Medical Articles by Dr. Ray

Nov

2024

Vital Information about Cholesterol Drugs

By Ray Schilling | cholesterol, heart attack, Stroke

PCSK9 inhibitors, which are monoclonal antibodies

Sarah Lewis is a pharmacist and medical writer with over 25 years of experience in various areas of pharmacy practice. She explained that there are injectable cholesterol lowering drugs for use when traditional statins are not powerful enough to lower cholesterol levels. But these injectable drugs are very expensive and payment agencies demand fulfillment of strict criteria before they approve these drugs. The new injectable drug, which the FDA approved in 2015 is an PCSK9 inhibitor. It has the name alirocumab (Praluent) and is a monoclonal antibody. PCSK9 is a natural liver protein that regulates how many LDL receptors you have. Alirocumab reduces LDL receptors, which lowers LDL cholesterol levels. Several months later the FDA approved a second PCSK9 inhibitor, evolocumab (brand name: Repatha).

Side effects of statins and PCSK9 inhibitors

Statins are the gold standard for treating high cholesterol. They work by inhibiting an enzyme that controls how much cholesterol your body makes. But many people have significant side-effects from statins.

There can be side effects in the form of muscle pain. But statins can also cause headaches or dizziness. Others are feeling sick from statins, get unusually tired or develop a physical weakness.

These people often must lower their dose. Alternatively, their doctor switches them to a different statin in order to carry on therapy. PCSK9 inhibitors have none of these side-effects. The main side effect of PCSK9 inhibitors are injection site reactions, flu-like symptoms, and allergic reactions. They can be severe. Overall, there is a better tolerability of PCSK9 inhibitors than with statins. Unfortunately, the cost is around $12,000 to $14,000 per year for PCSK9 inhibitor therapy, which is very difficult to justify. Another disadvantage is that the patient has to self-inject the PCSK9 inhibitor.

PCSK9 inhibitors are added in specific patients

Because of the costs of PCSK9 inhibitor statins are still the first line of therapy in patients with high cholesterol. But there are patients who have familial hypercholesterolemia, which is an inherited condition. The physician treats them first with statins such as atorvastatin (Lipitor) or rosuvastatin (Crestor). The physician pushes the dosage to the maximal dosage. Often in these cases of inherited high cholesterol the new PCSK9 inhibitor drugs have to be added as a second line of therapy.

Patients with hardening of the arteries and a history of a heart attack or a stroke need aggressive cholesterol lowering treatment. These patients require both PCSK9 inhibitors and statin therapy.

Rigid rules from insurance companies

Because of the expense of PCSK9 inhibitors insurance companies have established the following rules.

You have to have either familial hypercholesterolemia or a history of a heart attack or stroke.
You must see a dietician for comprehensive dietary counseling.
You are on the maximum dose of a statin or you can tolerate only a lower dose of a statin because of side effects.

Only when these criteria are fulfilled does the insurance company consider to authorize an addition of a PCSK9 inhibitor to the statin treatment.

Vital Information about Cholesterol Drugs

Conclusion

Traditional statin therapy for high cholesterol levels is the gold standard for treating high cholesterol. Statins work by inhibiting an enzyme that controls how much cholesterol your body makes. Unfortunately, statins can have a number of side effects like muscle cramps and fatigue. A new type of cholesterol lowering drug was authorized by the FDA in 2015. This new drug has the name alirocumab (Praluent) and is a monoclonal antibody. PCSK9 is a natural liver protein that regulates how many LDL receptors you have. Alirocumab reduces LDL receptors, which lowers LDL cholesterol levels. It has much less side effects than the statins, but costs are around $12,000 to $14,000 per year, which is very difficult to justify.

How physicians prescribe the new drugs

The new PCSK9 inhibitor drugs are prescribed as an add-on to statin therapy to lower cholesterol. Physicians prescribe this to patients who have a familial hypercholesterolemia and to patients who had a heart attack or a stroke. One inconvenience of these new cholesterol lowering agents is that the patient has to inject it rather than take it as a tablet by mouth. Studies showed that PCSK9 inhibitors have a favorable cholesterol lowering effect. Alirocumab (Praluent) lowered cholesterol between 36 to 59%. The newer evolocumab (Repatha), lowered LDL by 60%. Both drugs showed a risk reduction of cardiovascular events by 50%, which helps long-term survival of patients with cardiovascular disease. PCSK9 inhibitor drugs are powerful cholesterol lowering agents. However, at the present time the cost of this treatment is too expensive.

Oct

2024

Common Chemicals Affecting your Health

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, kidney disease

A lot of products contain PFAS

Dr. Carmen Marsit is a Professor of Research at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University. She has done research of the effects of PSAF regarding human health for several years. CNN interviewed her and she said: “PFAS are a class of about 15,000 human-made chemicals that contain fluorine groups, which give them special properties. They are in non-stick surfaces; they’re used in firefighting foams, protecting packages from grease, and waterproofing of carpets and your clothing. Because of the structure of these chemicals, they’re able to have these non-stick, water-repellent and temperature-regulating properties.”

