• Ultraprocessed Food Leads to Premature Aging

    Ultraprocessed Food Leads to Premature Aging

    November 24, 2024 by · Comments Off on Ultraprocessed Food Leads to Premature Aging

    An article in the medical journal “Medical News Today” found that ultraprocessed food leads to premature aging. What are ultraprocessed foods? The NOVA Food Classification System explains what ultraprocessed foods (UPFs) are and what other ones are not. Examples of ultraprocessed foods are: fatty, sweet, savory … [Read More...]

  • Vital Information about Cholesterol Drugs

    Vital Information about Cholesterol Drugs

    November 9, 2024 by · Comments Off on Vital Information about Cholesterol Drugs

    Most people know about statins to treat high cholesterol, but they do not have vital information about cholesterol drugs. Recently an article appeared in CNN, which was very informative. In the following I will review what is new about cholesterol lowering drugs. PCSK9 inhibitors, which are monoclonal … [Read More...]

  • Common Chemicals Affecting your Health

    Common Chemicals Affecting your Health

    October 26, 2024 by · Comments Off on Common Chemicals Affecting your Health

    There are common chemicals affecting your health that have been known since the 1950’s. They have the name PFAS, which stands for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances. There was a review article recently in CNN describing the complexity of PFAS, the toxicity, and what you can do to improve your risk. People … [Read More...]

  • Cardiovascular Risk Markers Predict Heart Attacks and Strokes

    Cardiovascular Risk Markers Predict Heart Attacks and Strokes

    October 12, 2024 by · Comments Off on Cardiovascular Risk Markers Predict Heart Attacks and Strokes

    An article in The New England Journal of Medicine stated that cardiovascular risk markers predict heart attacks and strokes. A summary of this study was also published by NBC News. 30-year follow-up of the Women’s Health Study This is based on a 30-year follow-up study of the Women’s Health Study. In the beginning … [Read More...]

  • Red Meat and Processed Meat Can Become a Cause of Diabetes

    Red Meat and Processed Meat Can Become a Cause of Diabetes

    September 21, 2024 by · Comments Off on Red Meat and Processed Meat Can Become a Cause of Diabetes

    A clinical study at the end of 2023 showed that red meat and processed meat can become a cause of diabetes. The authors published the results of this study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition on December 2023. Results of the study Notably, the study consisted of several pooled studies. To emphasize, … [Read More...]

  • Ozempic and Wegovy can Lead to Blindness in one Eye

    Ozempic and Wegovy can Lead to Blindness in one Eye

    September 7, 2024 by · Comments Off on Ozempic and Wegovy can Lead to Blindness in one Eye

    Shocking medical news found that Ozempic and Wegovy can lead to blindness in one eye. Ozempic was approved by the FDA for treatment of diabetes. Wegovy, which is the same drug, got FDA approval for treatment of obesity. The pharmacological name of the drug is semaglutide. Both brand names of the drug are very … [Read More...]

    Jan
    16
    2015

    Telomere Length A Telltale Sign Of Aging

    By | 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 22nd 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

    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 22nd Anti-Aging Conference in Las Vegas. Stay tuned.

    Jan
    04
    2015

    Lifestyle Has Profound Changes On Our System

    By | 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 22nd 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

    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
    27
    2014

    Stem Cells, Telomeres, Hormones And Lifestyle

    By | Hormones, lifestyle, stem cells, telomeres

    I recently attended the 22nd Annual World Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine in Las Vegas (Dec.10 to 14, 2014) and stem cells, telomeres, hormones and lifestyle were the highlights this year. Every year there seems to be something new to learn. Truly, there were a lot of talks about stem cell treatments, about how lifestyle changes can be healing and how telomeres are in the center of epigenetics. It is important to realize that epigenetics is anything a person can do with lifestyle to help the body work better. In the center of many talks were telomeres, the small caps at the end of the DNA. Indeed, with all cell divisions telomeres get shortened a bit until at the end of our lives our telomeres are significantly shorter.

    Shortened telomeres means shortened life

    In one talk a slide was shown where the measurements of white blood cell telomeres from blood tests of a population from 20 to 100 years were shown. At the age of 100 the average telomere length was only 40% of the average length of telomeres of the group at the age of 20.

