Cancer Archives

Oct

2016

Sugar Can Cause Heart Attacks

By Ray Schilling | Arthritis, Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, Diabetes, heart attack, Nutrition, Obesity, Processed food, Stroke, sugar

Recently an online medical journal article from JAMA has revealed that sugar can cause heart attacks. As the Guardian reports, this analysis of influence peddling of the sugar industry going back 60 years has had far-reaching effects by confusing the public and policy makers in the US and around the world. At the same time the interference of the sugar industry was protecting its own interests. It increased sugar sales, but made people sick with obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. This story is similar to the tobacco industry that was able for years to cover up that cigarette smoke is causing heart attacks and lung cancer.

Denying that sugar can cause heart attacks

The English physiologist John Yudkin noted in the 1960’s that sugar was elevating cholesterol and triglycerides. The sugar industry panicked. They wanted to do something to stop this new type of research. As we can read online the Sugar Research Foundation (SRF) had 319 correspondences (1551 pages) with Roger Adams. He was a professor serving on the SRF’s scientific advisory board (SAB) from 1959 to 1971. Another piece of evidence of influence peddling came from a review of correspondence between the SRF and D. Mark Hegsted. He was professor of nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health. At the same time he was co director of the SRF’s first coronary heart disease research project. This took place from 1965 to 1966.

Historic falsification of research findings by John Yudkin

There are 27 documents totalling 31 pages in the Harvard medical Library. It is clear from this correspondence that the SRF was looking for a way to undermine the new research findings of negative effects of sugar. The SRF was looking for a way to confirm that fat reduction would be beneficial for patients. This way physicians would put many people on a low fat diet. This in turn would ensure continuing and rising sales of sugar.

New evidence that sugar can cause heart attacks

New research came out by D. Mark Hegsted in the Annals of Internal Medicine in June 1965. It linked sugar consumption to cardiovascular disease. It noted that blood sugar levels were a better predictor of hardening of arteries than cholesterol levels or high blood pressure. Another paper stated that it was sugar rather than starches causing high triglycerides in the blood. He hypothesized that “perhaps fructose, a constituent of sucrose but not of starch, was the agent mainly responsible.” An editorial in the same publication noted that these new findings corroborated Dr. Yudkin’s previous research that sugar could cause heart attacks.

The sugar industry was very concerned about these studies. If publicized widely, it would have the capacity to lower sugar sales.

Sugar can cause heart attacks, but review paper ignores this

On July 1, 1965, the SRF’s Hickson visited D. Mark Hegsted to discuss his publication. He wanted him to be part of an extensive literature review that would show that it was too much saturated fat that was the cause of high cholesterol and triglycerides, not sugar. It also should state that a lowering of fat content from 40% to 20% was necessary and that polyunsaturated fatty acids should be used to replace much of the fat. The fact that the food industry would quietly increase sugar content in processed foods was not mentioned. The review paper was called “Project 226”. It resulted in a 2-part literature review by McGandy, Hegsted, and Stare. It was entitled “Dietary Fats, Carbohydrates and Atherosclerotic Disease,” and was published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) in 1967. Industry and non-industry funding of the review authors’ experimental research was disclosed.

Falsified study from 1967 in the New England Journal of Medicine

However, the funding by the Sugar Research Foundation was omitted. The authors of the study received handsome amounts of money from the SRF for their efforts. The story that was told is all too well known, but false. There was the claim that the medical literature would have shown that a reduction of saturated fat intake lowered cholesterol. Triglyceride levels did not matter. Only cholesterol levels counted with respect to coronary artery hardening. There was also the statement that replacement of saturated fat with polyunsaturated fatty acids like corn oil would be beneficial in reducing heart attack rates.

Effect of the literature review on heart attack rates

Sadly the NEJM literature review has resulted in a government policy that lasted for decades. The gospel was that a low fat diet would prevent heart attacks. The food industry prepared foods that were low in fats and high in sugar and supposedly healthy. But the extra sugar made people fat, it did not decrease heart attack rates, but made them more frequent. Strokes were also on the rise and diabetes has become rampant. The reliance on corn oil has introduced another problem: omega-6 fatty acids are now consumed at an alarming rate. Corn oil has a 1:59 ratio for omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids.

Corn oil causes inflammation

This means that corn oil contributes to the lack of omega-3 fatty acids in our food. When the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids falls below 1:3 or 1:4 the metabolism changes towards inflammation as the arachidonic acid system switches toward inflammation. Cardiologists have pinpointed inflammation as an important cause of hardening of arteries. Fish oil, a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids helps to prevent hard attacks and strokes.

The end result of the confusion regarding fat, sugar and heart attacks caused by the biased literature review meant misery, suffering and death for many for decades. But recently there has been a renaissance of Dr. John Yadkin’s research: Now it is clear what sugar is doing and how it affects our health.

How sugar can cause heart attacks and more

It is clear that sugary soda has detrimental effects on us: as little as one or two cans of sugary soda drinks per day lead to

26% greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes
A 35% greater risk of heart attack or fatal heart disease
A 16% increased risk of stroke

Dr. Frank Hu’s study

Dr. Frank Hu has participated in a study that spanned over 24 to 30 years and examined the replacement of saturated fat with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), monounsaturated fatty acids and whole grain carbohydrates. The study involved 84,628 women (Nurses’ Health Study, 1980 to 2010), and 42,908 men (Health Professionals Follow-up Study, 1986 to 2010). The researchers did detailed diet assessments every 4 years. 7,667 cases of cardiovascular disease (CHD) occurred during the study. Compared to controls that did not change their diet with respect to saturated fatty acid intake, those who replaced with PUFA had 25% less CHD, those who replaced with monounsaturated fatty acids had 15% less CHD and those who replaced saturated fatty acid intake with whole grains had 9% less CHD. In contrast, a subgroup that had replaced saturated fatty acid intake with carbohydrates from refined starches/added sugars ended up with a 10% increase of CHD.

Effect of sugar

We know now that sugar can increase cholesterol and triglycerides as Dr. John Yudkin has said in the 1960’s.

We also know that sugar can cause arthritis when combined with low omega-3 fatty acids and high omega-6 fatty acids. In the 1950’s Dan Dale Alexander wrote a book called “Arthritis and common sense”. The medical establishment did not accept that simple remedy and Dan Dale Alexander was classified as a “quack”. However, Dr. Mirkin describes a study from Berlin that later confirmed that Dan Dale Alexander’s observation was correct: an emulsion made by shaking orange juice with cod liver oil and taken three times per day on an empty stomach would indeed improve osteoarthritis.

High glycemic foods and starchy foods cause cancer

High glycemic foods (sugar, starchy foods) caused breast cancer, colorectal cancer and endometrial cancer. The majority of trials showed this association although not all. The more obese patients were, the more pronounced the insulin resistance was and the more the relationship to these cancers became apparent. A diet that is high in starchy foods like potatoes, rice and bread is causing pancreatic cancer as was shown by researchers at the Dana-Faber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard School of Public Health.

Sugar Can Cause Heart Attacks

Conclusion

The low fat/ high glycemic diet was a fad-diet based on fictitious science, sponsored by the sugar industry. It became a human experiment and resulted in 60 years of suffering. During that time it became apparent that this diet did not work. It caused the obesity wave, a wave of heart attacks, strokes and cancer. This was all caused by too much sugar in the diet. Associated with this are the consumption of processed foods. There is too much sugar and an abundance of omega-6 fatty acids in processed food. This causes inflammation and hardening of the arteries.

What sugar does

We finally know that sugar raises cholesterol (LDL cholesterol in particular) and triglycerides. This leads to fat deposits and hardening of the arteries resulting in strokes and heart attacks. Remove refined sugar, limit your starchy food intake and eat fish as a source of omega-3 fatty acids. Feast on vegetables, salads and have some nuts as another source of omega-3 fatty acids. You are well on your way to preventing heart attacks, strokes and many cancers. After reading all the facts, there is no need to be a victim of the sugar industry. This also helps you to stay away from sugar’s associated health risks.