There is contamination of drinking water with PFAS chemicals. Only reverse osmosis removes these “forever” chemicals. But water from water softeners still contains PFAS. People who have reverse osmosis in the kitchen sink can cook with clean water, which is devoid of PFAS. This reduces exposure to PFAS significantly.

Food as a source of PFAS

Dr. Marsit mentioned: “Food can be another source of exposure, partly because of the packaging that food comes in, such as any types of non-stick, risk-proof packaging. A lot of frozen foods and fast foods were put into these types of packaging. A pizza box, for example, will have PFAS on the bottom. There’s actually some new data suggesting that PFAS are very prevalent in pesticides, and so, in fact, are being sprayed on to foods. Even your fresh foods might be contaminated with some of these chemicals. “

How manufacturers can remove PFAS from food and the environment

Dr. Marsit said:” On the policy side, we are seeing some positive things happening that are going to start to reduce some of these levels. The US Environmental Protection Agency now has a ruling out about at least five of these chemicals in drinking water that basically sets limits for these chemicals in the water. Within three years, municipal water sources have to test these chemicals, and then within five years, they have to have a plan for how to reduce those levels below the EPA-set limits.

Recently, the US Food and Drug Administration worked together with food product manufacturers who create the containers of food products to remove the PFAS chemicals from those containers, so now we’ll see less of that kind of foodborne exposure.”

Pressure from changed buying behaviors can accelerate removal of PFAS

But all of this will take several years to take effect. It is the public opinion that can speed things up. If people start buying glass and metal containers instead of plastic bottles of water, the manufacturers will have to adjust to the new buying patterns. This can accelerate the removal of PFAS from the market. Dr. Marsit said: “Some manufacturers are starting to be concerned about the health effects as well and are starting to remove them from their products. It’s a slow process, but eventually we’ll see more and more of those manufacturers kind of moving away from the use of these chemicals in their products because of these health effects.”

Common Chemicals Affecting your Health

Conclusion

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been around since the 1950’s. There are more than 15,000 of these “forever” chemicals around us now. They have these non-stick, water-repellent and temperature-regulating properties. PFAS hide in carpets, furniture, food containers, clothing and even drinking water. They are very slow to metabolize. As their chemical structure has some resemblance to natural hormones, they block our own hormone action. They belong to the group of endocrine disruptors. There is a direct relationship between exposure to PFAS and kidney cancer as well as testicular cancer.

What leads to a change in PFAS contamination?

Both the US Food and Drug Administration and the US Environmental Protection Agency recently introduced strict guidelines about reducing PFAS contamination of our food chain and the environment. But it will take years for these guidelines to lead to concrete results. In the meantime, the consumer has the power to force manufacturers into changing production patterns. People need to start buying glass and metal containers instead of plastic bottles of water. Then the manufacturers will have to adjust to the new buying patterns.

Oct

2024

Cardiovascular Risk Markers Predict Heart Attacks and Strokes

By Ray Schilling | blood test, Cardiovascular disease, cholesterol, diet, fasting mimicking diet, Fitness, heart attack, Heart Disease, Mortality, Stroke, Weight loss

An article in The New England Journal of Medicine stated that cardiovascular risk markers predict heart attacks and strokes. A summary of this study was also published by NBC News.

30-year follow-up of the Women’s Health Study

This is based on a 30-year follow-up study of the Women’s Health Study. In the beginning of the study all women had blood tests taken. In the beginning none of the women had cardiovascular disease. The blood tests were LDL cholesterol, lipoprotein(a) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP). When either of these markers was high at the beginning of the clinical trial, it turns out that 30 years later the person either was dead from cardiovascular disease or had a heart attack or stroke.

More details of the study

In the beginning of the study 27,939 initially healthy U.S. women had 3 of the mentioned blood tests taken. If only one of them was elevated, there was a risk in the next 30 years to get a myocardial infarction, coronary revascularization, stroke, or death from cardiovascular causes. The initial age of the patients was 54.7 years. During the next 30 years of follow-up 3662 cardiovascular events took place. Hazard ratios for the primary end point in a comparison of the top with the bottom quintile were calculated. The following hazard ratios were derived:

70-fold for high-sensitivity CRP
36 for LDL cholesterol
33 for lipoprotein(a)

Each biomarker showed an independent contribution to the overall risk. The risk of developing cardiovascular disease was highest when all three biomarkers were elevated.

Traditional risk calculation

Cardiologists calculated risk for cardiovascular events by the traditional 10-year estimates of risk. The authors suggest that physicians should do screening blood tests with these three biomarkers. If any of the biomarkers is elevated, measures to reduce cardiovascular risk should be initiated. This will be very effective to prevent cardiovascular events for the next 30 years.

Be proactive, prevent heart disease

As we get older, many people develop elevations of high-sensitivity CRP, LDL cholesterol and lipoprotein (a). But don’t wait for this to happen. Here are 9 steps you can follow to prevent it.

