Nutrition Archives

Mar

2015

Frail Mitochondrial DNA Equals Frail People

By Ray Schilling | Anti-aging medicine, Hormones, lifestyle, mitochondria, Nutrition, Vitamins and supplements

Introduction

New research on mitochondria has shown that “frail mitochondrial DNA equals frail people”. More specifically, researchers from the McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD found that mitochondrial DNA content varies according to age (less mitochondrial DNA in older age), sex (yes, women have more than men) and mitochondrial DNA even has an inverse relationship to frailty and a direct relationship to life expectancy. The publication of this paper was in February of 2015.

Mitochondria are the powerhouses within each cell and there are between 10 and several thousand mitochondria per cell, depending on what the power needs of a cell type are.

Each mitochondrion has its own mitochondrial DNA contained in 2 to 10 small circular chromosomes that regulate the 37 genes necessary for normal mitochondrial function.

Johns Hopkins University clinical trial regarding frailty

In order to track mitochondrial DNA and its relationship to frailty and old age, the Johns Hopkins University researchers accessed data from two large clinical trials. One study was the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS), which took place between 1989 and 2006. The other one was the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study spanning from 1987 to 2013. Blood tests with determinations of mitochondrial DNA were available from both studies.

In multi ethnic groups it was apparent that mitochondrial DNA content followed the age of a person.

Researchers defined frailty as a person who had aging symptoms including weakness, a lack of energy in comparison to the past, activity levels that were much lower than before and loss of weight. Persons with frailty according to these criteria in the two studies had 9% less mitochondrial DNA than non frail study participants.

Prevention of frailty through early intervention

Another subgroup were white participants. Researchers compared their bottom mitochondrial DNA content to the top mitochondrial DNA content. Frailty was 31% more common in the bottom DNA content group. This means that white people are more prone to frailty and they should take steps early on to prevent this.

Mortality data were also examined and it turned out that those study participants who had the highest level of mitochondrial DNA lived 2.1 years longer on average than those with the lowest level of mitochondrial DNA.

The study also found that women in the two clinical trials had 21% more DNA in their mitochondria on average than men.

Prevention of DNA loss from mitochondria

The study did not suggest any preventative steps against mitochondrial DNA loss. But there is ample evidence in the literature that this can be achieved through supplements that can both help multiply mitochondria as well as stimulate the metabolism of mitochondria. Lifestyle changes are also effective.

I am not supporting the specific brands of supplements mentioned in the Dr. Whitaker link, but find the common sense explanations useful, as they explain what the supplements do.

Frail Mitochondrial DNA Equals Frail People

You may find the scientific data too tedious to delve into. Here is a list that may be of help to you to preserve your health and your vitality:

List to help you preserve your health and vitality

Ubiquinol (=CoQ-10) slows down mitochondrial aging. I take 400 mg per day. CoQ-10 repairs DNA damage to your mitochondria.
Another supplement, 20 mg of PQQ (=Pyrroloquinoline quinone) per day stimulates your healthy mitochondria to multiply. Between the two supplements you will have more energy as optimal mitochondrial function is ensured.
There are simple lifestyle changes you can make: eat less calories as this will stimulate SIRT1 genes, which in turn stimulates your cell metabolism including the mitochondria.

More supplements to help prevent frailty
Resveratrol, the supplement from red grape skin can also stimulate your mitochondria metabolism. Exercise more and regularly as this will also stimulate your mitochondria to multiply similar to the effects of PQQ. I take 500mg of trans-Resveratrol once daily.
Alpha-lipoic acid is an antioxidant that counters the slowdown of mitochondrial metabolism. I recommend 300mg per day.
L-arginine is an amino acid that is a precursor of nitric oxide (NO). I prefer taking NO as the NEO-40 supplement where nitric oxide is directly released into your system. I take 1 lozenge of Neo-40 twice per day.

Reference

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-12/jhm-aom121614.php

Mar

2015

Drink Your Coffee, But…

By Ray Schilling | Arthritis, Cancer, coffee, Diabetes, fractures, heart attack, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, Insomnia, Nutrition, Osteoporosis, Parkinson’s disease, Prevention, Stroke

I have blogged about coffee drinking several times in the past. Coffee consumption and health benefits have become a news item again because of yet another study. The recent media reports are based on a South Korean study that involved 25,138 men and women with a mean age of 41.3 years.

Here I like to concentrate on aspects regarding coffee consumption that are often lost in the media when studies regarding coffee consumption are discussed. I will break it down into points and then conclude at the end with my recommendations.

1. Calcification of coronary arteries and osteoporosis

The South Korean study published online on March 2, 2015 showed that with up to 4 cups of coffee there was a direct linear relationship between consumption of coffee and prevention of heart attacks. Coronary artery calcium (CAC) deposits were measured by a CAT scan as they are known to be a good measure for a future risk of heart attacks. Less than 1 cup of coffee per day resulted in a 23% reduction of CAC in the coronary arteries compared to controls without coffee consumption. 1 to 2 cups of coffee reduced CAC’s (meaning the risk of heart attack rates) by 34%, while 3 to 4 cups prevented CAC’s and thus heart attacks by 41%. The fun stops at 5 cups of coffee per day as only 19% of CAC’s (heart attacks) were saved. Clearly there is something in coffee that shows detrimental effects, if the dosage is too high.

In the past there was a question as to whether coffee consumption would lead to osteoporosis in women. However, a study showed that there was no correlation between coffee consumption and osteoporosis.

Other studies have clarified this and found that vitamin D3 and K2 are important to remove calcium from the arterial wall and transport calcium into the bone and deposit it there. Vitamin D3 and vitamin K2 seem to override all the other nutrients when it comes to osteoporosis prevention. The other factor in older women is hormone deficiency as they age necessitating bioidentical hormone replacement in addition to vitamin K2 and vitamin D3 to prevent osteoporosis.

2. Whether or not you put sugar into your coffee

is an important question. This is routinely done in Germany where I grew up. The addition of sugar changes the entire game plan, as it is sugar that oxidizes LDL cholesterol, which is directly deposited under the arterial walls. This is the root cause of hardening of the arteries. Coffee alone is beneficial; coffee with sugar is not. I use a tiny amount of KAL Stevia (which does not have the bitter aftertaste) instead of sugar to sweeten my coffee. This sweetens it to the equivalent taste of sugar, but without the detrimental oxidizing effect of sugar. Somebody like me who was conditioned to eat sugar from childhood on in Germany has been left with a “sweet tooth”; so I need to have this tiny bit of stevia as a crutch. Purists may disagree with me. Keep in mind that the Korean study was done without sugar.

3. What’s the difference between real and decaffeinated coffee?

The recent study showed that you need to drink the real thing (caffeinated coffee), if you want to reduce your risk to get the dreaded pigmented skin cancer, melanoma. Decaffeinated coffee did not have this melanoma protective effect. This points to the fact that there are several substances in real coffee and decaffeinated coffee that have different effects. Ref. 2 shows that there was a clear reduction in the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in people who drank either coffee, decaffeinated coffee or tea. Unfortunately many studies do not distinguish clearly between caffeinated coffee and decaf coffee.

4. Micronutrient components of coffee

As this link shows there are many micronutrient components in coffee such as caffeine, diterpenes, chlorogenic acids, and melanoidins. There is about 100 mg of caffeine contained in a tall (240 ml) Starbucks cup of coffee. This will stimulate the nervous system and your adrenal glands getting that energy rush.

Diterpenes consisting mainly of cafestol and kahweol are substances that have been found to increase the LDL cholesterol. The fact that we are dealing with a concoction of mostly beneficial, but also some less beneficial micronutrients in coffee is responsible for the lower beneficial effect of 5 cups of coffee mentioned in the South Korean study. Filtered coffee seems to largely remove these undesirable substances.

This link explains more details about the micronutrients in coffee.

5. Clinical conditions that are partially prevented by coffee consumption

The last link mentioned a study where a large group of people were followed and monitored for Parkinson’s disease. Those who had consumed only 1 cup of coffee per day were compared to controls without coffee consumption. This one cup of coffee per day prevented Parkinson’s disease by 40 to 60%. Similarly, in a study that investigated prevention of type 2 diabetes 4 to 6 cups of coffee per day prevented 28% of type 2 diabetes. In postmenopausal women decaf coffee was also significantly effective in reducing the risk to develop diabetes.

The Linus Pauling Institute link summarized that there were several studies that showed that colorectal cancer could be partially prevented by consuming real coffee (4 or more cups), which lowered the risk by 24% compared to non-coffee drinkers. Another study noticed that 1 to 2 cups per day of decaf coffee reduced the risk for colorectal cancer by 48%.

