https://bettereyehealth.com/ Organic MD and Better Eye Health – Safe Medicine That Works Sat, 08 Jan 2022 01:12:40 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Blubrry PowerPress/11.15.17 Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health false episodic Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health support@organicmd.com © 2025 organicmd.com - All Rights Reserved © 2025 organicmd.com - All Rights Reserved podcast https://feeds.podcastmirror.com/~images/2340461769680282.png https://bettereyehealth.com/blog/ TV-G Weekly https://bettereyehealth.com/8-things-your-mind-can-help-your-body-heal/ Thu, 21 Jan 2021 02:41:32 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1150 BEH PODCAST EPISODE 56 - 8 Things Your Mind Can Help Your Body HealThis is the eighth of eight podcasts, where we have been talking about the different pieces of our Better Eye Health program, more specifically, on what your doctor does not tell you. Your doctor does not tell you these diseases can be improved, that there are things you can do to reverse vision loss, and there are things under your control that make a huge difference in not only your health, but the health of your eyes. 8 Things Your Mind Can Help Your Body Heal. Part 8 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve.056 OMDPodcast 8Things MindBody-8of8CarlyleWelcome to the Organic MD podcast with Dr. Damon Miller. This is Carlyle Coash. How are you doing today, Dr. Miller?Dr. MillerI am happy to tell you that I am doing well today, and I am grateful for that and for today. How about yourself, how are you doing?CarlyleI am still in one piece. I am walking and breathing, mostly. The air quality has been better since all of the fires, but I am still here breathing. Dr. MillerIt is almost like the like icing on the cake, you cannot go out to mingle because of the pandemic. Now, you are not able to even go outside for a walk because the air is so toxic, but what are we going to do? CarlyleSmall victories. Dr. MillerYes, it is.Today is the eighth of eight podcasts, where we have been talking about the different pieces of our Better Eye Health program, more specifically, on what your doctor does not tell you. Your doctor does not tell you these diseases can be improved, that there are things you can do to reverse vision loss, and there are things under your control that make a huge difference in not only your health, but the health of your eyes. We have talked previously about the different pieces to our Better Eye Health Program, like microcurrent stimulation, color therapy, and supplements. We also recommend the elements of Oriental Medicine, like needleless acupuncture and exercises, which are important if you have already developed an eye disease, or if you have a predisposition to it. The piece we have not spent much time talking about is the fact that if you want to make your eyes healthy, you need to take care of your health.This sounds too easy and too good to be true, but the things you do to take care of your health have a huge impact on it. That is a dirty little secret about modern medicine, most of what you can do to be healthy, and even to reverse significant disease, is under your control and based on choices you make every day. We are here to help you make good choices and give you some good information about what you can do to take care of yourself. With western and allopathic medicine, they talk about the body and mind connection, but they do not really know what to do about it. This leaves us with just body, so we are going to be talking not just about your mind, but of your spirit and body. We will go over all the things you can do to take care of these three important pieces. I am going to start by discussing the body because I am an MD, and that is what I was trained in. Then Carlyle will go over the mind and spirit because this is his expertise. He has been working for decades with people on their mind and spirits. The basic thing about our body is pretty simple stuff, eat a decent diet. We should not be eating too many processed foods or sugar. If you drink alcohol, it is toxic to the brain and eyes, so you should stop drinking. The same goes for smoking cigarettes, they impair the circulation to your brain and eyes, so you should stop smoking. This is especially true if you area already impaired by a disease; these can all make it worse. You can find out more about what eating a decent diet is, by doing our Healthy Eating Workshop. We should do whatever it takes, even if it means giving up alcohol and smoking. We can talk about alcohol in moderation because everyone has a different idea of what moderation is. It is usually more than what I recommend. We also need to get some exercise, even if it is only taking a stroll around the block. Exercise is important and it does not have to be in training type atmosphere, like an Iron Man, but you want to move your body parts around, keep your joints supple, and keep your muscles strong. You need to do what it takes, and it will help serve you. Even more important is I want you to avoid the idea that there is a quick fix for your health. We need to step back from the global and integrated view of dealing with your health because it does take time. This includes your mind and spirit. If you have challenges with your health, you want to avoid the quick fixes because most of them are going to deal with symptoms, not cause. Chinese medicine has a great way of talking about it, using a tree as a metaphor. They talk about dealing with the root of the problem, not the branch. This means you want to work on the source of the problem, not only with the symptoms of it. This is a topic with a big discussion, so I am only going to introduce it here. You also want to avoid taking too many of the prescriptions that are handed out for the diseases. This is especially true with eye diseases because they can compromise your eyes for things like allergies and immune function. You can even get heart disease, high blood pressure, and have urinary problems. These drugs really have a negative impact on your eyes, so you want to find a way to deal with these problems without taking the drugs. There has been a lot of work done looking at how the health of your digestive system, heart, and cardiovascular system affects your brain and eyes. You cannot isolate to only taking care of your eyes, you need to take care of your whole body, it is one big package. This brings us to taking care of your mind and spirit. One of the differences I was taught with how oriental medicine looks at the notion of spirit is that 95% of all the people who come to you are dispirited, and this is at the root of the physical problems one is having. If you do not care for your spirit, you are not going to make it better. Fortunately, oriental medicine is full of ideas, tools, and techniques for touching someone's spirit by lifting, helping, and supporting it. This notion can be found in some early textbooks of western medicine. I am not sure if it still true today, but when I was going through my schooling, if you wanted to become board certified in internal medicine, you had to read Harrison's Textbook of Internal Medicine. I believe I had the 27th edition, and you had to basically memorize his textbook, which was very thorough. You can then go on to take the boards and become board certified in internal medicine. In the introduction to a few of the original additions, when he was alive, Harrison says, “Doctors, I need to let you know that 80% of the people who come to you are dispirited.” He says 80% and oriental medicine says 95%, but the point is that a big majority of people we see has an issue with their spirit that needs to be dealt with. This was understood with doctors in the past and passed on to me by one of my mentors, who was a country doctor. He would divide his day up, in the morning he would see people who needed quick fixes, like adjusting their medications or removing stitches. He could see five or six of them in an hour. The afternoon was saved for longer, almost hour-long sessions. He would see ladies who needed to come in to talk about their health problems, but had also recently lost their husbands; he knew it was their grief. They needed someone who cared and would listen them, so he scheduled longer appointments for people who would be working on their spirit. It worked very effectively. It may not be easy dealing with it, but you can do it and will thank yourself in the long run. CarlyleYou certainly will, and I have seen so many people get better. I was thinking back when I took a session at Stanford, based around spiritual, existential, and cultural perspectives around illness. I ended up teaching the course for a number of years, after I was two or three years into it. It was only a small module set in a larger set of modules that the medical students would take during their many days and hours of lectures. They would go through all different medical topics, then throw this class is, almost as an afterthought. I initially started with an hour and a half session, but as the years progressed, it went down to an hour, then 45 minutes. At one point, I asked a group of doctors and nurse practitioners in the session, how many other sessions they had that were like mine. They had different sessions on all sorts of topics and I was curious to know if they had any other sessions focusing on the body, mind, and sprit. After being stared at silently for a moment, I am told this is pretty much it. They do not have anyone coming in talking about social work stuff, it is all the logistics about discharging. I found it really interesting that they were spending hours upon hours learning all they can in the medical field, but the mind and spirit, which are very important pieces, are thrown in as an afterthought. I believe this led us to have the mindset of having a quick fix for everything, including our mind and spirit. We want to be handed a pill that will make us “better”, but this is not the best approach. We need to look at the long-term goal when working on these things. Every day we are deepening the understanding we have of our emotions and how they play out in our lives. One of the things I teach comes from a Buddhist tradition. Buddhism is an incredible heritage that is almost 3000 years old. In Buddhism, we are looking at our minds, emotional state, and how our emotions play a role in our actions. Take struggling with anger for example. When the anger arises in you, chances are it arises in a similar pattern. Your body may also feel a certain way, or even have a certain color, texture, or quality when it arises. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 21:33 https://bettereyehealth.com/here-are-some-powerful-tools-to-regenerate-your-vision/ Mon, 14 Dec 2020 14:41:46 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1138 BEH Podcast 54 - 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 6 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve. In this podcast, we are going to jump in with both feet and talk about a subject that is at the core of our work in the Better Eye Health program. There are powerful tools that support regeneration, and it is important to understand the notion of how you can help your eyes if you do have a serious retinal challenge, like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt’s disease, etc.I am not some magic sorcerer that has a way to take cells that are damaged and replace or repair them. I do know the body knows how to do this; your body can help you heal your eyes. I cannot heal your eyes, but I can help your body have the tools and resources it needs. We make sure everything that needs to be working is working, so your body can heal your eyes. 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 6 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve. 009_OMDPodcast_8Things_RegenerationCarlyleWelcome to the Organic MD podcast with Dr. Damon Miller, and myself, Carlyle Coash. Welcome back Dr. Miller, how are you doing?Dr. MillerI am good, it is good to hear your voice Carlyle. CarlyleIt is good to hear yours.Dr. MillerI really enjoy doing this, it is a good day for a podcast. Today we are going to jump in with both feet and talk about a subject that is at the core of our work in the Better Eye Health program. There are powerful tools that support regeneration and it is important to understand the notion of how you can help your eyes if you do have a serious retinal challenge, like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt’s disease, etc.I am not some magic sorcerer that has a way to take cells that are damaged and replace or repair them. I do know the body knows how to do this; your body can help you heal your eyes. I cannot heal your eyes, but I can help your body have the tools and resources it needs. We make sure everything that needs to be working is working, so your body can heal your eyes. Through research, we now know when something gets regenerated in your body, it involves our adult stem cell system. We are born with this elegant system, full of stem cells that are able to go where damage has occurred and help is needed. Your adult stem cells completely restore and regenerate, leaving the cells that were damaged, like new. You have the best stem cell system in the body and we are here to help you support your own stem cell system. We have seen it work and now we understand why it works. The results are far better than anything recorded, like injecting stem cells. CarlyleStem cells work from birth until death. There may be times when they slow down, and not work as well or be as effective, but they are always doing something. Take cutting your finger, for example. After it is cut, your finger heals and this is your stem cell system working. Dr. MillerExactly, breaking a bone is a great example too. CarlyleBasically, all of the tissues in our body regenerate numerous times throughout our lives because your system is constantly working. It can be hard to realize, but our body has so much going on and is always doing so much for us. Dr. MillerOur body is constantly regenerating and repairing the parts of us that need fixing, but we only found out recently this is true for every tissue in our body. It was not that long ago that I was in medical school where we were taught the brain and the central nervous system tissues, like the eyes and spinal cord, do not regenerate. It was taught that you are born with a certain number of cells and that is it. Through Nobel Prize awarded research, it is now understood all of these cells and tissues regenerate. The cells in your brain and eyes are turning over at least every ten years, possibly more often. These are the most complex tissues in the body and they do not repair or regenerate quickly, but are capable of it. Our program will help you with this, but you must do the work and stay with it. If you do everything we show you to do, it will work. You are going to improve the vision and health in your eye, but you may work on it for year before you see any benefit. It takes a certain mindset because you are in this for the long term. One of the tools we use in the program is something called micro-current stimulation. Our motivation to use this micro-stim unit, came from early work from an orthopedic doctor that was looking at why certain animals, like frogs and salamanders, can regenerate limbs. Is this possible to do in people? The doctor showed we the ability to some extent, but we are not able to go full force. When you amputate an arm off a mammal, the body can heal the wound, but it does not go as far as to regrow the arm. Through some very elegant research, he found he could use these externally applied electrical fields and actually regrow a limb on a mammal that had been amputated. With this finding, Grace Halloran, PHD., a woman I worked with until the end of her life and did much of the pioneering work with degenerative eye diseases. We thought, if you can grow an amputated limb on a mammal, maybe we can use this technology to help regrow cells in the eye. Among other things, she found with this micro-stim technology, you actually can. We have seen people regenerate their retinas and regain vision, in a long-lasting way. It does takes times and patience though. There is no single, “magic bullet”, where you can throw some electrodes on your eye, treat for a while, then all of a sudden everything is better. Some of the tools we are use are important too, like the oriental medicine of acupuncture. Instead of needles though, we use acupressure, which stimulates the acupuncture points by using pressure. This has turned out to be extremely effective. Our program offers things you can do to improve circulation in your head and eyes because you need to be bringing in nutrients and oxygen to them. We have learned some simple exercises from physical