Natural Answers for Women's Health Questions: A Comprehensive A-Z Guide to Drug-Free Mind-Body Remedies »

D. Lindsey Berkson is a consulting scholar and visiting professor at the Center for Bioenvironmental Research at Tulane and Xavier universities. She has a master's degree in nutrition, has lectured nationally, was a professor of nutrition at several colleges, had a radio show on nutrition in the Bay Area, and designed one of the first natural supplement lines for women (Fem Line). The author of Hormone Deception and Healthy Digestion the Natural Way, Berkson was also coeditor of Alternative Medicine: The Definitive Guide, a book used to train medical doctors. She lives in Santa Fe.

One-Stop Problem Solving...Naturally

With the increased popularity of natural remedies, more and more women are looking for clear, authoritative information on how to use these applications for specific health problems. What will help severe allergies? How do the major hormonal events in a woman's life — from puberty to post-menopause — affect symptoms and treatments? What's the real story on hormone-replacement therapies? Do birth-control pills increase the risk of breast cancer or not?

In this one-stop reference, D. Lindsey Berkson provides clear explanations and natural solutions. Organized in a straightforward A-Z format and covering more than 200 health conditions with advice focused entirely on women's distinctive needs, entries include discussions of:

Each entry provides an explanation of the condition, lists common and uncommon symptoms, notes likely causes, and includes a section of uniquely female concerns highlighting the role of hormones. Sensible health-promoting strategies are spelled out: which foods to eat, which foods to avoid, which dietary supplements to take, and which exercises to do, as well as how meditation and visualization can help. Each section includes complementary medicine tests to discuss with your doctor.

Library Journal

A nutritionist, chiropractor, and women's health advocate, Berkson (Healthy Digestion the Natural Way) is a "DES daughter" i.e., her mother was administered the synthetic estrogen diethylstilbestrol early in pregnancy. Having been exposed to such a powerful chemical at a crucial stage in gestation, she has faced hormonal problems and gynecological procedures and is unable to bear children. Those medical issues led Berkson to dedicate herself to understanding women's health problems and finding practical, drug-free solutions. Her latest book is firmly grounded in both her experience and her expertise and offers clear guidance to more than 200 health conditions that concern women (e.g., anorexia, cellulite, and menopause), particularly those that affect women differently from men; special attention is paid to issues concerning women's hormones. Each entry includes an explanation, a section of female concerns, supplements to take, exercises, and a list of common and uncommon symptoms and causes. The treatment suggestions are primarily nutritional and natural. Berkson emphasizes that her recommendations should be followed only with a physician's supervision, and she recognizes the utility of medications and medical procedures. Recommended for consumer health and large health sciences collections as a potential tool for empowering women to take some measure of control over their own health. Linda M.G. Katz, MCP Hahnemann Univ., Philadelphia Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

CONTENTS

Foreword

Preface

Introduction

Part One

HOW TO PUT YOUR HEALTH TOGETHER

You Are Worth It

Choosing a Doctor

Nutrients

Lifestyle Factors

Stress-Reduction Techniques

Visualizations and Affirmations

Being Your Own Healer

Knowing Your Unknown

Part Two

ABORTION

ACNE

ADDICTION

Alcoholism

Drug Dependence

ADHESIONS

ADRENAL HORMONES

ADRENAL INSUFFICIENCY and ADRENAL FATIGUE

AGING

Aging Starts in Youth

Age Spots

Wrinkles

Sexuality

Mortality

ALLERGIES

Food Allergies

Inhalant Allergies

Chemical Sensitivity

ANEMIA, IRON DEFICIENCY

ANGINA PECTORIS

ANXIETY

Panic Attacks

ARTHRITIS

Osteoarthritis

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Menopausal Arthritis

Gout

ASTHMA, BRONCHIAL

AUTOIMMUNE DISORDERS

BAD BREATH

BALDNESS

BLADDER INFECTIONS

BLOATING

BLOOD PRESSURE

High Blood Pressure (Hypertension)

Low Blood Pressure (Hypotension)

BLOOD SUGAR PROBLEMS (not Diabetes)

Hyperglycemia

Hypoglycemia

Syndrome X

BODY ODOR

BOILS

BREAST PROBLEMS (Benign)

Fibrocystic Disease (Cystic Mastitis, Mammary Dysplasia)

BREAST-FEEDING

Engorged Breasts

Mastitis

BURSITIS

CAFFEINE IN COFFEE AND TEA

CALF CRAMPS

CANCER

Breast Cancer

Uterine Cancer

Cervical Cancer

Endometrial Cancer

Ovarian Cancer

Cancer of the Vulva

Cancer of the Vagina

Cancer of the Fallopian Tubes

CANCER PREVENTION

CANKERSORES

CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME

CELIAC DISEASE

CERVICAL PROBLEMS (Benign)

