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Feature

07 December 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

offee and diabetes are two of the most commonly covered topics in current medical news. The latest research looks in detail at some of coffee's ingredients and their potential effects on diabetes.

The prevalence of coffee and diabetes in modern media makes a great deal of sense: almost 1 in 10 Americans are diabetic, and more than half of American adults drink coffee daily.

The US spends roughly $40 billion on coffee per year, and in 2012, the total estimated cost of diagnosed diabetes in America was $245 billion.

Any links between these two unlikely bedfellows are likely to be chased down with vigor.

Recent research published in the American Chemical Society's Journal of Natural Products gives us a glimpse into the potential benefits of some of coffee's natural compounds in the management of type 2 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes

Individuals with type 2 diabetes have a resistance to insulin. Insulin normally helps control the amount of glucose in the blood. If levels are high, it instructs the liver and muscles to absorb more.

Diabetes causes the body to stop reacting to insulin as it should. Insulin is released, but the liver and muscle cells no longer absorb the excess glucose. In the early phases of the disease, an increased amount of insulin is produced in an effort to convince the body to take on more glucose.

As the disease progresses, insulin-producing cells in the pancreas slowly die off through overuse.

The health implications of diabetes can be dire: damage to large blood vessels in the heart, brain and legs. Also, damage to smaller blood vessels can cause problems in the kidneys, eyes, feet and nerves.
The chemistry of coffee

All in all, there are more than 1,000 distinct chemical compounds in coffee. This impressive recipe includes quinic acid, 3,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid, acetylmethylcarbinol, dimethyl disulfide, putrescine, niacin, trigonelline, theophylline and our old friend and foe, caffeine.

Each of coffee's ingredients has the potential to affect human biology. More than likely, the majority of compounds, in the tiny amounts they are present in coffee, will not have a great effect on the body.

Having said that, there is no reason not to study each of these molecules in an effort to get to grips with the myriad of effects that coffee appears to exert on us.
Coffee and diabetes

Research into coffee and its ability to prevent or slow the onset of type 2 diabetes has garnered a fair amount of attention. A recent review of the literature concluded that habitual coffee drinking does seem to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes.

The next challenge is to tease apart the many components of coffee to pinpoint the active ingredients. As the bewildering list of chemicals above infers, this may be a gargantuan task.

Recent research conducted by Søren Gregersen and colleagues at the Department of Endocrinology and Internal Medicine at Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark may have narrowed the search.

Gregersen and his team looked at the effect of a number of coffee's constituents on rat cells in vitro. Most of the compounds did not have significant effects, but cafestol and caffeic acid threw out some intriguing results.

 

 

 

Feature

22 September 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

A diet consisting of a variety of raw fresh vegetables is the best prevention and also a potential cure for cancer, depending on how far the cancer has progressed and how easily the body can digest and properly assimilate nutrition. Berries, grapes, broccoli, leafy greens, sprouts, avocados, red and yellow peppers, red cabbage, dandelion, beets, and many more foods have been proven in numerous scientific studies to not only prevent, but to also destroy, cancer cells. If we did research on every single piece of produce we eat, we'd probably find that most of them, if not all of them, prevent and fight cancer in some way or another. This is what the modern diet is missing, fresh raw produce. Early humans ate pounds of it a day, all day, every day. Whether you have cancer now, or are just trying to prevent it, cut out the refined and processed foods, and eat more produce.

Herbs and Spices
Garlic, oregano, cloves, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and ginger have been shown in multiple studies to fight cancer. Spice up your meals, especially those big salads. Fresh raw produce works synergistically with herbs and spices. In other words, the combination of garlic, oregano, and a bunch of vegetables is more powerful than garlic and/or oregano alone. Make big salads with lots of vegetables and add in fresh herbs and spices.Speaking of combinations, turmeric and black pepper make for a powerful cancer-killing duo. Most of you have heard of the incredible benefits of turmeric and it's cancer-killing properties. Turmeric is known to actually outperform many pharmaceutical drugs for various diseases. The only problem with turmeric is that the beneficial component to which all the hoopla is about, curcumin, is not easily absorbed by the body. Black pepper contains piperine, a chemical with powerful antioxidant properties. Pepper and turmeric together allow the body to absorb more turmeric. Reports range from a 200% increase to over 2,000%! It's no coincidence that two of the main ingredients in curry powder are black pepper and turmeric. Come to think of it, ginger and cinnamon, two other powerhouse herbs known to fight cancer, are also almost always found in curry spice blends as well. It's no wonder...

Herbal Supplements, Vitamins, and Minerals
Getting a wide range of vitamins and minerals should be easy when you're eating lots of produce, but it's not always that simple. Our soil is so degraded, even organic produce doesn't have the nutrition it used to have. If you cannot grow your own produce in the most optimum conditions with the best soil, we recommend a primarily food-based nutrition powder from a source you know and trust. That's not "whole food sourced"; we mean actual food, like rose hips, lemon peels, chlorella, etc. And when these nutrition formulas are done right, the enzymes are left intact. There are a ton of herbal tinctures, extracts, and other supplements that kill cancer cells. Echinacea, oil of oregano, clove oil, goldenseal, barberry, astragalus, pau d'arco, red clover, and skullcap are a few of the many plant based herbal supplements that kill cancer cells. Study after study shows that many of the right plants and plant extracts have more power to kill off cancer cells than conventional treatments. Wormwood is a very powerful herb that is often used to kill parasites and Candida. Wormwood, more specifically, wormwood extract, kills cancer cells.

