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Table of Contents
Tamara Santa Ana, DC, in her own words
OligoScan for Heavy Metal Testing and More by Robert Yoho
Parting shot: A testimonial letter for Dr. Tamara
About Dr. Tamara’s practice
Appendix: Yoho’s tests and interpretations
Deceptive photos, part 2
Tamara Santa Ana, DC, in her own words
I focus on preventive medicine using testing that reveals problems before they become crises. Almost fifty percent of seniors are at risk for heart attacks or strokes. Standard tests miss many warning signs. I use multiple tools to look deeper and keep patients alive and healthy.
My approach differs from conventional medicine. I don't treat specific conditions by matching their condition to pills. Instead, I work with my findings to restore normal body functioning by rebuilding cycles and metabolism. This distinction matters enormously for patient outcomes.
The tools I use are inexpensive, non-invasive, and provide reproducible results that patients can see and understand. These tests initially seem difficult to grasp, but they make clear sense once you understand their principles.
The OligoScan: Revolutionary Mineral and Toxin Analysis
The OligoScan is the primary tool in my arsenal and could replace most of the other tests. The procedure takes 30 seconds and provides 100 data points on internal minerals, vitamin D levels, and nutrients that typically require blood tests to assess. It is available in alternative practitioners’ offices in every major US city.
The device is a spectrophotometer that illuminates the top layer of the hand's skin at four points. I use the hand because the dermal tissue there is consistent across races and its depth is known, providing reproducible readings. Its software generates a comprehensive report that displays mineral status and toxins, including gadolinium, mercury, aluminum, and fluoride. It also shows several vitamins, including D, E, and B. The test also measures your system's oxidative aggressiveness and oxidative protection.
Yoho comment: see the Appendix for my report. Spoiler: it looks terrible.
When patients exhibit high oxidative scores alongside neurological issues, I take prompt action to protect them. Their mineral balances reveal how different physiological systems function. A lack of chromium, vanadium, and certain other nutrients signals pre-diabetes or diabetes, especially when combined with magnesium deficiency.
The OligoScan measures intracellularly, which is far more valuable information than blood or interstitial fluid readings. I want to know which nutrients have reached the cells and can function within them. This reveals which nutrients are stored, which heavy metals have accumulated because the body cannot detoxify them, and which mineral deficiencies are affecting energy levels.
Dr. Yoho took 50,000 international units of vitamin D daily for 2 months, which raised his serum vitamin D level to 120 ng/mL; however, his OligoScan showed levels at only 43% of optimal. This disconnect illustrates absorption problems. Getting nutrients in and getting them absorbed are different processes.
Vitamin D absorption requires magnesium, zinc, and vitamin K as cofactors. Without adequate magnesium, vitamin D cannot function properly, regardless of the amount consumed. He also had low magnesium levels despite taking a gram and a half a day, which explained his vitamin D deficiency. Minerals require mild acidification to enter cells, and many require transporters to facilitate their entry. Without proper transporters, nutrients go unused.
Iodine needs symporters* to enter cells. Functional hypothyroidism depends on how much active thyroid hormone reaches cells, not on how much T4 circulates, waiting for orders. By taking too much of certain nutrients, you can overload transporters and prevent other essential elements from entering adequately.
Many minerals and nutrients share the same cellular transport systems. For example, if you take excessive amounts of one mineral, it can saturate the transporters and block the uptake of others that use the same pathway. This is why mineral balance matters more than just individual doses—zinc, copper, iron, and other elements can compete for absorption and cellular entry.
The point is that thyroid function depends on the entire pathway from hormone production to cellular utilization, not just circulating hormone levels.
*Symporters are a type of membrane protein that transports two or more different molecules or ions across a cell membrane in the same direction. For example, iodine doesn’t just passively diffuse into cells; it requires these specific transport proteins. This process is crucial in thyroid cells, where iodine is accumulated for hormone synthesis. You may have normal or even elevated T4 levels in your blood, yet experience hypothyroid symptoms if:
T4 isn’t efficiently converted into the active T3
The active hormones don’t properly enter cells
Cellular receptors function poorly
Thus, blood tests indicating “normal” T4 levels might miss underlying cellular-level issues.
Tracking the Detoxification Progress
The OligoScan helps track the heavy metal detoxification progress. I see substantial lead, cadmium, mercury, and aluminum in many patients. Without this testing, determining detox effectiveness becomes impossible except through expensive SpectraCell labs that examine intracellular nutrients.
