Evaluating Clients, Lab Testing, Amino Acids, Electrolytes and Advanced Detoxification

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Evaluating Clients, Lab Testing, Amino Acids,
Electrolytes and Advanced Detoxification

• Mark Schauss, MBA, DB

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My Background

• Began researching the field of nutritional and
  complementary medicine in 1983.
• In 1985, developed a novel way to analyze blood
  tests.
• In 1995 was awarded a patent on disease
  patterning.
• In 1996 was awarded a second patent relating to
  patterning and decision making in analyzing lab
  tests.
• Taught classes in how to conduct drug and
  research trials to pharmaceutical companies and
  medical devise makers.
• Have lectured on five continents on environmental
  toxicity, cognitive function, nutritional
  supplements and lab testing.

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My Background

• Things got personal when my daughter Tasya
  developed epilepsy at the age of three.
• The neurologist gave us a dire prognosis she
  would like not live past her 12th birthday as the
  type of disorder was progressive.
• At one point she would have hundreds of seizures
  a day.
• One seizure when she was eight she had an
  allergic reaction to the drug Ativan and had a
  six hour seizure.
• Years later we discovered why she reacted so
  violently to that particular drug and many others.

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My Background

• Approximately 50 of all drugs and many herbs are
  metabolized through the cytochrome p450 enzyme
  pathway CYP3A4.
• People with abnormalities within this pathway
  will get a negative side effect when taking any
  of these drugs or herbs.
• Some of the side effects can be life threatening
  and some can be life altering.
• Only through genetic testing can we determine if
  we have this abnormality. More on this later.

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Before we get started

• This presentation will be available on my website
  www.markschauss.com
• Many of the presentations that I have made over
  the past 20 years are there as well.
• You are free to use them if you are doing a
  presentation, just make sure you acknowledge
  where you got the information.

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Resources

• My objective is to not only teach you but also to
  empower you to find the research on your own.
• Always be skeptical of whatever a lecturer tells
  you.
• Challenge the ideas put forth.
• Double check the references.
• Keep an open mind.
• When in doubt, go back to the basics.

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Resources

• www.letstalkrealhealth.com
• www.ewg.org
• www.ehponline.org
• www.toxicworldbook.com
• www.markschauss.com
• www.scorecard.org
• www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhanes.htm
• www.nutritiondata.self.com/tools/nutrient-search
• Fabulous place to find out what nutrients are in
  foods.

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The Basics

• The most important lesson I ever learned was,
  when presented with a difficult case, go back to
  the most basic level of their chemistry and start
  there.
• Case 1 12 year old girl has braces put on and
  within 3 days begins to have blank out seizures.
• Guesses on what happened here?
• The brain, central nervous system, cardiovascular
  system are all electrically charged.
• Electrolytes are one of the most fundamental
  issues to be addressed for all conditions.

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The Basics

• Balancing a persons electrolytes is critical.
• We will be discussing this in detail down the
  road.
• The electrical system in the human body is a
  circulatory system just the same as blood and
  lymphatic.
• The seminal work on the subject was Dr. Bjorn E.
  W. Nordenstrom called Biologically Closed
  Electric Circuits Clinical, Experimental and
  Theoretical Evidence for an Additional
  Circulatory System.

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Electrolytes

• When thinking about how important electrolytes
  are, think where life began on earth the
  oceans.
• It is the base from which everything else stands
  on.
• This is your foundation and where you need to
  address with yourself and all of your clients.
• So what is the definition of an electrolyte?
• It is a fluid that can conduct electricity.
• Your blood does this quite effectively.