Cirrhosis of the liver, often due to excessive alcohol use can be prevented by 40% when at least 2 cups of coffee were consumed. More astounding than that is that the risk of death from liver cancer can be reduced by 50% when at least 1 cup of coffee was consumed compared to those who never consumed coffee.

However, liver and colon cancer are not the only ones that can be prevented to a large extent by drinking coffee. Breast cancer, prostate cancer, endometrial cancer, uterine cancer, oral cancer, brain cancer and lung cancer can also be significantly prevented by a regular cup of coffee. As there is a risk of increasing miscarriages in pregnant women, it is best not to consume coffee during pregnancy or at the most limit it to one cup per day. Also, nursing mothers should avoid coffee (even decaffeinated coffee) as caffeine gets transmitted into mother’s milk.

People with high blood pressure may be better off to not drink coffee or to drink decaf coffee, because caffeine has been shown to elevate blood pressure substantially.

6. What are the risks of drinking coffee?

Seeing that coffee is an effective drug-like compound with many benefits, it is worthwhile asking the question: what are the side effects of coffee consumption? There are people who are very sensitive to caffeine. They get over stimulated and experience heart palpitations, a lack of sleep and anxiety. They should refrain from coffee. They may even be over sensitive to decaffeinated coffee that still contains about 3% of caffeine. People with rheumatoid arthritis have been shown to deteriorate with coffee consumption, making this another subgroup of people who should stay away from coffee.

7. What is the process of decaffeinating coffee?

Essentially there are 4 processes of decaffeination that have been developed over time. As this link shows, all of the decaffeination processes are done with the green coffee beans. There are two solvent-based processes and two non-solvent based processes. The latter two are the healthiest: the Swiss water process and the carbon dioxide process. The problems with the older solvent-based processes are the chemicals used to extract the caffeine. They can be harmful to the body.

Organic decaffeinated coffees are manufactured with the environment-friendly Swiss water process.

Drink Your Coffee, But…

Conclusion

There are some people who simply are too sensitive to caffeine. They should refrain from drinking coffee. Pregnant women and nursing mothers should either severely reduce coffee consumption to one cup per day or refrain from coffee altogether. Those with high blood pressure and rheumatoid arthritis patients better refrain from drinking coffee as well. The majority of us will benefit from coffee consumption, if this is your taste. You may prefer green tea or Oolong tea instead. As I explained above there is compelling evidence in the literature that many cancers, heart attacks, strokes and diabetes can be partially prevented by regular coffee consumption. Decaffeinated coffee can prevent type 2 diabetes to some extent and colorectal cancer as well. The majority of evidence shows that coffee drinking is healthy. So, go ahead and enjoy!

References:

Ref. 1: Ding, Ming; Bhupathiraju, Shilpa N; Satija, Ambika; van Dam, Rob M; Hu, Frank B. “Long-term coffee consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease: a systematic review and a dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies.” Circulation – February 11, 2014; 129 (6); 643-59.

Ref. 2: Huxley R, Lee CM, Barzi F, Timmermeister L, Czernichow S, Perkovic V, Grobbee DE, Batty D, Woodward M. “Coffee, decaffeinated coffee, and tea consumption in relation to incident type 2 diabetes mellitus: a systematic review with meta-analysis.” Arch. Intern. Med. – December 14, 2009; 169 (22); 2053-63

Feb

2015

A Low Fat Diet is Not Protective Of Heart Attacks

By Ray Schilling | Diabetes, heart attack, Heart Disease, lifestyle, Mortality, Nutrition, Obesity

This article is about the fact that a low fat diet is not protective of heart attacks. The British Medical Journal (BMJ Publishing Group, James J DiNicolantonio) published a critical editorial review regarding the lack of science behind the low fat diet guidelines. The low fat guidelines became law in 1977 in the US and in 1983 in England. The devastating fact was that it was based only on a study of 2467 men (not a single female included) and there was no evidence of lower heart attacks in the low fat diet group when compared to the normal diet control. Yet the guidelines were the cause of the obesity and diabetes epidemic that followed causing heart attacks and strokes. February, the month where we think about heart disease is the appropriate month to discuss the findings of this British Medical Journal article that exposes it all.

No significant difference between control group and low fat diet group

The BMJ Publishing Group re-traced all of the data that were available at the time of the decision in 1977. There were six clinical trials (with randomization) that had a mean duration of 5.4±3.5 years where the researchers compared low fat diets to normal diets. They found that the authorities who wrote the dietary recommendations for a low fat diet should have come to the conclusion that there was no statistical difference between the experimental group and the control group. The summary of the present re-analysis of the studies that were available to the US government in 1977 and to the UK government in 1983 was as follows: “There was no statistically significant relationship between dietary interventions and all-cause mortality.”

The researchers noted that the all cause mortality was identical in the experimental group and the control group (370 deaths in both groups). There was no significant difference of coronary heart disease (CHD) between the low fat diet group and the control group.

Low fat diet recommendations based on false data

There was no statistically significant difference in deaths from CHD (heart attacks). The reductions in mean serum cholesterol levels were significantly higher in the intervention groups; however, this did not result in measurable differences in mortality from CHD or all-cause mortality.

What is troublesome is that the six studies with randomization were the basis of all of these observations. The studies included only 2467 men, but there was not a single woman in the trial. Yet the researchers recommended the diet for both men and women alike.

The authors concluded “It seems incomprehensible that dietary advice was introduced for 220 million Americans and 56 million UK citizens given the contrary results from a small number of unhealthy men”.

Political mistakes introducing low fat diets

Dr. Robert Olson of St Louis University warned Senator George McGovern that the studies did not support the dietary recommendations the Senator was about to announce. To this objection Senator McGovern replied: “Senators don’t have the luxury that the research scientist does of waiting until every last shred of evidence is in”.

There was very good evidence that dietary changes (low fat diet) will not change the rate of heart attacks and strokes. Yet the government committees in the US and in Great Britain did not consider this evidence. Other publications have examined the consequences of replacing saturated fats with carbohydrates in the recommended low fat diets.

Sugar is the problem in low fat diets

The researchers made the following observations regarding low fat diets:

In processed foods low fat diet meant that more sugar was added to bring the saturated fat content down. This has detrimental effects on insulin sensitivity and causes type 2 diabetes on the long-term. In these patients there is an increase of small LDL particles and triglycerides, while there is a reduction of HDL. Blood clot markers increase, weight increases causing obesity. Polyunsaturated fats of the omega-6 type (including oils from corn, soybean, safflower and cottonseed) replaced saturated fats.
However, randomized controlled trials showed the following. When omega-6 polyunsaturated fats (without simultaneously increasing omega-3 fatty acids) replaced trans-fats and saturated fats, there was an increase of death rates from heart attacks and strokes.
The Anti-Coronary Club trial showed that more people died from heart attacks when saturated fat was replaced by polyunsaturated fat.
The reason for the heart attack causing omega-6-fatty acids (from polyunsaturated fats) has been worked out in several research papers between 2006 and 2012 (cited in this link): they cause inflammation, cause cancer, weaken the immune system, lower the protective HDL cholesterol and increase the susceptibility of LDL cholesterol to be oxidized.
When polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-6) replaced saturated fat there was more breast cancer and prostate cancer.

Low fat diets don’t work

This review stated that there was a lack of data that low fat diets help prevent heart attacks and strokes. We have now clinical trials that numbered 347 747 participants. These trials showed that increased fat intake did not cause heart attacks. The Women’s Health Initiative included 48, 835 postmenopausal women. It showed that a low fat diet did not reduce cancer. It also did not prevent heart attacks or strokes. All of this supports what has been summarized before in a critical review regarding “The Oiling of America“.

Low Fat Diet Not Protective Of Heart Attacks

Conclusion

Enjoy saturated fat as it does not cause you harm. Cut out omega-6 fatty acids like oils from corn, soybean, safflower and cottonseed. Use virgin olive oil or coconut oil instead. Take regular supplements of omega-3 fatty acid (marine derived) to balance natural omega-6 fatty acids in turkey or chicken meat. You can eat cheese and enjoy nuts. But in the US buy organic or imported cheeses from Canada or Europe. In Canada and Europe bovine growth hormone is illegal.

It is most important to avoid sugar, honey and high fructose corn syrup. These all oxidize LDL cholesterol, which is the pre-stage for hardening of the arteries. The oxidized LDL cholesterol is part of the plaques of arteries and leads to strokes and heart attacks. This also means that you must avoid all processed foods that contain sugar and high fructose corn syrup (read labels).

It is not that difficult to follow such diet recommendations as my wife and I have done this since 2001. We use stevia to replace sugar for sweetening (no calories, no effect on insulin). Do what’s good for your body!