Sep

2016

Seven Steps To Live Over 100 Years

By Ray Schilling | alcohol, andropause, Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, Diabetes, Drugs, Fitness, Health, heart attack, Hormones, Medical Condition, Menopause, Mortality, Nutrition, Obesity, Prevention, Processed food, sleep, Substance abuse, toxins

Forbes invited me to publish a blog I wrote for Quora, “Seven steps to live over 100 years”.

The topic of habits by people who live more than a hundred years has been reviewed many times in the media. It continues to be popular. Here are seven things you can do to stay healthy followed by an explanation why.

Seven steps to live over 100 years – step1: Stay active

You want to stay active every day, even if you retire. You want to move and keep your mind busy. Part of that is to do a daily formal exercise routine to keep those muscles toned, which will prevent falls in the future.

Explanation: when you keep your muscles toned and you move about, your balance organ and coordination remains sharp, you are less likely to fall and break a hip. 50% of those who sustain a hip fracture die.

Seven steps to live over 100 years – step 2: Eat a healthy diet

Eat a Mediterranean type diet or follow the Okinawan diet. These diets contain less meat (or no meat as in the Seventh Day Adventist diet), but lots of vegetables and fiber. This keeps your cholesterol down, your arteries open and your metabolism controlled, preventing diabetes. If you are not obese and you have no diabetes, you are going to be OK with your cardiovascular system for decades to come.

Explanation: Heart attacks are still on top of the mortality list. Avoid them and you got it made, if you want to make it to 100 and beyond. But we need to stay away from the poor fats and the obsession about eating beef. Red meat, if eaten too often gives you a higher risk of getting cancer and heart disease. So eat it only once a week at the most, the rest would be chicken, turkey meat or fish. Nothing wrong with a vegetarian meal, let’s say kidney beans or lentils on a day in between. This still gives you protein for your muscles, but spares you a heart attack.

Seven steps to live over 100 years – step 3: Take care of your teeth

Brush your teeth and floss every day. This will control the bacteria in your mouth and prevent leakage into your blood affecting your heart valves. Studies have shown that this prevents heart attacks.

Explanation: When I heard this first about 20 years ago, I found it strange. But the literature is clear: chronic gingivitis is associated with bacteria that grow on the gums and spread into your blood. They can then colonize your heart valves and even the lining of the arteries, particularly where there is already hardening of the arteries (arterial plaque). This can lead to heart valve disease like mitral valve disease or heart attacks.

Seven steps to live over 100 years – step 4: prevention of disease

See your physician right away if there is a new skin lesion or anything that is different on your body. Removal of early cancer and treatment of any early medical condition is always easier to treat than waiting until it is out of control. Particularly with cancer treatment at an early stage, which usually involves only a small surgical procedure, this will reward you with a ripe old age.

Explanation: I learnt this point in general practice. Patients who waited until small problems become big problems were always much worse off than patients who saw me for small problems that we could remedy at an early stage. As mentioned above this is particularly important in cancer cases, as usually stage 1 and 2 of a cancer is curable with surgery. Once you get lymph node metastases and distant metastases, the cancer is much more difficult to treat, if at all. This is a principle that is pretty much true for any disease. The prevention factor is huge. Make use of it!

Seven steps to live over 100 years – step 5: Lifestyle matters

Watch excesses like smoking (cut it out!), alcohol intake, and recreational drugs. Smoking causes heart attacks, strokes, and cancers, which shorten your life. Recreational drugs just interfere with your body chemistry and have side effects. Cut them out, if you cherish growing older than 100. Alcohol needs to be kept at a very low consumption, if you want to preserve your liver, which is your central metabolic organ. If you can’t handle moderation with alcohol consumption, cut it out. No one has died from not consuming alcohol.

Explanation: I have already explained why lifestyle choices matter. The alcohol question is one that will be discussed back and forth for centuries. There are cardiologists who tell you that men should drink 1 to 2 drinks per day and women 1 drink per day and we all live longer, because of prevention of heart disease. The wine industry makes sure that you will hear this cardiology rule. It is true that centenarians often drink one glass of red wine per day. But there are plenty of centenarians who never drank in their life. It is a matter of personal choice.

Seven steps to live over 100 years – step 6: Avoid obesity and diabetes

I did mention to avoid obesity under point 2 above, which is associated with metabolic syndrome and diabetes. Your ideal body mass index should be in the 21 to 22 range. You can achieve this by following the diets I mentioned above. You should cut out sugar and starchy foods.

Explanation: I have followed such a diet since 2001 and my body mass index is between 21 and 22. I grew up in Germany where an emphasis was put on sweets and starchy foods. Needless to say my modified Mediterranean diet deviates from the good old German diet significantly. I find healthy food very tasty.

Seven steps to live over 100 years – step 7: Sleep and hormones

Getting sleep regularly, having an optimistic outlook on life, and having good relationships help to keep the immune system strong and keep your hormones balanced. This in turn will keep you healthy emotionally and physically.

Explanation:

There are two comments I like to make. One is that when you have calm nerves, and your emotions are in balance, your stress hormones are under control. We know that people who are content and easy going live longer. The type A personality is the one who gets a heart attack.

The other point is that hormones have running times. When they start missing, we get menopause or andropause. When we are in our 50’s it is time to have your hormones checked by a knowledgeable health practitioner (naturopath, anti-aging physician). At this point regular physicians are mostly lack education about bioidentical hormone replacement. I mention this as in European studies it has been shown that replacement of missing hormones with bioidentical hormones resulted in more youthful lives. You can extend your life expectancy by 15 years using bioidentical hormones according to Dr. Hertoghe, an endocrinologist in Belgium.

Seven Steps To Live Over 100 Years

Conclusion

People have had a long time fascination about the factors that lead to a healthy age above 100 years. I am suggesting that you concentrate on enjoying your life and keeping toxins out. Engage in some form of exercise or stay active all the time. Adopt a healthy diet. This is where perhaps most people go wrong. They think they can go on pouring junk foods and alcohol down their throats and never get heart disease or cancer. The truth is not quite like that. We do need to adopt a healthy diet like the Mediterranean diet. We also need to limit drinking to a healthy level. Replacing missing hormones with bioidentical ones will prolong your life as well. Given these recommendations, happy journey to 100 and beyond!

Aug

2016

New FDA Food Guidelines

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, coffee, Health, heart attack, Heart Disease, Mortality, Nutrition, Stroke, sugar

A recent news release describes 2016 new FDA food guidelines. In it the FDA recommends to double the amount of seafood (fish and shellfish) as well as to cut down saturated fat and sugar. Coffee, which was labeled a culprit in the past is now recommended to a total of 400 mg of caffeine per day as it is heart protective. Cholesterol is no longer considered an enemy, but sugar, saturated fats and trans fats are.

Here is a breakdown of what each of these recommendations means.

New FDA food guidelines regarding increasing fish and shellfish

The anti-inflammatory effects of omega-3 fatty acids have finally entered the recommended diet plan of the FDA. This reflects the nutritional research over the last few decades that noticed a longer life expectancy for people who eat more seafood and less red meat.

The only problem with seafood can be its mercury contamination. The higher predator fish are in the food chain, the more contaminated fish meat is. The FDA recommends to avoid tuna fish as a food source, as it is very high in mercury. An exception is canned tuna as it has been washed and some of the mercury got lost in the food processing. Wild salmon, sardines and oysters are low in mercury and good sources of omega-3 oils.

New FDA food guidelines regarding reduction of saturated fat

The FDA now recommend to reduce saturated fat to 10% of the total daily caloric intake. This is not undisputed as some studies show that saturated fat may not be involved in the production of hardening of the arteries. Other studies have shown that breast cancer is more common when more saturated fat is consumed.

When the news came out in the 1980’s that saturated fats would be bad for arteries, there was a switch to polyunsaturated acids: safflower oil, canola oil, sunflower seed oil, corn oil and soybean oil or grape-seed oil.

However, the irony is that these vegetable oils were highly unstable and led to oxidation causing heart disease and cancer.

In contrast olive oil is a much more stable oil. In the Mediterranean olive oil associates with longer lives.

