Supplements Do Work, Soda Bans, Red Wine, Vit. E, and Heartburn Meds

Tell Your Doctor That Supplements Do Work!

I am pleased to tell you about a new study that proves the benefits of taking supplements

Let's say you have a couple of health issues that raise your risk of heart disease. And you tell your doctor the good news that you're being proactive. You're taking antioxidant supplements. Many conventional doctors might humor you and say something like, "Well, it probably can't hurt."

Others might actually scoff and come right out and tell you supplement benefits are unproven--just a bunch of pseudoscience. In that case, you can hand over a copy of this blog and tell him it's time to wake up and smell the science.

Researchers at a medical center in Israel recruited 70 subjects with an average age of 62. Subjects were divided into two groups. One group received placebos and the other received a four-part antioxidant intervention:
• Vitamin C--1,000 mg daily
• Vitamin E--400 IU daily
• Selenium--200 mg daily
• CoQ10--120 mg daily
Each patient was screened with a general physical exam, blood test, a urinalysis, and an electrocardiogram at baseline, again at three months and finally at six months when the study concluded.

Results were just about everything you could hope for in a study like this.

Overall, in the antioxidant group, blood pressure was reduced, while large and small artery elasticity increased significantly. HDL cholesterol increased significantly. HbA1C (a measure of high blood sugar) declined significantly. And triglycerides declined...a little.

But I saved the best for last: Because at the beginning of the study, each of the 70 subjects had at least TWO of these cardiovascular risk factors: cigarette smoking, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, low HDL cholesterol, or high triglycerides.

Now that’s REALLY putting antioxidants to the test!


San Francisco Bans Sodas from Vending Machines

Finally people are starting to pay attention to the warning signs about sodas.

Under an executive order from San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, sodas such as Coke, Pepsi and Fanta Orange are no longer allowed in vending machines on city property. Some of their diet counterparts are still allowed.

The ban includes non-diet sodas, sports drinks and artificially sweetened water.
Juice must be 100 percent fruit or vegetable juice with no added sweeteners, and diet sodas can be no more than 25 percent of the items offered.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports:
"It's all part of Newsom's effort to combat obesity and improve San Franciscans' health, similar to a national effort being championed by first lady Michelle Obama.

The mayor's administration points to studies linking soda to obesity, including a UCLA one released last year that found adults who drink at least one soft drink a day are 27 percent more likely to be obese than those who don't".

And many new studies show that diet sodas are just as fattening and damaging as regular sodas. So ditch the soda and get your health (and your body) back.


Wine Is Good For You

It's become a favorite joke at dinner parties: "Another glass? Sure. But only because it's good for my heart."

Yes, when the news of resveratrol's heart-healthy benefits came out, the red wine started to flow a little more freely. Well, watch out! Because new research is giving us even more excuses...eh, reasons...to pour another glass.

Resveratrol's heart-healthy benefits are due mostly to improved circulation. And that improvement may also help you avoid one of the most common sources of vision loss: age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

There are two varieties of age-related macular degeneration: dry and wet. You don't want either, but you especially don't want wet, which progresses faster and creates a much higher risk of vision loss. In wet AMD, the retina is damaged by tiny blood vessels that develop behind it--a process called angiogenesis.

Researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis wondered if resveratrol might inhibit angiogenesis. They began by using a laser to prompt microcapillary formation in the eyes of mice.

Then, when they fed the mice resveratrol, two things happened: Microcapillary formation was inhibited, and blood vessels that had already formed were diminished.

Of course, more research is needed before we can say resveratrol has the same effect on humans with AMD. Hopefully that will prove to be the case because angiogenesis also plays a role in diabetic retinopathy (another common cause of vision loss), heart disease, and cancer tumor growth.

And, if red wine doesn't have you raising your glass, try blueberries and peanuts, two more excellent sources of resveratrol. Resveratrol is also available in a supplement form.


Natural Vitamin E?

I’ve been telling people about the benefits of full spectrum vitamin E for years.

The four tocopherol forms of the vitamin are generally more common, but the four tocotrienol forms of E are "icing on the cake." And now we know that adding that icing just might help you avoid Alzheimer's disease (AD).

In a new study from Sweden, researchers took blood samples from more than 230 subjects over the age of 80. None had any signs of dementia.

Within six years, nearly 60 cases of Alzheimer's were diagnosed. Comparing blood analysis to AD cases, researchers found that subjects with the highest levels of all eight vitamin E forms reduced their risk of AD by about half compared to subjects with low E levels.

