Anti-aging
Help: Stop muscle loss
We don't like to admit when the calendar's getting the best of us, so of course we don't want to talk about how we're not as strong as we used to be.
But you know it's happening.
You can feel it in your muscles, when you struggle to open a jar of sauce or even just a heavy door. Heck, the more candles you add to your cake the more you can practically SEE your muscles shrink before your very eyes.
Muscle loss and loss of strength are two of Mother Nature's cruelest tricks. But there's a simple, safe and effective way to gain strength and regrow your muscle.
The omega-3 fatty acids in the fish oil supplements that I hope you're taking right now are proven to protect muscle and even restore strength and reverse muscle loss.
One new study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows how fish oil capsules can reverse the toll of years of aging on your muscles.
In just six months, fish oil capsules increased muscle volume, as measured in the thigh, by 3.6 percent when compared to a placebo. For some seniors, that's the damage of more than 3 years of aging... wiped out by fish oil.
More muscle means more power, so the seniors given fish oil also had a 4 percent improvement in both lower and upper-body strength -- reversing the toll of nearly two years of aging.
To get the benefits in the study, you need a higher dose than what most folks take. But at 1.86 grams per day of EPA and 1.5 grams per day of DHA, it's not even close to an unsafe dose (but speak to your doctor anyway, of course).
My Comment:
We don't like to admit when the calendar's getting the best of us, so of course we don't want to talk about how we're not as strong as we used to be.
But you know it's happening.
You can feel it in your muscles, when you struggle to open a jar of sauce or even just a heavy door. Heck, the more candles you add to your cake the more you can practically SEE your muscles shrink before your very eyes.
Muscle loss and loss of strength are two of Mother Nature's cruelest tricks. But there's a simple, safe and effective way to gain strength and regrow your muscle.
The omega-3 fatty acids in the fish oil supplements that I hope you're taking right now are proven to protect muscle and even restore strength and reverse muscle loss.
One new study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows how fish oil capsules can reverse the toll of years of aging on your muscles.
In just six months, fish oil capsules increased muscle volume, as measured in the thigh, by 3.6 percent when compared to a placebo. For some seniors, that's the damage of more than 3 years of aging... wiped out by fish oil.
More muscle means more power, so the seniors given fish oil also had a 4 percent improvement in both lower and upper-body strength -- reversing the toll of nearly two years of aging.
To get the benefits in the study, you need a higher dose than what most folks take. But at 1.86 grams per day of EPA and 1.5 grams per day of DHA, it's not even close to an unsafe dose (but speak to your doctor anyway, of course).
My Comment:
You can use Krill, Fish, Cod, or Flax Oil to get the EPA and DHA you need and I recommend taking a mixture or 2 or 3 of them to get the unique benefits each provides. I also add a little flax oil to salads or dressing as an easy way of getting the added benefit of the Lignans that come in unrefined flax oil. Trader Joes sells bottles of organic flax oil at a good price or you can find it at any health food store. All four oils are available in liquid or capsule form. Also, adding a weight bearing exercise program is vital as you get older to prevent rapid muscle loss and balance issues later on in life.
It was splashed all over the web
pages of The New York Times, Time magazine, and dozens of other
widely-read publications.
Researchers from the University of California in San Francisco claimed they had the smoking-gun proof that a common childhood vaccine can prevent leukemia.
And from there, the pro-vaccine media ran wild.
But this wasn't some scientific breakthrough -- and the only thing those researchers discovered was how to game the press. Because it looks like they were participating in a dangerous new trend called "Press Release Medicine."
Press Release Medicine is designed to trick the gullible media into reporting unproven, non-existent benefits of billion-dollar vaccines and drugs.
And in this case, it may have been used to hide the truth about a vaccine that's not working and could be leaving countless kids at risk for deadly infections.
Separate fact from fiction
Researchers from the University of California in San Francisco claimed they had the smoking-gun proof that a common childhood vaccine can prevent leukemia.
And from there, the pro-vaccine media ran wild.
But this wasn't some scientific breakthrough -- and the only thing those researchers discovered was how to game the press. Because it looks like they were participating in a dangerous new trend called "Press Release Medicine."
