HealthBeat News

Category: Family Health

  • Poisoned With Good Intentions ?

    By Nurse Mark

     

    Antibiotic-Resistant bacteria: MERS, Ebola, MRSA, streptococcus, enterococcus, psuedomona, C-difficile, salmonella, e-coli, T.B,  the list goes on… “Superbugs” are a part of our modern world now, and there is little we can do about this unintended consequence of our over-use of antibiotics.

    Even our companion animals have been found to carry “superbugs.” Pets Can Carry Same ‘Superbug’ Strains as Owners cries a headline from the online health news organization WebMD.

    People are getting sick. Some are dying. Everyone is far more aware of the need to avoid these diseases than ever before.

    Hand washing is preached like a religion – and rightly so. It is becoming commonplace to see people out in public wearing surgical masks. Hand sanitizer dispensers are ubiquitous – they are in grocery stores, restaurants, schools, workplaces. Personal hand sanitizers are commonly carried and used when hand washing might be impractical.

    But how safe and effective are those “hand sanitizers”?

    Most commonly available hand sanitizers contain alcohol – and alcohol is indeed quite effective at killing both bacteria and viruses. It is also harsh on the skin – remember how it stung when mom would “disinfect” our cuts and scrapes with alcohol?

    Not only is alcohol harsh on healthy skin, it is also flammable.That’s right, it can catch fire and burn – as one Florida man discovered. That man spent 3 weeks in hospital receiving skin grafts for burns suffered after he spilled hand sanitizer on himself and it ignited.

    Most hand sanitizers also contain perfumes  – which many people can be sensitive to.

    Other hand sanitizers may be alcohol-free, but they contain the chemical triclosan – which was first registered with the EPA as a pesticide in 1969. While it might be marginally effective as an antimicrobial, it is being found to have thyroid and hormone-disruptive effects.

    That might be an acceptable trade-off (to some people – not to us!) if the stuff actually worked – but it turns out that triclosan is not really very effective. Even the FDA is questioning the use of the antimicrobial chemical triclosan and warning of it’s dangers, as is explained in the recent Reuters news article FDA Questions The Use Of Antibacterial Soaps.

    So – your choices; you can slather yourself with alcohol and hope you don’t have any little paper cuts (ouch!) and hope no one lights a cigarette or strikes a spark near you, and hope you are not sensitive to the perfumes, or you can use a pesticide that really doesn’t work all that well but can harm your thyroid and mess with your hormone balance. What a choice!

    Or, you can use Mother Nature’s antimicrobial – silver.

    Colloidal silver has long been recognized as a first class antibacterial – up until the advent of “modern” synthetic antibiotics it was the “go-to” treatment of choice for ancient healers dealing with difficult infections. Even today it is still the first choice as a topical treatment for burns.

    We have written about the use of silver before – Silver – The Antibiotic Of Our Ancestors.

    We are so impressed with the usefulness of silver that we carry tubes of silver gel with us when we travel – we use it as hand sanitizer, without the harsh alcohol or dangerous chemicals.

    ASAP 365 – 24 ppm Silver Gel is a highly effective, safe, everyday, natural healing alternative to chemical-laced hand sanitizers.

    Dr. Myatt recommends colloidal silver gel both for it’s valuable effects in soothing and healing damaged skin and for daily use as a non-toxic hand sanitizer. This gel rubs in quickly and easily, is non-greasy, and contains no perfumes or dangerous chemicals. It is a valuable addition to a natural first-aid kit for treating minor burns, wounds, fungal and bacterial infections – there are even those who swear by colloidal silver fir the treatment of “Cold Sores” and “Fever Blisters”, and scientific research supports their belief in it’s effectiveness!

    ASAP 365 Silver Gel, with it’s non-prescription strength of 24 ppm (parts per million) is gentle enough for everyday use and safe even when used multiple times daily, while being potent enough to be highly effective as an antimicrobial hand sanitizer. This 1.5 fl oz tube is perfect for purse or pocket and is a must-have for your natural first aid kit.

    ASAP 365 – 24 ppm Silver Gel can be found here.