There has been considerable peer-review research concerning the benefit of tocotrienols in even more than just cardiovascular disease, to include aging, Alzheimer’s disease, breast disease and others.

As I have pointed out many times, there is a difference in whole food vitamins compared to the synthetic ones you buy at the store. Vitamin E is a good example because what you typically find is E including mixed tocpherols and maybe some tocotrienols added in. But real vitamin E includes ALL of the natural components found in whole food that all work together to make vitamins work effectively in the body.

What most vitamin companies sell as vitamin E or C contains only a few of the natural components found in the whole vitamin. Vitamin C is always sold as ascorbic acid which is only a small part of real vitamin C. That is why I recommend using Standard Process Labs supplements because they are the only company that guarantees that the “whole” natural vitamin is used in their supplements.


Heartburn meds linked to more pain & suffering

I've been saying for years that people taking heartburn drugs don't really need them... and now the mainstream is finally starting to agree with me.

An editorial in the Archives of Internal Medicine says that up to 70 percent of prescriptions for proton pump inhibitors (PPI) -- drugs like Nexium, Prilosec and Prevacid -- are completely unnecessary. Wait another year or two, and they'll probably say it's 100 percent.

It's coming... because when the worm turns, it really turns -- and now, FIVE new studies show how the overuse of these meds can do everything from shatter bone to make you poop your brains out, possibly even to death.

I'll get to the deadly bowel evacuations in a moment... but first, the bones. One study on 161,000 postmenopausal women found that those who took these meds were 47 percent more likely to fracture their spines and 25 percent more likely to do the same to their wrists.

The study found that calcium supplements didn't make a difference for these women. Not that I'd expect them to -- the only thing calcium candies will do for your bones is give you sore jaws and cavities from chewing on the things.

And if brittle bones aren't enough, two more studies show how these meds can leave you fighting the potentially deadly stomach bacteria, Clostridium difficile(C-diff).

These awful poop monsters are the only organisms tough enough to survive a PPI attack on your insides. And if you're unlucky enough to dance with C-diff, you'll feel like those insides are spilling out. C-diff can cause severe diarrhea, toxic megacolon and even death, especially in seniors.

One study found people in hospitals who take PPIs every day are 74 percent more likely to come down with C-diff infections. Those who take these meds more often are twice as likely. And another study found that PPI patients are 42 percent more likely to see C-diff relapses than those who pass on heartburn meds.

If you need more information on dealing with heartburn or bone health look at the back issues of my Real Health blog and read up on how to address calcium and bone health the right way.

And if you've read all this and still want to take these meds, then I can't help you.


Big Pharma's little buddies

The biggest, fastest growth in the prescription drug market is in the littlest people - and I don't mean midgets.

A new study by Medco, which manages drug benefits and runs the nation's largest mail-order pharmacy, finds that more children are taking more powerful meds more frequently.

That's a whole lot of "more" in one place... it's so bad now that a quarter of all U.S. kids with insurance are taking at least one drug, and 30 percent of kids between 10 and 19 years old are already on meds for chronic conditions.

Looks like 16 is the new 60!

Overall, kids are the fastest-growing demographic for the drug companies, with sales rising four times faster than in the overall general population. We've got the sickest, fattest kids in history -- and Big Pharma is ready to pounce.

Just look at diabetes. You might remember how we used to call type 2 diabetes "adult-onset diabetes." There's a reason that term has fallen out of favor -- and you can see it right there in Medco's report, which finds that the number of kids on meds for the condition has risen by 150 percent since 2001.

Nothing "adult" about that.

There's also been a 147 percent leap in heartburn meds and PPIs, a 50 percent increase in cholesterol meds, and a 24 percent rise in blood pressure drugs -- all in children. And I haven't even touched on the huge leaps in everything from antipsychotics to asthma meds.

Even Medco's boss calls the increase "shocking," and this is from a man who sells those drugs for a living.

But what's really shocking is that kids are on these meds at all -- because every single one of those diseases and conditions can be fixed through lifestyle changes, starting with a better diet.

But the sad truth is, these numbers will go up -- not down.

And if you think we're raising the fattest, sickest generation ever right now, just wait a few years. The trend says it will only get worse.

Until next time, stay healthy and happy

JD Roma


The information on this blog is provided for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical care, and medical advice and services are not being offered. If you have, or suspect you have, a health problem you should consult your physician (preferably a Naturopath).