Press Release Medicine is designed to trick the gullible media into reporting unproven, non-existent benefits of billion-dollar vaccines and drugs.
And in this case, it may have been used to hide the truth about a vaccine that's not working and could be leaving countless kids at risk for deadly infections.
Separate fact from fiction
There are two rules to what health watchdogs are increasingly calling Press
Release Medicine:
- Put out a press release making a bold and wildly
unsupported claim about a vaccine, drug or surgery.
- Wait for lazy and unqualified members of the media to
run with the story, no questions asked.
Lead scientist Dr. Markus Muschen claimed he and his colleagues discovered the exact mechanism by which the Hib vaccine -- which is given to babies and designed to prevent bacterial infections that can cause pneumonia and meningitis -- keeps cells from turning cancerous.
Muschen even declared that it's "common knowledge that vaccines protect against cancer and leukemia."
And that was all it took for major outlets like The New York Times and Time magazine to declare the story true and share it with their readers. These reporters didn't look into the science behind Muschen's claims -- and, for the most part, they weren't qualified to.
Before she became an overnight cancer research expert, the Time reporter had been covering Bruce Jenner's gender change and some controversial quotes from an old Seinfeld character.
And, of course, that's why Press Release Medicine works so well. There are plenty of lazy and under-qualified reporters and editors who will cover any health news that sounds like it's coming from a reputable source.
It turns out this research was on mouse enzymes. Muschen and his colleagues didn't study a single child -- nor was there a single case of leukemia prevented.
Tara Haelle, who writes for NPR (there are still some good reporters out there), started digging into Muschen's claim that the Hib vaccine was helping kids ward off leukemia. And she couldn't find a single scientist who agreed.
Haelle interviewed experts from Emory University and the University of California, Berkeley, and they all told her the same thing: "Nothing in this paper proves that the Hib vaccine reduces leukemia risk."
She even tracked down Dr. Paul Offit, head of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and one of America's biggest vaccination supporters. Offit refused to claim there's a connection between the Hib shot and a reduced cancer risk.
So why are pro-vax researchers giving us this deceptive hard sell on the Hib vaccine? Why are they so intent on finding another, different reason for parents to choose it for their kids?
In fact, the number of confirmed Hib infections nearly tripled since 1997. Hib cases have risen just about every year since the mid-1990s, despite that fact that there's more than a 90 percent vaccination rate.
And that's no surprise because kids who get the Hib vaccine are up to five times more likely to get Hib illnesses than children who skip the shot. The Hib vaccine apparently suppresses the immune system, which can leave newly vaccinated kids vulnerable to the most serious type of Hib infection -- bacterial meningitis.
In fact, as far back as 1995 the federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System showed a big uptick in young kids coming down with Hib infections within a month after receiving the vaccine.
That's a serious risk that should be communicated to parents who are deciding whether the Hib vaccine is right for their kids. Just don't expect to read about it in some mainstream, pro-vax press release.
Flonase Nasal Spray Warning
When
the steroid nasal spray Flonase made the switch from prescription-only to OTC
last year, millions more allergy sufferers were baited into using it.
Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline even launched a fancy (and ironic) new website promising that Flonase could clear those clogged nasal passages and help you get back a "great sense of smell."
But you may want to think twice about using Flonase, because reports are flying in from around the country from people who have lost… perhaps permanently… their senses of smell and taste after taking the drug. Some even after only one dose.
It's a predictable and even common side effect. So why did GSK and our government work together to make sure none of these victims were ever warned?
Lana used just one dose of Flonase -- and two days later, had "almost no sense of smell."
GSK knew that could happen. The FDA knew that could happen.
It seems like everyone knows about the risks of Flonase except poor Lana and the millions of other people who are buying the med right now to relieve their allergies.
When the prescription version of Flonase hit the market in 1994, GSK quickly began receiving complaints about people who could no longer smell or taste a thing.
In fact, the FDA's own drug interaction database has shown hundreds of complaints from people who suffered a loss of smell and taste after taking Flonase.
Reports like this are why the label for prescription Flonase was required to carry a warning about "alteration or loss of sense of taste and/or smell."
