Roy Vongtama, MD

I got back a few weeks ago from the funeral of my friend Matt Moran.

Today we released episode 72 of his amazing podcast With Gratitude, Matt. I was honored to be the very first guest several years ago when Matt was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. He started a podcast then, because he wanted to inspire others to live with gratitude.

Today's episode is hosted by Bill Moran, his brother and the new host of the podcast.

Matt did 71 episodes while living as a shining example of how one could and should live when their days are numbered. (Because, guess what, no one gets out alive!)

I was blessed to be his integrative coach, and in this podcast we talk about how he took what he learned and went way beyond, becoming an inspiration for many. Also we talk about the process of mourning and how important it is when you've lost someone.

Please take a listen to it and share it. It's a powerful episode and Matt lived a powerful life!

YouTube link: (video)
https://youtu.be/3MNLIKOpN5c?si=btCPvLX3ZeQk-I3i

Available everywhere you listen.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/with-gratitude-matt/id1524097245

I got back a few weeks ago from the funeral of my friend Matt Moran.

Today we released episode 72 of his amazing podcast With Gratitude, Matt. I was honored to be the very first guest several years ago when Matt was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. He started a podcast then, because he wanted to inspire others to live with gratitude.

Today's episode is hosted by Bill Moran, his brother and the new host of the podcast.

Matt did 71 episodes while living as a shining example of how one could and should live when their days are numbered. (Because, guess what, no one gets out alive!)

I was blessed to be his integrative coach, and in this podcast we talk about how he took what he learned and went way beyond, becoming an inspiration for many. Also we talk about the process of mourning and how important it is when you've lost someone.

Please take a listen to it and share it. It's a powerful episode and Matt lived a powerful life!

Available everywhere you listen.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/with-gratitude-matt/id1524097245

https://spotify.link/aghrAb5ZzDb

I think it's better to get raw honey and use that. Helps with allergies too.

(Stevia in the Raw has no erythritol FYI.)

Erythritol, an ingredient in stevia, linked to heart attack and stroke, study finds Blood tests over the next three days tracked erythritol levels and clotting risk.

The Blue Zones are areas in the world that have demonstrated longevity and health for humans far above normal. We decided to visit one of them Ikaria in the Aegean Sea. Ikaria is known for longevity and a very low rate of dementia, once featured in the as the "Island Where People Forget to Die."

What was real and what was urban legend? We went to find out.

One thing that was real was the sense of time- the locals don't care about it.

We had a meal that was 2 hours long at lunch then it took 30 more minutes to get the bill.

But in Photo 1 and 2, you see Real Thing #2- what happened there: real sheep feta cheese (something I cannot eat in the US because mostly it's cow based) drenched in copious fresh press olive oil and hand dried herbs, along with a real Greek salad (NO lettuce!) with fermented greens on top and brined capers again swimming in copious olive oil.

Third thing that was real: they avoid stress. There is a real habit of making all decisions to avoid that feeling. It's not out of fear, it's just the way they are. I asked a local, how do you make decisions? She replied, "What is less stress?"

Fourth thing: they are fiercely independent and have no desire to be a tourist trap. They don't need to "excel" or "achieve" or "get ahead."

Fifth thing: the value of connection. I saw two people meeting on the side of the road with a bottle of homemade wine and a loaf of bread. One man had made the wine and the other had made the bread. They started walking toward each other and they sat wherever they met. No restaurant, no chairs, no nothing. Just simple. Doesnt that sound revolutionary?

Sixth thing: 98% of the island is Blue Space, meaning there's a view of the ocean, which automatically makes you feel more relaxed. (Scientifically proven)

For everyone who's afraid of MSG. Read how it became something dangerous and associated with Chinese food, when in fact it's in mushrooms, tomatoes and oh no! Parmesan cheese. It's just part of the subtle form of racism against Chinese people that became urban truth.

The Strange Case of Dr. Ho Man Kwok | Colgate Magazine A winding tale that delves into the 50-year myth regarding the side effects of MSG.

Take a quick read and learn this secret weapon for a REAL and LASTING sense of self worth and self esteem!

The Hidden Secret to a Rock Solid Sense of Self Esteem and Self Worth Self Esteem. These two words are all over social media and have become one of the most searched topics on the internet, with influencers and personalities giving their take on what we can do to improve it and boost it; whether by surrounding yourself with positive people who uplift you, avoiding the...

Hi friends, the most recent life expectancies in the United States just came out. The life expectancy for white, black, and native Americans has dropped precipitously losing almost 3 years (eg white 78.5 to 76) from 2018 to 2021.

To contrast this, the Asian American life expectancy State stable at 83 years. ****That's seven years longer.

30% of the drop can be explained by deaths from covid. Asian Americans were the most vaccinated populations in the United States at over 98%. White, and black Americans had the lowest, around 60% or even lower depending on what political sphere you were looking at.

