HealthBeat News

Author: Wellness Club

  • Vitamins To Be Outlawed!

    By Nurse Mark

     

    Vitamins And Supplements To Be Outlawed

     

    No vitamins or supplements without a prescription if Senators McCain and Dorgan and their buddies in Big Pharma get their way!

     

    If you want to continue to enjoy the freedom to have the vitamins, minerals, herbs and other dietary supplements that you enjoy now, you MUST fight this proposed bill!

    I wrote about this in our last issue of HealthBeat News: Dietary Supplements In The Political Crosshairs Again! Action Alert! I hope you have all acted on the recommendations there to contact your political representatives – remember, they work for you!

    This letter, from a respected doctor, arrived in my mailbox today:

    Hello,

    There is some BAD legislation in Congress right now that could harm our access to supplements …

    Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) have cosponsored a new bill misleadingly called The Dietary Supplement Safety Act (DSSA). DSSA would repeal key sections of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), signed into law by then-President Clinton.

    This legislation would change current regulation for dietary supplements. It could make many prescription only, limit what is on the market, offer patents to drug companies and in many other ways severely limit access to dietary supplements.

    A wide variety of organizations, working together with ANH-USA, have swung into action to stop John McCain’s new bill that threatens dietary supplements. Already thousands of messages are on their way to Capitol Hill in protest. Please be sure that your message is among them. I encourage you to act now to send a message to your Senator or Congressman. If you have not already done so, please take action now: http://www.anh-usa.org/new_site/?p=2326

    DSHEA protects supplements 1) if they are food products that have been in the food supply and not chemically altered or 2) if they were sold as supplements prior to 1994, the year that DSHEA was passed. If a supplement fits one of these two descriptions, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cannot arbitrarily ban it or reclassify it as a drug. DSHEA provides the framework for effective regulation of dietary supplements by the FDA.

    The Dietary Supplement Safety Act (DSSA) would eliminate the supplement protections contained in DSHEA and allow the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) arbitrary authority to draw up a list of what supplements can be sold and at what potency levels. Europe is currently limiting both supplements and potencies to ridiculous levels. If DSSA passes, the FDA, beholden as it is to drug interests, would move to do the same in the US.

    So please act now and write to your Senator and Congressman to oppose this legislation.

    Thank you.
    Mark Hyman, MD

     

    You can find and sign an on-line petition here: Click Here For The Online Petition

    Here is a suggested letter if you prefer to write your representative: Click Here For A Suggested Letter

    Remember, these people work for you – never let them make you feel like you are a bother to them or that they somehow have more important things to do than to listen to what you have to say. YOU are the most important thing in their world because if it were not for YOU they would not have a job – you ARE their job!

    Once again, here is how you can contact your representatives in the senate:

    Senator McCain
                  Office phone number: (202) 224-2235
                  E-mail Senator McCain: http://mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm
    Senator Dorgan
                 Office phone: (202) 224-2551
                  E-mail address: http://dorgan.senate.gov/contact/contact_form.cfm

    U.S. Senators:  http://www.senate.gov

    Contact Information to E-mail Senators: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

    The Senate main telephone number is (202) 224-3121

    Click on the following link below for individual mailing addresses for letter writing and other contact info for Congress Members:

    111th Congress and Senate Contact Adresses

  • Healthy Bones At Any Age

    Healthy Bones At Any Age

     

    By Nurse Mark

     

    Bone health is a big concern for most women – and surprisingly, a growing number of men need to pay attention to their bones as well!

    According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation:

    “Today, 2 million American men have osteoporosis, and another 12 million are at risk for this disease. Yet, despite the large number of men affected, osteoporosis in men remains underdiagnosed and underreported.”

    And they go on to say;

    “In the U.S. today, 10 million individuals are estimated to already have the disease and almost 34 million more are estimated to have low bone mass, placing them at increased risk for osteoporosis.”

    So, bone health is serious business! Ann, a regular reader, wrote to ask the following:

    Hi again

    I have been told to add Calcium 1200-1500mg with vitamin D/per day.  I can’t seem to find that on your site.  Do you carry that?

    Thank you
    Ann

    Well Ann, yes we do – but calcium alone does not make strong bones! There are several other minerals and a very important vitamin that need to be considered too. Though we discuss Osteoporosis and Bone health in depth on our website, here is the “short course.”

    The recommended calcium dose for post-menopausal women or for those with osteoporosis is 1,500 mg calcium with corresponding magnesium, boron and vitamin D.