Kill 98% Of All Cancer Cells In Less Than 24 Hours
A new study shows that a derivative of the wormwood plant, artemesinin, turns deadly in the presence of iron. Breast cancer cells have high levels of iron. When artemesinin senses these higher than usual levels of iron, it destroys the cancer cells with little damage to the surrounding healthy cells. This results in an herbal killing machine that killed 98% of the breast cancer cells present within 16 hours! Although this study is in its first phase in a lab with petri dishes, artemesinin tablets are "widely and successfully" used to fight malaria for the same reason, the parasite responsible for malaria uptakes a large amount of iron, just like the breast cancer cells. Artemesinin zeros in on the iron and destroys the parasite.Wormwood is known to be one of the best herbs for killing a number of parasites, and it is anti-microbial and anti-fungal, making wormwood a great addition for people who need to heal their gut.

 

 

 

Feature

04 August 2015 0 Comments

 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly one in three American adults suffers from high blood pressure. This is a problem of great concern, since this condition puts people at higher risk for even more serious health issues like heart attacks and strokes and is considered the number one risk factor for fatal heart attacks. While there are a number of prescription medications available to help treat high blood pressure, they all come with unwanted side effects ranging from the mild (dizziness when standing) to the severe (permanent kidney damage).

There are however, more natural options that people with high blood pressure have to treat this condition. Extract of certain plants, for instance, have been found to be extremely beneficial to normalize blood pressure levels. Read on to find out more about how these extracts can improve cardiac health.

Olive leaf extract
Olive leaf extract contains compounds called secoiridoid glycosides. These compounds, in the body, react with the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), with the result that angiotensin is not able to cause the blood vessels to constrict and the result is a wider blood vessel and lower blood pressure. In short, these act much like the prescription drug group called ACE inhibitors, but also can lower cholesterol. In one study, participants taking olive leaf extract showed, at the end of eight weeks, a drop of 13mn Hg in systolic blood pressure (the upper number) and 3mm Hg in the diastolic blood pressure (the lower number).

Celery seed extract
Celery seed extract is another natural way to lower the blood pressure; it acts much like the drug group calcium channel blockers. These act different than ACE inhibitors and are able to lower the blood pressure through dilating (widening) the arteries. There appear to be no serious side effects to this extract, and in one clinical trial, patients with mild to moderate high blood pressure took a dosage of 75 mg of this extract every day and on average, at the end of the study, both systolic and diastolic blood pressure dropped around eight points.

Garlic extract
It is not surprising that garlic, long known for its positive effects on the heart, should be able to help treat blood pressure as well. One clinical trial studied patients whose blood pressure was treated but uncontrolled and found that, with use of garlic extract supplements, participants showed as much improvement in their blood pressure at the end of 12 weeks as would have been expected if they had been taking front-line drugs.

In conclusion, then, before considering traditional treatment for blood pressure and risking the unwanted side effects, consult with a naturopath or similar practitioner to discuss these and other natural remedies for normalized blood pressure that will improve cardiac health without unintended consequences like kidney damage or other serious complications.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/049854_cardiac_health_blood_pressure_plant_extracts.html#ixzz3hqOh8kTV

 

 

 

Feature

30 November 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

When surgeon Alan Bauman started his hair restoration practice in Boca Raton, Fla., in the late 1990s, about 10% of his patients were women. Now, he says, half are. Joseph Greco, a hair loss specialist in Sarasota, Fla., says his share of female patients has gone from 25% to 60% in the last decade alone.

There's no reason to think more women these days are losing hair. Almost all women lose some hair as they age and some women – just like some men – are genetically predisposed to lose a lot. Women rarely go bald, but what starts with a widening part, noticeable shedding or a shrinking pony tail can become significant, scalp-exposing hair thinning for about one third of women, studies show.

How women feel about that may be changing, says Melissa Piliang, a dermatologist specializing in hair loss at the Cleveland Clinic.

"I think there is an increased awareness and an increased interest in treatment," Piliang says. "For our grandmothers' generation, women over 50 were considered old. Now women that age are considered pretty young. Many also have jobs in which appearance is important."

And, it's fair to say, many also are seeing marketing for an increasing array of hair restoration products and procedures aimed at women – including a pricey but unproven treatment that both Bauman and Greco specialize in. It involves scalp injections with something called platelet-rich plasma (PRP).

Bauman, Greco and other practitioners – some of whom market PRP as a "vampire hair treatment," akin to the bloody "vampire facials" made famous by Kim Kardashian – say that substances in concentrated plasma, taken from a patient's own blood, can stimulate hair regrowth. They say the procedure is safe and produces noticeable results in most, but not all, male and female patients. A 20% to 25% increase in hair mass is typical, Bauman says.

But studies so far have been small and most have lacked the comparison groups that would show how PRP stacks up against other treatments or no treatment at all. "The early findings show promise, but more studies are needed to know whether this is a safe and effective treatment," the American Academy of Dermatology says.