One neighborhood patient suffered three heart attacks. His OligoScan showed no iodine and low selenium levels. The thyroid protects the heart, so correcting this deficiency improved both mood and cardiac prognosis.
Mercury Poisoning: A Personal Journey
My interest in these tools stems from personal experience. I spent five years bedridden with mercury poisoning from my amalgam dental fillings, which was so severe that I could barely turn over in bed. I have never seen a patient as sick as I was. If I could recover, anyone can.
DNA analysis in 2002 revealed I lacked both genes needed to detoxify mercury. Years and years of vaccines and dental fillings had loaded my body with mercury by age forty. I sold my practice and spent every penny trying to get better. All my health problems stemmed from mercury toxicity.
Removing mercury from my system significantly improved my health. I still work on mercury elimination using citrus pectin with NBMI chelation to inactivate any remaining mercury. Any neurological problem requires the same cautious approach. Citrus pectin effectively collects various toxins.
Substantial mercury exposure can cause personality changes. Detox without preparation is dangerous. Elimination pathways must work properly—bowels, lymphatics, kidneys, and liver must drain these poisons effectively without harming the patient.
ZYTO Hand Scanner Technology
While the OligoScan is my primary workhorse, I’ve found ZYTO invaluable for specific situations. It’s an appliance used on the patient’s hand that I have used since 2003, which measures various health aspects through electrical scanning. This device can detect minerals, toxins, and hormone levels. Although it does not replace regular tests, it helps get struggling patients moving quickly. It is a non-invasive technology that uses no dye, provides immediate results, and identifies hidden problems.
For example, one patient with presumptive myasthenia gravis showed an extremely high response - over 1200 instead of the typical 29-36 - to an antimicrobial scan. This suggested her recent root canal was infected. Her husband confirmed that neurological problems, including difficulty swallowing, began within a month of the dental procedure. Her sister noticed the same connection.
Yoho comment: 1) All root canals are infected and should be removed. 2) Competent alternative practitioners like Tamara ask about root canals first, eliminating the need for the scan. Tamara acknowledges this:
When an excellent biological dentist performed a root canal removal, the scanner saved the day. In my clinical experience, mercury amalgams and root canal infections may be related to 75% of chronic disease. Root canals often prove worse than mercury. Every root canal is infected, and ignoring dental issues prevents patient recovery. I always ask about the mouth first because unresolved dental problems can be deadly and are often asymptomatic.
Angio Scan: Vascular Health Assessment
The Angio Scan measures blood vessel health and takes five to eight minutes. This device determines vascular age using five measurements, including the elasticity of larger vessels and central blood pressure. I had an eighty-four-year-old patient under care at UVA cardiology who presented with findings on this scan that sophisticated hospital tests had missed.
The test is non-invasive, quick, painless, and provides immediate results with easy-to-understand printouts. These additional assessments are unavailable in standard medicine. Having a practitioner examine patients using this scan can make a difference because many people with normal cholesterol still have heart attacks.
The Advanced Testing Arsenal I Use
The AO Scan uses bone-conducting headphones and generates twenty-nine pages of data. The information volume requires hours of review. This system provides voice-mapping that generates healing frequencies patients can listen to, creating powerful healing effects.
Heart Rate Variability (HRV) testing provides crucial information about cardiac health. Hearts with variation between beats are healthier than rigid beating patterns. This flexibility allows proper responses to stress—if a bear approaches your property, a rigid heart cannot compensate, because the fear responses are abnormal.
The Brain Gauge has fifty years of documented research behind it and measures six brain areas. It uses a specialized mouse that taps the patient five times, and the patient responds by tapping back five times. Results show which areas have damage and where regeneration might occur. This is valuable for managing post-concussion symptoms and neurological diseases, as well as for monitoring the effectiveness of brain training programs.
Comprehensive Patient Care
For patients living far away, I provide three to six-day residential programs at my home. Patients stay in accommodations I supply and receive three to four hours of work daily. They also get hyperbaric and PEMF sessions and may visit beautiful downtown Lexington between sessions.
I work exclusively by referral and have not displayed a sign in my fifteen years of practice. My role is to give to others until they improve, because I understand their suffering.
The worst place in life is having no hope. Complex cases like Parkinson's require maintaining faith through difficult times. Success depends on devotion to my plan.