    A daily dose of Maxi Multi contains high potency calcium / magnesium (1,000:500) plus other bone-building nutrients (boron, vitamin D). Pre-menopausal females and men usually get an optimal dose of bone nutrients from Maxi Multi alone.

    Cal-Mag Amino™ is a very easy to assimilate form of calcium-magnesium plus vitamin D and boron, all needed for healthy bone formation. Dr. Myatt recommends a “balanced” bone formula over a single calcium supplement for keeping bones strong.

    Each Capsule of Cal-Mag Amino™ provides:

    Calcium (amino acid chelate, carbonate) 150 mg
    Magnesium (amino acid chelate, oxide) 100 mg
    Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) 25 IU
    Boron (citrate, aspartate, glycinate) 200 mcg

    Post-menopausal women taking Maxi Multi can take an additional 3 caps of Cal-Mag Amino daily.

    Vitamin D is getting plenty of press recently – I wrote about it in the HealthBeat article Vitamin D – An Old Friend Finding New Respect

    The recommended daily dose is 400 to 2000 IU – though recent research is showing that much higher amounts may be needed to replenish depleted reserves in many people. How to know? The Wellness Club offers Vitamin D testing

    Maxi Multi provides 800 IU of Vitamin D daily.

    Also, let’s not forget Strontium – a forgotten mineral that is essential to bone health. It appears that not only can strontium prevent osteoporosis, it can repair existing damage.

    Maxi Multi does not contain strontium. If you see a “bone formula” with strontium, don’t take it. Strontium should be taken away from calcium and magnesium for best absorption.

    The suggested dose of strontium is 1 capsule, 1-2 times per day with or between meals (take separately from calcium).  One capsule per day is advised for prevention, 2 caps per day for those at high risk of osteoporosis or in already-established cases of osteoporosis.

    And just in case you are thinking of taking that prescription for “Bone-building Drug” that your conventional doctor is pushing on you, please read this HealthBeat News article first: The Ugly Truth About “Bone-Building” Drugs for Osteoporosis

  • Psoriasis – More Than Just An Embarrassing ‘Skin Problem’

    We have been getting a number of questions recently about skin conditions – psoriasis in particular, and other psoriasis-like conditions. Well, it turns out that psoriasis is neither simple, nor isolated in terms of your health – read on to find out just how important your skin can be as an indicator of other health problems that you might not even be aware of. Since this is such an important topic, and affects so many folks, Dr. Myatt has assembled her recommendations and created an article to help those who wish to self-treat. This is as close to an actual consultation with Dr. Myatt as you can get without actually being a patient – and we are making it available to HealthBeat News readers first!

    For those who wish to view the medical research and references that back up Dr. Myatt’s article and recommendations, they can be found on our website.

     

    Psoriasis

     

    Do You Suffer “The Heartbreak Of Psoriasis”?

     

    Once thought to be little more than an annoying and unsightly skin condition, research now shows psoriasis to be a symptom of much more serious problems.

    What is Psoriasis?

    Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease with abnormally fast production of skin cells (up to 1,000 times normal) accompanied by inflammation.

    Rapidly-multiplying skin cells pile up, creating a silvery scale. Skin underneath this scale is typically inflamed, itchy and painful. The condition is not contagious.

    Psoriasis, once considered a “skin disease,”  is now recognized as a systemic (body-wide) autoimmune condition highly associated with:

    • cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and stroke (1-14)
    • diabetes and metabolic syndrome (7-15)

    Other conditions associated with psoriasis include depression, insomnia/sleep difficulties, COPD, GERD and arthritis.

    What Causes Psoriasis?

    The precise cause of psoriasis is not known but a number of factors and have been identified:

    • genetic.  About one-third of people with psoriasis have a family member who also has the disease, suggesting a genetic component in some sufferers.
    • high cGMP to cAMP ratios
    • excess inflammation
    • high inflammatory cytokines (immune-regulating communication molecules)
    • auto-immune

    In holistic medicine we also consider:

    • incomplete digestion (especially protein digestion).
    • bowel dysbiosis
    • impaired liver function
    • food allergies
    • nutritional deficiencies
    • stress appears to worsen the condition, and stress-reducing practices have shown to be helpful in these cases.

    Each individual case of psoriasis should be considered as some combination  of these factors.

    Conventional medical treatment:

    Topical treatments such as steroid cream can greatly help or even “cure” psoriasis. Unfortunately, steroid cream can cause skin atrophy, stretch marks, spider veins and easy bruising when used long-term. The effects can also become systemic and disrupt hormone levels, contributing to osteoporosis and even psychosis.