therapists and chiropractors to improve circulation in the brain and eye. We offer color therapy, which we consider more of a special treatment. Certain colors stimulate circulation in the retina, so we have these lamps that expose the eye to those colors. Then of course, the micro-current stimulation. Whether you are using it in the eye or on a broken bone that is not healing, it will improve circulation, remove toxins, and stimulate the health of the cells. The micro-current stimulation does is draw circulating stems cells to the area being treated. We go into more details of the mechanisms, science, and research that discovered and proves this in the book Stem Cells Heal Your Eyes. You can get that book on Amazon as a large print book, audio book, and Kindle. The final thing I want to touch on is about the physical aspect of degenerative eye disease. Let’s use the most common form of eye diseases, macular degeneration, as an example. The most common form of this is age-related macular degeneration, ARMD. It of does not show up until a person is in their 60s, 70s, or 80s. People go their entire life with great eye sight and being very healthy, then suddenly their vision starts to deteriorate. They go see their ophthalmologist and are told they have a degenerative disease. One thing we have learned is that just about everyone who has this problem, has an abnormal gene that predisposed them to it. There are a lot of people who have the abnormal gene who never experience any problems at all. I am telling you now, if you a diagnosis of macular degeneration, you have a gene that predisposed you to it. The question you want to ask yourself is how did you get to 60, 70, 80 years into your life with no problems in your eye. The reason you have been able to do this is because your body was taking care of you and your eyes. Your body was fixing things faster than they could break and was keeping that gene suppressed. If all we do is address and support those systems responsible for regeneration, and give it the resources it needs, your body will continue to fix your eyes, like it did for the first part of your life. I cannot fix your eyes, your body can. What I do know is how to support your body so it does the work. The theory behind this is stems cells heal your eyes. It is a complex, but know that it works. You do not need to understand why, you just need to do it and it will work. It is more a question of will you do it, not does it work? Some of this has a relationship to how the mind and body work. How do you commit to something to salvage something really important to you? Why do some people do it and other do not? When you have trauma in your life, or face any issues like it, the scars you are left with are both physical and emotional. This is what we mean by mind and body medicine. If you get whacked by something in your life, it will whack you emotionally and physically. Very often, we have seen people with an abnormal gene for macular degeneration and go their whole life without a problem. This may have to do with some emotional things, like things in your life that were hard to see or look at. I know you, Carlyle, have seen the poetic ways of how the mind and body works when you have worked with people with very dire health situations. Our mind and body are effected by the things that happen in our life.CarlyleIt can be very power. If we are willing to acknowledge it is possible, then something can happen. We often see with these eye diseases, activities a person has done their whole life, like playing golf, bridge, and doing outdoor activities often disappear. It is going to be harder to do these things that you have normally done. I believe this is because the message many receive is nothing can be done. I have known people who had macular degeneration and their eyes are seriously deteriorating. I suggest to check out our program and Dr. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 21:17 https://bettereyehealth.com/your-genes-are-not-your-destiny/ Mon, 14 Dec 2020 14:27:38 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1142 BEH PODCAST EPISODE 55 - 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 7 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve. This is the seventh of eight talks that we are putting together about the eye work we do to help people who have chronic degenerative eye conditions, like macular and retinal dystrophies. Some of the specific names include macular degeneration, Stargardt’s disease, retinitis pigmentosa, and cone rod dystrophy. We also help people who have severe glaucoma and separated retinas. Our eyes need a lot of support to be able to heal itself because it can. Today, we will be talking about the genetics behind these diseases. Especially, the idea that your genes are not your destiny. Let me say it again, your genes are not your destiny.  8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 7 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve. 055_OMDPodcast_8Things_Genes-Not-Your-Destiny-7of8CarlyleWelcome to the Organic MD podcast with Dr. Damon Miller. This is Carlyle Coash. How are you doing today, Dr. Miller?Dr. MillerI am doing pretty well during these tough times, by the grace of whatever. History will look back on this time, shake its head and wonder how we all got through it. I am grateful to be here because we are going to be talking about some important things. It is good to hear your voice, are you doing well?CarlyleI am holding up, as you said, by whoever is handing out grace. It seems to be helping to, at least, get through the day.Dr. MillerThis is the seventh of eight talks that we are putting together about the eye work we do to help people who have chronic degenerative eye conditions, like macular and retinal dystrophies. Some of the specific names include macular degeneration, Stargardt’s disease, retinitis pigmentosa, and cone rod dystrophy. We also help people who have severe glaucoma and separated retinas. Our eyes need a lot of support to be able to heal itself because it can. Today, we will be talking about the genetics behind these diseases. Especially, the idea that your genes are not your destiny. Let me say it again, your genes are not your destiny. Carlyle and I have been working with people for a couple decades now, and we see people in all different types of domains of their life. What we find of most people is they assume if it runs in their family; they will have and do the same thing their parents did. Your genes are not your destiny.CarlyleInstead of medical hexing, like we have talked about, we can say it is like a family or gene hexing. As opposed to seeing the pattern and looking to change it. Dr. MillerI see people respond to it if we can put it in some familiar ways. Without getting into a significant talk about genetics and epigenetics, consider the most common of these eye problems. Take the most common form of macular degeneration, called age related macular degeneration or ARMD. As it says in the name, the degeneration shows up in people when they are in their 60s, 70s, or 80s. From the time they are kids to the time they retire, there are no problems with their eyes. All of a sudden, their eyes start to fall apart. You need to be asking yourself if these diseases have a strong underpinning of some genetic predisposition, meaning you have a gene that predisposes you to the disease. We know that almost everybody who gets macular degeneration has some sort of abnormal gene. How is it that you can live to be 60, 70, or 80 years old, and have no idea that you have any kind of a genetic problem? You have had the gene from birth and your body has kept it suppressed. If it starts to rear its head, your body is able to fix things faster than they could break. This is true of many other diseases. Another bit of data that is interesting are the genetic testing kits, which look for genetic abnormalities. It is so common now, for only $90 you can get an at-home test kit that shows you any tendencies you may have for all these different dispositions. I do not recommend these tests, for most people, because they will get scared to death of the results. It may show you have a gene for diabetes, breast cancer, colon cancer, etc., but a lot of people have these genes. It shows us people with macular degeneration, have some of the genes that predispose you to it. There are tens of millions of people who have done this genetic testing and the gene is pretty common, yet the gene is much more common than the disease. Most people with the gene never get the disease. The same goes for people who have the gene for diabetes or breast cancer, most people will still not get them. Yes, there is a gene there, but the disease does not necessarily come with the gene. Well, what would make your gene get expressed then? We are going to shift gears a little so we can understand the basics of genetics, specifically about your DNA. This is the six-foot long piece of double helix; the base pairs that defines how you put together, like what eye color you will have. This is your genetics, and is what the genetic tests look at. Sitting on top of your genetics are epigenetics, which are the things sitting on top of the genome of your genetic sequence. They are incredibly tiny, barely the width of a wavelength of light, and involve things like proteins and histones. Every cell in your body has a six-foot strand of DNA, along with the epigenetics, and are not thrown together, like a bowl of spaghetti. They are carefully packaged, wrapped, and folded together. It is what is going into the folding up of the DNA that also controls the DNA. The reason you do not randomly start making tissue in your body is because the expression of the genes in your body are very tightly controlled. This is especially true when you are first forming as a fetus. Everything is very carefully controlled and orchestrated as you grow in the womb. Your neural tubes, ears, and everything else, can form at the right time. We do hear people saying there will be a drug or technology someday that will affect this. We just saw this week, the announcement of the Nobel Prize winner in biology. It was shared by two women for their development of CRISPR, which is the ability to modify your DNA sequence. This is one way to affect your genetics, by modifying the gene itself, but nobody has found a way yet to sell you a kit to modify your epigenetics. There is no drug, surgery, or technology for it.Epigenetics raises some interesting questions, like how does our body decide when a gene should get expressed and not? There are things that can change if you modify your stress level, diet, and lifestyle. These have a profound effect on whether or not an abnormal gene gets expressed. I know you have seen this in all the work you have done with people. CarlyleI certainly have. It also struck me when you mentioned how so many people are testing their genetics for all sorts of things. I hear more and more people doing preventative surgery, only because there is a chance the abnormal gene will turn into a disease. This is an odd term to use, but it is very “hot” right now to do these preventative surgeries to remove the issue before it starts. Yes, you can do this, but it is a very extreme measure of prevention. The focus goes to getting rid of the thing that might be a problem. If you know you have a propensity for macular degeneration, are not going to remove your eyes ahead of time? With this notion of epigenetics and its ability to affect an aspect by managing your stress, diet, all of the things we have talked about in the last few podcasts. There is a way we are committing to our resilience by building our resilience. As we have talked before, when it is flu season we find ourselves taking more vitamin C, D, and A, we make sure to eat healthy foods, and we are managing our stress. The core of your immunity is stronger, helping you to get through any flu or COVID season, whatever may be happening at the time. The same is true here because you have this gene, but it does not mean it will ever manifest ever. There are things you can do to improve your situation, so why not try them first, as opposed to a dramatic surgery that may not be needed. Surgery puts a lot of trauma and stress on your body, but it is a crazy choice people are making. We are living in a very interesting time right now, but we need to build our resilience. We must look not only at our physical health and the things we do to support our immune systems, but also how we manage our stress. We have all fallen into the assumption that nothing ever changes, that we will go on in life because everyone is going to live forever, and no loss will be experienced. Sometimes people think they will never have any stress, will have any job that makes endless amounts of money, and nothing is ever going to happen to the economy. If this is true for you, great, but if you have been on the earth for any length of time, you know that is not true. Things will always happen, there will always be change, and these things are unpredictable. We can have things in place for ourselves that will manage our stress on a daily level. You will be able to stay pretty full of physical, emotional, and spiritual nourishment, using the tools we have when outside circumstances shift and change. Let’s take for example losing your job, or there is an illness or death in the family, or you have relationship stress. Whatever it may be, you will have the tools because you have worked on your own self. In terms of stress, being able to relieve and nourish those moments can help you manage it long-term. You will have the work you have done and use it as an ally, where we can rely and draw from it. The road in front of us can be bumpy with uphill climbs and steep downhill falls or can be smooth sailing; sometimes it is all of the above. I think many of us assume that by continuing to make the choices we do in everyday life, will somehow work out. I really hope it does, Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 17:11 https://bettereyehealth.com/toxicity-is-an-obstacle-to-healing-your-eyes/ Mon, 07 Dec 2020 00:33:28 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1135 BEH PODCAST EPISODE 53 - 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 5 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve. In this episode, we are covering toxicity, which is part five of the eight part series about things your doctor does not tell you when you are diagnosed a retinal disease, like macular degeneration, Stargardt’s, or retinitis pigmentosa. Toxicity is something I wrestle with while talking with people in my office all the time. It is not the cause of a disease, it is an obstacle to getting better, no matter what kind of health problem. No matter what you are doing, toxicity gets in the way and it can stoep any progress from happening. It has to be addressed. People wonder all the time if they are toxic, but how do you find out? 