     

    References:

    http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/factsheets/triclosan_fs.htm

    Robin E. Dodson, Marcia Nishioka, Laurel J. Standley, Laura J. Perovich, Julia Green Brody, and Ruthann A. Rudel, Endocrine Disruptors and Asthma-Associated Chemicals in Consumer Products, Environ Health Perspect. 2012 July; 120(7): 935–943. Published online 2012 March 8. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3404651/

    Galdiero S, Falanga A, Vitiello M, Cantisani M, Marra V, Galdiero M., Department of Experimental Medicine, II University of Naples, Via De Crecchio 7, 80138, Naples, Italy. sgaldier@unina.it, Silver nanoparticles as potential antiviral agents. Molecules. 2011 Oct 24;16(10):8894-918.

  • The Equal Opportunity Health-Wrecker

    By Nurse Mark

     

    It gets us all, sooner or later. No one is spared. The question is not “will it happen,” it’s when, and how hard will it hit when it does.

    It’s not a virus that we can harden our immune system against. It’s not a bacteria or microbe that we can avoid or wash away.

    In fact, it can weaken our defenses leaving us more susceptible to infections and disease of all sorts.

    It can be subtle and insidious, or it can be blunt and brutal. But the results are the same. Our health suffers.

    What is this scourge?

    Stress.

    “Meh,” you say; “of course I’ve got stress – and I deal with it. No biggie…”

    But it is a “biggie” and even though you think you are “dealing with it” it is causing a cascade of physical changes that can lead to serious health problems.

    Not only can stress be the mental or psychological stress that we all think of when someone says “stress” – like money worries, bad bosses, rush hour commuting, surly customers, overwork, family feuds, relationship problems, urban dangers – the list is endless – it can be bugs, bacteria, viruses and other nasties that infect us, causing physical stress.

    So deal with that, little miss “no biggie”!

    When we come under stress – whether mental or physical, our bodies react in a way designed to protect us. A set of glands – the pituitary, the hypothalamus, and the adrenal glands – get together to shift our hormone balance in a way that is meant to give us more energy to deal with emergency situations. The adrenal glands squirt out a whole bunch of cortisol in order to meet a danger or survive an injury – and in response to this flood of cortisol out blood glucose rises, our blood pressure increases, and our body’s resources are diverted away from less immediately important functions such as our digestion, our reproductive system, our immune system, and even bone formation.

    This is fine over the short haul – it’s necessary even – but when it goes on for too long it can be very damaging.

    Some of the long term effects of the high cortisol levels caused by chronic stress include:

    • Suppressed immunity
    • High blood pressure (hypertension)
    • High blood sugar (hyperglycemia)
    • Insomnia
    • Heart (cardiovascular) disease
    • Insulin resistance
    • Anxiety and depression
    • Carbohydrate cravings
    • Metabolic syndrome, obesity, and type 2 diabetes
    • Fat deposits on the face, neck, and abdomen (belly)
    • Reduced libido and suppressed fertility
    • Suppressed thyroid hormones
    • Impaired digestion, metabolism and mental function

     

    But Wait – There’s More!

    Not only does chronic stress and high cortisol cause those problems I just mentioned, many of those problems cause us to have increased cortisol levels!

    When we must deal with an infection caused by cortisol-suppressed immunity our bodies secrete more cortisol in order to deal with the inflammation.

    High cortisol levels result in insomnia. Lack of sleep is a stress that causes our body to respond with – you guessed it – cortisol.

    The insulin resistance, high blood sugar, and obesity caused by chronic stress and high cortisol result in increased body-wide inflammation – so what does our body do in response? Yep, that’s right – more cortisol to knock down the inflammation…

    There is also the suppression of the reproductive functions – meaning fertility or libido is impaired. This by itself might not be seen as a “stress” but when you are trying to conceive and can’t understand why nothing seems to be working it can be very stressful indeed. And then there is the stress of the parent who is badgering you with “why can’t you give me grandbabies…?” (OK – just kidding – but it does happen…)

    This effect is what is known to engineers as a “positive feedback loop” where the more something happens the more it makes that something happen – like a “runaway train” – and it is a very bad thing…

    So, what can be done?

    Let’s start with the basics:

    • If you are in a stressful situation and can possibly remove yourself from it, or it from you, then do it! Unless there is a compelling reason to continue to do so, like needing to tolerate a bad boss to keep your job, then why would you willingly expose yourself to negative stresses?
    • Make your health a priority – get proper nutrition (an Optimal Dose Multiple Vitamin is a great start), set a regular bedtime and get adequate sleep, set aside time each day for some vigorous exercise, and practice stress-reducing habits like meditation or prayer or relaxation. A sense of humor helps too!

