Researchers have found that taking more vitamin E substantially reduces lung cancer. A new study shows that people consuming the highest amounts of vitamin E had the greatest benefit; compared to those taking the least vitamin E, they showed a 61 percent reduction in lung cancer risk.
Lung cancer is the most prevalent form of cancer on earth; over 1.3 million people are diagnosed with it each year. Even with medical treatment, survival rates are poor.
Anything that can reduce lung cancer is important news -- but the mainstream media have virtually ignored vitamin E's role as a cancer fighter. In fact, a web search for "increased vitamin E reduces lung cancer" preferentially brings up media coverage alleging that vitamin E is harmful, and may even increase cancer risk!
Drug companies don't have any drug that can reduce lung cancer risk by 61 percent. If they did, you would have heard all about it -- it would be all over the news. Positive drug studies get the headlines. Positive vitamin studies rarely do.
Sources:
Orthomolecular.org October 29, 2008
5 November 2008
New Diabetes Rate Up 90 Percent in Last Decade
The rate of new cases of diabetes has increased by about 90 percent in the United States over the past decade. The incidence of the disease has been fueled by growing obesity and increasingly sedentary lifestyles.
Diabetes experts said the findings show there is no end in sight to the diabetes epidemic.
From 1995 to 1997, newly diagnosed cases of diabetes were at 4.8 per 1,000 annually. Between 2005 and 2007, that number rose to 9.1 per 1,000 people.
The most common form of diabetes, type 2 diabetes, is closely linked to obesity and has become increasingly common as more people become obese. An estimated 90 percent to 95 percent of the new cases are type 2 diabetes.
Sources:
Reuters October 30, 2008
Diabetes experts said the findings show there is no end in sight to the diabetes epidemic.
From 1995 to 1997, newly diagnosed cases of diabetes were at 4.8 per 1,000 annually. Between 2005 and 2007, that number rose to 9.1 per 1,000 people.
The most common form of diabetes, type 2 diabetes, is closely linked to obesity and has become increasingly common as more people become obese. An estimated 90 percent to 95 percent of the new cases are type 2 diabetes.
Sources:
Reuters October 30, 2008
Winning the War on Cancer
In the book Winning the War on Cancer, author Dr. Mark Sircus discusses sodium bicarbonate, which helps to save countless lives every day. Sodium bicarbonate is the time honored method to “speed up” the return of the body’s bicarbonate levels to normal.
It is also the least expensive, safest, and perhaps most effective cancer medicine there is.
Sodium bicarbonate delivers a natural form of chemotherapy in a way that effectively kills cancer cells -- without the side effects and costs of standard chemotherapy treatments. The only problem with the treatment, according to Sircus, is that it’s too cheap. Since no one is going to make money from it, no one will promote it.
Those that do will be persecuted for it. The trouble with doing new studies on bicarbonate is that they are expensive and no drug company is going to fund a study when they can't profit from the treatment.
You can also check out this video interview with Dr. Tullio Simoncini, an oncologist from Rome who pointed to using bicarbonate as a main line cancer treatment and has been persecuted for it. Simoncini has stood firm and continues to travel the world teaching doctors about the anti-cancer properties of sodium bicarbonate.
Sources:
WinningCancer.com
It is also the least expensive, safest, and perhaps most effective cancer medicine there is.
Sodium bicarbonate delivers a natural form of chemotherapy in a way that effectively kills cancer cells -- without the side effects and costs of standard chemotherapy treatments. The only problem with the treatment, according to Sircus, is that it’s too cheap. Since no one is going to make money from it, no one will promote it.
Those that do will be persecuted for it. The trouble with doing new studies on bicarbonate is that they are expensive and no drug company is going to fund a study when they can't profit from the treatment.
You can also check out this video interview with Dr. Tullio Simoncini, an oncologist from Rome who pointed to using bicarbonate as a main line cancer treatment and has been persecuted for it. Simoncini has stood firm and continues to travel the world teaching doctors about the anti-cancer properties of sodium bicarbonate.
