First genetic link to common migraine exposed

Posted on August 31, 2010 by admin

First genetic link to common migraine exposed.

This is very exciting information. In this study of more than 50,000 people, researchers have found a genetic variant in people who get migraines. They found that this section of the DNA helps regulate levels of glutamate in the brain, specifically in the synapse. With this defect, too much glutamate builds up and triggers neuronal excitation, leading to migraine.

This discovery will lead to therapies that help regulate glutamate. Glutamate is a salt of glutamic acid, which is an excitatory amino acid. It is found naturally in many foods at varying levels. But it is more concentrated in the food additive called MSG (monosodium glutamate). This explains why so many people who get migraines, have a bad reaction to MSG.

There is a drug that currently helps to block excess glutamate in the brain, called Namenda. It’s main use is for people with Alzheimer’s disease. See the link for a small study showing the efficacy of Namenda for migraines.                     http://www.healthcentral.com/migraine/medications-193210-5.html

Now, hopefully scientists will question why do so many people have this defect in glutamate metabolism? I believe, as do others, that people are exposed to much higher levels of glutamate, especially in the concentrated form of MSG, and each generation that is barraged with this excessive amount of an amino acid develops a weaker ability to metabolize it.

This connection needs to be understood so that more regulations are put in place to control what chemicals food manufacturers are allowed to put into our food supply. Once again, this evidence supports the fact that man-made artificial chemicals are not handled well by the human body. And therefore we need to be more cognizant of this and regulate what chemicals are added to our foods.

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Are Household Cleansers Linked to Breast Cancer?

Posted on August 8, 2010 by admin

Are Household Cleansers Linked to Breast Cancer?.

According to this study, many household cleaners and air fresheners are linked to breast cancer. That’s because a lot of the chemicals in these products are “endocrine disruptors”. They have an estrogenic effect on the body and this can lead to cancers like breast cancer.

Fortunately there are many more natural cleaners on the market now. And of course there is always the good ol’ vinegar and baking soda. They work!

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Contrave: New Weight Loss Drug Advances

Posted on July 22, 2010 by admin

Contrave: New Weight Loss Drug Advances.

This is interesting. I was working with a client recently who is struggling with weight loss. One of the “foods” he has trouble resisting is diet soda. Previously I suggested he work on quitting diet sodas as they really sabotage weight loss- contrary to what the company wants you to believe.

Repeatedly he has said that his main craving that he can’t totally eliminate is for the diet soda. I explained that this should definitely give him evidence that diet sodas are bad. People don’t have cravings (at least not addictive cravings) for “natural”, healthy food. He agreed, and has been able to lower his consumption, but said that when he is stressed, diet soda is what he really craves.

That made me think about how so many foods today really cause addictive cravings, mostly due to the artificial chemicals in them. As a Nutritionist, I get so frustrated in trying to help people lose weight because so often it comes down to combating these addictive cravings, and it seems nothing is able to suppress them.

That’s when the light bulb went off. I started to think about a drug I know that does help with addiction. The drug is called Naltrexone. It was originally used to help drug addicts break their habit. It is very effective, and also pretty easy to wean off of once the addiction is under control.

So I did a little research, and sure enough, a drug company has created a weight loss pill that combines Naltrexone with Wellbutrin (an antidepressant). The drug is called “Contrave” and it did well in studies, and the company recently filed for FDA approval, which they expect to come through soon. (see attached article for details)

I am now looking for more natural alternatives that help with addiction and cravings. I think this is the missing piece to help people truly lose weight and keep it off. Over time, once people are able to stay away from the junk they are addicted to, and they have cleansed their palates of these addictive chemicals, and they have adopted healthier eating habits, they should be able to build on that.

It is a matter of fighting fire with fire. We may need chemical help initially to help our bodies control the cravings we have for the addictive chemicals. Naltrexone helps by blocking dopamine receptors so you don’t get high from drugs that normally get into neurotransmitter receptors and cause a high. Many food chemicals have a similar affect on the brain as drugs do. So by blocking these receptors, you are able to block the satisfaction you get from these chemicals. Over time, the cravings lessen, and you are able to quit the addiction.

If this drug, and others that are sure to follow, works; it will hopefully finally send the clear message that the processed junk food that we eat in this country is truly killing us. And maybe we will see real change.

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Prostate Cancer Screening; Is This a Teachable Moment? — Brawley 101 19: 1295 — JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute

Posted on May 26, 2010 by admin

Prostate Cancer Screening; Is This a Teachable Moment? — Brawley 101 19: 1295 — JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

This conclusion is becoming more common when it comes to diagnosing and treating cancer- many cancers, if left alone, will not kill you. In fact, recent studies have concluded that at least 25% of breast cancer and closer to 60% of prostate cancers are over diagnosed and unnecessarily treated.