Feb

2015

Preserve Your Memory

By Ray Schilling | Alzheimer’s disease, Anti-aging medicine, Diabetes, Fitness, Heart Disease, lifestyle, Nutrition, Prevention, Vitamins and supplements

At the 22nd Annual A4M Las Vegas Conference in mid December 2014 Pamela Smith gave a presentation entitled ”How To Preserve Your Memory At Any Age”. She gave a comprehensive overview of what you can do to prevent Alzheimer’s disease. The better we understand the causes of Alzheimer’s the more we can interfere with the biochemical processes that lead to Alzheimer’s or dementia. Various parts of the brain have different functions like pattern recognition, interpreting auditory and visual stimuli and so on. In the past researchers thought that after the brain development it would be stationary until we die. But they have now shown that instead the brain continues to develop even after the teenage years. New brain cells can develop as long as we live and new synapses, the connections between brain cells can form all the time.

A lack of sleep causes insulin levels to rise, which causes a lack of memory. Alzheimer’s disease has been termed diabetes type 3 because of this close connection of memory loss and uncontrolled blood sugar levels. In fact diabetics are three times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

Subunits of the brain and neurotransmitters

There are several subunits of the brain like the hypothalamus, thalamus, hippocampus and the amygdalae, which are important for normal brain function and memory. The hippocampus in particular is a major memory-processing unit, which indexes, constructs and rearranges memories.

Apart from the anatomy of the brain, neurotransmitters are important for the proper functioning of the various parts. Although there are more than 100 of them the most important neurotransmitters are acetylcholine, GABA, glutamate, dopamine and serotonin. Each of these neurotransmitters binds to only one specific receptor before a neuron sends a signal to the next. There is a decline in the speed of neurotransmission with age and also a memory decline. Compared to the memory in a young person a person at the age of 75 has a decline in memory function of about 40%.

Why do people experience memory decline?

Apart from genetic predisposition the majority of people who come down with Alzheimer’s disease do so because of neglecting the body and their brain. Neglecting elevated blood pressure by not treating it properly with medication will lead to vascular dementia. As already mentioned earlier hyperinsulinemia (too much insulin in the blood) from obesity, untreated type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome is another mechanism.

There is an association of lack of exercise with a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s, so is insomnia and a lack of sleep (less than 7 hours per night). With aging there is often poor nutrition, lack of absorption of nutrients, inflammatory bowel conditions with poor absorption of nutrients and body inflammation. A significant portion of the population is deficient for various enzymes in the methylation pathway, which can lead to high homocysteine levels and the danger of premature heart attacks and vascular dementia. Psychological health also affects memory loss, as do depression and anxiety. Toxins like heavy metals, fuels, pesticides, solvents and fluoride can over time lead to memory loss and Alzheimer’s as well.

Lifestyle habits and Alzheimer’s

There are many lifestyles that cause memory loss: too much stress (from high cortisol levels that damage the hippocampus); smoking that damages acetylcholine receptors; chronic alcohol abuse leads to memory problems from the toxic effect of alcohol on brain cells, which in turn causes a disbalance of serotonin, endorphins and acetylcholine in the hippocampus.

Lack of exercise is an independent risk factor for the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Exercise increases the blood supply of the brain, strengthens neural connections and leads to growth of neurons, the basic building blocks of the brain. Mood-regulating neurotransmitters are increased (serotonin, endorphins).

Sleep deprivation leads to memory loss, but so does the use of aspartame, the artificial sweetener of diet sodas.

Sugar consumption and too much pasta (which gets metabolized within 30 minutes into sugar) causes oxidization of LDL cholesterol and plaque formation of all the blood vessels including the ones going to the brain. On the long-term this causes memory loss due to a lack of nutrients and oxygen flowing into the brain.

Hormone changes

A lack of testosterone in men and estrogen in women interferes with cognition and memory. For this reason it is important after menopause and andropause (=the male menopause) to replace what is missing with the help of a knowledgeable health professional.

Too much DHEA from stress can decrease memory, but too little DHEA from aging can also do this. Alzheimer’s patients have DHEA levels that are 48% lower than men and women of the same age who have normal memories. Pregnenolone is a precursor of DHEA, estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. Dr. Smith called pregnenolone the “hormone of memory in the body”. At an age of 75 most people have a 65% lower level of pregnenolone than a persons in the mid 30’s. Pregnenolone keeps your brain balanced between excitation and inhibition, helps you to cope with stress and gives you energy.

Ask for input by hormone specialist

But before you consider supplementing with a pregnenolone hormone level, this should be ordered by a knowledgeable health professional. Dosing can be tricky as too much pregnenolone can result in too much DHEA, estrogen, progesterone or testosterone.

Progesterone is manufactured inside the brain, spinal cord and nerves from its precursor, pregnenolone, but in women it also comes from the ovaries until the point of menopause. Progesterone is needed in the production of the myelin sheaths of nerves and it has a neuroprotective function. In menopausal women bioidentical progesterone is a part of Alzheimer’s prevention.

Melatonin is a hormone, a powerful antioxidant and a neurotransmitter at the same time. It helps in the initiation of sleep, stimulates the immune system and protects from the toxic effects of cobalt, which has been found to be high in Alzheimer’s patients.

Other factors contributing to Alzheimer’s

Any inflammatory condition can trigger destruction of neurons, so do the beta-amyloid proteins associated with Alzheimer’s. Contributory factors can be food allergies, disbalance of gut bacteria, recreational drugs (particularly ecstasy) and certain medications. Dr. Smith stated that the most common foods causing allergies that affect the brain are: sugar, wheat, dairy, eggs, shellfish, potatoes, beef, tomatoes, corn, coffee, peanuts, roasted soy beans and yeast.

Dr. Smith mentioned that these medications can affect memory: statins, sedatives, steroids, levodopa, muscle relaxants; antihypertensive drugs, antidepressants, antibiotics, anticonvulsants, anti-arrhythmic drugs, pain relieving drugs (analgesics) and antihistamines. If you are on any of these, you may want to discuss alternatives with your doctor. Dr. Perlmutter mentioned in Ref. 1 that statins interfere with brain function and can lead to Alzheimer’s.

Promoting brain health

Medication helps only to stall further memory loss for up to 6 months, so Dr. Smith said about medications only: “much research is still needed in this area”.

On the other hand she stated that many foods, vitamins and supplements in combination could improve memory and prevent the development of Alzheimer’s disease. She spent considerable time in the remainder of her talk on details regarding foods, vitamins and supplements.

Dr. Smith said that we need to eat foods that are rich in antioxidants like blueberries, apples, raspberries, blackberries and strawberries; cherries, cranberries, cooked kale, garlic, grapes, prunes, raisins and raw spinach. But at the same time she stressed that we cannot trust the food industry anymore, and we need to buy organic foods. She gave an example of the “dirty dozen” as defined by the environmental working group (contaminated fruits and vegetables).

Food intake also applies to portions:eat 5 to 6 smaller meals per day. Consume red meat only three times per week.

The brain needs fats like nuts and seeds: walnuts, almonds, pine nuts etc.

Fish also contains healthy omega-3 fatty acids and DHA. The problem with predator fish like tuna or swordfish is that they are contaminated with mercury. But wild salmon and mackerel are still OK. A good alternative is to supplement with pharmaceutical grade EPA/DHA omega-3 capsules. They are molecularly distilled, which means they are not contaminated with mercury or PBC’s and they are more concentrated; they typically contain 1000 to 1400 mg of EPA/DHA per capsule. One to two capsules twice per day (a total of 2 to 4 per day) would be a good anti-inflammatory dose.

Specific food recommendations

Use olive oil and coconut oil for cooking; avoid the omega-6 oils (safflower oil, grape seed oil, sunflower oil, corn oil to just mention a few). These latter oils, which are heavily advertised by the food industry, create too much arachidonic acid leading to body inflammation. Your brain is very sensitive to inflammation, which causes Alzheimer’s. For the same reason avoid deep fried foods and processed foods.

There is more you need to watch for: no food additives, no artificial food colorings, no preservatives, flavors and MSG. Be alert about the food industry’s alternative “language” or terminology for MSG: “natural flavor”, “yeast extract” etc.

Preserve Your Memory

Brain nutrients

Dr. Smith reviewed a long list of brain nutrients that support the brain in its metabolism and prevent the development of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

I will only highlight the most effective and established nutrients here.

DHA: It has been known since 1999 that Alzheimer’s patients are missing DHA in their system. Molecularly distilled fish oil with high omega-3 fatty acids (both EPA and DHA) is one of the mainstays of prevention of inflammation in the body and the brain. 2 capsules twice per day of the concentrated 1000mg to 1400 mg capsules is desirable to prevent Alzheimer’s disease.

