Real Causes of Disease with Elson Haas

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Hey, it's JJ Virgin. And welcome to the JJ Virgin lifestyle show, where I talk nutrition, exercise, and mindset with some of the coolest people in the world. And I give you tips that you can put into five fast action to uplevel your health so that you can go out there and live that big life you're meant to live. Now, today's show is all about new medicine. And that actually means something special news and acronym. So you're gonna have to stay tuned to find out what it is. And it is with a longtime buddy. Gosh, over a decade now. Dr. Elson Haas. You've probably heard of him. I always used to think of him as the detox doc because one of the 11 books he wrote was the detox diet. Some of the other books he's written, Staying healthy with nutrition, Staying healthy with the Seasons. That's kind of just a wow. It's a classic. The false fat diet, Ultimate Immunity. And now he's got the new medicine, Staying healthy with New Medicine. So I still remember going to his office, gosh, it was probably eight years ago, and he had a big physician's desk reference as the what was keeping his door open. It was pretty funny. He is an integrated physician. He is a pioneer of integrative medicine. And he has a super cool clinic, a family practice in Marin county and has just been everywhere for a long time, has been one of my, my mentors and friends. And I'm super excited to share Dr. Elson Haas with you today. All right, so let's do it. Dr. Elson Haas, welcome to the show. I'm so glad you're here with me today.

Great to be here, jj.

Yeah. Especially with this subject because, you know, you've been, you've been around for. For a long time. I was going to say forever, but that wasn't. That sound so nice. It just seems like I've known you for a long time and then I knew of your work for a long time as you know, really the detox doc. And now you're, you're coming out here with this concept of new medicine. And what the heck is that, Elson?

Well, my new book, Staying Healthy with New Medicine. The New is an acronym besides being really what's the cutting edge and really how we should be practicing. The new stands for natural, Eastern and Western. And it really goes back to 35 years ago. My first book, Staying Healthy with the Seasons came out, which is after I studied in the 70s, nutrition and exercise physiology and mind, body and herbs and all that stuff. And I said, you know, as a young doctor, I said this is really important stuff and helpful. It really helped me with my health. So I felt that this should really be part of medicine. So my whole career, you know, 40 plus years as a, as a family doctor has been to bring these modalities into healthcare.

What is really like, what's the big punch of this book? What are the big messages here?

This is the beginning part of a much larger book I've been working on. This is an integration of all my studies and all the healing system I studied and the philosophy and my approach in healthcare. It really looks at getting to the core issues, the causes of disease, the keys to staying healthy and all that. So it really is to me a high level philosophy and practical approach to staying healthy, which has been my motto and my goal since I began.

And so I have to go into this because, you know, you want to stay healthy and never get down into disease, but then you have a chapter on the real causes of disease. So what's your idea with that?

Well, it's, there's a one page chart that also goes into the whole chapter, you know, and you, you and I know this from our interactions over the years. But you know, to me the cell is at the center of all issues, you know, and the deficiency, not getting all the nutrients our cells need to do the thousands of functions they do every day, and toxins, the metals and chemicals that get in our air, food, water, hair products, skin products that interfere with enzymes and proper cell function. When we change, when we help people change that and make sure they get all the nutrients and lessen the toxins, voila. A lot of things start getting better. A lot of, you know, the physical ailments that people have start to improve. And I see that in practice and I really believe that's kind of the core. Of course we have, you know, the lifestyle aspect, which are also, you know, to me, primary issues, our nutrition, our stress or our exercise and all that. So there's all these, there's layers, there's, you know, but what I would say is that most of the things that doctors treat and name, which is way outside of the circle Is like fourth level. Those are the outcomes of the improper physiology, of the improper functioning in the body. And as typical physicians would treat from the outside in, where when we really start working with healthcare, we start to heal and address it from the core, from the inside out.

Well, when you talk about staying healthy, and I think you kind of just alluded you threw some of the keys because you say you have five keys to staying healthy, I feel like you kind of, kind of started to throw some of those out there. So what, what are your five key?