    In the past it was thought that our genes and how they function was something constant. Well, we have to rethink this both in positive ways as well as negatively. Using telomere blood tests, it has been shown that certain diseases are associated with shorter telomeres. But on the other hand, positive lifestyle changes and certain supplements can elongate telomeres by stimulating an enzyme called telomerase.

    Positive changes of our epigenetics can elongate telomeres

    Drinking excessively, doing drugs, smoking and even using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) shorten your telomeres. This is what epigenetics is all about. It is true that you cannot change your genetics, but you can change the epigenetics (meaning the length of telomeres).

    As this topic is so large, I have decided to give an overview about the conference in this blog and in future blogs provide more details about some of the key talks.

    A review like this is always personal. Other people probably would find other talks more illuminating. So here are my personal impressions about the topics that I found most fascinating.

    Stem cells

    There were several talks about stem cells. Dr. Joseph Purita talked about the rejuvenating effects of PRP (platelet rich plasma) on stem cells that he injected into patients. This was a fairly technical talk, but pointed out how important it is to provide the appropriate growth factors to nurture transplanted stem cells for a long-term success. The sources of stem cells can be from fatty tissue around the “love handles” or the abdominal fat. A stem cell separator is used to separate stem cells from the rest of the tissue. This is combined with PRP coming from centrifuged blood and is combined with the stem cells and injected.

    Soft lasers can activate stem cells

    The newest insight is that short-term exposure to red, green and blue soft lasers further activates stem cells. Another source for stem cells is the bone marrow, usually from the pelvic bone, particularly for orthopedic surgical problems like non-healing fractures or torn ligaments. Slides were shown of completely healed avascular necrosis following stem cell treatment. At other lectures on prolotherapy combined with stem cell therapy completely torn anterior cruciate ligaments in the knee and a complete rotator cuff tear in the shoulder in another patient were healed (MRI scan shown before and after treatment).

    Lifestyle

    Dr. David Katz gave a presentation about “Integrative Medicine: A Bridge Over Healthcare’s Troubled Waters”. He pointed out that the first three things on the actual causes of deaths in the US in 1993 were tobacco use, poor diet and lack of exercise. In 2004 the revised list no longer contained tobacco as the number one killer. All of the public campaigns had changed the culture of smoking so that the average American has changed the lifestyle. Stopping smoking has become desirable, and people know the devastating consequences of smoking. Dr. Katz stated that there is no magic pill to reduce mortality. However, if a healthy lifestyle were a pill, this is exactly what would reduce mortality by 80%. If you exercise on a regular basis, eat a Mediterranean type diet, and avoid sugary drinks you will prevent 80% of heart attacks, strokes and many cancers.

    Telomeres

    Dr. Sandy Chang gave a talk about “Telomere measurement as a diagnostic test in cardiovascular and age-related disease”. He pointed out that there is a large body of literature showing that telomere length is directly related to health. The shorter the telomeres are, the higher is the probability to experience problems: early menopause, infertility, diabetes, wrinkles, arthritis, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, dementia, cancer, stress, a lack of stem cells. These are a number of factors that shorten telomeres: stress, poor diets, smoking, obesity, chronic inflammatory diseases, metabolic disorders like diabetes, over consumption of alcohol and lack of sleep.

    Telomere elongation leading to longer life

    Dr. Chang mentioned that there is a whole host of factors that can elongate telomeres by stimulating telomerase. His research group showed in humans that increased physical activity elongates telomeres. So did vitamin C, E and vitamin D3 supplementation, resveratrol, a Mediterranean diet and marine omega-3 fatty acid supplementation. In addition, higher fiber intake, bioidentical estrogen in women and testosterone in men, relaxation techniques like yoga and meditation are also elongating telomeres.

    Stimulation of telomerase can elongate telomeres

    Other speakers also talked about telomeres: Dr. Al Sears’ talk was entitled: “Telo-Nutritioneering: The latest generation of telomere modulators”. He mentioned that in his research he has identified at least 123 nutrients, vitamins and natural compounds that will elongate telomeres, often by stimulating telomerase. Vitamin C will significantly delay shortening of telomeres, which translates into delayed aging. In addition, researchers recently showed that vitamin C stimulates telomerase activity in certain stem cells. Also, there is an herb, called Silymarin extract. Researchers found that this increases telomerase activity threefold. N-acetyl cysteine is a building block for glutathione, a powerful antioxidant. In addition, research showed how to turn on the human telomerase gene. Other telomerase stimulators are green tea extract, ginkgo biloba, gamma tocotrienol (one of the components of the vitamin E group), vitamin D3 and folic acid.