Sources:
WinningCancer.com
Vigorous Exercise Cuts Breast Cancer Risk
Vigorous activity can reduce the risk of breast cancer by about 30 percent, according to an 11-year study of more than 32,000 postmenopausal women.
Vigorous activity was defined as heavy housework -- such as scrubbing floors, washing windows, and chopping wood -- and strenuous sports or exercise.
However, while the exercise reduced breast cancer risk in normal-weight women, it had no effect in women who were overweight or obese. Non-vigorous activity, such as light housework and light sports or exercise also offered no protection against breast cancer.
Sources:
U.S. News & World Report October 31, 2008
Vigorous activity was defined as heavy housework -- such as scrubbing floors, washing windows, and chopping wood -- and strenuous sports or exercise.
However, while the exercise reduced breast cancer risk in normal-weight women, it had no effect in women who were overweight or obese. Non-vigorous activity, such as light housework and light sports or exercise also offered no protection against breast cancer.
Sources:
U.S. News & World Report October 31, 2008
Melamine: It's What's for Dinner
First baby milk formula, then dairy-based products from yogurt to chocolate, and now chicken eggs have been contaminated with melamine. An admission that the industrial chemical is regularly added to animal feed in China has fueled fears that the problem could be more widespread, affecting fish, meat and possibly many other foods.
Melamine is rich in nitrogen, which means that it gives low-quality food and feed artificially high protein readings. But extremely high levels of melamine can cause kidney stones, and in some cases can bring on life-threatening kidney failure.
However, there have been no tests on melamine's precise effects in humans. Until the contaminated baby formula became public in a few months ago, there was never any reason to. The situation has left consumers worldwide, particularly parents, worried about food products from China, and even those made elsewhere with ingredients imported from Chinese companies.
Sources:
ABC News October 31, 2008
Melamine is rich in nitrogen, which means that it gives low-quality food and feed artificially high protein readings. But extremely high levels of melamine can cause kidney stones, and in some cases can bring on life-threatening kidney failure.
However, there have been no tests on melamine's precise effects in humans. Until the contaminated baby formula became public in a few months ago, there was never any reason to. The situation has left consumers worldwide, particularly parents, worried about food products from China, and even those made elsewhere with ingredients imported from Chinese companies.
Sources:
ABC News October 31, 2008
Autism linked with rainfall in study
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Children who live in the U.S. Northwest's wettest counties are more likely to have autism, but it is unclear why, U.S. researchers reported on Tuesday.
Michael Waldman of Cornell University and colleagues were searching for an environmental link with autism, a condition characterized by learning and social disabilities.
They got autism rates from state and county agencies for children born in California, Oregon and Washington between 1987 and 1999 and plotted them against daily precipitation reports.
"Autism prevalence rates for school-aged children in California, Oregon and Washington in 2005 were positively related to the amount of precipitation these counties received from 1987 through 2001," they wrote in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Dr. Michael Fitzpatrick, a London physician who wrote "Defeating Autism: A Damaging Delusion", expressed doubt, noting that autism diagnoses are on the rise in all climates.
No one know what causes autism, whose symptoms range from severe social avoidance to repetitive behaviors and sometimes profound mental retardation.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about one in every 150 children has autism or a related disorder such as Asperger's Syndrome. Rates in many countries have been rising, although that may be partly due to increased reporting and diagnosis of the condition.
Doctors agree there is a genetic component to autism. They also theorize that something in the environment and possibly conditions in the womb can trigger the condition.
The researchers said their study supports this idea.
Perhaps infants and toddlers are kept are kept indoors in front of the TV more in rainy climates, and that somehow causes brain changes, they said. Or perhaps they breathe in more harmful chemicals while indoors.
Vitamin D deficiency caused by insufficient time in the sun might also be a trigger, they said.
"Finally, there is also the possibility that precipitation itself is more directly involved," they wrote. Perhaps a chemical or chemicals in the upper atmosphere are transported to the surface through rain or snow.