Also, a lack of standardization – with each clinic using its own methods – "means it's buyer beware out there," Bauman says.

Those buyers are spending big bucks: Bauman charges $2,500 for a PRP treatment that he says needs to be repeated once a year on average. Greco says he repeats his version three times over the first 18 months for typical "female pattern hair loss" patients, charging $1,600 for the first treatment, $1,400 for the second and $1,000 for the third. Patients have an incentive to return because any new hair will fall out when treatment stops – just as it does with any treatment except for hair transplants.

But no one considers PRP the first-line treatment for women with hair loss.

That distinction goes to minoxidil, a liquid or foam applied to the scalp, available over the counter for years. The Food and Drug Administration approved a full-strength foam (a 5% solution) for women in 2014 and it is now sold as Women's Rogaine. The big advantage over older 2% versions is that it can be used once a day, instead of twice. It costs about $35 for a four-month supply.

Pililang says about 80% of women using minoxidil will stop losing hair and about half will regrow some. "It's not going to take someone who's 50 or 60 back to the hair they had at 20," she says.

"It doesn't work for everybody, but I tell my patients to use it diligently for six months and then look in the mirror and see how they feel," says Paradi Mirmirani, a dermatologist specializing in hair loss at Kaiser Permanente in Vallejo, Calif. Because hair loss caused by aging and genes gets worse over time, even maintaining hair "is a win," she says. "But patients have to decide whether it's worth the time and money."

The main side effects associated with minoxidil are scalp irritation and itching. And some women report unwanted facial hair growth – something that package instructions say might be prevented with careful application.

Another treatment that might work for some women: laser therapy with comb devices that sell for about $200 to $500 or caps that cost even more. These are FDA-approved for safety and recent studies suggest "a modest benefit," Mirmirani says.

Some women are candidates for hair transplant. But because women tend to lose hair all over their heads, not in the distinct bald spots common in men, finding lusher sections that can be moved to cover sparser areas is "more challenging," Piliang says.

Supplements such as biotin, marketed for hair health, are unproven, Piliang and Mirmirani say. But eating a healthy diet, protecting hair from the sun and not smoking can help, they say.

Also important to know: not all women's hair loss is the result of aging and genes. And some causes are treatable or temporary. Among them:

• Pregnancy. Many women see temporary hair loss after pregnancy.

• Stress. Hair also can shed after stressful or traumatic events.

• Iron deficiency, thyroid, hormone and immune disorders. Treating them can often stop any associated hair loss.

• Medications. Cancer drugs but also drugs used to treat acne, depression, blood clotting and other conditions can cause hair loss.

 

 

 

Feature

09 September 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

n a new study published in The American Journal of Pathology, scientists say they have identified a biomarker in patients with stomach cancer that starves tumors of their blood supply and reduces the ability of cancer cells to spread to other parts of the body.
[stomach cancer]
In the US, around 24,590 cases of stomach cancer will be diagnosed in 2015.

The new research from China shows that stomach cancer patients whose cancer lesions show high levels of the biomarker microRNA 506 (miR-506) have far longer survival times compared with stomach cancer patients with lower levels of miR-506. Thus, miR-506 is a valuable biomarker to predict stomach cancer survival.

Other benefits of miR-506 include its ability to suppress tumor growth, blood vessel formation and the spread of cancer cells to other parts of the body.

Lead investigator Dr. Xin Song, of the Cancer Research Institute of Southern Medical University and the Cancer Biotherapy Center of The Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University - both in China - says that "these findings indicate that miR-506 is necessary and sufficient for angiogenesis suppression during gastric cancer progression."



By way of introducing their research into stomach cancer, the authors begin by explaining that Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in cancer cells is associated with an increased capacity to invade into surrounding tissue and migrate to distant sites.


Learn more about stomach cancer

EMT is a key step during normal embryo formation (embryogenesis), but EMT is now also recognized to be involved in processes within the body that result in functional changes associated with cancer (cancer pathophysiology).

While tumor-specific factors that drive EMT are not completely understood, it is known that various biochemical changes take place through EMT to produce "healing-type cells" called mesenchymal cells (MSCs).

In turn, it is MSCs that play an important role both in normal tissue repair as well as disease-causing processes, including tumor growth and the spread of cancer cells.

These transformed cells have the ability to migrate away from the tissues that line the cavities and surfaces of blood vessels and organs throughout the body, invade other tissues and stave off normal programmed cell death (PCD).

One of the several mechanisms that may initiate an EMT is the change in the expression of a specific class of small noncoding RNAs that regulate gene expression. It was one of these - miR-506 - that was identified by the researchers as a useful marker that enabled them to organize the patients they were studying in order of the severity of their stomach cancer.

Dr. Song says the research team considered the hypothesis that miR-506 acts as a suppressor of how cancer cells spread using a system level and integrative approach.
Tumor samples taken from people who had undergone cancer surgery

In a blind test, the researchers used a form of genetic analysis called polymerone chain reaction (PCR) to detect miR-506 in human gastric samples taken from 84 people who had undergone cancer surgery. The researchers analyzed the miR-506 levels in each of these samples, and patients were allocated to different groups based on whether they were above or below the mean miR-506 level.

