Dr. Paul C. Kratka

Specialties

Genetically congruent lifestyle strategies.

Background

Born and raised where people wore bathing suits nine months out of the year and being health and 'body-conscious' was the de facto religion (Manhattan Beach, a Southern California beach town), caused Dr. Paul's interest in health to develop almost subconsciously. Secondly, and significant for his health journey was, at age 18, he was introduced to Adelle Davis, America's health pioneer at the time, who was one of the earliest advocates of whole unprocessed foods, dietary supplements, and the avoidance of food additives; her landmark book on health and nutrition, "Let's Eat Right to Keep Fit" was 'the health food bible' for many of his generation.

While in college pursuing a degree in marine biology, he sought out the care of a chiropractor. This doctor, upon learning that Paul was taking a heavy science load of biology, chemistry, physics and physiology, and that he also had an interest in health in general and preventive health in particular, suggested that he consider changing his academic path to one of pursuing a Doctorate of Chiropractic degree. With that suggestion, the seed was planted; and after two more years of undergraduate work and four years of chiropractic school, Dr. Kratka graduated third highest in his class with Magna cum Laude honors from Life Chiropractic College West.

After graduation from chiropractic school in 1988, he went into solo practice in Carlsbad, California. During his 20+ years in practice, Dr. Kratka has dedicated himself to specializing in the Gonstead technique, delivering over 950,000 adjustments while providing care to thousands of patients. Teaching patients about how their bodies functioned and healed was central to the care in his practice (he would actually turn down a patient's case if they weren't willing to commit to learning about how to improve their health through lifestyle choices as part of their care.) It was during these years that Dr. Kratka kept educating himself as well as personally living the foundational principles of health and nutrition. Harking back to his youth and the early lessons learned from Adelle Davis, he realized that the world in general and his patients in particular, were not only incredibly unaware of how their diet and lifestyles contribute to their current and future health, they were literally dying from this lack of awareness. So, for his entire career in active practice, Dr. Kratka would give weekly Lifestyle Health Workshops in an effort to teach and coach his patients on how to get well and stay well.

In 2007, as his career in 'active practice' was winding down, yet he himself a youthful and fit 51 year old (who recently celebrated his 40th year of surfing), Dr. Kratka saw that his mission to teach the world about health and the connection between diet, lifestyle behaviors, disease and longevity was far from completed. He also saw that although people knew they needed to supplement their imperfect diets and stressful lives with "vitamins", they were unaware that all supplements should be made from food. Additionally, the average person was also ignorant to the dangers of taking over-the-counter bulk pharmaceutical chemical vitamins like Centrum™ or One-A-Day™. These needs for a ‘whole food supplement’ lead Dr. Kratka to create Dr. K's Perfect Greens for Health, a 100% whole food supplement. Not only does it contain dozens of nutrient-dense whole foods such as fruits, vegetables, and greens such as dolse, chlorella and spirulina, but also immune-enhancing herbs and other natural nutrients, including mint and Stevia to make it nutritious and delicious.

On a personal level, Dr. Kratka pursues a level of fitness that would be more fitting a manhalf his age, and he has the physique to match. He swims, practices yoga, rides a mountain bike, and trains intensively for core strength and conditioning - all in the same week, every week. He strives to eat a genetically congruent diet consisting of high consumption of vegetables, some fruit; nuts and seeds, organic pasture-fed lean meats and cold-water fish, and raw dairy intake, and water as his predominant beverage. He is careful to avoid gluten and other grains, and he never consumes artificial sweeteners, hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, and deep fried foods.

As a principal of Bonfire Health, Dr. Kratka is excited and proud to be the vanguard for promoting innately congruent and scientifically supported lifestyle choices that lead to the greatest health outcomes and change the dominant undesirable lifestyle choices that prevent people from experiencing their God-given health and life potential.

Dr. Kratka and his colleagues at Bonfire Health, Dr. Stephen Franson of Boston and Dr. Bruce Wong of Honolulu have identified the Primary Wellness Objectives for each category of lifestyle choice - eating, moving and thinking - based on current evidence-based research. The successful science-supported premise that bonfirehealth.com is built upon is that if the primary wellness objectives are met, the greatest potential for a successful outcome is produced; in other words, the highest priority actions in our lifestyles produce the greatest health results.

'My Story' - A Personal Note from Dr. K
"I'd been surfing for nearly forty years when I caught the biggest wave of my life. I thought I was ready: I had prepared for this opportunity, I had prayed for this opportunity, I was in peak physical condition, and I thought I had studied the situation to perfection. The wave I caught, at age 50 was, I met, fell in love with, and married a woman with 4 children. After surfing literally all over the world, I have never been tossed around more than with what I have had to come to terms with in the past few years in my marriage and home life.

"I can't even begin to tell you the life lessons I've learned and the coping mechanisms that I have had to develop - such as learning how to love unconditionally (very difficult with me being the overcritical 'wicked stepdad' with often unrealistic expectations for small people). All four children were typically and firmly in the stronghold of a disease-food lifestyle of sugar, processed foods, fried food, and more sugar. When we first met, Chanya, my now wife, bless her amazing heart, was a heroic single mom with kids so upside down nutritionally that they would go into convulsions if they heard the jingle of the ice cream truck; actually they still do - I've honestly considered bribing the ice cream man to not drive down our street. (At least now they only buy fart bombs from the ice cream man. Fart bombs from the ice cream man? The world is a different place, for sure.)

"What has enabled me to successfully ride this monster wave, to pop up after the inevitable wipe outs, what has enabled my wife and I to partner in creating an ecosystem within our home that nourishes our family physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually is number one, our faith in God through Jesus Christ; and two, the understanding of the irrefutable laws of nature regarding health - how we have been genetically designed to eat, move and think in ways that are congruent with the laws of nature; how we as humans have been programmed to be healthy if we obey those laws. These natural laws of eating, moving and thinking, which are now being 'discovered' by science - the research is incontrovertible on this - are irrefutable."

Dr. Kratka currently lives in Gloucester, Massachusetts with his wife Chanya and these small people called children who are always hungry, and Cooper, their rescue dog from Mexico.

Memberships

Surfers Medical Association - do any other associations matter?