But COVID only counts for 30% of it. What's the rest of the drop in life expectancy?

Poor dietary choices leading to blood vessel impairment and obesity. This combined with stress.

Stress most of the time is hard to alter in a quick way but diet is something we all can have a relative control over.

(People think it's lack of exercise, but really, vascular issues and obesity are 80% driven by diet. Don't ignore that 20% though!)

Solution:

There are studies that show that a Plant-based diet plus exercise plus stress reduction reverses vascular disease.

Drugs only slow the progression. They don't reverse the damage. You might think that popping the pill and seeing your blood pressure go down, your cholesterol go down, is actually treating you. It's not.

It's like having a cut and putting a Band-Aid on without having your body release clotting factors. You're continuing to bleed but only slowly now. Changing your diet is like adding those clotting factors. Your body will be allowed to heal.

Start moving toward a plant-based diet. If you're already moving that way keep going. The current recommendations are 50% of your plate should be green. Check your plate. Is it 50%? If it's already 50% green then push for 75%.

If you have questions I'm right here! Put them below in the comments.

Thanks,
Dr.V

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/08/31/1120192583/life-expectancy-in-the-u-s-continues-to-drop-driven-by-covid-19 #:~:text=Life%20expectancy%20in%20the%20U.S.%20fell%20in%202021%2C%20for%20the,that%20dropped%20to%2077%20years

We are hitting a new mostly undocumented surge in Covid cases, (undocumented due to the at home testing).

What can we do?

Well we can fortify our immune systems. People love but for me I love the "real thing."

One of the realest and CHEAPEST is fresh ginger. (Cheap is important in the $7 dollar gas era.)

It's in every grocery store and augments your immune system by kick starting the immune cells and protecting your cells against invaders by having it ready.

Here we see me using my amazing horizontal peeler to quickly de-skin the 25 cent ginger "supplement" and adding it to the other forgotten immune booster, . I juice the ginger then pour pre-made OJ in through the juicer to get all the last drops out.

And oh yeah, two studies showing how it works so you don't think I am just being a new age juice fanatic.

This is a labyrinth. It differs from a maze in that a maze has walls. In life often we are stuck in maze, lost, not seeing what's around the corner, but isn't true just as often we are walking a labyrinth fully visible but not conscious of our own choices?

This particular labyrinth is intended as a walking meditation, a tool to help us see that the twists, turns and reverses are purposeful even if we aren't conscious of that. At any time we can chose to move off the path, or even take a short cut before getting to the end.

I noticed that this time I walked it (they have an identical one outside and inside, we walked the outside one) that I was cutting off the turns, not taking them slowly or with a conscious attitude. Just trying to finish. Of course I had cut off the turns many times before, this was just the first time I noticed it.

So I had grown a little bit since the last one I walked five years ago, maybe a little more patient, maybe a little more willing to accept the reversal life was giving me.


health

Aren't you tired of the people that are just spinning lies to prop themselves up? (I am!)

The biggest thing you can do to help this situation is to check your own mind, use the SACRED process (last post) to evaluate and challenge your own untruths.

Because these thoughts you tell yourself don't help you nor anyone else around you, and research has shown they lead to increased anxiety, depression, weight gain... and make you no fun to be around!

There are eleven cognitive distortions that I think are most prevalent, and I see them all the time in myself and those around me.

I made an acronym for them: RISE AND JUMP, to help me remember them.

This post looks at the first four, RISE: Regret orientation, Inability to disconfirm, the Shoulds, and Emotional Reasoning.
Look thru the slides and see which ones you do? AND pick one to stop and correct!

health

Our minds are sacred. We have to treat them as such. Think about what spaces you hold sacred- a church, a temple, a synagogue, a mosque, a private meditation space. We don't allow negativity in action or thought to pollute that environment, because we are trying to keep a purity, and that purity intuitively leads to a deeper connection to the Divine.

Why don't we hold our minds in the same regard? We should. A HUGE part of that is being more aware of what is already going through there habitually. We need to challenge our untrue thoughts, especially. They damage ourselves and others.

In college I was picked out for being someone prone to depression due to my thinking process. I agreed to be in a study that used Cognitive Behavioral Techniques to retrain my mind, and more than 20 years later, I am using and teaching these techniques to others.

SACRED is an acronym for my version of this cognitive retraining process.
Stop whatever you're thinking.
Assess if it's true or only partially true
Call out what isn't true, and give evidence
REstate original thought in a more accurate way
Have the Discipline to challenge the untrue thought again and again.

I will share the seven most common inaccurate thoughts we tell ourselves in the next post.

For now though, go through this post and let me know how it works for you?

In positive psychology, there are thought to be two main ways people pursue happiness, hedonia and eudaimonia.

Hedonia is living with a goal of maximizing positive emotion, eliminating negative emotion, and fulfilling desires, in other words, "pleasure and comfort."