    Steroid creams don’t work for everyone, and there is often a decreasing effect of treatment with continual use. There can also be serious rebound effects with sudden discontinuance.

    Immune-suppressive drugs such as cyclosporin and methotrexate are used, but liver, kidney and blood values must be monitored regularly because of the toxicity of these drugs.

    Dr. Myatt’s Holistic Self-Help Recommendations*

    DIET AND LIFESTYLE

    PRIMARY SUPPORT

    • Maxi Multi: 3 caps, 3 times per day with meals. Maxi Multi contains optimal (not minimal) doses of all essential vitamins, minerals, and trace minerals, including those often deficient in psoriasis.  The most important deficiencies in psoriasis are: vitamin A, vitamin E, chromium, selenium, zinc, and vitamin D.
    • Omega 3 fatty acids: especially EPA and DHA as found in fish oil. Target dose is 1.8grams EPA and 1.2 grams DHA. This can be obtained from: Max EPA: 10 caps per day with meals
      OR
      Maxi Marine O-3: 4 caps per day with meals
    • Maxi-Flavone: 1-2 caps per day with meals. This ultra-potent formula contains herbs which decrease inflammatory cytokines.
    • Vitamin D: additional vitamin D as needed to obtain optimal blood levels. Learn about vitamin D testing here. Optimal vitamin D levels are very important for psoriasis treatment success.

    ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

    LIFESTYLE / TOPICAL TREATMENTS

    • Sunlight. UVB exposure has long been known to aid psoriasis  This could be due to increased vitamin D production.
      Newer prescription creams for psoriasis include synthetic vitamin D, further showing the importance of vitamin D for psoriasis.
    • Topicals (how to wash and protect psoriatic skin).
      Wash – Use mild, chemical-free soaps and cosmetics. Harsh alkaline soaps can cause further irritation.
      Moisturize – Chemical-free, gentle moisturizers should be applied after every shower or bath.
    • Bathe – baths with baking soda, oatmeal or bentonite clay can be very soothing and detoxifying. Soak for 15-20 minutes in warm water. Do NOT use a bath for cleansing, only for soaking. Be sure that you are using pure, uncontaminated water! If you are unsure about your water quality you may need to consider adding a water filter to your home.
    • Shower – for actual skin cleansing, take a shower. Use chemical-free oatmeal soap, other mild soap or Dove brand bar soap. But please remember, when you’re hot (and your skin’s pores are wide-open), you can absorb toxins from the water. Shower-head filters are inexpensive and reliable.
    • DON’T pick or scratch skin! Psoriatic lesions tend to grow at the site of skin injury. If itching is uncontrollable, use a skin brush to gently exfoliate without causing dermal injury.
    • Drink pure water – A Good Water Filter is a Cheap Investment in Your Health. A reliable, highly-effective under-sink water filter is an excellent health investment, especially when you consider how important water is to health. The human body is about 60% water. That means we can have 60% of our total body weight contaminated with a variety of toxins if we drink lousy water. The highest-rated water filters cost about the same as the cheap junk. Aquasana Water Purifiers  make some of the highest-rated filters at the best prices.
    • Vitamin D Test to rule out sub-optimal vitamin D levels. I recommend this to ALL psoriasis patients.
    • Comprehensive GI Health Profile – to evaluate for bowel toxicity, yeast overgrowth, deficient protein digestion .
    • Food Intolerance Profile – if indicated by this food allergy questionnaire and symptom list.

    DR. MYATT’S COMMENTS

    • Diet and balanced digestion / gut function are primary
    • Correcting nutrient deficiencies with supplementation and ensuring optimal vitamin D levels are also very important

    ALL psoriasis patients, whether symptomatic or not, should pay special attention to cardiovascular and metabolic risks. I recommend looking at cardio risk factors including the “other” risk factors at a regular interval.

    Psoriasis can be challenging, but starting with the basics (good gut, adequate nutrients) often corrects or at least greatly improves symptoms. When natural, corrective treatment is used, improvement in skin lesions can be expected to include improvement associated risks such as heart disease and diabetes.

    Topical treatments alone, even when they decrease skin lesions, do not correct systemic risks. Psoriasis should therefore be treated as a systemic disease, not a skin disease.

  • Dietary Supplements In The Political Crosshairs Again! Action Alert!

    Dietary Supplements In The Political Crosshairs Again – A Call To Action!