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Electrolytes

• Electrolyte salts need to be in balance for
  optimal performance and health.
• Not only that but your brain depends on
  electrolytes to function properly.
• Basically, your thoughts are dependent on the
  sodium potassium pump.
• A great video on this is available at
  www.youtube.com/watch?vbR76BqeSrOM

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Electrolytes

• The main electrolyte salts are sodium, potassium,
  calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, chlorides, and
  bicarbonates.
• The balance of sodium and potassium are two of
  the more critical when it comes to performance
  and health.
• There can be no contraction without sodium and no
  relaxation without potassium.
• When evaluating a client, you can look at them
  and see if they are sodium or potassium
  imbalanced.
• Left side is sodium Right side is potassium
• Bicep is sodium Triceps are potassium
• Hamstrings are sodium Quads are potassium

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Electrolytes

• Blood pressure can be manipulated by adjusting
  ones electrolytes.
• Sodium controls the systolic (upper number) or
  the contraction phase of the heart.
• Potassium controls the diastolic (lower number)
  or the relaxation phase (filling) of the heart.
• An optimal blood pressure for a normal person
  should have a separation of about 50 points.
• Chlorides and bicarbonates will spread the
  numbers apart.
• Sulfates will tighten the numbers.

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Electrolytes

• In brain chemistry, electrolytes play an
  important role in mental health.
• In anyone with depression, the first go to would
  be balancing ones electrolytes especially
  potassium.
• In a standard blood test, if the potassium level
  is below 4.0 mE/q, chances are the person suffers
  some form of depression.
• Anorexia is a disorder with extreme potassium
  deficiency.
• There is a change in perception of themselves due
  to it.
• All food contains potassium so the body doesnt
  retain it efficiently.

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Electrolytes

• When an anorexic or bulimic continues to avoid
  food, they continue the depletion of potassium.
• Zinc, helps to improve appetite in anorexics but
  potassium must be added as well otherwise the
  mental perception problem will persist.
• Caution, excessive potassium can cause
  arrhythmias.
• There must be adequate sodium to potassium to
  prevent this problem.
• This is why the best source of electrolytes is a
  balanced formula.

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Chlorides and Bicarbonates

• The balancing of chlorides and bicarbonates are
  critical for performance and health.
• They have an inverse relationship, when one goes
  up the other goes down.
• This relationship is important in hydrochloric
  acid production.
• If the bicarbonates go down HCl production is
  inhibited.
• Many autistic children have low HCl as well as
  many with mental disorders like depression.
• Increasing bicarbonate intake (Potassium and
  Sodium Bicarb) quite often improves digestion
  better than taking HCl.

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Chlorides and Bicarbonates

• Bicarbonates are important buffers.
• Very few electrolyte formulas contain bicarbs.
• Adequate bicarbonate intake during workouts or
  exercise can help reduce the levels of lactic
  acid in the muscles.
• Reduced levels of lactic acid improves
  performance and decreases the risk of injury.
• It also greatly improves the recovery cycle.
• But caution here, balance of electrolytes is key.

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Electrolytes

• Calcium is important to control both sodium and
  potassium.
• Potassium drives the calcium into the cells,
  sodium drives calcium into the bones.
• Imbalances in sodium and potassium may be
  involved in osteoporosis.
• Vinegar is effective at lowering blood pressure
  especially systolic.
• Vinegar, aka acetic acid binds with sodium to
  create sodium acetate which is flushed out of the
  kidneys.
• Vinegar also is helpful in softening calcium.

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Electrolytes

• Vinegar is also helpful in solubalizing fats in
  the blood stream.
• Magnesium is involved in over 300 enzymatic
  reactions.
• It is the number one mineral deficiency in the
  western diet.
• If every man in the U.S. would take a 200 mg
  capsule of magnesium every day, we would lower
  the risk of a cardiac event by 80.
• It would save the health care system around 500
  billion over a 20 year period.
• Now for my shameless plug.

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Amino Acids

• Next to electrolytes, amino acids are one of the
  most critical and fundamental issues to address
  when looking at improving performance and health.
• Back to the ocean.
• Amino acids/proteins in an electrolyte soup.
• Improving one or the other is helpful but working
  on the two together is greater than their sum.
• By manipulating individual amino acids, you can
  target health issues very effectively especially
  cognitive function.

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Amino Acids

• Branch-Chained Amino Acids (BCAAs)
• Leucine, Isoleucine and Valine
• Leucine accounts for eight percent of the total
  amino acids in the body.
• It is fourth in concentration behind glutamic
  acid, aspartic acid and lysine in muscle tissue.
• It also is the only amino acid that can
  substitute for glucose in a fasting state.
• It can also cause problems when used excessively.