"In recent years autism has been blamed on everything from discarded iPod batteries to mercury from Chinese power stations, from antenatal ultrasound scans to post-natal cord clamping, from diet to vaccines," Fitzpatrick said in a statement.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has launched a long-term study to find the causes of autism and other childhood conditions.
Michael Waldman of Cornell University and colleagues were searching for an environmental link with autism, a condition characterized by learning and social disabilities.
They got autism rates from state and county agencies for children born in California, Oregon and Washington between 1987 and 1999 and plotted them against daily precipitation reports.
"Autism prevalence rates for school-aged children in California, Oregon and Washington in 2005 were positively related to the amount of precipitation these counties received from 1987 through 2001," they wrote in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Dr. Michael Fitzpatrick, a London physician who wrote "Defeating Autism: A Damaging Delusion", expressed doubt, noting that autism diagnoses are on the rise in all climates.
No one know what causes autism, whose symptoms range from severe social avoidance to repetitive behaviors and sometimes profound mental retardation.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about one in every 150 children has autism or a related disorder such as Asperger's Syndrome. Rates in many countries have been rising, although that may be partly due to increased reporting and diagnosis of the condition.
Doctors agree there is a genetic component to autism. They also theorize that something in the environment and possibly conditions in the womb can trigger the condition.
The researchers said their study supports this idea.
Perhaps infants and toddlers are kept are kept indoors in front of the TV more in rainy climates, and that somehow causes brain changes, they said. Or perhaps they breathe in more harmful chemicals while indoors.
Vitamin D deficiency caused by insufficient time in the sun might also be a trigger, they said.
"Finally, there is also the possibility that precipitation itself is more directly involved," they wrote. Perhaps a chemical or chemicals in the upper atmosphere are transported to the surface through rain or snow.
"In recent years autism has been blamed on everything from discarded iPod batteries to mercury from Chinese power stations, from antenatal ultrasound scans to post-natal cord clamping, from diet to vaccines," Fitzpatrick said in a statement.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has launched a long-term study to find the causes of autism and other childhood conditions.
24 October 2008
The Hidden Link Between Men’s Bone Health and Vitamin C
Vitamin C is known for many things, including being necessary for normal bone development and for the formation of collagen. Until recently, however, it has not been seen as a possible player in retaining bone density—particularly for older men.
But that’s what has recently come to the fore. There is new research that indicates that eating a diet high in vitamin C may just help older men maintain strong and healthy bones— and keeping bones dense can help reduce the risk of fractures. Over a four-year period, 231 men and 393 women whose average age was 75, were monitored by Katherine Tucker and a team of her colleagues to observe any correlation between vitamin C intake and bone mineral density (BMD).
And here’s what they found: the men with the highest levels of vitamin C intake maintained their original bone mineral density during the four-year study. The men with the lowest levels of vitamin C intake, however, did not fare so well. Their bone mineral density decreased. They found, too, that vitamin C exhibited some protection against bone mineral density loss in women, although their findings were not “statistically significant.”
Their conclusion? These results suggest a possible protective role of vitamin C for bone health in older men.
Tucker explains why vitamin C may play such a role in bone health. She says, “Vitamin C is an antioxidant vitamin and reduces oxidative stress, which has a negative effect on all cells in the body. Antioxidants are needed to protect against oxidative stress, therefore protecting against inflammation. Inflammation drives bone resorption, which is basically taking calcium away from the bones. Vitamin C, theoretically, should help slow that resorption."
Tucker emphasized, too, that bone mineral density, bone status and fracture risk are related to many more nutrients than just calcium. And, apparently, it could be true. In recent years, researchers have found that maintaining bone density requires not just getting enough calcium, but also vitamin D and protein.
Dr. Mone Zaidi, director of the bone health program at Mt. Sinai Medical Center, indicates that this study is one of many that have been conducted over the past ten years that show the correlation between vitamin C intake and protection against bone loss.
