Healthy by Nature radio show this week
Get your questions ready. Our guest is Fred Pescatore, MD, integrative physician to the rich and famous in Manhattan. Along with your calls we’ll talk about some health issues most people don’t associate with gut bacteria: Skin Conditions, Joint Pain, Bone Health and Mood / Memory. Check out this recent NPR interview about anxiety and critters in the gut. Call the live show with questions at 1-800-281-8255. Click here to find podcasts, show archives and how to listen nationwide.

Research News
The Food and Drug Administration, the American Medical Association, the American Heart Association, The American Academy of Ophthalmology and all the other “expert” groups seem very very slow to pay any attention to studies that do not involve pharmaceutical drugs. Here are some recent non-drug examples that surely warrant their attention:

Breakthrough for Macular Degeneration. For those with this most common cause of adult blindness, it is fabulous news that 100% of subjects experienced significant improvement in the dry type of this disease and in vision with supplementation of EPA and DHA from fish oil. The amounts used were higher than in previous studies and that is probably the reason for the spectacular results. LINK. To achieve 5,000 milligrams a day (3,400 mg EPA, 1,600 mg DHA) would not be practical with capsules. The less expensive way would be to take about two teaspoons a day of a high potency fish oil product. That may be a budget hit but not compared to the aggressive conventional treatments and this approach comes with many fringe benefits in place of scary risks. I looked for a good value and here is an example of a high potency choice from one of our sponsors. Incidentally, they reduce the price, give a 10% discount (with the code senior) and offer free shipping on this item (with just a $1 handling fee.) Other supplements that have shown benefit for macular degeneration are Longevinex, lutein, and zeaxanthin.

Hardening of the arteries and chelation. Intravenous chelation, often used by integrative physicians, has long been belittled by mainstream medicine. The therapy involves using an infusion of a substance (usually disodium EDTA) to gradually remove the buildup of calcium from the arterial system. Now, a study of patients who have had heart attacks (but are stable) showed a modest reduction in subsequent problems. LINK. That was a risky population. I wonder if the first heart attack could be avoided if the procedure was used with people whose tests show a calcium build-up.

Spend less on sugar and less on sickness care? According to a Credit Suisse Report discussed in Forbes Magazine, “…30% – 40% of healthcare expenditures in the USA go to help address issues that are closely tied to the excess consumption of sugar.” And yet the government continues to support the sugar industry. LINK. What can we do? Besides consuming less sugar, write our legislators.

Fail to plan or plan to fail?
Vitamin D and the prevention of upper respiratory infections. Study results have given mixed reviews of whether or not vitamin D is helpful in preventings colds and other upper respiratory tract infections (URTI’s). A new study of 2259 participants aged 45–75 sounds at first like it shows lack of effect. Participants had a history of colon cancer but were still considered in “good health” and to qualify only needed vitamin D levels of at least 12 ng/mL. However, at that level most nutritionists and doctors of integrative medicine would agree with the non-profit Vitamin D Council and say that these subjects started out quite deficient in vitamin D. Moreover, the study was done in New Hampshire which is not the sunniest place in the US and surprisingly, the subjects were only given 1,000 IU of Vitamin D per day. That small amount is unlikely to show much benefit. The Vitamin D Council recommends 5,000 IU per day to get blood levels up to the ideal range which they say starts at 50 ng/mL and goes up from there. Do scientists not look at prior research or for some reason do they design some of these studies to fail? I think it is immoral to put patients whose immune system already let them down once (colon cancer) on a dose too low to be much benefit, especially given the broad range of safety of vitamin D and its low cost.

What’s up?
The special deals announced last week and our great prize drawings that anyone in the US can enter are both still going on through midnight Saturday, Dec 14. Consider giving yourself or a loved one a gift of health with these items that every home should have. ChiroSlumber mattress, the far infra-red sauna and an Ezzi-lift facelift device (or pain device, see Ezzi-lift page) are each offered with great incentive pricing and/or freebies and each also qualifies for a bonus gift box from Healthy by Nature worth nearly $200 (while supplies last). You can see and test all three in the classroom Healthy by Nature shares with HealthWorksMart.com’s Outlet Store.
 
Win one of two gift boxes valued at  $375 each. Click here for details.

Last Week Follow-up
LINK to that show in the archives. The theme was technology products that I use in my ongoing quest for optimum health. I was happy to finally talk to Dr. Rick Kind about how to select a mattress that is supportive, comfortable, non-toxic and affordable. (We bought the one he designed and we love it.) Holistic health educator, Jana Wilson, told us about the far infrared sauna, and then dietitian and health coach, Lauri Armstrong and I talk about another of my favorites, the Ezzi-lift micro-current facelift device.

Please help spread the good word-forward this newsletter to friends and family.
My first book : Natural Alternatives to Nexium, Maalox, Tagamet, Prilosec & Other Acid Blockers. Subtitle: What to Use to Relieve Acid Reflux, Heartburn, and Gastric Ailments.

My latest book: Aloe Vera-Modern Science Sheds Light on an Ancient Herbal Remedy

The information contained in this newsletter has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The contents are for informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice.

Copyright 2013 Martie Whittekin, CCN