DISCOVER THE CAUSE OF YOUR HEALTH PROBLEMS - RETURN TO VIBRANT HEALTH "Most patients believe that if two people have the same medical diagnosis - they have the same diasthesis, the same biochemistry, the same everything. This is a perilous error."

"Known for his high success rate with chronically ill patients who have failed to obtain help elsewhere".

PAUL A. GOLDBERG, M.P.H., D.C., D.A.C.B.N. Infinite Variety: An Introduction To Biochemical Individuality (Part II continued)

Home Dr. Paul Goldberg Patient Letters Works published PAUL A. GOLDBERG, M.P.H., D.C. Natural Hygiene Practitioner, Professor, Educator, and Researcher NEW! Lecture INFINITE VARIETY: An Introduction To Biochemical Individuality Part I Part II   CASE STUDIES Part III Books Read excerpts from: Arthritis and Rheumatism Sufferers: The Forgotten Patients Rheumatic Disease Case Studies Fibromyalgia - Another name for Impaired Health Exploring Chronic Fatigue Syndrom Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Ulcerative Colitis/Crohn's Disease) Hygienic Heights - Your Questions Answered BOOKS Order Dr. Goldberg's books here. PATIENTS Information for first-time patients here. SITEMAP here.

CASE STUDY SERIES I: PSORIATIC ARTHRITIS CASE STUDY SERIES II: RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS CASE STUDY SERIES I: PSORIATIC ARTHRITIS Several years ago, a chiropractor referred his 25-year-old son, with medically diagnosed psoriatic arthritis, to my office. We took thorough case and family histories, performed a physical examination and ordered appropriate laboratory tests. The patient had undergone extensive medical treatment (via drugs) and chiropractic care (via spinal adjustments) without improvement in his condition. The patient was covered with psoriatic scales over 75 percent of his body, including his scalp, face, arms, legs, trunk and genitals. Most distressing to the patient, however, were the musculoskeletal manifestations, which involved severe arthritic pains accompanied by diffuse muscular discomforts. The cervical spine had spondylosis, with bridging (ankylosing) occurring between C3 to C4 and C4 to C5. A hygienic review of the patient included alcohol usage (10 to 15 beers per week), keeping late hours and a poor diet. The family history included diabetes and cancer. After reviewing the history, examination results and laboratory studies with the patient, it was decided that he should undergo a supervised water-only fast. [Note: A true fast involves giving the patient water only. I place some patients who are not able to rest extensively due to work obligations on limited diets or on liquid diets. These are not, however, to be considered as fasts, although they can bring about similar benefits if carried out properly and long enough based on the needs of the individual. It should be noted that some patients should not fast. Fasting should only be done under the guidance of an experienced practitioner who has completed a natural hygiene internship, been certified in fasting supervision, and has developed good clinical judgment from extensive experience. Fasting is both an art and a science, and particularly in the 21st century should not be taken lightly. Over the years, I have had to rescue a number of persons who had fasted either on their own or under the care of an inexperienced practitioner and suffered damaging consequences as a result.] The fast lasted for two weeks with daily appraisals and laboratory monitoring. During this period, the patient rested, slept long hours and took short periods of sunbathing. At first, the patient's skin lesions increased, but by the sixth day had begun to fade. At the end of the two weeks, at which time it was determined the fast should be broken, the psoriatic lesions were more than 70 percent gone. The fast was broken carefully, then the patient followed a designed dietary plan appropriate for the level of digestive strength. The patient was given extensive guidance regarding hygienic aspects of living, specific for his past habits. The joint pains subsided over the next several weeks, and the patient left after a five-week stay — cleared of psoriatic lesions and with vastly improved joint mobility and muscular comfort. The only remaining area of his original problems was the ankylosing in the neck, but the surrounding tissues were now relaxed and comfortable. He returned home with a care program, based on his background and tests, to allow for continued improvement, help him avoid the return of his condition and allow him to care for himself without ongoing reliance on health practitioners. The patient, his family and the referring doctor of chiropractic were delighted with the results. Two months later, I received a long-distance phone call from the patient's home state from a young lady with the same medical diagnosis (psoriatic arthritis). She knew my former patient through an arthritis support group they had both attended. She related that she was impressed and excited after seeing her friend, my patient, exhibiting such vast improvement with a condition considered "incurable," and from which she had suffered with herself for many years. She explained that she had thoroughly interrogated my former patient as to exactly what he had done under my care — what foods he was told to eat and which to avoid, what supplements had been given, how long he had fasted for, etc. She then proceeded to follow the same plan herself, but with disappointing results. The unsupervised fast she took was disastrous, leaving her weak and debilitated. The foods she ate gave her indigestion, and she found herself worse off than when she had started. I explained to her that she was a different case than my former patient and what had worked for him was based on his individual traits, not hers. She emphatically replied, however, that her case was the same, since they both had been diagnosed with "psoriatic arthritis." Some doctors and most patients believe that if two people have the same medical diagnosis that they have the same diasthesis, the same biochemistry, the same everything. This is a perilous error. I explained to the caller that a program of care for her would need to be based on her specific physical traits, not on a title tagged on her medically. Six months later, she traveled to our clinic for care. I found her to be severely debilitated by two periods of unsupervised and incorrectly performed fasting. She suffered from weak digestion and a low body temperature. She had in addition been following a diet that was all raw in nature along with copious amounts of fruit juices because she had read in a book on "psoriasis" that raw foods were good for "psoriasis" and that the raw juices would "cleanse" the tissues. She had thus made two errors: First, by adapting a plan of action for herself based on what had worked for another person, and second, by basing her care on a disease recipe book rather than her own makeup and her own personal hygienic background. I was able to help her recover her health, but first we had to undo the damage she had inflicted upon herself by following a care plan that had been given to my first patient and which was specific for his needs, not hers. Patients with the same medical diagnosis present not only with differing reasons as to why they become ill, but also with differing degrees of difficulty as to their getting well. I am not indifferent to medical diagnoses, such as multiple sclerosis, lupus or cancer, but neither do they cause me to panic, since they only convey a limited amount of information regarding the patient's makeup. Patients with the same medical diagnosis present not only with differing reasons as to why they become ill, but also with differing degrees of difficulty as to their getting well. BEFORE AND AFTER Dr. Goldberg - almost crippled by severe rheumatoid arthritis and colitis - read more