New FDA food guidelines regarding protective effect of coffee

In the past few years many studies have shown the coffee consumption prolongs life. The FDA has now officially recognized these studies and recommends that consumption of up to 400 mg caffeine will help promote health. On the other hand the FDA also recommends that those who do not drink coffee, should not change their lifestyle just because of these recommendations.

New FDA food guidelines regarding sugar reduction

An entirely new recommendation of the FDA says to reduce sugar in anybody’s diet. The FDA explains that too many processed foods contain sugar. Food merchants add sugar in drinks like coffee, fruit juices, food items like muffins and cakes.

In the past decades it has become clear that sugar much more so than fat is the culprit. It is sugar and starchy food that causes hardening of arteries. The liver metabolizes sugar into triglycerides and LDL cholesterol. Elevated triglycerides and LDL cholesterol levels lead to deposited into arteries and fatty tissue. In this context it makes sense that the FDA now recommends a reduction of sugar intake.

New FDA food guidelines regarding cholesterol

In the past scientists thought that cholesterol in meat would be the cause of high cholesterol in the blood. This was an oversimplification. We now know that only a small portion of the blood cholesterol comes from food sources. Cholesterol from food sources is no longer of importance with regard to risks for heart attacks and strokes. It is sugar and too many starchy foods (bread, pasta, pizza, muffins, cakes cookies) that the body digests into sugar. This accounts for high cholesterol, as the liver metabolizes sugar into LDL cholesterol and triglycerides.

New FDA Food Guidelines

Conclusion

The new food guide by the FDA has fundamentally changed the previous recommendations based on newer nutritional studies. Now the FDA says to double fish and shellfish in comparison to previous recommendations. Coffee is no longer the enemy, but your friend. You need to avoid sugar and starch over consumption, as this can raise cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Eat more vegetables and fruit. These recommendations closely resemble a Mediterranean diet, which several studies tell us prolong life. Abandon the American Standard diet with hamburgers, processed foods and sugary drinks. Pay attention to the FDA food recommendations!

Jul

2016

Avoid That Heart Attack

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, fiber, Fitness, heart attack, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, Nutrition, Stroke

Recently Dr. Mark Hyman mentioned a 7-point program to avoid that heart attack. If you follow the recommendations below, chances are that you do not only avoid heart attacks, but also strokes, high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity.

The Potsdam (or EPIC) study has shown that adhering to 4 simple things can reduce

Diabetes by 93%

Heart attacks by 81%

Strokes by 50%

All cancers by 36%.

What were those 4 points?

Not smoking
Exercising 3.5 hours a week
Eating a healthy diet
And maintaining a healthy weight

So with a few more points added it is no wonder that the figures can be even more impressive.

The INTERHEART study

Other studies have also shown the importance of lifestyle changes to improve health outcomes; the INTERHEART study was based on 30,000 people in 52 countries that were followed along. Researchers found that 90 percent of all heart disease could be prevented by simple lifestyle changes. I have added another point, regular exercise that has been proven to be very effective in preventing many diseases.

So, what are the 8 points that can assure that our health improves?

1.Avoid that heart attack with a colorful, plant-based diet

Your dietary intake is important, because it provides all of the building blocks for your body. You want whole foods that are rich in phytonutrients. Often rainbow colors are mentioned, because the more varied your vegetables look, the more balanced the micronutrients, vitamins and minerals in the food items. Below we will learn that we want to avoid processed foods and hydrogenated fats, but we want to increase fiber and omega-3 fatty acids.

2. Avoid that heart attack by stabilizing your blood sugar

Never eat refined carbs alone, as this goes chases up your blood sugar levels and causes unhealthy insulin reactions. Too much insulin production causes inflammation in the body, which can cause inflammatory bowel disease, arthritis, clogged arteries with heart attacks and strokes and Alzheimer’s disease. You want to balance complex carbs from vegetables with healthy fats and clean protein in every meal. Avoid sugars- no matter whether it is “natural brown” or white sugar and refined carbohydrates. Your pancreas does not differentiate between honey and other sugars, and it will react the same way!

3.Avoid that heart attack by increasing fiber intake

The more fiber you can tolerate, the better. 50 grams would be ideal, but not everybody can tolerate this due to bloating or a queasy stomach. But even if you can add 5 or 10 grams of fiber per day, this is progress. Fiber decreases LDL cholesterol by intervening with the enterohepatic pathway. Fiber is found in nuts, beans, vegetables, seeds and berries that have lower sugar in them. You can also take a fiber supplement directly like psyllium husk.

4.Avoid that heart attack by cutting out processed foods

Processed foods and junk foods are popular as they fill you up fast when you are hungry. But they need to be avoided at all costs. Sodas, juices and diet drinks affect your sugar and fat metabolism. The extra calories that come from sugary drinks are the biggest contributors to diabetes, heart disease and obesity. Even 100% fruit juice is not healthy, because all of the fiber is removed and you are drinking sugar water to which your pancreas reacts by producing extra insulin. As already discussed the extra insulin just causes inflammation.

Homemade lemon juice

May I suggest a homemade lemon juice that you make by squeezing ½ lemon into a glass; add a tiny bit of Stevia for sweetening and sparkling mineral water. This is a healthy drink without sugar. You can drink this as often as you want. Another component of processed food are omega-6 fatty acids. They are in processed foods, because they increase the shelf life in stores. But they cause inflammation in the body unless balanced by omega-3 fatty acids (see below).

5.Avoid that heart attack by increasing omega-3 fatty acids

Fish and seafood provide you with healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Unfortunately not all fish are healthy. Tuna is a predator fish that accumulates a lot of mercury from the polluted oceans. As a result of this it is not on my fish list. I prefer wild salmon. I also take molecularly distilled fish oil, which has omega-3 fatty acids in it. Many processed foods contain only omega-6 fatty acids, because this is the cheapest way to produce them (they are based on vegetable oils). Also avoid soybean oil, which is the most popular oil in the last few decades to foul up the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio.

Omega-6 to omega-3 ratio

This ratio should be 1:1 to 3:1, but many Americans’ omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is 6:1 to 18:1. Omega-6-fatty acids cause arthritis, heart disease and strokes. Instead you want to eat healthy fats like omega-3 fatty acids contained in nuts and fish. You can also add molecularly distilled, high potency omega-3 fatty acids as a supplement to help restore the balance between omega-6 and omega-3 in your food intake.

6.Avoid that heart attack by eliminating all hydrogenated fat

Hydrogenated fat like margarine has been shown to cause accelerated hardening of the arteries, which causes heart attacks and strokes. Read labels and eliminate any food that contains hydrogenated fats. If the label indicates that you are dealing with a product containing ”partially hydrogenated oil”, stay away from it as well! Butter from grass fed cows is a healthy fat. Olive oil and coconut oil are both good cooking oils. Olive oil is also good in salad dressings.

7.Avoid that heart attack by keeping alcohol to a minimum

The problem with alcohol is that it is a cell poison. On the other hand small amounts have been show to reduce heart attacks and strokes (one glass for women, two glasses for men per day). However, due to the cell poison effect even low amounts of alcohol contribute to cancer causation, and as a result of that alcohol remains a problem. If you must consume alcohol limiting the intake to minimal amounts is prudent. Alcohol can cause ovarian cancer in women and prostate cancer in men. In both sexes pancreatic cancer can be caused by alcohol. Higher amounts of alcohol raise inflammation with elevation of blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes. One recommendation: either consume no alcohol or use alcohol in moderation. One glass does not kill you, but several ones may do it over time!

8.Avoid that heart attack by exercising regularly

Regular exercise is yet another factor that can help you to reduce heart attacks, strokes and cancer even further. I added it as point 8, because it is fundamentally such an important preventative factor. Some studies have shown as much as a 50% drop in many diseases simply by introducing regular exercise.

Avoid That Heart Attack

Conclusion

It is all about lifestyle factors. Pay attention to your diet. Add fiber, subtract sugar. Avoid processed foods, omega-6 fatty acids and hydrogenated fat. Have enough omega-3 fatty acids as fish and supplements. Keep alcohol to a minimum. Your benefits from changing these lifestyle factors, result in huge benefits. You are avoiding 90% of diabetes, 80% of heart attacks, 50% of strokes and 35% of cancers.