     

    What else? Can’t we just take a pill and make all this bad cortisol go away?

    Not really – you see, we need cortisol for a number of healthy things – like maintaining our blood pressure so we don’t faint when we get out of bed…

    But there are some natural ways of supporting healthy cortisol levels, helping us to deal with stressors, and promoting relaxation and sleep.

    Here at the Wellness Club we have recently been having excellent results with two new products that are based on very old and traditional healing knowledge.

    Cortisol Manager is an herbal formulation that combines an effective dose of phosphatidylserine with stress-reducing ingredients and cortisol-lowering botanicals to help reduce stress hormones and relieve occasional sleeplessness. It is is a safe and natural formula that promotes relaxation and supports a healthy sleep cycle without the use of habit-forming ingredients. You can learn more here.

    Lavender has long been valued for it’s ability to promote relaxation and it was treasured by the ancients as a soothing, relaxing oil. Fresh lavender in the bedroom, or a few drops of lavender oil on the pillow have been traditional ways to promote rest and sleep, and up to now that has been the only way to get the beneficial effects of this wonderful oil.

    Today however you can experience the benefits of this calming, soothing essential oil in a convenient, easy to swallow coated softgel capsule – a new product, Lavela WS 1265 contains clinically studied lavender oil intended for the relief of occasional anxiety. You can learn more here.

    We have been trialing these two products with some select patients and we are very pleased with the results. But don’t take our word for it – here is what one of Dr. Myatt’s patients had to say about it in her own words:

    I’m an over achiever and was under a lot of stress from taking an online MBA class that was impossible to understand what the assignments wanted. Essentially with every passing assignment I began to feel more anxiety and stress leading to a knot of tension in the pit of my stomach and an inability to turn off my brain while trying to go to sleep at night. I had a five day break between classes to relax, but the feeling in my stomach and the tension in my body just wouldn’t dissipate. I didn’t get any relief until after Nurse Mark gave me some samples of Cortisol Manager and Lavela. I took each faithfully every day and it was around day five when the cycle of the knot in the stomach was gone. Leaving me to feel normal again. Whenever I begin to feel the least bit anxious and stressed over my online course work I turn to the Cortisol Manager and Lavela to calm my system down.

    Hope this may help other in trying out the supplements. Thanks for letting me sample the products in the first place. They have been absolute life savers for me.

    Faithful patient,

    Theresa XXXXXXXX

     

    Now, for Theresa to say she is “an over achiever” is a bit of an understatement. When Theresa first came to Dr. Myatt she already had an advanced degree – and she was, literally, a “rocket scientist” for NASA! Now Theresa is a busy single mom and a student again – no wonder she was having a little trouble – she has a lot of responsibilities to juggle and balance to keep her life working smoothly!

    We were very pleased to be able to send Theresa the samples that helped her and we can do the same for you. Please visit our Sample Products page to order these free samples. Please note that while the samples are free, we must charge for shipping – unless you include them with other items in an order.

    Why wait until your health suffers? Deal with your stress now, and let stress and chronic high cortisol be something that happens to “the other guy.”

    Visit our Sample Products Page here for your free samples of Cortisol Manager and Lavella.

  • What To Do With Old Supplements?

    What should you do with out-dated or unwanted vitamins and other dietary supplements?

     

    By Nurse Mark

     

    We sometimes are asked how to safely disposed of out-dated or unwanted vitamins, minerals, herbs, and other dietary supplements.

    That’s a good question – since most people know that prescription drugs should never be flushed down the toilet or into our sewers or septic systems and should not be allowed to find their way into our landfills. We have enough trouble as it is with the drugs and hormones that find their way into the environment after being taken by people and livestock…

    So, what to do about old or unwanted vitamins? Are they dangerous to our environment too?

    In a word, no.

    While many vitamins, such as Vitamin C, can oxidize with time and exposure to air and heat and many herbs will lose their potency over time they do not become “dangerous.”

    Let’s remember that these are natural substances – not synthetic unknown-in-nature chemical creations of Big Pharma.