Yoho comment: As you might imagine, I am a difficult patient to deal with.
Skepticism and Scientific Evolution
I initially disbelieved every technique I now use, and my average time from hearing about a technique to accepting its value is five years. At conferences featuring internationally famous functional medicine speakers, I would listen to presentations that sounded ridiculous and far-fetched. These practitioners consistently outperform standard physicians.
Conventional MDs have minds that are closed to new ideas. I once told an ophthalmologist exactly how to prevent diabetic patients from losing eyesight. He showed no interest, even though diabetics probably comprised half his practice. Curing them all would reduce the need for return visits; maybe that was his problem.
Diabetic eye protection requires two to three grams nightly of vitamin C to prevent sorbitol buildup in the eyes, plus NAD complexes. These measures alone go a long way in protecting diabetic vision.
Yoho comment: To help my eyes resist macular degeneration, I use topical DMSO on my eyelids daily. This penetrates to the retina. I also take 200 mg of oral melatonin nightly.
The Testing Revolution
These electrical scans use the body's electrical properties to provide clues to poor function. Multiple scanning technologies from different companies show a remarkable correlation in results, which amazes me time and again. Each system offers unique insights, which is why I use them all.
The OligoScan costs patients approximately $150 to $250, with variations depending on location and whether interpretation services are included. I pay roughly $100 per test to the company after purchasing equipment that originally cost around $10,000. The benefit for patients is profound.
The next level of precision medicine is where individual patients and their genes are examined to determine specific needs. I have two vitamin D gene variants and could never raise my levels above 30 until I took two to three times the typical doses.
Yoho comment: I told her this is what I would do if I were her..
Looking Forward
Proper nutrients allow most people to improve. Success requires devotion to the protocol and attention to body signals. Sometimes I think I should stay home all day taking vitamins and exercising, but helping others who need hope motivates me to continue this work.
These tools offer extraordinary insights into patient conditions and reveal problems that standard medicine often overlooks entirely. The correlation between different scanning systems confirms their accuracy and value for restoring health by understanding what the body needs rather than simply addressing symptoms.
For more details
Download Dr. Tamara’s complete overview of how these scans are used:
OligoScan for Heavy Metal Testing and More
by Robert Yoho, MD
OligoScan detects heavy metal excess and mineral deficiencies in seconds by scanning your palm. It uses spectrophotometry, which measures how substances absorb or reflect light at specific wavelengths. The device shines light through tissue at four points on the palm. Different elements absorb light at various wavelengths, creating unique spectral signatures. The device has gained traction in integrative medicine circles.
Spectrophotometry works reliably in laboratory settings for analyzing blood plasma, urine, and other samples. Chemists, food scientists, and medical researchers use it daily. Otto Warburg won the Nobel Prize in 1931 for spectrophotometry experiments proving that cytochrome oxidase enables cellular respiration.
It simply requires holding the handheld device against the palm for a few seconds to measure the intracellular concentrations of 20 minerals and 14 heavy metals. The technology was validated through years of statistical analysis. Results appear within 20 seconds of data upload. The system generates color-coded reports showing deficiencies in green, mild imbalances in yellow, and severe deviations in red.
OligoScan is not accepted by mainstream medicine. The device has not been cleared for marketing in the United States as a medical diagnostic tool. According to the manufacturer, it is a Class IIa medical device in Europe.
The machine costs $3,990 with 30 prepaid tests, or $4,990 with 60 prepaid tests. Individual scans typically run $150-$475, depending on whether interpretation is included.
According to the device’s maker, approximately 1,700 health professionals worldwide use OligoScan. The technology has spread through Australia, New Zealand, Europe, and North America. Practitioners charge $150-$475 per session, and many recommend follow-up scans every 6-12 weeks to monitor progress.
Clinics that offer OligoScan typically combine scan results with dietary counseling, supplement recommendations, IV nutrient therapy, and lifestyle modifications to optimize mineral status and reduce toxic burden.
How It Compares to Standard Testing
Traditional heavy metal testing relies on blood, urine, or hair samples. Each method has strengths and limitations that make direct comparison difficult.
Blood testing captures what circulates at the moment of the draw. Lead has a half-life of 1-2 months in blood, making blood tests useful for recent exposure. But heavy metals don’t remain in the bloodstream. Within days, the body collects them in bones, organs, and soft tissue. Blood testing misses this chronic accumulation. A person with a significant tissue burden may show normal blood levels.