Cervical Erosion

Cervical Incompetence

Cervical Polyps

Cervicitis

Dysplasia

Nabothian Cysts

CHOCOLATE

CHOLESTEROL

CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME

CIRCULATION

CLAUDICATION

CONTRACEPTION

COUGH

DEPRESSION

DES DAUGHTERS

DHEA

DIABETES MELLITUS

Insulin-Dependent (Type ) Diabetes

Non-Insulin-Dependent (Type ) Diabetes

DIGESTIVE DISORDERS

Maldigestion

Heartburn

DIZZINESS/VERTIGO

EATING DISORDERS

Binge Eating Disorder

Anorexia Nervosa

Bulimia

EDEMA

ENDOMETRIOSIS

ENERGY

ENVIRONMENTAL ILLNESS

EPSTEIN-BARR VIRUS

ESTROGEN DOMINANCE

FAINTING

FATS and ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS

Bad Fats

Good Fats

FIBROIDS

FIBROMYALGIA

GALLSTONES

GINGIVITIS

HAIR

Hirsutism

HAY FEVER

HEADACHES, CHRONIC

Tension Headaches

Migraines

HEART ATTACK

Congestive Heart Failure

HEART DISEASE

Mitral Valve Prolapse

HEMORRHOIDS (Piles)

HERPES

HOMOCYSTEINE

HORMONE DISRUPTORS

HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY

Standard Hormone Replacement Therapy

Natural Hormone Replacement Therapy

HORMONES

Adrenal Hormones

DHEA

Estrogen

Melatonin

Progesterone

Prolactin

Testosterone

Thyroid

HYSTERECTOMY

IMMUNE ENHANCEMENT

INFERTILITY

INSOMNIA

INSULIN RESISTANCE (Syndrome X)

JOINT PAIN

KIDNEY INFECTIONS

Kidney Stones

LEAD TOXICITY

LIVER HEALTH

LUPUS

LYMPHEDEMA

MASTURBATION

MELATONIN

MEMORY

MENOPAUSE

Early Menopause

MENSTRUAL CALENDAR

MENSTRUATION

Amenorrhea

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

Dysfunctional Uterine Bleeding

Dysmenorrhea

Mittelschmerz

MISCARRIAGE

MOOD DISORDERS

MULTIPLE CHEMICAL SENSITIVITIES (MCS)

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS)

NOSEBLEEDS

OSTEOPOROSIS

OVARIAN CYSTS

PELVIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASE

PELVIC PAIN

PERIMENOPAUSE

Birth Control Pills and Perimenopause

PHLEBITIS

PREGNANCY

Serious Problems of Pregnancy

AIDS

Gestational Diabetes

Toxoplasmosis

Preeclampsia

Miscarriage

Postpartum Depression

PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME (PMS)

PROGESTERONE

PUBERTY

Menarche

Precocious Puberty

RAPE

RAYNAUD'S DISEASE

RESTLESS LEGS SYNDROME

RUBELLA (German Measles)

SALPINGITIS

SCIATICA

SEXUALITY

SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES (Venereal Disease)

Chlamydia

Gonorrhea

Genital Herpes

Human Papilloma Virus

Syphilis

Trichomoniasis

SHINGLES (Herpes Zoster)

SKIN

Dry Skin

Scars

Stretch Marks (Stria)

Cellulite

Skin Tags

Dermatitis

Rosacea

Dandruff and Scaling on Face and Other Areas

Psoriasis

Scleroderma

SMOKING

SOY

SPROUTS

STRESS

STROKE

SYNDROME X

THYROID

Hypothyroidism

Hyperthyroidism

TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME

URINARY PROBLEMS

Urinary Frequency and Urgency

Urge Incontinence

Urinary Stress Incontinence

Urinary Tract Infection

Interstitial Cystitis

UTERUS

Prolapsed Uterus

Tipped (Retroverted) Uterus

VAGINAL PROBLEMS

Vaginal Atrophy

Vaginal Odor

Vaginal Discharge

Vaginal Itching

Vaginal Bleeding

Vaginitis

Vulvitis

Vulvovaginitis

VARICOSE VEINS

VIRILIZATION

VULVODYNIA

WEIGHT

Weight Loss and Underweight

Overweight and Obesity

WINE and ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

YEAST INFECTIONS

APPENDICES

A.Hormone Testing

B.Compounding Pharmacies

C.Fiber Cocktail

D.Green Drink

E.Coffee Enemas

F.Digestive Enzymes

G.IV Protocols

H.Detoxify Yourself

I.Supplement and Drug Interactions

J.Vitamin Interactions

K.Mineral and Amino Acid Interactions

L.Important Herb Considerations and Drug Interactions

Glossary