    Methylation defects

    Dr. George Rozakis gave a talk entitled “Nutrigenomics” where he mentioned that many diseases are due to methylation defects, a cellular pathway that required vitamin B2, B6 and B12. People with this defect have minor genetic variations that lead to elevated homocysteine in the blood. For instance, migraine sufferers often have methylation pathway problems, which involves histamine overproduction and 92% of them can be helped with a histamine-restricted diet. Correcting a methylation pathway defect with the help of L-methylfolate can cure other diseases like depressive illness that does not respond to conventional antidepressant medication.

     

    Stem Cells, Telomeres, Hormones And Lifestyle

    Stem Cells, Telomeres, Hormones And Lifestyle

    Hormone changes with stress

    Dr. Thierry Hertoghe gave a lecture on “Burnout: A multiple hormone deficiency syndrome”. He said that burnout is a common condition where several hormones are affected, with the cortisol axis being the main one, but other hormone glands being stressed as well. As a result, endocrine glands age prematurely. Symptoms are fatigue, exhaustion, gastrointestinal problems, anxiety, depression and aggressiveness. The underlying hormone abnormalities are a lack of cortisol, thyroid deficiency, growth hormone deficiency, testosterone and estrogen deficiency and oxytocin deficiency. Burnout is common in teachers and there is a questionnaire that has been developed for teachers. It has the name  “teacher’s burnout scale” and monitors them whether they are heading this way.

    Burnout and PTSD

    Soldiers who return from combative situations often suffer from burnout or from PTSD. In suspected cases laboratory tests that measure hormone levels give concrete answers about deficiencies. There was a discussion of treatment protocols in detail. Multiple bioidentical hormone replacements are necessary, possibly for prolonged periods, if not lifelong. In addition, supportive counseling sessions from a counselor or psychiatrist will help to tone down increased brain activity and help regain the internal balance. Why is this important? Because hormones are necessary on a cellular level and regulate the energy metabolism of every cell in the body.

    Conclusion

    This year’s conference was a very interesting combination of new information on stem cell therapy, telomeres and lifestyle intervention. As we age we lose hormones, which makes us age faster as the telomeres shorten faster. Shorter telomeres lead to inflammation in the body, which cause a myriad of disease processes. Patients can counter this aging process by adopting a healthier lifestyle with regular exercising, a Mediterranean diet and abandoning unhealthy habits like smoking, excessive drinking or taking illicit drugs. Vitamins and supplements, particularly resveratrol, CoQ-10 and omega-3 fatty acids will help to elongate and stabilize our telomeres. As Dr. Katz said: “A healthy lifestyle will reduce your mortality rate by 80%”.

    Dec
    06
    2014

    Regrets Following Holiday Foods

    By | 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)

    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
    25
    2014

    Gluten Intolerance Or Food Sensitivities?

    By | 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 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:

    1. Rakel: Integrative Medicine, 3rd ed. Patrick J. Hanaway, MD: “Chapter40: Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Integrative Therapy”. Copyright 2012 Saunders, An Imprint of Elsevier

    Last edited Nov. 25, 2014

    Nov
    16
    2014

    Smoking E-Cigarettes Of No Benefit

    By | Cancer, heart attack, Stroke, Substance abuse

    Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) were invented to help people get away from the carcinogenic content of real cigarettes and they were thought to help people in the process to quit smoking as well.

    In the October 2014 issue of the BC Medical Journal a review article is entitled: “Electronic cigarettes: Do we know the benefits vs. the risks?” In it Dr. Roy Purssell, the Chair of the Emergency Medical Services Committee in BC, Canada reviewed the literature about e-cigarettes (Ref.1). He pointed out that several studies have shown that the number of cigarettes used may have declined with the use of e-cigarettes, but the quitting rate on e-cigarettes is not higher than when quitting conventional cigarettes.