Phosphatylserine (PS): This phospholipid is part of the membrane of brain cells and controls what nutrients enter into them. It also increases the neurotransmitters acetylcholine, serotonin, norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine. Dr. Smith mentioned that PS is naturally present in foods like brown rice, fish, soy and green vegetables (particularly the leafy ones). The daily dosage recommended by Dr. Smith is 300 mg (note: some people develop a bothersome, but harmless bitter taste in the mouth at this dose; in this case take a lower dose like 100 or 200 mg per day).

Other supplements like Ginkgo biloba, alpha lipoic acid and others

Ginkgo Biloba: It improves blood flow to the brain and counteracts shrinkage of the hippocampus with age. Dr. Smith recommends 60 mg to 240 mg daily.

Alpha Lipoic Acid: Alpha lipoic acid is an antioxidant, helps stimulating the sprouting of new nerve cells and nerve fibers. Take 100 mg of alpha lipoic acid daily for memory.

Dr. Smith recommended many other supplements, which I will not explain in detail here: B vitamins, vitamin E and C, carnosine, acetyl-L-carnitine, boron, ginger, coenzyme Q-10 (or CoQ-10), curcumin, vinpocetine, zinc, grape seed extract, blueberry extract, Ashwaganda, glyceryl-phosphoryl-choline, SAMe, huperzine A and DMAE.

Dr. Smith discussed the benefits of CoQ-10 supplementation and reminded the audience that “whatever is good for the heart, is good for the brain”. She recommended to read Dr. Perlmutter’s book from which this phrase was borrowed (Ref. 1).

Genetic factors

Dr. Smith pointed out that there are about 5 genes that have been detected that are associated with Alzheimer’s disease and in addition the apolipoprotein E4 (APOE4). About 30% of people carry this gene, yet only about 10% get Alzheimer’s disease. This shows you how important lifestyle factors are. Physicians call this epigenetic factors. The can suppress the effect of the APOE4 gene. She also stated that our genes contribute only about 20% to the overall risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. This leaves us with 80% of Alzheimer’s cases where we can use the brain nutrients discussed above and exercise to improve brain function.

Conclusion

Don’t wait for Big Pharma to develop a magic pill. Follow the simple steps in combination that Dr. Pamela Smith talked about in her presentation: Exercise, have organic food to keep toxins out of your body and brain, replace missing hormones with bioidentical ones and take supplements that are known to be effective (link for male menopause). In other words provide the right environment for your genes to work properly without getting Alzheimer’s disease.

Reference

1. David Perlmutter, MD: “Grain Brain. The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs, And Sugar-Your Brain’s Silent Killers.” Little, Brown and Company, New York, 2013.

Jan

2015

Telomere Length A Telltale Sign Of Aging

By Ray Schilling | Alzheimer’s disease, Anti-aging medicine, Arthritis, Autism, Cancer, Diabetes, Fitness, heart attack, Nutrition, Osteoporosis, telomeres, Vitamins and supplements

Dr. Sandy Chang gave a talk at the 22^nd Annual World Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine in Las Vegas Dec. 10-14, 2014 entitled “Telomere measurement as a diagnostic Test in cardiovascular and Age-related disease”, but a shorter title would be “telomere length a telltale sign of aging” (my choosing).

Dr. Chang pointed out that it is now well established that telomere length is directly related to health. The shorter the telomeres are the higher the probability to get the following: early menopause, infertility, diabetes, wrinkles, arthritis, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, dementia, cancer, stress and a lack of stem cells. In this BMJ study from 2014 it was shown on a large population basis that shorter white blood cell telomeres lead to a higher risk of coronary heart disease causing heart attacks. Decreased telomere length is also associated with the development of breast cancer, cancer of the ovary and uterus, cancer of the prostate and skin cancer.

Because of these connections it makes sense to determine a person’s telomere length. If it is short, do check-ups more often to detect any cancer early when it can still be treated.

Telomere length measurements are now done in many infertility clinics as short telomeres both in the male and female is associated with infertility.

The newest finding and perhaps the most important is that a healthy lifestyle, vitamins and supplements can elongate telomeres while a poor lifestyle leads to shortening of telomeres.

Here are the factors that lead to shortening of telomeres:

– Chronic stress

– Poor diet and nutritional habits

– Chronic inflammatory diseases

– Metabolic disorders

– Lack of consistent exercise/sedentary lifestyle

– Obesity, high BMI and body fat

– Smoking

– Over consumption of alcohol

– Lack of sleep / insomnia

When short telomeres are detected, it is important for the physician to look at lifestyle changes to protect telomeres from decreasing their length even further. This has the potential of preventing dementia and Alzheimer’s when it comes to brain health. It can prevent osteoporosis and metabolic diseases (diabetes, metabolic syndrome). Telomerase is the buzzword today, which is an enzyme that all of our cells have. The purpose why we have telomerase in our cells seems to be helping us build up and repair telomeres. Any substance that preserves telomerase or prevents the breakdown of telomerase will prevent shortening of telomeres and will also prevent the above-mentioned diseases.

These supplements lead to lengthening of telomeres:

-Vitamin C and E

-Omega-3 and polyphenols

-Vitamin A and D3

-All of these help controlling oxidative stress, reduce DNA damage, reduce inflammation and build up telomere length.

-A good diet and nutrition (Mediterranean type diet) will prevent telomere shortening as well and also lead to telomere lengthening.

-T-65, an extract from astragalus has been shown in vitro to lengthen telomeres, but there is no publication yet about in vivo effects in humans.

-Resveratrol is useful to prevent shortening of telomeres as well.

-Exercise also is a simple means to prevent telomere shortening.

Telomere Length A Telltale Sign Of Aging

Another talk on telomeres was given by Dr. Harvey Bartnof with the title “Telomere Shortening and Modulation: Case Studies From The Clinic”.

This talk was a comprehensive review of what is known about telomeres, about the fact that many diseases are due to telomere shortening, about animal experiments, ways of how to lengthen telomeres and finally some data on human studies with regard to telomere lengthening.

In the following I will briefly review all of these areas that were discussed. Some of this material overlaps with Dr. Chang’s lecture.

What produces telomere shortening? Dr. Bartnof showed 4 slides that listed all of the conditions and diseases that are associated with telomere shortening. Telomere shortening is associated with twice the risk to die from a heart attack when compared to people with normal telomeres.

a) Known genetic conditions in humans associated with telomere shortening

There are three known genetic conditions due to telomere shortening: A premature aging syndrome, called dyskeratosis congenitalis; patients with this condition die prematurely from cancer, or from bone marrow failure.

People with Werner syndrome who have a genetic telomere loss have a mean life expectancy of only 54 years.

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is another genetic condition with shortened telomeres due to mutations.

b) Telomere shortening associated with these health conditions

Professor Elizabeth Blackburn, PhD who is one of the three researchers who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine for their work on telomeres in 2009 stated the following: “Telomere shortness is associated with just about all the major diseases of aging… from cardiovascular disease, death from cardiovascular disease, risks of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, diabetes risks such as insulin resistance, vascular dementia, to osteoarthritis.”

An enormous amount of clinical investigations have been done since in cohort groups like people with diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and cancer.

There is natural shortening of telomeres due to the aging process. When we compare telomere length of body cells of a 20-year old and call this 100%, the telomeres of a 100-year old person are on average only 40%. A study from the Karolinska Institute found in a group of matching twins where one twin had shortened telomeres, this twin had a 2.8 times greater risk of death than the twin with normal telomere length.

However, as already mentioned a number of other factors can lead to shorter telomeres like chronic stress in workers who look after Alzheimer patients, being of the Caucasian race (compared to African-American), having had less education, chronic unemployment, depression, pessimism, single people versus married people, phobic anxiety in women and hostility in men, poor sleep and too little sleep, migraine headaches in women, low physical activity, smoking cigarettes and alcohol consumption. The list does not stop here. Other conditions are associated with telomere shortening like heroin abuse, exposure to smog, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and lead, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancers, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, cirrhosis of the liver, inflammatory bowel disease, chronic obstructive lung disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, chronic kidney disease and disability in the elderly.

c) Effects of medications on telomere length

Antidepressants used against depression have a telomere lengthening effect, but NSAID’s, aspirin and interferon-alpha shorten telomeres. Other telomere shortening effects come from cancer chemotherapy.

d) Telomerase activation elongates telomeres

Successful experiments in various mouse strains showed that special strains that were telomerase deficient, could be reconstituted to normal by reinserting telomerase: atrophied organs regrew back to normal size and function. In humans it was shown that increased physical activity elongated telomeres, so did vitamin C, E and vitamin D3 supplementation, resveratrol, a Mediterranean diet, marine omega-3 fatty acid supplementation, higher fiber intake, bioidentical estrogen in women and testosterone in men, relaxation techniques like yoga and meditation. The Astragalus-derived telomerase activator TA-65 has been shown in animal experiments to elongate telomeres. The human data about TA-65 is still spotty or not available (it is also very expensive and may be unnecessary given the fact that so many other agents are known to lengthen telomeres).

e) Human data on telomere lengthening

Much can be achieved by changing one’s lifestyle: cut out toxins like cigarette smoking and alcohol abuse. Get involved in a regular exercise program, which has been shown to increase HDL cholesterol and to elongate telomeres. Adopt a Mediterranean type diet including olive oil; take vitamin E, D, C and supplements with resveratrol and murine omega-3 fatty acids, all of which elongate telomeres. Get enough sleep (7 to 8 hours per night) and do yoga and meditation. Avoid distress and tone down your stress level to eustress (normal stress level associated with every day living). An older person should use bioidentical hormones to replace missing hormones. All of this taken together will create a milieu in your body where telomeres get elongated and you live longer without disease. Several clinical conditions were mentioned where baseline telomere length was assessed initially and was found to be too short; simple lifestyle changes were then initiated, which were able to improve telomere length and treat these diseases successfully. In addition TA-65 (also termed T-65) was given in some of these cases, but in a subsequent discussion Dr. Bartnof admitted that he could not comment on how effective TA-65 by itself was as it was only one component of many other effective telomerase stimulators given. Till further research is out on this substance, it may be just very costly without spectacular benefits on its own.