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Amino Acids

• Dr. Abram Hoffer found that excessive intake of
  leucine can increase the loss of niacin unless
  there is adequate isoleucine.
• BCAAs need adequate vitamin B6 to be properly
  metabolized.
• In high-dose BCAA supplementation amongst
  athletes and trainers, I consistently see
  excessive levels of BCAAs in plasma.
• There is typically an inadequate intake of
  B-vitamins.
• Because they are water soluble and not retained,
  daily intake proportional to BCAA intake is
  critical.

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Amino Acids

• There is a concern in some individuals that
  excessive protein intake can be problematic.
• One of the major issues is hyperammonemia.
• Typically it is due to a problem with the Urea
  Cycle.
• Some of the symptoms of hyperammonemia is
  irritability, bladder control, anger management,
  seizures, brain fog and fatigue.
• Case Study 2 Young 14 year old boy who wets
  his bed.

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Amino Acids

• In cases of hyperammonemia
• 500 mgs of Arginine along with electrolytes with
  bicarbonates.
• If that doesnt work than try 500 mgs of
  Ornithine.
• 150 mgs of alpha keto glutarate is helpful as
  well.

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Amino Acids

• Carnitine is an important and often times
  overlooked supplement.
• The problem I see is the use of excessively high
  doses.
• According to both the Stefan Siebricht and the
  late Robert Crayhon you begin to have diminishing
  returns over 3.5 grams daily.
• I also feel that excessive amounts over 10 grams
  can do damage to the heart over although this is
  an opinion of mine.
• I do recommend 250 mgs of carnitine for every
  gram of fish oils to prevent excessive fatty acid
  oxidation.

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Amino Acids

• Taurine is a conditionally essential amino acid.
• It is found in meats but not in significant
  quantities except for certain organs.
• It is used extensively in Japan in heart disease.
• 5 grams per day for three weeks is a typical
  treatment.
• It is helpful for use with people with
  arrhythmias as it protects against potassium loss
  within heart cells.
• It is also very helpful in combating the effects
  of chlorine for swimmers.
• Three grams daily is helpful

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Amino Acids

• Glycine is my favorite amino acid.
• It is the most versatile and has an amazing array
  of uses.
• Humans have ingested glycine for millennium in
  the form of bone soup.
• The collagen in the bone is about 40-50 glycine.
• It is an important base amino acid that while
  easily made from threonine, it is critical in so
  many areas that regular supplementation is
  important in maintaining health and performance.

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Amino Acids and Detoxification

• In todays petrochemically toxic world regular
  glycine intake is a must.
• It has a great affinity for the benzoate
  molecule.
• During phase I detoxification, many
  petrochemicals are transformed into a more toxic
  intermediary.
• Benzoate Glycine Hippurate
• Toluene and Xylene become 2- and 3-methylbenzoate
• These compounds are extremely neurologically
  toxic.
• Adding 3 grams of glycine daily is a must.
• You can measure 2- and 3-methyhippurate in urine.

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Amino Acids

• In the elderly, protein intake is essential but
  often times not addressed properly.
• A collagen based amino acid supplement with
  essential co-factors is helpful in keeping them
  physically and cognitively healthy.
• In studies done in Scandinavia showed that those
  elderly people who ate the most protein and had
  osteoporosis had the far fewer broken bones than
  those on low protein diets.
• Collagen from protein made their bones pliable
  and far less brittle.

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Detoxification

• Environmental toxicity is the number one health
  problem in the world today.
• Detoxification should no longer be viewed as a
  treatment, an event or something to be done in
  response to a health issue, it is something to be
  done as part of a healthy lifestyle.
• According to the Presidents Council on Cancer,
  80 of all cancers are caused by environmental
  toxicity.
• Cancer is not caused by bad genes but by the
  toxins that switch them on.

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Detoxification

• Mercury detoxification protocols are very
  controversial.
• There are numerous dangerous detox protocols out
  there.
• In my opinion, using a hybrid protocol based on
  the works of Dr. Andrew Cutler and Dr.
  Christopher Shade give you the best success with
  the least side effects.
• Neither chlorella nor cilantro are effective
  chelators of mercury.
• DMSA, DMPS and alpha lipoic acid are very
  effective chelators but must be used within very
  tight parameters.