This is when the team found that survival among patients with signs of high miR-506 was significantly longer.

At 60 months, for example, cumulative survival was approximately 30% in the low-miR-506 expression group, compared with 80% in the high-expression group.

The research team then looked at signs of miR-506 in seven stomach cancer cell lines. Here, it was found that stomach cancer cells had lower levels of miR-506 than normal stomach tissue.

Analysis of cells grown in vitro then showed that miR-506 levels were lowest in the cell lines that had the highest invasive activity, and the highest levels were seen in cell lines with the lowest invasive activity.

Further research and experiments strengthened the hypothesis that miR-506 acts as a suppressor of how cancer cells spread.

 

 

 

Feature

26 July 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

 Avocados have gotten massive amounts of attention in the press in recent years. In the news, on social media sites and health food blogs, people all over the country have been talking about how good avocados are for the body. For one thing, they are loaded with monounsaturated fats (also known as MUFAs) which improve heart health by lowering the blood pressure and by improving cholesterol levels, two major risk factors for cardiac disease. They are a great source of fiber, which can improve the function and overall health of the digestive system. But what many people don't know about avocados is that one of their biggest health benefits is their ability to ward off cancer or to help treat it once it has developed. Read on to find out more about the many ways in which avocados help to reduce cancer risk.

Kills off cancer stem cells
The fats in avocado contain a compound known as avocatin B. This compound has been studied for its anti-cancer benefits and researchers later published a paper in the journal Cancer Research which reported that, during their study, it was found that avocatin B was able to kill off leukemia stem cells that are the main cause of AML, a form of leukemia which traditionally has a very poor prognosis. It was also found that this compound did not harm the healthy tissues around the cancer cells themselves.

Provides carotenoids
Many of the avocado's anti-cancer benefits stem from the fact that this fruit is loaded with carotenoids. Carotenoids are bio-active compounds that have powerful anti-oxidant properties. In many studies, high levels of carotenoids have been shown not only to help prevent age-related illnesses like macular degeneration (a condition of the eyes which can lead to blindness) but also many forms of cancer.

Decreases inflammation
Increasingly, studies are revealing that chronic, low-level inflammation throughout the body is a major risk factor for cancer development. Regular consumption of avocados appears to help prevent this situation, however. In one study, those who consumed avocados on a regular basis had lower levels of interleukin 6, an indicator of inflammation.

Helps the body shed excess fat
Avocados are also a great food for those who are wanting to achieve a healthy body weight. The high fiber helps to curb the appetite naturally and increase the efficiency of the digestive system, while the healthy fats lead to a feeling of fullness, help the body absorb certain nutrients and boost the metabolism so that the body can burn fat more efficiently. Studies have shown that weight loss is a great way to reduce the risk of developing some forms of cancer.

So when choosing a shrimp-and-avocado salad or a side dish of guacamole, eat up without feeling guilty about it! Regular consumption of this amazing fruit can not only benefit the heart, it can also significantly reduce the risk of cancer development.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/050529_avocados_cancer_superfood.html#ixzz3gzpGK76T

 

 

 

Feature

21 October 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

 Authors of a small study conclude that "vitamin C supplementation represents an effective lifestyle strategy" for reducing the blood vessel constriction that is increased in overweight and obese adults.

The study of 35 obese or overweight adults compared the effects of vitamin C and exercise on the protein known as endothelin-1, which has a constricting action on small blood vessels.

The protein's activity is raised in overweight and obese people and because of this high endothelin-1 activity, small vessels are more prone to constricting, becoming less responsive to blood flow demand and increasing the risk of vascular disease.

The study's abstract is being presented at the American Physiological Society's 14th International Conference on Endothelin, taking place in Savannah, GA.

The researchers explain that exercise has been shown to reduce endothelin-1 activity, but including it in a daily routine can be challenging.
Daily dose as helpful as walking

Caitlin Dow, PhD, postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Colorado, Boulder, led the study to examine whether vitamin C supplements, which have been reported to improve vessel function, can also lower endothelin-1 activity.

The researchers found that daily supplementation of vitamin C at a time-release dose of 500 mg daily reduced endothelin-1-mediated vessel constriction as much as walking did.

The 35 sedentary, overweight/obese adults completed 3 months of either the supplementation (20 participants) or aerobic exercise training (15 participants).

Measures included forearm blood flow and responses to intra-arterial infusion of endothelin-1 before and after each intervention.

Vasoconstriction to endothelin-1 increased similarly - about two-fold - in response to both interventions.

Turning to the other end of the spectrum of physical fitness, a review in February 2013 found that vitamin C may help people under heavy physical stress, such as marathon runners, cut their chances of getting a cold.

In June 2013, it was reported that vitamin C consumption can cut the risk of people with asthma developing exercise-induced bronchoconstriction.

 

 

 

Feature

02 September 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

 The tests were more likely to identify mutations in a subgroup of children with certain physical anomalies, making clinical examination an important way of selecting those children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who could benefit most from genetic testing.

"It is incontrovertible that precise diagnoses pave the way to better medical care, improved surveillance, better functional outcomes, and informed genetic counseling, often with the possibility of prenatal or preimplantation diagnosis," says an editorial in the same issue of the journal.