    This press release, issued by the National Health Federation, recently arrived on my desk and I felt it was important to share it with you. Rather than comment directly on it I’m  going to reprint it here in it’s entirety, including the links where you can take action. This is a very bad bill

    PRESS RELEASE

    TAKE ACTION NOW

    TO PROTECT YOUR SUPPLEMENTS!

    February 4, 2010

             They are at it again!  This time, it is Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) who are trying to gut the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 by introducing a new bill (as yet unnumbered) with the misleading title of the “Dietary Supplement Safety Act of 2010.”  This bill has as much to do with safety as pigs with space travel.

             Senator McCain just held a press conference to announce that he was co-sponsoring his Dietary Supplement Safety Act of 2010 with Senator Dorgan.  The draft bill can be found on the National Health Federation’s website at http://www.thenhf.com/press_releases/10_0202_Dietary_Supplement_Safety_Bill.pdf  The bill will be introduced shortly in the Senate.

             As Scott Tips, the president of the National Health Federation, stated, “This bill strikes at the heart of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), which was passed unanimously by the U.S. in 1994, and which took away the Food and Drug Administration’s arbitrary powers over supplements.  Now, this bill would create a Euro-style ‘positive list’ of ‘acceptable’ new dietary ingredients.  And by ‘acceptable,’ the bill means acceptable to an appointed bureaucrat.  This is completely unacceptable.  Failure to comply would result in punitive fines upon such a company selling or distributing a product not being ‘accepted.’”

             “Just as bad,” Mr. Tips continued, “would be the proposed change in the definition of an adverse event to be reported to the FDA concerning any supplement.  As we first predicted when the AER bill was introduced (and unfortunately supported by too-many dietary supplement companies), this adverse event reporting bill was only to be the camel’s nose in the tent.  More would follow, NHF predicted. And this new bill proves that we were right.  McCain and Dorgan want to change the events to be reported from ‘serious adverse’ events to any ‘adverse’ events!  This is totally unacceptable since supplements already have the safest track record of any consumable on the planet.  It is just once again politicians using a special-interest group to advance their own pro-pharmaceutical agenda against natural health products.”

             Lee Bechtel, the NHF lobbyist, also said, “These two Senators want to make a law based on NFL players who took weight loss supplements.  Supplements have other healthy benefits, and access of millions of consumers of dietary supplements should prevail over six highly paid football players, who cannot read the labels on supplement products.”

             The reason put forth by Senator McCain for his advancing this bill was that the government needed to protect athletes who are often surprised by positive drug tests, believing that the supplements they are taking are safe, legal, and free of banned substances.  He declared that all Americans have a right to know what ingredients are in the supplements they use, and that FDA should have the authority to regulate the safety of dietary supplements.

             This is complete nonsense.  You don’t take a hammer such as this and destroy a safe industry just to help a few consumers, who have clear-cut alternatives anyway. As they already do today, athletes can share information about which companies make which products that are safe for them to take so as to pass drug tests.  A sane person does not destroy an entire industry for reasons such as this one.

             We urge everyone to join with the National Health Federation in killing this bill before it even takes its first breath.  Telephone Senators McCain’s and Dorgan’s offices to tell them in no uncertain terms how strongly you are opposed to their ridiculous, power-grabbing bill.  Then, send them an e-mail saying the same.  Then write them a letter telling them exactly what you think of them and where they can shove this bill.  Be polite, but be persistent and vocal.  Be sure to write and telephone both of your Senators to register the same complaint.

    (Click Here For The Online Petition)

    (Click Here For A Suggested Letter)

    Senator McCain
                  Office phone number: (202) 224-2235
                  E-mail Senator McCain: http://mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm
    Senator Dorgan
                 Office phone: (202) 224-2551
                  E-mail address: http://dorgan.senate.gov/contact/contact_form.cfm

    ********************

    Click on this address to find your U.S. Senators:  http://www.senate.gov

    Contact Information to E-mail Senators:
    http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

    The Senate main number is (202) 224-3121

    Click on the following link below for individual mailing addresses for
    letter writing and other contact info for Congress Members:

    Senate

    ********************

    As the oldest and best-respected health-freedom group on Capitol Hill, the NHF continues to be the credible source of objective assessment of, and proactive actions on, Congressional legislation and FDA matters that have material impact upon our freedom-of-health choices and access to dietary supplements and nutritional foods.

    ********************

    Click here for the permanent link to this press release, use this link to inform others.

