New patients may book an initial consultation appointment only. Appointments for specific treatments are not available to new patients because by law we cannot recommend treatment or prescribe supplements without having performed an initial consultation.
There are many different treatment types and therapies at Green Apple Health Care. Your doctor, in consultation with you, will determine which best suits your needs.
Consultations
There are initial consultations and follow-up consultations. Consultations can be conducted in person, by phone, or by secure video link.
In the initial consultation, the doctor will review your health history and begin the process of determining the causes of your health problems. The doctor will ask many questions about your health, your life, when your problems started and what was occurring at the time, what makes it worse or better and other questions that will help to direct the doctor to the root source of the problem.
At the end of the consultation the doctor will discuss the causes of your health problems with you and any testing that may be needed. The doctor will go over your treatment options and work with you to implement a treatment protocol that works for you. Expectations, timelines, and long-term health goals and plans for improving your overall health and preventing diseases will also be discussed.
The initial consultation is all about finding the cause of your health problems, looking at your goals and coming up with a plan that works for you. We not only want to work on the cause of your current problems, but also implement a long-term plan that promotes your overall health, and which will prevent the development of any additional health problems.
Often a treatment plan will have different steps and stages to accomplish to address the cause of your health concerns. The doctor will go over diet, lifestyle, exercise, and oral supplements that will be helpful to you as well as dosage.
Follow-up consultations take 30 minutes. In a follow-up consultation, the doctor will review your progress or any changes in your wellbeing, will answer any questions or concerns you may have, and will evaluate your progress on your program. If your progress is not as rapid as expected, the doctor will adjust your treatment plan. If progress is being made as expected, the next step of your program may be implemented.
Patients sometimes wonder how many follow-up consultations will be needed and how often they need to be done. Like so many things, it depends. Everyone’s health situation is different. Some conditions are complicated and require different types of treatments. Generally, a follow-up consultation is done one month after the initial consultation to evaluate progress and adjust dosages as needed. After that, follow-up consultations are usually conducted once every few months for a check-up re-evaluation of and adjustments to the program as indicated.
Any patient who has seen a doctor at Green Apple Health Care can have a follow-up consultation no matter how long it’s been. Even if you haven’t seen the doctor for years, it’s still a repeat consultation.
Injection Therapies
Injection therapies are often used to deliver nutrients at much higher doses than can be tolerated orally for a faster response. Injection therapies are provided at the clinic by appointment.
Generally, injection therapies use vitamin C, B vitamins, various minerals and herbs along with other supplements. The ingredients are highly customized for each individual patient to provide them with the nutrients in the exact proportions that are needed.
There are many different types of injection therapies including microvitamin injections, high-dose IV vitamins, ozone, and regenerative injections.
Microvitamin Injections
These are small volume vitamins administered in the arm. These are sometimes called vitamin B12 injections but that’s a very limited term. We can put many different vitamins into the injection in various combinations to effectively treat a number of conditions such as PMS, anxiety, depression, low energy and so much more. The injection is made up of vitamins and supplements injected into the arm in smaller doses than IV, but at a higher dose than diet or oral supplements could achieve. These are used for getting a faster response, with higher doses than oral products, but not as much as we can get in with a large volume IV vitamin injection.
High-Dose Vitamin IV Treatments
High-dose vitamin IV treatments consist of very high doses of vitamins, herbs and supplements that are used for their therapeutic effect. The injection bypasses the bowel, gets to the cells faster and in the highest dose possible for a greater healing response. This treatment focuses on fully body system building, decreasing inflammation and arthritis, rebuilding energy, and treating a variety of very advanced health conditions where high dose nutrients are more effective than oral supplements and small volume injections.
Ozone
Ozone is pure medical oxygen that is used for its healing properties.
Ozone is a highly effective antioxidant that can help to reduce damage caused by inflammation. It can also increase the activity of the antioxidant enzymes in the body which makes it a viable treatment for swelling and inflammation.
Ozone is harmless to normal cells but can be lethal to bacteria, viruses, and fungi. It is used to treat wounds and infections, and can be particularly useful against some of the new “superbugs” that are resistant to antibiotics. Ozone can be very helpful in the treatment of autoimmune diseases.
Damaged and painful tendons and joints such as the lower back, knees, hips can be treated with ozone to reduce pain and to promote healing and rebuilding of the affected area. Herniated discs can also be treated with ozone.
Ozone can be used to help promote tissue healing after injury.
Detoxification is the removal of harmful chemicals and metals from the body. Ozone can help with the detoxification process by rebuilding the body’s detox pathways.
Ozone can be administered by injection or topically, depending on what is being treated.
Regenerative Injections
Regenerative injections are injections administered directly into areas of injury or pain and inflammation. The name prolotherapy or prolozone is normally used for injections around tendons and ligaments for strengthening them, however Regenerative Injections address much more than just tendons and ligaments. Regenerative Injections are often used for any pain, injury or inflammation in many different areas of the body like shoulders, knees, elbows, hips, low back, and ankles. The injection is administered directly into your painful area or area that is injured or inflamed for local healing and reduction of pain and inflammation. This is used if diet, supplements, and herbs aren’t going to sufficiently relieve the pain and if the condition is severe or chronic and we want fast results. Regenerative Injections can also be used in combination with the IV vitamin injections for a more full-body and proactive response once the main areas of pain and injury are doing better.
Vitamins and Supplements Therapies
- Vitamins and herbs are used to improve a patient’s health status and address nutritionally-related causes of health problems. It is important to know that vitamins and other supplements are not an “instant fix”. It takes time for the nutrients to be absorbed into the cells.
There are a number of options for purchasing recommended vitamins and supplements. Many of them are carried by Waldin’s Pharmacy located in the Square on 23rd complex. Your local health store may also carry them.