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 5 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve. 053_OMDPodcast_8Things_Toxicity-5 of 8Carlyle Welcome to the organic MD podcast with Dr. Damon Miller, and me, Carlyle Coash. Welcome back to our interesting, ongoing conversation about bettering your health. How are you doing today, Dr. Miller?Dr. Miller I am doing well today. We are recording this while the great fires in Northern California are happening. It is bad enough that we are stuck here because of social distancing due to the pandemic, but it is almost dangerous to walk outside. It is getting better, and it is a good day to record a podcast. Today, we are covering toxicity, which is part five of the eight part series about things your doctor does not tell you when you are diagnosed a retinal disease, like macular degeneration, Stargardt’s, or retinitis pigmentosa. Toxicity is something I wrestle with while talking with people in my office all the time. It is not the cause of a disease, it is an obstacle to getting better, no matter what kind of health problem. No matter what you are doing, toxicity gets in the way and it can stoep any progress from happening. It has to be addressed. People wonder all the time if they are toxic, but how do you find out? There was a large study done to help find the toxins we have in our bodies. The study group consisted of hundreds of people, who were all seemingly healthy. They chose a healthy group of people to study toxins in, so they would have a control group to compare with those who have a disease or illness. Samples of everything were taken, stool, urine, spit, hair, and even skin biopsies. They tried to get as much information they could possibly obtain and came up with a list of about 150 toxins. The results were astonishing. Everyone had every toxin on the list, and in dangerously large amounts. This sparked a lot of interest in toxicity when the results were published in 2000 and doctors wanted to know if their clients were full of toxins. It was a mini industry for a number of years and some of the centers where the study was taken, put an elaborate test kit together. Doctors would get these kits with different tubes, vials, and envelopes to gather all the information from their clients; everything would then get sent back to the centers. This kit cost about $4,000 and you would get a 13-page printout back showing the results. This did not last for long because every test came back completely positive for toxins, everyone is full of toxins.This is a long conversation and we have a course on Do It Yourself, Detox. This first piece of work helps you mobilize the toxins in your body because they need to be shaken loose from where they have been stuck. This will help you from being sick while the toxins are floating around until your body can figure out a way to excrete them out. The toxins that are stuck are for a good reason and if it cannot deal with something it buries it in your solid organs, bones, tissues, brain, spinal cord, and in your eyes. This is so the toxins are not freely floating around your body, poisoning you; it is poisoning wherever it is stationed though. There is not much done for toxic testing anymore, but there are still some doctors who do. When we look at toxins, like heavy metals, through a hair or urine analysis, the results only show what is being excreted by the body, giving inconclusive results. The issue we run into when trying to address the toxins, is not that they have been exposed to the toxins, but their body is, in a sense, crippled, and cannot get rid of them. Out body is able to excrete heavy metals through urine or hair, but only if the toxins are not sedimentary. You may be full of lead or mercury and not even know it. A workaround to this is to give an agent that will mobilize the lead or mercury; when the test is repeated, there is usually a huge spike in the new results. This tells us that yes, you do have toxins, but taking an agent to mobilize them may be useful. Usually, the people doing this testing have the intention to do intravenous chelation. Chelation is the process of getting metals out of your anything, including your body and farmland. It has leading agents that bind up the metals so they can be either sequestered or removed. This is very profitable for doctors, but they need proof that that risky technique is justified. You have to go out of your way to get some data on paper that showing you really have these metals. They explain why they did this and apologize for causing any damage, but it was worth it because it was needed. It is completely the opposite. There have been people excreting metals out of their body for many more years by using oral medication, not intravenous chelation.This leads us to another part of our discussion on toxicity, which we will deal with for the rest of our lives. We live in a very toxic world, and will always be taking toxins into our bodies, no matter how hard you try. Some of these may already be acquired, and they can take many years to finally clear. It will take good habits of detoxification and getting rid of the bad habits, which you know a lot about, Carlyle. Your dad had habits he needed to change, and it is a very motivating story. Carlyle He had a clear understanding of his issue with his gallbladder because he ate very heavy and rich foods. He had the option to change his diet or remove his gallbladder, but he hates surgery and did not see it as an option for himself. He opted to make a change in his diet, started taking lecithin, along with some other supplements, and he lost a lot of weight. He knew he had to keep a healthy diet for the rest of his life, and he did. I was about eight years old when he started making these changes and had many more life experiences with him because of it. Along with changing his diet, he set a routine for himself. By setting a routine, he would be able to stick to the changes for rest of his life and knew if he goes back to eating like he used to, the issues with his gallbladder would arise again. If he stopped doing the things that helped him get to this place of feeling great, he would be right back in the same place. Usually, you are not just cleared and recovered for the rest of your life. It is different with a broken arm, once it has healed, it will not necessarily continue to break in the exact same location. We are talking about toxins and other health issues, which require changes you make for the rest of your life. Change is always hard at first, but once you are comfortably in your routine, it will be like second nature to you. In today’s time, we want a quick solution and never have to think about it again. The world is toxic and it does not seem to be getting better anytime soon, so we need to balance it out. The same can be said with COVID or the flue, we all need to do things on an ongoing basis to keep your resilience high. You are likely always going to get exposed to something like the flu bug or COVID, even if you take precautionary measure. We need to keep our immunity boosted by taking vitamin C and D3, so when you are exposed to something, it will not have the same effect. Dr. Miller I heard someone refer to this as fragility, when you are trying to avoid a state where you are vulnerable to whatever comes in from you. This says it perfectly and will bring our discussion into the habits we have. I have some inspiring papers on habits, that are written by someone I have known for years, and we will have a segment on our habits in the future. Carlyle I experience this in my own life when I am not feeling well or under the weather. If I reflect on myself and think about the last couple of weeks. I realize I have not been taking my vitamin C, D3, or my diet has not been that great. I need to make sure I am, at least, drinking some juices or smoothies so I can get the healthy greens and nutrients in my systems again. When I do not do this, my body has much more work to do to maintain, regulate, and give my body the resources it needs. We need to ask ourselves if we want to have a cold now or feel rundown in a week. None of us do, but we can lose track of it. I used to think I do not get sick in summer, but the worst colds I have had have been in the summer months. Having the cold or flu is more prevalent in the winter months, but it is still around. It is not like these bugs take a vacation from getting people sick, it will accompany you on your trip to Hawaii. We need to continually help our body, so it can fend off different illnesses. Dr. Miller We need to do these things that will keep us healthy, and continually do them. More and more, we are seeing people who are willing to engage and do the program we are talking about. They let us know years down the road that they are still feeling so much better. By taking care of their health, they can now sleep better, have more energy, and have not had a cold in years. We receive feedback from a broad range of people, and I have been seeing this since I left the hospital-based practice and stepped into integrative medicine, two decades ago. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 36:57 https://bettereyehealth.com/heal-your-diet-and-you-can-heal-your-eyes/ Mon, 23 Nov 2020 01:00:18 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1129 BEH PODCAST EPISODE 52 - 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 4 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve.Today, this is the fourth of eight podcasts on Organic MD. We will discuss our Better Eye Health program that helps people with serious eye diseases, like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and Stargardt’s disease. We have a very effective program for stopping and reversing the progression of these diseases. To some extent, allowing people to get vision back that has been lost. I want mention how important your diet is – what you choose to eat and how you eat it, not just taking supplements. Our title of this podcast, the benefits that come from improving your diet can go beyond your wildest dreams, says it all.8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 4 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve.007_OMDPodcast_8Things_DietCarlyleWelcome to the Organic MD podcast with Dr. Damon Miller. I am Carlyle Coash. How are you doing today Dr. Miller? Dr. MillerI am doing well today. I am very grateful. We are in a time where we get to spend more time listening to podcasts. Grateful for that and making our offering here. Today, this is the fourth of eight podcasts on Organic MD. We will discuss our Better Eye Health program that helps people with serious eye diseases, like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and Stargardt’s disease. We have a very effective program for stopping and reversing the progression of these diseases. To some extent, allowing people to get vision back that has been lost. I want mention how important your diet is – what you choose to eat and how you eat it, not just taking supplements. Our title of this podcast, the benefits that come from improving your diet can go beyond your wildest dreams, says it all.CarlyleI would agree. We talked a last time about my dad making his diet choice. Among other thing he did, the main shift was what he ate and how he ate it. From the time he made the change to the next 30 plus years, he kept to it. There were times he may stray and have a meal that was a little more heavy or cheesy. He would suffer a little, but would say it was worth it because he did not get to eat it that often. He was suffering at the other side of it though. You have talked about this many times over the years, your health can start reflecting the types of food we are eating and putting into our system. Our body works with what we give it, to some extent. If you are giving your body not-so-great-things, it will do the best it can to process them, but your body may take a hit for it. Dr. MillerYour dad was motivated. The doctor said he could lose some weight, but they would end up doing surgery anyway to take out his gallbladder. Your dad wanted to try losing the weight first. This is the basic philosophy here at Organic MD – when you have multiple things to try, go with the safe ones that easy, simple, and cheap. It may take some work, motivation, and effort on your part, but if there are options to surgery, we want to exhaust them. I cannot tell you how many people I have seen go into a fairly simple surgery and come out very scarred or dead. This is also true with a degenerative eye disease, like a retinal disease, or macular degeneration, etc. Will changing your diet reverse these diseases? It is not clear. There are many things you can do to take care of your health that are worth mentioning, in terms of the science behind it. When we talk about macular degeneration, Stargardt’s disease, retinitis pigmentosa, we are talking about problems that almost always have an underlying abnormal gene that predisposes you to it. I choose these words very carefully – predisposes you. Having an abnormal gene does not mean that gene is your destiny. We have another topic we will be talking about in a later podcast called epigenetics. This is the information that sits on top of a gene. The gene is simply the strand of DNA holding the information. It is wrapped around all of these complexes of proteins, histones, etc., that are bundled up and control which parts of the gene gets expressed. Whether or not a gene gets expressed is as important, if not more important, than whether you have the gene. Macular degeneration is a perfect example of this because it is the most common form of the age-related macular degeneration, ARMD. Often, age related macular degeneration, does not show up until the sixth, seventh, or eighth decade of life. Everyone with this has had the gene since birth, yet somehow their body has been keeping this gene suppressed. If there was any damage being done by the abnormal gene, the body was healing the damage faster than it could show up. In terms of the science of it, everyone now understands there is such a thing as epigenetics and how important it is, but seem to be looking for a drug that can be given to suppress a gene. How are we going to develop that? There has been a lot of work on epigenetics and with this work, there have been no drug…nada, nothing, zip, zero. This research has shown is that changes in diet and lifestyle will change the epigenetics. In other words, do things we know how to do to make you healthier. In our program, we are usually working with people at the later stages of the disease and they have already have quite a bit of damage done. You need to be doing a lot to regenerate and rebuild these cells in the eye. After all, they are the most complex tissues in the whole human body. When we are talking with the family members who have parents with this disease, the assume they have this gene too. We have also spoken with people who did a test found they have the gene. They are all asking what they are going to do so they do not have the same problems later on in life. If you eat well, take care of yourself, change lifestyles, do no drink too much alcohol, and do not smoke. We need to get a good sleep and destress. Basic, basic, basic things. We consider working with your diet is so important that I am going to talk about our Better Eye Health program. We do many things in the program, one of them being a module we added almost 18 years ago, our Healthy Eating Workshop. We work with you to find what is the best diet for you. What is the diet that is going to energize you, keep you healthy, and keep your cholesterol down? When you start working with a good diet, it solves all kinds of problems. People find that their blood pressure and sugars normalizes, their glaucoma goes away, their skin clears, and their joints feel better. The list really goes on and on. You need to be eating well. You would not believe what a difference it makes when you start eating a healthier diet. Keep in mind that a healthy diet for one person, may not be a healthy diet for another. It goes back to the old notion that you are what you eat. How often have you heard that? I have heard that my entire life, is it ever true.CarlyleI think you have said that your grandmother would say the fastest way to get in a box is to eat out of a box, or something like that.Dr. MillerThat was Adelle Davis, she was considered a the diet guru back in the 50s and 60s. She would always say, “The fastest way to end up at an early age in a box, is to eat out of a box.” There is a lot more wisdom where that comes from, not necessarily from Adelle Davis. Let me get philosophical for a moment, the reason that we are all here today is because we had grandmothers and ancestors who had figured out how to keep the family and the community healthy. It is not because of modern medicine. The wisdom we have been losing sight of is what does it mean to be healthy and what do you do? What is the healthiest lifestyle for you? There is a lot of valuable information and just another thing we do here at Organic MD. We are also trying to include more “ancient wisdom” in the podcasts and on our webpage. The most basic of it is you are what you eat. CarlyleBe curious of the things you are eating and what is in this product. Next time you eat something that is a processed, ask yourself what ingredients are in it and where did it come from? Especially when you are dealing with an illness, just asking those basic questions and thinking about it the next time you order something. This is also true when you are going to make something yourself. The next time you are at a supermarket and pull an item off the shelf, ask yourself if it will help you with the illness or issue you are relating to. You might have to put the box back…I go to Trader Joe’s and there are plenty of things that speak to me when I am in the aisle. The dark chocolate peanut butter cups literally talk when you walk by saying, “Wait, come back and get some! You need me, I am really good!” They are so good that you want to eat the entire container. I know I have to be very sparing or I will eat them all the time. In chocolatier terms, there is an aspect of chocolate that is good for you. The sweets and other processed foods contain so much fat, salt, and sugar. This mirrors back to what we have been talking about, which is for these things to change. You need to be more engaging, question things, and be mindful. Maybe pass on having three sugars in your coffee. Start with little things that you can shift in order to maintain that wellness. There are of course the rare examples, like George Burns. He smoked cigars his entire life, and probably ate pretty rich food, and drank too. He was fine, but that is not