Well, nutrition is number one kind of the building block for health. And basically I tell people, eat wholesome food, avoid junk and chemicals, and everybody's got different varieties of that fitness, you know, and your, you know, this is your area too, is like really working on the core, being flexible and stretching and, you know, the whole balance exercise program, getting proper sleep. And that's really, to me, a core aspect. When people don't sleep, they're fatigued, they start using stimulants to kind of function through the day. So sleep is there. Managing stress and learning how to both get along with everybody and not get along in a way that doesn't stress you out. And the underlying, the fifth key is what I call attitude. And that's like our whole approach to ourselves and life. And, you know, when we. A lot of times as a family, doc, I'm just really getting in a first visit with people. What's the core? What's your real attitude toward life and your health? You know, when I did my first cleanse back 40 years ago, I started to feel so much different, so much better. My allergies went away, I lost weight. I felt better. I said, wow, this is the one I want to want to feel. This is how I want to feel. I want to, you know, I. I get to love my body now. I have to take care of this body. I want to honor what my body tells me to do. And if I can get people to that place and I work with myself with that all the time, it really alters all the other things. You start to eat better, you're willing to exercise even if you don't like certain things. You know, you learned how to handle stress. You make sure you get proper sleep. These other things start to play out in a different way. So, you know, really shifting attitude is important.

I love this, and you don't know this, but my next book that's coming out in February, Miracle Mindset, is all about kind of this mindset or attitude that sits on top of everything. And really, whether it's your health or your finances or your career or your relationships, like, you know, without the right mindset, the attitude, it's not happening.

So everything, you know, you know, it comes back. It starts with love, with loving yourself and just accepting who you are. It doesn't mean you can't be better because we can all, all be better. But we start with where we are. And yeah, that's what, that's my message that you know, when I speak to other practitioners and you know, nutrition students or whomever, they said the art of being a good practitioner is to tune into who somebody is and where they're at and help them take the next steps. I mean, you know, we could have these ideal lofty programs that you know, of fitness, but you got to start with where people are and there are also their limitations and their expectations. So really working with the mindset is really right there.

You know what's interesting is we did a query of our community last year and, and it was, it was incredible to me because it just, I wouldn't have realized this. The number one reason people didn't get started on a program was because they didn't feel worthy. It's like, wow. So the fact that you're teaching this to physicians is huge because again, you know, if you've got that block, nothing's, nothing's getting past that.

So when I first started, you know, really being in medicine, I really said the highest art of being a physician. I got this from, you know, Chinese medicine. And the philosophy of the ancients, you know, was, you know, that you really help people attune to the seasons, the cycles of life and you know, acknowledge and accept their body and just really, you know, sorry. It starts with love, you know, it starts with really with caring and rather than the self destructive behavior that many people, you know, acknowledge and experience.

And you know, you just mentioned the seasons and it's just not a concept. It seems obvious. It's like eat with the seasons, eat locally. You know, your life changes a little with the seasons. You sleep more in the winter, but people, it's never really been talked about. That was like one of those groundbreaking things that you, that you brought out. What are some key takeaways there that you can give people?

I think that the simplest idea is obviously what's, you know, what, you know, grow your own garden and go to farmer's market. So you see what's around now and that's what you kind of focus on. But part of the issue, and it varies a little Bit depending you live in a cold or warmer climate, you know, but this has to do with the light and dark cycles. To me it means eating if you're, if in the cold weather you eat things that warm your body and in hot weather you eat things that cool your body. And it also depends on your own nature. Some, you know, like a lot of women are cold a lot, so they have to eat more warming, warming things and more fuel. And if you're, you know, if you're a hot person, you can get away with eating more fruit. So and it also has to do with not just that, but it's the emotions and the climates and just kind of adapting to that and you know, it's, it's kind of tuning in and doing a little bit of self reflection and that's what staying healthy with the seasons really does. That, you know, New medicine book really kind of continues in this, this integration of natural and Chinese medicine as well as all the western medicine approaches really that we need to be prevention oriented. And also it doesn't mean we can't use western medicine. But that's to me, my motto in my preventive medical center clinic is lifestyle first, natural therapies next, drugs last. But a lot of people like to start with drugs.

I was going to say, yeah, we've kind of got that one flipped the wrong way.