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Detoxification

• DMSA and ALA must be dosed at ¼ to ½ mg per
  kilogram of body weight every 4 hours for 3 days.
• Then take either 4 days or 11 days off and
  replete with trace minerals.
• This is known as a cycle.
• Each cycle will remove approximately 1/2 of the
  bodys burden of mercury.
• DMPS must be dosed at ¼ to ½ mg per kilogram of
  body weight every 8 hours for 3 days.
• DO NOT USE MORE!!!

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Detoxification

• Case study 3 45 year old man chelating mercury
  incorrectly.
• Lesson learned.
• More is not better.
• Faster is not better.
• To enhance mercury detoxification make sure that
  transport proteins are on board.
• Improve glutathione levels.
• Liposomal glutathione is helpful.
• Improving natural glutathione production is best.

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Detoxification and Lab Testing

• What is glutathione?
• Glycine, glutamic acid and cysteine
• How to determine whether glutathione production
  is optimal?
• Organic Acid in Urine testing is crucial.
• Testing is your only way to truly evaluate the
  health status of yourself and your client.
• The Organic Acid test is a functional test that
  takes into account genetic abnormalities and your
  present day stresses and environmental exposures.

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Organic Acids

• So what are Organic Acids?
• Here is the description from the highly
  recommended book, Laboratory Evaluations for
  Integrative and Functional Medicine, 2nd Edition
  by Drs. Lord and Bralley.
• Instead of directly measuring nutrient
  concentrations, abnormal concentrations of
  organic acids provide functional markers for the
  metabolic effects of micronutrient inadequacies,
  toxic exposure, neuroendocrine activity, and
  intestinal bacterial overgrowth. As such, organic
  acid testing can indicate the functional need for
  essential or conditionally essential nutrients,
  diet modification, antioxidant protection
  detoxification and other therapies.

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Organic Acids

• When an organic acid is elevated it means that a
  metabolic process has not been completed and the
  acid has spilled into the urine which we measure.
• Lets look at specific organic acids and what
  they tell us.
• Methylmalonate is formed in the breakdown of
  BCAAs, methionine, and threonine and is
  dependent on Vitamin B12.
• It is a vastly superior marker to B12 deficiency
  than serum levels.
• 12 of elderly people are known to have profound
  B12 deficiencies in the U.S.

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Organic Acids

• Sub-clinical deficiencies are seen with elevated
  methymalonate.
• Kynurenate and Xanthurenate are both markers for
  B6 deficiency.
• I see these markers being elevated in many elite
  athletes and trainers who supplement regularly
  with BCAAs.
• Kynurenate is involved in neurotransmitter
  metabolism and inflammation.
• Xanthurenate is involved in tryptophan metabolism.

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Organic Acids

• a-Ketoisovalerate (valine), a-Ketoisocaproate
  (leucine), and ß-Ketoisovalerate (isoleucine) are
  markers for the incomplete metabolism of branch
  chained amino acids.
• Again, we commonly see these elevated in people
  who supplement with BCAAs
• These are markers for general B-complex nutrient
  deficiencies.
• If very elevated, it is appropriate to add
  additional thiamin (B1).

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Organic Acids

• Catecholamines, epinephrine (adrenaline),
  norepinephrine (noradrenaline), and dopamine are
  produced from tyrosine.
• Elevations in vanilmandilate and homovanilate are
  markers for stress and toxicity.
• Extreme elevations are markers for tumor growth.
• High levels of homovanilate may be due to heavy
  metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium or arsenic.
• High levels of vanilmandilate may be caused by
  petrochemical toxicity.
• Low levels are associated with depression, sleep
  disturbances, anxiety and fatigue.

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Organic Acids

• 5-Hydroxyindoleacetate (5-HIAA) is a breakdown of
  serotonin.
• Elevations are seen with 5-HTP supplementation
  and the use of SSRIs, some more than others.
• If neither of these are the case, suspect
  inflammatory gut reactions as a primary source of
  serotonin are the argentaffin cells found in the
  intestines.
• Extreme elevations are sometimes found in
  cancerous states.