- Tinctures are concentrated herbs that are higher dose than supplements, prepared in liquid form so they are easily absorbed and work faster. Because tinctures are custom-formulated and highly individualized for each patient, they are available only at Green Apple Heath Care.
- Homeopathic formulations are diluted herbs taken sublingually (under the tongue) and used for patients who are very sensitive and react to other treatment methods.
Diet, Lifestyle, and Exercise Therapies
The doctor will evaluate your diet and whether it may be affecting your health. We won’t put you on a restrictive, impossible-to-follow diet. We take into account your lifestyle and your schedule to formulate therapeutic diet improvements that you’ll be able to follow.
The doctor may also recommend a moderate exercise program, one that is right for you to help support your immune system and general health.
Chelation Therapy
Chelation therapy is the removal of toxic heavy metals from the body. The most common heavy metals that cause health problems are mercury, lead, and cadmium. These metals have no metabolic function in the body and can create a variety of health problems.
Heavy metals are called that for two reasons. First, they are physically very dense and they are “heavy” on the periodic table of elements. Secondly, the body has no natural method of removing them. Since the body has no method of removing heavy metals, they build up in the fatty organs of the body including the liver, adrenals, thyroid, and brain.
Heavy metal toxicity can lead to thyroid, adrenal and liver problems. Many thyroid issues have been associated with mercury toxicity. This can result in low energy, an inability to lose weight, skin sensitivity, and brain fog and memory issues.
We will test to see which heavy metals are present and in what volume. We will work with you to determine if there are any current sources of heavy metal ingestion and to identify and remove those source of the metals exposure. We will then create a custom program to gently and systematically remove the toxic metals using a chelator (a natural substance that will bind to the metal and remove it through urination). There are different types of chelating agents used for different metals. Each one of these metal chelators is administered differently. Some are capsules taken orally and some are injected. We choose the right chelating agent for the identified metals.
Bioidentical Hormone Therapy
What Happens as You Age?
As men and women age, hormonal change occurs. Levels of different hormones decrease, and symptoms can develop. Very commonly, women can experience hot flashes, night sweats, low energy, low libido, depression, and other symptoms associated with menopause. Sometimes, these symptoms are severe and can continue for an extended period.
Severe or extended symptoms associated with menopause are so common that they have somehow come to be regarded as a “natural” part of aging. They aren’t. Menopause is not a disease or a pathological condition. Ideally, a woman should be able to transition through menopause without trauma.
Severe or extended symptoms are an indication that there may be underlying aggravating factors. There are other health conditions such as adrenal, thyroid, or other glandular insufficiency that can worsen symptoms. A patient’s diet or lifestyle could be contributing to the symptoms. Perhaps there are nutritional deficiencies.
Traditionally, hormone replacement therapy has been a routine treatment of menopausal symptoms and sometimes that is appropriate. At Green Apple Health Care, we approach any hormone problem including menopause with an overall program to address the root causes of the symptoms. We don’t just give the patient an herbal replacement for their prescription hormones. We conduct a thorough analysis of the patient’s health and possible health problems. We test for suspected hormone imbalances or deficiencies and other possible health conditions and develop a customized program for the patient that focuses on the underlying factors that could be causing or magnifying the symptoms. We work with the patient to help restore the patient’s overall health and quality of life.
Types of Bioidentical Hormone Therapies
It’s important to know that there are two different types of bioidentical hormone therapy, natural and synthetic. They are both called bioidentical hormone therapy (BHT) or bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT), but they are not the same. They are very different.
Synthetic BHT uses manufactured chemical hormones extracted and then chemically altered and synthesized into a hormone treatment cream, capsule or patch.
There is a long list of synthetic bioidentical prescription hormones that could include progesterone and estrogen creams and gels, estrogen-estradiol preparations, DHEA, and many others. In most provinces, prescription hormones are available only with a prescription from a medical doctor and are generally dispensed at a pharmacy. In Alberta, naturopathic doctors such as Dr. Nowazek cannot prescribe this type of prescription BHT.
We do not use or provide any prescription bioidentical hormone products.
The hormone therapies used at Green Apple Health Care are all-natural, and do not require a prescription. We use only products from natural sources, the actual herbs, not chemically extracted and synthesized versions of them. We use all-natural products and therapies to bring your health back into balance.
Lab Analysis
By the end of your consultation, the doctor will have made a diagnosis of the probable root cause of your health problem. Lab tests are used to confirm the diagnosis and to measure progress. They are also used to determine if a previously unsuspected health condition has the potential to develop.
Among the many types of lab testing available at Green Apple Health Care are blood tests, hormone testing, allergy and food sensitivity testing, urine testing, stool analysis, and nutritional and genetic testing.
Some of the treatments we offer are known by other names such as:
- Detoxification
- Anti-aging therapies
- Various types of diets (blood type, Zone, For Life, Atkins, etc)
- Allergy elimination
- Vitamin C therapy
- Ozone therapy
- Immune building
- Bowel cleansing
- Parasite cleansing
- Yeast or candida cleansing
- Clinical ecology
- Chelation
- Heavy metals removal
- Bio-identical hormone therapy
There are some treatment types that are not offered at Green Apple Health Care, but we can refer you to a competent practitioner of:
- Acupuncture
- Chiropractic
- Reflexology
- Past life regression, channeling
- Pendulums
- Laser therapies
- HBO (Hyper baric oxygen)
- Cranio Sacral Therapy,
- Visceral manipulation
- Physiotherapy, Physical Therapy
- Colon Hydrotherapy
- Massage Therapy
- Chakra therapy
- Shock wave therapy
- EWOT – Exercise with Oxygen Therapy