CASE STUDY SERIES II: RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS A further example of the confusion seen among patients with a similar diagnostic title can be seen in three case studies from our office files of patients who presented with medically diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis. Please note the following: Each case had similar symptoms. Each case had received the same diagnosis of "rheumatoid arthritis." Each case was being treated based upon their medical diagnosis. Each case was getting continually worse. The etiological factors behind their conditions differed. The hygienic protocols used in helping the patients to recover had similarities along with distinct differences as per the patient's individual biochemical natures. Two years ago, I began working with a 55-year-old lady with medically diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis. She had been suffering for three years. Her hands were markedly gnarled, and she was unable to write or grip any objects. Multiple joints were inflamed, and her sedimentation rate was over 100 (normal for a female being 0 to 15). She was disheartened by the failure of the standard poisons (drugs) used for this condition medically (steroids, anti-inflammatory agents and immune suppressants) to help her, as well as discouraged by the failures of a host of natural remedies she had tried that she had read were "good for arthritis." She was a heavy starch and protein eater. The case was not an easy one, and it took over three months to see the initial signs of improvement: lowering of the sedimentation rate, improvement in the overall blood chemistries and significant reduction in the patient's pain, swelling and general discomforts. She continued under care for an additional 18 months before reaching a reasonable level of mobility. It took almost two years, however, for her recovery to reach its optimal level, and there were ups and downs along the way. We had to alter the course of her care several times as her condition changed, and if not for her diligence and perseverance we would not have been successful. It was difficult for her to reduce her heavy intake of proteins and starches and to establish regular rest and sleep habits. Consistently applying hygienic principles, balancing the diet, along with periodic supervised fasting, and extensive rest were the foundations of her recovery, along with excellent support and encouragement from the patient's family. Compare this with a more recent case of "rheumatoid arthritis" (same medical diagnosis) I worked with:

Four years ago, a 42-year-old female from the Midwest came to us, upon referral from a doctor of chiropractic, with the medical diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis. She could walk only very slowly with great pain. The joints (hands, knees, wrists, hands, and feet) were markedly inflamed. Sleeping was difficult because of the constant pain. She was receiving the usual steroids, anti-inflammatory agents and immune suppressants. The patient followed a reasonable diet and had taken fairly good care of her self in terms of general lifestyle habits. She had, however, recently undergone an unexpected divorce from her husband of over 20 years, whom she had put through school and been instrumental in building his successful business by working long hours. To put salt on the wounds, within three weeks of the divorce her husband married his secretary. Her blood work showed her to be badly depleted, including being anemic and having very low serum protein levels and a sedimentation rate of 110. During the first two months, the patient made rapid progress. She stayed with a very loving sister, who lived in the area and cooperated in her care. The initial sedimentation rate of 110 dropped to the mid 60s within just a few weeks, and the patient felt much improved, stating that she was about 30 percent better. The patient then returned to her home state for several weeks to take care of business matters prior to returning to my office for further care. When she returned, I found that her progress had not only halted but that she had lost ground on the progress that we had made. She had maintained her dietary plan and saw a competent chiropractor while home, and yet the sedimentation rate had climbed back up over the 100 mark. Spending time to conduct an interview with the patient revealed that while home she had seen, on two separate occasions, her former husband and his new wife in a convertible bought shortly before the divorce. My client experienced a tremendous surge of anger and resentment that was not quieted until she returned to Georgia and the comfort of her sister's company and caring. I recommended outside counseling, which she obtained to address this issue. Within the next 60 days, with hygienic care and individual counseling, the patient improved both emotionally and spiritually. Her sedimentation rate dropped to 30, and she was able to return home without carrying such a tremendous emotional burden ready to trigger her body's immune system back into disease. She has remained in good health with only very occasional mild arthritic flare-ups since then. Four months ago, a doctor of chiropractic in East Georgia referred a 27-year-old male, medically diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis.

The patient had been seeing a rheumatologist for a number of months and was continuing to worsen while taking Prednisone and anti-inflammatory agents. He had formerly been very active with weight lifting, running and other pursuits, but at the time I first saw him the patient was in great discomfort, had stiff, swollen joints, was weak and tired and was becoming very depressed. He had been cautioned by the rheumatologist that "rheumatoid arthritis" was "incurable" and that he would have to adapt to the "reality" that he would become increasingly crippled as time went on. We ran a number of tests on the patient, with the dietary habits being most notable. The diet was heavy with items that can be pro-inflammatory in nature, including heavy usage of "soft drinks" (four or more cans per day) in addition to numerous other sources of refined sugar. Processed fats were heavy in the diet. I arranged for him to undergo a six-hour glucose tolerance test. The results were significantly abnormal. The heavy usage of refined carbohydrates had weakened his sugar-regulating abilities. Following complete removal of the refined carbohydrates, an improved diet, a short fast, and repletion of nutrient imbalances, the patient experienced a near complete reduction in his discomforts without taking any more drugs. This was over a period of less than four weeks. The patient's family and girlfriend were supportive of his efforts to reverse the course of his disease through natural hygienic measures. Three months later, the patient continues to be well and has resumed running and weight lifting. All signs of the "rheumatoid arthritis" were gone in just a few months. The background of all three patients included an identical medical diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis. Their presenting symptoms were similar. The factors behind their illnesses, however, were vastly different. In each case, different biochemical factors played a major role. In each case, the social and emotional background of the patient played different roles in the disease process. The times needed for recovery and the strategies used in effecting a recovery, while similar, also differed on a number of key points. Yet, each patient had been given the same medical diagnosis, and each patient had been given similar pharmaceutical agents. In each case, both the internal and external environments of the patients had been ignored by their rheumatologists. In each case, the patient's own unique biochemistries had been overlooked. The background of all three patients included an identical medical diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis. Their presenting symptoms were similar. The factors behind their illnesses, however, were vastly different. [In the final installment of the series, Dr. Goldberg will address some of the specific methods used to uncover common, basic, etiological factors in both the internal and external environment that help us to understand the patient's biochemical individuality and how to best address it.] References 1. Dubos, René, Mirage of Health, 1959, p. 119. 2. Dubos, René, Mirage of Health, 1959. 3. Ibid., p. 113. 4. Goldberg, P.A., "Hanging Hippocrates," (an overview of the misuse/overuse of radiological studies by health-care professionals), Today's Chiropractic, May/June, 1983, pp. 22-23. 5. Baker, Sidney, M.D., Detoxification & Healing: The Key to Optimal Health, pp. 122-123. For Infinite Variety: An Introduction To Biochemical Individuality - PART III continue here To arrange for consultation/evaluation with Dr. Goldberg or to receive further information on how The Goldberg Clinic can assist you with your health concerns, contact Dr. Goldberg Important: Before e-mailing, read information for new & prospective patients,

THE GOLDBERG CLINIC *Natural Hygiene *Clinical Nutrition* Biological Health Care* PAUL A. GOLDBERG, M.P.H., D.C., D.A.C.B.N. Website: http://www.goldbergclinic.com 2480 Windy Hill Road Suite 203, Marietta, Georgia 30067 (770) 974-7470

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