    Why were e-cigarettes developed?

    Originally they were marketed as an alternative to cigarette smoking with the thought that they would only contain the nicotine, but not the myriad of cancer producing chemicals. However, studies now show that this is not the case. As explained earlier people use e-cigarettes, but they often still smoke real cigarettes on the side, in effect just reducing the number of cigarettes smoked per day. Says Dr. Purssell: “Reducing the number of cigarettes smoked per day is much less effective than quitting entirely for avoiding the risks of premature death from all smoking-related causes of death” (also based on Ref. 2).

    Chemical composition of e-cigarettes

    E-cigarettes are battery-operated vaporizers that give you the feel of smoking a tobacco cigarette. The container inside the e-cigarette can be refilled with “e-juice” that can be bought through the Internet. The liquid contains highly concentrated nicotine, propylene glycol, glycerin, and flavorings (you can choose from cinnamon to cherry flavor and more). The liquid is vaporized by a heating element and the vapor is inhaled. No long-term experiments are available at this time with regard to the safety of these inhaled chemicals in humans. Only short-term experiments are behind the FDA’s declaration that propylene glycol would be “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) as a food additive. But there is still a difference between inhaling and ingesting propylene glycol, and the same is true for glycerin.

    The manufacturers of e-liquid (or e-juice) always put this disclaimer on their products: “Warning: Always keep e-cigarette liquid in a safe place and out of reach from children and pets. Nicotine in its pure form is a poison, and can cause harm if ingested by a child.”

    Smoking E-Cigarettes Of No Benefit

    Smoking E-Cigarettes Of No Benefit

    Toxic effects of e-juice (e-liquid)

    From September 2010 to February 2014 there were 2405 reports to the poison control centers in the US about e-cigarette exposures. In the month of February 2013 there were 70 calls, in February of 2014 there were 215 calls, a 300% increase.  More than 50% of these cases involved young children.

    In BC, according to Dr. Purssell the Drug and Poison Information Centre received 70 calls between July 1, 2013 and June 30, 2014. 50% of these involved children who were younger than 4 years old. There was no case of serious toxicity. If, however, enough fluid is swallowed, there can be deaths from nicotine overdose, particularly in children and in pets. Seizures can be caused by nicotine overdoses and poisoning of the breathing center in the brain stem.

    Nicotine is highly addictive. In children and in adolescents nicotine has a negative effect on brain development. Here is a report from the Minnesota Poison Control Center, which reports poisoning incidences with e-juice that was swallowed by young children and it reports also about adolescents who overdosed on e-cigarettes.

    It appears that the nervous system is more sensitive for toxic effects of nicotine at a younger age.

    Regulations of e-cigarettes

    At this point e-cigarettes are illegal because the FDA is still examining the pros and the cons. The situation in Canada is similar: Under the Canadian Food and Drugs Act regulations it is currently illegal to sell e-cigarettes containing nicotine. The international Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease has issued a position statement saying that its preferred opinion is to regulate e-cigarettes as tobacco products. The UK will be following this advice.

    Dr. Purssell commented: ”This is a reasonable course of action for a product that delivers a highly addictive substance with negative effects on brain development and can cause serious poisoning.“

    While the Internet merchants are busy marketing these products, it is important that the legislators around the globe take swift action to draft policies and regulations now to protect children and adolescents.

    Conclusion

    In conclusion it can be stated that smoking e-cigarettes (=vaping) does not have any benefits whatsoever. Smokers still smoke, as the addictive substance (nicotine) in e-cigarettes undermines their efforts to quit. It may be true that they are not exposing themselves to lung cancers as much as those who puff away on regular cigarettes, but instead their cardiovascular system is exposed to the nicotine that causes heart attacks and strokes. It sounds very sobering that they just traded one cause of  unnecessary death (lung cancer) for another one (cardiovascular disease leading to strokes and heart attacks).

    More information on:

    1. Causes of lung cancer: http://nethealthbook.com/cancer-overview/lung-cancer/causes-lung-cancer/

    2. Heart attacks: http://nethealthbook.com/cardiovascular-disease/heart-disease/heart-attack-myocardial-infarction-or-mi/

    3. Strokes: http://nethealthbook.com/cardiovascular-disease/stroke-and-brain-aneurysm/stroke-prevention/

    4. Here is a useful information about health risk from vaping.

    References

    1.BC Medical Journal Vol. 56, no.8, October 2014 (www.bcmj.org)

    2.US Department of Health and Human Services. The health consequences of smoking – 50 years of progress: A report of the surgeon general. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2014.

