Whacky Greenwich Doctor Carlton Clocker's
Sushi Tale Begins To Stink
Fish Pisioned Priven Claims A Greenwich Doctor In His "Entourage"
HBO's Entourage Had Better Find A New Actor To Star In March.
High mercury levels tied to sushi
By Christina Hennessy
Staff Writer
Posted: 01/03/2009 09:05:40 AM EST
It is not often an actor's diet stirs up the kind of controversy that Jeremy Piven's has. But his often twice-daily intake of sushi has been cited as one of the likely factors that contributed to the high levels of mercury found in his system - nearly six times the tolerable amount - prompting the symptoms, among them extreme fatigue, that led the 43-year-old to bow out of the Broadway revival of David Mamet's "Speed-the-Plow," according to his physician, Dr. Carlon Colker.
Colker, who is on the staff at Greenwich Hospital and chief executive officer and medical director of Peak Wellness in Greenwich, says he also is looking into Piven's use of Chinese herbs.
The internist says the good that has come out of his patient's case is the renewed attention to the potential dangers of eating fish with high mercury levels. A high mercury toxicity in the body can result in extreme fatigue, muscle weakness, memory loss and organ damage, among other health issues. In unborn babies and young children, it can cause impaired neurological development and damage the central nervous system.
"I don't want to scare people," Colker says. "But you do have to be careful."
But at least one group questions the diagnosis and thinks the story will scare people needlessly.
The story will "whip up another round of public fear," says David Martosko, the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Consumer Freedom's director of research. "The health benefit you get from eating fish blows the hypothetical risks out of the water."
....The Piven story seemingly hasn't spurred an increase in questions to the Stamford Health Department, according to Anne Fountain, the emergency response coordinator.
Though, from time to time, the agency fields some questions.
Fountain says advisories and state guides on fish consumption can be accessed via the city's Web site, http://www.ci.stamford.ct.us/.
COMMENT:
Clueless Greenwich Time Reporter Christina Hennessy Is Obviously Unaware Of Greenwich Doctor Carlton Clocker's Recent Questionable Medical Data Problems And Lawsuits Involving Deadly The Dietary Supplement Ephedra.
PLEASE SEE:
People.com
By Alexis Chiu
Jeremy Piven suffered "shocking levels" of mercury in his system from eating too much sushi and Chinese herbs, forcing him to leave the Broadway play Speed-the-Plow, his doctor tells PEOPLE. "I pulled Jeremy from the show," says Dr. Carlon Colker. "I'm an unpopular character right now."Responding to skepticism over the decision to leave the play – playwright David Mamet joked that Piven was leaving show business to "pursue a career as a thermometer" – the doctor says the decision was purely medical, and one that Piven, 43, initially resisted. "
"He's disappointed that I had to pull the plug," says Colker. "But I think he's hurt more by the comments that he's not trying or that he walked away. He's been working straight for 30 years. He doesn't walk away; I tore him away from it."
Colker, an internist and attending physician at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City and Greenwich Hospital in Connecticut, says Piven initially came to him after the show's run began in late October, complaining of severe fatigue. "
This was very, very unusual for him," says Colker, who is also CEO and medical director of Peak Wellness in Greenwich, Conn., with another facility in Beverly Hills. "He's known as the iron horse – he's been working nonstop for 30 years, and he works 17-hour days."
After a battery of tests failed to reveal what was ailing the three-time Emmy winner, Colker checked his "heavy metals" and was "absolutely stunned" to find mercury at a level "almost six times the upper limit of normal and allowable," says the doctor. "It's the highest level I've ever seen."
Colker attributes the high mercury count to Piven's habit of eating sushi, often twice a day, compounded by certain Chinese herbs he was taking "for general health."
Piven was ordered to put a moratorium on the fish and the herbs, and his doctor sent a letter on Dec. 10 revealing the health problem to the Speed-the-Plow production staff.
While Piven decided to continue with the show, his symptoms did not abate – and after a spell of dizziness led to a three-day hospitalization, Colker says he decided to put the curtain down on Piven's Broadway run. The actor will be replaced by Norbert Leo Butz and William H. Macy.
"It is very serious. Mercury can kill – it can absolutely cause cardiac arrest, kidney failure, even psychiatric problems," says Colker, who was first interviewed by Entertainment Tonight. "He is going to be OK. This is completely reversible," adds Colker, who believes Piven will be "rockin' and rollin' and ready to be his old self for Entourage" by March. He just needs to really lay low and rest."
RELATED ARTICLE:
COMMENT:
This "Sick Sushi" Story Is From A Wacky Greenwich Doctor Who Is Part Of Priven's Entourage.
Just Wait Till The Party Boy Actor's Producers Discover The Truth About This Controversial Greenwich Doctor.