Stephen Scherer, PhD, of the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada, and colleagues used the two newer technologies - chromosomal microarray analysis (CMA) and whole-exome sequencing (WES) - to determine the percentage of 258 unrelated children with ASD who possessed a genetic mutation that may contribute to their autistic features.

A molecular diagnosis from CMA was received by 24 (9.3%) of the children, and from WES by 8 of 95 (8.4%) of them. Among the children who underwent both CMA and WES testing, the estimated proportion with an identifiable genetic cause was 15.8%.

The proportion with a genetic mutation was much higher (37.5%) for children who had more complex ASD based on physical examination.

In the linked editorial, Dr. Judith Miles, of University of Missouri Health Care in Columbia, says:

"For ASD, as well as for other behaviorally defined disorders, the results [...] provide clear guidance."

Dr. Miles adds:

    "Foremost, the data indicate that physicians responsible for children with ASD should arrange access to a genetic evaluation using techniques that have the best chance of determining an etiologic diagnosis."

Parents interested in genetic testing

The authors conclude that their study gives a demonstration of genetic differences related to subgroups of ASD children based on clinical examination.

"Our data suggest that medical evaluation of ASD children may help identify populations more likely to achieve a molecular diagnosis with genetic testing," they note, adding:

"It seems likely that genetic testing of children with ASD will continue to increase. In a survey of parental interest in ASD genetic testing, 80% of parents indicated that they would want a sibling younger than 2 years tested to identify ASD-risk mutations even if the test could not confirm or rule out the diagnosis."

"For some children with positive genetic test results," they continue, "treatment plans targeting ASD-associated medical conditions can be offered."

The researchers conclude that if "replicated in additional populations, these findings may inform appropriate selection of molecular diagnostic testing for children affected by ASD."

The editorial points out that karyotyping - profiling the chromosomes - is much less informative than the new methods yet are tests for ASD recommended by geneticists.

Dr. Miles believes "it seems possible that it will not be too long before the evidence presented" by the study "will prompt a similar recommendation to include whole-exome DNA sequencing as a first-tier ASD test, if not for all ASD diagnoses, certainly for children with physical dysmorphology."

 

 

 

Feature

20 July 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

Check almost any label on processed food or soup and you’ll see a high sodium content. In most homes, you’ll also see a salt shaker in the middle of the table. When people begin to be conscientious about their salt intake, they often reach for a potassium based salt substitute, however, with some medications potassium should be limited as well.

A better way to cut down is to season with herbs and spices, they are not going to taste like salt, but they do provide flavors that can stir the palette and make you wonder why you ever thought salt was so important.

1. Parsley – Many see parsley as a table garnish, but it also makes an excellent addition to your dishes. It gives them a fresher overall taste, and can help heighten the flavor of other spices.

2. Savory (Satureja) – Savory actually comes in two varieties, summer and winter savories, but either can be used in any season. It is from the satureja plant and is a member of the mint family, and has a flavor similar to oregano or marjoram.

3. Sage – Sage is a very aromatic, woody flavored herbs that has a flavor very resilient to cooking. It is particularly common in pork dishes and in bread stuffings.

4. Cilantro – Cilantro is a common ingredient in Mexican dishes, such as salsas and guacamole and many think it tastes somewhat like citrus. Some people, however, are predisposed to taste it differently and may think it tastes like soap. Try a little first and see what you think.

5. Basil – Basil is common in Italian dishes, and tastes both sweet and spicy, although not overwhelmingly so is either area.

6. Cinnamon – Cinnamon is one of the oldest spice known, especially in countries like India, Sri Lanka and other parts of Asia. This is a good salt alternative as it has the ability to regulates blood sugar level and lower cholesterol.

7. Cardamom – Cardamom is a well known substitute for salt as the taste of it is widely different and strong. Most of us have drunk cardamom tea and have got the taste with a hint of a ginger and salt.

8. Cayenne – Also known as red chilli peppers, Cayenne is an apt substitute for salt. Widely used in Spanish, Mexican and Indian cuisines. Cayenne gives a hot and peppery flavour that can be a good salt alternative.

9. Bay – Bay leaves are highly known to add flavour to meat foods. These sweet and aromatic leaves are usually dried to enhance its flavour. This could be one ingredient that could re-define the taste of the food.

These herbs and spices represent just the beginning of ways to season without salt. Many look to the bulb family; garlic, onions, leeks, or chives to add intensity to their food, or to various peppers including cayenne or other red peppers, or even salt’s trusty companion, black pepper. Any of these options can potentially lead to better health.

Sources:
http://www.boldsky.com/health/wellness/
http://www.localharvest.org/blog/25051/entry/herbs_used_for_salt_pepper
http://www.naturalalternativeremedy.com/10-powerful-health-benefits-of-parsley/

 

 

 

Feature

14 October 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

 Researchers call the increase in morbidity and mortality due to prescription opioid abuse an "epidemic."

In 2013, the 16,200 deaths resulting from prescription opioid disorders exceeded the 14,774 deaths from use of all illicit drugs combined.

The team, led by Dr. Beth Han, PhD, of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in Rockville, MD, set out to assess national trends in and characteristics of nonmedical prescription opioid use and use disorders, and the national trend in related mortality.