    Last edited Nov. 16, 2014

    Nov
    05
    2014

    How To Cope With Time Switches

    By | Hormones, Insomnia

    This review is about how to cope with time switches. In Europe daylight saving time begins on the last Sunday in March and wintertime starts on the last Sunday of October. Here in North America we start daylight saving time on the second Sunday of March and end it on the first Sunday of November each year.

    With the time switch just last weekend I thought it would be worthwhile to comment in a blog how our bodies, particularly our hormones suffer from this.

    You may have heard about the circadian rhythm with respect to hormones. The changes of the sun causing the day/night cycle have profound influences on our hormones, called the diurnal hormone changes or the circadian rhythm.

    How do circadian rhythms work?

    In the morning when you open your eyes, light enters our eyes and the hypothalamus registers this in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (see Ref.1). There are also links from the hypothalamus to the pineal gland, where melatonin is synthetized and stored. The light signal stops the secretion of melatonin from the pineal gland, although it is still being produced during the day in the pineal gland, but stored there until the evening hours set in. You may have noticed that you start yawning when the light dims in the evening. That’s when melatonin is released into your system to let you know its time to go to sleep.

    Of course, we have electrical light and can turn night into day if we choose to! This works for a limited time, but eventually tiredness sets in, and melatonin wins the upper hand. Melatonin is the master hormone of the circadian rhythm.

    Cortisol and melatonin are natural opposites

    It is interesting to note that cortisol does exactly the opposite. Cortisol is the adrenal gland hormone that helps us cope with stress. When we are fully awake, we need cortisol to cope with stress. Melatonin inhibits cortisol secretion and cortisol inhibits melatonin secretion, so they are natural opponents working together for your common good. This is part of the circadian rhythm. We can measure these hormones and this is how researchers have found out how this works.

    How To Cope With Time Switches

    How To Cope With Time Switches

    Time switches affect the circadian rhythm

    When we switched time back by one hour on our wristwatch and clocks, the internal time in our body did not accept that right away. The body needs to gradually adjust to this by reading the external signals: when are we opening our eyes? What is the light intensity when we get up, what is the light intensity when we go to sleep?  Some people find it easy to adjust; others find it very difficult to adjust. Some individuals breeze through the adjustment process in a day or two. For others it can as much as 1 or 2 weeks before the hormonal adjustment is completed.

    Symptoms of problems adjusting the circadian rhythm

    Symptoms due to time switch are a feeling of hangover on the first one to two days after the switch. This is despite you having gotten enough sleep, but the quality of sleep was not the same as before the time switch. Your head feels heavy, you are irritable, and you may feel mildly depressed. You also may find it more difficult to concentrate on one thing and you experience fatigue. Some experience insomnia. What is behind this is a disturbance of your cortisol levels. Your cortisol level is normally highest in the early morning hours, just before you wake up. As a male your testosterone level is also highest when you wake up thanks to the circadian rhythm. Both cortisol and testosterone recover their hormone storage during your deepest sleep.

    Our hormones are linked to the internal diurnal clock

    In women the ovarian hormones have not only a monthly rhythm, but also a 24-hour diurnal rhythm, based on the internal 24-hour clock. The hypothalamus and the pituitary gland have an intimate involvement in both sexes regarding this diurnal rhythm. They are in communication with the pineal gland that produces melatonin to regulate all of the major hormone systems. So, when we switch our watch back by one hour in the fall or forward by one hour in the spring, our body clock is out of sync with the new time that rules the world. This state of being out of sync may last for a few days. We still get tired according to the old time and we still wake up according to the old time until our internal clock has readjusted. People have genetic differences on how quickly they readjust.