But when Flonase was approved for OTC sale last year, the warning mysteriously disappeared. That's despite the fact that OTC Flonase is the same dose as the old prescription version and the directions for use are identical.
But by letting GSK erase the warning from Flonase, the FDA gave millions of consumers the impression that this sledgehammer steroid drug is safer than it is. And our government paved the way for GSK to make a fortune while keeping consumers in the dark.
The worst part is that Flonase isn't exactly some life-saving heart pill -- it's a drug that absolutely nobody needs to take. If you're looking for some natural -- and safe -- allergy relief, try hot showers, saline spray, butterbur supplements, and steaming a few drops of eucalyptus oil. These have all been proven to relieve congestion and help you breathe more easily.
And if you're taking Flonase and have noticed any change to your senses of taste and smell, stop using the drug immediately and talk to your doctor. The longer your senses are gone -- or impaired -- the harder they may be to recover.
Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline even launched a fancy (and ironic) new website promising that Flonase could clear those clogged nasal passages and help you get back a "great sense of smell."
But you may want to think twice about using Flonase, because reports are flying in from around the country from people who have lost… perhaps permanently… their senses of smell and taste after taking the drug. Some even after only one dose.
It's a predictable and even common side effect. So why did GSK and our government work together to make sure none of these victims were ever warned?
Lana used just one dose of Flonase -- and two days later, had "almost no sense of smell."
GSK knew that could happen. The FDA knew that could happen.
It seems like everyone knows about the risks of Flonase except poor Lana and the millions of other people who are buying the med right now to relieve their allergies.
When the prescription version of Flonase hit the market in 1994, GSK quickly began receiving complaints about people who could no longer smell or taste a thing.
In fact, the FDA's own drug interaction database has shown hundreds of complaints from people who suffered a loss of smell and taste after taking Flonase.
Reports like this are why the label for prescription Flonase was required to carry a warning about "alteration or loss of sense of taste and/or smell."
But when Flonase was approved for OTC sale last year, the warning mysteriously disappeared. That's despite the fact that OTC Flonase is the same dose as the old prescription version and the directions for use are identical.
But by letting GSK erase the warning from Flonase, the FDA gave millions of consumers the impression that this sledgehammer steroid drug is safer than it is. And our government paved the way for GSK to make a fortune while keeping consumers in the dark.
The worst part is that Flonase isn't exactly some life-saving heart pill -- it's a drug that absolutely nobody needs to take. If you're looking for some natural -- and safe -- allergy relief, try hot showers, saline spray, butterbur supplements, and steaming a few drops of eucalyptus oil. These have all been proven to relieve congestion and help you breathe more easily.
And if you're taking Flonase and have noticed any change to your senses of taste and smell, stop using the drug immediately and talk to your doctor. The longer your senses are gone -- or impaired -- the harder they may be to recover.
Blood Pressure Meds Increase Fatal Strokes By 33% or More.....There Is A Better Way
By Jenny Thompson at HSI
By Jenny Thompson at HSI
If you suffer from high blood
pressure, you probably ran out of room in your medicine cabinet years ago.
Between calcium channel blockers, ACE inhibitors, beta blockers and diuretics, you may be taking two, three meds or more to keep your blood pressure under control.
And it's all because you've been promised that loading up on these hypertension drugs is the best way to prevent a life-threatening stroke.
But a major new study is singing a different (and frightening) tune. Researchers have proven that those trusted meds may more than double your stroke risk, even if they're successfully lowering your blood pressure.
And you won't believe who's helping to sound the alarm.
Nobody has done more to shove blood pressure meds down millions of Americans' throats than the American Heart Association.
AHA guidelines advise blood pressure patients to take "more than one type of prescription medication" if their doc says so, even if it means taking the drugs "every day for the rest of your life."
And apparently even AHA's former president finds that hard to swallow.
Dr. Suzanne Oparil, who once ran both the AHA and the American Society for Hypertension, has just co-authored a study warning that combining blood pressure meds could be a dangerous -- and even deadly -- idea.
The study tracked over 26,000 people for more than six years. And researchers found that taking even one blood pressure med increased your risk of a potentially fatal stroke by 33 percent.