To investigate prevalence and related risk factors, they looked at data from 472,200 participants in the 2003-2013 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).

Nonmedical use of prescription opioids was defined as "use without a prescription or [...] with a prescription, simply for the experience or feeling caused by opioids."  
Increase in disorders seen

Disorders were classed as dependence on or abuse of: alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, hallucinogens, heroin, inhalants, or nonmedical use of prescription pain relievers, sedatives or stimulants.

The researchers found increased trends in dependence, morbidity and mortality rates:

    From 2003-2013, prescription opioid dependence rose from 0.4% to 0.6% in people aged over 12
    Associated Emergency Department visits rose from 82.5 to 184.1 per 100,000 from 2004-2011
    Prescription opioid related-deaths rose from 1.4 to 5.1 per 100,000 from 1999-2013
    Drug overdose death rates involving prescription opioids increased from 4.5 per 100,000 in 2003 to 7.8 per 100,000 in 2013.

Medications were bought, stolen or given by friends or relatives, prescribed by physicians, or bought from drug dealers or strangers.
Who is affected?

Disorders were more common among non-Hispanic white users, although the most frequent users of prescription opioids were non-Hispanic black people.

Disorders were more common among people without a high school diploma, those who were disabled for work, people with major depressive episodes, those without health insurance and those with Medicaid coverage rather than private health insurance.

People with dependences on alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, hallucinogens, heroin, stimulants, sedatives and nicotine were also more prone to disorders - as were those who stole or bought drugs, compared with those who received them for free from friends or relatives.
A public health concern

The epidemic in increased high-intensity prescription opioid use represents a major public health concern.


Previous studies have shown a strong relationship between inappropriate opioid prescribing and negative health outcomes; the current trend has occurred at a time when the quantities of opioids prescribed has increased.

From 1999-2002, 57.6% of opioid users took an opioid stronger than morphine or morphine-equivalent; by 2011-12, this figure had increased to 80%.

Use of higher amounts of prescription opioids is a significant risk factor for overdose death.

The team recommends identifying at-risk users to prevent them from developing disorders. They also suggest identifying patterns of inappropriate receipt of prescription opioids. Patients with opioid-related disorders and associated substance use disorders - plus nicotine dependence and depression - should be screened for treatment.

 

 

 

Feature

25 August 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

According to a recent study from Iran, stinging nettle leaves (Urtica dioica) and walnut leaves (Juglans regia) may have potential in antidiabetic therapy. Diabetes affects over 100 million people worldwide. This disease condition causes blood glucose (sugar) levels to rise, because people with diabetes either do not make enough insulin or are unable to use insulin properly. Normally, Insulin helps glucose from blood enter muscle, brain and liver cells where it is used to generate energy. When glucose levels build up in blood, these cells become starved for energy. Over time, high blood glucose levels also damage the eyes, kidneys, nerves and heart. Carbohydrates are a major component of our daily diet. They are broken down in the gut into simple compounds called monosaccharides by the enzyme alpha-amylase before they are absorbed into the blood. Blocking the activity of alpha-amylase prevents carbohydrate digestion and has been shown to reduce blood glucose levels. In fact, ‘alpha-amylase inhibitors’ have been developed to treat diabetes in this way. While currently available alpha-amylase inhibitors do provide short-term diabetes control, they also cause serious side effects. This is why scientists are studying natural extracts from over 400 traditional medicinal plants with alpha-amylase blocking activity for their exciting potential as effective, and likely safer, antidiabetic therapies. In this study from Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences in Bandar Abbas in Iran, researchers examined the effects of leaf extracts from Urtica dioica and Juglans regia on alpha-amylase activity. U. dioica, known as the common nettle or stinging nettle, has a long history as a medicine and as a source of both food and fiber. J. regia – known as the English walnut, common walnut or California walnut – is a common food. Walnut leaves also have a long history of medicinal use. Extracts of both plants strongly blocked alpha-amylase activity. Nettle caused a 60% inhibition of the enzyme with 2 mg/ml of the extract, and walnut leaf extract required only 0.4 mg/ml for the same inhibition. This effect increased with time and dose of extract. In conclusion, the medicinal plants Urtica dioica and Juglans regia may have potential as antidiabetic therapies.   Technical Summary

    Aqueous extracts of U. dioica and J. regia showed time- and concentration- dependent inhibition of alpha-amylase. The extracts consisted of 100 g of powdered dried leaves in 100 ml of water, freeze dried to powder. The extracts demonstrated 60% inhibition of alpha amylase activity with 0.4 mg/ml of nettle leaf extract and 2.0 mg/ml of walnut leaf extract. Inhibition increased for both extracts from 40% at 5 minutes and 60% at 30 minutes. “The results showed that the type of inhibition was competitive in which enzyme-inhibitor complex could form.” This research follows the discovery that walnut leaf reduced blood sugar in diabetic rats and other supportive studies. See the full article [LINK] for all the details.

 

 

 

Feature

11 July 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 


A new study reveals that high intake of fruits and vegetables packed with vitamin C will substantially cut the heart attack and early death risk. The researchers examined 100,000 Danish people's intake of fruit and vegetables as well as their DNA.
High Intake of Diet Filled With Vitamin C Reduces Heart Attack, Early Death Risk

"We can see that those with the highest intake of fruit and vegetables have a 15% lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease and a 20% lower risk of early death," said Camilla Kobylecki, medical doctor at the department of clinical biochemistry at Herlev and Gentofte Hospital in Denmark.