Conclusion

I gave a summary of the talks by Dr. Chang and Dr. Bartnof regarding telomeres, but these were not the only talks about telomeres, although quite representative for the others. Both speakers pointed out how powerful lifestyle is for our body functions as this is what lengthens our telomeres and allows us to live longer, disease-free lives. Stem cells also have telomeres, but they are on average longer than the rest of the body cells (called somatic dells). An improved lifestyle will keep our stem cells in good shape, so they are there when needed to replace aging somatic cells.

The new logic of a healthy lifestyle is:

A healthy lifestyle causes healthy telomeres of somatic cells and of stem cells; this causes health until a ripe old age. In the next few weeks I will blog about more topics from the 22^nd Anti-Aging Conference in Las Vegas. Stay tuned.

Jan

2015

Lifestyle Has Profound Changes On Our System

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, Diabetes, Fitness, Health, Heart Disease, lifestyle, Nutrition, Obesity

Dr. David Katz delivered a keynote address where he said that lifestyle has profound changes on our system. This took place at the 22^nd Annual World Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine in Las Vegas Dec. 10-14, 2014. His talk was entitled “Integrative Medicine: A Bridge Over Healthcare’s Troubled Waters”.

He started the 1 hour talk with showing a slide of six blind men and the elephant. The conclusion was that each of the blind men saw only one aspect of the elephant, but no one saw the true elephant. With healthcare it is a bit like that.

Causes of death

Dr. McGinnis et al. in 1993 published the “Actual causes of death in the United States”.

Ten factors were responsible for chronic disease, but the first three things on McGinnis list were the most important ones: tobacco use, diet and lack of exercise.

Mokdad in 2004 noted that the revised list of “Actual causes of death in the United States”: tobacco was no longer number one.

Effect of healthy lifestyle

Ford et al. in 2009 stated: “Healthy living is the best revenge…Nutrition-Potsdam study”

Although there is no magic pill for reducing disease, lifestyle is exactly “the magic pill” that reduces mortality by almost 80%.

Fastforward to 2014: Akkeson et al. came to the same conclusion when examining what would be able to prevent heart attacks. They stated that LIFESTYLE is what matters.

We live in the “epigenetic age: dinner is destiny!” With this Dr. Katz meant to say that our genes get switched on and off depending on what we put into our mouths. This determines whether we live shorter or longer lives.

He went on to say: “Feet (exercise), forks (diet), fingers (cigarettes) are what matters.” Oncogenes can get turned off in prostate cancer with the help of exercise, the right food intake and quitting to smoke.

Food addiction and obesity

Dr. Katz mentioned the book by Michael Moss “Salt, sugar, fat”, which made it to the cover story of Time Magazine in 2013. In it is described how the food industry employs PhD’s to include agents in processed foods to ensure that consumers get addicted to the food products. Food addiction leads to obesity; the CDC statistics show that it is effective! We have put up with this for far too long. There are differences of obesity rates between countries, here Canadian and US statistics shown.

Dr. Katz asked the audience to raise up their hands, if they had a person close to them die of cancer, a heart attack or a stroke. Almost all of the more than 500 participants in the Hall raised their hands.

Lifestyle Has Profound Changes On Our System

Children education programs

So what is the ONE thing that can fix everything? He answered this rhetoric question by saying that there is no one thing that fixes everything. But we can start at a young age by educating our children. Dr. Katz has started a program for school kids called “ABC for fitness for kids” to prevent obesity. The program teaches children healthful food choices. Dr. Katz commented that a website, NuVal uses a nutritional value rating system to monitor food quality and manufacturers have improved the content of their products because the composition of their products were displayed on that website. We need to be vigilant and read labels.

Change one thing at a time

But we can only change one thing at a time, like we walk one step at a time on a spiral staircase to get to the next floor. We ask ourselves about our lifestyle: what is the first thing to fix? We fix this point (like exercise more), then we fix the second (adopt a Mediterranean diet), the third (take specific vitamins and supplements) and so on; in other words we approach one thing at a time. Integrative medicine, the fusion of conventional and non-conventional medicine, can help to solve problems one step at a time.

Effect of CoQ10

Despite a bias in the North American medical literature saying that CoQ10 was “useless”, the European Heart Journal reported in 2013 that CoQ10 decreases all-cause-mortality in patients with heart disease. Here is a link to a more recent article (Dec. 2014) regarding a two year trial with congestive heart failure patients taking only 100 mg of CoQ-10 three times daily that found that all-cause-mortality was reduced significantly.

Blue zones

There is a new wave going around the United States: It is the idea to copy the lifestyle of the blue zones around the world. Blue zones are areas in the world where the life expectancy is 100 years or more. This link leads you to a information about blue zones that is worth watching.

It explains how Blue Zones are being established all around America. Dr. Katz explained that lifestyle is the medicine and the environment is the spoon. In Blue Zones the environment is such that people who live long, healthy lives influence you positively. They spoon it to you non-verbally by their example. Organic vegetables in stores are cheaper in Blue Zones, so it is easier to eat more of them; people socialize more with each other, they exercise more and dance. This is what people do who live longer than 100 years. In other words, you change the culture, you change your lifestyle, you exercise more, you stop smoking, you eat healthy and you live longer.

You must decide on which pathway to go

Dr. Katz ended his lecture with the image of you walking along and coming to a fork. To go further you must decide to go on the pathway to your right or on the pathway to the left. You turn on the right pathway by deciding to adopt the principles of the Blue Zones; you make the decision to want to turn older than 100 years and keep your vitality until it is time for you to pass on. In the meantime you enjoy every day, you are not disabled and your mind and body stay healthy. The other pathway was the one that the majority of the industrialized Western nations has taken in the last few decades. Which path will it be that you decide to take?

Conclusion

At the conference Dr Katz and a number of other speakers pointed out how powerful lifestyle is for our body functions. Other speakers stressed the importance of telomeres, the caps of the chromosomes, which comprise the end of the double stranded DNA. With every cell division our telomeres shorten. Stem cells also have telomeres, but they are on average longer than the somatic dells. It probably is like this to be able for stem cells to replace the aging somatic cells.

There is a new logic of a healthy lifestyle is. It says that a healthy lifestyle causes healthy telomeres of somatic cells and of stem cells. This causes health until a ripe old age. I will be blogging about some of the other key talks of the conference in the near future to clarify this point further.

Dec

2014

Regrets Following Holiday Foods

By Ray Schilling | Abdominal Pain, Angina, gout, heart attack, High Blood Pressure, Nutrition

Countless blogs have been written about gaining pounds with holiday food. This is not my topic in this blog. I am looking at the medical evidence of what is happening to our bodies, some of which is permanent. I like to focus on the gallbladder, blood pressure, heart function and gout. I will provide little clinical vignettes that make my points clear.

Gallbladder disease

Many patients are unaware that their gallbladder has developed stones that accumulate over several years, perhaps even several decades. But, if infection sets in there is an acute flare-up of gallbladder pain, which can be excruciating. Also, when one of the stones is transported into the gallbladder duct, there is a sudden colicky pain similar to labor pains. In cases where the migrating stone blocks the common bile duct, the patient can get jaundiced and the pancreatic juice can get backed up leading to an acute pancreatitis.

What does that have to do with overindulging during a Thanksgiving meal? Fatty sauces, ham, and gravy can all lead to more cholesterol deposits in the gallbladder and make stones larger. Add to this a rich dessert with ice cream and a dollop of whipped cream and you’ve got yourself a fairly fatty feast. So, this one fatty meal can make a difference by bringing on symptoms of a previously undiagnosed condition, and you spend hours in an emergency room of a hospital.

