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Nov. 7, 2023 - Dr. Oz Podcast
42:36
The New GMO Pesticide Doctors Are Warning Against | Dr. Oz | S6 | Ep 14 | Full Episode
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A Dr. Oz alert.
The new GMO pesticide arms race, doctors are warning against.
The health of your brain could be a casualty.
I'm very concerned that we're at the beginning of a catastrophe.
This show will challenge the food industry, the chemical industry, and the president.
America, we are running out of time.
Coming up next on Dr. Oz.
The Environmental Protection Agency is on the brink of approving a brand new toxic pesticide that you don't know about.
It's the latest and most disturbing development in one of the biggest food controversies of the 21st century.
GMO Foods.
And what I'm about to show you is going to challenge the food industry, the chemical industry, and the government.
Now let me explain this.
GMO crops like corn and soybean are engineered to survive chemical sprays like the pesticide glyphosate in Roundup.
The pesticide kills the weeds and the crops stay healthy.
But over time, the weeds get smart and they evolve into super weeds that Roundup can't kill.
Enter chemical giant Dao.
They engineer a new breed of corn and soybean seed, built to survive an even stronger pesticide.
It's now made of glyphosate and 2,4-D, a chemical used in Agent Orange, which the government banned during the Vietnam War.
Now, GMOs can be ushering in a pesticide arms race, and the health of your brain could be the casualty.
It has mushroomed into the biggest controversy around GMOs.
The federal government is about to make a decision that could affect the foods you put on your table for decades.
At the center of the firestorm, whether the Environmental Protection Agency should approve the new pesticide and list Duo.
This past spring and summer, health experts and concerned parents on both sides of the controversy made their voices heard.
More than half a million people wrote in to the EPA to stop the pending approval of the pesticide.
Among the protests, a letter signed by 35 prominent doctors, scientists, and researchers, which highlighted the risks for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease from exposure to the chemicals in Enlist Duo.
How concerned should you be?
Today, what you need to know about the new toxic pesticide that could come to a farm near you.
So here are the facts as we know them.
70 to 80% of foods we eat today contain GMOs.
There's 1.1 billion pounds of pesticides a year that are used on these crops in part because they are GMO and they're made to be able to survive this.
Now, 70 to 170 million pounds of additional highly toxic pesticides are going to be used if the EPA approves it.
And you know what?
Most of us already have pesticides in our blood.
This new pesticide is called Enlist Duo and has doctors, public interest groups, and food safety experts all fired up.
A concerned mom named Zen Honeycutt is one of them.
She started Moms Across America to sound the alarm.
So, when did you first become concerned that your kids were being affected by these pesticides?
Well, Dr. Oz, for a long time I didn't know that pesticides might be affecting my children.
In fact, they had rashes and severe allergies for years.
But then I learned that not only are GMOs sprayed with pesticides, but non-GMO foods are as well.
And I learned that glyphosate kills gut bacteria.
And I instinctively knew that that had to have something to do with my children's health issues.
So we went not only GMO-free, but organic to avoid pesticides.
And my children's health got better.
It did.
So what tests the doctors do to identify that there were pesticides involved with this process?
Well, my doctors told me that they would not test for glyphosate because there was no reason to.
But we finally found a private lab that would.
And we had shockingly unacceptable results.
In glyphosate.
So my son, in fact, was positive for glyphosate in his urine at eight times higher than that which was found anywhere in Europe when they did urine testing.
Oh my goodness.
Yeah, and this coincided when he had a sudden onset of autism symptoms.
So we went completely GMO-free and organic, and within six weeks, his autism symptoms were gone, and the level of glyphosate was no longer detectable.
Thank you for sharing your story, Zen.
Zen's not alone.
There's some food experts that are just as concerned as Zen.
Mark Bittman has been reporting on the food industry for 30 years.
I also want to bring in a toxicologist, Dr. Kane Ramo, who's been studying the effects of chemicals like 2,4-D. That's a chemical I just talked to you about that's being added in pesticides.
He's been studying this for 25 years.
So I don't want to pick on GMOs.
I understand the arguments in favor of them.
There's a hungry world out there.
We need to be able to feed that world, and GMO crops are designed to feed them.
Is there a fair case in support of GMOs, Mark?
There's a fair case in support of the technology, but the way the technology has been developed so far has not really proven anything.
Yields are not up.
Pesticide and herbicide use is not down.
And that was the promise of GMOs.
So when you talk about feeding a hungry world and you talk about GMOs, they haven't moved us in that direction.
Ken, you argue pesticides are actually reasonably safe.
There are a lot of parents out there, like Zen, who we just heard from, who need to be reassured.
What can you tell them?
I think the important thing to remember is that the weight of the evidence in studies have been conducted up to date on the toxicity of pesticides would argue that they're overwhelmingly safe.
