Breaking Thru the Fibro Fog: Scientific Proof Fibromyalgia Is Real, By Dr. K. P. White, is a great read. I strongly recommend it. He clearly explains who gets Fibro.

“Women appear to be more likely to get FM than men, but both genders get it. In our survey of almost 3300 adults living in London, Ontario, Canada, we confirmed the diagnosis in roughly one in twenty women and about one in sixty men. Most had never been diagnosed. In fact, though it hopefully has improved over time, the average duration of symptoms before someone with FM ever even gets to see an appropriate specialist who could diagnose it, has been as long as between 5 and 6 years.”

“People of all ages can get it, including children; but it is most commonly first diagnosed in those who are in their thirties through fifties.”

“Several patterns of disease onset have been described. One pattern is a slow, insidious onset without any precipitating event. A second pattern of onset is much more sudden (acute), often appearing to have been precipitated by something like an injury. There are those who suggest that FM often is caused by some form of injury. And a small percentage of cases seem to start after some sort of fever-associated illness (presumably an infection), though whether any true relationship exists remains unproven.”

If you want some help with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia, please call our office at 480-820-3297 for an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD, author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

Breaking Thru the Fibro Fog: Scientific Proof Fibromyalgia Is Real, By Dr. K. P. White, is a great read. I strongly recommend it. He does a nice job of concisely summarizing Fibro symptoms:

MUST BE PRESENT (for it to truly be FM, as it is currently defined);

*       Chronic widespread pain

*       Chronic widespread body tenderness

VIRTULALLY ALWAYS PRESENT

*       Debilitating (disabling) fatigue

*       Poor (non-restorative) sleep (you wake up feeling worse than when you went to bed)

ALMOST ALWAYS PRESENT

*       Problems with short-term memory

*       Problems  with concentration

*       Headaches

*       Migraine headaches

OFTEN PRESENT

*       Diarrhea; constipation; or diarrhea alternating with constipation (commonly called irritable bowel)

*       Crampy abdominal pain

*       Abdominal bloating

*       Pelvic discomfort

*       Urinary urgency associated with discomfort

*       Numbness and tingling, especially in the hands and feet

*       Cold-induced whitish discoloration of the hands and feet (something that is called Raynaud’s phenomenon)

         If you want some help with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia, please call our office at 480-820-3297 for an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD, author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

― Theodore Roosevelt

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

― Theodore Roosevelt

“Believe you can and you’re halfway there.”

― Theodore Roosevelt

“The only man who never makes mistakes is the man who never does anything.”

― Theodore Roosevelt

“It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.”

― Theodore Roosevelt

If you want some help with your weight, please call our office at 480-820-4297 to make an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD  author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

As all of us who have struggled with weight painfully know, it is far easier to lose 25 pounds than to keep it off! In fact research shows only one in twenty does so. Therefore, we want to thank Z for letting us share her story.

Z had been overweight her entire life and even had to take weight loss pills as a youngster. She had never successfully lost weight and kept it off.  She presented as 71 inches tall with a weight of 207.4 pounds. She had been taking Synthroid for a thyroid condition. Her work-up revealed she was not efficiently converting her T4 hormones to T3. We started her on a low-glycemic-load Modified Mediterranean Diet, a walking program and a Rx for T3 to take with her Synthroid. Like all of our patients, Z went through extensive education  regarding nutrition and the psychological/behavioral aspects of eating behavior. She has continued to have regular  professional contact with our office over the last 4 years, and has found this very helpful in avoiding any major slumps.

She lost slowly but consistently her first year and has now successfully kept her weight off for four years!

Initial weight: 207.4 lb.

One Year Later: 189.8 lb.

Two Years Later; 179.8 lb.

Three Years Later: 183 lb.

Four Years Later: 182 lb.

Congratulations to Z! She is functioning at a new and better level in every way!!

If you want some help with your weight, please call our office at 480-820-4297 to make an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD  author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

Although the treatment of obesity may be difficult, there are successful programs available. Obese individuals do not need to return to some ideal, non-obese weight to improve their health risks. Several studies have demonstrated that if weight loss is maintained, even a modest amount such as 10% of initial body weight can have a significant impact on obesity-related comorbidities, e.g., diabetes, heart disease, blood pressure, osteoarthritis, etc. A long-term follow-up study of weight maintenance in over 600 men and women who completed a 26-week OPTIFAST Program showed that a large percentage of participants were successfully able to maintain at least a 5% or greater reduction in body weight at five years. We have had many patients change their lives with Optifast, sharing they now feel better, function better, look better, and have greatly improved their lab work!!

