HouseCall: Andrographis Paniculata, Mental Health, Upset Stomach, Swollen Tonsils, Brain Tumor, Baby Food Sensitivities, Doxycycline

Welcome back to our weekend Cabral HouseCall shows!

This is where we answer our community’s wellness, weight loss, and anti-aging questions to help people get back on track!

Check out today’s questions:

Lisa: I am looking for help on how to use andrographis paniculata? I was given a cutting at a local plant exchange & I understand it is also known as Indian Echinacea. I am excited to have it and I am looking to understand how it is used for medicine. Is it used in tea, is it dried out and ingested as a herb? It says it is bitter on some research I have done. It apparently is good for bites & stings too. Dr Stephen Cabral what would you suggest for dosage & use? Thank you gor your feedback

Fiona: Hi there, I need some advice on where to get started with supplements and testing. Brief background. Im a 32 year old female and i live in Australia. I am about 165cm tall and about 59/62kgs. I dont have any health issues that I know of however I do suffer from anxiety, depression and OCD. I dont take anything for it and am highly functioning, I study full time as well as working full time. I study in the field of nutrition so I am knowledgeable and look after myself well, eating well 90% of the time and excerise (walking) 6 times per week. I suffer from quite extreme bloating, most obvious around the time of my menstrual cycle. My main concerns /problem areas are my mental state and gut health, which I understand are connected. I would prefer not to be medicated for my anixiety, OCD, depression. I am not at risk of harm to myself or others however it does weigh me down on a daily basis and I would like to try all avenues to get on top of it. What testing / supplements would you recommend I begin with?I appreciate your help. 

Miren: Hi, I just completed the 21-Day Detox Diet. Although I did see some improvements, I feel like there are still many underlying root causes that still need to be addressed. Specifically, I do believe that I have issues with my cortisol levels, adrenals, thyroid, and bloating. Even on the detox, I was still experiencing bloating, gas and upset stomach after eating the approved foods.  I am having problems deciding which lab to purchase, the Thyroid+Adrenal or OAT +Food Sensitivity test, as I can only afford one lab at this time. I still have weight to lose that is not responsive to diet and exercise. However, I don’t know if I should address my gut issues first? My concern is that If I choose to address my adrenals and thyroid first, then I will not see the best benefit because my gut issues will continue to cause the inflammation and bloating? Do I have that wrong? Any help would be greatly appreciated as I do want to get better, but only have limited funds at this time (even with the new payment plans) **For reference, I am a 41 yr old female, 5’2 and 134lbs. I work out with weights 4 days a week, 2 HIIT sessions, 2 days a week jogging for 30 min. I have been on a low carb/keto diet for over 3 years. My body used to naturally sit at 120-123lbs without much effort, prior to me experiencing these weight and gut issues for the past 2 1/2 years. I started to have gut issues around 13 yrs old. I have also had ovarian cysts, ulcers, shingles in my early thirties, and also lost my period for 18 months after trying to diet down for a fitness competition ( I was able to get my period back after having to take progesterone from my doctor). I am really looking forward to your response and finally feeling like myself again! Thanks so much,

Christinna: dear stephen  thanks for being my all time idol, mentor , king haha . i just LOVE how you go about.  i have a friend and her son has pfapa syndrome, he has been on antibiotic and one time steroid and gets sick 2 times a week , with his CRP numbers very high, tonsils swollen, sore body, spots on the tounge and now they are going to remove the tonsils, they say that the kids in 75 % of thus kind og auto immune gets better after removing them. i just wunder ,why? what is the underlying rootcause ? i have told her to do the CBO, childeren , and all in one, omega.is there anything else i am missing or should let her do? i really hope u can help,  kind regard christinna

Sara: Hello Stephen Cabral, First of all I wanna thank you for all the work you do, for spreading all your knowledge and helping to so many people with your practice and your podcast. I am contacting you because my fiance´s dad had a brain tumor last year. After some treatment with chemotherapy and the latest laser systems that they have, here, in Sweden , the tumor run away. We are so glad and happy that it went well and now we are working in the recovery part. The thing is that the recovery is being really slow , is hard to see the steps and keep the motivation for him and also the rest of the family. Nonetheless, he did some improvements with physical theraphy, where he use to go ones per week and also my fiancé helps him to exercise ones per week or twice per week. However, the memory , the confusion and the disorientation is really hard to improve. He has no control of the time in the day, neither de day in the weeks. If we say that we have to meet in 2h , he may call you back after 15min and say that he is already at the place , thinking that is already the time. Latelly it has been going a little bit worse again and I wanted to ask you if there is any alternative medicine that can help him? And also if you could give us some tips to improve the recovery process?  He has always been eating vegetarian and he hasn´t drink alcohol in the last 7 years.However must say that, even though I know that sugar is really bad for this type of situations, I have seen him eating candy or some other type of refined sugar. He also eats dairy. Thank you very much for all your help :)Best,Sara

Victoria: Hello, I hope this message finds you well. I came across your podcast and felt like you may be able to help me with my current health situation. Our 10 month baby has been exclusively breastfed and has severe eczema on her face, chest and legs. This started when she was 3 months old. I have cut pretty much everything out of my diet – gluten, dairy, eggs, grains, soy, nuts, nightshades, refined sugar – to the point I’m only eating a handful of vegetables and some fruits. I’m aware this is not sustainable for me or her. We also had to take a break from giving her solids because she would flare after everything we’ve given her (green beans, sweet potatoes, carrots, squash). We are both on probiotics and seeing only minimal improvement from that. I had to take antibiotics and ibuprofen after delivery due to a lot of complications so I know my gut is compromised and I’m on a healing journey with that. However, it’s been months and we aren’t getting much better. I feel like we still react to certain foods including meat (chicken, beef bone broth). Which tests would you recommend to get started on figuring out my gut and do you have any suggestions on how to proceed from here? I was thinking food sensitivity test, but since I’m only eating a few things, I feel like those would automatically show up on the test. Are there any tests you’d recommend for our baby?  I would love any recommendations/suggestions you may have.Thank you for your time,Victoria

Josh: Hey dr Cabral. Thanks for all you do. I have a question. In 2015 I was diagnosed with Rocky Mountain spotted fever. I took 2 rounds of doxycycline and was told I either got over it or I didn’t. Since then I have had several health problems. High cholesterol high insulin extreme fatigue. I have made some life changes over the 4 years. Have done 2 21 day detox have done your deep sleep protocol and have done the omega test the thyroid adrenal hormone and the heavy metal test. I have followed the recommendations on them and though have seen some improvements I still have those days where I can’t function Just feel run down. It’s hard to explain but it feels like my immune system is always fighting and it wears me down. Have sinus issues but other than that I’m lost. Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Also tested for Lyme and co infections and came back negative. Thanks