I think it's important to also remember that we're talking about here not a new pesticide, but really a new formulation of pesticides.
So you're really not changing the paradigm other than probably taking advantage of the combination treatment that might be effective.
Marissa Weiss is a physician, founder of BreastCancer.org, and she's one of 35 doctors who signed a letter addressed to the Environmental Protection Agency imploring the ban of this new pesticide.
She's got two concerns.
The first is that pesticides are linked with an increased risk of the following things.
Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, thyroid and reproductive problems, hormone issues, and Parkinson's disease.
That's the first issue.
The second issue that Marissa raises is that of drift.
Marissa, explain, Dr. Weiss, what is drift and why is that important for us to know about?
Well, as these chemicals drift off the crops and onto neighboring structures like our children's schools, our daughters are playing out there in the schoolyard.
And the fact is that the corn and soy are genetically engineered to survive these chemicals, but our children are not.
Let me, if I can, show you why the medical community is concerned about drift.
I brought a very simple demonstration here.
The grass here in this turf represents a farm, okay?
And pesticides, let's say, are these feathers.
So when you spray the pesticides over the farm, they kill off the weeds.
They don't hurt the crops, which are genetically modified to be resistant.
That's why they're here.
But then let's say some of those pesticides are being released and you have a little bit of a breeze.
Something is gentle.
A few, not many, but a few bits of this fly off beyond the farm.
And then you have rain and sludge forms and begins to carry more of this off.
And as that happens, the crops begin to now get spread further and further away from where they were initially dropped.
Then a wind gust occurs.
And with a wind gust, now you've got lots of the stuff being carried into the larger world around the farm.
Schools, homes, towns.
And you're exposed.
Your hands, your clothes, your shoes can become toxic, which they attract these things into your home.
So pesticides are being put in contact with you, your kids, your pets, your drinking water.
It's just hard to put a fence around it and keep it there.
Let me put this into some perspective.
The Environmental Working Group found Over 5,500 schools within 200 feet, which is a drift range of these pesticides, within 200 feet of GMO farms, 5,500 schools, potentially putting thousands of school children and their families at risk of serious health problems.
So Ken, let me come back to you.
How can you assure families that they're not going to be exposed to these pesticides when it's so hard to keep nature tamed?
It's a valid question and I think one that we all need to be concerned with.
Kids are going to always be exposed to some level of pesticides.
Animals are always going to be exposed to some level of pesticides, whether we want to or not.
However, I think a very important component of the argument is that EPA is calling for continued, repeated monitoring of this process so that in case the evidence is not pointing in the right direction, measures can be taken to correct the problem.
But that subjects our entire nation to one massive experiment.
I hear these words that we're going to continue to survey what happens to kids, so a decade from now we'll apologize.
But in the meantime, I'm very concerned that I'm at the beginning of a catastrophe, one that we don't have to subject ourselves to.
Let me bring Heather White into the conversation, Executive Director of the Environmental Working Group.
How much of these chemicals get absorbed into our bodies, even from the food itself, much less from the drift?
We don't know the answer to that question, Dr. Oz, but what we do know is that this new toxic herbicide will coat corn and soybean fields across the country.
And those are the raw materials for the highly processed foods that we eat, not so much the corn on the cob that you find at the grocery store.
We also know that communities near these farm fields are most at risk, especially kids, as Dr. Weiss just outlined, who are especially vulnerable.
And, you know, as a mom, I will say that I'm especially concerned about the elementary schools that are within this toxic spray zone, as you just demonstrated.
We could have kids out on the soccer field or at recess inhaling these toxic chemicals.
So we reached out to Dow AgriScience, a subsidiary of Dow Chemical.
They're making this newer product.
And they said in part, the Enlist Weed Control System was designed to address the needs of the modern agricultural industry as farmers today struggle to control weeds that impact the food supply while respecting the safety of both people and the environment.
We also reached out to the Environmental Protection Agency and they said in part, based on the best science and the state-of-the-art data, the agency has determined that when used according to labeled directions, there will be no harm to the American public as a result of the use of Enlist.
Heather, we're not really sure.
I don't feel confident as a scientist, as a physician, about what we've been getting ourselves into.
What do you think about those comments and why do you think Washington doesn't seem to be hearing this story?
Well, unfortunately, Dr. Oz, Washington is used to rubber stamping these types of decisions that come at the cost of children's health and the environment in favor of big agrochemical companies.
And what we really need is we need people to stand up and to speak out and say, We need to take a time out.
We know 500,000 people have already done that, but we need to hear more voices to say children's health needs to be first and that we need to step back, not approve this endless duo weed control system, and really ask ourselves these big questions about how our food is grown.
