Bipolar Disorder Balanced with Wellness: PT-VIII Hair Analysis for Nutrition Wellness - Supplements

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At the end of 2010 I decided 2011 my main life focus would be my health and wellness. I had a hankering to know just how to improve it and I knew I am not an expert. For my Associate of Arts Degree awarded in 2003, the state of California requires a Wellness class. I broke out my old notes, dusted off the book, stirred up my memory, created a file for research stuff, and then dug in. One day I started seeking how I could balance the nutrition portion of my wellness life.

While exploring I got a good grasp of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. I discovered why organic foods are a better choice and generally which foods provided for different vitamin content. Beginning to specifically look into my health regarding vitamins / minerals or nutrition supplements and how to choose I learned how they enhance nutrition wellness. About a week passed when I realized the information was overwhelming and not clear to me. There are many websites and publications offering information, yet a single question loomed – which ones do “I” need. So, I stepped back and listed my needs or the givens;

• Bipolar Disorder
• Diabetes
• Memory challenges
• Alzheimer disease and my associated fear
• Thinking better or cognitive function improvement
• The detriments of smoking
• Medication side affects
• Chemical exposures from work history
• Local Pollution
• Primarily Fast Food Diet

Settling on four sites I continued researching. I chose the Vitamins & Nutrition Center, the Mayoclinic, the Department of Agriculture, and Dr. Oz. Researching those givens I found many different answers and supplement recommendations. Reading, reading, and reading there seemed to be promise for answers and maybe an ember of hope was glowing. However, I discovered conflicting information for when is too much, when is too little, and way too much information on which nutritional supplements to choose. There is an old saying “you are not lost if you know where you are at.” I wasn’t even sure of that anymore.

OK, common sense says there is good reason for nutrition supplements, but there are many, many of them. Logically there must be generalities which guide recommendations for basic needs and are agreed upon or else why would there be a multi-vitamin. Common sense again says they are marketed and it is based on supply and demand. Again, what are the demands and who drives them – the nutrition supplement industry and people with a need. My question – which ones do I need , wasn’t being answered.

Seeking validity for them I ventured to the American Medical Association. Naturally, I got lost while deciding I couldn’t get a law or medical degree in the next few days to understand the overwhelming information. Searching further on the AMA’s position on vitamins I discovered they had reversed their age old stance of anti-vitamin with the publication of two papers in 2002. I looked at the American Psychiatric Association finding one interesting article – Personal Health Practices of U.S. Female Psychiatrists versus Other Female Physicians. This further validated nutrition supplements as a health practice for wellness for me, since they use vitamins / nutrition supplements daily.

OK, what had I learned to this point?

• Controversy surrounds the usage of nutrition supplements or vitamins & minerals
• Nutrition supplements are used by the medical profession for the treatment of disease
• Vitamins received recent support by the AMA, specifically quality multi-vitamins
• Nutrition supplements are common practice amongst female Psychiatrist & Physicians
• There are many specific choices for Nutrition supplements based on “my” needs
• There are clinical trials and research validating specific choices for specific uses
• Nutrition supplements are as common as dirt in the market place
• The nutrition supplement industry is huge
• The internet provides invaluable information, yet can be overwhelming
• The main purpose of nutrition supplements is providing for lack of nutrients
• There are specific choices and all-in-one choices for specific markets – prostrate health, menopause health, men’s health, women’s health, children’s health, etc.

OK, what do I NOT KNOW at this point. Answer – which nutrition supplements and how much do “I” need?

Cross referencing my gathered lists for my specific known needs with the general health recommendations the list grew larger and larger. I just wasn’t satisfied with this. To me it was like throwing darts. The shot gun approach to a solution “just ain’t work’n.” Frustrated, dancing with hypomania, realizing I had to work that evening, I stopped.

Returning home I continued searching the web. I tried searching vitamin analysis and it led to blood testing and a High Performance Liquid Chromatography – HPLC test, which is used for vitamin manufacturing. The blood test blew my mind and my education level.

Next, I tried mineral analysis. Whola! Here was an answer – hair analysis. Odd, but interesting, so I went on another adventure, while typing into the browser – “hair analysis.” The very first listed site using Google is Commercial Hair Analysis : A Cardinal Sign of Quackery. Discovering a negative view toward hair analysis and implying it as a rip-off I was a little unsure. But as my grandfather, a Stanford graduate, told me when a young lad “never believe the first book you read, because there is always another on the same subject.”