Incoming search terms:

coconut oil and heart disease

Jun

2016

High Vitamin D3 Prevents Cancer

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, Heart Disease, immune system, Osteoporosis, Vitamins and supplements

In the last few years we learnt a lot about vitamin D3, but the newest thing is that high vitamin D3 prevents cancer.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine reported that with respect to several cancer types higher doses of vitamin D3 led to less cancer over a period of time.

The cancers investigated were colon cancer, breast cancer, and lung and bladder cancer. People absorb vitamin D3 differently. The researchers found that the best way to measure vitamin D3 concentration in the body is to use serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D). In the past people did not pay much attention to this matter. However, several studies including the present study showed that in patients who had a lower level of 20 ng/ml cancer rates were higher.

Comparison of two cohort studies

The researchers used data from two prior studies, a randomized clinical trial of 1,169 women and a prospective cohort study of 1,135 women. The researchers found that the age-adjusted cancer incidence was 1,020 cases per 100,000 person-years in the randomized clinical trial, called “Lappe cohort”. The other prospective cohort study was called the “GrassrootsHealth cohort” where cancer incidence was 722 per 100,000 person-years. The interesting fact was that the Lappe cohort median blood serum level of 25(OH)D was 30 nanograms per milliliter, while the GrassrootsHealth cohort had a higher level of 25(OH)D of 48 ng/ml.

Higher vitamin D levels correlate with lower cancer incidence

This likely explains the lower cancer rate in the GrassrootsHealth cohort. Researchers combined the two trials in order to increase the statistical significance . The striking finding was that above 40 ng/ml the overall cancer risk was more than 71% lower than for the group of people whose level of 25(OH)D was 20 ng/ml or lower. The above ScienceDaily article was based on this scientific study.

Other studies showing high vitamin D3 prevents cancer

AfroAmerican men had less prostate cancer, if vitamin D level was higher

In a 2015 study Afro American men were found to have 71% less prostate cancer, if their serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D level was at least 30 ng/ml or higher.

Prospective study showing high vitamin D levels cancer protective

This 2006 study reported a 14-year prospective follow-up in men where all cancers were counted and blood serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were correlated to cancer incidence. An increase of 25 nmol/L (=10 ng/ml) in predicted serum 25(OH)D level showed an association of a 17% reduction in total cancer incidence, with a 29% reduction in total cancer mortality and a 45% reduction in digestive-system cancer mortality. These investigators stated that it takes about 1500 IU of vitamin D3 increase per day to achieve an increment of serum 25(OH)D increment of 25 nmol/L (=10 ng/ml).

University of Arizona Cancer Center study

A publication from the University of Arizona Cancer Center in Jan. 2016 is more critical of the evidence regarding vitamin D3 and the claim that it lowers cancer rates. The researchers reviewed the cancer literature and found that for colorectal cancer there is a clear inverse relationship between serum 25(OH)D levels on the one hand and rates and mortality of colorectal cancer on the other hand. However, with breast cancer the literature was more divided. Only higher vitamin D levels were related to a lower risk for progression of breast cancer and a lower mortality rate. Randomized, double-blind clinical trials with regard to breast cancer failed to show effectiveness on cancer prevention or reduction of mortality. For prostate cancer conditions were similar with the exception of a study using 4000 IU of vitamin D3 per day, which inhibited progression of prostate cancer.

Mouse model regarding ovarian cancer and vitamin D

In a mouse model using a carcinogen to induce ovarian cancer there was an inverse dose-relationship between vitamin D3 and ovarian tumor development both in tissue culture and in the animal.

How high vitamin D3 prevents cancer

Immune stimulating effect of vitamin D3

Several studies have attempted to speculate how vitamin D3 may prevent cancer. Chirumbolo summarized the literature and noted that vitamin D3 has been shown to function as an immune cytokine stimulating the immune system non-specifically. Vitamin D3 is also anti-inflammatory and counters insulin resistance and inflammatory kinins in obesity. Flavonoids with their antioxidant activity are also cancer preventing. We know that low levels of vitamin D have an association with higher cancer frequency. This means,. it is important to use vitamin D3 as supplements in our diet.

Chinese study describing action of vitamin D3 in detail

This Chinese study examined the effects of vitamin D3 on cancer prevention. It found that vitamin D3 combines three specific actions in one. Vitamin D3 is anti-proliferative meaning that it stops uncontrolled cell division. Secondly, it has an apoptotic (cell death) effect, which means it supports the removal of cells that are dying. If they are dying, but not removed, cancer can occur from these cell remnants. The third effect of vitamin D3 is that it has differentiating effects in several malignant cell types. When cancer cells are non-differentiated (=more immature cells) cancer can multiply quickly. Mature cells find it more difficult to turn cancerous. This is an effect that controls the speed by which cancer cells divide and how quickly cancer metastasizes.

High Vitamin D3 Prevents Cancer

Conclusion

There still is some confusion about the effects of vitamin D3 regarding cancer prevention. In colorectal cancer the statistics are clear: vitamin D3 can significantly prevent colorectal cancer to a large extent. There are also preventative effects in breast cancer and prostate cancer. But individuals may have to take at least 4000 IU of vitamin D3 or more. This is particularly true in higher latitudes where sunlight exposure is lower in the wintertime. Also, people absorb vitamin D3 differently. For this reason it is important to at least check your serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels on a few occasions. This will tell you whether your vitamin D3 supplementation is sufficient. Aim for levels in the 50-80 ng/ml, which is health promoting.

Apart from cancer prevention vitamin D3 is also important for prevention of cardiovascular disease. This is particularly true for diabetes, osteoporosis and Alzheimer’s disease.

May

2016

Two Sides Of Medical Marijuana

By Ray Schilling | Abdominal Pain, Cancer, heart attack, premenopause, Stroke, Women’s Diseases

The newest craze is to treat menstrual cramps with medical marihuana, but there are two sides of medical marijuana. What women with menstrual cramps may not know is that it is estrogen dominance that is the cause of their symptoms. As women get closer to menopause they ovulate less often, and there are anovulatory menstrual cycles. This leads to a relative loss of progesterone from the corpus luteum that will form less frequently in the small cavity where the cyst with the egg was. Nature designed women’s menstrual cycle with mostly estrogen production in the first half of the menstrual cycle and mostly progesterone production in the second half of her cycle.

Other causes of estrogen dominance

When a woman gains weight, estrogen can also be produced in the fatty tissue due to an enzyme called aromatase. Androgenic hormones, which are testosterone-like and produced in the adrenal glands, get metabolized into estrogen through aromatase. This upsets the balance between progesterone and estrogen. Normally that balance when measured with saliva hormone tests should be higher than 200 to 1. But when progesterone production from the ovaries is missing, or when estrogen production is in overdrive through aromatase, estrogen is dominant.

Estrogen dominance

The progesterone to estrogen ratio drops below 200 to 1. This is bad news as it has consequences. It can cause a number of symptoms: migraine headaches, painful menstrual periods, endometriosis, and fibrocystic disease of the breasts with breast pain; even cancer can develop in the cervix, the uterus and the ovaries. Estradiol, the main estrogen compound in women, stimulates cells to divide, when it is not balanced by progesterone. Progesterone does the opposite: it balances the effects of estrogen.

Two sides of medical marijuana: treating symptoms

Drug companies always look out for symptoms that they can treat with a patented drug. The link at the beginning of this blog pointed out that “there are some very sick patients in need” to justify treating them with marijuana. This may relieve their symptoms for as long as they take the chemical compound. But it does nothing for the hormone imbalance. With the next menstrual cycle the symptoms will recur, and the marijuana will be consumed intermittently for years to come.

The problem with treating just the symptoms

What is worse is that the women think that nothing bad can happen to them: they are just relieving their symptoms. But as pointed out, unbalanced estradiol can give them migraine headaches. It can cause painful menstrual periods with or without endometriosis. Breast pain can be caused from fibrocystic disease. The worst of all is that after decades of estrogen dominance cancer of the cervix, cancer of the uterus and cancer of the ovaries can be caused. This is when drug manufacturers have unwittingly victimized their customers.