Maintain a healthy weight
Quit smoking
Choose good nutrition
Be physically active
Treat hypertension adequately
Manage diabetes, if you have it
Stress management
Limit alcohol intake
Get enough sleep

Comments to the steps you can take to prevent cardiovascular disease

The ideal body mass index is between 21.0 and 22.0. I found that the fasting mimicking diet helps me to stay in that BMI range. Good nutrition eliminates red meat and emphasizes vegetables and salads. Fish, lean chicken and turkey meat are healthy. Avoid all processed meats like sausages. Watch your calorie intake to keep your body mass index stable. In addition, avoid excessive salt and sugar intake. Avoid highly processed carbohydrates and processed food. Eliminate fried fast food, chips and baked goods from your diet as they contain trans fats. Trans fats cause hardening of the arteries.

Aim to get 30 to 60 minutes of daily activity. Do two or more strength training sessions a week. This raises the protective HDL cholesterol and prevents cardiovascular disease. Excessive alcohol intake leads to cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure. Limit your alcohol intake, if you find it hard to eliminate it altogether.

Cardiovascular Risk Markers Predict Heart Attacks and Strokes

Conclusion

A unique 30-year follow-up study of the Women’s Health Study identified three risk factors that a doctor can be determin from a blood sample. They predict whether a person will develop cardiovascular disease 30 years down the road. The three risk factors are high-sensitivity CRP, LDL cholesterol and lipoprotein (a). The best approach to prevention of heart disease is to adopt the approach of the Mayo Clinic described above. It comes down to the basics of good nutrition, regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, limiting excessive alcohol intake and stress management.

Sep

2024

Red Meat and Processed Meat Can Become a Cause of Diabetes

By Ray Schilling | Diabetes, meat, Processed food, processed meat, red meat

A clinical study at the end of 2023 showed that red meat and processed meat can become a cause of diabetes. The authors published the results of this study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition on December 2023.

Results of the study

Notably, the study consisted of several pooled studies. To emphasize, there was a total of 216,695 participants and the authors followed them up every 2 to 4 years. In detail, the investigators analyzed food frequency questionnaires for consumption of red meat, processed meat, and consumption of nuts and legumes. In particular, the authors compared the highest and lowest red meat consumption quintiles. Those who ate the highest amounts of total red meat had a risk of 1.62-fold to develop diabetes. With regard to processed meat the risk was 1.51-fold to develop diabetes. And those who consumed unprocessed red meat had a risk of 1.40-fold to develop diabetes.

• When people replaced 1 serving of meat per day with nuts and legumes, this reduced their risk for diabetes by 30%.
• A group that had replaced processed red meat by 1 serving/day with nuts and legumes reduced the risk for diabetes by 41%.
• Replacing unprocessed red meat by 1 serving/day with nuts and legumes reduced the risk for diabetes by 29%.

Some scientists criticized the study saying that it was not controlled for elevated body mass index (BMI). A person with an elevated BMI is at a higher risk of developing diabetes on its own and this can interfere with a study like this.

Alternative large study confirming risk of red meat to develop diabetes

This study was a meta-analysis, which involved data from 31 cohorts participating in the InterConnect project. There was a total of 1,966,444 adults in this study and 107,271 patients developed diabetes over a period of 10 years.

• People who ate unprocessed meat had a 10% increase of diabetes risk compared to people not consuming meat.
• When processed meat was consumed it caused diabetes in 15% of the study group.
• On the other hand, poultry consumption caused only 8% of diabetes.

There were slight regional differences for the same foods. In the discussion of the data the authors pointed out that in comparison to the first study mentioned above their risk ratios were lower, because all the data was corrected for compounding factors that could distort the figures. As an example, they noted that without BMI adjustment unprocessed meat would have caused 18% of diabetes. On the other hand, processed meat would have caused 23% of diabetes and 21% of diabetes for poultry consumption.

Recommendation to reduce or eliminate red meat consumption

The American Institute for Cancer Research recommends to eat less than 18 oz. of red meat or processed meat per week to avoid cancer development.
You can replace meat with nuts, legumes (lentils and beans), tofu and vegetables.

Red Meat and Processed Meat Can Become a Cause of Diabetes

Conclusion

Two independent large studies concluded that consumption of red meat and processed red meat contributed to diabetes development in adults. We also know from other studies that it can cause cancer. The key is to replace red and processed red meat by nuts, tofu, legumes and other vegetables. Both studies have shown that doing so reduces the risk for diabetes.

Sep

2024

Ozempic and Wegovy can Lead to Blindness in one Eye

By Ray Schilling | fasting mimicking diet, Nutrition, Obesity, Weight loss

Shocking medical news found that Ozempic and Wegovy can lead to blindness in one eye. Ozempic was approved by the FDA for treatment of diabetes. Wegovy, which is the same drug, got FDA approval for treatment of obesity. The pharmacological name of the drug is semaglutide. Both brand names of the drug are very popular, but they have side effects.