Right now we're on a chemical treadmill, an endless loop where we're okaying genetically engineered foods and then more toxic herbicides to deal with the superweeds.
We really need people to stand up and speak out, and we need Washington to listen.
America, we are running out of time.
The only thing between this pesticide and your kids is the President of the United States.
That's why I'm asking you, and I've never asked for this before, I'm asking you to sign a take action petition.
It's on DrOz.com.
We've linked up to the White House website and made it easy for you to urge the President to stop the Environmental Protection Agency from approving Enlist Duo, this pesticide.
Our goal is really clear.
If we can get 100,000 of you, 100,000 signatures, the President has to respond.
That's the rule.
This is your chance to be part of the change.
You can actually be the change.
So let's let Washington know we mean business when it comes to GMO foods, GMO labeling, and pesticides.
I'll be right back.
The hidden dark side of gastric bypass surgery.
I was completely blindsided.
I lost my marriage and I was estranged from everybody.
If you want to lose belly fat, this is the show for you.
Dr. Oz reveals the ultimate wheat-free guide.
Plus, Angelina Jolie's effect on cancer.
Is she inspiring a movement or unnecessary surgeries?
All new, Dr. Oz.
That's coming up tomorrow.
In the medical spotlight, gastric bypass surgery.
The surgery to shrink your stomach to lose weight is becoming more popular than ever.
But we are now just learning of a hidden dark side to gastric bypass surgery.
And it's alcoholism.
I absolutely believe that gastric bypass surgery turned me into an alcoholic.
Sober now for five years, Susan Jones claims having bypass surgery was what set her on the path to alcoholism.
And she's not alone.
According to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, gastric bypass surgery doubled the patient's risk for developing alcohol problems compared with those who had less drastic weight loss surgeries.
The reason?
Doctors now believe the surgery changes how alcohol is metabolized, increasing the rate in which it's absorbed, making it more addictive.
I was completely blindsided.
Before the surgery, I never had a problem with alcohol.
For about the first year, I really didn't drink much alcohol at all.
Then I started to socially.
From there, it was like wildfire.
Things got really, really bad.
I would drink a huge bottle of wine or the vodka a day.
I lost my marriage and I was estranged from everybody.
I went into a residential rehab facility.
There were three other people in there with me that also had had gastric bypass surgery.
There is nothing that I have ever read or heard or anybody that I talked to that ever mentioned the alcoholism issue.
Addiction Specialist and Director of the Control Center for Addiction is Dr. Reeve Karim is here along with leading bariatric surgeon Dr. Marina Kurian.
Kurian, have you seen patients like this in your practice?
Susan's story is not unusual and I have seen that in my practice as well.
I've heard from other colleagues and I think it has to do with the fact that we're seeing more gastric bypass patients now.
Dr. Reif, why is it that gastric bypass patients are more likely to become alcoholics?
A woman who never had problems before says that a year later she's a raging alcoholic.
I know.
It's such a shock to so many people.
I think what's happening here is we're completely changing the delivery system.
So what that means is the way that alcohol is being absorbed and metabolized is completely changing.
It's almost like a heroin addict that initially starts snorting heroin, then starts smoking it, and then graduates to shooting it.
That's when it's a real problem because it goes right into the bloodstream.
We're seeing this happen here because we're skipping the stomach.
And the stomach is the regulator, the gatekeeper, of how much alcohol gets processed and metabolized into our bloodstream.
Let me explain to you all what Reef means by this.
Normally if you have a glass of wine and your stomach is in place, you haven't had gastric bypass surgery, the wine goes down into your belly and it sits in the stomach and it takes about 30 minutes from when it hits your stomach till you finally begin to get it through the stomach to get absorbed into the intestines and into your bloodstream where it affects you.
But after gastric bypass surgery, it changes dramatically.
Now you've shaved most of the stomach all out, only a little bit of the stomach sees the alcohol.
As soon as the alcohol hits it, boom!
Your whole body lights up.
You're actually getting the buzz of the alcohol because the rest of the stomach is not there to protect you.
So, Dr. Reeve, I'm sort of forced to ask the question about whether an addiction to food, which is prevalent in a lot of people who need gastric bypass surgery, is also causing the alcoholism.
Yeah, when somebody goes in to get gastric bypass, you just assume they're overweight.
You assume that they have some kind of metabolic problem where they need to lose weight and change their overall lifestyle.
You don't think about their brain.
So the brain is very different than our stomach.
You might fix the stomach, so to speak, and leave the brain where it is.
Now, food addiction or binge eating is massaging the same neurobiology, the same circuits in our brain as is chemical addictions.
So what we're seeing is we're seeing a possible transfer of that addiction from food to alcohol.
Dr. Currie, when you're dealing with patients who are in need of gastric bypass surgery, but know about this alcoholic predisposition, what do you tell them?