Proper treatment of menstrual cramps

1) Premenopausal women: The proper treatment for estrogen dominance because of a lack of progesterone in premenstrual women is to replace the progesterone deficit by bioidentical progesterone cream. Naturopathic physicians and anti-aging physicians understand this and treat it this way. Many practicing physicians including specialists, however, use anti-inflammatories and pain medications to treat this. Replacing the missing progesterone is causal treatment. Treating pain is symptomatic treatment. Treating the cause treats the medical problem properly; symptomatic treatment treats the drug company to a profit at the expense of the patient’s health.

2) Women with obesity: As explained already, estrogen dominance can also be produced from estrogen conversion of androgenic adrenal gland hormones due to aromatase in fatty tissue. The key here is to concentrate on watching the diet and exercising regularly. Even 10 to 20 pounds of weight loss can have significant effects on lowering estrogen production. The treating naturopath or anti-aging physician should measure progesterone and estrogen levels in a saliva hormone test. one should calculate the progesterone to estrogen ratio. If progesterone is missing, this can be added by giving a bioidentical progesterone cream or by taking oral micronized progesterone capsules at bedtime. As mentioned above, this is a causal therapy, and will in time not only cure the painful periods, but will prevent all of the other negative conditions mentioned. And most of all, there are no negative side effects, because the body knows the bioidentical hormones.

Two sides of medical marijuana: side effects of marijuana

Marijuana has real side effects. It can cause high blood pressure, dry mouth, headaches, dizziness, hallucinations, depression and sexual problems. Marijuana is unsafe with pregnancy, as it can cause childhood leukemia. Marijuana can cause rapid heartbeats and increases the risk of having a heart attack. Whoever uses marijuana regularly will develop lung cancer or emphysema. There is an association of marijuana use and seizures: in some patients it makes seizures worse, in others it makes them better. But marijuana is a central nervous system suppressant. So it is imperative that you stop marijuana two weeks before any surgical procedure, as the anesthetic and other medicines given during surgery will also depress the nervous system.

Why the difference between hormones and marijuana?

You may ask yourself why there would be such a difference in the side effect profile of hormones versus marijuana? Hormones are natural messenger molecules in the body. Our genes have designed hormone receptors to communicate between our brain, the hormone glands, and cells in organs with these hormone receptors. This design helps to ensure optimal balance of our metabolic processes.

In contrast, marijuana is affecting cannabinoid receptors in the brain. There are several subtypes of cannabinoid receptors that researchers defined at this point. But these were only detected because researchers were curious what marijuana was doing. This research is in flux. We do not know enough about the long term side effects of marijuana. We do know that marijuana has central nervous depressive effects, because it is binding to these receptors. This makes these receptors not available for the normal brain function. One of these effects may even be that it would block pain perception for a period of time. But nobody knows how safe this is in the long term.

Another possible effect, which makes it to the media a lot, is a possible anti-cancer effect. Before you get your hopes up, read this thorough review of all the cancer research with cannabinoids. I am afraid that at this point there is no clear evidence to support that cannabinoids help fight cancer persistently. There are occasional cures reported, but this is not a persistent pattern.

Safety of synthetic hormones versus bioidentical hormones

You may have heard of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) that came to an abrupt halt in 2002. They used synthetic estrogens (derived from horses) and synthetic progestins (bad copies of progesterone). Their results were breast cancer, uterine cancer, heart attacks and strokes that developed in patients who took these synthetic hormones. Originally the investigators wanted to show that HRT (hormone replacement therapy) would prevent heart attacks and strokes. In addition, the purpose of the trial was also to show that osteoporosis would improve. But the opposite was true!

Synthetic hormones block natural hormone receptors

The synthetic hormones blocked the natural receptors, so the woman’s own hormones could not reach their target cells. Had the investigators used bioidentical hormones, these would have stimulated the natural receptors, and research objectives of making these women symptom-free would have been reached. The WHI was a huge debacle, which showed that research with drug company support can lead to disasters. The only problem now is that women are fearful, as they do not understand how hormones work. The bioidentical hormones, when balanced properly, are harmless. Synthetic hormones from drug manufacturers are interfering with the body’s hormone receptors causing all kinds of serious side effects including cancer. Bioidentical hormones don’t do that.

Two Sides Of Medical Marijuana

Conclusion

Those who like to push the sale of marijuana will minimize the side effects of marijuana. They also push testimonials of women who received help with regard to painful periods.

You rarely hear about a physician who analyzes the hormones of a women and replaces what hormone is missing with bioidentical hormones to normalize estrogen dominance. The latter approach is a safe approach with no side effects, because you are using a natural hormone (progesterone) that stimulates your body’s hormone receptors. Synthetic hormones or marijuana are foreign substances to the body, partially blocking cell receptors, which blocks normal cell function. But nobody knows exactly what these chemicals do other than produce a myriad of side effects. Are you really willing to put your health at risk? After reading this, the answer should be clear.

May

2016

Hormone Replacement Therapy In Menopause

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, heart attack, Hormones, Menopause, Mortality, Osteoporosis, Stroke

Back in the 1980’s many physicians were hopeful that hormone replacement therapy in menopause (HRT) could extend the lives of postmenopausal women by approximately 10 years, if HRT would be started early enough. But the HERS study (Heart and Estrogen/progestin Replacement Study) in 1998 and the WHI study (Women’s Health Initiative) of 2002 changed things dramatically.

The HERS study did not show any benefit with regard to prevention of heart disease. Instead it showed more gallbladder disease (1.38-fold) and blood clots (2.89-fold) develop in the experimental group versus the placebo.

The WHI study was complex and had several arms. There also were some methodological errors in the study as pointed out here.

Instead of a decrease in heart attacks, there was an increase, when estrogen and progestin was combined. There were more cases of colon cancer, more blood clots and heart attacks in the placebo groups compared to the experimental groups. It seems that something went wrong with these trials.

Unknown facts about hormone replacement therapy in menopause

Premarin is not bioidentical to human estrogens

Both clinical trials used the wrong hormones to do the trials. If you use the wrong hormones in a trial, you would expect to get the wrong test results. Horse derived estrogen (equine estrogen) is hardly a match for bioidentical, human estrogen in women. But decades ago the drug manufacturer had decided that estrogen was easiest to manufacture on a large scale when urine from pregnant mares was used. The product contains conjugated horse estrogen and is known by the name Premarin. Premarin is not bioidentical to human estrogens.

Synthetic progesterone causes heart attacks

The other hormone, medroxy progesterone (MPA) is a progestin, a bad copy of the bioidentical progesterone that a woman’s corpus luteum of one of her ovaries produces. This is in the second half of her menstrual cycle. During pregnancy the placenta produces lots of progesterone to protect the pregnancy. As Dr. Masley, a cardiologist stated synthetic progestins cause heart attacks, while progesterone does not. Masley said: “Medroxy progesterone (MPA) increases the risk for heart disease and for breast cancer. I can’t understand why any physician would recommend medroxy progesterone during menopause, but it is still in use.”

Don’t use estrogen orally, but only by estrogen patch or estrogen cream

Next there is the question whether the liver changes the composition of an oral hormone tablet metabolically or not. The answer is: yes! Dr. Masley stated in the link above that oral estradiol, when compared to estrogen rubbed onto the skin, increases levels of inflammation by 192%. The C-reactive protein (CRP) can be measured with a blood test. The risk for a blood clot increases by 400%. A woman using estrogen should always use the estrogen patch or an estrogen cream with bioidentical estrogen to avoid these complications.

Measure hormones, don’t estimate

Measure hormones – don’t estimate: Hormones are constantly changing and if you don’t measure, you don’t know what you are dealing with. Dr. John Lee showed a long time ago that you should measure hormones and identify those women who are truly hormone deficient. These are the ones who need hormone replacement. However, you use only bioidentical hormones to replace and you replace only as much as is needed to normalize the levels. This is also the level where postmenopausal symptoms disappear. Lee noted: “A 10-year French study of HRT using a low-dose estradiol patch plus oral progesterone shows no increased risk of breast cancer, strokes or heart attacks.”