Vitamin C helps build connective tissue which supports and connects different types of tissues and organs in the body.

It is also a potent antioxidant which protects cells and biological molecules from the damage which causes many diseases, including cardiovascular disease.

The human body is not able to produce vitamin C, which means that we must get the vitamin from our diet, said the study that appeared in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

"Eating a lot of fruit and vegetables is a natural way of increasing vitamin C blood levels. You can get vitamin C supplements but it is a good idea to get your vitamin C by eating a healthy diet," added Boerge Nordestgaard from University of Copenhagen.

Read more: High Intake of Diet Filled With Vitamin C Reduces Heart Attack, Early Death Risk http://www.medindia.net/news/high-intake-of-diet-filled-with-vitamin-c-reduces-heart-attack-early-death-risk-150841-1.htm#ixzz3fai9amI2

 

 

 

Feature

30 September 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

Aspirin may double the chances of survival for patients with gastrointestinal cancers, according to the results of a new study recently presented at the 2015 European Cancer Congress in Vienna, Austria.



This research, led by Dr. Martine Frouws of Leiden University Medical Centre in the Netherlands, adds to growing evidence suggesting aspirin may be useful in the prevention and treatment of cancer.

Last month, Medical News Today reported on a study suggesting aspirin may reduce the risk of colorectal cancer, while a more recent study claims aspirin may help boost treatment response in patients with breast, skin and bowel cancers.

For their study, Dr. Frouws and colleagues set out to determine how aspirin impacts the survival of patients with tumors in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract - namely the rectum, colon and esophagus. This is the first time a study has simultaneously assessed survival data by different GI locations, according to the authors.

The study included 13,715 patients who received a GI cancer diagnosis between 1998 and 2011. They were followed up for a median of 48.6 months. Of these patients, 42.8% had colon cancer, 25.4% had rectal cancer and 10.2% had cancer of the esophagus.

To determine how aspirin use after a GI cancer diagnosis impacted the overall survival of these patients, the researchers linked patient data with drug dispensing information from the PHARMO Institute in Utrecht, the Netherlands.

"In this study we analyzed each separate prescription per patient, and therefore we were able to achieve a more exact estimate of the effect of aspirin on cancer survival," notes Dr. Frouws.
Post-diagnosis aspirin users twice as likely to survive GI cancer

Overall, around 30.5% of patients used aspirin prior to GI cancer diagnosis, 8.3% only used aspirin after their diagnosis, while 61.1% did not use aspirin.


Across all cancers, around 28% of patients survived for at least 5 years.

Compared with patients who used aspirin before their cancer diagnosis and those who did not use the medication, patients who used aspirin after their diagnosis were twice as likely to survive, according to the results.

This finding remained even after the team accounted for potential confounding factors, including age, sex, cancer stage, cancer treatment and the presence of other medical conditions.

While the exact mechanism underlying the anticancer effect of aspirin is unclear, the researchers suggest it could be down to its antiplatelet properties. They explain that circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are believed to use platelets - a component of blood - to shield themselves from the immune system. Because aspirin blocks the function of platelets, this may expose CTCs, leaving them open to attack.

Though the optimal dosage and duration of aspirin use and its effect on GI cancers need to be investigated in further research, the team believes they have uncovered a potential treatment option that could reach a wide number of patients.

"Given that aspirin is a cheap, off-patent drug with relatively few side effects, this will have a great impact on health care systems as well as patients," says Dr. Frouws, adding:

 

 

 

Feature

15 August 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

 A new study suggests that vitamin D offers no benefits to obese teens in terms of heart health or diabetes risk. Not only that, but the findings of the study suggest that vitamin D could even increase levels of cholesterol and triglycerides.
Vitamin D written in the sand.
Vitamin D supplements are often prescribed to slow or prevent the development of obesity-related medical complications such as insulin resistance.

The study, published in Pediatric Obesity, is part of a series conducted by researchers from the Mayo Clinic investigating obesity in childhood.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), obesity has more than doubled among children and quadrupled among adolescents over the past 30 years. JAMA states that 1 in 5 American adolescents is currently obese.

A number of observational studies have indicated that vitamin D deficiency may be associated with obesity-related medical complications, such as cardiovascular disease and insulin resistance. Many health care providers consequently recommend high-dose supplementation to slow or prevent such complications from developing.

These courses of vitamins can sometimes be more than five to ten times the recommended daily intake.

Dr. Seema Kumar, a pediatric endocrinologist in the Mayo Clinic Children's Center, is yet to discover any significant benefit from vitamin D supplements in adolescents, however, after conducting four clinical trials and publishing six studies on the subject in the past 10 years.

"We're not saying the links between vitamin D deficiency and chronic diseases don't exist for children - we just haven't found any yet," states Dr. Kumar.