List of side effects of Ozempic and Wegovy

Physicians noted the following side effects of semaglutide. Nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, gas and bloating, stomach pain, fatigue, burping and changes to your face (Ozempic face). In addition, headache, rebound weight gain, low blood glucose, vivid dreams, hair loss, pancreatitis, gallbladder disease, kidney damage. Finally, there are also allergic reactions, thyroid tumors and stomach paralysis (gastroparesis) that are listed as side effects.

Rare side-effects of Ozempic and Wegovy

There is one side effect of Ozempic or Wegovy, namely a higher risk of developing a rare form of blindness. This has the name “Nonarteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy” or “NAION”. Only 10 out of 100,000 people in the general population may experience it. But patients who take Ozempic or Wegovy get this more often. People who took Ozempic for diabetes were 4-times more likely to develop blindness in one eye from NAION. And people who took Wegovy for obesity were 7-times more likely to get blind on one eye from NAION.

Alternative measures to treat diabetes and obesity

The question is whether you really need Ozempic or Wegovy to achieve control of your blood sugars or control of your body weight.“A crossover study showed that a fasting-mimicking diet is benefitting cardiovascular health. This new study was done by Dr. Valter Longo et al. from the University of Southern California. It compared the effect of two diets. They were the fasting-mimicking diet versus an unrestricted diet. In other studies Dr. Longo compared the fasting-mimicking diet (FMD) with a Mediterranean diet. He said: “The significance is that fasting-mimicking diet cycles were able to decrease fat mass without reducing muscle mass and without requiring changes in the subjects’ preferred diet for 25 days a month. In contrast, the everyday Mediterranean diet required a change in everyday dietary habits and had an association of 5 pounds loss of muscle.” It makes sense to use the FMD instead of the potentially dangerous Ozempic or Wegovy.

Effects of the fasting mimicking diet

The fasting mimicking diet consists of 5 days of a calorie reduced diet (500 to 600 calories per day) once a month. This helps you to reduce your weight and maintain it subsequently. Weight loss and control of diabetes are the main effects.

Ozempic and Wegovy can Lead to Blindness in one Eye

Conclusion

A rare complication of the popular medications Ozempic and Wegovy is the development of a rare form of blindness. This has the name “Nonarteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy” or “NAION”. Only 10 out of 100,000 people in the general population may experience it. But patients who take Ozempic or Wegovy get this more often, namely 4-times more often with Ozempic and 7-fold more often with Wegovy. On the other hand, weight loss can be achieved with a simple fasting mimicking diet, where you consume 500-600 calories for 5 days in a row per month. The rest of the month (25 days) you take in a normal diet. This helps you to slowly shed weight and maintain your reduced weight.

Fasting mimicking diet much safer than Ozempic or Wegovy

In my opinion the fasting mimicking diet is much safer than taking Ozempic or Wegovy. Current mainstream medicine claims that the likelihood of developing one-sided blindness from NAION is “negligible”. However, I prefer the FMD over Ozempic or Wegovy. It is important to me to maintain vision in both of my eyes.

Aug

2024

Exercise for healthy Aging and a young Brain

By Ray Schilling | andropause, Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, cholesterol, Diabetes, diet, e-cigarettes, exercise, Fitness, Health, heart attack, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, lifestyle, Menopause, sleep, Smoking, stress, Stroke, sugar, Weight loss

This article is about exercise for healthy aging and a young brain. A review article in Medical News Today states that several research papers showed that exercise greatly improves brain health, cognition and mood. It also reduces the risk of neurodegenerative diseases.

The benefits of regular exercise

Here is a list of the beneficial effects of regular exercise:

Increased muscle strength
Improved heart health
Lower blood sugar
Improved mood
Alleviates stress
Improvement of cognitive function

Researchers from Stanford Medicine have examined in a rat model how exactly exercise influences various tissues. Unfortunately, such experiments in humans are not possible and results of rat experiments do not readily translate into the human context. In 8 weeks of regular exercise rats experienced stimulation of the immune system, a reduction of the stress response, an increase of energy production and stimulation of the metabolism. From indirect measurements we know that in humans the same findings likely also hold true. The mitochondria, the area in cells where energy production occurs, are stimulated in muscles, the heart, liver, kidneys, and white adipose tissue.

Effect of exercise on the immune system

Researchers showed in a mouse model that exercise stimulated the T cell response and rejuvenated aging microglia in the brain. The result is a strengthening of the immune system and rejuvenation of the supportive microglia. In the aging human regular exercise rejuvenates microglia in the hippocampus. This can prevent dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Exercise strengthens brain cell connections

How does exercise affect the functioning of the brain?

Synaptic plasticity increases
Stimulation of blood flow
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor increases

Ryan Glatt is a senior brain health coach and director of the FitBrain Program at Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica. He said: “Exercise enhances synaptic plasticity and blood flow while reducing inflammation and increasing the expression of neurotrophic factors like Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). These effects can synergistically improve memory, learning, and overall brain health.”

The best forms of exercise for brain health

Glatt said: “Activities combining physical and cognitive challenges, like dance or tai chi, can be especially effective for certain aspects of brain health.”