the case for the majority of people. We have to find our own path. Dr. MillerGeorge Burns was a pretty functional guy up until the end, but we are here to talk about the value of a good diet in the context of trying to stop and reverse a serious disease and keeping people on a good diet. One final thing about what happens when you eat well and make good choices about your food. It is not necessarily about peanut butter and chocolate and other sweets, Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 16:46 https://bettereyehealth.com/supplements-are-necessary-but-not-sufficient/ Tue, 17 Nov 2020 00:32:39 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1128 BEH PODCAST EPISODE 51 - 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 3 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve.We are continuing this series on macular degeneration, and specifically things that we can do around it. Today we are focusing on something you mentioned in the last session, which is really exploring supplements as one of the many things we can do. One of the first things that your ophthalmologist may suggest or do is hand you a little packet of vitamins as they are hustling you out the door. They offer a consolation prize, one piece in an array of things you can do to help reverse the situation of degenerative eye disease.8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 3 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve.004_OMDPodcast_8Things_2-SupplementsCarlyleWelcome to the Organic MD podcast. My name is Carlyle Coash and I am here with Dr. Damon P. Miller II. Hello Dr. Miller.Dr. MillerHey Carlyle, it is good to be hear. CarlyleWe are continuing this series on macular degeneration, and specifically things that we can do around it. Today we are focusing on something you mentioned in the last session, which is really exploring supplements as one of the many things we can do. One of the first things that your ophthalmologist may suggest or do is hand you a little packet of vitamins as they are hustling you out the door. They offer a consolation prize, one piece in an array of things you can do to help reverse the situation of degenerative eye disease. Dr. MillerAt the beginning of each podcast, we will briefly repeat what we covered in our last sessions. To start, the whole focus of this is for you to realize if you, or someone you love or know has one of these retinal diseases: macular degeneration, Stargardt’s disease, retinitis pigmentosa, cone rod dystrophy, etc., that there are things you can do to regain vision lost to these diseases. We know this to be true and we are here to tell you what we know about it, so you can do this for yourself or your loved ones.This is not something your eye doctor is going to say, but it is something we help with all the time. The eye doctors tend to tell you, if they are compassionate and honest, they do not have anything to offer you. There is no drug or surgery. If they are operating more from a typical script, they might say there is nothing that can be done. If they do not have anything to offer you, there is nothing that can be done. There are things that can be done. More recently, one thing the eye doctors do offer after making the diagnosis, like Carlyle was saying, is recommend taking certain vitamins – a brand called, Ocuvite. This is done routinely now because of the ARED Studies. The Age Related Eye Disease Studies is trying to codify what has been seen in research since the 1940s and 50s. A huge body of hundreds and hundreds of peer reviewed papers, looked at what supplements, vitamins, other herbs, etc., that we could do to try and help people with these degenerative eye diseases. The ARED Studies have found, if this is the only intervention you do is take vitamins and supplements, will slow the progression of the disease. These are progressive diseases – they never get better over time, but they do get worse. There is no single vitamin, supplement, or combination of the two that has shown to stop the progression of or reverse the diseases. I stand by that statement. I will say it again, “Vitamins and supplements will slow the progression, but they will not stop the progression of the diseases. They will not reverse the diseases and they do not lead to the recovery of vision that is lasting.” You need to do more. We will be discussing this topic over the next sessions. Today is our second of the eight-part series, and we will be talking about the things you can do. We want to be clear that supplements are necessary, but they are not sufficient. One important thing to keep in mind as we are laying out the program, where you can expect regeneration of some of the most complex tissues in the body – the retinal tissues. We are going to help you regenerate these, but you need the raw materials. These building blocks, like taurine, DHA, omega-3 Fatty acid, and lutein, will help rebuild retinal cells.You will need things that are going to block some of the inflammation that can occur. There are supplements that will, in a mild way, restore normal blood flow, and protect the health and integrity of the blood vessels. We also have some very specialized supplements that can actually help with regeneration. Different forms of therapies, like Improcitine, will be discussed too. This is a complex subject that we are going to devote an entire podcast to. Episode six is when we will go over the tools and supplements that can safely support regeneration and backed by peer reviewed research. Again, supplements are necessary…they are not sufficient. We are going to talk about specifics of these later.Basically, we recommend the things I named earlier: taurine, lutein, and DHA. It is a broad spectrum of vitamins and minerals, which matches some of the things that were in the ARED Studies. There are some specialized supplements that improve some adult stem cells, which helps with regeneration of anything that breaks in your body. In the beginning, there may also be some probiotics to support gut health because everybody has a bit of an unhealthy gut. We would like to note that we do not like any of the one pill from one bottle, be it a multi-vitamin or mineral. We find the supplements the ophthalmologists give out do not work very well and we will have more specifics on particular recommendations, like brands. We do not manufacture anything, but we do have brands we like. The simple thing about supplements that people tend to think is, “This pill is going to help me.” Carlyle and I have talked about this type of mindset before. CarlyleIt is so powerful when you become invested in your own knowledge and curiosity. This could be applied to an array of things. Taking the time to learn what is in the supplement you are getting. Can you be more precise and really evaluate it? Dr. Miller, I appreciate that you have really taken the time to look at all of these different supplements and find the ones that are the most effective over the years. You need the self-knowledge of being aware. You can do your own research by taking the top level of information that you are given and do a little further exploration. It does not mean weeks and weeks taking an intense deep dive. I remember the talks you have done around healthy oils and many people think if you take fish oil, you will get everything you need from the it. This is true, but the source of that fish oil is important. You pointed out the things that are beneficial in fish oil is not because the fish naturally have it. The fish get the nutrients from the food they eat, like kelp, that have all these great nutrients in them. This is stored in the fat of their body and we get the benefits when we eat the fish. A farm raised fish is given, what you called, Purina Fish Chow, and does not give them any adequate nutrients. Yes, this is a fish and therefore, fish oil, but does it actually have the nutrients we need? We need to take the time to learn how we get these nutrients. Ask questions like, “Why is this version D3 better than that one?” or, “Why is it that one can work and the other one does not?”. Dr. Miller, you have done a majority of the work for people, but I also encourage people to always be curious, look at labels, and do a little research. What we have talked about today is not a cure. There is still an underlying issue because it is a degenerative disease that is connected to something deeper, in terms of genetics. You still need to do these things to help manage and treat the issue so that it does not manifest as strongly. It does not necessarily mean that you are going to be cured of it. I think it is important to know that it does not have this as an end result. Dr. MillerWhat you are saying there is true of most things that challenge our health – we are managing it, not trying to cure it. In the first podcast, I mentioned if you have one of these degenerative retinal diseases, like macular degeneration (the most common), Stargardt’s, RP (retinitis pigmentosa), than you have an underlying genetic problem that predisposed you to it. There are many people who have this abnormal gene and lived to be 90 to 100 years old and never have an eye problem. Your genes are not your destiny.If you do have a gene that predisposed you to it, you need to try to keep yourself healthy enough so that gene never gets a chance to express itself. In a sense, you are managing your health in your favor to fend off chronic disease and degenerations. This is true if we are talking about cancer, an infectious disease, an autoimmune disease, diabetes, a heart disease, etc. I think about Nature’s rules of order, you are what you eat. CarlyleThat is right. If you start eating Purina fish chow, it is probably not going to help you.Dr. MillerNo, it will not and that would be a podcast on its own. I think we have milked this one for all its worth. I want to just leave you with one thing, supplements are an important part of taking care of your eye health, but they are not sufficient. In our next sessions, we are going to be helping you learn about what you can do to reverse vision loss that has occurred because of degenerative eye diseases, like macular degeneration, Stargardt’s, and retinitis pigmentosa. Thank you. We will see you again in about a week.CarlyleHave a great day.Dr. MillerThanks. Bye-bye.DownloadsBETTER EYE HEALTH PODCAST - EPISODE 51DOWNLOAD 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 3 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve.BETTER EYE HEALTH PODCAST - EPISODE 51DOWNLOAD TRANSCRIPT Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 13:08 https://bettereyehealth.com/you-need-more-than-what-your-eye-doctor-is-offering/ Wed, 11 Nov 2020 14:04:53 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1120 BEH PODCAST EPISODE 50 - 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 2 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve. Welcome to the Organic MD podcast with Dr. Damon Miller. I am Carlyle Coash. We are continuing our discussion about health, wellness, and the things we can do to improve all of these in ourselves. We are going to be talking about what we can do to maintain your health. If there was ever a time to be attending to it, that time is now. Today we will begin talking about our Better Eye Health Program, which will be a total of eight podcasts. We work with people who have serious eye or retinal diseases, like macular degeneration, Stargardt’s disease, and retinitis pigmentosa. Our program has shown to be highly effective for helping people with these diseases. 8 Things Your Doctor is Not Telling You About Your Eye Disease, Part 2 of 8. Hint: Your Vision Can Improve. 050_OMDPodcast_8Things_MedicalHex-2of8Carlyle Welcome to the Organic MD podcast with Dr. Damon Miller. I am Carlyle Coash. We are continuing our discussion about health, wellness and the things we can do to improve all of these in ourselves. How are you today, Dr. Miller?Dr. Miller Hi Carlyle, I am actually pretty good today. We are still in a crazy time in the world, but it is good to be here. We are going to be talking about what we can do to maintain your health. If there was ever a time to be attending to it, that time is now. Today we will begin talking about our Better Eye Health Program, which will be a total of eight podcasts. We work with people who have serious eye or retinal diseases, like macular degeneration, Stargardt’s disease, and retinitis pigmentosa. Our program has shown to be very effective for helping people with these diseases.I want to start by honoring Grace Halloran, PhD. She was a pathfinder of this field and put the ideas of this program together. ​When people are diagnosed with these eye diseases, their stories are pretty consistent. They go to their doctor because they have trouble with their vision. They may have a family history of the disease and their vision is now starting to be affected. The doctor says they have a very serious eye disease, the problem cannot be helped with a new pair of glasses, and there is nothing they have to offer. If a doctor is not open-minded, they will probably say there is nothing that can be done. This is far from true, there is something you can do. We call this medical hexing, when a doctor tells someone there is nothing that will help. People respect their doctors; if they are told nothing can be done, they believe nothing can be done. If they were being honest, they would say there is no drug or surgery they know of. They would recommend taking some vitamins to slow down the progress, but mention no improvement will be seen in their visions over the course of their life. We work with people to improve their vision all the time and we are here to keep all hope alive. We will let you know what you need to do to salvage your vision, keep it from getting worse, and regenerate some of the vision lost. Today we will go over the basic understanding that the things you hear about and are offered by modern medicine do not treat the diseases, they are treat the complications of the diseases. The disease with the worst complications is macular degeneration and everyone who has this disease starts with dry macular degeneration. As the degeneration process continues, the retina eventually reaches a point where the structure and vessels break down; this leads to leaking and bleeding in the retina. We now have wet macular degeneration, formally exudative macular degeneration. Doctors have developed some interesting treatments that try to stop the bleeding and leaking because it can be very destructive. Drugs, like Avastin and Lucentis, are injected directly into your eye with a needle. It does stop the bleeding, but it does not treat the underlying problem. The eyes will continue to get worse over time, just like before the injection. And if you read the 17-page consent form, it clearly states the procedure of sticking the needle in your eye is not intended to improve your vision. Any improvement seen is only because the big issue of bleeding was taken care of, but it is not intended to last. Medical treatments in Oriental Medicine refer to the root in the branch, you can treat the root of the disease or you can treat the branch. This means either treating the underlying causes or treating the symptoms. With western medicine, it mostly goes after treating the symptoms. I am sure you have seen this in the work you have done in hospitals. Carlyle If you are in pain or discomfort from these symptoms, you do not want to have them going on forever. You want a quick and temporary solution to help reduce the pain so it is more manageable. With my work doing palliative care, I have helped people who are so much pain they can barely speak. Managing their pain needs to be taken care of first. We can also take the age-old example of being in so much pain you are not able to sleep. The lack of sleep can cause more discomfort and disorientation, which adds to the pain. We addressed the pain and the patient was able to sleep comfortable, sometimes several days of good sleep. Once they have had ample rest, they found themselves feeling better and not as depressed. We can now focus on figuring out what is really going on in their body, but can something be done about it? What we see most often is the first step of giving medication. Take cholesterol for example, a doctor prescribes a medication and tells you to continue what you are doing, you will just be on the medication for the rest of your life. You are masking the problem, not dealing with it.This happened with my dad, who was overweight and had gallbladder problems. The doctor said they would simply take out his gallbladder and he can keep eating the way he is. My dad felt knew there were some other issues and recognized he was overweight. He loved his spicy foods and French cheeses, but he had a terrible of surgery and asked if there was anything else he could do. The doctor said he