Urine testing shows what the kidneys excrete. For arsenic, cadmium, and mercury, urine is the best measure of body burden. Challenge testing with chelating agents like DMSA or EDTA is sometimes used to provoke excretion, showing how much metal the body has stored. Without provocation, urine samples rarely contain significant levels of metals. Urine tests show the excretory system’s function, not cellular uptake.
Hair analysis records exposure over weeks to months. As hair grows, it incorporates elements from follicular cells and the blood supply. Mercury from fish consumption shows up reliably in hair, and the EPA recognizes hair mercury as a valid biomarker. But poor detoxifiers may not excrete metals into hair, creating false negatives. External contamination from shampoos, dyes, and environmental exposure can skew results.
OligoScan proponents argue that tissue-level measurement surpasses all three methods. Blood, urine, and hair show what the body transports, excretes, or has recently encountered. The device supposedly reveals what cells have absorbed and cannot release—the biologically active fraction that causes harm.
Homeostasis keeps blood mineral levels relatively constant, even when the tissues are depleted. A person with muscle cramps and severe magnesium deficiency might show normal blood magnesium levels because the body pulls magnesium from the bones to maintain circulation. OligoScan detects the tissue deficit that blood tests miss.
The doubts about OligoScan:
Although the clinical experience and understanding of the device's function are robust, research on people is scant.
Does light penetrating 4mm of palm tissue accurately reflect mineral and metal concentrations throughout the body?
Do readings from the hand correlate with levels in the brain, liver, kidneys, and bones?
The answers to #2 and #3 are: Probably not entirely, but the real question is whether such a safe and convenient test is valid and valuable for patients. The answer is: obviously, yes.
What is convincing:
Clinicians who were initially skeptical, like Dr. Santa Ana, note that their experience comparing OligoScan results with the clinical picture and other testing using various modalities shows remarkable consistency. The device could replace vast swaths of outrageously costly blood testing with a simple scan that takes a few seconds. Conventional medicine, however, is suppressing this modality.
OligoScan has been aggressively hammered by Quackwatch, a mainstream source (see reference below). While this article seems rational, the platform is a pack of lies and slanted information. I know; I evaluated what they say about hormone replacement and other issues. This is from an internet search: Quackwatch has published numerous articles reviewing hormone-related quackery, including schemes involving human growth hormone (HGH), “bio-identical” hormone replacement therapy (BHRT), and desiccated thyroid. Their reviews generally claim that these treatments lack scientific evidence for the claims made by marketers and can pose significant health risks.
You know what I think about all this from Hormone Secrets. Being assaulted by Quackwatch is a badge of honor.
Health insurance companies don’t cover OligoScan testing, and it isn’t FDA-approved, both of which might be considered recommendations. As my readers know, because over half of its revenue comes directly from Pharma’s “user fees,” the FDA is totally bought and sold by the drug companies. (See Butchered by “Healthcare.”)
Critics within evidence-based medicine who profit from the current system dismiss the device as pseudoscience. No major medical institutions, academic medical centers, or conventional healthcare systems use it. As with other objections from these sources, this may be evidence that something works. Those of us who have learned how corrupt standard medicine is find that attacks by people like these make a therapy or diagnostic aid worth examining.
The device is primarily accepted in integrative medicine, functional medicine, naturopathy, and alternative health circles. Some use OligoScan alongside conventional testing. Most view it as complementary information, not a replacement for blood work, urine analysis, or hair testing. The immediate results facilitate real-time discussions with patients about supplementation and detoxification strategies.
Dr. Rashid Buttar, a prominent chelation therapy advocate, called OligoScan “probably the most exciting thing I have seen in diagnostics in my professional career.” Buttar chairs the American Board of Clinical Metal Toxicology, a group promoting chelation for nonstandard uses. People like this face headwinds. His medical license was attacked over chelation. In an honest world, this safe, inexpensive practice (along with bioidentical hormones) would replace much of the $16 billion wasted on coronary artery bypass grafting.
Sources for my OligoScan article
As you read above, the following are mostly propaganda from mainstream medicine, but I have included them so you can make up your own mind.