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Organic Acids

• Phenylacetate, 3-Indolacetate, phenylproprionate,
  tricarballylate, D-Lactate and D-Arabinitol are
  all markers of intestinal dysbiosis.
• While not specific as to the type of organism
  (except D-Arabinitol which is a marker for
  yeast), they can give us a clue as to the levels
  of dysbiosis in the gut.
• I have found the herbal combination product
  Biocidin to be highly effective as a
  antimicrobial.
• If you need to determine the species of bug
  infecting someone, I highly recommend Doctors
  Data as they use a technique known as MALDI-TOF

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Organic Acids

• There is a lab in Kansas that claims that
  arabinose is the way to test for yeast and not
  D-arabinitol.
• They are dead wrong.
• Arabinose is an five pentose sugar that feeds
  candida and is used as a medium to grow bacteria.
• It is not a by-product of yeast metabolism,
  D-arabinitol is.
• Measuring arabinose in the urine and then
  treating someone for candida is wrong and
  potentially harmful.

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Environmental Pollutants

• As you know, environmental toxicity is the
  leading cause of chronic health issues from Type
  II Diabetes, to cancer, neurodegenerative
  diseases, and cardiovascular disease.
• Testing for these toxins is critical.
• Knowing what you are being exposed to and whether
  you are a good detoxifier is important in
  achieving optimal performance and health.
• Measuring toxins in the blood or in fat tissue is
  a thing of the past.
• You have them in you, are you getting rid of them
  is the question.

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Environmental Pollutants

• An Environmental Pollutants Panel from U.S.
  Biotek is an easy to use urine test that can be
  done at the same time as an organic acid test.
• It requires first morning urine.
• It looks at the following toxins
• Xylene and Styrene
• Toluene and Benzene
• Trimethylbenzene
• Phthalates and Parabens
• It can also tell whether your phase I or II are
  operating properly.

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Environmental Pollutants

• I believe that environmental toxicity is the
  leading cause of obesity worldwide.
• A normal mammalian response to being exposed to
  toxins is to lower its metabolism.
• This response is to allow the body to deal with
  the toxins in a safe manner.
• If this didnt happen, the toxin would cause more
  havoc.
• This lowering of metabolism decreases the persons
  body temperature and leads to hypothyroidism.

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Environmental Pollutants

• Trying to stimulate the thyroid in a hypothyroid
  patient before detoxifying them is unnatural and
  potentially harmful.
• Case 4 Texas thyroid clinic.
• Toxins also disrupt intercellular energy
  production.
• This affects resting metabolism.
• A mere 7 lowering in resting metabolism would
  cause a weight gain 13.66 pounds per year.
• Multiply that by 10 and you see how someone could
  become obese without eating poorly.
• Test for toxicity, then work on the thyroid.
  Never the other way around.

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Environmental Pollutants

• Styrene exposure is universal.
• Everyone who has been tested in the U.S. over the
  past 40 years has it in their blood.
• This means that we should see an excretion
  pattern of styrene.
• If not, the individual is a non-excretor and
  needs added help in detoxifying.
• The markers for this are mandelate and
  phenylglyoxalate.

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Environmental Pollutants

• Toluene is the anti-knock agent used in gasoline
  that replaced lead.
• It is found in everything from paints, silicone
  sealants, ink, rubber, lacquers, and
  disinfectants.
• It is mildly carcinogenic but its main effect are
  causing fatigue and brain fog.
• It along with xylene are easily detoxified with
  glycine.
• The metabolites that indicate toluene and xylene
  exposure are 2- and 3-methylhippurate.

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Environmental Pollutants

• Interesting side note.
• Many of the toxins we are talking about have
  bacteria or funguses that feed off of them.
• Xylene spills are treated with bacteria that are
  also found in humans.
• Candida has an affinity for mercury.
• Often times killing the bacterial or funguses may
  make the toxins more dangerous.
• Detoxification of an individual with dysbiosis
  should be done first.

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Environmental Pollutants

• Phthalates were initially developed by the US
  military in the 1960s to be used in chemical
  warfare.
• It was known that exposure to it would lower
  testosterone levels in men and would make them
  more sterile.
• It was abandoned because it posed a danger to
  American soldiers as well.
• The actual compound is now available as a
  consumer product.
• It is known as new car smell.