Brisk walking is a simple method of exercise. However, we also need isometric exercises, which helps muscle strength and endurance. A good way of combining the two forms of exercise is to regularly go to a gym. Use a treadmill for 30 minutes and then use 30 minutes of a workout with 10 weight machines. Mix this with tai chi or ballroom dancing several days per week. This keeps you mentally and physically fit.

Slow your biological age through the use of the “Essential 8”

Research identified 8 factors that determine how long you live. These 8 factors are what can lower your biological age by 6 years. Here are the 8 factors:

Diet

A diet high in fruit, vegetables and lean meats helps you to lower your cholesterol level. In addition, avoid trans fats, fried foods and sugary foods. This helps you to lose weight and prevents Together with regular exercise eating a healthy diet prevents heart attacks and strokes.
Activity

The American Heart Association recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week. Alternatively, 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity achieve the same thing. Examples of moderate aerobic activity are a brisk walk, jogging, biking, social dancing and water aerobics. Vigorous aerobic activity involves spinning, running, swimming laps or jumping rope. Exercise reduces blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol. It also helps people to reduce weight.
Quit smoking

Smoking cigarettes, vaping or using e-cigarettes causes your body to develop higher blood pressure and damages your blood vessels because of circulating toxins. You also develop shortness of breath from narrowed airways. On the other hand, when people quit smoking, their risk of coronary heart disease drops to half after 1 year.
Getting enough sleep

People who don’t get enough sleep at night tend to have higher blood pressures, higher cholesterol and higher blood sugar values. This leads to weight increase and obesity. Sleeping at night for 7 to 9 hours improves cardiovascular health.
Body mass index (BMI)

An elevation of your body weight occurs when you eat the wrong foods and combine this with a sedentary lifestyle. Increased weight causes heart and joint problems as well as diabetes. Eating the right foods and exercising regularly gets your BMI into the normal range. This reduces your biological age.
Cholesterol

An increase of cholesterol can cause heart attacks and strokes. But when you watch your fat and cholesterol intake you can reduce your cholesterol level. Make healthier choices with foods like reducing saturated fats, reducing refined carbohydrate intake, eating more vegetables and leaner meats. This reduces inflammation in the arteries and plaque deposits with much lower risks of heart attacks and strokes.
Blood sugar

Increased blood sugars lead to diabetes. In this case there is accelerated hardening of the arteries in the heart, brain, eyes, and kidneys. This leads to premature heart attacks and strokes. People need to avoid eating refined sugars, carbohydrates (bread, pasta, rice) and sugary drinks. This normalizes blood sugars and your biological age reduces. Regular exercise is also important to burn off any excess sugar in the system.
High blood pressure

An elevated blood pressure strains the arteries and the heart. If you don’t pay attention to this you are at a high risk of getting heart failure, a heart attack or a stroke. Sticking to a heart healthy diet, avoiding salty foods, and exercising regularly allows you to lower your blood pressure and avoid the above mentioned complications. If these measures alone do not reduce your blood pressure to normal, ask your doctor to prescribe blood pressure lowering medications for you.
Bioidentical hormone replacement

What was not contained in the 8 factors was bioidentical hormone replacement. As you can see from the illustration, testosterone in males reduces more slowly in males (with a delay of 10 years) in comparison to estrogen reduction in menopausal women. Several authors describe that men and women in andropause and menopause live longer when bioidentical hormones are administered compared to those that do not use hormone replacement therapy.

Exercise for healthy Aging and a young Brain

Conclusion

Regular exercise even in older age keeps your brain free from dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. But in addition to this other research showed that 7 more factors are important to reduce your biological age. They are a healthy diet, quitting smoking, getting enough sleep and reducing your body mass index. In addition, you need to keep your cholesterol and blood sugar levels normal. Control high blood pressure with a healthy diet, refrain from salty foods and if necessary, treat it with medication.

Life’s essential 8 factors

It is important to simultaneously control all these “Life’s essential 8” factors for optimal control. People who do this were found to consistently have a lower biological age than others who do not. They also tend to not get Alzheimer’s disease whereas controls do. Lifestyle factors matter for healthy aging and a young brain. Studies showed that the biological age of those who take care of their lifestyles is on average 6 years younger than that of controls. You can reduce your biological age even further with bioidentical hormone replacement in andropause and menopause.

Aug

2024

Do you Wake up every Night at 3 AM?

By Ray Schilling | sleep, stress

Many people sleep throughout the night, but do you wake up every night at 3 AM? This article will explain to you what to do. A recent article of CNN Health reviewed why this happens in some people and what you can do about it.

Nocturnal awakenings are common. Waking up several times during the night occurs naturally between sleep cycles. However, these awakenings last only a few seconds to a few minutes, and then we fall asleep again. A complete sleep cycle takes between 90 and 110 minutes and consists of 4 stages.

It is during the fourth stage, the rapid eye movement (REM) stage that your sleep is lighter and you can wake up briefly. This is normal, if you fall asleep again after. As long as you are not hungover the following day, there is no concern regarding this.