could change his diet, but nudged towards the surgery because it was the easiest and he can continue to keep eating like he is. He would have died many years earlier, if this was the case, because he would have continued eating a diet that would have killed him easily. My dad changed his diet, lost over 100 pounds, and remained pretty healthy for the remainder of his life. You can either take the quick fix and continue doing what you are doing or you can work on the issue itself. We are seeing more doctors telling their patients to change their diets and start exercising, but their diets are still not very good. Making fundamental changes and dealing with the roots can and help these issues. It does take a little hard work and you may have to give something up, but you are going to live better for a longer stretch of time.Dr. Miller There are things you can do, and your dad and people with eye disease have this in common. It takes time and effort to changes one’s diet and lifestyle, but it works. I speak with ophthalmologists who see improvement in the same people I am treating. They see their eyes getting better, but they do not want to start implementing these changes because of modern medicine. Modern medicine and the doctors who practice it, seem to get swallowed up by the corporate model. Doctors barely have 15 minutes of time to spend with you because that is all the time they are allowed in the clinics. They do not have the time to sit down and go over a complex program with you, let alone keep in touch and keep you motivated to stay on track. The doctor who told your dad that he could lose some weight or could do surgery, probably did not know how to help with it. It does take time and you will need to look outside the clinic for help, which is why we are here and do what we do. With our Better Eye Health program, we show you what to do, give you the support needed, and watch the body work its magic. Carlyle The western medicine approach is outcomes based, and the treatments have been shown over time. Let’s look at a stage 4 wound. There are X,Y, and Z procedures to make that wound better, making the treatment very clear. I start with X, then Y and Z should get me to the desired result. With the Better Eye Health program, you are doing several things all at once. In conjunction with one another, they are very effective and support each other. You have the choice to do most or all of the work, but it is most effective if you do everything. Your body and the system are complex, and sometimes you need to do a conjunction of things together to function properly. You may get results by starting to exercise, but it will likely be more effective if you add in other things as well. I do not think western medicine is fun because our body does not function that way. It wants to know the outcome of everything you are doing, to some extent, so that it can be built for structure. With naturopathic and eastern approaches, it is an ongoing process to find the best solution. For example, I have met with different Tibetan medicine practitioners, they read the subtle channels of your energy. They work with and give you a different collection of herbs to have you boil and drink as a tea. You try this for a couple of weeks and if you see no improvement, you add in other things. It is an ongoing process that takes time and patience, but you will find the best solution. Dr. Miller We have been doing and seeing this for decades now. If you do everything we ask you to do, the odds of seeing real lasting improvement is 90%. Our program does take time because we are working on your vision. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 19:16 https://bettereyehealth.com/8-things-your-doctor-doesnt-tell-you-if-you-have-macular-degeneration-stargardt-or-retinitis-pigmentosa/ Tue, 20 Oct 2020 13:25:48 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1109 BEH PODCAST EPISODE 49 We're here today for the first of an eight part series. Don't glaze over, stay with us here. The first of an eight part series soon to be a major book. But we wanted to kind of introduce it in pieces here just to get you going. And if you have or know someone close to to you that has been diagnosed with a degenerative eye disease, things like macular degeneration, that's the most common stargardt disease, which is basically just the juvenile form of macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and then a few other odd ones, cone rod dystrophy and things like that. You know, those are diseases that are now the major causes of blindness in people over 65. And they're diseases that just by, I don't know, by the miracle of how life works, it turns out, we've found in our practice ways to work with those to deal with those and even to reverse the vision loss, that those kinds of diseases cause. And that's really what we're here to talk about. It's not something you're going to hear about from your board certified ophthalmologist. Even if they know about it, they're not going to tell you about it. But they are going to tell you that they don't have anything to offer you. So hopefully you found this podcast you found us because you're not going to accept that there's nothing you can do. You're out there looking And you found us. And so we're here today to begin to tell you about the things you need to know. So that you can heal your vision. 8 THINGS YOUR DOCTOR DOESNT TELL YOU IF YOU HAVE MACULAR DEGENERATION, STARGARDT OR RETINITIS PIGMENTOSA 049_OMDPodcast_8-Things_1_of_8CarlyleHello and welcome to the OrganicMD podcast. My name is Carlyle Coash and I am here with Dr. Damon P. Miller II. How are you doing Damon?Dr. MillerWell, it's an odd time in the world, but I'm doing pretty well. I'm really glad to be here. You sound strong. You sound good. I'm glad to hear that.CarlyleI'm doing what I can. Dr. MillerThank you. Okay, well we're here today for the first of an eight part series. Don't glaze over, stay with us here. The first of an eight part series soon to be a major book. But we wanted to kind of introduce it in pieces here just to get you going. And if you have or know someone close to to you that has been diagnosed with a degenerative eye disease, things like macular degeneration, that's the most common stargardt disease, which is basically just the juvenile form of macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and then a few other odd ones, cone rod dystrophy and things like that. You know, those are diseases that are now the major causes of blindness in people over 65. And they're diseases that just by, I don't know, by the miracle of how life works, it turns out, we've found in our practice ways to work with those to deal with those and even to reverse the vision loss, that those kinds of diseases cause. And that's really what we're here to talk about. It's not something you're going to hear about from your board certified ophthalmologist. Even if they know about it, they're not going to tell you about it. But they are going to tell you that they don't have anything to offer you. So hopefully you found this podcast you found us because you're not going to accept that there's nothing you can do. You're out there looking And you found us. And so we're here today to begin to tell you about the things you need to know. So that you can heal your vision. So, Carlyle, what do you thinkCarlyleIt's essential that we remember that the body has this incredible ability to regenerate to heal itself. If we give it support to do that, and this is something that we're Yes, we're talking about degenerative eye disease, and these next few episodes. This can be applied to so many other things. So the same template, I think, plays out for a lot of different illnesses and issues. And so I think, even if you're like, well, I don't have I don't have this issue. You might actually know someone who does. So that's also important to remember. But even if that's not the case, listening to the kind of things that we're talking about here will inform how you could approach something else that you're doing and we've seen Over and over again. There's certainly plenty of films and research and things done about this where people are taking these What are considered maybe alternative or different approaches and finding results. And it's because it's connecting to some inherent wisdom that our body is able to, to heal and rebalance itself if we give it a chance.Dr. MillerThat's really what it's all about here at organic MD. And, you know, this, things like the degenerative eye diseases, they're sort of the perfect thing to use to talk about just what you were saying there. Carlyle, about how, you know, we were talking about dealing with a particular subset of challenges that people have in terms of eye disease, but the approach really has much broader application. This is the the kind of story I hear all the time. People come in they've been diagnosed with macular degeneration and like Carlyle said, you probably know somebody there, it's estimated there's probably 25 to 28 million people in the United States alone, who have macular degeneration. It is a genetically determined disease, meaning you probably have some gene that predisposes you to it, although the majority of the people with that gene and we're going to talk about genes much later in the series of podcasts, but the majority of people with that gene never have any problems at all. And, but if you do have a problem, you probably have an abnormal gene. And it you know, when it's when you're talking about, you know, one in eight people or something like that, in the United States having this problem, you know, in your workplace in your church, you know, go to the grocery store, I mean, there's, there's bound to be somebody there who's got it. So you do know people with this. But I mentioned the genetic part, because it it really helps you understand how a program like what we're going to be talking about can work. But usually what happens is people get diagnosed. And you know they have a $10,000 workup in the eye doctor's office that their insurance pays for. And after all that incredible workup, the doctor comes in, you're sitting there kind of quaking, wondering what they found, sits down next to you, the doctor puts their hand on your knee looks at you and says, I'm so sorry. These problems you're having with your vision. It's not that you need a new pair of glasses, you've got a degenerative disease that's destroying your retina, and it's called macular degeneration. That's the most common are retinitis pigmentosa or stargardt. Doesn't really matter. They're all very similar. And we really don't have anything to offer you. We don't have a drug. We don't have a surgery. We've got some procedures we'll talk about in a bit that might be needed. But, you know, we really, we don't have anything to to help you and, and then the doctor gets up and walks out of the room. And you're just they're going Whoa, what am I supposed to do? And Well, the first thing you do is you get pretty depressed. But you know, we'll be dealing with that too. But the, the point is, is that you, you know, just one, I guess I'll just keep it simple. Just consider this. I've said that virtually 100% of people who get macular degeneration, well, we're going to talk about macular degeneration, not name all the other diseases because these diseases all respond very well to the kinds of interventions we're going to talk about. And macular degeneration is the most common and stargardt the juvenile form of it, so we'll, we'll stick with those but realize I don't care which particular diagnosis name, your eye condition was given if it's a degenerative retinal disease, or retinopathy or a maculopathy, that you know, all these fancy words, but we're talking about you. If you have one of those, and you understand that there's a gene that predispose you to it, and macular degeneration, the most common form of that you don't even have problems Until you're in your fifth or sixth or seventh or eighth decade. In other words, you're, you're pretty old by the time you even realize you have an eye problem. And you've probably been pretty healthy. This is not part of a syndrome, not a lot of other problems associated with it. So, you know, if you ask yourself the obvious question, Well, hey, I've had this abnormal gene from birth. How did I get to be 70 years old, I don't have any troubles in my eye. Well, that happens because your body has been working on your behalf, healing, whatever damage and degeneration was occurring. For all those 70 years, something has happened that's robbed you of a little bit of health. And now your body can't keep up with the forces of degeneration. And so you start to notice problems. But if you understand that we're not trying to repair the most complex tissue in the entire body, we're simply trying to make your eyes in this program, you know, five years healthier, you know, give you the eyes you had when you were 65 when everything was fine and it You know, that's that's doable, making your eyes a little bit healthier. Suddenly, everything that's kept your eyes healthy for all those decades kicks in again, actually repairs things you regain vision. And I'm not going to tell you that it's easy, it takes some diligence and work but it's doable. We've seen it over and over again 10s of thousands of people, and not just me, but the other people who do this kind of work. So you just need to realize that that kind of medical hexing that doctors are so famous for, you know, just gloom and doom and nothing you can do and sorry, you know, just get prepared to go blind.Dr. MillerThat is probably malpractice. Certainly uncalled for. And it's wrong. There are things you can do. These diseases can reverse themselves, you can regain vision with a bit of work. Eye cells, Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 13:34 https://bettereyehealth.com/healing-from-the-toxic-wildfire-smoke/ Tue, 20 Oct 2020 13:04:46 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1103 BEH PODCAST EPISODE 48 -- Featuring Dr. Damon Miller with Christine Rosche Welcome to the OrganicMD podcast. We're here today. I'm still in the midst of the wildfires in California, and it's become such an issue that Christine Rosche and Dr. Miller decided to get together and devote an entire podcast to dealing with the smoke, with the focus on the kinds of things you can do to protect yourself from the very toxic smoke from these wildfires. The smoke is now blanketing the entire earth! You know, when you're out, if you're, if you're following the air quality index, you know, if the air quality index is 200 parts per million of the small particles, being out in that air for any length of time, it's like smoking a couple of packs of cigarettes a day or more. So it's, it's pretty serious stuff, but there are things you can do. As always you will find the link to the Podcast, as well as the full transcript. You can also download a PDF of the transcript down at the bottom the page. Enjoy!  