Yeah, but then you gotta, yeah, then you gotta shift them and see if you move. One of my favorite charts in new medicine book is what I call the health disease health continuum. You know, everybody's got kind of a set point, you know, their kind of way that they're used to existing and most doctor's office, just as soon as you start to get symptoms, you get treated with a medicine, you get a disease name, you get something, sometimes you're on it for life. You know, there that's what the doctors, so they create chronic patients using drugs. Whereas, you know, if you start really working on your lifestyle and health, you start to move up this, what I call the health continuum, which is, you know, better fitness, vitality, creative energy, doing good things in the world and all these things. And that's really when you move up that way you just don't get sick very often. And it really makes a difference in how people are. And I've been watching this for 40 years in practice. So that's where I'm really excited. You know, new medicine is, I think some of my best writing. I have 11 books out and, and I think it really is a culmination of all these different, you know, philosophies all put together. I mean, that's really what my work and my writing has been as an integrator, you know, taking different systems and kind of making sense out of them for the everyday person.

Now, I can't let you off the hook here. We can't, like, end an interview without me asking about detox, because that's how I've always thought of you. I think that was my first introduction to you. So what about detox? Where does it fit into all of this?

Well, to me, it's a beginning level. I mean, you talk about elimination diets I have in my detox diet book. I mean, the reason, you know, that is because I probably was one of the first people to write the detox diet in 92, I think that came out. And I've, you know, have a couple different versions, but it has what I call the snacks, you know, another acronym, SNACC stands for sugar, nicotine, alcohol, caffeine and chemicals. So when I see somebody or I work with groups to detox, and you and I did the detox experience one time for practitioners, because the group experience is phenomenal, a way to get people really doing it, because a lot of people feel the support and the connection. But to me, the first level for all of us to look at, if you don't feel well, how we look and feel is a result primarily of how we live. When you don't feel well, you have to look at every aspect of your life and say, is this a contributor? Is that a contributor? So I get people. One of my first steps is, you know, an elimination where I get people off. You know, the key five, like sugar, alcohol, caffeine, wheat and dairy products. It's like, you know, if we did that on a national level, people, you know, half. Half of people's symptoms would get better. They'd start to feel better, they drop weight, their allergies would get less, their skin look better. All these different things would happen. We would. We would. You know, we would save trillions of dollars in health care if we started people moving people along this health continuum. And it does start with detox, you know. You know, people have to be aware, too. It's not everybody needs detox. Some people are undernourished, weak, cold. You know, they need to be nourished more. But you can still, you know, that's one of the things I wrote about in the detox side is you can detoxify your body while you're getting really well nourished. You don't have to go. You know, it's not, it's not a.

It'S not a starvation water cleanse. That's good to know. And you know, it sounds like then new Staying Healthy with New Medicine is really the best place. Like if someone's new to you, which I find hard to believe at this point because you've, you know, again, you've been such a figurehead in our world for so long. But in just in case they are and even if you've already got things, this sounds like the ultimate compilation digestion of your work. Staying Healthy with New Medicine. So where do people get it? Amazon Bookstores. Where's it at?

Amazon. This is my first book I self published.

Oh wow.

That's really the beginning part. It's all the basics of healthcare as part of my next component which is, you know, it's more like this is a couple hundred page book. But I have another four or five hundred pages that are getting ready called New Medicine Solutions, which is taking this new medicine approach, natural Eastern and Western medicine, and applying that to general issues that that western medicine alone does not address. Well, like mood and energy disorders, fatigue, insomnia, depression, anxiety, hormones and aging and digestive health and weight and diabetes and pre diabetes. You know as well as I do that one of the greatest gifts of integrative medicine and a more proactive approach is that we can take these early chronic diseases that most doctors don't really undo and be able to either reverse them or delay them a great deal. And that's high blood pressure, pre diabetes and diabetes, high cholesterol and cardiovascular. When people start to really work on their health and work on their lifestyle, they can start to undo these things and not really delay even the need for medicine for years and years, if not totally avoid it.

Okay, so you need to grab this book Staying Healthy with New Medicine and and Elson, best place for people to come check out if they want to get more from you, learn more about you. Where should they go?

My website, Elson Haas. M D E L S O N H A a s m d.com awesome.

Yes. That's not the easiest name to spell. Okay, Everybody else in Haas md.com and make sure to add Staying Healthy with New medicine to your success. Library. And after the break, I'm going to be answering a listener's question, so stick with me.