Measure progesterone hormone levels only in saliva

The elusive progesterone: when the physician measures progesterone as a blood test, it may come back as high while it can be low in a saliva hormone test in the same woman. Dr. Lee has pointed out that studies have shown that progesterone levels in tissue are usually higher by several factors when compared to blood levels and that blood levels are not reliable predictors of tissue levels (Ref.1). On the other hand he found that saliva levels have a good correlation with tissue levels in organs like the ovaries or the uterus. Dr. Lee preferred saliva hormone tests for this reason. When it comes to progesterone levels you can trust saliva test, but you cannot trust blood tests. Many physicians ignore that fact and strictly order blood progesterone levels coming to false conclusions.

Progesterone to estradiol ratio

We know that estrogen and progesterone must be balanced to avoid troubles of developing heart attacks or cancer. The link of Dr. Lee above stated that women without breast cancer have saliva progesterone hormone levels that are more than 200-fold higher than the saliva estradiol levels. On the other hand women with breast cancer have a ratio of less than 200 to 1 with respect to progesterone to estradiol saliva levels. There is a similar ratio in men. Here the ratio of testosterone to estradiol must be larger than 20 to 1. If this is not the case, he is at a higher risk of developing prostate cancer. Unfortunately many older men, when overweight or obese, have high estrogen levels and the ratio is less than 20 to 1.

Bioidentical hormones can prevent heart attacks and strokes

Masley has mentioned that in the first 6 years after menopause using a topical form of estrogen and micronized progesterone as tablets can minimize the risk of future heart attacks and strokes. But after 10 years it is less obvious what is the best solution. The question is what type of estrogen application is used. Is it estradiol or is it Bi-Est or Tri-Est, which are other topical estrogen applications. Tri-Est is 80% estriol, 10% estrone, and 10% estradiol while Bi-Est is 80% estriol and 20% estradiol. Tri-Est in particular would be very close to the natural composition of estrogens in a woman’s body.

What to do after 10 years of hormone replacement therapy in menopause

Given the insecurity what to do after 10 years of menopause, my suspicion is that there are other factors that play a role with respect to hormone replacement. A lot of women have extra pounds accumulated. Fatty tissue contains an enzyme called aromatase.

This makes estrogen from androgenic hormones including testosterone. The adrenal glands situated above the kidneys produce these hormones in menopause. The more overweight or obese a postmenopausal woman is, the higher the estrogen levels in her blood because of the action of the aromatase. Most physicians have not measured hormones in the past, but just replaced hormones monitoring only postmenopausal symptoms. This is changing. What I said under point 4 above is happening more.

Bioidentical hormone replacement practiced by naturopaths

Naturopaths tend to be more comfortable with bioidentical hormone replacement the way I have described it. If you did hormone tests (preferably saliva hormone tests) you would pick up higher estrogen levels and low progesterone levels with unfavorable progesterone to estrogen ratios as mentioned. These women do not need estrogen (they have it already in their systems). They need progesterone replacement only. A woman can take progesterone by mouth as micronized bioidentical progesterone capsules at night. It also comes as bioidentical progesterone cream for application to the skin. Here is another take on the use of bioidentical hormones.

Hormone Replacement Therapy In Menopause

Conclusion

Bioidentical hormone replacement is complex. It requires some basic knowledge of the facts mentioned above. I find it surprising that two separate research groups could not free themselves of the Big Pharma grip. In not doing so they unwillingly produced studies showing all of the undesirable side effects of using artificial hormones. When manufacturers modify natural hormones with unnatural side-chains, the end products are synthetic hormones. These do not fit the appropriate natural hormone receptors. The anti-aging community as represented by the A4M group (American Academy Of Anti-Aging Medicine) with more than 25,000 physicians worldwide has been saying this all along. Now we know that it is really true. Use hormone replacement knowledgeably and use bioidentical hormones!

References

Dr. John R. Lee: “Natural Progesterone – The remarkable roles of a remarkable hormone”, Jon Carpenter Publishing, 2nd edition, 1999, Bristol, England.

May

2016

Sun Exposure Helps Many Symptoms

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, depression, Osteoporosis, psoriasis, seasonal affective disorder, Skin Disorders, Vitamins and supplements

For the past few years it has become evident that sun exposure helps many symptoms. Patients with psoriasis have skin plaques on their skin. With sun exposure some of them disappear and the skin appearance improves. Patients with seasonal affective disorder have worsening of their depression over winter. Depression lifts with more sun exposure in the spring. Even a complicated disease like MS, which is more common in the northern latitudes, improves with sun exposure or a move to the southern states.

Osteoporosis: sun exposure has a positive effect

Osteoporosis was the subject of an April 2016 study from Argentina.

The researchers counted the amount of actinic keratosis lesions on the skin of subjects. This correlated well with lifetime sun exposure. Next they measured the occurrence of hip fractures from osteoporosis. There was a correlation of the two. This case control study had 51 patients with hip fractures. Controls were 59 patients from the same hospital without hip fractures. The mean age was 80 years of age. 23.5% of patients with a history of hip fractures were observed to have actinic keratoses. In contrast 40.7 % of actinic keratoses were found in controls.

Sun exposure prevents hip fractures

The authors conclude that higher sun exposure is protective of hip fractures, but led to more actinic keratoses. They also stated that higher actinic keratoses rates, which are precancerous skin lesions are a risk for developing skin cancer. It is important to balance risk of osteoporosis from a lack of sun exposure with the risk of skin cancer from overexposure to the sun.

We know that higher doses of vitamin D3 in combination with vitamin K2 and calcium supplementation prevent osteoporosis. Reasonable daily doses are 5,000 to 10,000 IU of vitamin D3 per day, 200 micrograms of vitamin K2 per day and 500mg of calcium daily.

Psoriasis: sun exposure helps many symptoms

Psoriasis is an inflammatory condition of the skin with plaques and a characteristic skin rash. This February 2016 study from Turkey showed significant differences between women with psoriasis versus controls. Bone density studies showed lower levels in psoriatic females than in female controls. Female psoriasis patients had lower vitamin D levels than female controls. Male psoriatic patients showed no difference from controls. Low levels of vitamin D3 may be triggers for osteoporosis to develop in female psoriasis patients. Inflammation may also be a contributory factor. There was an elevation of the C-reactive protein (CRP) in female psoriasis patients.

Clinical observations have shown for years that the rash of psoriasis patients tends to improve during the summer.

Seasonal affective disorder: sun exposure lifts the mood

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) has been known to respond to light therapy. Typically it peaks in the winter months and presents in mostly females who live far away from the equator. They improve when they travel to a sunny spot such as the subtropics or the southern states of North America during the winter months. But light therapy, vitamin D3, antidepressant therapy and counseling the mood swings of seasonal affective disorder will lessen.

In this 2014 study it was shown that depression in older people was not related to the darker months (between October and March). The summer depression rates in older people were identical to the winter depression rates.

Clinical trials with seasonal affective disorder (SAD) patients

In a group of 38 patients with SAD 14 patients were treated with white light visors, 15 with infrared visors and 9 served as a control (visors, no light). Both white light and infrared treated groups showed prevention of SAD while the control group developed SAD.

A 6-week trial was published March 2015. It involved 78 patients (51 Afro-Americans and 27 Caucasians). They all had SAD and received a treatment with 10,000-lux bright light for 60 min daily in the morning. Caucasians had a response rate of 75%. African-Americans had a response rate of only 46.3%. The investigators found that the symptomatic improvement and the rate of treatment response were the same in both groups. The researchers found that the Afro-American subgroup of patients required more education resources. This can overcome the inconsistent application with the bright light.

Vitamin D trials regarding SAD patients

In a study involving 185 female undergraduates of the Pacific Northwest, vitamin D blood levels were measured and a correlation of low vitamin D with depressive symptoms was found in SAD patients.

In a small study the hypothesis was tested that vitamin D3 in higher doses would be beneficial for SAD patients. Eight subjects received a treatment with 100,000 I.U. of vitamin D3, while seven subjects received phototherapy. All subjects had their vitamin D blood levels checked. Interestingly the vitamin D3 group improved on all depression scales. The phototherapy did not show improvement on the depression scale. The vitamin D level increased 74% in the vitamin D3 group and 36% in the phototherapy group.