Now, more evidence is emerging about the important role of vitamin C and bones. You could say that vitamin C is creating its own track record in bone health.
Now that’s a track record to watch.
But that’s what has recently come to the fore. There is new research that indicates that eating a diet high in vitamin C may just help older men maintain strong and healthy bones— and keeping bones dense can help reduce the risk of fractures. Over a four-year period, 231 men and 393 women whose average age was 75, were monitored by Katherine Tucker and a team of her colleagues to observe any correlation between vitamin C intake and bone mineral density (BMD).
And here’s what they found: the men with the highest levels of vitamin C intake maintained their original bone mineral density during the four-year study. The men with the lowest levels of vitamin C intake, however, did not fare so well. Their bone mineral density decreased. They found, too, that vitamin C exhibited some protection against bone mineral density loss in women, although their findings were not “statistically significant.”
Their conclusion? These results suggest a possible protective role of vitamin C for bone health in older men.
Tucker explains why vitamin C may play such a role in bone health. She says, “Vitamin C is an antioxidant vitamin and reduces oxidative stress, which has a negative effect on all cells in the body. Antioxidants are needed to protect against oxidative stress, therefore protecting against inflammation. Inflammation drives bone resorption, which is basically taking calcium away from the bones. Vitamin C, theoretically, should help slow that resorption."
Tucker emphasized, too, that bone mineral density, bone status and fracture risk are related to many more nutrients than just calcium. And, apparently, it could be true. In recent years, researchers have found that maintaining bone density requires not just getting enough calcium, but also vitamin D and protein.
Dr. Mone Zaidi, director of the bone health program at Mt. Sinai Medical Center, indicates that this study is one of many that have been conducted over the past ten years that show the correlation between vitamin C intake and protection against bone loss.
Now, more evidence is emerging about the important role of vitamin C and bones. You could say that vitamin C is creating its own track record in bone health.
Now that’s a track record to watch.
21 October 2008
Doctors able to correct scoliosis with stem cells
5/13/2008 7:48 AM
By: Ivanhoe Broadcast News Service
Scoliosis is an abnormal curvature of the spine. In stead of the spine forming a straight line up and down one's back, it curves from side to side, often in an 'S' formation. It's a condition that often runs in families, though the cause of the malformation remains unknown.
Many schools and pediatricians screen for the condition, which often begins in childhood. However, adult scoliosis can develop after age 18, often as a result of a childhood case that was either undiagnosed or left untreated, or a degenerative joint condition in the spine. Screening for the condition is fairly simple as the spinal curvature can usually be seen from behind when the patient bends forward.
Patients are usually monitored until they develop a 25 degree to 40 degree curvature or greater. After that point, doctors will usually put the patient in a brace to help straighten the spine out and/or stop progression. When the curvature is beyond 40 degrees to 50 degrees, or if the brace does not stop progression, surgery is usually recommended.
Scoliosis is not a painful condition, so sometimes it patients can develop an advanced condition before seeking medical attention. Spinal fusion -- when two or more vertebrae are fused together, preventing further progression of the cure -- is the most common surgery method available for scoliosis. Hooks and rods or screws are used to correct the deformity, then bone from the pelvis is often used to fuse the vertebrae. Unfortunately, spinal fusion can limit a patient's motion after surgery and harvesting bone from the pelvis can be a significant source of pain for patients.
Stem cells are found in most multi-cellular organisms and are capable of regenerating themselves and can differentiate into a variety of specialized cell types. Contrary to their name, adult stem cells are found in both children and adults and refer to cells found in a born human being. Embryonic stem cells, however, are the controversial cells collected from early stage human embryos -- about four or five days old in humans, consisting of 50 to 150 cells.
Using adult stem cells collected from bone marrow, doctors are now able to correct scoliosis of the spine. During surgery, doctors still use screws and rods to correct the curvature of the spine. After that step, however, harvesting bone from a patient's pelvis is no longer necessary. Doctors can use the stem cells and bone from the bone bank to create solid fusion along the vertebrae to hold the corrected spine in its new position.
