the physio several times and then my hip goes and then its the knee again. Then its my back and and then my doctor tells me I have blood pressure! I feel as if my body is falling apart. Am I just getting old? Should I just give up and go buy a rocking chair?"

No, it is not really about getting old and this person does not need the rocking chair - But his wheels and other part are getting loose and worn. Time to put the body into the Body Workshop for some major tender loving care.

WWS has little to do with getting old. I think it is a case of the body getting exhausted and depleted. The body needs to recharge its batteries. This means a physical and emotional rest from the rush of modern life and a diet with some supplements to restore depleted stocks.

The therapy that I usually recommend for conditions like recurrent iliotibial band pain, glandular fever or high blood pressure is a combination of corrective exercises, rest, sun and nutrition. This may include advising the person to take a lenghty holiday in the sun in a place like the peaceful and isolated Cook Islands and living on the locally grown fruits and vegetables. This advice works without fail. Their injury and health problems resolve within a few weeks and the person is able to resume exercise later on with energy and enthusiasm and without recurrence of health or injury issues.

I have thought often about setting up a health resort in a place like the Cooks as an alternative to the costly, wasteful and mostly ineffective medical treatment that goes on for conditions like cardiovascular disease, obesity, depression and anxiety, chronic fatigue and arthritis (to name a few). Unfortunately, all the health money has been sucked up by these wasteful therapies, leaving little over for the therapies that actually work.

Therapeutic Goods Authority looms large - stop it now!

The Therapeutic Goods Authority (TGA) which the Government has committed to setting up without proper consultation with the public is well on the way to being established. Staff have already been hired making a farce of any consultation.

How will this regulatory organisation benefit the NZ public? We deserve to know.

The TGA will regulate natural therapies, natural medicines and nutritional supplements as if they were hazardous prescription pharmaceuticals. It is doing so on the basis of safety - premise that nobody has been able to substantiate (There is not a single recorded death in recent NZ history from taking a natural medicine or supplement).

If the TGA goes ahead, as would appear inevitable, your ability to decide what is best for your health will be severely diminished and the cost will rise.

Maori traditional healing will be seriously compromised and the development of herbs and medicines based on native NZ plants will probably not be possible without the financial muscle of Big Pharma.

Submissions are being called for; but you have only a few weeks to get one in. A Maori Hui is being organised to opposed the TGA. Details below and please get involved, if only by writing to your MP.

Here are the PDF files for these:

• Hui Invite
• Impact of TGA on Maori
• Hui Expression of Interest
• Maori Party Letter and Speech

Please act now and retain our freedom to manage our own health. Throw out the TGA!