Light exposure and vitamin D supplementation for SAD

All of these studies seem to indicate that SAD is more common in a younger population while in older people depression seems to be year-round. SAD does respond very well to 1-hour exposure of 10,000 lux of light in the morning. On a sunny day a walk in the sun for 1 hour is equivalent to an exposure at home with a SAD light. High dose vitamin D3 supplementation makes sense as low vitamin D levels were a persistent finding among SAD depression patients.

Multiple sclerosis: sun exposure makes a difference

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is more common in northern latitudes of the northern hemisphere. It is thought that sun exposure leads to higher vitamin D3 production in the skin, which prevents MS. On the other hand, once the diagnosis of MS is certain sun exposure or high doses of vitamin D3 can make it better.

This 2015 Australian study showed the same findings with a large group of MS patients.

This 2015 study from Sweden indicates that there is a compelling connection of prevention of MS through sun exposure or the taking of supplements of vitamin D3. In view of this evidence the authors suggest that you should take vitamin D3 supplements for prevention of MS before trials confirm this further.

Sun protection needed to prevent skin cancer

We have been hearing the slogan “slip, slop and slap” for skin cancer prevention. Slip, slop and slap stands for: slip on a shirt; slop on the sunscreen and slap on a hat. This publication dated March 2016 questions whether the precautions have been too zealous.

On the other hand the statistics regarding higher precancerous actinic keratoses in patients without osteoporosis are alarming too. It seems better to use high doses of vitamin D3, which will prevent osteoporosis, depression (SAD), MS and also improve psoriasis. Sun protection has decreased skin cancer, but did not curtail melanoma rates because sunscreen lotion can be penetrated by infrared radiation.

Use common sense for skin cancer prevention

This means that you should listen to the advice to stay out of the intense sun between 11AM and 3PM. Use vitamin D3 supplements in higher doses as this protects your skin. Research from England indicates that melanoma patients are usually the ones that are susceptible to melanoma genetically. They also have low vitamin D levels in the blood to a certain degree from skin cancer formation. The researchers recommend strongly that those at risk for melanoma need to be on higher vitamin D3 supplementations. A patient with a diagnosis of melanoma should receive high doses of vitamin D3.

Sun Exposure Helps Many Symptoms

Conclusion

It is not a myth: sun exposure helps many symptoms as explained above. Diverse body systems like osteoporotic bones, psoriatic skin and seasonal affective disorder respond to sun exposure. Sun exposure also prevents MS, a degenerative central nervous system disorder. The effects of vitamin D3 can explain some of this effect. It likely stems from sun exposure to the skin. But sunlight has hormonal effects. This occurs through the optic pathways and connections to the hypothalamus. We know that the sun helps combat many symptoms, but more research will be necessary, till we know exactly how it works.

Apr

2016

The Hazards Of Formaldehyde

By Ray Schilling | autoimmune disease, Cancer, immune system, toxins

Toxic levels of formaldehyde in laminate wood flooring were underestimated, concealing the hazards of formaldehyde. Specifically, laminate wood flooring produced in China and sold by Lumber Liquidators, based in Toano, Virginia were identified as a problem.

News about the hazards of formaldehyde in Chinese laminate flooring

Last year CBS ran a story with Anderson Cooper regarding Chinese imported laminate flooring that emitted more than the stated amount of toxic formaldehyde. This was based on independent testing by CBS. Examiners found that laminate packages released between 6 and 7 times the amount of allowable formaldehyde. Moreover, some packages of the cheap Chinese made laminate flooring even released 20 times the allowable amount.

Certainly, formaldehyde is part of the glue in use to bind the wood particles together to make the laminate flooring. The laminate top seals the wooden core and keeps most of the formaldehyde inside.

Formaldehyde leaks into the home slowly

But over time it gradually leaks into the home. It is a matter of how much formaldehyde was in the glue and how good the ventilation of the home is, which determines the concentration of formaldehyde in the air.

CBS bought 31 boxes of the Chinese-made laminate flooring that Lumber Liquidators was selling in Virginia, Florida, Texas, Illinois and New York. The examiners sent samples to two reference labs. Most noteworthy, only one package was compliant with formaldehyde emissions standards. Some were more than 13 times over the California limit. Both labs were surprised how high the readings were, as they had not encountered this when they tested regular laminate flooring before.

Effects of the hazards of formaldehyde

Dr. Philip Landrigan at N.Y.’s Mt. Sinai Hospital specializes in environmental pediatrics and exposure to toxic chemicals. He stated that what matters is the concentration of formaldehyde in the typical home where such a floor is installed. Nevertheless, it needs to be stated that these toxic levels were only found in the cheap flooring of the above named company and this product has since been removed from the market. Above all, formaldehyde is a known carcinogen (cancer producing substance). As a matter of fact, it irritates the airways, particularly in individuals who are sensitive like asthmatics.

Toxic effects on immune system of formaldehyde exposed workers

A 2014 occupational medicine study from China compared factory workers exposed to formaldehyde with controls. Notably, they found higher formic acid levels in the urine of exposed workers. Formic acid is the end metabolic product of formaldehyde. In addition, they also had higher B cell lymphocyte counts (in the high dose exposure group) and higher natural killer lymphocyte counts (in the low dose exposure group). As a result, this would explain the toxic effects on the immune system and the higher incidence of cancer in formaldehyde exposed individuals.

DNA changes in mouth cavity cells and nasal cells of anatomy workers

A 2015 study from Portugal examined DNA abnormalities in cells from anatomy workers. Furthermore, anatomy workers who prepare corpses with formaldehyde for anatomy courses are under the exposure of formaldehyde fumes. Another exposure can happen when fixating histology slides with formaldehyde to get them ready for microscopic examination. The researchers measured the the formaldehyde concentration in the air of the anatomy lab as 0.38 parts per million. Likewise, genetic analysis of cells from the mouth cavity and nasal cells showed significant DNA abnormalities, while controls without formaldehyde exposure did not have such DNA changes.

Formaldehyde poisons p53 cancer suppressor gene

In this study there was insufficient data to link formaldehyde exposure to causation of leukemia. It is peculiar that on a molecular level it is clear what formaldehyde does to the p53 suppressor gene. But it is more difficult to show the link of formaldehyde exposure to the causation of a multitude of cancers.

WHO recommendation about formaldehyde

The WHO recommends keeping formaldehyde below 0.08 ppm in the air of factories where formaldehyde is used. WHO says that this will prevent nasal cancer and leukemia. Levels of 1 ppm can cause nasal cancer and leukemia in humans. The level for hardwood plywood is 0.05 ppm in the US since 2012

The CDC involvement in safe formaldehyde levels in the air of a home

The CDC faced with the problem of the Chinese laminate imports of Lumber Liquidators and did its own investigation. The conclusion was that these high concentrations of formaldehyde were not only affecting sensitive people, but in fact everybody. The CDC stated: “The lifetime cancer risk increased from the previous estimate of 2 to 9 extra cases for every 100,000 people to between 6 and 30 extra cases per 100,000 people. To put these numbers into perspective, the American Cancer Society estimates that up to 50,000 of every 100,000 people may develop cancer from all causes over their lifetimes.”

New guidelines for the limit of formaldehyde in residences

New guidelines for the limit of formaldehyde in residences were defined as 135 µg/m³ by the National Center for Environmental Health. This is a different nomenclature for formaldehyde concentration in the air and I will show the conversion to parts per million particles in a moment. This reference explains that 1 ppm = 1.23 mg/m³. 135 µg/m³ is the same as 0.135 mg/m³. When you divide 0.135 mg/m³ by 1.23 mg/m³, you have converted this into 0.11 ppm, the upper acceptable formaldehyde limit. Had the company followed proper procedure, it is clear from the recommendation above that the formaldehyde level of 0.05 ppm was in the safe zone. It was much smaller than 0.11 ppm. The cheap batch of plywood discussed above with the high formaldehyde glue gave measurements much higher than any of these guidelines.