I tell them before the surgery, actually it's part of my informed consent, to let them know that there is altered alcohol metabolism afterwards.
But when postoperatively they say to me, when can I have a drink, I tell them that it is altered.
They should, if they're going to do it, and certainly we're not talking about a week after surgery, we're talking months after, that they should try at home, have half a glass and see how it affects them.
Because it is altered and they can actually feel the buzz so much faster.
Dr. Reeve, for everyone at home right now, give me one question, one question they can ask themselves to see if they're at risk or loved ones at risk for developing this problem.
Okay, so if you're at home and you're thinking, hey, I don't know, I'm not sure about this, here's what you need to ask yourself.
You need to ask yourself or your family, what is my relationship to alcohol now?
What is my emotional connection and am I a lightweight?
A lightweight.
A lightweight, and I'll tell you what that means.
Alcohol dehydrogenase, this enzyme, is in our system, and it processes the alcohol and breaks it down.
If we already are a lightweight, and we don't detoxify, metabolize, and absorb well to start with, so all of a sudden alcohol hits us really quickly, and we have an emotional connection, meaning we drink when we're sad, we drink when we're celebrating, we just drink Based on our emotions, you are much more prone to having problems later on after gastric bypass.
Let me offer my bottom line.
I think bariatric surgery is the most underperformed operation in this country.
I think it's a great solution for morbid obesity, but only if our addictive emotional issues are addressed.
We should not try to fill a sense of emptiness in our lives with food or alcohol, frankly, any other substance outside of us.
I'll be right back.
Coming up, when a new pain strikes, are you confused about what it is?
Or maybe you self-diagnose your symptoms?
Stop guessing.
Dr. Oz decodes your body pains.
See which ones you can stop worrying about.
That's coming up next.
Every time you have a headache or another new pain, is your first instinct to self-diagnose your symptoms?
Well, today I'm revealing the body pains you can stop worrying about.
So I put a survey online to find out which symptoms you alarmists are always searching.
And I asked you what you think those symptoms could mean.
And I asked three of my viewers to share what they've typed in and searched for.
The top body pain that you all searched for the most, believe it or not, was a vice-like pain around your head.
And Paula happened to put that in.
How are you, Paula?
I'm doing well, thank you.
What were you worried about with that vice-like pain?
Well, Dr. Oz, I get headaches a few times a week.
And sometimes over-the-counter medicines don't do it for me.
It just doesn't take it away.
And so I worry that it could be a brain aneurysm or even a brain tumor.
Because it wouldn't go away regularly.
Is that the main reason?
Correct.
All right, so I'm going to give you a little tip.
It's a quick test for everyone out there who's worried about their head pain, because obviously a lot of people have headaches.
Thankfully, only a few have aneurysms and cancer.
So if you lean your head forward, do this with me, put your head forward like this, get it sort of a horizontal even lower.
If your headache gets worse when you do that, That's a sign that something more important could be going on.
Okay.
Because, for example, a cancer will cause swelling of the brain.
So anything that makes your head down lower, force more blood there, more swelling, more pain.
However, if it doesn't make your head significantly worse, then I think it's a tension headache.
Okay.
I'll tell you what's a more likely cause.
As you're searching for what's causing it, you often get smartphone headaches.
Have you heard of that before?
I have heard that, yes.
A lot of smart phone headache people back here.
I hear it from my husband.
Yes, well, he's a smart, is he a doctor?
No, he's not.
So, here's the deal.
I want you to follow my rule of 20. The 20-20-20 rule.
Every 20 minutes, look 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
That breaks the cycle, relaxes your eyes, relaxes the squinting that causes so many attention headaches that make us think we've got brain cancers.
Okay.
Keep searching in the meantime.
Thank you.
Thank you.
All right.
Next common pain that you've all been searching for is breast pain.
And Dev, come on over, Bev.
I understand you've been searching for that.
Is that your problem?
Oh, yeah.
Dr. Oz, you have to help me today.
So, I get this pain here.
And it happens every so often.
And it feels like a pea-sized knot.
It gets tender.
It gets sore.
And I just want to know what it is.
And does it happen in any particular regularity?
Does it happen once a week, once a month?
It happens about once a month, and it really starts to freak me out.
So I'm sitting online just trying to play doctor.
It's not working.
So when we ask questions to patients, which, you know, in terms of being a good doctor is the first thing you should always do, usually the patient will tell us the diagnosis just from answering a couple simple questions.
You just pretty much gave me an answer already.
It's not getting worse all the time, but it happens about once a month.
So in the back of my mind, I'm thinking, well, what happens once a month?
It's fluctuating hormone levels, pretty commonly.
Yeah.
Because it's not just your estrogen.
It's your progesterone also.