The scenario could look like this case:

Fred is a 40-year-old teacher, somewhat overweight who enjoyed a holiday meal at his parent’s place for Thanksgiving. His health has been good with no surgeries. Following the turkey dinner, which he enjoyed he noticed right upper abdominal pain, and he started to vomit. As the pain did not improve, his parents called an ambulance that brought him to a hospital. The emergency physician said that he was concerned about Fred’s gallbladder. He ordered a CT scan and this showed multiple stones with one of the stones being stuck in the cystic duct. Despite pain medication and bed rest the situation did not resolve (the stone did not pass). A surgeon was called in and a laparoscopic cholecystectomy was performed. Fred recovered within only 3 days and could return to teaching. The fatty food of the Thanksgiving dinner was only the tip of the iceberg in this case. The fact that there have been many pre-existing gallbladder stones tells us that this patient had the chronic habit to eat foods with too much fat and cholesterol.

High blood pressure

Extra salt intake leads to an elevation of blood pressure. If a person has borderline high blood pressure, the extra salt intake from holiday meals can get the blood pressure out of control and this in turn can cause a stroke (typically a hemorrhagic stroke) or is a strain to the heart leading to a heart attack or to congestive heart failure.

Janice is a 50-year-old janitor who has had problems with borderline high blood pressure readings. Normally her blood pressure was 140 over 90, and when she watched her salt intake it would go down to 125 over 80. She bought a blood pressure monitoring device, just so she could measure her own blood pressure at home. Following the Thanksgiving turkey dinner she noticed that she developed fullness in her head and a headache and her face looked flushed. She took her blood pressure with a reading of 160 over 100. It had never been that high. When she saw her doctor he asked her what she had for Thanksgiving dinner: they sat together with friends and had potato chips with dip and drank some red wine with it. Next for the meal she enjoyed the roasted, brined turkey and ham. Yes, she did add some more salt to the mashed potatoes too.

The doctor found her blood pressure to be 165 over 100. He explained to her that she needs to go on a DASH diet, which is low in salt. He also started her on blood pressure pills. Here is another link for a low salt diet.

Heart attack following turkey dinner

When working as an intern in teaching hospitals of McMaster University of Hamilton/Ont. during my training in 1975 to 1978 I noticed a strange correlation between holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas and intensive care unit admissions with acute heart attacks. Later a formal study was published that there is indeed such a correlation between consuming a big meal with fat, salt and refined carbohydrates and the development of a heart attack.

This likely does not develop without prior silent conditions of high triglycerides, high cholesterol and insulin resistance leading to inflammatory substances circulating in the blood. The C-reactive protein is one of the substances that has emerged as a useful monitoring device and a fasting insulin level. Both should be low or the person is at a higher risk of developing a heart attack.

Add to this a festive, large meal and you got troubles at your hand like in the next case:

Joan is a 62-year-old high school principal who developed chest pain within 2 hours of having enjoyed her Christmas dinner. She was known to have high cholesterol levels for about 5 years and she had been taking statins for 4 years as diet alone could not control it. But she loved food in general and was about 20 pounds overweight. The doctor had discussed exercise with her, but she felt too busy doing other things. Now all of this came back to her as she was recovering in a hospital bed from an emergency stent procedure. They had to insert two stents to overcome narrowing of the coronary arteries. She was now pain free and felt that she needed to do something about her lifestyle. She would see a dietician and record her weights daily. She wanted to loose 20 pounds and yes, she wanted to start mild exercise when her doctor allowed it and gradually build it up to a maintenance program.

Regrets Following Holiday Foods (Gout Patient)

Gout attack following rich meal

It is known since the Middle Ages that feasting on a large meal of beef combined with lots of beer or wine can cause a gout attack. Gout at this time was known as a disease of the affluent. The poor obviously could not afford big feasts. Today we know that purines are the end product of meats and this gets excreted in the kidneys. However, alcohol prevents the purines to be excreted in the urine so that uric acid levels exceed a certain limit beyond which uric acid crystals are precipitated in soft tissues like around joints, which is very painful.

The following case will illustrate this:

Carl, a 45-year-old sales person suddenly developed excruciating pain and swelling in his left big toe. He went to the emergency room of the closest hospital. After some tests he was told that he had come down with acute gout. His blood tests showed a high uric acid level and biopsy samples from the left toes also revealed uric acid crystals. With the help of colchicine and allopurinol things turned back to normal within 3 days.

The gout episode occurred just 4 hours after his holiday meal consisting of a few beers and copious amounts of turkey meat. He also seems to be addicted to soft drinks which are sweetened with high fructose corn syrup which he consumes freely all day long.

It is known that sugar from soft drinks make a person 85% more prone to develop gout than a person who uses diet drinks or water.

Here is a diet sheet for Carl to prevent his next gout attack.

Conclusion

Who would have thought in the past that food could be a dangerous substance with the potential of making us sick? But this is exactly what I wanted to point out in this blog. Of course, it does not stop at holidays where we tend to eat more of what we normally eat. It pays dividends watching what we consume even in the days between feasts. For instance a DASH diet is a good idea for those of us who may have developed borderline high blood pressure. Avoiding excessive red meat is a good idea for prevention of heart attacks and strokes, as your cholesterol stays lower. Avoiding soft drinks with sugar and fructose is good prevention for avoiding obesity, cancer, heart attacks and strokes. Get the greens going (vegetables, salads etc.) to live longer without disabilities.

Last edited Dec. 6, 2014

Nov

2014

Gluten Intolerance Or Food Sensitivities?

By Ray Schilling | heart attack, Nutrition, Prevention, Skin Disorders, Stroke

A report about gluten free food is circulating in the media based on this publication. It points out that gluten-free food is not as healthy as the companies want you to believe it to be.

Wheat is the source of gluten, so rice, potato, corn and sugar are used to replace wheat. Corn is deficient in niacin leading to B3 deficiency; and the amino acids lysine and tryptophan (missing in corn) are needed for production of serotonin in the brain, which prevents you from getting depressed.

The reference cited above points out that rice can be contaminated with arsenic, which is a toxin.

Gluten-free food is a special form of processed food. Any processed food is not as good as natural food that you buy from the periphery of the grocery store.

So, what do we know about gluten sensitivity?

Causes of increased diagnosis of gluten sensitivity

Only 1% of people are gluten sensitive at this point. Just 30 years ago this number was 0.025%. 10 years ago 0.04% of people were thought to have gluten sensitivity. The difference may be due to improved sensitivity of the testing methods. But another factor is the new wheat, called Clearfield wheat, which was obtained through chemically forced hybridization of wheat resulting in significant genetic modifications from the original wheat. This type of wheat is now grown all over the world. As I explain in this blog Clearfield wheat has a significantly higher percentage of gluten, which likely contributes to the increased gluten sensitivity in the population at large and particularly among patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Irritable bowel syndrome and other food sensitivities

According to Ref. 1 among patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) 4 to 5% have true gluten intolerance (celiac disease). In the general population (without IBS) the gluten sensitivity percentage is less than ¼ of that. On the other hand lactose intolerance in the US is found in 25% of all adults and in 35% to 45% of IBS patients. Another common food sensitivity is fructose and sorbitol intolerance, which occurs in about 40% of patients with IBS and about the same percentage in non-IBS controls. This means that if you leave out sorbitol and fructose, about 40% of people will find relief from abdominal cramps or bloating. A common item that people chew on, according to Ref.1 is sorbitol-containing chewing gum. If this type of chewing gum is eliminated, 40% of people will feel better in their gut. So, keep in mind that the majority of people with food sensitivities do not have gluten sensitivity, but lactose intolerance and allergies to fructose and sorbitol.

Other manifestations of celiac disease

Celiac disease is not only a disease that manifests itself in a skin rash (as originally described in celiac patients). It is responsible for a significant amount of ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity syndrome) or ADD (attention deficit syndrome) and can even cause Parkinson’s disease. It stands to reason that these conditions can be improved with an appropriate diet.

Gluten Intolerance Or Food Sensitivities?

Gluten-free foods often contain problematic replacements

When you go to a grocery store or health food store and look at their gluten free shelves, they offer you an array of products like gluten-free bread and bakery items, cereals, cookies, pastas and many other processed foods. As explained above wheat is the main source of gluten and when you replace it, the substitutes are rice, tapioca starch, quinoa, potato, corn and sugar. We already pointed out some deficiencies of corn. There are also concerns of toxicities as in rice, particularly if it comes from imported material (arsenic). As the majority of people with food sensitivities are allergic to milk sugar (lactose), fructose and sorbitol, these items have to be screened carefully by reading all of the details on the food labels of the products. If you suspect other food allergies, see your primary care physician doctor for testing to these allergens and also have several of the gluten sensitivity tests done. If the gluten sensitivity tests are all negative, you only need to pay attention to milk sugar, fructose and sorbitol, particularly, if you have been diagnosed with IBS.