Quackwatch - “A Skeptical Look at the OligoScan”
Psiram Encyclopedia - “Oligoscan” entry documenting device origins and regulatory issues
OligoScan Official Website - Technology description and claims
ResearchGate Discussion - “Can anyone comment on the likely validity of the Oligoscan device” (January 2018)
Physioquanta Company Information - LinkedIn and company website
MosaicDX - “Metals Testing” comparing various heavy metal test methodologies
StatPearls/NCBI - “Heavy Metals” medical review of testing methods
Cleveland Clinic - “Heavy Metal Test” patient information
Parting shot: A testimonial letter for Dr. Tamara
Note: This patient had a major health problem that occurred immediately after her root canal placement.
Dear Dr Yoho:
I am writing to you from Australia to express my gratitude for your podcast and Substack, as well as your generosity in helping those of us who are trying to navigate our health conditions independently.
I was bowled over when I heard your interview with Dr Tamara Santa Ana [HERE]. I took up her kind invitation of a free consult, which honestly sounded way too good to be true, but she has since given me much of her time and has committed to helping me navigate my way out of the chronic health hell that I have been in for years.
What a miracle you have facilitated to connect me all the way from Australia to Virginia in the U.S for help.
It is nice to allow myself to feel some hope that finally things can get better.
With so much thanks for all that you are doing and all that you have facilitated.
Kindest Regards,
June
About Dr. Tamara's practice
Dr. Tamara Santa Ana, DC, has 40 years of clinical experience specializing in complex chronic conditions, including Parkinson’s disease, neurological disorders, autoimmune diseases, and heavy metal toxicity. She has been trained by some of the most prominent functional physicians. She operates Vital Energy Nutrition Center in Lexington, Virginia, where she integrates advanced diagnostic technologies (OligoScan, BiomeFX, HRV) with comprehensive protocols.
Dr. Tamara shares clinical pearls you won’t find anywhere else - patterns she’s observed in thousands of patients, protocols that work, and the functional medicine approaches that reverse “irreversible” disease.
You may call her office at (540) 462-7750 or email her at drtsanta@protonmail.com to schedule a virtual or in-person appointment. She offers a complimentary 30-minute initial consultation HERE for new patients, PEMF machine introduction, or initial contact for supplements.
Many patients graduate to Dr. Tamara’s multi-day live-in program at her Belle Haven 7500-square-foot facility in the beautiful Virginia countryside. They are comprehensively tested with the marvelous machines, given the best supplements for their condition, and introduced to the modalities they will use. These include twice-daily BEMER sessions and time in the hyperbaric chamber.
Dr. T can also help you with your questions about chlorine dioxide. She knows—she improved her diabetes dramatically using it. HERE are dramatic images of how chlorine dioxide heals red blood cells.
I will never use paywalls, but if you want to help me, I offer competitively priced affiliate products HERE that I have personally tested and used. There is a new entry for grass-fed beef.
Appendix: Yoho lab tests, interpretations, and conclusions
Blood levels for heavy metals are useless except for acute poisoning:
Contrast the above with my grossly abnormal Oligoscan from a week ago:
Dr. Tamara’s interpretation of my OligoScan:
She told me straight away, "This is a crazy poor scan.” (Yikes!)
Overview
Dr. Yoho’s scan reveals several significant findings that explain both his health optimization strategies and some of the challenges he’s managing. This interpretation demonstrates how we use OligoScan data to create personalized treatment protocols.
Mineral Status Analysis
Critical Deficiencies:
· Magnesium: Notably low, which is the master mineral affecting over 300 enzymatic processes. This deficiency impacts:
o Vitamin D absorption and activation (explaining why supplementation alone may not optimize levels)
o Cardiovascular function and blood pressure regulation
o Nervous system function and stress response
o Mitochondrial ATP production and energy metabolism
· Zinc: Below optimal range. Zinc deficiency correlates with:
o Impaired immune function
o Reduced wound healing capacity
o Compromised antioxidant status (zinc is essential for SOD enzyme function)
o Potential thyroid hormone conversion issues (zinc required for T4→T3 conversion)
· Selenium: Suboptimal levels affect:
o Thyroid hormone activation (selenium-dependent deiodinase enzymes)
o Glutathione peroxidase function (primary antioxidant enzyme)
o Heavy metal detoxification capacity
o Cardiovascular protection
Mineral Ratios of Concern:
· Ca/Mg ratio: Elevated calcium relative to magnesium suggests:
o Increased vascular calcification risk
o Potential muscle tension and cramping
o Impaired cellular energy production
· Zn/Cu ratio: Needs monitoring for proper immune balance and oxidative stress management
Yoho note: I take all of these except copper.