Problematical nightly insomnia

However, a small percentage of people wake up around 3 AM every night and have major problems falling asleep again. They may stay awake for 1 or 2 hours and they get a “hangover” the following day due to the missing sleep. Often they may require a nap in the following afternoon to catch up with the sleep deprivation. Dr. Cathy Goldstein, a professor of neurology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor said: “Circadian rhythm is our internal biological clock, it times when we’re awake, it times when we’re asleep — it times most of our physiological processes, so our body does what it needs to do at the right time of day.”

Night owls and early birds

She went on to say: “Circadian rhythms and sleep architecture change with age, which might be why someone would feel like they received more deep sleep when they were younger. As people age, they tend to spend more time in light stages of sleep.” There are also other sleep behaviors such as night owls and early birds. It is the night owls who go to bed late, which change their circadian rhythms. This can result in light sleep, more nighttime awakenings and daytime sleepiness.

What to do when you have problems falling back to sleep

The key to rectify a changed circadian rhythm is as follows.

Always go to bed between 10 PM and 11 PM, which will set the circadian rhythm.
Have natural light exposure during the day and have no artificial lights in the bedroom during the night.
Make sure the room temperature is cool and there is no noise exposure in the bedroom.
Use a low dose melatonin supplement in the night, if you cannot return to sleep right away in the middle of the night.
If you cannot go back to sleep within 15 minutes, get up to avoid associating your bed with wakefulness. Listen to relaxing music or meditate.
Goldstein said: “If the awakening is naturally caused by your sleep architecture and does not affect how you function the next day, there is nothing to worry about.”

Do you Wake up every Night at 3 AM?

Conclusion

Do you wake up every night at 3 AM? A small percentage of people do. As long as we fall asleep right away this is normal. But, if we stay awake for 1 or 2 hours, we need to do something about it. In order to establish a healthy circadian sleep rhythm, we need to go to bed around the same time of the evening, preferably between 10 and 11 PM. We need to have natural light exposure during the day and have no artificial lights in the bedroom. Make sure the room temperature in the bedroom is cool and there is no noise exposure. Use a low dose melatonin supplement in the night, if you cannot return to sleep. If you cannot go back to sleep within 15 minutes, get up to avoid associating your bed with wakefulness. Listen to relaxing music or do meditation.

Establishing a “sleep hygiene” with habits like avoiding stimulation and replacing it with relaxation before going to sleep is a good first step to a more restful night.

Jul

2024

A Plant-based Diet Helped Prostate Cancer Patients Significantly

By Ray Schilling | breast cancer, Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, colorectal cancer, diet, exercise, Mortality, Processed food

A new study in JAMA Network Open showed that a plant-based diet helped prostate cancer patients significantly. Briefly, in this study physicians followed 2062 men with localized prostate cancer for a median follow-up of 6.5 years. The researchers paid close attention to the diet of these patients. Physicians compared patients with a high plant-based diet index to patients with a high meat/dairy diet index. Researchers measured prostate cancer progression and found a 47% reduction in prostate cancer progression with the plant-based diet group. This was in comparison to the meat/dairy group. They concluded that consumption of a primarily plant-based diet associated with a better health outcome for prostate cancer patients.

Colon cancer studies on plant-based diet and exercise

The medical literature shows that the survival of colon cancer improves when patients consume plant-based diets and at the same time exercise regularly. One study showed that a combination of plant-based diet and regular exercise allowed colon cancer patients to survive longer. This was in comparison to a control group on meat/dairy products who did not exercise.

Breast cancer patients

Researchers followed 6,235 breast cancer patients for 9.4 years. A group of women with hormone-negative breast cancer on soy products reduced their risk of dying from breast cancer by 21%. A low-fat diet following breast cancer diagnosis reduced the risk of breast cancer recurrence by 23%. At the same time a low-fat diet also reduced mortality from breast cancer by 17%. Another medical study compared the diet of women who developed breast cancer with diets of women who did not have breast cancer. The offending foods were American, cheddar, and cream cheeses. Women who ate most of these in their diet had a 53% higher risk of developing breast cancer.

36 foods that help you to fight cancer

The MD Anderson Cancer Center website lists 36 foods that help you to fight cancer. On top are foods like berries, broccoli, tomatoes, walnuts, grapes and other vegetables, fruits and nuts. Vegetables come in a variety of different colors. Be sure you aim for a rainbow color mix to get the most phytochemicals from your vegetables. Include frozen vegetables, whole grains and avoid processed foods. The website also reminds people that processed meats, red meat and too much alcohol causes various cancers. Women should limit alcoholic drinks to one drink per day. Men should limit their alcohol intake to two drinks per day. Less than that is desirable.

Prostate Cancer Patients Were Significantly Helped with a Plant-based Diet

Conclusion

Recently a medical publication stated that prostate cancer patients were significantly helped with a plant-based diet. However, further research of medical publications showed that colon cancer and other cancers were also reduced on this diet. In addition, breast cancer survival increased on soy products, low-fat diets and plant-based diets. Any processed food leads to cancer, heart attacks and strokes with increased mortality rates. The MD Anderson Cancer Center website lists 36 foods that showed cancer protection from phytochemicals. Don’t wait until you come down with cancer, adopt a sensible diet for cancer prevention now!