Hidden sugar and starch content of gluten-free food

What has not been mentioned so far is the sugar and starch content, which eventually leads to higher calories. Sugar is easy to spot on the food label as this is usually listed clearly. I stopped buying dark chocolate, even the 85% variety as they are selling me 10 grams of sugar in a 40 gram helping (25% of sugar). All the health benefits are no longer applicable when you consume that much sugar with a supposedly healthy food item. So add up the sugar you are getting and add up the calories you are seeing listed. Usually, if the sugar content is high, the calories are high.

As an example, when you research on Google regarding gluten-free corn chips, the food content of a typical product is listed as follows: 12 chips (28 g) contain 0 g glucose, 7 g fat, 14 g carbohydrate, 4 g protein, 100 mg sodium and 250 mg of potassium. It also lists that the total calories are 140, of which fat contributed to it 60 calories. 78% of the 80 calories left (namely 62.4 calories) came from the carbohydrate (starch in corn) and 22% of the remaining calories were protein derived (this I had to calculate). As the stomach digests the corn chips within half an hour into sugar, you really have eaten 62.4 calories from sugar. The Internet tells you that 2.3 g of sugar from a sugar cube are the equivalent of 9 calories. Our “sugar math” can be completed by doing this: 62.4 / 9 x 2.3 g = 15.94 or 16 grams of sugar. So, the food industry actually lied to you by saying that there was 0 g sugar in the 12 corn chips. What happened is that your body digested the 14 grams of carbohydrates and converted it into sugar, which was absorbed into your blood stream. Your pancreas could tell you a story, because it had to produce insulin to keep your blood sugar level in balance!

You may wonder how I solved the dark chocolate problem, which by the way would double as a gluten-free food: You buy 100 % unsweetened Baker’s chocolate (0 g sugar on the label) and liquefy it in a little bowl in a pot with hot water. Add a tiny bit of stevia sweetener and add a tiny bit of vanilla extract into the well-stirred chocolate liquid. Prepare a form out of aluminum foil with a rim. Pour the content carefully into this (watch it, hot!) and let it sit to cool down. When it is at room temperature, cut into smaller pieces, which you keep in a glass jar. This is 100% gluten-free chocolate, 100% chocolate and 100% healthy.

Conclusion

Not all is well in the gluten grocery row of your friendly super market. There are problems in that 20 to 25% of people believe they may have gluten sensitivity when in reality only 1% have it. But the majority of people have not done a gluten-screening test, which would confirm that they have indeed celiac disease. As pointed out above, it is much more likely that a food sensitivity may be caused by another offending agent rather than gluten (milk sugar, fructose and sorbitol). Avoiding the offending food components is the treatment protocol.

Those who take in gluten-free food will expose themselves to unnecessary toxins, to extra sugar leading to obesity and metabolic syndrome that leads to premature heart attacks and strokes. For those who do need to be on a strict gluten-free diet, they can safely do so by following a strict gluten free diet at home (preparing your own meals from healthy ingredients), preferably with organic foods. There are many websites that you can find online that have meal suggestions.

More information about celiac disease.

References:

Last edited Nov. 25, 2014

Incoming search terms:

Oct

2014

The Problem Are Sugar And Starchy Foods

By Ray Schilling | Cancer, heart attack, Heart Disease, Nutrition, Stroke

Fareed Zacharia interviewed Chief Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta on CNN on Sept. 10, 2014 regarding why sugar is worse than fat.

I like to explain why it is important to rethink the issues of fat, cholesterol, sugar, starchy foods, longevity, prevention of cardiovascular diseases (strokes, heart attacks) and cancer.

I have blogged about this many times before, but perhaps an overview regarding these issues would be in order.

The Framingham Heart Study indicated first that too much cholesterol in our system was a problem leading to heart attacks and strokes (Ref. 3). As more research was done, the reasons for this have become clearer.

1.Liver metabolism

The liver plays a major role in the metabolism of glucose. Digestion of refined starchy foods starts in the mouth where amylase from the saliva digests the surface of the pasta or white bread you eat. The stomach carries on with this process and the job is finished in the small intestine with the help of pancreatic enzymes (Ref.1). This digestive process is so efficient that within 20 to 30 minutes all of the refined carbs from pasta, donuts and bread appear as sugar in the blood stream. The portal vein system that collects the nutrients from the gut delivers all sugar straight to the liver where it is reassembled into glucagon as the storage form in the liver and skeletal muscles. This would all be good, would we have periods of fasting in between our sugar consumption. Periods of famine are no longer part of modern civilization, but consumerism is. Most of the processed food contains sugar and this leads to excess sugar uptake, which has to be processed by our liver. The end result is production of LDL cholesterol, oxidization of LDL cholesterol by sugar and in the process the production of VLDL (=very low-density lipoproteins) that leads directly to deposits in the arterial walls and clogging of arteries. Triglycerides are also produced, which leads to fat deposits (the cause of the obesity wave all around us).

2. Where does the fat that we see around us come from?

In the past we thought that it was from too much saturated fat and cholesterol in the food that would have caused the accumulation of fat and cholesterol in the body. Now we know that this was an over-simplification. In fact more cholesterol and fat comes from metabolized sugar and with a slight time delay also from starchy foods.

Sugar and starchy foods (like pasta, white rice, white bread, potatoes, grapes, honey etc.) get metabolized by your liver into LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, and fat. This does not mean that you should not pay attention to the total fat content and the quality of fats you eat.

3. The finer points about subfractions of cholesterol

You have heard many times about the good (HDL) and the bad (LDL) cholesterol. Sugar and refined starches do not only lead to the production of LDL cholesterol, but also to oxidized LDL cholesterol, which is very aggressive (VLDL=very low-density lipoproteins) leading directly to deposits in the arterial walls and to clogging of arteries. Your doctor can order a detailed lipid profile test, if you belong into a higher risk group to determine your VLDL level.

It may surprise you to read that many of the foods that were demonized in the past 2 to 3 decades like whole eggs; unprocessed grass-fed red meat, coconut oil etc. are now seen to be good for you.

But there are provisos: supplement with molecularly distilled omega-3 fatty acids, have enough vitamin D3, vitamin K2 and calcium in your diet or supplement with these. This will make sure that calcium will leave the blood stream (not lead to arteriosclerosis) and enter into the bones where it is needed for healthy bone structure. The anti-inflammatory effect of vitamin D3 and of the omega-3 fatty acids will prevent arthritis, strokes, heart attacks and cancer.

The Problem Are Sugar And Starchy Foods

4. Four major conditions causing heart attacks and strokes

According to Ref. 2 only 4 conditions have been proven over the years to lead to serious hardening of arteries causing strokes and heart attacks: dyslipidemia (high triglycerides, high LDL cholesterol and VLDL), hypertension, cigarette smoking, and/or diabetes (Ref. 3). What has not been appreciated until recently is the fact that sugar and refined starchy foods metabolized by the liver are the culprits in causing plaque in arteries as the oxidized LDL cholesterol is aggressively invading the arterial wall and is inflammatory. A total cholesterol level greater than 5.2 mmol/L (200 mg/dL) has been shown to be associated with increased heart attacks and strokes. Ref. 2 also points out that dietary changes; days of fasting and weight loss have all been shown to stabilize and reduce plaque lesions and reduce heart attacks and strokes. It is the rupture of unstable plaques that lead to attraction of platelets and thrombus formation. It is this localized thrombosis that leads to the closure of coronary arteries or brain vessels causing heart attacks and strokes. According to Ref. 2 there are 9 factors that determine whether we get a stroke or heart attack, the four factors mentioned above (dyslipidemia, hypertension, cigarette smoking, diabetes) and abdominal obesity, lack of physical activity, low daily fruit and vegetable consumption, alcohol overconsumption, and a psychosocial risk. This latter factor includes any kind of chronic stress like interpersonal stress at work or home, depression, financial stress, major life events like marriage, death, divorce, and lack of control. Counseling is useful for support regarding psychosocial risk factors. It is significant to note that according to Ref. 2 several studies have shown that 90% of heart attacks and strokes can be prevented by paying attention to these 9 risk factors. Managing stress effectively and seeking professional help for psychosocial difficulties as well as avoiding the physical health risks will contribute to good allover health.

Conclusion

Where does this leave us? For decades we have been told that saturated fats and cholesterol in our diet were the culprits and we replaced them with sugar that is part of a low-fat diet. We need to pay attention to the glycemic index and cut out high glycemic foods. However, it is OK to eat some carbs from the medium glycemic food list and most of our carbs from the low glycemic food list. With regard to fat it is important to consume only the healthy fats including omega-3 fatty acids. By taking care of the 4 major causes of heart attacks and strokes and also attending to the additional minor contributors mentioned above you will be able to eliminate 90% of the cardiovascular events. As you change these things you will also prevent many cancers as you changed the body metabolism and chronic inflammation has been taken care of as well as I pointed out in several blogs before. Finally, pay attention to stress management. The body and mind work together.