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Environmental Pollutants

• Phthalates effects on testosterone are epidemic.
• Axe body spray uses 5 different types of
  phthalates.
• Case study 5 -18 year old boy with erectile
  dysfunction.
• Case study 6 Elderly couple with extreme
  levels of phthalates.
• Phthalates also chelate magnesium and zinc.
• Increasing glutathione production will help the
  body excrete phthalates.
• Avoiding exposure is the number one way to help
  reduce the effect of phthalates on ones health.

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Environmental Pollutants

• Benzene is a highly carcinogenic petrochemical
  that is found in diesel fuel.
• The fumes from vehicles that use diesel is a
  major source of exposure.
• This is why people who run or jog on major roads
  are doing more damage to their health than good.
• When detoxifying benzene it is critical that you
  deal with any issues of gut dysbiosis first.
• Not doing so may increase the carcinogenicity of
  the compound.

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Environmental Pollutants

• Parabens are used as an anti-bacterial agent in
  cosmetics and supplements. Also some processed
  foods contain it as well.
• According to the FDA parabens are considered a
  GRAS additive.
• Studies have shown that women with breast cancer
  have higher levels of parabens in their tissue
  than women without cancer.
• Causation has not been proven but there have been
  suggestions that because parabens are estrogenic,
  that may be why it increases the risk of cancer.

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Environmental Toxins

• Heavy metals are another major issue to address.
• The best and easiest way to test is through hair.
• My suggestion is Doctors Data.
• Doing a challenge test has the potential of
  causing harsh side effects, some can be
  debilitating.
• Case study 7 Mother and daughter post
  challenge.
• Problem with challenge test is it doesnt truly
  assess the body burden of heavy metals.

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Environmental Toxins

• When it comes to heavy metal testing and
  interpretation of hair elements tests from
  Doctors Data you can do no better than reading
  Dr. Andrew Cutlers two books.
• Amalgam Illness Diagnosis and Treatment
• www.noamalgam.com
• Also, Hair Test Interpretation Finding Hidden
  Toxicities
• Another test to look at is the QS Mercury
  Tri-Test from Quick Silver Scientific (Dr.
  Christoper Shade).
• It is the only test that measure both exposures
  and excretion abilities for each of the two forms
  of mercury, inorganic (amalgams) and
  methylmercury (seafood consumption)

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Hormone Testing

• There are a number of different ways to test
  hormones.
• Saliva and blood are the most common.
• There are issues with both.
• Accuracy and reproducibility are key problems.
• When it comes to hormones like cortisol, saliva
  and blood are accurate and reproducible.
• If you are looking at hormones like estradiol,
  they can vary by 30-40 with the same sample.
• Urine hormones, done right are the best.

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Hormone Testing

• The best lab in my opinion to do urinary hormone
  testing is Precision Analytical out of
  McMinnville, Oregon.
• The owner, Mark Newman is one of the finest lab
  technicians in the country.
• He developed something known as DUTCH.
• Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones
• It uses 4 dry strips which you dip in collected
  urine at different times of the day.
• That way it can give you diurnal readings of
  cortisol and cortisone, its metabolite.

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Hormone Testing

• With many labs, /-20-30 is not that uncommon
  for poorly performing tests and 10-15 is
  probably average for decent tests. This is
  especially true with many saliva testing labs.
• To see how much better DUTCH is over other
  methods especially if someone is taking
  supplemental hormones go to this link -
  http//hormones4health.com/pdf/Testing_Matrix_Prec
  ision_Analytical.pdf
• Their website is www.precisionhormones.com

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How to get testing done

• My company Lab Interpretation LLC has been
  helping trainers get lab testing done for over 3
  years.
• Sign up by calling our offices at 775-851-3337
  and talk to my wife Hillary.
• She will set everything up so that the testing is
  easy.
• When you have the tests done through us you will
  get a complete Lab Assist report and it includes
  a short consult with me personally.

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• Dr. Mark Schauss, DB
• Lab Interpretation, LLC
• 775-851-3337
• markschauss_at_gmail.com
• www.ToxicWorldBook.com
• www.markschauss.com