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Welcome back. This is the time where I answer a listener's question. And today's question is perfect for what we've been talking about. It comes from Jack in Redding, and he says, jj, I've done a couple detoxes doing juice cleanses, and they never make me feel good, neither during or after. But I hear that I need to detox. So what should I be doing? Okay, man, this is one I could spend an hour on. I'm just warning you, here's the deal. Juice cleanses, I am not a fan of. Because your body detoxifies in multiple phases, the first phase frees ups the toxins. See, what happens is every day we're getting confronted by toxins in the air we breathe and the water that's flowing by and the chemicals that are being excreted or we're actually touching or drinking or eating, and our body either eliminates them or stores them. And if we overwhelm our detoxification system, they're storing them and they're basically storing them in our fat. So the first phase of detoxification is getting those babies out, out of the fat, getting them freed up. And the second phase is getting them out of your body through your urine, through your feces, through your sweat. So what you want to watch for is something that if you've got something that makes your phase one faster and your phase two slower, you've got a problem because you'll free up the toxins, but you won't get them out. And that's what things like juice cleanses do, because all of those vitamins and phytonutrients help ramp up phase one. But then you don't have the protein that you need to pull those to glom onto the the toxins because you need amino acids to escort the toxins out of the body. And so now you've got a problem. So juice cleanse, I'm not a fan of. And here's the thing. I like the idea of these focus cleanses because it's kind of a time where you focus on yourself and what you need to be doing. And you can go deeper. And if you're really going to detoxify, like heavy metals or something like this, you want to be doing this under the care of a physician. But I like the idea of when you do a focus, say one to two week cleanse or even three week cleanse where you pull out things like any types of things you're intolerant to, which you shouldn't be doing anyway. Lower your sugar impact, you know, drop your alcohol or drop it down. Lower your caffeine, though I don't believe in reducing or eliminating caffeine because caffeine actually helps helps improve liver enzymes. Elevates can make liver enzymes better. So I don't believe in like no coffee. I just don't believe in excess coffee. And you want to make sure you're going bulletproof there and not having the mycotoxins. So. But the deal is we need to be detoxing on a daily basis because we're being hit by toxins on a daily basis and so we want to keep them getting out. And so here are some of the things that help you. Number one, sweating. That can be through an infrared sauna. I use my sunlight and sauna for that. It's awesome. So sweating is when you should be doing exercises. Another obvious way to, to sweat. But you gotta be sweating. And if you're one of those people that's not a good sweater, then you should behave. Definitely. We should all have these saunas. Sunlighten is amazing. I love mine. And we should actually all have one of these in our house. And they're small so they can fit. But it is one of the most valuable things you can do for your health. But again, sweat stimulates. So that's things like cardiovascular exercise, yoga, lymphatic drainage massage, dry brushing with the brush. Everyone goes, what's dry brushing? It's a dry brush. And you brush yourself before you get in the shower or bath, anything like that, where you're getting, you know, you're getting blood flow going. Super important. Lots of green vegetables, deep green leafies. Increase your fiber, help fiber helps pull the toxins and get them out. So fiber super important here. And then amino acids. So make sure not only are you eating good clean protein, but you're also digesting it. So some digestive enzymes, some proteases can be super helpful. So super helpful here. And of course lots of pure spring water to help you continue to get this out. So green plants in the house filter your water and air. These are other important things. Obviously it'll reduce your toxic load. Anything that could be coming in, control that as well. And then there's one more piece to this and Elson talked about this. And you know, it's funny because I, I interview a lot of people obviously, as you know, but I haven't heard anyone mention this before and he talked about attitude. And the other thing I'd say is detox your attitude. And that may mean detoxing the people around you. You know, I talk about this when I was doing, when I was in the hospital with my son and I realized I was going to have to communicate to some of my family members via Facebook and that I couldn't talk to them every day because their fear, it was really my mother, her fear was not going to allow me to be courageous like I needed to be. I couldn't have that in my, in my psyche. So, you know, part of what you have to do is detox your attitude, elevate your mindset, go into the miracle mindset and you know, in order to be successful at the rest of this super important and again, something we don't think about very often now. If you'd like to submit a question for me, I love them. Just go to jjvirgin.com forward/ask and you can leave a voicemail for me. I can't wait to hear from you. And one more way, I would love to hear from you. I would so appreciate it if you could jump on Stitcher or itunes and leave a review for me. It helps a bunch. And of course, be sure to subscribe and share the show with your friends. Okay, this is JJ Virgin signing off and reminding you that you are worthy. Live courageously.

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