2502 NYCC TRANS FINAL2 - New York Chiropractic College

Interview With: Howard F. Loomis, Jr., D.C., F.I.A.C.A.
Continued from page 24
with the maintenance of health. Each system is responsible for important
functions needed to maintain homeostasis (health).
Circulatory
Digestive and bowel elimination
Hormonal or endocrine
Immune
Integumentary (skin, hair, nails)
Musculoskeletal
Nervous
Respiratory
Reproductive
Urinary
When one of these systems is stressed beyond its capabilities or
is aging faster (slowing down), some of its responsibilities must be
assumed by other systems. Increased workload requires increased
nutrition with a consequent increase in waste production that must
be removed.
Transitions: Are enzyme supplements commercially available
that would help people digest proteins and foods with important
ingredients?
Dr. Loomis: The answer is yes. I began clinical studies in the
use of food enzymes in 1980 and began lecturing on their use in
1985. I have continued to do so and have formulated many enzyme
products (perhaps 100) for specific clinical use as well as for overthe-counter
use.
It is often assumed by health-care practitioners that if we consume
a food substance, the body will automatically digest and assimilate
the nutrients contained therein. Nothing could be further
from the truth. In fact, it is my contention that normal digestion and
Nutrition and Acne
People with acne should avoid eating french fries, right?.
Not necessarily. Though there is a nutritional component to
the malady, greasy foods and dirt are not the culprits. Acne is
a disorder of the skin’s oil glands, suffered by nearly 17 million
Americans. The disorder results in plugged pores and pimply
lesions that, though not a serious health threat, may result in
permanent scarring. The condition arises when the body produces
high levels of androgen (a steroid hormone), triggering
secretions of oil from sebaceous glands located on the skin.
Bacteria grow in plugged hair follicles. Sufferers should consume
anti-inflammatory oils such as cold-water fish, nuts and
seeds, along with plenty of carotene-rich orange, yellow, and
leafy green vegetables. Drink at least eight cups of water daily.
Avoid allergenic foods such as dairy, caffeine, sugars, alcohol,
refined foods, and foods containing iodine. Lessen animal products
to reduce inflammation, and explore supplements that
contain vitamin A, vitamin E, and zinc.
assimilation are seldom found in patients needing health care.
Notice that within the healing arts we do not find digestive specialists.
We find internists and gastroenterologists, but they specialize
in treating disease and not in normalizing or maintaining digestive
processes. Dietitians specialize in food preparation but not improving
digestion. In fact, in a hospital setting it is assumed the
patient will be able to digest and assimilate what the doctor has ordered
as a dietary protocol. But, the doctor does not perform tests
to determine the patient’s ability to digest the diet. In fact, medicine
does not have such tests!
Nutritionists specialize in recognizing nutritional deficiencies and
imbalances. Their protocols include nutritional guidance and the
use of concentrated vitamin and mineral supplements. But, they do
not seek to determine if a digestive inadequacy might be responsible
for the problem; they only look for a dietary cause.
The Council on Nutrition of the American Medical Association
defines nutrition as the science of food, what is ingested, digested,
absorbed, transported, utilized, and eliminated. By that definition,
few if any health care practitioners actually practice the science of
nutrition. An equally small number actually use food in their practice.
By that I mean that food is defined as a substance that contains
protein, carbohydrate, fats, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes. By definition,
most food supplements could be classified as drugs.
Transitions: Are there other items that offer synergistic benefits
when paired with good nutrition, such as exercise?
Dr. Loomis: The key to a long and healthy life starts with heredity,
your genetic code. Those inherited characteristics, strengths
and weaknesses, are then influenced by the environmental factors
you make part of your lifestyle. That is, the quality of air you breath,
the quality of water you drink, your activity level (including exercise
patterns), and your dietary choices.
Nutrition and Baldness
Growing bald is no fun. There is hope, however. Though
androgenetic alopecia (the technical term for baldness) is a condition
linked with heredity, nutrition may help. Hair follicles produce
a substance that reacts badly with male hormones causing the
follicle to shut down. Even women experience problems when
their smaller level of male hormones closes hair follicles.
Temporary hair loss may also arise from shocks to the body’s
systems – whether stress, starvation, infection, childbirth, thyroid
or immunologic disorders, drugs and chemotherapy. What can
nutrition do? Though limited in its ability to stem male pattern
baldness, nutritional steps such as reducing pro-inflammatory
foods and saturated fats, dairy products and other animal
products may help. Balding men should eat fresh vegetables,
whole grains, essential fatty acids and non-animal proteins such
as nuts, legumes and soy. Vitamin B6 (50 or 100 mg per day),
zinc (30 mg per day) and gamma-linolenic acid (1000 mg twice
a day) will help inhibit the follicle closing 5-alpha reductase.
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