    Jet lag

    When we travel eastward or westward through time zones a phenomenon of being “out of sync” occurs as well, very similar to what happens with time switches. It is the same re-adjusting process of the internal circadian rhythm that our bodies have to come to terms with. Some people are affected more when they travel west though time zones, and it may take them longer to adjust to it compared to traveling east. But other people complain that for them it is just the opposite, and traveling east is the problem for them. North-south travel does not cause jet lag as the internal time and the external time remain synchronized. A very similar phenomenon is happening with the spring and fall time switches. Some people find it nervier when in spring the clock is advanced by one hour and others complain that fall is their difficult time when the time is switched back by one hour. There are genetic differences of how we adjust with our internal clocks.

    Shift workers

    Shift workers experience problems with the circadian rhythm as well. The switch between working day shifts and night shifts leads to a condition called “shift-work sleep disorder” (Ref.3). Similar to jet lag this is due to the fact that there is a disruption of the synchronization between the body’s inner clock and external cues. The work rules do not allow enough time for recovery. It would be much more cost effective, if unions and employers allowed those who are naturally born to cope with night time shift to work those shifts and allow those who are sensitive to shift-work sleep disorder to work only day shifts. We live in an age of political correctness, but we tend to overlook how our bodies work.

    What you can do to ease yourself into the time switch

    1. As there is a lack of deep sleep with the time switch, it is not a bad idea to take a short nap when you feel tired during the day. Catch a nap on the weekend or on a day, when you are off work! It’s good for you! This will build up your adrenal gland hormones and give you the extra surge of energy you are craving for.

    2. At the end of the day though, you need to go to bed according to the new time to train your pineal gland and your entire hormone system about the new time situation. Your body needs the cues from you, when you start and end your day, so that it can sync your internal clock with the outside time.

    Melatonin restores the circadian rhythm

    3. A simple remedy that fits right into your hormone rhythm is to take a melatonin tablet (about 3 mg for an adult), available at your health food store or drugstore 30 minutes before bedtime. Ref. 2 states that melatonin “restores the circadian rhythm “. This helps your circadian hormone rhythm by giving it an evening boost of melatonin. This tells your system it is time to go to sleep. At that time when you close your eyes the signals  through the optic nerve shut down. This gives the circadian rhythm yet another signal about what time it is. In just a few days (for very sensitive people in 1 to 2 weeks) your entire hormone system including the circadian 24-hour undulations will be reset. Now your internal clock has been reset and is in sync until the next time switch.

    More about hormones: http://nethealthbook.com/hormones/introduction-hormones/

    References

    1. Melmed: “Control of Hormone Secretion” in: Williams Textbook of Endocrinology, 12th ed.Copyright 2011 Saunders, An Imprint of Elsevier

    2. Rakel: Integrative Medicine, 3rd ed. Copyright 2012 Saunders, An Imprint of Elsevier

    3. Daroff: Bradley’s Neurology in Clinical Practice, 6th ed. Copyright 2012 Saunders, An Imprint of Elsevier

    Oct
    24
    2014

    TACT Study Proves Effectiveness of Chelation

    By | Angina, Heart Disease, Mortality, Stroke

    Even though the Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT Study) has been published in March 2013 (Ref. 1), it still needs to make its way into the common public knowledge. The National Institute of Health was noticing an “alarming 68% increase” of chelation therapy between 2002 and 2007. These patients had problems with previous heart attacks and others had angina due to coronary artery disease, so they sought relief through intravenous chelation treatments. The purpose of the TACT study was to see whether chelation treatments with EDTA were safe and whether they would show any benefits when compared to a placebo group.

    TACT study design

    A total of 1708 patients were randomized into two groups, 869 treated with EDTA chelation therapy and 869 in treated with placebo infusions of normal saline/dextrose. Treatments were blinded (nobody knew what was given in the intravenous). 134 research sites in Canada and the US were involved in this trial including the Mayo Clinic. Patients had to be at least 50 years old, but the average age was 65 years. They had all a prior heart attack, but not less than 6 weeks before enrolment; on average they did have their heart attack 4.6 years before enrolment. Participants had to quit smoking at least 3 months before entering into the study and if they had revascularization procedures (bypass surgeries or stents), this had to be done more than 6 months in the past.

    31% of the study population had diabetes. 83% had revascularization procedures done in the past. The majority of patients were taking heart medications (72% beta blockers, 73% statins to lower cholesterol and 84% aspirin to thin the blood).

    65% completed 40 infusions, 76% completed at least 30 infusions.