Soon Doctor Carlton Clocker Sushi Excuse Is Going To Start To Stink Up All Of Those Cable Entertainment Shows.
"Speed The Plow" Investors Will Become Skeptical When They Discover That Greenwich Doctor Carlton Clocker Was The Target Of Lawsuits, In My Hoe State Of Missouri. The Lawsuits Were Over Tests Preformed By The Good Doctor, That Were Intended To Downplay The Dietary Supplement Ephedra.
Ephedra has been used as an herbal remedy in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of asthma and hay fever, as well as for the common cold.
Ephedra has been used as an herbal remedy in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of asthma and hay fever, as well as for the common cold.
A review of ephedra-related adverse reactions, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2000, found a number of cases of sudden cardiac death or severe disability resulting from ephedra use, many of which occurred in young adults using ephedra in the labeled dosages
Steve Bechler, a pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles, died of complications from heatstroke following a spring training workout on February 17, 2003. The medical examiner found that ephedra toxicity played a "significant role" in Bechler's sudden death
Escalating concerns regarding the safety of ephedra supplements led the FDA to ban the sale of ephedra-containing supplements in the United States in 2004. This ban was challenged by supplement manufacturers and initially overturned, but ultimately upheld. However, the FDA ban only applies to ephedra-based dietary supplements that contain ephedrine alkaloids.
Clocker Was Also Taken To Court In West Virginia And Illinois.
If Someone Was Truly Suffering From A Massive Dose If Mercury Poisoning Wouldn't They Be In Greenwich Hospital Instead Of Colker's "Wellness Center" Taking Herbal Remedies.
Earlier There Were Reports That Priven Had Taken The Unusual Step Of Trying To Find A Replacement To Get Him Out Of His Contractual obligations To "Speed The Plow" Producers And Investors. When That Failed He Apparently Went And Found The "Wacky" Doctor Of Greenwich.
PLEASE ALSO SEE:
2 Jan 2009
The two-faced and famous have something new to worry about.
Jeremy Piven isn’t going to let a little “mercury poisoning” (*cough*) stop him from banging models to the extent that he can. He is well known for his sleazy methods of picking up women — such as sending out mass text messages to girls he meets at parties and offering a prize (him for the night) to the first to respond.
But he recently started dating 23-year-old model Ashley Chontos, probably for her unfettered naivete when it comes to death by sushi.
Gatecrasher has the deets:
While Chontos may have been the playboy’s second choice (or third … or fourth … or fifth), she’s sticking by his side during the traumatic bout of mercury poisoning that forced him to bow out of Broadway’s “Speed-the-Plow.”
“Ashley was with Jeremy the night he first called in sick to the show,” one of her pals tells us. “He had a car pick her up at Broadway and 90th St. to take her to his apartment, where they spent the night before he left for the West Coast.”
As Piven is currently in Bangkok, undergoing treatments for his condition — and Chontos is in Miami, soaking up some sun — the two are engaging in a long-distance relationship via text messages. “Jeremy’s doctor recommended he go to Bangkok,” the insider says. “And Ashley decided to get a tan so she looks great for her ‘red carpet debut.’ She wants to get real dolled up, and has been discussing her outfit and jewelry practically every chance she gets.”
First of all, I wouldn’t trust Piven in Thailand as far as I could throw him. When he gets back I hope she insists he check himself into a good old Western medicine free clinic to clear up the inevitable rash. But second, if she’s preparing for a “red carpet debut,” that implies a full recovery is imminent, don’t you think?
What a medical miracle!
MORE ON THE FISH PISIONED PRIVEN:
December 31, 2008
While Jeremy Piven may have "eaten too much sushi" and lost his job on Broadway's Speed-the-Plow, all that "mercury" certainly didn't get in the way of his lady charming. If you can call it that. Which we certainly wouldn't.
Turns out Piven attended Britney Spears' birthday party at NYC club Mansion earlier this month to get a piece. Someone who attended the party called Piven a "numbers boy" who basically collected the digits of anything female and breathing (well, that first one may be negotiable). He then sent out a delightful mass text saying: "Come to my room - whoever responds first gets me for the night."
What an offer. I bet the fire escapes were alive with the sound of click clacking 21-year-olds shrieking there way to the "guy from Entourage's room."
Model-turned-bottle-waitress (heh) Ashley Chontos must've been particularly desperate quick because she was the lucky, lucky winner. Although Ashley wasn't his first pick (FYI, the "insistent" Jeremy "freaked out" his first pick. Shocking.) the fame-hungry bottle waitress may have scored herself a red carpet appearance with Jeremy at next month's Golden Globes.
Wow. Dreams really do come true.
31 Dec 2008
Jeremy Piven Goes To The Third World for Mercury-Poisoning Treatment, ... - Really? Thailand? Not the Mayo Clinic, not Johns Hopkins, not even Cedars Sinai. ...
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