Sometimes you feel desperate about your health. You have been training hard for months and everything seemed to be going well, but suddenly for the past few days, you just feel worn out. So you rush to the health food store and buy some supplements that you read about in your current health magazine, and then you hope what you are taking is working for you. But how do you know if they are working, all these supplements you are taking? Or, for that matter, what you are eating and drinking every day?

There is a way for you to know if the supplements you are taking and the food you are eating are working for you. It's easy and quick, and only takes 90 seconds. It is a Biophotonic scanner developed in the University of Utah Department of Physics by Dr. Werner Gellerman. It's an amazing instrument that offers a non-invasive way of measuring the carotenoids in the skin, eye and other human tissue using Raman spectroscopy. There is no other technology like it. It is used to evaluate the biochemistry and the biophysics of nutritional interventions against inherited and acquired disorders.

The Berstein Laboratory, funded by the National Eye Institute, studied the proteins involved in the uptake and stabilization of the proteins lutein and zeaxanthin in the human macula of the eye. They measured the dietary xanthophyll carotenoids that play an important role in protecting the macula of the eye from daily light-induced oxidative stress damage. They found that when high levels of this carotenoid were present, it correlated with a lower risk of age-related macular degeneration. This technology was further developed; they designed a machine to be used on other human tissue, such as the skin. In the skin, they can measure antioxidant levels through these carotenoids. There is a direct correlation in scientific based-research that the higher your antioxidant levels, the less likelihood of developing major diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and other autoimmune-related diseases.

Now there is a tool to see if what you are eating, drinking and taking is actually working to keep you healthy and prevent disease related to oxidative stress. Remember, oxidative stress is happening every day, but what you eat, drink and take protects you from the harmful side effects of it.

What are you eating and drinking, and could that be why you don't feel so well? Seven to nine servings of fruits and vegetables a day is what you need to protect yourself. Are you getting that?

You may wonder why a physical therapist would care so much about what you eat, drink and take a day. In my profession, I take care of your musculoskeletal system, and what you eat, drink and take directly correlates to how well you do in physical therapy and how well you are able to heal from injury.

Years ago, I took a continuing education course from an internal medicine specialist in Seattle. He challenged me to think differently about my patients and their nutritional health, and how it correlates to wellness. I began to think of the macronutrients and the micronutrients that patients need daily in order to heal from injury. There was no measurement tool when I trained with him years ago, but thanks to the Biophotonic scanner technology, we now have a way to know if what you are eating, drinking and taking is working for you. If it's not, we know what to do about it, so you can prevent injury and heal from disease. Don't wait until you are ill to wonder how good your score is. Come in and get tested! It only takes 90 seconds to live well.

Sheree DiBiase, PT, is the owner of Lake City Physical Therapy. She and her staff will be happy to scan you, so you have a biomarker of your nutritional health. Call us for an appointment at our Coeur d'Alene office, (208) 667-1988. $20 for your scan.