    The chelation infusion was the standard infusion usually used in chelation clinics, namely containing EDTA (the chelating agent), salts and vitamins as indicated in this Mayo clinic summary report. The follow-up period was for 4 years. There was a drop-out of 30% for various reasons and 17% refused their consent to carry on in the study.

    TACT Study Proves Effectiveness Of Chelation

    TACT Study Proves Effectiveness Of Chelation

    Results of the TACT study

    Overall mortality in the chelation group was down 2.8% versus the placebo group. Heart attacks in the chelation group were down 19.5%; strokes down 20% and hospitalization rates were down 28.6% when compared to the values of the placebo group.

    Diabetic patients (the subgroup of 31%) appear to have greater benefits from chelation treatments than the non-diabetic ones. The diabetic group benefitted by 39% with regard to risk reduction (strokes, heart attacks, mortality) versus the non-diabetic chelation group (only a 4% reduction).

    Perhaps as important as the results of the effect of the chelation study versus the placebo group was the fact that the side-effect profile was indistinguishable between the two groups. This establishes for the first time that chelation therapy is safe and that it also has beneficial effects.

    It is interesting that when the results of the TACT Study were announced at the 2012 American Heart Association meeting in Los Angeles, the majority of cardiologists did not believe the results (that chelation was effective); instead they were looking for alternative explanations to explain the effect and suggested that this study needed to be repeated again.

    What are the benefits of chelation therapy?

    Originally EDTA was used to treat children with lead poisoning in Germany. However, workers who were exposed to lead containing paints in various industries also were described to have improve significantly with EDTA chelation (see this chelation history link).

    In the 1990’s environmental concerns about heavy metal poisoning of the earth atmosphere came more into the forefront. This 2007 paper reports about heavy metal poisoning in detail.

    A new concern for those who like organic food is the use of copper sulfate by organic food growers to spray against fungal and bacterial growth on crop as copper sulfate is one of the 5 chemicals used in organic agriculture approved by the USDA.

    Those who consume organic foods may inadvertently expose themselves to copper in their system. This will reduce zinc levels as zinc naturally counterbalances the effects of elevated copper levels. But normal zinc levels are needed for normal body function, particularly in males.

    As I have explained in this blog before, chelation therapy and several other methods can detoxify the body. Pollution continues to play havoc with our system and we need to consider taking steps to counteract that. In this blog I explained that we live in a toxic world and I mentioned several steps we can take to counteract this including chelation therapy. Particularly heavy metals like lead, mercury, cadmium and copper will be reduced in the blood by intravenous EDTA chelation treatments.

    Conclusion

    I felt that I should take some time explaining the carefully conducted TACT Study that was a randomized double blind, government sponsored study examining the effects of chelation treatments. It showed that there were significant improvements in terms of cardiovascular recovery, but it also showed that it was entirely non-toxic. Chelation should be done by an American College for Advancement in Medicine (ACAM) certified practitioner to ensure that you get the same chelation treatment as described in the TACT Study. People with heart conditions will need 30 to 40 treatments (usually 1 week apart) to improve. However, a person with a normal heart who considers detoxification will only need 10 treatments initially (twice per week or weekly), then one every three months for maintenance. We all reside on the same planet and are exposed to ongoing pollution and food toxicity. Due to this reality the topic of chelation and detoxification is worth some serious consideration not only for patients with heart health issues.

    More information about vitamins and detoxification: http://nethealthbook.com/health-nutrition-and-fitness/nutrition/vitamins-minerals-supplements/

    Reference: 1. J. American Medical Association (March 27, 2013, Vol. 309, No. 12)

    Last edited Nov. 8, 2014

    Oct
    14
    2014

    New Material To Fill Bone Defects

    By | Cosmetic surgery, fractures, Orthopedics, Stroke

    Disfiguring head injuries from car accidents, work injuries or personal injuries left plastic and cranial surgeons with the problem of how to fill the gaps. This problem may soon be medical history as a new polymer foam material has been invented that serves as a scaffold. With its interconnected pores it allows bone to fill the gaps and subsequently gets absorbed leaving new bone in the place where the scaffolding foam had been placed by the surgeon. Texas A&M and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute researcher Melissa Grunlan who is an associate professor in the university’s Department of Biomedical Engineering develop this material together with her co-workers.

