Hair they come to save the day
When I read the news, I laughed out loud.
It never ceases to amaze me how the medical mainstream can turn on a dime, suddenly embracing a theory they had previously thrown right under the bus. We've seen it happen with nutritional therapy, homocysteine, the inflammation theory...the list could go on and on.
Now it's happening again, this time with hair analysis.
A recent study out of Utah's Brigham Young University reports that doctors can use hair analysis to diagnose eating disorders. Here's a direct quote from MSNBC's coverage: "...hair could reveal information about a person's day-to-day nutrition." HealthDay quoted the study's lead researcher, BYU biology professor Ken Hatch, as saying, "Your body records your eating habits in the hair. So, we can use that to tell the nutritional health of an individual."
As the teenagers say, DUH. Open-minded doctors have been singing the praises of hair analysis for many years. Meanwhile, conventional medicine has gone out of its way to discredit the practice. Hair analysis has been raked over the coals many times, in JAMA articles and prime-time news magazines. Each time the audience was intentionally left with the impression that hair analysis was just another ruse cooked up by a bunch of quacks out to steal your money.
Now, I'll admit that the application for eating disorders is a novel idea, and an interesting one. But the basic premise is the same for everyone: your hair can reveal valuable information about your eating habits and your health.
In progressive medicine, hair analysis is most often used to detect heavy metal toxicity. It can detect the build-up of several common metals, like aluminum and mercury. And if you've got a build up of these two, you want to know: aluminum has been linked to Alzheimer's disease, and mercury is associated with multiple sclerosis, chronic fatigue syndrome, and other neurological symptoms.
You'd be surprised how easy it is to build up dangerous levels of these toxic metals. We're exposed to aluminum through antiperspirants, toothpastes, cookware, and baking powder, and mercury through old dental fillings and in our poor polluted fish. Unfortunately, in today's world, toxic metals are just about everywhere.
But fortunately, there's something you can do about it. Hair analysis can be the first step, to see if you have a problem. One thing the critics have gotten right: it's important to choose a reputable hair analysis lab that uses ICP-mass spectrometry and isn't trying to sell you anything. (But isn't that true of any medical procedure?) One lab I like is Doctor's Data (www.doctorsdata.com) They've been doing this for over 30 years, and they know their stuff.
If you find you do have a build up of toxic metals, then it's on to Step 2. There are many safe, effective options available. We'll talk about them some more in a future House Call.
But back to the larger picture - the sudden about-face on hair analysis, the latest example of modern medicine's schizophrenia. Don't rely on the conventional "wisdom" when it comes to making decisions about your health. Do your homework and make up your own mind. Who knows -- the "alternative" decision you make today may turn out to be the mainstream "breakthrough" of tomorrow.