And as they go up and down and up and down, about three days before your menstruation starts, your period starts, you're going to get some swelling, which you've experienced in other ways.
Yeah.
Right?
So any little nodules in there, they'll swell up too.
So from now on, if you have that kind of discomfort and it's a once-a-month kind of pain, put the non-steroidal cream on top of it.
Okay.
Sit it up for a couple days.
And if it's gone after the period, not guaranteeing it's nothing, but if it goes away, that's a very good sign.
Oh, great.
Thanks a lot.
Take care.
Thank you.
And finally, the last thing that alarms you is a scratchy, sore throat.
Some of you wrote to me saying that you're always fearful that it's cancer.
So Beth's joining us.
How are you, Beth?
Hi.
Have you found a diagnosis of cancer yet for your sore throat?
Oh, God, I hope not.
But I get this sore throat, or scratchy throat, and it, you know...
In the mornings a lot, and it gets a little bit better during the day, but it happens so often that I'm not sure.
My husband thinks it might be my sexy morning voice.
That's very nice of him to say that.
Your husband's giving all kinds of diagnoses over here.
So the best way to decode throat pain is to figure out if there's anything outside the throat that might point us to it being a cancer.
So we actually feel your neck a lot of times as doctors, feeling for lymph nodes.
So if I may, if you don't mind.
The classic places you'll feel for lymph nodes are up along the muscle here called sternocleidomastoid, that big muscle here.
You feel just in front of that, and you also feel on top of the clavicle.
And if you feel nodules there, that makes us worried.
You'll get nodules sometimes from infections and other causes, but if you have a nodule, if it's getting large, if it's not tender especially, it makes me worried.
If it's not that, most of the time, morning sore throat and that hoarseness you're describing is related to dry air.
Oh.
Which is a very common cause, or allergies related to that.
If you want that scratchy throat to go away, your husband might like it, but if you want it to go away, go to the bathroom, put some steam on, or into a base and make it steamy, and then get that warm air into your throat for five or ten minutes.
It'll soothe everything down, take care of the moisture problem you've had all night long.
So you won't have a sexy voice, but you'll feel better about it.
I like that.
Is that helpful?
Yes, thank you.
Thank your husband for his diagnosis, by the way.
For eight pains you should not ignore, go to DrRaj.com.
I'll be right back.
Dr. Oz wants to know, do you struggle with a specific body pain?
Oh, I always have headaches.
It starts when I'm stressed out and then lingers through the day.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
Share your story on Dr. Oz's Facebook page.
Coming up next, they're painful, itchy, irritating, and embarrassing.
Hemorrhoids.
Sooner or later, 75% of you will experience them.
Dr. Oz reveals new ways to prevent and treat them.
That's next.
Millions have devoured this doctor's bestseller that claims, lose the wheat, lose the weight.
It's the ultimate wheat-free guide.
If you want to lose belly fat and get your healthy back, this is the show for you.
Plus, Angelina Jolie's effect on cancer.
Is she inspiring a movement or unnecessary surgeries?
And the simple test that can determine your cancer risk.
All new Dr. Oz.
That's coming up tomorrow.
All right.
I wish y'all do me a favor.
I want everyone to close your eyes.
Just close your eyes.
You see, no cheating, no cheating.
Okay, now raise your hands if you've even heard the word hemorrhoid.
If you've heard the word hemorrhoid, put your hands up in the air.
All right, now, good.
Now raise your hands, keep them up, if you've had hemorrhoids.
All right, now open your eyes.
It's a lot of people.
It's one way to get you to be honest.
You're not alone.
75%, three quarters of us are going to experience hemorrhoids at some point in our lives.
So, whether you've had them already or you're still waiting for that lucky day, today I'm revealing how to prevent and treat hemorrhoids.
But to do that, I just can't make it happen without an assistant for the day.
So if you're in the seat, how about 161?
Is that you?
Oh my god, you're so handsome.
Well, how are you?
You're very beautiful.
Thank you so much.
You're kind to say that.
All right.
It's so much fun.
It's so much fun.
I'm so excited.
All right.
So, who are you sitting with over here?
Oh, my best friends, Jean and Elisa.
You're a lot of best friends.
How are you?
Now, I notice there are a lot of hands up over here about the hemorrhoids.
Has that been pretty common among you?
You guys talk about that stuff?
It's embarrassing, yes.
It is.
It's embarrassing.
Sometimes it's good to be the assistant of the day.
Sometimes it's a little bit embarrassing.
So, what's your first name?
Joey Lynn.
So, Joey Lynn, this might be more of an embarrassing type of scenario.
Oh, God!
You can sort of tell that.
So I did notice your hands were up in the air.
Yes, they were.
And when did you develop hemorrhoids?
Oh, Jesus.