Jul

2024

New Protein Biomarkers Help Diagnose Cancer 7 Years earlier

By Ray Schilling | Arthritis, breast cancer, Cancer, cervical cancer, colorectal cancer, leukemia, lung cancer, prostate cancer

Several studies showed that new protein markers help diagnose cancer 7 years earlier than conventional tests. One study described how researchers were able to diagnose 19 different cancers years before other tests could show these results. Another study confirmed that 2,074 circulating proteins showed an association with 9 cancers. These consisted of bladder, breast, endometrium, head and neck, lung, ovary, pancreas, kidney, and malignant non-melanoma.

First study

The first study found 371 plasma protein markers that pointed to an increased cancer risk. 107 of them showed an association with cancers that physicians could only diagnose 7 years later. The researchers stated that there was an opportunity for early diagnosis and treatment. The treatment results would be much better than it is the case with a later diagnosis. In this study researchers examined plasma from 503,317 adults aged 39 to 73.

Second study

The second study found an association between 40 specific proteins and 9 common cancers as mentioned above. Researchers examined a total of 2,074 circulating proteins in 337,822 cancer cases. Of the 2074 circulating proteins only 40 proteins were specific for the nine cancers that I mentioned above.

Proteomics

The scientists who performed the studies with data from the UK Biobank specialized in the discipline of proteomics. This involves a thorough investigation of proteins in blood plasma. Here is a summary of a discussion of the findings of both studies.

The first study identified plasma proteins that showed linkage to an increased risk of cancer of the liver, digestive and gastrointestinal tracts, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, as well as colorectal, lung, kidney, brain, stomach, esophagus, endometrium, and blood cancers.

The second study showed links of protein markers to these 9 cancers: bladder, triple-negative breast, endometrium, head and neck, lung, ovary, pancreas, kidney, and malignant non-melanoma.

The authors of both studies felt that their findings contributed to an early diagnosis of these cancers. Specifically, analysis of blood plasma proteins can diagnose cancer 7 years before a clinical diagnosis.

Discussion

Joshua Atkins, PhD, BBmedSci, a senior genomic epidemiologist at the University of Oxford stated: “Proteins that are not causal for cancer development, but are a consequence of cancer growth can provide avenues for detecting cancers at an earlier stage when treatment can be more successful.” Dr. Atkins said further: “Nevertheless, disruption of these processes can result in diseases including cancer. For some proteins, higher blood levels are linked to higher cancer risk, while others may be protective, so higher levels are linked to lower risk.” He explained further that protein concentrations are not always related to one tissue type. He said: “The protein FGFR3 is linked to an increased risk of bladder cancer, but lowering its levels is tied to an increased osteoarthritis risk.” It will take more investigations before a clinical test is available that physicians can order to diagnose cancer early.

New Protein Biomarkers Help Diagnose Cancer 7 Years earlier

Conclusion

Blood proteins showed linkage to a number of cancers in two separate research papers based on the UK Biobank data. The first study identified plasma proteins that were linked to an increased risk of cancer of the liver, digestive and gastrointestinal tracts, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, as well as colorectal cancer, also lung, kidney, brain, stomach, esophagus, endometrium, and blood cancers.

The second study showed links of protein markers to these 9 cancers: bladder, triple-negative breast, endometrium, head and neck, lung, ovary, pancreas, kidney, and malignant non-melanoma. On average these sensitive cancer tests can diagnose cancer 7 years before a clinician is able to diagnose it. In the future your doctor may screen you for cancer as you age, as cancer is mostly a disease of older people. Earlier diagnosis of cancer will give better treatment results.

Jun

2024

Metabolism Can Vary in People

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, cholesterol, Diabetes, diet, exercise, fasting mimicking diet, Fitness, green tea, Hormones, lifestyle, mitochondria, Obesity, Smoking, Weight loss

Weight loss is easier for some than others, because metabolism can vary in people. In the following I will outline this in more detail. A biochemist recently published an article in “the conversation”, which is the basis for my review.

Everybody has their own metabolism

It is important to realize that everything that our body comes in contact with influences our physical characteristics like our blood pressure and our energy. Together all the biological characteristics have the name phenotype. The most important factor that influences our phenotype is our metabolism. It matters what you do like eating, whether you are taking medication, smoking, or exercising. This all influences your metabolism. On a molecular level it starts when your digestive system breaks nutrients down into each component: carbohydrates, fats and protein. When your digestive juices break down these food components, electrons are released from chemical bonds. These are transferred to the mitochondria, the energy packages in all of our cells. It is important to note that we do not all have the same metabolism as our neighbour. There are different types of metabolism.

Metabolism of an elite athlete

Elite athletes are not born that way. They have to practice hard physically for many hours a day and do that over several years. Their bodies adapt to the regular training by creating extra mitochondria in every cell of their body. Their body also learns how to burn fat, carbs and amino acids into chemical energy effectively. The elite athlete has superior energy production.