    Most vitamin supplements can be thought of as being “concentrated nutrients” and they are generally the sorts of things that we would like to be obtaining in our diets from good healthy food but are not. They occur naturally in our environment – though not in the amounts we might like these days!

    Minerals are even easier – they come from Mother Earth and can be safely returned to Mother Earth.

    Herbs and other plant products are given to us by nature and can likewise be returned to nature.

    Some “authorities” recommend taking unwanted supplements and grinding them up with a coffee grinder and then mixing them with coffee grounds (to make them unappealing to animals) and then disposing of them in the trash. Others suggest dissolving them in water and then pouring them down a toilet or into the sewer system.

    We think that’s wasteful, and a lot of other people do too.

    Many people add these unwanted supplements to their compost or their gardens – here is a story written by an 11 year old boy who details his success with turning unwanted vitamins into plant food – yes, that’s right, this enterprising young man created fertilizer from supplements and we invite you to read his report, published by Mother Earth News in 1989:

    Vitamins for Vegetables – An Experiment in Homemade Fertilizer
    In a self-designed science project, this 11-year-old author and gardener uses vitamins as fertilizer and plant food, with outstanding results

    Folks, Robert Williams III is now 36 years old – Let’s hope this bright young man lived up to the promise of his experiment and article and is enjoying a distinguished career working for the good guys!

    So, don’t be afraid to return your unwanted or outdated vitamins, minerals, and other natural supplements to nature. If you don’t have a garden or a compost pile to use them in you surely know a friend or relative with a “green thumb” that does.

    Your garden won’t care that they are out-dated!

  • Popular Sleeping Pill Sends Thousands to Emergency Rooms

    By Nurse Mark

     

    Are you still taking Ambien? Lunesta? Sonata? After what we have written about their dangers in past HealthBeat Newsletters?

    Or maybe you just haven’t read those newsletters or maybe you forgot them – well, here are the articles once again so that you can refresh your memory:

     

    Are you back from your reading now? Good! Did you think I was being just a little alarmist in writing those articles? Well, here is a recent headline found on The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) website:

    Sharp rise in emergency department visits involving the sleep medication zolpidem

    Zolpidem is the active ingredient in Ambien, Ambien CR, Edluar and Zolpimist

     

    Now, before you go thinking that this is yet another dire warning from some woo-woo far-out all-natural herbal medicine website, it’s not – The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is a part of our very own government’s Department Of Health And Human Services. If our own BigPharma-funded government is warning people about this “FDA approved” drug, then you know things are getting serious!

    SAMHSA recently produced “The DAWN Report” (Drug Abuse Warning Network) which gives us the following “bullet points” in summary:

    • The number of zolpidem-related emergency department (ED) visits involving adverse reactions increased nearly 220 percent from 6,111 visits in 2005 to 19,487 visits in 2010
    • Females accounted for two thirds (68 percent) of zolpidem-related ED visits involving adverse reactions in 2010
    • Patients aged 45 or older represented about three quarters (74 percent) of zolpidem-related ED visits involving adverse reactions while those aged 65 or older represented about one third (32 percent) of such visits
    • Half of visits (50 percent) involved other pharmaceuticals combined with zolpidem, including narcotic pain relievers (26 percent) and other anti-anxiety and insomnia medications (16 percent)

     

    The full report can be found here: http://www.samhsa.gov/data/2k13/DAWN079/sr079-Zolpidem.htm

    The DAWN Report makes for some interesting and eye-opening – even alarming – reading and is a must-see for anyone who is using these drugs or who has a loved one using these drugs.

    “But wait a minute,” you say… “Maybe this drug is a bit spooky, but at least I get some sleep when I take it!”

    Then you say “If you take that away I don’t know what I’ll do – I’ve tried every other drug…”

    But have you tried Dr. Myatt’s suggestions for insomnia?

    I know, I know, you are a busy person with a stressful life and you don’t have time for all that. That’s why Ambien is so nice, right? Just pop the little pill and go to sleep – maybe, sort of.

    Well, because you are busy, here is the short course: some of our most effective supplements to promote healthy sleep.