Of course, knowing when to leave cancer alone vs. when to treat it is still a tough call. But researchers are demanding that diagnostic practices be challenged and changed.

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http://deainfo.nci.nih.gov/advisory/pcp/pcp08-09rpt/PCP_Report_08-09_508.pdf

Posted on May 12, 2010 by admin

I am truly encouraged. This is the 2008-2009 annual report from the President’s Cancer Panel, which includes the Department of Health and Human Services, The National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute.
In their introductory letter to the President, the panel says that the role of environmental toxins has been grossly underestimated in causing cancer. They make a plea for our government to step in and develop ways to eliminate as many of these carcinogens as possible.
We are finally on the right path in the war on cancer. Of course, this ship will be huge to turn around, if possible at all. But at least the people who we rely on to help us with cancer are finally understanding why we are getting it in the first place. Now we can focus on treating cancer by targeting the main cause- environmental toxins.
This helps to support my belief that detoxification is the main way to improve people’s health today. Not just a week long fast or detox plan, but a lifelong program of boosting our own natural detoxification systems. More to come on this…

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Thyroid-Disrupting Triclosan Jumps Into the Frying Pan | Weight Loss News

Posted on April 12, 2010 by admin

Thyroid-Disrupting Triclosan Jumps Into the Frying Pan | Weight Loss News.

Well the message gets clearer everyday: Man-made chemicals are killing us. Here is more evidence showing how chemicals are endocrine disruptors, specifically in this case, they harm our thyroids. Not only does this affect the health of millions of people, it also plays a role in the obesity epidemic.

It’s going to be really tough to turn this ship around. We are drowning in man-made chemicals and unfortunately, getting rid of them will mean a lot of changes to our convenient lifestyles. But until we clean up our planet, we will continue to get sicker and fatter.

The only other option is to boost our body’s detoxification systems. I believe this is truly our only defense at this point. And I don’t mean a week-long fast. For many of us, who don’t metabolize many of these chemicals (there are a small percent of very lucky people who can metabolize just about everything!), we will need to consistently do things to keep our detox systems working at the level they need to in order to rid the body of these toxins.

There is not a lot of good, scientifically proven techniques yet. But some studies show that natural soy foods (fermented soy, etc) and lots of greens (collard, kale, spinach, seaweed) can help. There are also supplements and detox products that can help, but each person may require something different. So I recommend working with someone who is really up on this.

I think the future in healthcare lies in how to strengthen and boost our detox and metabolic systems. We’ll see….

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Statin drug appears to weaken body’s immune defenses

Posted on March 24, 2010 by admin

Statin drug appears to weaken body’s immune defenses.

Statins are over-prescribed and under-monitored. There are studies now that show that high cholesterol is not the problem we initially thought it was. In fact, on the contrary, too low of cholesterol actually causes more health problems than high cholesterol.

This study points out the trade-off from taking statins. Apparently they lower our immune systems and leave us more susceptible to infectious diseases. The side effects alone from taking statins are often enough to make most people stop taking them.

Just another example of our medical community being run by drug companies. Seldom does a Dr. offer dietary suggestions to control cholesterol. Also, most doctors are not up to date on the studies showing that high cholesterol is not as bad as we thought.

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Media reports may paint overly optimistic view of cancer

Posted on March 19, 2010 by admin

Media reports may paint overly optimistic view of cancer.

Unfortunately, as this article points out, most aggressive cancer treatments do not extend life and more than half of the patients diagnosed with cancer will die from it. This article raises the question of whether or not the media should tell the whole picture when it comes to cancer, rather than reporting mostly the successes or new treatments.

This is a tough call. On one hand, I think it is imperative that people realize that cancer is truly the biggest killer disease, so that they would maybe work a little harder to try to prevent it. Although we can’t prevent all cancer, we do know certain lifestyle choices definitely contribute to the risk, like smoking, drinking too much alcohol, being exposed to high levels of toxins and obesity (to an extent).

I also think if we let people know the truth about how unsuccessful most cancer treatments are (and in fact in many cases unnecessary), it would maybe prompt the cancer industry (drug companies, cancer equipment, doctors) to look harder at different approaches, possibly even at “alternative” therapies.

The war on cancer has been abysmal, to say the least. We really need some innovative thinking, and fast.

