Food allergies: Magic pill?

Albert Einstein: One pretty sharp guy!

Yesterday, I had a long-anticipated appointment with a functional doctor, Tamara Sachs, M.D. The best way to describe what Dr. Sachs does is to call her a medical detective, looking for the underlying causes of disease that engages both patient (me) and doctor (her) in a therapeutic partnership.

What this means is that in order for me to achieve optimal health, I have some work to do.

I went to her for three reasons:

1. High blood pressure
2. Weight
3. Insomnia

When I started my 90-minute sit-down with her, she keyed in on my insomnia, something that has plagued me for three decades. Actually, she thinks it is key to why I am not losing weight easily. But that goes hand-in-hand with her theory that I am plagued with food allergies.

Today, I begin an interesting elimination diet for the next 30 days, one filled with produce, lean protein in the form of grass-fed organic poultry and lamb, wild fish and nuts, seeds and beans. And no booze, so good-bye wine for 30 days.

I am having extensive blood work done to determine what is going on internally, in addition to a test for food allergies. Her part of the equation will be analyzing the results of my blood work, so that when we come together in mid-August my observations on how I feel coupled with her analysis will determine the way I live the rest of my life.

It's empowering to become a partner in my health care. Will I ever have perfect blood pressure without mediation? Probably not, and I have come to terms with that. But at the very least I will understand what makes me sick, tired and sluggish. If it does nothing more than cut down on my twice-annual bouts with sinus infections/bronchitis, the cost of all this will be priceless.