BEH PODCAST EPISODE 48 - HEALING FROM THE TOXIC WILDFIRE SMOKE Dr. Miller: (00:00)Hi, this is Dr. Damon Miller. Welcome to the OrganicMD podcast. We're here today. I'm still in the midst of the wildfires in California, and, it's become such an issue that we decided to devote an entire podcast to dealing with the toxic smoke, the kinds of things you can do to protect yourself from the very toxic smoke from these wildfires. The smoke is now blanketing the entire earth! You know, when you're out, if you're, if you're following the air quality index, you know, if the air quality index is 200 parts per million of the small particles, being out in that air for any length of time, it's like smoking a couple of packs of cigarettes a day or more. So it's, it's pretty serious stuff, but there are things you can do. Dr. Miller: (00:51)And we're going to talk about that. I'm going to be doing this today, with Christine Rosche. so Christine Rosche is a master of public health and a certified nutritional specialist. And she's, worked for years and years as a specialist with the microbiome and digestive health, is an expert that's developed an integrative approach to health and stress management, and has had over 25 years in this field, including a lot of years recently here in the San Francisco Bay area, working at Stanford. She's written a couple of books, and it's just a really good on this. Now you ask how is a bowel specialist useful here, you want to understand that in most of the major medical systems in the world, besides Western medicine, you know, Vedic medicine, Oriental medicine, and even a lot of the indigenous medicines, there's a clear understanding that the lungs and the gut are linked. The health of one depends on the health of the other. I like the poetry of it in Oriental medicine. The lungs are responsible for bringing in pure energy from heaven and the bowels are responsible for getting rid of everything you don't want. So anyhow, let's, let's just say hi to Christine. Hi Christine. Christine: (02:05)Thank you so much, Damon, and, I'm delighted to be here with you. I also want to introduce Dr. Damon Miller, who is a functional medicine physician in private practice, practicing in Redwood City. And, he's been doing this for many years, since 1985 and detox is an integral part of his practice and helping you with the root cause of your health issues. Dr. Miller: (02:34)Well, thank you. Thank you. So Christine, start us off here. You've been doing a lot of research in preparation for this talk. So, I know we're going to be talking about a number of things, just basically how to protect yourself from the smoke, how to detoxify from the smoke. some things that can be done, in terms of herbs and supplements and, you know, and different kinds of essences and, and how to work with the bow, which we have said is a critical part, keeping your bow functional, healthy, moving, is an important part of all this. So go, go ahead and take, take, take off with this here. Christine: (03:10)Thank you with aim on one of the key pieces of research that came out recently is that people that had a healthy microbiome back at bacteria that was balanced and was effective at removing the toxins actually were less susceptible to flus colds, and also to infections such as the SARS COVID virus. So they show that giving people in these experiments, you know, specific types of viruses that people that have the right colonic microbiome balance, which meant no, not very much overgrowth of bad bacteria, very strong, healthy microbes that really helped them absorb that just their food and boost their immunity actually have much better outcome. They actually had a 75% reduction in flu cases with people in the lungs themselves with lung issues that had a healthy gut. So that's why I'm focusing, in this podcast on helping you to, with the organs of elimination that got colon is one of the most important ones, just like the, also the lymphatics, the kidneys. Dr. Miller: (04:17)Yeah. Well thank you. Yeah. And if you poke around, you know, we did a previous podcast about COVID and bowel health. So that's, there's much more information on that. Yeah. Christine: (04:25)Yes. And, and you know, exactly. And so if you, one of the things that's very important for you to know is I'm offering as part of this. so we're going to have, of course, specific things posted here with detailed information for you. And I am also offering a personalized cleanse of your, of your digestive system that will be individualized for you as well as a test. If you would like to take a test, I'll help you find the right test for you that helps you assess your microbiome. And to do that, and get that information, please go to www dot digestivehealth dot center, or call me at (650) 856-3151. Well, one of the most important things is the air. You breathe the inside air because it's very important for you, you know, to stay inside during the high levels of smoke pollution as Damon was indicating. And so, so you need to know that your heating and air conditioning can really help you with that. If you have, you know, a forest or forest, the air system, but type of system, you have, you can do a great job at filtering the air by making sure that you get a mers filter that's at the 300 or higher level, the medical grade in your furnace system, that can make a really big difference. Dr. Miller: (05:54)Yeah. And you can, you can find those at your local hardware store, home Depot, you don't have to, you know, go searching all over the world for those. That's a common thing. You just need to make sure you got that in your filter. Christine: (06:03)Yes. Very, very critical. And also the other is, you know, when you are outside, if you must go outside, I've done a lot of different research for which masks are best for you, which will be included as part of this podcast. You can see the handout with what we provide you with. just very specifically, I want to say that the best mask is the one that provides you with a filter to breathe for, and also virus protection and smoke protection. So that's the key. Dr. Miller: (06:34)Yeah. And just, we are gonna, we don't want to flood you with too much detail on this audio podcast, but if you go to the podcast page or you go to Christine's website, you'll find, easy links where you can download all this information and much more than we're actually speaking, you know, some of the detailed stuff she did research on with the, the masks and the indoor air filters and, you know, so that's, that's going to be there for you to download and read. So just, you know, we'll try and keep this smooth and easy and short here, just for your listening pleasure. So, so Christina, what about, we had talked to about the Molekule filter, the, the it's it's a bit pricey, but boy, is it a great indoor air filter? Christine: (07:20)Yes, that's really very important. because most of us are working from home. Now we spend so much time indoors as it is. And research shows the indoor air is actually sometimes even more polluted without even without the smoke than the outdoor air. So the Molekule is the one that I have used for myself. Most of the physicians use it, that I worked with. many patients, I highly recommend it. We'll have a link to that for a special offer for you. When you go to the supportive documentation, there'll be a link together. Yes. The other is, you know, hydrate, hydrate, then most important thing is in order for the lymphatics, you know, in all the organs, kidneys, bladder, you know, the colon to eliminate drink lots of hot liquids, chicken soup, or herbal teas stimulate the filaments, the cilia filaments, they cover yourself. So these cilia will help remove mucus and foreign bodies from yourself and so hot liquids, get them moving more quickly to flush it, toss it away. Dr. Miller: (08:26)And again, when we're talking about all this smoke and the lungs, you know, assuming you haven't, you know, been smoking cigarettes for the last 20 years where you've killed all the cilia in your lung, but if you've got reasonably healthy lungs, you know, our bodies have a way to get rid of all this garbage that falls into them when the air is so full of toxic smoke. And it's those little cilia, they're remarkable things, they sort of move and they, they lift and pull all that stuff out of your lungs and dump it, your throat where you can swallow it. So, again, you know, the best thing for most problems is to really support the natural systems that are already there. So, you know, drinking fluid, keeping your lungs and the lining of your lungs, moisture is one of the kindest things you can do. And do you want to say something about, N-acetylcysteine? Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 25:49 https://bettereyehealth.com/quarantined-and-having-a-lot-of-emotion-its-probably-grief/ Mon, 27 Apr 2020 13:44:17 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1100 ORGANICMD PODCAST – EPISODE 47 Quarantined and Having a Lot of Emotion? It’s Probably Grief Quarantined and Having a Lot of Emotion? It’s Probably GriefDoes sheltering in place along with the complete collapse of any semblance of your normal life have you feeling a bit dis-spirited? Maybe more than just a bit?Of course it does. If it did not, I would question if you were actually human.Carlyle Coash offers some practical advice on things you can do to manage the emotions in this time. We need to care for our physical and emotional health if we are to come out the other side of this pandemic intact.To your health, and Dose Your D3Go to: https://doseyourd3.comfor some excellent product. The Virus Survival Kit of the supplements we recommend is offered as an option when you go to buy some D3 (D3 is included in the Virus Survival Kit)You can also find the Virus Survival Kit at:https://fx126.infusionsoft.com/app/manageCart/addProduct?productId=102 Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 26:29 https://bettereyehealth.com/support-to-have-on-hand-if-you-do-get-covid-19-infection/ Fri, 24 Apr 2020 05:11:42 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1096 ORGANICMD PODCAST – EPISODE 46  Support to Have On Hand If You Do Get COVID-19 Infection Support to Have On Hand If You Do Get COVID-19 InfectionAllopathic prescription anti-viral drugs have been pretty ineffective. Integrative medical practices do not rely only on things that are anti-viral, but also take steps to strengthen the host. The virus is a parasite, and you are the host. Human beings have been coexisting with viruses forever, and have very sophisticated systems to defend against invasion of a virus. That’s why we are still here on the planet.The most advanced systems that exist to defeat a viral infection are things you carry around with you wherever you go. You want those systems to be working well, especially in these times.This Podcast outlines some basic products that support immunity, along with some herbal and homeopathic products with anti-viral properties. Together, we have seen the synergy of using these products together work remarkably well in helping people quickly heal from all types of viral infections, and in the short experience we have had with this novel coronavirus, this strategy works for it.To your health, and Dose Your D3Go to: https://doseyourd3.comfor some excellent product. The Virus Survival Kit of the supplements we recommend is offered as an option when you go to buy some D3 (D3 is included in the Virus Survival Kit)You can also find the Virus Survival Kit at:https://fx126.infusionsoft.com/app/manageCart/addProduct?productId=102 Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 24:22 https://bettereyehealth.com/how-this-pandemic-will-likely-end/ Wed, 22 Apr 2020 13:22:12 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1091 Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 14:58 https://bettereyehealth.com/vitamin-d3-supplementation-could-reduce-risk-of-influenza-and-covid-19-infections/ Fri, 10 Apr 2020 01:35:11 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=1083 ORGANICMD PODCAST - EPISODE 44  Dose Your D3Click to Download Dr. Miller's article on everything you want to know about Dosing Your D3.Supplement with Vitamin D3 to decrease the risk of flu and COVID-19 coronavirus infection. Maintaining an elevated Vitamin D3 blood level is one of the most effective things you can do to protect yourself from infection from the flu virus or the current coronavirus. In this age of the COVID-19 pandemic, one would think that doctors and public health officials would be screaming from the rooftops about the usefulness of everyone doing whatever it takes to keep their Vitamin D status at an optimal level. For most people, all this means is regularly taking a supplement. In the time of the current COVID-19 pandemic, we recommend taking Vitamin D3 supplements year-round.A compelling body of evidence demonstrates the safety and effectiveness of D3 supplementation as a means to increase immunity against colds, flu, and even novel viruses like the COVID-19 virus. This short paper will discuss peer-reviewed literature, dosing recommendations, and safety data on Vitamin D3 supplementation, and provide a short discussion of the biology of Vitamin D3 in human beings.Vitamin D3 is cheap, easy to use, safe, and it works. Even if you already take adequate Vitamin D3, this short paper provides valuable background and useful recommendations.When considering a treatment, doctors are always balancing the risks versus the benefits. When few or no treatments are available, and there is a treatment that is less than 100% proven, but which has zero risk, then it is prudent to use that treatment.For more information, please download and read the PDF, which includes references, and listen to the Podcast. To your health!Vitamin D3 Supplementation Could Reduce Risk of Influenza and COVID-19 InfectionsFrom the Journal NutrientsNutrients 2020, 12, 988; doi:10.3390/nu12040988Click to Download PDF of this article. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health Vitamin D Supplementation Could Reduce Risk of Flu and COVID-19 - Article full 27:22 https://bettereyehealth.com/an-overview-of-the-healthy-eating-workshop-and-diy-detox/ Sat, 30 Nov 2019 02:54:44 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=806 The most recent additions to the full DH are two classes. One is the healthy eating workshop. Recent research is shown that recovery from degenerative conditions in the eye and brain is helped by a diet low in sugars and simple carbohydrates and processed foods. The Healthy Eating Workshop introduces a plan for eating that includes those recommendations, and in six weeks puts you on a path to a plan for eating that will serve your eyes for a lifetime. The second course, which you can do at the same time is the "Detoxify Your Body And Your Home" course. We live in a toxic world, and dealing with toxicity has become important for every ill that doctors deal with. We describe this course that lays out how you can start on a simple program to detoxify your body and your home. Link to registration and description of courses Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 7:07 https://bettereyehealth.com/prevention-of-macular-degeneration-using-vitamins/ Tue, 26 Nov 2019 06:47:36 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=966 Supplements are very important if you have a degenerative eye disease, or if these diseases run in your family. Over 60 years of research, and thousands of peer-reviewed papers have shown that supplements alone will slow the progression of eye disease, but they will not stop the progression, and they will not restore lost vision. Using the proper supplements, and optimizing your health may be all you need to prevent the development of eye disease if eye disease runs in your family. The Basic Protocol of supplements used in the Better Eye Health Program is our recommendation. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 2:38 https://bettereyehealth.com/the-reality-of-macular-pseudoholes/ Tue, 26 Nov 2019 04:57:23 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=964 Macular pseudoholes; macular holes; macular fold; macular tear; epiretinal membrane. The ophthalmologists consider all of the above as very different and distinct problems, but we have come to see that they are all simply different forms of structural degeneration of the retina, and are more common than different. Also we have seen all of them improve, even heal with the basic approaches used in the full Better Eye Health Program. The eye can heal, and there is Hope for Sight! Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:18 https://bettereyehealth.com/autoimmunity-and-your-eye-disease-part-three/ Tue, 26 Nov 2019 03:57:11 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=959 This is the third and final part of our series on autoimmune disease and eye disease. This episode offers the basics of what is needed to manage, even eliminate an autoimmune problem. All autoimmune issues come from an immune system that is over-stimulated. Too much immune stimulation and your body can start producing antibodies that damage your own tissues. The key to reversing this is to reduce the number of things challenging your immune system. Foods can cause reactions, as can toxins. So, changes in diet, and a rational approach to detoxification can have huge benefits. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 10:47 https://bettereyehealth.com/autoimmunity-and-your-eye-disease-part-two/ Tue, 26 Nov 2019 02:06:37 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=954 Part Two of the discussion on autoimmunity continues. In the work to reduce the challenges to our immune system, it is important to deal with chronic infections. For many, the challenge is centered in their gut. An unhealthy mix of microbes in the gut makes the gut unhealthy, and spills over into the body, causing inflammation and causing immune reactions. Careful attention to gut health is critical if your goal is to heal an autoimmune problem. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 15:39 https://bettereyehealth.com/autoimmunity-and-your-eye-disease-part-one/ Wed, 20 Nov 2019 11:13:19 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=938 Autoimmunity is a big problem in health these days. It is not the cause of your eye challenges, but it makes it harder to heal. Dr. Miller talks about how keeping your wellness - especially in regards to toxins - can prove to play an important role in how you calm your immune system, rebuild tissue and reverse degenerative eye disease. This episode is the first of a three-part series. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health My iTunes Title full 13:51 Check this out! https://bettereyehealth.com/if-you-do-nothing-what-are-the-risks-of-bleeding/ Tue, 15 Jan 2019 06:15:20 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=807 Tens of millions of people with degenerative retinal diseases like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa and Stargardt disease hold the same story. When they were first diagnosed their doctor told them that there was nothing that could be done to stop the vision loss or restore lost vision. Maybe they were given some samples of eye vitamins, but nothing else. There is more you can do. Much more. Your doctor has no drug or surgery to offer, but there are proven therapies you can start now that can stop the progression of the disease, even restore lost vision. If you take your doctor's advice and just do nothing? The natural history of these diseases is well understood, and it always involves things getting worse over time. Need a dose of hope? Read Grace Halloran, PhD's autobiography "Amazing Grace: Portrait Of A Survivor" To learn more about the program she developed, go to this link. To order a copy of her autobiography for just the cost of postage, go here. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 8:33 https://bettereyehealth.com/wet-and-dry-macular-degeneration-are-the-same-thing/ Sat, 05 Jan 2019 20:33:18 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=809 We address the confusion some people have about wet versus dry macular degeneration. Hint: they are the same disease. All wet macular degeneration begins as dry macular degeneration. Wet (or exudative) macular degeneration is a more advanced stage of dry (non-exudative) macular degeneration. The leaking and bleeding found in wet macular degeneration are simply complications found in more advanced stages of the disease. The injections and treatments offered if you have macular degeneration treat only these complications. They do not treat the underlying disease, and they are not intended to improve vision. Link to the full Better Eye Health Program™More important is the fact that both wet and dry macular degeneration respond well to the support offered in the Better Eye Health Program™, with studies showing that people with both types can see lasting improvements in their vision. There is Hope for Sight!™ Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 14:00 https://bettereyehealth.com/does-it-help-to-join-a-clinical-trial/ Sat, 29 Dec 2018 06:05:13 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=812 When you read about research into new treatments for conditions like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa and Stargardt disease, you may hear about clinical trials and wonder if these are something that might help you. We discuss the long history of clinical trials for the treatment of eye disease. Our general recommendation based on long experience is to not rush to join any clinical trial, for two reasons. One is that almost all of the new treatments being researched involve significant risks. Until there is good data that the treatment offers real and lasting benefits that far outweigh the risks, don't be in a hurry to try it. Second, while you are waiting for medical research to find a magic bullet that will reverse serious degenerative eye disease, you can start a proven program of treatment where over 90% of people see lasting improvements in their vision. Link to Better Eye Health Program™ Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 5:05 https://bettereyehealth.com/can-vitamins-alone-help-my-eyes/ Thu, 20 Dec 2018 06:58:14 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=811 Supplementing a healthy diet with vitamin and mineral supplements is recommended for all people with degenerative retinal diseases like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa and Stargardt disease. Eye doctors recommend some form of vitamins for all their clients. However, vitamins alone will not stop the progression of these challenging problems. Vitamins alone will not restore lost vision. Other therapies in combination with vitamins can help restore lost vision but vitamins alone will not. Hundreds of peer-reviewed medical articles prove this. Here is a link to a list of the vitamins we recommend in the Better Eye Health Program™ protocol of basic supplements. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 9:00 https://bettereyehealth.com/a-healthy-body-a-healthy-mind/ Fri, 14 Dec 2018 23:45:43 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=805 Losing your memory? Afraid of where this is leading to as you age? We propose that you have two choices: (1.) Wait for medicine to develop a drug or some other magic bullet. Could happen in the next 10 years. Or not. (2.) Start now to pursue with a vengeance all of the things that doctors are proposing as ways to improve brain health, improve memory and even reverse dementia. This podcast lays out the areas of research and the healthy practices that have been shown to improve brain health and memory. Note-search for "reversing cognitive decline" at OrganicMD dot com for a detailed description of the things you can do now, available as a downloadable PDF. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 9:18 https://bettereyehealth.com/the-art-of-acupressure-and-healing-the-eyes-part-three/ Sat, 24 Nov 2018 16:13:03 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=801 In the full Better Eye Health Program™, we have perfected a system of acupressure or needleless acupuncture that we call the Acu-Eye™ Program. You learn to stimulate the points in the program yourself, in your own home. The techniques of Oriental medicine have great value in helping people challenged by degenerative eye diseases like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt disease and glaucoma. Acupuncturists find that an aggressive micro-acupuncture treatment program can help when the treatments are done several times a day for one or two weeks, repeating this several times a year. Doing the Acu-Eye™ Program on a regular basis week after week in your home brings results that equal the more intense treatments that require weeks of travel every year. Combine the Acu-Eye™ Program acupressure treatments with the microcurrent stimulation, color therapy, eye health exercises in support from the Better Eye Health Program™ and you have a program that has been proven to improve vision and 90% of the people who do it. This is a three-part podcast, and this is part three. Link to? Acupuncture article.…… Link to full Better Eye Health Program™ description Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 9:06 https://bettereyehealth.com/the-art-of-acupressure-and-healing-the-eyes-part-two/ Mon, 19 Nov 2018 19:49:57 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=800 In the full Better Eye Health Program™, we have perfected a system of acupressure or needleless acupuncture that we call the Acu-Eye™ Program. You learn to stimulate the points in the program yourself, in your own home. The techniques of Oriental medicine have great value in helping people challenged by degenerative eye diseases like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt disease and glaucoma. Acupuncturists find that an aggressive micro-acupuncture treatment program can help when the treatments are done several times a day for one or two weeks, repeating this several times a year. Doing the Acu-Eye™ Program on a regular basis week after week in your home brings results that equal the more intense treatments that require weeks of travel every year. Combine the Acu-Eye™ Program acupressure treatments with the microcurrent stimulation, color therapy, eye health exercises in support from the Better Eye Health Program™ and you have a program that has been proven to improve vision and 90% of the people who do it. This is a three-part podcast, and this is part two. Link to? Acupuncture article.…… Link to full Better Eye Health Program™ description Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 11:08 https://bettereyehealth.com/the-art-of-acupressure-and-healing-the-eyes-part-one/ Tue, 13 Nov 2018 17:53:03 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=788 In the full Better Eye Health Program™, we have perfected a system of acupressure or needleless acupuncture that we call the Acu-Eye™ Program. You learn to stimulate the points in the program yourself, in your own home. The techniques of Oriental medicine have great value in helping people challenged by degenerative eye diseases like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt disease and glaucoma. Acupuncturists find that an aggressive micro-acupuncture treatment program can help when the treatments are done several times a day for one or two weeks, repeating this several times a year. Doing the Acu-Eye™ Program on a regular basis week after week in your home brings results that equal the more intense treatments that require weeks of travel every year. Combine the Acu-Eye™ Program acupressure treatments with the microcurrent stimulation, color therapy, eye health exercises in support from the Better Eye Health Program™ and you have a program that has been proven to improve vision and 90% of the people who do it. This is a three-part podcast, and this is part one. Link to? Acupuncture article.…… Link to full Better Eye Health Program™ description Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 8:30 https://bettereyehealth.com/knowing-how-the-three-kinds-of-minerals-affects-you/ Sat, 08 Sep 2018 03:37:46 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=782 You need minerals. You need a mineral supplement that is separate from and taken separately from your vitamins. We recommend products that contain humic and fulvic minerals, extracted from ancient plant sources, made in the United States. Vitality boost HA contains a mix of humic minerals (a colloid) and fulvic minerals (a solution) extracted from the same raw materials. It is the most concentrated product we offer, and the best value. They are dark, but virtually tasteless. Energy boost contains just the soluble materials. These also include amino acids that help regulate gut health, among other things. Pale yellow and clear, most people find these easy to take. If you need to mineralize the water you drink, this is the product we recommend. Immune boost is simply a 50-50 mix of the vitality boost HA and energy boost products. Link to minerals in the store. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 10:41 https://bettereyehealth.com/can-you-help-your-eyes-with-more-oxygen/ Sun, 24 Jun 2018 03:42:52 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=606 Yes, more oxygen helps your eyes. There are so many ways to do this. We have seen people with macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa and Stargardt disease benefit from a regular practice of mindful breathing, breathing slower and more fully than you usually do. People also report benefits with more aggressive therapies such as hyperbaric oxygen or high tension oxygen therapy with 8 L per minute via a mask or nasal cannula. Finally, there is a treatment called Exercise With Oxygen Therapy (EWOT), if you have access to the equipment. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 2:08 https://bettereyehealth.com/when-is-the-best-time-to-take-taurine/ Tue, 19 Jun 2018 05:41:52 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=602 Taurine is in the basic protocol of eye supplements in the Better Eye Health Program™ because it is a raw material the body needs to repair and regenerate eye cells. Much of the regeneration and repair the body does occurs when we sleep, so we recommend you take taurine before bedtime, so it is in your blood and your body needs it. Also, taurine has been shown to support healthy sleep. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 2:30 https://bettereyehealth.com/can-you-do-eye-exercises-twice-a-day/ Sat, 16 Jun 2018 06:26:20 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=581 We recommend you do the eye health exercises in the Better Eye Health Program™ once a day, five days a week to start. If you want to do these exercises twice a day please do. No harm. Some people find these exercises relaxing, and will repeat them if stressed, or before bed to help sleep. If you have a lot of extra time in your day to devote to eye health, we recommend adding other healthy activities like walking, yoga, Pilates, Qi gong etc. Anything you do to benefit your overall health will benefit the health of your eyes. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 10:35 https://bettereyehealth.com/can-caffeine-decrease-blood-flow-to-the-eyes/ Sat, 02 Jun 2018 23:14:04 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=567 Caffeine is a complex drug. It can both decrease and increase blood flow to the eyes and brain. For most, the stimulation caused by caffeine leads to an increase in sympathetic activity in our nervous system, which tends to decrease blood flow to the eyes and brain. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 5:52 https://bettereyehealth.com/can-taurine-cause-insomnia/ Tue, 29 May 2018 23:12:15 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=563 Taurine is an amino acid critical for rebuilding cells in the retina. It is often used to support healthy sleep. If you feel that taurine is affecting your sleep, please consult with your practitioner, as it is more likely that there is another explanation to be found. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 1:59 https://bettereyehealth.com/do-computer-screens-cause-eye-strain/ Sat, 26 May 2018 00:55:17 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=565 Modern LED flatscreen TVs and computer screens and the new LED lighting that is now widely used all cause a particular type of strain in the eyes. Bright screens and lighting cause some strain, but LED lighting can actually be harmful to the eyes. Harmful radiation comes from the blue LEDs found in all computer screens and LED-light bulbs. Unlike older incandescent bulbs and mini fluorescent bulbs and older cathode ray tube computer monitors, the blue LEDs emit high frequency and high-energy blue spectrum light has been shown to damage the chemical 11-cis-retinal in the eye and the enzymes that manufacture 11-cis-retinal. 11-cis-retinal is the chemical that allows us to see. The solution is to wear orange or nicotine colored tinted glasses that block the blue rays, or adjust the output of the computer monitor to decrease the blue radiation. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 4:34 https://bettereyehealth.com/do-you-need-bilberry/ Tue, 15 May 2018 16:42:11 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=569 The ideas many people have about the need for bilberry for eye health are, to put it mildly, pretty confused. Bilberries are simply a wild variety of blueberries. The frozen wild blueberries or organic blueberries in our local Trader Joe's food store have a nutritional profile very similar to bilberries. A healthy food, but nothing about the nutritional value of bilberries or blueberries is unique. Some of the confusion comes from claims the English made during World War II that they had developed a "secret weapon" to allow their pilots to see at night, and to bomb the German army in the dead of night. After the war, it was revealed that the "secret weapon" was bilberry jam, and that the whole story was an elaborate propaganda scheme to put fear into German soldiers and citizens. 90% of the people who do the full Better Eye Health Program™ see significant and lasting improvement in their vision, and they are not taking bilberry, so we know it is not essential for eye health or eye healing. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:39 https://bettereyehealth.com/do-we-need-more-dha/ Sat, 12 May 2018 18:25:25 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=572 Everyone needs DHA, and most of us need more than we are getting. DHA is one of the essential fatty acids, meaning human beings need to eat it, since they cannot make it. DHA is an omega-3 essential fatty acid with a carbon chain containing 20 carbon atoms. (The "docosa" in docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is the Greek word for 20.) We get DHA directly from eating algae, or from eating things that exist in the food chain that begins with algae, like krill and fish. Most of the omega-3 essential fatty acids in our diet come from plant sources, and these have a carbon skeleton with 16 or 18 carbon atoms, i.e. linolenic acid. Human beings can convert smaller chain omega-3 fatty acids to the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids like DHA, but for every milligram of DHA we make in this internal conversion process, we need to eat 1000 mg of a shorter chain essential fatty acid. One quarter of the weight of our retina and brain is DHA! If you are trying to regenerate damaged tissues in your eyes, eat more DHA regularly. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 2:36 https://bettereyehealth.com/using-gingko-biloba-for-eye-improvement/ Tue, 08 May 2018 20:36:59 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=480 If you have a degenerative retinal condition like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa or Stargardt disease, then there is a decrease in healthy blood flow to the retina as the degeneration progresses. If your intention is to regenerate your retina and restore vision, you need more than supplements. But, supplements like ginkgo biloba that gently open the circulation in the small to medium size vessels can help in combination with other therapies. Remember, no one supplement or combination of supplements has ever been shown to stop degeneration in the eyes or restore vision. But supplements, together with therapies like microcurrent stimulation, acupressure (needleless acupuncture), eye health exercises, color therapy, stress management, improved nutrition and detoxification together can regenerate damaged tissues and restore vision. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 2:20 https://bettereyehealth.com/using-the-better-eye-health-protocol-taurine-beh-podcast/ Sat, 05 May 2018 16:49:35 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=551 Taurine is an amino acid the body uses to build proteins and enzymes. The highest concentrations of taurine in human beings are found in the eye and the heart. Animal proteins are the best foods to eat to find taurine. Taurine is classified as a "conditionally essential" amino acid, meaning the human body can make some from other amino acids. But if you need to heal and regenerate cells in your eye (or heart) you need to take in extra taurine in your food and supplements. If you are vegetarian, please take extra taurine. Hemp seed has good amounts of taurine. We discuss our recommendations for taurine supplements derived from plant sources.In this episode the topic is the product Taurine by Thorne Research. Taurine is an essential amino acid that we don’t always receive through our food or other nutrition intake. We need it but our body does not produce it naturally. Having a good strong source of it helps, once again, to make sure your body has all it needs to the job of healing and repair. It needs all the building materials otherwise it will make a very poor house. Dr. Miller explores in detail this important supplement and how to absorb it most effectively in your routine.  Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 6:35 https://bettereyehealth.com/using-the-better-eye-health-protocol-minerals-beh-podcast/ Tue, 24 Apr 2018 23:04:03 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=554 DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) is a long-chain omega-3 essential fatty acid. The word "essential" in human nutrition means you need to eat it, since you cannot make it. The cells of the brain and retina are 50% fatty acids by weight, and half of that is DHA. Half! This means one quarter of your brain and retina by weight is DHA. You can see where we are going with this. If your intention is to heal and regenerate damaged tissues in your retina, a critical raw material your body will need to grow new cells is DHA. You need DHA. We discussed the minimum daily dose studies recommend, and some good sources.In this episode the topic is the product Vitality Boost HA, as well as other mineral supplements. We often lack in essential minerals and even if we eat mineral rich foods it often is not enough to keep our levels up. Dr. Miller goes into some depth regarding the types of minerals we need and how to build a working knowledge of where to find what you need.   Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 11:34 https://bettereyehealth.com/using-the-better-eye-health-protocol-liquid-vitamins/ Tue, 24 Apr 2018 22:59:51 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=556 Since the 1950s, ophthalmologists have done the following: (1.) When they make a new diagnosis of macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa or Stargardt disease, they tell the person that they are very sorry, but they have nothing to offer, and their vision will continue to deteriorate. (2.) Before the person leaves the doctors office, they are given a bottle of eye vitamins and told, "Here, take these, they may slow down your vision loss." The AREDS study (age-related eye disease study) was funded by a vitamin manufacturer to allow them to advertise their vitamins as a support for people with macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, Stargardt disease and other serious eye problems. You need vitamins, and you can do SO much better than the products marketed as AREDS vitamins. We describe the colloidal vitamins we recommend, and why we like them. In this episode the topic is the product Ortho Liquid Multi by Protocol. As with minerals, vitamins are often lacking in our daily diet to the levels that help us heal and stay balanced. Making sure you have a well balanced multi-vitamin, especially one that is liquid for better absorption, is another key to helping your eyes and body become stronger. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 8:42 https://bettereyehealth.com/using-the-better-eye-health-protocol-super-dha-beh-podcast/ Tue, 24 Apr 2018 22:54:53 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=559 Supplements are an important part of the Better Eye Health Program™. (Necessary, but not sufficient) Minerals are best taken away from foods and other vitamins. We use mineral supplements that are very soluble and very well absorbed, even if your gut is less than 100% healthy. Minerals like this are very reactive, forming insoluble complexes with the fats in foods and the various fat-soluble vitamins. We discuss why combination vitamin-mineral products do not serve you. Also, we discussed the difference between humic and fulvic minerals, and the difference between our need for minerals as supplements, and the need for a healthy level of minerals in all the water we drink. You need minerals!In this episode the topic is the product Carlson Super DHA. Having high quality oils, especially Omega-3 oils, is crucial for the functioning of so many systems in the body. It supports health and healing, and yet sadly we often are lacking enough of this important substance. It is usually the case that we have more Omega-6 and 9 in our diet, which does not provide the complete package. Also important is to make sure the oils you do eat come from a clean source. The Carlson brand has long strived to make sure their oil is the best.  Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 7:48 https://bettereyehealth.com/is-it-safe-to-eat-fish/ Fri, 20 Apr 2018 04:32:36 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=578 Fish are an excellent food source for the essential fatty acids and DHA needed for eye health. Yet as the oceans become increasingly polluted, there are concerns about the safety of fish as food. We discuss the pros and cons of eating fish. Our conclusion? There are still fish available where the benefits gained from this nutritious food source outweigh the risks. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 2:36 https://bettereyehealth.com/is-lab-testing-needed-when-you-start-the-program/ Fri, 19 Jan 2018 01:11:30 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=583 Lab testing is not required before you start Better Eye Health Program™. This program combines a variety of self-administered therapies to support eye health to allow regeneration of damaged tissues. These therapies also support overall health, and many people report multiple health benefits overall when doing the Better Eye Health Program™. If you are doing the therapies regularly and your eyes are not improving, or you have other health challenges we might later suggest some lab testing. Our goal is your total health, with therapies that are safe for the eyes. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:10 https://bettereyehealth.com/when-to-wear-sunglasses-if-you-have-eye-issues-podcast/ Thu, 09 Nov 2017 05:27:01 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=604 The sun is not your enemy. Some sunlight exposure helps stimulate the production of useful pigments in the retina. Human beings evolved with the sun, and our eyes evolved to expect sun exposure. We discuss times when sunglasses are helpful, but we do not recommend you wear them every time you go outside. If you are very sensitive to sunlight, you may need more lutein in your supplement program. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 2:36 https://bettereyehealth.com/when-do-you-renew-the-carbon-pads/ Thu, 09 Nov 2017 04:57:59 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=599 If you are using the carbon rubber pads to apply microcurrent stimulation for treatment anywhere on your body, we recommend you replace these pads once a year. The carbon pads are reusable, economic and very effective, but they do wear out. Trouble is, you cannot see when they wear out. Making a rubber electrode that will conduct electricity is a high-tech trick. When you run current, even microcurrents through these pads every day, the electrical quality of the material changes. The electrical resistance in the pads increases with use. Eventually, the pads act as insulators, not conductors. Replace the pads every year. If it suddenly seems that your unit is no longer putting out any current, replace the pads as this is likely the issue. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 4:08 https://bettereyehealth.com/when-do-you-need-larger-lutein-doses/ Thu, 09 Nov 2017 04:44:17 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=597 Our basic recommendation for everyone is that they take 40 mg of lutein daily if the product they are using is sourced from the FloraGlo® company in Europe. It is sourced from a different manufacturer, then we recommend 80 mg each day. Lutein helps restore the pigment layer of the retina. If someone is continuing to have problems coping with glare, bright lights at night, bright sunlight or has poor night vision, we recommend they increase their dosage to 60 mg or even 80 milligrams each day if the product has FloraGlo® lutein. If the product does not contained lutein from the FloraGlo® company we recommend the higher dose be 120 to 160 mg per day. If you have macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa or Stargardt disease, you need lutein. Take a dose that matches the dose is shown to be effective in decades of scientific research. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:31 https://bettereyehealth.com/best-way-to-breathe-when-doing-beh-exercises/ Thu, 09 Nov 2017 04:28:54 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=595 The eye health exercises in the Better Eye Health Program™ are designed to increase mobility in the head, neck and upper chest. This is been shown to increase blood flow in the brain and eyes, which is important for health and healing. To release and relax tight muscles and connective tissue we encourage a process of relaxation. Pulling on tight muscles makes them tighter. We instruct you in the various exercises to breathe in and move till you gently encounter a limit caused by tight muscles. Breathe out, feeling the tight muscles relax. Stay put, breathe in again and as you breathe out, feel a bit more release and relaxation. Release comes easiest on the breath out. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:34 https://bettereyehealth.com/what-you-do-when-you-dont-see-flashing/ Thu, 09 Nov 2017 04:05:03 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=593 This topic is only of interest to those people with macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa or Stargardt disease using microcurrent stimulation to support the health of their eyes. Microcurrent stimulation is used in medicine to restore the energy in the tissues being treated. When tissues regain their normal level of energy and metabolism they then have the energy they need for repair and regeneration. When treating the eyes, this therapeutic current also causes the retinal cells responsible for sight to respond, and the brain interprets this in the same way as if light had stimulated those cells. Our brain thinks the microcurrent stimulation is some sort of light and reports it as such. If the current is pulsing at nine times per second (9 Hz), then your brain thinks you are seeing a light flashing at nine times a second. But there is no light. People with retinal degeneration due to macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa or Stargardt disease, when they adjust the current for treatment as instructed, may not see flashing. This is okay. There cells are not healthy when they first begin the program, and their eyes will not respond to the microcurrent simulation in the same way that their eyes are not responding normally to light. When people finally start to see the flashing, they know their eyes are starting to heal. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:10 https://bettereyehealth.com/how-much-microcurrent-stimulation-do-i-need-every-day/ Wed, 08 Nov 2017 15:44:16 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=574 If you are doing microcurrent stimulation as part of the therapy for your eyes, do the minimum recommended by your practitioner. Most practitioners recommend 20 minutes of treatment twice a day. If you are using the newer automatic unit from MicroStim®, the unit is programmed to deliver a five-minute treatment cycle. So, you would do four cycles, twice a day, five days a week. Taking two days off each week is important, and taking a rest from treatment of 1 to 2 weeks every two months is recommended. If you have the luxury of extra time in your day to devote to eye health, we recommend adding other healthy activities like walking, yoga, Pilates, Qi gong etc. Anything you do to benefit your overall health will benefit the health of your eyes. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 2:08 https://bettereyehealth.com/how-do-i-measure-improvements-in-vision/ Wed, 08 Nov 2017 15:41:12 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=576 You're doing the microcurrent stimulation therapy in the Better Eye Health Program™ and you want to know if your eyesight is improving before you get your next eye exam. In this podcast Dr. Miller discusses some simple and common sense things you can do to track the healing in your eyes. If you don't already have one, there is a link where you can print out and Amsler grid to track changes in your visual fields. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:23 https://bettereyehealth.com/healthy-digestion-and-using-supplements/ Fri, 03 Nov 2017 05:01:28 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=589 You want a healthy digestion if you want health. If you are eating three meals a day, you want two to three bowel movements a day. Some discussion of prebiotics and probiotics, and a brief discussion about the use of bitters. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:59 https://bettereyehealth.com/understanding-the-trace-minerals-we-use-beh-podcast/ Tue, 31 Oct 2017 03:01:38 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=549 Our recommended mineral supplements are humic minerals, or the fulvic minerals derived from these humic minerals. The source of these minerals is incredibly pure, containing a balance of the dozens of trace minerals human beings need. People read the ingredient list on the bottle, and ask, "are all these trace minerals needed, and are they safe?" Simple answer: Yes, they are essential, and they are safe. The minerals come from what was originally ancient plant material. If the vegetables in the store had an ingredient list, it would look identical to the label on the bottle of mineral supplements. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:58 https://bettereyehealth.com/what-brand-of-lutein-do-we-use-beh-podcast/ Tue, 31 Oct 2017 02:46:28 +0000 https://bettereyehealth.com/?p=546 Over the last 60 years, there is more scientific study showing the benefits of lutein in eye health than any other supplement. The study show that the dose of lutein needed to bring benefits is much higher than what is included in most eye vitamins on the market. We use lutein supplements where the source of the lutein is from the European company FloraGlo®. Lutein from FloraGlo® is more concentrated and better absorbed, so you need less, about half as much as any other brand. A bit more expensive, but you need less, so cheaper in the long run. FloraGlo® lutein also contains all the zeaxanthin's and other carotenoids needed. It is very safe for people with Stargardt disease. Damon Miller, MD - Better Eye Health full 3:21