Toxic Element Assessment
Heavy Metal Burden: Looking at the toxic elements panel, several metals show elevation:
· Mercury: Present at concerning levels, likely from:
o Historical dental amalgam exposure
o Dietary sources (large fish consumption)
o Environmental accumulation
Yoho comment: Reviewing this drives home to me that my causal problem is mercury, or at least metals. Although modern health issues are often polyfactorial, the explanation with the fewest assumptions is the most likely to be correct (Occam’s Razor).
I have chronic mercury toxicity due to my 17 mercury amalgams that were replaced with ceramics, a few “vaccines,” and a foolish smoking history. My Parkinson’s, scoliosis, and quirky personality (“mad as a hatter”) are characteristic. I take Boyd Haley’s NBMI (OSR) daily, but the mercury is still showing up on the scan. It may be inactive because the chelator has covalently bound it.
I had my first Oligoscan 18 months ago, and I was hoping to see improvement. But I went my own way instead of listening to Dr. T, so it was about the same.
Worse news
I just had a second DNA analysis of my gut microbiome from a stool specimen:
I do not fully understand this, but the report showed that my 3 trillion “good” gut bacteria had suffered further combat losses, with millions more killed and several more species now extinct. Dr. T recommends that I focus on this because, if those bacteria are sick or unhappy, they sit around the army hospital tent and refuse to do their job of aiding the absorption of vital nutrients.
My three month attempt at the carnivore diet may have originally caused or worsened this, for those gut creatures need vegetable fiber to flourish. Dr. Tamara warned me about this at the time, but I DFL to her.
The overview is that, with these two tests, I learned that despite consuming handfuls of supplements, my vitamins and minerals remain deficient due to the poor absorption caused by my altered microbiome. This is a watershed. All that kefir I had been drinking failed to replenish my microbiome and may have caused further problems due to its acidity. This theory is consistent with my progressively increasing tremor and clumsiness.
Spoiler / Easter egg for readers: When purchased retail, these tests are expensive. Dr. Tamara has arranged for you to get the $800 microbiome stool DNA test for between $275 and $400. Stay tuned for more in a few weeks, and she can send you the kit. Price-compare the Oligoscan in your local market by searching on line for it. And if you see her in person, this may be included in your visit fee.
Dr. T’s analysis
Your magnesium, vitamin D, zinc, and boron aren’t low because you need more supplements - they’re low because your devastated microbiome can’t aid in their absorption into your body. Your BiomeFX data tells the story: butyrate production collapsed 47% (starving the colonocytes that run your mineral transporters), inflammation exploded 745% (cytokines actively blocking absorption), and four beneficial species went extinct (losing the bacterial helpers that process minerals). When colonocytes are malnourished and inflamed, the transport channels for magnesium (TRPM6/7), zinc (ZIP4), and other minerals don’t function. Add leaky guts from failed tight junctions, and minerals leak back out before they can be utilized. You’re drinking 16 oz of mineral-rich kefir daily, taking oral supplements - and it’s all passing straight through unabsorbed.
The vicious cycle: DMSO/ClO2 + excessive acidic kefir kills beneficial bacteria → no butyrate → colonocytes starve → transporters fail → inflammation blocks what’s left → gut barrier collapses → minerals escape → deficiencies worsen despite supplementation. It’s like pouring water into a bucket with holes in it. More oral minerals won’t fix this - you need to repair the bucket first.
Immediate bypass strategy while fixing your gut: Transdermal magnesium oil (10-20 sprays daily) and Epsom salt baths bypass the gut entirely. Vitamin D3 50,000 IU IM shots weekly for 8-12 weeks circumvent malabsorption. Zinc carnosine 75mg twice daily protects the gut lining while delivering zinc. B12 shots weekly are critical since your gut production crashed 53%. These bypass routes work NOW while microbiome restoration takes 3-6 months.
Bottom line: Stop the excess kefir and antimicrobials that created this disaster, restore Bifidobacterium and butyrate production, let inflammation settle, and let the gut barrier heal - THEN oral supplementation will work. Your mineral deficiencies are proof that your current protocol is destroying nutrient absorption. Fix the microbiome first, minerals second.
What is my plan?
Discontinue or drastically cut my kefir consumption.
Start some pre- and probiotics that Dr. T recommends to bring replacement soldiers into my gut. This has become sophisticated and can be targeted to what I need.
