In today's episode, we are talking with Dr. Deborah Gordon about bringing ancestral health principles into the doctor's office, She did her medical training at the University of California in San Francisco, and practices family medicine in Ashland, Oregon. She goes by "Dr. Deborah", runs the health website, DrDeborahMD.com, and is a member of Physicians for Ancestral Health. Dr. Deborah integrates conventional and functional medicine, diet, sleep, exercise, sunshine, stress reduction and other lifestyle enhancements into her medical practice.In recent years she has expanded the same health principles into her work with aging patients, particularly with the issues of dementia and osteoporosis. She was an author on the published study: Precision Medicine Approach to Alzheimer's Disease, with highly successful results. Her website provides a wealth of information and resources on topics such as autoimmune disease, cancer, women's health, and brain health. Her current practice is at Northwest Wellness Center in Ashland.Many of us who are inspired to eat and live by ancestral principles find it challenging to talk to family physicians or specialists about using dietary approaches or natural alternatives to conventional medications to control cholesterol, hypertension, osteoporosis, or even mood-related conditions. In our conversation with Dr. Deborah today, we'll get some insights into how she combines the best of conventional medicine with the power of evolutionary health principles grounded in peer-reviewed science and practical experience. She explains how her career as a doctor has evolved and how she combines conventional medicine with lifestyle enhancements. She also talks about her website, DrDebraMD, and the resources it provides on various health topics, and the "Precision Medicine Approach to Alzheimer's Disease: Successful Pilot Project" journal article which demonstrated the efficacy of individualized treatment plans used. Of particular interest, Dr. Deborah describes her use of hormone replacement therapy and vitamin supplementation to improve cognitive outcomes. Finally, she'll give us some tips on how we might better communicate and work with our own personal physicians to achieve health goals.Resources:
Website: DrDeborahMD.com
Podcast: "Docs Talk Shop"
https://www.docstalkshop.com/
Study: "Precision Medicine Approach to Alzheimer's Disease: Successful Pilot Project" https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9484109/
Functional Medicine. https://www.ifm.org/find-a-practitioner/
Cognitive support, even without a physician: Apollo Health at apollohealthco.com
Cranial osteopaths, hands-on approach: https://cranialacademy.org/find-a-physician/
Here is a guide to topics discussed in this podcast episode:Time Topic00:07 Introduction
02:04 Ancestral health influences on Dr. Deborah
04:46 Dr. Deborah's medical practice
10:38 The DrDeborahMD website and resources
14:52 Applying ancestral health principles to help real patients with anemia and cognitive issues
22:22 Pilot study: "Precision Medicine Approach to Alzheimer's Disease"
29:04 Designing individualized treatment protocols to improve cognitive outcomes
34:38 Expanding primary care testing to pinpoint cognitive decline risks
37:15 Surprising result from the study #1: mold toxicity
40:22 Surprising results from the study #2: Hormone replacement therapy
42:03 Evolutionary perspective on hormone replacement therapy
44:40 Addressing concerns about cancer risk from hormone supplementation 48:11 Vitamin supplementation
49:55 Other areas of Supplementation: Oils, glutathione, and ayurvedic herbs
51:38 Testing to identify deficiencies and supplementation needs
53:05 Cost and affordability of testing and supplementation
55:21 Combining conventional and ancestral medicine
56:20 The mission of Physicians for Ancestral Health
1:01:30 Working with your conventional family doctor
1:03:53 Working with doctors remotely as consultants
1:05:34 How to talk to your doctor (edited)
Buzzsprout
Eavesdrop as Dawn Lemanne, MD, and Deborah Gordon, MD discuss their difficult cases and the hard decisions they make behind the closed door of the exam room, when the textbooks and research protocols fall short. They also share with each oth...
PubMed Central (PMC)
Precision Medicine Approach to Alzheimer’s Disease: Successful Pilot Project
Effective therapeutics for Alzheimer’s disease are needed. However, previous clinical trials have pre-determined a single treatment modality, such as a drug candidate or therapeutic procedure, which may be unrelated to the primary drivers of the ... (174 kB)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9484109/
The Institute for Functional Medicine
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Ancestral Health Doctor