Company response to bad publicity regarding “the hazards of formaldehyde”

As the stock of Lumber Liquidators plunged, the company decided to do something about this. In May of 2015 they stopped the sale of the cheap laminate products. It turned out that they had been poor quality, cheaper laminate boards; the producer had used glue with too much formaldehyde in it. The company had knowingly bought these for a 10% discount and hoped to make a huge profit through its over 360 stores in 46 states. Before this fiasco revenue was more than a billion dollars a year. Now the company tries to rescue its brand name through an ongoing painstaking public relations effort.

What to do, if you own cheap laminate flooring with the hazards of formaldehyde?

The CDC says you should ventilate the home, use additional vents to remove bad air, keep the temperature at the lowest comfortable setting and make your home a smoke-free home.

Many homeowners have ripped out the cheap laminate flooring and replaced it with better quality products and joined a class action suit against the company that sold them the product. Others leave it in place, open the windows and doors more frequently to keep the air concentration of formaldehyde lower; and they follow the other suggestions from the CDC.

According to this update formaldehyde levels are decreased significantly 6 to 10 months after initial installation.

The Hazards Of Formaldehyde

Conclusion

Had Lumber Liquidators not been greedy for profit, we may never have known the story of formaldehyde overdosing of glue in one bad batch of laminate flooring. The unsuspecting consumer got a special deal, but nobody informed the consumer about the hazards of formaldehyde release! Keep in mind that not everything that is cheap is good quality.

Only a few years back urea formaldehyde was very popular as a means to insulate your home. Homeowners soon found out that this could lead to toxic formaldehyde fumes and they had to replace urea formaldehyde with glass fiber insulation.

Never sit back and think you are safe

You may not have to panic. Frequent ventilation, as described, can lower the formaldehyde concentration in the air. And eventually in the case of laminate flooring the concentration is low enough from the passage of time that there is no longer a danger from leaking formaldehyde gases.

What I have learnt from this is the following: never sit back and think you are safe. Watch what you are eating. Watch what you are drinking. Women, watch what cosmetics you put on your skin. Be aware of the potential hazards of fire retardant in textiles and noxious substances in building products. All of this can impact the quality of the air you are breathing!

Apr

2016

Healing Powers Of Green Tea

By Ray Schilling | Alzheimer’s disease, Arthritis, autoimmune disease, blood brain barrier, Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, Diabetes, heart attack, Heart Disease, Mortality, Obesity, Stroke, sugar, Weight loss

Powerful catechins that are a special form of bioflavonoids provide the healing powers of green tea. Researchers have proven that these catechins are only in green tea, not so much in black tea. The most effective of several catechins contained in green tea is EGCG, which stands for EpiGalloCatechin-3-Gallate. It crosses the blood/brain barrier and is very important for the protection of the brain from Alzheimer’s disease. But green tea or green tea extract has a diversified pharmacological action. Researchers said that green tea protects you from cardiovascular disease, from obesity, from diabetes, from autoimmune disorders, from cancer, from Alzheimer’s and dementia.

In the following I like to comment on how green tea or its extract can protect from all of these diseases.

Alzheimer’s disease

Although there are 5 or 6 approved anti-Alzheimer’s drugs, none of them work for very long. They may at best postpone the deteriorating memory for 6 months, but then the effect of the drug wears off. The reason is that the drugs do not stop the production of the deadly beta-amyloid. It is the beta-amyloid that damages nerve cells that you want to preserve so you can think and memorize. In contrast a simple phytochemical, the catechin EGCG has been shown in animal experiments and in human trials to stop beta-amyloid production and increase solubility of beta-amyloid fragments in the brain. The end result is better memory and no further deterioration.

Two studies showing less strokes and better working memory processing with green tea

In a study of 13,988 elderly Japanese observed over 3 years the group that consumed 3 to 4 cups of green tea daily had 33% less strokes, cognitive impairment and osteoporosis.

Researchers at the University of Basel, Switzerland enrolled 12 healthy volunteers aged 21 to 28 and fed them extracts of green tea or placebo fluid via feeding tubes. They did this to rule out taste as a factor. The patients underwent functional MRI scans and they also received memory-stimulating tasks. Only the green tea extract was boosting activity in the frontal brain of the subjects. This was located in a specific area, called dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. This area has a connection with language comprehension, reasoning and learning. It also switches short-term memory into long-term memory, called working memory processing.

Healing powers of green tea through new nerve cell development

Researchers showed with animal experiments that green tea extract protects nerve cells from the toxic effect of beta-amyloid. At the same time green tea extract triggers the production of new brain nerve cells (neurons). This is really good news for Alzheimer’s disease patients and their families: green tea extract delays further memory deterioration and stimulates the development of new nerve cells in the brain!

Cardiovascular disease

In a 2006 Japanese study 40,530 Japanese adults aged 40 to 79 years without history of stroke, coronary heart disease, or cancer at baseline were observed for 7 years. Diaries were kept about how many cups of green tea each person was drinking per day. The prevention of heart attacks and strokes was the the biggest effect of green tea extracts.

Men had a mortality reduction of 12% for heart attacks when they drank 5 cups or more of green tea; in women the corresponding mortality reduction for heart attack was 31%, a bigger effect. Overall mortality from strokes was lower than from heart attacks. This made the effect of green tea consumption even more beneficial with respect to stroke prevention. This study did not show any cancer prevention effect for green tea.

Obesity

It appears that green tea increases heat production and burns fat in the process. There was a small effect in terms of weight loss and a beneficial effect increasing the protective HDL cholesterol in this 2012 Polish study on obese patients. The authors compared either 379 mg of green tea extract, or a placebo, daily for 3 months. They concluded: “The results of this study confirm the beneficial effects of green tea extract supplementation on body mass index, lipid profile, and total antioxidant status in patients with obesity.”

Diabetes

Although there are claims in some studies that green tea would prevent diabetes, this question was thoroughly investigated in this Chinese 2014 study.

Researchers did not see any effects on fasting blood sugars or on hemoglobin A1C values. Hemoglobin A1C is a very sensitive indicator for the presence or absence of diabetes. All these lab tests showed no change following consumption of green tea or green tea extract. Forget using green tea for diabetes prevention; cut out sugar and starchy foods instead.

Autoimmune disorders

Sjogren’s syndrome and lupus are both autoimmune diseases. Green tea extract has shown in humans that symptom severity can improve; green tea polyphenols (GTPs) possess anti-inflammatory properties that benefit patients with autoimmune diseases.

In an animal model arthritis researchers determined that T helper cells are weakened and bone resorption is inhibited by EGCG from green tea extract.

Researchers at Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA have noted that green tea extract is useful in calming down the immune response in autoimmune diseases. They concluded: “Altogether, these studies identify and support the use of EGCG as a potential therapeutic agent in preventing and ameliorating T cell-mediated autoimmune diseases.”

Cancer

Many researchers found that EGCG from green tea extract has immune modulatory effects. Furthermore, they saw a positive effect when patients received EGCG in combination with chemotherapy. A combination of cisplatin therapy with green tea extract has been found to have more effects on colorectal cancer and ovarian cancer than each one on its own. Similarly chemotherapy of breast cancer had better results in humans when EGCG from green tea extract was added as an immune modulation. More research, particularly in humans is needed to fully understand the mechanism of action of EGCG.

Toxicity of green tea extract

Animal experiments showed that higher doses of green tea extract could cause toxicity in the liver and in the nose of rats and mice. I was not able to find objective evidence for green tea toxicity in the PubMed system with respect to humans.

Healing Powers Of Green Tea

Conclusion

Perhaps the most important discovery regarding green tea extract is as follows. It crosses easily through the blood/brain barrier into the brain. This can postpone Alzheimer’s disease and can even lead to new neuron formation. The beneficial cardiovascular effects are also useful and combine well with exercise and good nutrition for prevention. Particularly stroke prevention is a useful property of EGCG from green tea extract. The effect on obesity is marginal whereas there was no effect of green tea on prevention of diabetes. The immune modulatory effect of green tea extract is useful in the treatment of autoimmune diseases and of cancer. Existing treatments for these conditions are becoming more effective by adding green tea extract.