I have discussed all of these items in detail in my book as well (Ref. 3).

More information on high density and low density carbs: http://nethealthbook.com/health-nutrition-and-fitness/nutrition/carbohydrates/

References:

3. Dr. R. Schilling: “A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging“. Paperback through Amazon.com, 2014.

Last edited Nov. 8, 2014

Sep

2014

Two Approaches To Heart Disease

By Ray Schilling | Anti-aging medicine, Fitness, heart attack, Heart Disease, Hormones, Nutrition, Prevention, Stroke, Vitamins and supplements

Over the years I noticed that there are two approaches to heart disease that people and physicians seems to subscribe to.

1.The conventional approach to heart disease

The patient essentially ignores health advice, may smoke cigarettes and eat in a lot of fast food restaurants. People who do not care about their heart drink sodas, eat lots of sugar, starch and processed foods. They may think that they are invincible. Famous politicians have subscribed to this type of approach including former vice president, Dick Cheney.

But the big surprise comes when acute chest pain hits and an ambulance has to be called. We are lucky in the industrial countries where a 911 service is available. You call that number when in distress and an ambulance with all the modern equipment will rush to you. The problem though is that you have neglected your arteries for all those years and it is likely that one or two of the three coronary heart vessels are severely narrowed so much that your heart reported chest pain. This pain signals that one area of the heart muscle was not getting enough oxygen and nutrients.

On arrival at the hospital the emergency physician sees you. Nurses put monitors up, attach electrodes to you, and IV-lines are put into your veins, just in case things get worse and they would need to give you quick life-saving medicine intravenously. They have also given you an oxygen mask, and after 30 minutes or so you feel much better. A cardiologist has been called in by the emergency physician and will assess you.

This will very likely be the verdict: “We have to do a coronary arteriogram where I advance a thin catheter through your femoral artery backwards to where the coronary arteries originate from. We can then study each coronary artery separately and determine whether an angioplasty needs to be done.” Upon your questioning he explains that an angioplasty is a procedure where a catheter is advanced through a new clot that often forms during a heart attack and a stent is left behind that will keep the previously blocked off coronary artery open.

Within an hour the procedure will be completed. The cardiologist will explain that he found significant narrowing, such a san 85% narrowing in the anterior descending coronary artery and a second lesion in the right coronary artery with maybe 55% narrowing. He has stented both of these arteries successfully. But he warns you that the stents may close off, if you are unable (or rather unwilling) to change your lifestyle. He also will be very specific with what he meant: Quit smoking immediately, get into a regular exercise program and adopt a strict heart healthy diet like the Mediterranean diet. They would keep you overnight just to observe your heart rhythm and blood pressure. In the morning, if everything is OK he will likely discharge you.

Comment: Unfortunately this scenario is all too familiar to me having worked as a family physician doing my rotations as an emergency physician in a community hospital for 16 years. I found that people tended to NOT think preventatively unless they were forced to. When an acute event like a heart attack happens, a higher percentage of people is committed to prevention, but medical people call this “secondary prevention” as this prevention was only started after a close call. Our sample patient above could have developed a serious arrhythmia (irregular heart beats after a heart attack) and suddenly slipped into a coma and died before the interventional cardiologist could have placed the stents.

Primary prevention is much more powerful and this is what I like to cover next.

Two Approaches To Heart Disease (Placement Of Stent Shown)

2. The preventative approach to heart disease

Most people never have to be rushed to the hospital with chest pain. They engage in various ways of “primary prevention”. So, what exactly is this?

They keep very active, like walking or jogging, dancing, working out in a gym, biking or swimming etc.

They also like a healthier than normal lifestyle: eat at home as much as possible, and many adopt to buy only organic food. Why, you may ask? Organic food does not contain insecticide residues that resemble estrogenic substances (so-called “xenoestrogens” which accelerate hardening of the arteries). But organic food also does not contain GMO (genetically modified food). We know enough about GMO now to indicate to us that autoimmune diseases with inflammation of the arteries and the gut can occur. But the full impact on people’s health will not be known for several more decades. So why experiment with yourself? Buy organic instead. It is known to be safe.

Vitamins and minerals can be very useful supplements that also prevent premature aging of our blood vessels.

Anti-aging research has shown that with aging come various hormone defects. Melatonin is one of the first to go (in your twenties). But melatonin tables that are widely available in drug stores and health food stores can come to your rescue: 3mg of melatonin at bedtime will give you a good night sleep and provide powerful anti-oxidant effects. DHEA is an adrenal gland hormone that can be measured in your blood (or in saliva). In case it is low, it can be easily replaced with supplements. In the 50’s or 60’s women and to a lesser degree men will start to show thyroid under-functions. We call this hypothyroidism. Have your TSH and T4 levels checked and talk to you doctor about whether you need thyroid replacement, if the values are off.

It is somewhat more difficult to explain the rest of the hormones. But you know that women get into menopause and men about 10 to 15 years later will hit andropause, which is the male equivalent of menopause in women. An easy way to check this out is by doing a hormone panel from just one tube of spit. Yes, it is a saliva hormone panel I am talking about. For women it is estrogen, progesterone, cortisol, DHEA and testosterone that should be analyzed. For men it is testosterone, DHEA, cortisol, estrogen and progesterone. I am aware that these are the same 5 hormones, but I listed them in the order of importance for women and men. In this blog you find more details about bio-identical hormone replacement.

I have followed a primary heart attack prevention program since 2001 and it seems to suit me well. Just to check things out I had a carotid intima test, which showed no hardening of the arteries. Just two weeks ago my optician took images of the retinal vessels and found hardly any hardening of my retinal arteries. I scored high on a Bruce treadmill protocol in March of 2013 and my lipid VAT values were excellent indicating a low risk for a heart attack.

I have delved into this subject in more detail in my book entitled “A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging” (Ref. 1).

Conclusion

Prevention of a disease is always better than curing a disease, this applies to heart attacks as well. While you do something good for your heart, you are at the same time preventing strokes and many degenerative conditions like Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease. In addition you also prevent cancer. It really is a good deal!

More information on prevention of heart disease: http://nethealthbook.com/cardiovascular-disease/heart-disease/heart-attack-myocardial-infarction-or-mi/prevention-heart-attack/

Reference:

1. Dr. R. Schilling: “A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging“. Paperback through Amazon.com, 2014.

Last edited Nov. 8, 2014

Introduction

Johns Hopkins University clinical trial regarding frailty

Prevention of frailty through early intervention

Prevention of DNA loss from mitochondria

List to help you preserve your health and vitality

More supplements to help prevent frailty

Reference

No significant difference between control group and low fat diet group

Low fat diet recommendations based on false data

Political mistakes introducing low fat diets

Sugar is the problem in low fat diets

Low fat diets don’t work

Conclusion

Subunits of the brain and neurotransmitters

Why do people experience memory decline?

Lifestyle habits and Alzheimer’s

Hormone changes

Ask for input by hormone specialist

Other factors contributing to Alzheimer’s

Promoting brain health

Specific food recommendations

Brain nutrients

Other supplements like Ginkgo biloba, alpha lipoic acid and others

Genetic factors

Conclusion

Reference

Causes of death

Effect of healthy lifestyle

Food addiction and obesity

Children education programs

Change one thing at a time

Effect of CoQ10

Blue zones

You must decide on which pathway to go

Conclusion

Incoming search terms:

A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging

Prostate Cancer Unmasked

Healing Gone Wrong – Healing Done Right

Medical Question Answered

Social Media Links

askdrray.com Insider

Recent Posts

Navigation Menu

Tags

A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging

Prostate Cancer Unmasked

Healing Gone Wrong – Healing Done Right

Medical Question Answered

Social Media Links

askdrray.com Insider

Recent Posts

Tags

A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging

Prostate Cancer Unmasked

Healing Gone Wrong – Healing Done Right

Medical Question Answered

Social Media Links

askdrray.com Insider

Recent Posts

Tags

A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging

Prostate Cancer Unmasked

Healing Gone Wrong – Healing Done Right

Medical Question Answered

Social Media Links

askdrray.com Insider

Recent Posts

Tags

A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging

Prostate Cancer Unmasked

Healing Gone Wrong – Healing Done Right

Medical Question Answered

Social Media Links

askdrray.com Insider

Recent Posts

Tags

A Survivor’s Guide to Successful Aging

Prostate Cancer Unmasked

Healing Gone Wrong – Healing Done Right