Once fusion is solid, patients can return to normal activities. Recovery time is similar to traditional spinal fusion surgery because the same large incision is made in the patient's back. However, the pain from the pelvic bone is eliminated. Some doctors see this stem cell therapy as a more holistic approach to the healing process.
By: Ivanhoe Broadcast News Service
Scoliosis is an abnormal curvature of the spine. In stead of the spine forming a straight line up and down one's back, it curves from side to side, often in an 'S' formation. It's a condition that often runs in families, though the cause of the malformation remains unknown.
Many schools and pediatricians screen for the condition, which often begins in childhood. However, adult scoliosis can develop after age 18, often as a result of a childhood case that was either undiagnosed or left untreated, or a degenerative joint condition in the spine. Screening for the condition is fairly simple as the spinal curvature can usually be seen from behind when the patient bends forward.
Patients are usually monitored until they develop a 25 degree to 40 degree curvature or greater. After that point, doctors will usually put the patient in a brace to help straighten the spine out and/or stop progression. When the curvature is beyond 40 degrees to 50 degrees, or if the brace does not stop progression, surgery is usually recommended.
Scoliosis is not a painful condition, so sometimes it patients can develop an advanced condition before seeking medical attention. Spinal fusion -- when two or more vertebrae are fused together, preventing further progression of the cure -- is the most common surgery method available for scoliosis. Hooks and rods or screws are used to correct the deformity, then bone from the pelvis is often used to fuse the vertebrae. Unfortunately, spinal fusion can limit a patient's motion after surgery and harvesting bone from the pelvis can be a significant source of pain for patients.
Stem cells are found in most multi-cellular organisms and are capable of regenerating themselves and can differentiate into a variety of specialized cell types. Contrary to their name, adult stem cells are found in both children and adults and refer to cells found in a born human being. Embryonic stem cells, however, are the controversial cells collected from early stage human embryos -- about four or five days old in humans, consisting of 50 to 150 cells.
Using adult stem cells collected from bone marrow, doctors are now able to correct scoliosis of the spine. During surgery, doctors still use screws and rods to correct the curvature of the spine. After that step, however, harvesting bone from a patient's pelvis is no longer necessary. Doctors can use the stem cells and bone from the bone bank to create solid fusion along the vertebrae to hold the corrected spine in its new position.
Once fusion is solid, patients can return to normal activities. Recovery time is similar to traditional spinal fusion surgery because the same large incision is made in the patient's back. However, the pain from the pelvic bone is eliminated. Some doctors see this stem cell therapy as a more holistic approach to the healing process.
17 October 2008
McCarthy "Cures" Autism, Reaches Out to McCain
Despite criticism from the American Academy of Pediatrics, Jenny McCarthy says she helped her son, Evan, recover from autism.
The actress - who believes the MMR vaccine was to blame for her son's diagnosis - says a strict no wheat-and-dairy-free diet has changed her son from a quiet little boy who used to flail his arms around to a loving six-year-old.
"Before the vaccination, he was huggy, lovey, snuggly," she says in the newest issue of Us Weekly. "Then it was like someone came down and stole him."
McCarthy, 36, remembers when Evan began to come out of his shell while watching a SpongeBob episode. "I heard Evan laugh...I jumped on the bed and started screaming."
She adds, "When he finally hugged me, I prayed, 'Please God don't let this be the only time.'"
McCarthy has become an outspoken advocate for autism awareness, often courting controversy along the way (doctors have accused her of creating fear of necessary vaccines). She's the bestselling author of five books, including her newest, Mother Warriors: A Nation of Parents Healing Autism Against All Odds. She's also constantly researching on sites like like AgeofAutism.com and GenerationRescue.org
"I made a deal with God," she explains. "I said, 'You fix my boy, you show me the way and I'll teach the world how I did it.'"