Looking further down is H air Mineral Analysis and DNA Analysis Test at WebMD. Here I learned it is used for forensic science and detecting heavy metals. It threw me for a loop stating “Hair analysis has become more reliable and acceptable over the past 20 years” and then a few points down saying “But hair analysis is not an accurate way of determining your need for vitamins, minerals, or other nutrients.” I questioned, “Then what is reliable, acceptable and accurate?”

Below that website was – Hair Analysis Testing - Dr. Janet Starr Hull. At Dr. Hulls’ website I wandered about for awhile. I discovered a plethora of information and reason for the use of hair analysis. I first reviewed the topics at the FAQ page. Then, I did a search at Dr. Hull’s website for hair analysis. Wow! There were 59 pages of information. I bounced around, back and forth, then up and down discovering more and more valuable information.

Then I started searching the nutrition supplements I believed I may need. There were always many choices for researching. They led to website, newsletter, and forum topics. All I can say is there is a whole bunch of stuff there. But, it is presented in a very orderly, a professional manner and easily navigated. It provided general knowledge and specific information for my questions regarding alternative medicine, nutrition supplements, and the importance of hair analysis for their recommendations.

However, after reading the WebMD post I was still curious. I searched hair analysis seeking other choices and information. Many of the websites offering hair analysis have various packages and different prices. Going back over the questions I had written down most offered the ability to recommend while explaining why and what the process was. Yet, I didn’t see as much available information, that many forums, and only some newsletters providing additional information.

Reasoning there are sound explanations to the argument of the validity for the use of a hair analysis I pondered the benefits it would provide, specifically choosing vitamins and nutrition supplements. Returning back to Dr. Hull’s website an abundance of information regarding the benefits of essential elements, how our bodies use and excrete them and the harm of heavy metals was discovered.

Again through exploration one discovers both pro and con to an argument, which in this case is hair analysis. So, I looked closer into the cons. I went back to the Quackwatch’s, which is a spinoff ofthe National Council Against Health Fraud, article, although I read Dr. Stephen Barrett’s article more carefully. I saw, what to me, are contradictions, but I am no expert.

Looking further along I found the donation page where it states “Quackwatch also receives support when visitors to our site place an order through some of the links listed below.” The first link is “Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database trustworthy information on dietary supplements and herbs. Then I searched vitamins and supplements at their search engine and, well, I’m confused. I looked for other sources to support the anti-hair analysis article. Discovering those discrediting a hair analysis seemed as outdated posts compared to those either in favor or suggesting further research, I still wondered.

Harboring slight doubt I looked into quackwatch, who profess themselves as an independent source for information, discovering overwhelming information discrediting them. Numerous court cases ruled against quackwatch over the years. The most recent I was able to discover takes place in the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County for the State of Pennsylvania. During cross examination the founder, Dr. Stephen Barrett, “conceded that he was not a Medical Board Certified psychiatrist because he had failed the certification exam,” stated in a Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation internet article.

Continuing its says,”This was a major revelation since Barrett had provided supposed expert testimony as a psychiatrist and had testified in numerous court cases. Barrett also had said that he was a legal expert even though he had no formal legal training.

The most damning testimony before the jury, under the intense cross-examination by Negrete, was that Barrett had filed similar defamation lawsuits against almost 40 people across the country within the past few years and had not won one single one at trial.

During the course of his examination, Barrett also had to concede his ties to the AMA, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Food & Drug Administration (FDA).”

Another noteworthy court case takes place on April 22, 2003 in the California Appeals Court. Another argument against quackwatch in my search was written by Denise Autry, RN, CCN, Director of Clinical Services of Ideal Health 1) 2001 letter to Stephen Barrett and 2) 2007 article on Barrett.

Finally, I discovered articles written with documentation by Tim Bolen at the National Health Federation – A Non-Profit Health-Freedom Organization. Well, open and shut for me.

OK, how about the pros for a hair analysis and used as a tool for recommending vitamins / supplements. My first discovery it is a worldwide accepted practice for nutrition and alternative health choices, which is gaining greater recognition daily (see below). There is abundant information indicating its wide use in Asia, Australia and Europe. It is used for detecting drug / narcotic usage and interestingly with animal care. Apparently used with horses and cattle. Looking closer to home I see it is used for that in the U.S. too.

Summarized as “Hair analysis seems potentially useful in experimental medicine but its use in clinical medicine for diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy will remain limited until validation by the standard methods of clinical investigation is achieved,” is stated at PubMed.com. Here, for me, is the question – what are the definitions for clinical medicine, experimental medicine, and limited. Since, in essence I am seeking neither of the first two, but a practical method for correctly identifying harmful heavy metals and essential element levels, I viewed it as a positive indication for its use.