    It has interesting properties. The shape of memory polymer foam (SMP foam) is malleable when treated with warm saline water and can be fitted into the bone gaps from the injury. After a short time it hardens in place and provides the scaffolding needed for new bone growth.

    This new material lends itself to fill gaps from birth defects (like cleft palates), from facial injuries or from the removal of bone tumors in the head, jaw or face.

    Traditionally, bone grafts were used to fill gaps. They had to be taken from an area like the hip, but there were problems attaching these grafts to the underlying bone to which the graft would hopefully attach to in the future. Many complications could occur like graft absorption leaving the original defect or infection of the grafted material.

    With the new polymer foam material there is instant attachment, instant shaping of the surface of the material and very quick population of the foam with bone cells from the surrounding bone. In addition, the polymer foam has all its surfaces coated with a bioactive substance that attracts bone-forming cells, called osteoblasts. Experiments have shown that after only three days the coated sponge channels attracted five fold more osteoblasts than that of uncoated control foam material.

    New Material To Fill Bone Defects

    New Material To Fill Bone Defects

    Traditional bone grafting

    Traditionally, bone grafts are used to help with complicated fractures in the healing process. In spinal surgery bone grafts may be required to over bridge facet joints with end stage arthritis, as following successful healing after fusion surgery the back pain will improve significantly. Bone grafts have also been used when bone defects were present from severe infection, injury or congenital defects. In these cases the bone graft is used to fill in the defect. Finally, bone grafts are sometimes necessary to fill in bone following surgical hip joint replacements or after repairs of fractures with plates and screws. More about these traditional bone graft techniques can be found through this link.

    Complications of traditional bone grafting

    Complications depend very much on the location of the surgery and what type of procedure is being used. For instance when it comes to fusion surgery in the lower neck or lower back region, the traditional success rate of fusion surgery is about 70%, which means that in 30% of cases the procedure did not work. On the one hand the combination of mechanical stabilization through instrumentation with bone grafting has increased the success rate of fusion surgery above 70%. But smoking, older age, osteoporosis, obesity, diabetes, and prior spinal surgery have decreased the success rate as indicated in this review.

    This overview about autografts (bone graft in the same patient), allografts (bone grafts with bone from a bone donor center), xenografts (bone from an animal) as well as synthetic bone grafting explains more details about these topics.

    Another website also contains useful information about this topic.

    Other applications for memory polymer foam

    In the same facility Duncan Maitland, associate professor in the university’s Department of Biomedical Engineering, is researching the use of SMP foam for the treatment of brain aneurysms in humans. A flat piece of SMP foam is introduced into the aneurysm, a sac-like pouch of a brain blood vessel and activated through heat from a laser beam. This actives the foam to become round and fill the pouch of the aneurysm, closing off the area that could have ruptured and led to bleeding. This application has to be proven in clinical trials as well as does the use of the SMP foam for bone defects.

    Conclusion

    Often in medicine new ideas were necessary to lead to progress in treatments. For instance when hemoglobin A1C was detected by an Iranian team of doctors, all of a sudden a powerful  tool to monitor treatment of diabetes had become available. Prostate specific antigen (the PSA test) is another example of a test that allows for a much earlier diagnosis of prostate cancer. Earlier detection of prostate cancer leads to a more successful treatment of this cancer.

    With memory polymer foam (SMP foam) physicians will soon be given a new tool of closing big bone gaps to help their patients overcome unsightly appearances or unstable situations in the spine or in other body locations. The brain aneurysm application will help prevent brain hemorrhages. More research is needed for these clinical applications, but the initial research shows a lot of promise.

    More information on bone cancer where following surgery large bone defects can remain: http://nethealthbook.com/cancer-overview/bone-cancer/

    Last edited Nov. 8, 2014

    Oct
    04
    2014

    The Problem Are Sugar And Starchy Foods

    By | 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

    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:

    1.Townsend: Sabiston Textbook of Surgery, 19th ed.,Copyright 2012 Saunders.

    2.Melmed: Williams Textbook of Endocrinology, 12th ed.,Copyright 2011 Saunders.

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

    Last edited Nov. 8, 2014