She's even reached out to John McCain - who spoke about the importance of autism awareness during Wednesday's debate - without much success.
"We tried," says McCarthy - who currently labels herself a Democrat. "McCain had come out and said he thinks there's enough evidence between vaccines and autism, so I got on a helicopter [to meet him for] an on-camera interview. By the time I got there, the campaign manager said, 'He's ahead in the polls, and this is too controversial, and he doesn't want to go one way or the next.'"
The mom has avoided one controversial critic: Denis Leary, who blamed "inattentive mothers" for autism in his new book, Why We Suck: A Feel-Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid. (He later said his words were taken out of context)
For more on the specific ways McCarthy helped her son recover from autism and how beau Jim Carrey supports her, pick up the newest issue of Us Weekly, on stands now.
The actress - who believes the MMR vaccine was to blame for her son's diagnosis - says a strict no wheat-and-dairy-free diet has changed her son from a quiet little boy who used to flail his arms around to a loving six-year-old.
"Before the vaccination, he was huggy, lovey, snuggly," she says in the newest issue of Us Weekly. "Then it was like someone came down and stole him."
McCarthy, 36, remembers when Evan began to come out of his shell while watching a SpongeBob episode. "I heard Evan laugh...I jumped on the bed and started screaming."
She adds, "When he finally hugged me, I prayed, 'Please God don't let this be the only time.'"
McCarthy has become an outspoken advocate for autism awareness, often courting controversy along the way (doctors have accused her of creating fear of necessary vaccines). She's the bestselling author of five books, including her newest, Mother Warriors: A Nation of Parents Healing Autism Against All Odds. She's also constantly researching on sites like like AgeofAutism.com and GenerationRescue.org
"I made a deal with God," she explains. "I said, 'You fix my boy, you show me the way and I'll teach the world how I did it.'"
She's even reached out to John McCain - who spoke about the importance of autism awareness during Wednesday's debate - without much success.
"We tried," says McCarthy - who currently labels herself a Democrat. "McCain had come out and said he thinks there's enough evidence between vaccines and autism, so I got on a helicopter [to meet him for] an on-camera interview. By the time I got there, the campaign manager said, 'He's ahead in the polls, and this is too controversial, and he doesn't want to go one way or the next.'"
The mom has avoided one controversial critic: Denis Leary, who blamed "inattentive mothers" for autism in his new book, Why We Suck: A Feel-Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid. (He later said his words were taken out of context)
For more on the specific ways McCarthy helped her son recover from autism and how beau Jim Carrey supports her, pick up the newest issue of Us Weekly, on stands now.
14 October 2008
Your Fat Does More Than You Think
Most people think of fat as inert, but in fact fat cells release powerful chemicals. And in obese people, the fat tissue often produces too many bad hormones and too few good ones.
White fat cells store energy and produce hormones that are secreted into the blood. They release adiponectin, which actually helps to fight diabetes, heart disease and other diseases. But in obese people, fat cells tend to shut down the production of adiponectin, which has negative effects on health.
While a white fat cell stores energy, a brown fat cell's job is basically to generate heat. There is increasing evidence that some humans, particularly those who are lean, tend to have more brown fat cells mixed in with their white fat cells in some regions of their body.
If the body could be persuaded to make more brown fat cells, it could help fight the tendency to gain excess weight.
Sources:
* USA Today October 8, 2008
White fat cells store energy and produce hormones that are secreted into the blood. They release adiponectin, which actually helps to fight diabetes, heart disease and other diseases. But in obese people, fat cells tend to shut down the production of adiponectin, which has negative effects on health.
While a white fat cell stores energy, a brown fat cell's job is basically to generate heat. There is increasing evidence that some humans, particularly those who are lean, tend to have more brown fat cells mixed in with their white fat cells in some regions of their body.
If the body could be persuaded to make more brown fat cells, it could help fight the tendency to gain excess weight.
Sources:
* USA Today October 8, 2008
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