The most common and efficient source of vitamin D is sunlight, with the richest food sources being fish oil and fatty fish. If an individual is unable to obtain their recommended amounts of the vitamin from natural sources, they are advised to use vitamin D supplements.
Vitamin D supplementation linked to rises in cholesterol and triglycerides

For her team's most recent study, they examined the effect of vitamin D supplementation in 19 obese adolescents aged 13-18 with vitamin D deficiency, assessing what influence - if any - it had on their overall health.

After 3 months of boosting the teens' vitamin D levels into the normal range with supplements, the researchers observed no changes in body weight, body mass index (BMI), waistline, blood pressure or blood flow, Dr. Kumar explains. She says that she was surprised not to have uncovered any health benefit.



Ingesting too much vitamin D can lead to a condition known as vitamin D toxicity or hypervitaminosis, potentially resulting in nausea, vomiting and kidney complications. However, the new study also found increased cholesterol and triglycerides - a fat found in the blood that can increase heart disease risk - among the participants.

Dr. Kumar suggests that this finding could be due to the relatively small number of children participating in the study and its short timeframe. To address these limitations, she calls for larger, placebo-controlled studies to investigate the long-term effects of vitamin D supplementation.

"We're not saying it's bad to take vitamin D supplements at reasonable doses, and we know most obese teens are vitamin D deficient," Dr. Kumar concludes. "We're just saying the jury is still out on how useful it is for improving overall health in adolescents."

Recently, Medical News Today reported on a study suggesting that high-dose vitamin D supplements do not improve bone health for postmenopausal women - a group that is particularly susceptible to conditions such as osteoporosis.

Vitamin D insufficiency is estimated to affect around 75% of postmenopausal women in the US. The effect of this deficiency on skeletal health is exacerbated by the falling estrogen levels that are also a factor in osteoporosis development

 

 

 

Feature

30 June 2015 0 Comments

 

 

 

Dr. Cameron Rink points to a picture of a brain that is currently undergoing a stroke, noting in particular the dark, feathery arteries that branch out across grayish brain tissue. Some of that tissue has faded to black around the vessels which are obstructed, and they very much resemble a city block that has lost power as the rest of the city remains well-lit.

"That part of the brain is not getting blood or oxygen and the cells are dying. There's not much we can do for a patient at this point and that's frustrating," Dr. Rink, a professor of surgery at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, said.

It is easy to understand all of his frustration. After more than two and a half decades and the failure of some 1,000 experimental neuroprotective medications, only aspirin and tPA, the so-called "clot-busting" drug, are all that traditional medical science is offering to patients after they've suffered a stroke. And of the two, tPA is only used in about 4 percent of all stroke cases, said the university in a press release.

Prevention is the key

But Dr. Rink has long been convinced that such "after the fact" approaches don't really do much to prevent disability and death. So, for the past dozen years, Rink has focused his research on stroke prevention, and it is finally beginning to pay dividends.

What's more, one of the most promising of treatments is a natural alternative.

In published studies involving animals, Dr. Rink and fellow researchers write that they have discovered that brain damage during a strike can be prevented by triggering the surrounding blood vessels to dilate, thereby redirecting blood flow around a blockage.

The blood vessel "redirection" is the result of 10 weeks' worth of supplementation with a little known type of vitamin E called tocotrienol, which appears to stimulate arteriogenesis, or "the remodeling of existing blood vessels that can instantaneously expand in response to a demand for oxygen-rich blood," the press release states. And the creation of a collateral blood supply can make a huge difference in the outcome of strokes.

"We know that people who have good collaterals have better recovery from strokes. We think that tocotrienol helps improve the function of collaterals, which would offer someone better protection from an initial or secondary stroke," said Dr. Rink, who is currently participating in a study of stroke survivors to see if the supplement can help prevent or reduce damage from secondary strokes -- which can often be more disabling and costly than the first stroke.

More from the university's release:

To find out exactly how tocotrienol is impacting blood vessel remodeling, Rink pioneered a technique using laser capture microdissection (LCM) to take microscopic pieces of brain tissue and blood vessels from the exact area where collaterals are called into action during a stroke.

The LCM samples also give Rink a chance to study micro-RNA activity during a stroke. Micro-RNAs are tiny snippets of non-coding DNA that turn off the production of proteins created by genes, proteins that give cells a range of different instructions. By identifying the micro-RNAs, Rink will be able to find out what's happening at a genetic level during a stroke, and how tocotrienol may be influencing those genes.

More funding for more studies

The tocotrienol, which is formed naturally in palm oil, is a vitamin E variant and is currently available as an oral nutritional supplement. And because it does not interfere with other stroke therapies or have any side effects, Dr. Rink says he believes that the vitamin could someday become a common stroke-prevention strategy.

The university said that Dr. Rink's research was given pilot funding from Ohio State's Center for Clinical and Translational Science in 2012 to study tocotrienol's impact on stroke. The center has been studying the supplement for the past two years.

His initial findings also led to an additional funding grant from the American Heart Association, and Dr. Rink would like to apply for an RO1 grant in the next two years after the publication of several more studies on animal and human subjects.

"The animal studies are helping inform the optimal tocotrienol dose and therapeutic window for our human studies, so it's a great example of how the basic research is informing clinical studies, and helping us move the research forward faster," Dr. Rink said.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/045506_vitamin_E_stroke_prevention_brain_health.html#ixzz3eYE6CjWt

 

 

 

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