Eudaimonia is the pursuit of wellbeing thru virtue, self actualization and fulfillment of one's true nature, in other words, "authenticity, meaning and growth."

Which one is better?? And which one do you most resonate with?

Sometimes I feel guilty trying to get better at something part of mind considers trivial, like golf. "Why bother? Do something more worthwhile!" But the reality is this:

The research points to particular benefits of each: high hedonia scores have stronger correlation improviing depression, anxiety, improving sleep.

High eudamonia scores (purpose in life) have been shown to improve survival in elderly patients and also decrease Alzhiemers, and provide a health buffer against educationally disadvantaged backgrounds.

So the answer (as usual) is to look to be balanced between the two. Take care of your immediate hedonic self (like me playing golf) and your eudaimonic self (like me helping to cure cancer) at the same time.

For Cancer Patients who are Vaccinated and undergoing cancer treatment:

A recent study demonstrated that although the vaccine does make one "seropositive" for antibodies, the "titer" or amount of antibody is significantly lower due to ongoing Cancer treatment and possibly overall immune system decline due to cancer.

Takeaway: if you're undergoing treatment, don't assume you're protected because you have the vaccine. Use the precautions that have been shown to be effective- wear a mask, avoid crowded spaces, avoid social interaction indoors for long periods, social distance.

https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/13/18/4621

Responses to SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination in Patients with Cancer (ReCOVer Study): A Prospective Cohort Study of the Hellenic Cooperative Oncology Group Data on the effectiveness and safety of approved SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in cancer patients are limited. This observational, prospective cohort study investigated the humoral immune response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in 232 cancer patients from 12 HeCOG-affiliated oncology departments compared to 100 he...

Here's the segment I did for American Cancer Society with Pat Croce. It's being distributed by ABC's networks. Let me know your thoughts!



https://6abc.com/healed-pat-croce-roy-vongtama-rick-rivers/10916558/

Excited to be talking with Philly's own Pat Croce tomorrow at 11am EST (8am PT) on Facebook Live, for American Cancer Society's HEALED effort. It's a great step toward truly integrating mind body and spirit. Come join the discussion, there will be a Q and A!

Everyone recognizes the antibiotic bottle: the off-amber color, the somewhat see through material, the white child proof cap.

During the pandemic, our minds have been alerted to the symptoms of "infection" and the power of Western medicine to combat infection, but we have to be careful because 1. Antibiotics don't work for viruses, only bacteria and 2. Even though antibiotics are powerful bacteria fighters, they can indiscriminately hurt the good bacteria in our systems if taken too often or for the wrong reasons.

Bacteria have many beneficial roles in our bodies, and live on our skin, in our gut, really throughout our bodies.

A recent study came out showing that people who took penicillins often had an increased risk of colon cancer, especially in the proximal area
(after the small intestine). Why might this be? Because penicillins are not well absorbed by the small intestine, where most absorption occurs. So they end up in the large intestine in higher than healthy concentrations. This in turn can significantly change the proximal gut inhabitants, killing good bacteria and possibly allowing increased inflammation and bad bacteria growth. This change if occuring chronically has been linked to increased colon cancer.

So don't use antibiotics at all? No- but use them judiciously.
The key is balance!

Did you know that 75% of human food is from 12 plants and 5 animals? You can probably guess what these are, but moreover, even the other 25% is familiar. A blueberry is the usual "blue" Berry.

What does this mean for our health? Well, every plant and fruit has its own nutritional profile, and if we keep only eating 12 different plants our whole lives, we only get the nutritional diversity of these 12.

Humans are creatures of habit, so I am sure you've bypassed a lot of the more unusual items at supermarkets, if they even stock anything unusual. (Usually it's the same orange carrot, the same head of broccoli. But hey if you don't even eat these...that's another conversation!)

I try to hit up farmers markets, because sometimes you get growers who grow heirloom crops and other unusual things. It's fun to try and also you the bonus of the nutritional diversity.

(These are pink lemonade blueberries from the Santa Monica farmers market.)

☀️

This is nice breakdown chart of the current vaccines available, their efficacies, and side effects, from the Medical Letter, which is an independent organization.

This interim analysis responds to some antivaxx proponents that the mRNA vaccines do not prevent infection. They absolutely do, with over 80% from dose one to over 90% for dose 2.

Just to clarify, the initial studies that allowed for emergency use of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines was looking at symptomatic infection s.

This data is for ALL infections, asymptomatic and symptomatic because it was done with nasal swabs on 4000 Healthcare workers in real world settings, not a controlled study. These HCW are stressed and exposed!

It works, and it works well.





https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7013e3.htm?s_cid=mm7013e3_w

Interim Estimates of Vaccine Effectiveness of BNT162b2 and mRNA mRNA COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness against SARS-CoV-2 infection