Nov 24, 2019
Full article @ https://thesternmethod.com/virender-sodhi
Dr Virender Sodhi was the first Ayurvedic and Naturopathic
physician in the United States. From a young age, Dr. Sodhi knew he
wanted to be a physician. This was a kid who would visit the
village doctor and pretend he was ill so that he could take the
prescribed medicine home, label it and add it to his growing
“medicine cabinet”.
After moving to the United States, Dr Sodhi completed his ND
degree at Bastyr University, Washington in 1988. The following year
he founded the Ayurvedic and Naturopathic Clinic that he still
practices at today.
It wasn’t until many years later, after dealing with cancer in
his family, that Dr Sodhi turned his professional focus to
oncology. Dr Sodhi completed a fellowship in Integrative Oncology
with Dr. Mark Rosenberg in 2012 and a steady stream of cancer
patients followed. Today he helps patients from around the globe
using traditional Ayurvedic principles and integrative treatment
protocols.
***Resources Mentioned***
The Ayurvedic &
Naturopathic Medical Clinic
The Life
of Jesus in India
CoCurcumin
Ayush Herbs
Livit 2
Bacopa monnieri
Ashwagandha
Boswellia Serreta -
Boswelya Plus
Amla
Neem
Gotu Kola - Ayu-Dep by
Ayush Herbs
***
In This Episode:
I’m really excited about this episode! I’ve interviewed a lot of
different health professionals about cancer over the years but this
is the first time I’ll be exploring Ayurveda.
Ayurvedic medicine is the primary care model for hundreds of
millions of people in India. Dr Sodhi talks me through what
Ayurveda is and what makes it different from other Eastern medicine
practices. We talk about some of the medicinal herbs used in
Ayurvedic medicine – particularly the ones with anti-cancer
properties, and how they can help patients as anti-cancer protocols
and as integrative therapies alongside other alternative and/or
conventional cancer treatments. Plus we’ll cover off where to find
the best quality Ayurvedic herbs. Enjoy!
Can you start with telling us what Ayurveda
is?
- Ayurveda is thousands of years old. Deep-seated in Indian
culture
- The ayurvedic philosophy to good health is to live in harmony
with and follow the laws of nature
- Cancer is the prime example of what happens when we stray away
from mother nature
How did you get into medicine and in particular
cancer?
- Born and raised in small rural village in Himalayas
- His father was a school principal with a keen interest in
medicine
- Father taught him about plants and herbs and their medicinal
properties
- Began collected herbs and medicines. Even feigned illness to
his doctor so he could add what was prescribed to his
collection
- When his father died of lung cancer, Dr Sodhi vowed to work in
oncology. Didn’t happen until his sister was diagnosed with breast
cancer years later
- Completed his fellowship in Florida with integrative oncologist
Dr Mark Rosenburg
- Cancer patients started pouring in
Why is there such an emphasis on herbs in Eastern
medicine?
- Indian culture is very old and advanced in thinking
- Historically India was the learning academy for the world
- The Life
of Jesus in India (YouTube video) - did Jesus go to India
during the ‘missing years’ before return to Jerusalem?
- Consider the behaviour of animals - they look, sniff, taste and
if they like it they eat it. We need to use our senses in the same
way
- Close connection with mother nature is part of Indian
culture
- Native American culture is rich in herbology
- Wild food foraging
How is Ayurveda different from other
practices?
- Mental, emotional, spiritual, physical - Ayurveda focuses on
all these aspects
- Cancer patients often have mental or emotional issues
- Cancer is not one disease, group of many diseases
- Most diseases are a result of lifestyle
-
- Our food chain is contaminated, no safety data on chemicals in
our environment
- We need to drive change by not purchasing these
products
- Pesticides killing our gut microbiome
Do you provide the mental and emotional
support?
- Assess and provide tools but refers to others for ongoing
support
- Changing thought processes is key to long term health
- We must create balance every day
What Ayervadic herbs would people be familiar
with?
- Turmeric and curcumin - helps with inflammation and changes
gene behavior
-
- Boswellia Serreta
(Frankincense) - anti-inflammatory. Beneficial for neuroblastoma,
bone cancers and sacommas
- Ashwagandha - adaptogen
that helps the body balance itself. Anti-angiogenic effect -
restricts blood supply to tumors
- Natural compounds have DNA and can communicate with the body.
Synthetic drugs cannot
- Natural compounds support the immune system
- Immunotherapy gaining popularity
- Neem - antifungal,
antibacterial, antiviral. Creates autophagy in cancer cells (cell
starves)
- The immune system has the tools to fight cancer cells if it is
working properly
How is your turmeric product different
- Turmeric oils are not very bioavailable unless you add fat
- Golden milk is a drink with milk and turmeric
- Coconut milk contains medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) that
help keep sugar away from cancer cells and make it more
bioavailable
- CoCurcumin uses MCTs to
significantly improve the bioavailability of curcumin. CoQ10 is
added to support cardiovascular and inflammatory
function. Trikatu,
a traditional Ayurvedic combination of piperine from black pepper
is also added to enhance turmeric absorption.
- Metronomic approach to chemotherapy (micro / low dosing) is
becoming more popular
How do you design an anti-cancer herbal
protocol?
- Ongoing learning process
- Every disease starts with the mind
- Looks at the whole picture
- Food, digestion. Chew your food, eat mindfully, eat nutrient
dense not calorie dense food
- We want quick fixes when it comes to our health, but never the
answer
- Paleo dieters seem to have forgotten the gathering part from
our hunter gather past
-
- Hunting was exercise
- Animals farm raised - changes composition of meat and fat
- Portions too large
What are other go-to herbs for cancer?
- Guduchi (Tinospora
cordifolia)
- Amla - immune booster,
lowers cholesterol, good for digestion
- Ginger - destroys oncogenes, helps digestion
- Onion and garlic
-
- Eat raw to avoid destroying the active properties
- Bacopa monnieri - brain
support
- Gotu Kola - collagen
strengthen
- Eat local and seasonal
Integrative use of Ayurveda with chemo
- Amla protects the
heart
- Use ashwagandha alongside
cyclophosphamide
- Curcumin reduces side
effects of chemotherapy
- Livit-2 is a preparation
of herbs that support the liver
- In 12 years in oncology Dr Sodhi has not seen issues with
combining the majority of herbs with chemotherapy
Where do you go to get herbs?
- Need the best quality
- Dr Sodhi grows and extracts himself
- Recommends +Metagenics,
Xymogen
- Watch out for heavy metals in herbs
- Dr Sodhi’s herbal company - Ayush Herbs
Follow Dr Sodhi
The Ayurvedic &
Naturopathic Medical Clinic
Facebook
Youtube
If you liked this episode, check out:
The World’s
Longest Living Cultures with Lowest Cancer Rates – What Can We
Learn?: Jason Prall
If you have a question or comment about this episode let
us know below!!