Hair Analysis As a Drug Detector, by Tom Mieczkowski, Ph.D., for the U.S. Dept of Justice states, “Testing hair samples for drugs of abuse may offer certain advantages over urine testing methodologies.” Further along saying, “hair testing could be used as an initial screen for the identification of long patterns of drug use, especially cocaine.” Again, a plus, since it gives credibility to hair analysis as a method of measuring specifics.

A review of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry Division of Health Assessment and Consultation Summary Report: Hair Analysis Panel Discussion: Exploring the State of the Science (2001) offers the following overall conclusion:

“For most substances, insufficient data currently exist that would allow the prediction of a health effect from the concentration of the substance in hair (3). The presence of a substance in hair may indicate exposure (both internal and external), but does not necessarily indicate the source of exposure.”

RE: (3) “This statement addresses only exposure to environmental contaminants and does not address substances of abuse.”

My conclusion from reading the report, which also supported using hair analysis for drug testing by citing court cases, the time period of the symposium, and publication date, is it remains open to interpretation. It seemed to point to a need for establishing procedures and protocol for it as a clinical tool and determining the bureaucracy to govern its usage. I was not able to discover anything detrimental for its use as a tool determining my specific needs for vitamin / supplement recommendations, yet does allude to detection of heavy metals as viable. In my opinion it offers support when “reading between the lines” so to speak.

Then, happily I came across two additional sources reassuring my choice. NASA uses hair analysis for evaluating astronauts returning from flight or prolonged space station duty.

Space Applications

In space experiments, hair is one of the most suitable specimens, for there are neither special hardware nor handling necessary to collect samples and retrieve them from the orbit. The research is expected to support the development of an effective and easy diagnostic measure for ISS crew.

Earth Applications

The results obtained from this research will facilitate the understanding of the relations between human metabolism and hair. The research is expected to support the development of alternative diagnostic methods for blood or urine.

And, a study by the Department of Environmental Medicine, University of Rochester, School of Medicine and Dentistry was very impressive in my view. Published by PubMed.gov the study, Validity of methyl mercury hair analysis: mercury monitoring in human scalp/nude mouse model,concluded “This study demonstrated that human hair grown on nude mice can record the level of exposure to methyl mercury and can serve as a valuable research tool to study mercury incorporation into human hair.” For me, that means it would be relevant to other elements too, if studied.

My journey of discovery was interesting, long, and extremely informative. I learned new concepts in the field of nutrition, vitamins / nutrition supplements, and those as an alternative medicine choice. Now, in my limited view, I could be confident with a hair analysis as a tool for the purpose of identifying heavy metal and essential element levels, for me.

Now, I wanted to know who the interpreter is and what a heavy metal detox program is all about. Impressed with Dr. Hull’s site and her credentials I chose it. So, to understand better I ordered the Detox kit to study and her book, Sweet Poison – How The World’s Most Popular Artificial Sweetener Is Killing Us – My Story.

I looked forward to reading about her personal experience and journey with Aspartame and its harmful effects. (Reviews to follow at tsmog in hubpages) and her designed Detox program. Having a Bipolar Disorder Type I as a mental health diagnosis and diabetes Type II my curiosity for the program raised my interest greatly. The only challenge I felt at that time was forgetting to take my nutrition supplements. Next, I began researching who the interpreter of the hair analysis is, which will be another hubpages internet article at tsmog - hubpages.

World Health Organization (WHO): Vitamin and mineral requirements in human nutrition, Second edition, (downloadable PDF file). - Overview: “In the past 20 years, micronutrients have assumed great public health importance. As a consequence, considerable research has been carried out to better understand their physiological role and the health consequences of micronutrient-deficient diets, to establish criteria for defining the degree of public health severity of micronutrient malnutrition, and to develop prevention and control strategies."

MedlinePlus, Trusted Health Information for You - Topic: Complementary and Alternative Medicine This is service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

National Institute of Health – National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) "The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) is the Federal Government's lead agency for scientific research on the diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not generally considered part of conventional medicine.”

Science.gov USA.gov for Science– Topic: Alternative Medicine, Here is a site for looking at alternative medicine topics provided by U.S. Government

National Cancer Institute at the National Institute of Health– Topic: Complimentary and Alternative Medicine (CAM). Here is additional information regarding Alternative Medicine as a choice specifically to Cancer Treatment

Mayo Clinic, Alternative medicine: Evaluate claims of treatment success. Here the Mayo Clinic provides information of how to make an informed decision with Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM).

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