Experiment with topical zinc, C, and thiamine, and magnesium mixed with DMSO to bypass gut malabsorption. My early results are encouraging.
Epsom salt magnesium baths (order HERE).
Use Boyd Haley’s NBMI topically in my mouth instead of rinsing it down with DMSO.
The buzz about oral chlorine dioxide is that it only kills “bad” bacteria, but studies of this would require serial stool DNA tests on many people, and I doubt if this has ever been done. So I will take no more oral chlorine dioxide unless I pick up some horrible problem such as pancreatic cancer. I will do CD baths twice a week to keep this in the mix. The technique is to use 10 cc of each component, activate it by mixing, put it in a hot bath, and relax for 20 minutes. This produces excellent absorption without running it through my vulnerable gut.
To get still more D, I will focus on getting sun during our trip to the tropics over Christmas. This works better for the youth than seniors, however.
Last, there is the nuclear option:
If you do not recall my post, “I went to a conference to learn how to transplant stool,” this is a do-it-yourself stool transplant device disguised as an (as yet clean!) blender. I am using a donor who is having her stool DNA tested to be sure her good bacteria are not missing, like mine. The gastroenterologists at the meeting said stool transfer was a safe strategy that had a 90 plus percentage success rate.
Ideas from readers are welcome, as are scatological jokes.
Dr. T’s concluding comments
Why Mineral Deficiencies Signal Microbiome Devastation
Dr. Yoho’s low levels of magnesium, zinc, vitamin D, and boron aren’t due to inadequate supplementation. They’re direct evidence of catastrophic gut dysfunction revealed by his BiomeFX results: butyrate production collapsed by 47%, four beneficial species went extinct, and inflammatory markers increased by 745%. Butyrate is the primary fuel for colonocytes, the intestinal cells that power nutrient transporters. Without adequate butyrate, these cells literally starve and cannot run the TRPM6/7 channels for magnesium or ZIP4 transporters for zinc. Meanwhile, inflammatory cytokines like IL-6 and TNF-alpha—now produced at five times normal levels—actively block these same transporters. His gut isn’t just impaired; it’s biochemically incapable of absorbing minerals regardless of supplementation dose.
The extinction of specific bacterial species compounds this absorption crisis. Clostridium scindens and Parabacteroides goldsteinii, both critical for bile acid metabolism, are gone—explaining why fat-soluble vitamin D cannot be absorbed despite supplementation. Beneficial bacteria that produce phytase enzymes to enhance zinc bioavailability have disappeared. The compromised gut barrier creates “leaky gut,” in which minerals that are briefly absorbed leak back into the intestinal lumen before reaching circulation. This isn’t theoretical; it’s a vicious cycle in which his current protocol (16 oz daily kefir, DMSO, chlorine dioxide) prevents beneficial bacteria from establishing, perpetuating malabsorption that worsens mineral deficiencies, which further impairs immune function and intensifies inflammation.
The solution isn’t more oral supplementation—it’s fixing the delivery system. While restoring the microbiome over 3-6 months (stopping antimicrobials, reducing kefir, high-dose Bifidobacterium with GOS, butyrate supplementation), bypass routes become essential: transdermal magnesium oil and Epsom salt baths bypass gut absorption entirely; weekly vitamin D3 50,000 IU injections and B12 methylcobalamin shots deliver nutrients directly to bloodstream; zinc carnosine (buy HERE) protects gut lining while providing zinc in the most absorbable oral form. These bypass methods work immediately while gut healing progresses, with oral absorption gradually improving as butyrate production increases, inflammation declines, and the gut barrier repairs.
Dr. Yoho’s mineral deficiencies are the canary in the coal mine—objective proof that his current protocol has created a non-functional gut. This is cause and effect documented by his laboratory data. No amount of oral magnesium, zinc, or vitamin D will correct these deficiencies until the microbiome is restored. As the saying goes, you can’t fill a bucket with holes in it. First, fix the bucket—restore the microbiome, then the minerals can finally be absorbed and utilized. The mineral restoration protocol IS the microbiome restoration protocol.
I have had many successful outcomes for Parkinson’s and other entities using prebiotics and probiotics to bring reinforcements to tired and wounded “good” gut bacteria.
Deceptive photos, part 2
Disclaimer: As you know, I resigned my medical license years ago and am not giving medical advice, so don’t blame me for anything you find here. As always, think of it as my sharing what I am doing or would do for myself.