After I had my children.
It was actually my first daughter.
She was a very big baby.
And then after the second one, and it just happens.
And it's been horrible.
It happens.
And it comes back to life.
Describe what it's like when you get them.
Oh, God.
It's irritated.
You can bleed.
You know, it's been happening for a very long time, actually.
And itches...
Not much, not really, but it's just inflamed and it's bad.
So there are lots of things that cause it.
Pregnancy is obviously a pretty typical one, but age does it.
I won't ask your age, but as we get older, tissue starts to thin a little bit and begins to sag, not just in the obvious places, but in other places as well.
A lot of folks recognize straining as a big risk factor.
Constipation obviously does it.
But the things you wouldn't normally think about, a low fiber diet causes that.
That's one thing we should think about.
We might not think about lifting weights or people, grocery bags, kids, all those things.
You lift things up.
Wow.
Even lifting your own body, if you have excess weight, we'll put extra strain on those hemorrhoids and make those veins engorge a little bit.
Okay.
So, I'm going to get to the root of why you have the problem, because I've got some great solutions, but I really want to make it crystal clear how these hemorrhoids form.
Okay.
To do that, I need you.
Okay.
What do you want me to do?
I'm here.
I'm ready.
Okay.
Come on, Joe.
So, we built a little model here of the anal canal.
Oh.
So, if you look up in here, you'll see what happens.
Now, obviously, to sort of bring this to life, we need someone to go up there and come down.
You got it.
Here you are.
Come on up here.
I could have gotten your friends, but this has been better.
Now, up to the top.
Before you come down, let me explain this.
You represent the things that cause hemorrhoids.
Okay?
So, let's say you're a little bit constipated, a little bit straining.
So, sit on the side.
These little walls here are very flimsy.
They have very thin tissue on them.
So, when you come down, I want you to grab some of that and rip it off.
That's what would normally happen is you strain.
So, get ready to come down the chute.
All right, and as you come down, now grab, grab, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip, rip.
That's awesome.
Good.
Nicely done.
Nicely done.
Now, Before you run off, now you've got a very raw surface in there, and now you have the recipe for disaster.
Now I go up one more time.
This time, you're a mom, you're carrying your kids, you're grocery shopping, you've got bags in your arms going up there, you're lifting weights, and as you do this, something starts to happen, which you're going to start to notice.
You're starting to engorge some veins.
See this vein here?
Now come on down.
Keep going, keep going, keep going, keep going.
Pull it with you.
Oh!
Ooh!
That hurt.
That hurt.
You can see that.
Can we go back on that in slow motion?
I want to just demonstrate what happened there, because that's exactly what happens inside of you.
As something's coming down the anal canal, but with combination of all those factors, that ball, that vein gets engorged and big and purple and ugly, and then watch, watch, here it is.
You're coming down, and all of a sudden you get stuck on that, and ooh, you pull it right off, and whoa!
You can see how much that would hurt.
So what do you use for relief?
Just baths, take hot baths, and sometimes creams and stuff, but it doesn't really...
And I take medication.
What medication do you use?
Just like anti-inflammatory, Motrin or something.
Good.
Let's go over here, because you've got some of the things.
Some things are really easy to do, some are a bit more expensive.
I have to say I have any toilet paper stuck to my shoe.
So, these creams do work, and you should try them.
If you don't want to use them down there, you can use them under your eyes.
They have other purposes as well.
But these creams will dry stuff out.
They're about three bucks.
They're inexpensive.
Obviously fiber.
I don't have to say that again, but there's some sources of fiber you might not have thought of.
You know, blackberries are a good example, or popcorn.
The rinds of fruit have a lot.
Then there's this chamomile tea.
Now, you mentioned taking a bath.
A lot of times people put magnesium salts in the bath, in an Epsom salt bath, just to sort of soothe and relax that area.
Certain people say cold, but I find that the heat does it better.
Like when I'm in the shower, it just takes it down a little bit.
The cold is better if they're acutely inflamed, but if it's more chronic as you're describing, I think you're right to have more.
Listen, follow your body.
It's going to tell you pretty quickly, especially with hemorrhoids.
Right.
The reason I like chamomile tea bags, you're not going to drink this.
You're going to actually put it down there.
Wow.
Okay.
Soak it in warm water just a little bit.
You don't want it to be hot when you use it.
Let it warm down a little bit.
And then put it down there for about five minutes.
It'll actually soothe it.
Similar in many ways to what you're trying to do.
Okay.
If you're not getting relief from that, I've got two other big ideas.
Uh-oh.
One of them is a procedure.
It's a relatively new one.
It's called a hemorrhoid laser treatment.
I have a little animation to show this to you.
There's a little probe that goes up in there.
It lasers like that balloon you pulled off.