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Drug metabolism: How enzymes interact is important to toxicity and effectiveness

Posted on March 18, 2010 by admin

Drug metabolism: How enzymes interact is important to toxicity and effectiveness.

Enzymes are the key to life. I am certainly not the first to say this, and I won’t be the last. Scientists are finally shifting their focus to study enzymes in more detail. This article discusses not only how important and varied enzymes are, but how important their interaction with each other can be in our health.

Most of the studies to date on enzymes have been about their role in drug metabolism. Different enzymes and different enzymatic actions determine how a person reacts to medicines. This is why people taking the exact same drug, in the same amount can have very different reactions. Metabolic enzymes, as this article states, offers a partial explanation of why some people are more resistant to cancers than others. They also explain why some people can smoke, drink alcohol, eat bad food and never exercise, but still live a relatively long, healthy life; and why some who eat pretty well, and take care of themselves, die sooner. It’s enzymes.

Genetics is mostly to blame for whether or not you get a strong enzymatic system. But lifestyle can help, or hurt. That is why we are all playing Russian roulette when it comes to lifestyle choices. You might have been dealt a very good hand of enzymes and therefore your body will be better able to get rid of a lot of the junk you expose your body to. Or, you could have received a not so strong set a metabolic enzymes, and you have to watch everything you eat, drink and breathe.

That is why living life in moderation is usually the best case scenario. Although this is getting harder to do because cancer-causing chemicals are so evasive in our world today. But this is why I love and follow the belief that eating natural and whole foods is probably one of our best defenses. It is also yummy, when done right.

I am excited about science finally getting more curious and knowledgeable about enzymes. I know they are the key to understanding how the human body stays healthy or succumbs to disease. And hopefully one day, we will be able to correct any deficiencies we were born with, or at least be able to treat a disease already begun with enzymes. Of course, I am sure by then, we will have figured out another way to get sick…

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TED Prize : Wishes Big Enough to Change the World

Posted on March 3, 2010 by admin

TED Prize : Wishes Big Enough to Change the World

Jamie Oliver, a chef from England who was known as The Naked Chef, is on a mission to eradicate obesity. While he has already spread the word in his native land, he is now in the USA, the motherboard for fat, hoping to really get the revolution started. He says in this video  that if America can make big changes, he believes the rest of the world will follow. I am encouraged to see the strides he is making in this country by holding talks, and now a show about working with a small town in West Virginia, known as the unhealthiest town in the country, to get them into shape.

While I consider Jamie’s work commendable, and I support him all the way, I wish he would explain that obesity is just one of the symptoms of the poor health this country is in due to an atrocious diet and sedentary lifestyle. Being fat is just the body’s natural reaction to an unnatural situation. It is not natural to eat all the artificial foodstuff that we eat in this country. And it is also not natural for humans to sit at desks all day and then in front of computers and tv’s all night. We need to truly explain how much our civilization has changed over the past century to better understand how to attack this problem.

Getting fat is only the tip of the iceberg. We can see fat and therefore make the connection that eating too much and moving too little have played a role in this. But what many people don’t see or make the connection with, is that this lifestyle of fast food and less activity also contributes to many other health problems like heart disease, diabetes, some cancers, depression, ADHD, asthma, allergies and autoimmune diseases. This lifestyle is killing us, all of us.

Like Jamie, I think education is one of the keys to getting this obesity epidemic turned around. We need to teach people about real food and the harmful ingredients they are consuming everyday unwittingly. We need to force our food manufacturers to provide the truth on their labels. We need to encourage more sustainable farming practices and encourage people to support these efforts by shopping locally to get more fresh food for their families. We need to require our schools to provide more natural, whole foods for our children, and to educate them about how to make healthier choices. And we need our government to stand up to many big businesses and demand they improve their standards, or face big consequences.

This is not to say we should police what people eat and do. It is more about our society changing their attitude about food and sustainability. It is also about greed and lying. We have been coerced into buying fake food for a long time. With very powerful artificial ingredients that cause cravings, and offering this junk at such low prices, the food industry has known for a long time how to get us hooked on their products. And we are hooked. Our metabolism has been damaged by these man-made ingredients, and our brains are now wired to need more.

So my hat is off to you Jamie Oliver. You have a long road ahead of you, but many of us will be there for the long haul. We are tired of feeling and looking like crap. We are tired of our kids having ADHD and being drugged into submission. We are tired of dealing with allergies and asthma, and not doing well in school, and getting lazier by the minute. And we are exhausted from the pain and suffering we feel from losing too many loved ones to this modern killing machine. It’s time for a food fight, a food revelation- a food revolution!

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