If you want some help with your weight and/or considering an Optifast Program, please call our office at 480-820-4297 to make an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD  author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

I want to thank our Certified Clinical Nutritionist, Tracy Baginski, for this enlightening blog. A fine bonus for all our patients is the availability of Tracy’s input, as well as my own, for some of their difficult nutritional situations.

Salmon, herring, tuna, sardines, anchovies, mackerel may not taste the same but share a common, health giving component:  they are all high in omega 3 fish oil.

The research is clear on the many benefits of regular consumption of cold water fatty fish.  A brief list includes:  lowers triglycerides, reduces blood clot formation, inhibits plaque, lowers the risk of sudden death and has shown to have anti-inflammatory properties.  Thousands of studies published in many peer-reviewed journals provide evidence of the virtues of omega 3 fish oil.

Krill oil has received a good deal of attention in the media over the past 6 months, prompted by celebrity practitioners both on line and on television.  As we receive many questions on the subject a brief review is in order. Here’s the bottom line:

Until rigorous, independent studies prove otherwise, we continue to recommend omega 3 supplements to our patients, and here’s why:

-Krill oil is lower in the long chain fatty acid known as DHA.  DHA is especially important in people who are concerned about neurological health and wellness.

-Krill oil lacks robust, independent studies proving efficacy

-Serving-for-serving, krill oil is far more costly than a high quality fish oil omega 3 supplement.  A close look at two professional formulations show krill at twice the cost for  1/6th the amount of EPA/DHA fish oil!

-Finally, although controversial, many conservationists have expressed concern about overfishing of krill, which is critical in the food chain of marine life.

For information about new lab testing for physiological levels of omega 3’s, please contact our office.

         If you live in Chandler, the Phoenix area, or Arizona and want some help with obesity, weight loss, a nutritional program for cardiovascular risk factors, or Fibromyalgia, please call our office at 480-820-3297 for an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD, author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

About 25% of U.S. teenagers consume a soda a day, whereas only 10% of teenagers exercise regularly, raising new discussions about obesity‘s effect on the nation’s youth, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Sugar-sweetened beverages are reportedly the largest contributor of added sugars in the diet of U.S. youths. Aside from soda, other sweetened drinks of choice for youths include sports drinks (16.1% drank a serving daily) and other types of sugar-sweetened beverages (16.9%). As part of the Healthy People 2020 initiative, CDC investigators evaluated data from a survey of youths in grades 9 through 12. Only 15.3% of U.S. high school students met the Healthy People 2020 aerobic goal of 1 hour of exercise daily, 51% met muscle-strengthening goals, and only 12.2% met the goal of doing both of these activities.

         If you want some help with your weight, please call our office at 480-820-4297 to make an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD  author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

         High olive oil consumption may be protective against  stroke, according to a French study. 7625 subjects were followed for over five years. All participants were aged 65 years or older. A subgroup of 1345 underwent baseline measurement of plasma oleic acid, the main component of olive oil. Compared with subjects who claimed never to use olive oil, people who regularly used it in dressings as well as for cooking had a 41% lower risk for stroke. Those subjects with the highest oleic acid levels had a 73% lower risk of stroke compared with those in the lowest levels of oleic aid.

         Olive oil is recommended on most of our weight management food plans.

If you want some help with your weight, please call our office at 480-820-4297 to make an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD  author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

Research recently published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in January 2012 confirms what we have observed in our office for many years. As we age, we can do many things to keep our brain and mind functioning on a high level. These include mental stimulation, physical exercise, DHA, and magnesium. This research focuses on the importance of B vitamins. Australian researchers studied 900 depressed people aged 60-74, giving the either a placebo or a daily supplement containing folic acid and vitamin B12.After two years, those taking the B vitamins had improved cognitive functioning, including better memory, compared to the placebo groups. In a similar vein, our patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Fibromyalgia (FM) “brain fog” have shown excellent responses to our high potency Vitamin B12 injection program and IV Meyers’ Cocktail.

If you want some help with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia, please call our office at 480-820-3297 for an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD, author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type

New findings published in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) suggest that a diet filled with raw fruits and vegetables may reduce an inherited risk of cardiovascular disease and having a heart attack. Scientists reported that variants in 4 DNA snippets on chromosome 21 are linked with an elevated risk of heart attack. Among people with the variants, eating few fruits and vegetables was linked with a high risk of heart attack, but eating lots of fruits and vegetables had a protective effect.

If you want some help with your diet, weight or cardiovascular risk factors, please call our office at 480-820-4297 to make an appointment.

         Have a great day and super week!

Scott Rigden MD, author of The Ultimate Metabolism Diet-How to Eat Right for Your Metabolic Type