Metabolism of a Covid-19 patient

At the other end of the spectrum is the metabolism of a Covid-19 patient. Researchers found by examining patients who got sick from Covid-19 that their fat metabolism was impaired. This inability to burn fat persists in long Covid patients. The fatigue from long Covid is due to a dysfunction of the mitochondria. The mitochondria are not producing enough energy.

The in-between metabolism of blood donors

Travis Nemkov is an assistant research professor at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. His team investigated blood from 13,000 blood donors. They found that the metabolism of blood donors placed between the metabolism of elite athletes and that of Covid-19 patients. They also found a lot of variation of a metabolite by the name of kynurenine, which is due to a breakdown of the amino acid tryptophan. The researchers found that blood from donors with higher kynurenine levels was unable to restore blood levels of blood recipients. In addition, they found that kynurenine levels were higher in older donors and also in patients with obesity (higher BMI’s). Kynurenine was also a strong predictor for Covid-19 severity.

Weight loss problems when the metabolism is slow

We all know people who have a problem shedding their weight compared to others who loose weight with only a few days of food restriction. “People might have fast, slow, or average metabolism, regardless of their body size and composition,” says Dr. Chih-Hao Lee, professor of genetics and complex diseases at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health. This Harvard University website explains this in detail. How do we speed up a naturally slow metabolism? We can exercise a bit more, and watch the quality of our food intake. This means cutting out added sugar, too much fat, too many carbohydrates and processed foods. The Harvard website says: “Studies have found green tea contains a compound called epigallocatechin gallate, which may increase the calories and fat you burn. “By making these small changes mentioned you can rev up your metabolism.

Hormones and body weight

Our metabolism and body weight depend on a number of hormones: leptin, insulin, estrogens, androgens and growth hormone play a crucial role in weight control. Additional hormones, such as the thyroid hormones are involved in maintaining our weight in a healthy range. Researchers have noticed that patients with hypothyroidism gain weight and burn less calories in their mitochondria. On the other hand, patients with hyperthyroidism stimulate their metabolism, lose weight and burn more calories. The exact mechanism of how thyroid hormones interact with the other hormones is unknown.

Metabolism Can Vary in People

Conclusion

I came across a review about metabolism and weight control, written by a biochemist. He pointed out that different people have different metabolisms. Examples he gave were the metabolism of elite athletes and the metabolism of Covid-19 patients, who are at the low end. His team investigated the metabolism of 13,000 people who were blood donors. He called them people with an in-between metabolism.

How to speed up naturally slow metabolism

How do we speed up a naturally slow metabolism? We can exercise a bit more, and watch the quality of our food intake. This means cutting out added sugar, too much fat, too many carbohydrates and processed foods. Your physician can also tell you whether your thyroid hormones and your human growth hormone are adequate. Other hormones that regulate your metabolism are leptin, insulin, estrogens and androgens. When you look at the factors that are responsible for your metabolism, the genetic factors come first. Your hormone status, eating pattern and exercise status come second. But by making small changes to the factors mentioned you can rev up your metabolism significantly.

PCSK9 inhibitors, which are monoclonal antibodies

Side effects of statins and PCSK9 inhibitors

PCSK9 inhibitors are added in specific patients

Rigid rules from insurance companies

Conclusion

How physicians prescribe the new drugs

A lot of products contain PFAS

Food as a source of PFAS

How manufacturers can remove PFAS from food and the environment

Pressure from changed buying behaviors can accelerate removal of PFAS

Conclusion

What leads to a change in PFAS contamination?

30-year follow-up of the Women’s Health Study

More details of the study

Traditional risk calculation

Be proactive, prevent heart disease

Comments to the steps you can take to prevent cardiovascular disease

Conclusion

Results of the study

Alternative large study confirming risk of red meat to develop diabetes

Recommendation to reduce or eliminate red meat consumption

Conclusion

List of side effects of Ozempic and Wegovy

Rare side-effects of Ozempic and Wegovy

Alternative measures to treat diabetes and obesity

Effects of the fasting mimicking diet

Conclusion

Fasting mimicking diet much safer than Ozempic or Wegovy

Effect of exercise on the immune system

Exercise strengthens brain cell connections

The best forms of exercise for brain health

Slow your biological age through the use of the “Essential 8”

Diet

Activity

Quit smoking

Getting enough sleep

Body mass index (BMI)

Cholesterol

Blood sugar

High blood pressure

Bioidentical hormone replacement

Conclusion

Life’s essential 8 factors

Problematical nightly insomnia

Night owls and early birds

What to do when you have problems falling back to sleep

Conclusion

Colon cancer studies on plant-based diet and exercise

Breast cancer patients

36 foods that help you to fight cancer

Conclusion

First study

Second study

Proteomics

Discussion

Conclusion

Everybody has their own metabolism

Metabolism of an elite athlete

Metabolism of a Covid-19 patient

The in-between metabolism of blood donors

Weight loss problems when the metabolism is slow

Hormones and body weight

Conclusion

How to speed up naturally slow metabolism

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