Worse still, people who were taking three or more blood pressure drugs -- which is shockingly common -- were two and a half times more likely to suffer a stroke as those who controlled their blood pressure naturally.
In fact, the study's lead author, Dr. George Howard from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, said taking at least three blood pressure meds leaves you in just as much trouble as not treating your hypertension at all.
"We want to raise the issue that… relying solely on this [drug-centered] approach is going to come at a dear price of people's lives," he said
And this isn't the first big study to highlight the risks of blood pressure drugs. Not by a longshot. Other recent research has shown that older people taking blood pressure meds were more likely to suffer from dementia. And those who managed to achieve the lowest systolic (top) numbers showed the most memory loss.
Blood pressure meds can also cause life-threatening facial swelling, dizziness, falls, lupus and even glaucoma. And that's just the short list.
Of course, having high blood pressure isn't healthy either -- it's how you get to that lower reading that makes the difference. Howard, Oparil and their fellow researchers say that doctors need to start focusing on non-drug, early interventions.
Even if you already have high blood pressure, there are plenty of ways to bring it down without being joined at the hip with some of the most dangerous drugs out there -- for life. Here are three easy things you can start doing today:
Between calcium channel blockers, ACE inhibitors, beta blockers and diuretics, you may be taking two, three meds or more to keep your blood pressure under control.
And it's all because you've been promised that loading up on these hypertension drugs is the best way to prevent a life-threatening stroke.
But a major new study is singing a different (and frightening) tune. Researchers have proven that those trusted meds may more than double your stroke risk, even if they're successfully lowering your blood pressure.
And you won't believe who's helping to sound the alarm.
Nobody has done more to shove blood pressure meds down millions of Americans' throats than the American Heart Association.
AHA guidelines advise blood pressure patients to take "more than one type of prescription medication" if their doc says so, even if it means taking the drugs "every day for the rest of your life."
And apparently even AHA's former president finds that hard to swallow.
Dr. Suzanne Oparil, who once ran both the AHA and the American Society for Hypertension, has just co-authored a study warning that combining blood pressure meds could be a dangerous -- and even deadly -- idea.
The study tracked over 26,000 people for more than six years. And researchers found that taking even one blood pressure med increased your risk of a potentially fatal stroke by 33 percent.
Worse still, people who were taking three or more blood pressure drugs -- which is shockingly common -- were two and a half times more likely to suffer a stroke as those who controlled their blood pressure naturally.
In fact, the study's lead author, Dr. George Howard from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, said taking at least three blood pressure meds leaves you in just as much trouble as not treating your hypertension at all.
"We want to raise the issue that… relying solely on this [drug-centered] approach is going to come at a dear price of people's lives," he said
And this isn't the first big study to highlight the risks of blood pressure drugs. Not by a longshot. Other recent research has shown that older people taking blood pressure meds were more likely to suffer from dementia. And those who managed to achieve the lowest systolic (top) numbers showed the most memory loss.
Blood pressure meds can also cause life-threatening facial swelling, dizziness, falls, lupus and even glaucoma. And that's just the short list.
Of course, having high blood pressure isn't healthy either -- it's how you get to that lower reading that makes the difference. Howard, Oparil and their fellow researchers say that doctors need to start focusing on non-drug, early interventions.
Even if you already have high blood pressure, there are plenty of ways to bring it down without being joined at the hip with some of the most dangerous drugs out there -- for life. Here are three easy things you can start doing today:
- Increase your potassium. Not only does potassium work
to lower blood pressure, but previous research found that men who consumed
the lowest amounts of potassium had a significantly higher risk of stroke.
And it's easy to find potassium-rich foods, which include bananas,
chicken, lima beans and spinach.
- Ditch the fructose. Numerous studies over the years
have linked fructose to high blood pressure. I'm talking about added
fructose, mainly in the form of high fructose corn syrup found in so many
processed foods, not the kind found naturally in an apple or a pear.
- Dust off your walking shoes. Exercise, especially brisk walking, is one of the best "drugs" you can take for hypertension, and it's free
- Another natural approach is eating celery or drinking celery juice to lower blood pressure. Celery Seed Extract supplements have also been shown to be very effective.
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).
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