I did.
I did actually go to a doctor who recommended this.
I got scared and I didn't go.
Well, it's okay to be scared.
No one likes to have things stuck up there.
It's sort of ominous, you know, think about it.
But the discomfort of the hemorrhoids themselves is often worse.
And it doesn't really hurt much when they do it because you don't sense in there that much.
It causes effects around it, but not the actual vein itself.
You have to have several treatments, though, for it to work.
And, you know, it costs about $500 for treatment.
So it is a big deal to think about.
I've got a little idea that I think you're going to love.
This is for everybody in America, three-quarters of us, who have hemorrhoids.
All right, but this is going to be more embarrassing than anything you've done so far.
Uh-oh.
More than this?
More than the anal canal.
Okay.
Because that was pretty embarrassing.
It was.
All right.
I want you to sit on this toilet.
Oh, Jesus.
You're going to see why...
Anything for you.
God bless you.
I left the seat down anyway.
All right.
Now, most of us sit just the way you're sitting.
Okay.
Now, this is it.
I love these topics.
Your mom told you this when you were five, and then you forgot.
But this is the truth.
When you sit at this angle, you actually are kinking that anal canal that I showed you earlier.
You're sort of bending.
I have a little illustration that shows you.
And this is going to be a rule of thumb.
See the sitting?
It's sort of like bent blue.
It doesn't come straight down, so the poop gets stuck in there.
When you squat, You actually make that canal a very straight line, so it's an easier path.
So you need to get off the ball?
I have to sit up off of the ball.
So the rule of thumb, everybody, you're going to squat, not sit.
Now, if you're sitting like this, you seem like you're comfortable, what you really want to do, look, we all read in the bathroom, right?
Okay.
Take some of those magazines and put it under one foot and then the other, right?
About six inches of magazines.
Now you're squatting.
Now you can lean forward a little bit.
That changes the angle a little bit.
And that is actually a very, very effective time.
Only for you I'm doing this.
God bless you.
Are you more relaxed?
You're the best.
Yes, thank you.
Listen, I got a lot of heavyweight treatments on DrOz.com.
We'll be right back.
You are the best.
Thank you, Dr. Oz.
Coming up next, the story that caught Dr. Oz by surprise.
A lesson in the power of resilience.
I promise you, you'll start thinking differently about your own life.
See how he stays positive.
His inspiring message for people everywhere is coming up next.
Chris Cook helped teach me about the power of resilience this summer.
My mother-in-law called me over, sit next to her, watch the story.
I gotta say, it caught me by surprise.
So I hope all of you can just stop what you're doing for just a few minutes.
I promise you, you'll start thinking differently about your own life and the problems that you're having in a whole new way.
It's no secret that farming requires hard physical labor.
It's not for everybody.
But I want you to meet a guy who not only loves what he does, but thrives doing it.
Despite having a few limitations.
It takes me upwards of 400% more energy to do everyday tasks than somebody with arms and legs.
I'm hopping on one leg.
It's a good little workout.
So what can a farmer with no legs and no arms do?
So how do you break?
Go to the shop, get a chunk of two by four, about three feet long, cut a groove in it, and I'll be driving this thing in about two or three minutes.
When I was born, my grandma actually set the tone right at a very early stage.
Perfect.
My uncle phoned, my grandma and grandpa let them know that my mom and dad had a baby boy.
Healthy, but not everything was there.
And my grandma didn't even hesitate for a second.
She said, well, Bruce, my dad, never did finish anything he started.
One might assume Chris's parents had a hand in developing his extraordinary independence, but not in the way that you might think.
Talking to my dad, I asked him, what did you do differently with me than you would of any other kid?
And he said, nothing.
So my independence is almost endless now because of their approach.
There was very little he couldn't do.
*music* I remember as a kid being sent down to the office because I wouldn't wear my prosthetic arms at school.
They weren't really for me.
Chris has not only overcome the many physical challenges of his life, but he's gracefully navigated the most awkward moments.
I was handing out Halloween candy one year and kids are like, oh, awesome costume!
I'm like, I'm wearing jeans and a t-shirt.
It's not a costume.
This is me.
Come back here on the first of November, I'll be wearing the same thing.
Some people are ashamed of their freckles.
Some people are ashamed of that spare tire around their waist.
They have big ears or a big nose or whatever.
I think if you're worried about how you look, you're cheating yourself out of opportunities.
Chris's powerful courage is fueled by the acceptance that he has for himself.
Imagine if in our own lives we could all do the same.
Chris Cook, come on out.
Well deserved.
Thank you.
I feel the same way.
Honest to goodness, my mother-in-law, who won't come on the show, by the way, but doesn't mind throwing some ideas at me, having to sit next to her, and we applauded, you know, in a room with two people, applauded the video as I saw you tell your story.