    National Health Federation: Established in 1955, the National Health Federation is a consumer-education, health-freedom organization working to protect individuals’ rights to choose to consume healthy food, take supplements and use alternative therapies without unnecessary government restrictions. The NHF is the only such organization with recognized observer-delegate status at Codex meetings. www.thenhf.com
    P.O. Box 688, Monrovia, CA 91017 USA ~ 1 (626) 357-2181 ~ Fax 1 (626) 303-0642

    Website: www.thenhf.com                    E-mail: contact-us@thenhf.com

  • More "Men Questions": Natural Weight Gain and Natural Testosterone Enhancement

    By Nurse Mark

     

    Our recent article “Girlie Man Water” drew some feedback – like this note from our friend “Ninja” Ron;

    Wow this article’s just in time. Hey Doc & Mark, Its me Ron still in Iraq . But went on R&R did a dose of Test [testosterone] (IM) and took some nolvadex… anyway I took a few doses and decided NOT – I’ll try and stay natural, I have enough health problems… How about an article about how to gain weight and natural ways to really raise test levels. Anyway  thanks – I should be home in 5 weeks.   Ron

    Now, Ron is a martial arts student and instructor, and weight trains regularly. I’m not sure if Ron would call himself a “bodybuilder” in the competitive sense but he is serious about staying fit and “pumped.” He is also having to work harder at it as he is no longer a young man – it takes more effort for us fellas to keep and build muscle as we age and our hormone levels change away from those of youth. As a result, the temptation to “help out mother nature just a little bit” with some synthetic drugs becomes a siren song for some.

    This is not without risk, and Ron hit the nail on the head when he said “I’ll try and stay natural, I have enough health problems…”

    As many bodybuilders and other athletes have discovered, there is more to it than just a simple injection of testosterone or other steroid hormone, or a quick fix in a bottle of pills to alter or block the normal metabolism of our naturally occurring hormones. Fooling around with any one of these things in isolation is a recipe for health disaster!

    Yes, plenty of guys do “‘roids”, and plenty of guys seem to get away with it just fine – until they don’t. Like the person who says “well, I was in great health – until I had my first heart attack!” they are fine until their bodies rebel – then they can find themselves “in a hurt-locker” very quickly.

    Here at The Wellness Club we really, strongly recommend that nobody ever fools around with their hormones unless they are doing so with the guidance of a physician who is well-trained in hormone balancing and who has the benefit of a Hormone Profile from which to work.

    If hormones are deficient, or excessive, or unbalanced a Hormone Profile will reveal it and a good physician can recommend effective natural ways to correct and optimize for maximum performance and best health.

    So, Ron, when you get back Stateside we’ll look forward to doing a Male Hormone Profile, or better yet a Comprehensive Plus Hormone Profile with HGH on you – that way we’ll know what we are working with.

    Gaining weight (fat) is easy – just eat a bunch of carbohydrates! Gaining muscle mass is a little trickier – proteins and essential fatty acids are, well, essential to our diet while carbohydrates are certainly not essential to human dietary intake. The limited amounts of carbohydrates that are required by some specialized tissues of our bodies are easily supplied for us by our livers through a process called gluconeogenesis. Eating for muscle mass is easy – get plenty of high-quality, hormone and antibiotic-free proteins and fats, and avoid carbohydrates as much as possible. As muscle mass increases and fat mass decreases things get even easier, as the fat cells are not there to produce estrogens. Guys, you did know that fat cells make the female hormone estrogen didn’t you…? When you lose the fat you lose a source of estrogen!

    There are some herbs that tend to stimulate an increase in endogenous testosterone – maca is one and tribulus is another. Are they “magic bullets” or some form of “herbal viagra?” Heck no! But they can be helpful as a part of a carefully planned male wellness and longevity protocol and we use these and other herbal supplements routinely for our male patients. Should you just go ahead and get a bottle of each and start taking them, hoping to increase testosterone? NO! If you are having trouble with that concept, please re-read the paragraphs above dealing with hormone testing and balancing – simply “increasing testosterone” could do the very opposite of what you want if you are not careful!

    Hormones are a tricky thing – foods are converted to hormone precursors that are converted to pro-hormones, that are converted to hormones, that are converted to other hormones, and so on – and a problem in any one of the biochemical steps in this process can result in imbalances. It is not so simple as just getting a shot of testosterone!

    We will be running some additional articles about eating for optimal athletic performance and supplementation for healthy male hormone balance in the near future – so stay tuned…

    Until then, Ron, watch your six, stay alert, stay safe, and get back home to us in one piece real soon!

    Cheers,
    Nurse Mark