    • Maxi Multi: 3 caps, 3 times per day with meals. Optimal (not minimal) doses of  B complex vitamins and magnesium (both found  in Maxi Multi) are particularly important for insomnia.
    • Melatonin: this hormone decreases with age. Melatonin is a potent antioxidant that helps regulate Circadian Rhythms. It should be used in almost all cases of insomnia. Melatonin is also an an “anti stress” hormone.

      Some people complain that they tried melatonin and it didn’t work for them. We usually find that they tried it in a form that they swallowed, as a tablet. Melatonin is not well-absorbed this way, and we recommend that it be take sublingually – that is, dissolved under the tongue. This allows the hormone to enter the bloodstream more directly and without being altered by stomach acids. Rarely, others complain that melatonin helped them sleep, but left them feeling groggy the next day. If this occurs, try taking a smaller dose – a half or even a quarter-tablet to start with.

    • L-5-HTP (5-Hydroxy-Tryptophan) 100 mg: 1 cap, 3 times per day, twice with meals and once before bed. Dosage may be increased to 2 caps, 3 times per day after 2 weeks if response is inadequate. L-5-HTP is a neurotransmitter precursor; most neurotransmitters decrease with age.
    • Magnesium (amino acid chelate): 2 tabs, 45 minutes before bedtime. (In addition to what is contained in Maxi-Multi) Magnesium is a “calming” mineral.
    • Lavender Essential Oil: Used as aromatherapy, lavender has a balancing, relaxing and uplifting effect. Apply several drops to a cotton ball or diffuser to help drift peacefully off to sleep.

      Here is a trick that was taught to me as a young Nurse by an older and very experienced European Nurse: It is common practice in some European hospitals to put a few drops of lavender oil on pillows to help relax patients and promote sleep. I know why lavender was held in such high value by our ancestors – it works!

    • Kavinace – This is our “secret weapon” for treating insomnia. Kavinace potentiates GABA, one of the main inhibitory neurotransmitters. Higher GABA levels can relieve anxiety and promote restful sleep. Kavinace works amazingly well as a sleep aid and anti-anxiety formula for people who are low in GABA. Usually 1-2 capsules taken at bedtime (or better, a half-hour before bed) will promote a fine, restful sleep. Three capsules can be used, but may result in a “hangover” sleepiness or “just feeling too well-rested” the next day for some people. Yes, it really is that effective!

     

    So, would you rather not make a trip to the Emergency Room? Try our sleep suggestions and boot the Ambien from your life!

     

    References:

     

    Press Release: Sharp rise in emergency department visits involving the sleep medication zolpidem. http://www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/advisories/1304303131.aspx

    The DAWN Report: Emergency Department Visits for Adverse Reactions Involving the Insomnia Medication Zolpidem. http://www.samhsa.gov/data/2k13/DAWN079/sr079-Zolpidem.htm

  • Maxi Greens Are Back!

    Regular and new customers have been as frustrated as we were at the recent back-orders for Maxi Greens – Dr. Myatt’s premier Complete Green Food / Flavonoid / Phytonutrient-Rich Daily Herb Formula and companion to Maxi Multi – Dr. Myatt’s state-of-the-art formulation of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and bioflavonoids with highly concentrated plant enzymes for optimal assimilation.

    Dr. Myatt is unyielding in her quality standards, and that delayed the manufacture of this latest batch of Maxi Greens – it seems that the very highest quality ingredients that this supplement contains are in short supply world-wide.

    The wait is over now, and Maxi Greens are once again in-stock and available. Dr. Myatt’s high standards of quality and potency have been met and we believe you’ll agree, it is worth the wait.

    To celebrate, for the month of October only, and on orders placed on-line only, enter the coupon code ” TopQuality ” (just exactly the way it is spelled here, but without the quotes) when you order Maxi Greens and you will receive 10% off each bottle of Maxi Greens that you order.

    So, what are you waiting for? Order now and save 10% on Maxi Greens – Dr. Myatt’s premier Complete Green Food / Flavonoid / Phytonutrient-Rich Daily Herb Formula.

    And Wellness Club Members – you’ll save 10% on Maxi Greens in addition to your usual 10% Wellness Club Member discount – so why wait. Order today and save some serious green on Maxi Greens!

     

    Click Here to get your Maxi Greens

     

    Not a Wellness Club Member? Click here to become a member and save 10% on every order – and get free shipping on orders over $150!