The Case of the Mended Heart
I want to tell you the mysterious story of a broken heart…a real broken heart that was mended. I’ve always loved mysteries. It’s one of the reasons why I became a physician. The mystery of the human body is reflected in the fact that causes and cures for the vast majority of illnesses that impair and shorten our lives are unknown. This includes cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, arthritis, chronic kidney and liver disease, and chronic brain diseases, like dementias. Bad stuff that is affecting too many people…Diseases that can, if you’re willing to do the work, be both prevented and cured.
The story begins 20 years ago when my patient, Patricia, told me, “Okay, I’ll do your stupid diet, but I’m not exercising.” “Okay,” I said to Patricia, “that’s great.” Pat was an 80-year-old patient who for eight years had been only willing to take nutritional and botanical supplements. They were helpful, both in improving lab tests and how she felt, but they failed to achieve any resolutions, which is normal. Nobody cures chronic
disease with pills.
This was a breakthrough for Pat. She was pushed into it by pain and suffering, but that is also normal. Nobody changes their behavior except for good reasons. She had been hypertensive for 20 years, and diabetic for 15. She was 80 pounds overweight, constantly in pain, and very irritable. On top of that, she had been recently diagnosed with congestive heart failure. The results of her medical interventions were as good as could be expected. But at that point, Pat was unsatisfied, and now willing to change her diet to see if it could help.
For the next nine months Pat followed my diet and supplement plan. The first benefits were with her blood pressure. It normalized after two weeks, so her cardiologist discontinued blood pressure meds. By the end of the first month, her mood was good, her pain was down, and she had lost the cravings for the foods that I had cut out of her diet. By the end of the fourth month, her pain was gone and her blood sugar was way down. Pat’s endocrinologist lowered her diabetes meds, and by the end of the sixth month, they were discontinued as her diabetes was gone, as
well. More remarkably, so was her congestive heart failure! Pat’s surprised cardiologist had to discontinue her heart strengthening meds. Her broken heart had, in fact, mended…itself.
While observing and recording what Pat ate for comfort, energy, and relaxation, over my years of treating her I began to have a good idea which foods had been halting her healing. They were the very foods she used as “medicine” to feel good in the moment, like sugar. Her new diet kicked her healing into gear, but she was also prepared to be successful with a rigorous and personalized supplement plan designed to address her heart and vessels, diabetes, fibromyalgia, and arthritis.
There are two kinds of foods: foods that give you power (nutrients), and foods that spend your power rapidly (quick fix foods). It turns out that the foods that offer a quick fix have a hidden price, such as Pat’s original symptoms. She was now aware of these costs and was done paying them. She was now willing to live well to be well, rather than using food or medicine to create the illusion of being well, when in fact she was not.
Naturally, I was excited about the resolutionof her hypertension, congestive heart failure, arthritis, and diabetes, all of which are considered to be treatable, but incurable. Pat was most appreciative that she had lost 80 pounds, had no pain, and was able to get around more easily. Her family appreciated her pleasant mood. She never had another sick day until the day she passed away at the age of 94. Today, we have even more support to offer, with experience and new assessments to inform our treatment plans. While these tools offer assistance, one must truly identify and neutralize dietary liabilities.
Are you willing to find out if you, too, can perhaps solve the mystery of your “incurable” disease?
Owen Miller, ND. earned a Doctoral Degree in naturopathic medicine from Bastyr University in 1985. He established the Holistic Health Clinic in Tacoma, WA, where he serves as the Clinical Director and delivers primary and naturopathic specialty care services to individuals of all ages and with all conditions. He is committed to naturopathic “best practices,” combining evidence based medicines with time honored therapies to create the most effective acute and chronic disease resolution-oriented care available. He centers his care on proven diet and lifestyle strategies that are among the most important new medical innovations. He contributes articles to professional newsletters, and lectures to audiences, both publicly and professionally. For more information, please visit theholistichealthclinic.com.