There's just something, I mean, charisma is the right word for it, but I just love the fact you've tackled the challenges in life, and no matter what has come at you, what's been thrown at you, you've coped.
How do you do that?
I guess the biggest thing is I'm so afraid of regret missing out on so many opportunities that I'd rather get out and just do stuff.
And I've always kind of quoted the movie Shawshank Redemption.
You know, you can get busy living or get busy dying.
Yeah, I was born out of arms and legs, but I mean, who cares?
When you were a little kid, did you realize how different you were?
I mean, obviously I knew I was different.
I got stared at.
I got all kinds of questions, but I didn't really care.
Like I said, it goes back to just wanting to get out there and do things.
I approached life as though I didn't have arms and legs, and a lot of that goes to an amazing family, an amazing community that I grew up in.
They didn't treat me like I had a disability, so I didn't feel as such.
So, did you ignore the teasing, which brings out the worst in us sometimes?
You know, I'm very fortunate.
I was never bullied.
I was never teased.
I grew up in an amazing community.
And, I mean, if anything, my family and I were making the jokes.
So, I mean, if you could come up with something better than we could, have at it.
And the other thing is, I was always having fun.
Big smile on my face.
And, I mean, you really can't find anything to tease, you know, when somebody's enjoying themselves.
So give me some advice.
Give everyone some advice.
When you've been dealt what might say is an unfair hand.
How do you make...
Pun intended.
Pun intended.
What's the message?
How do you get past that?
I mean, there's so much out there that's so positive to worry about.
The negativity is there, but you can have a pity party if you want.
Make sure it's fleeting.
Just go out there and live life.
If a guy without arms and legs can enjoy life and do as much as I can and do and strive to do, anybody can do it.
It's pretty easy, actually.
Well, you make it seem elegant and effortless, and I applaud you for it.
Thank you very much.
There's lots of other wonderful, inspiring stories like Christmas.
Be sure to check out Super Soul Sunday every Sunday morning on OWN. Who would you say is your biggest inspiration?
My mom.
She is 91 and the strongest, kindest, most optimistic person I know.
I have never heard her say an unkind thing about anyone.
Share your inspiration on Dr. Oz's Facebook page.
Millions have devoured this doctor's bestseller that claims, lose the wheat, lose the weight.
It's the ultimate wheat-free guide.
If you want to lose belly fat and get your healthy back, this is the show for you.
Plus, Angelina Jolie's effect on cancer.
Is she inspiring a movement or unnecessary surgeries?
And the simple test that can determine your cancer risk.
All new, Dr. Oz.
That's coming up tomorrow.
Millions have devoured this doctor's bestseller that claims, lose the wheat, lose the weight.
It's the ultimate wheat-free guide.
If you want to lose belly fat and get your healthy back, this is the show for you.
Plus, Angelina Jolie's effect on cancer.
Is she inspiring a movement or unnecessary surgeries?
And the simple test that can determine your cancer risk.
All new Dr. Oz.
That's coming up tomorrow.
Now time for In Case You Missed It.
First, the Environmental Protection Agency is on the brink of approving a brand new pesticide called Enlist Duo.
It's built to kill superweeds growing on GMO crops.
We need to come together and stop the approval of this pesticide.
Go to DrOz.com and sign the Take Action Petition urging the President to ban Enlist Duo.
If we can get 100,000 signatures, the President must respond.
We can make it happen.
Next, how can everyone decode the pain that they have in their head, that vice-like pain?
A lot of folks are worried that the headache might be something more serious.
But is it perhaps just a simple headache?
A quick test to help you decode the headache is to do the following.
You lean forward, and as you lean forward, if that headache gets worse, That makes me concerned that it's something more serious.
If not, it's likely a tension headache.
And you know what?
It's not pleasant, but that kind of pain is not something that I would worry about.
And finally, stop being embarrassed about hemorrhoids.
Three quarters of us are going to experience them at least once in our lifetime, so get over it.
To avoid those hemorrhoids, remember the three key words.
Squat, don't sit.
When you squat, I'll do it myself to demonstrate.
When you squat, Your stool path will straighten out.
So take some magazines you've been reading or just put a foot stool under your feet.
This is how most people around the world go to the bathroom.
Get your feet six inches off the ground.
And then when you sit forward like this, the squat method actually creates less strain and reduces the chance of hemorrhoids.
I know it's embarrassing.
But I'll do anything to help you guys out.
And this, I tell you, will save a lot of people some pain down there without any difficulty.
Finally, I want to close with a warning.
Please be careful about what you buy online, especially weight loss pills.
There are some dubious people online that prey on folks like you who are trying to do the right thing for your health.
Sometimes they even try to make it seem like I'm endorsing their products.
I don't.
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