Natural Wellness Choices

New Mammography Guidelines

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:18:00 +0000

This is a special report in response to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force regarding the Screening for Breast Cancer. You can read this report directly at: http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/USpstf/uspsbrca.htm

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Key Recommendations were:

- Recommend against routine screening mammography in women aged 40 to 49 years.

- Recommends screening mammography every 2 years for women between the ages of 50 and 74

- Concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the benefits and harms of clinical breast examinations by physicians and other health providers

- Recommends against clinicians teaching women how to perform breast self-examination.

You may find yourself torn between confusion, anger and concern as you try to do what is best. I have heard most react negatively to these guidelines. My reaction to points 1 & 2 concerning mammogram guidelines has been strongly in favor of them. I am still undecided on points 3 and 4 regarding clinical breast exams and self exams.

Why I Support the USPSTF Mammogram Recommendations:

Less x-ray exposure. These guidelines are an improvement because they result in ionizing radiation with more caution and result in less risk. The task force states that “Radiation exposure (from radiologic tests), although a minor concern, is also a consideration." I suspect they are understating how much radiation factored into their conclusions.

The U.S. has been the only country in the world to recommend premenopausal routine mammographic screening. The guidelines for screening mammograms starting at age 40 were based on optimistic assumptions on their safety. It turns out that the ionizing radiation used in mammography is 2-5 times as damaging to the tissue as x-rays used in chest x-rays. This increased biologic effect of mammographic x-rays had not been factored into safety estimates (see Radiation Research 162, 120–127 (2004) and International Journal Radiation Biology (2002, vol. 78, no. 12, 1065-1067).

This new understanding would make each mammogram more comparable to 14-35 chest x-rays. The International Journal of Radiation Biology article calculated the risk to benefit using this new understanding of the radiation used in mammography. This new calculation results in concluding that mammograms should be started later. They suggested starting screens at age 47 at the earliest and starting annual mammograms at around age 60 instead of 50. Note that these ages would be much higher if, instead of 2x, the upper end of the estimate is used (5x). Those who understand the radiation effects are more cautious in recommending mammography.

More realistic estimates of benefit. These guidelines help to shatter the myth that mammography dramatically changes the course of breast cancer. The conclusions in which mammography is stated to make the most differences focus on the assumption that there is little downside to screening. The downsides include:

- Unnecessary studies including surgery needed to prove that there is no cancer

- Unnecessary treatment. For example, excessive screening may result in treating DCIS which may have never caused disease. Ductal Carcinoma in Situ is commonly diagnosed via mammography but often does not actually develop into what most people would think of as cancer – it stays fairly dormant. No one actually knows when this should be treated. Overtreatment exposes women to harm and perhaps no benefit

The Psychological Stress of the ordeal can cause disease

Possibly spreading the cancer through unnecessary biopsies. This is a theoretical concern which is hard to quantify

You may be surprised that in some studies the benefits may not even exceed the risks. One well done Swedish trial concluded that “Screening for breast cancer with mammography is unjustified” Why – there was more harm than benefit. To read the actual article published in The Lancet go to the following:

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2899%2906065-1/abstract

You can see the full text free as well; just sign up with a username and password

This is The Lancet, January 8, 2000 Volume 355, Issue 9198, Pages 129 – 134

The Cochrane Collaboration is an international, independent non-profit group which is often cited as one of the best medical reviewing organizations. They concluded that while mammography has benefit it also causes harm and stated: “It is thus not clear whether screening does more good than harm.”The 2001 Cochrane Review of Breast Mammography http://www.cochrane.org/reviews/en/ab001877.html

3. These guidelines will hopefully encourage women to focus on using natural ways to prevent cancer – an area which is ignored in October: Vitamin D, Iodine/Iodide, Progesterone, Cruciferous Vegetables and avoiding plastics, pesticides, hair dyes and underwire bras. I will cover more on these later

4. These guidelines may result in more widespread use and clinical studies involving breast thermography and breast ultrasound. These hold the promise of lower false positives and no radiation.

Recommendations:

These are my thoughts but obviously we are dealing with way too many unknowns to be dogmatic. We do not know the natural progression of DCIS, we do not know the exact risk of radiation nor do we have all the studies we would like to see on thermography, ultrasound and prevention strategies. We do have a lot of studies on these topics but I would like to see more. For more information on thermography see my January 09 post.

In order to settle this in your mind and make an informed decision, you will want to do your own research. Ask Questions. Factor in your risk factors for breast cancer – the above guidelines were for routine screening – not high risk individuals. Overall, Think Prevention and Safe Screening for early disease. More restraint with mammography and greater use of thermal imaging and ultrasound make more sense.

What I see points to much more success on the Prevention Side: Vitamin D (around 1000 iu for every 25 lbs is a general guideline but check your 25-Hydroxy-Vitamin D levels), Iodoral 1 a day helps insure adequate iodine intake (see www.PhysiciansPreference.com, Eat Your Veggies and if you are not getting at least 5 servings of fruit and vegetables daily I highly recommend increasing your intake – especially the cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kale, cabbage, and bok choy. Fruit & Vegetable capsules are an excellent way you can conveniently supplement your intake by taking 2 fruit and 2 cruciferous vegetable containing vegetable capsules a day. You can order a well researched fruit & vegetable capsule through www.naturalwellnesschoices.com. Progesterone capsules and cream are available to our wellness center guests. Over the counter Progesterone cream is also available at www.physicianpreference.com and off course avoid heating food in plastic and avoid cosmetics that are petrochemical based (most are) and hair dyes.

The text contained herein does not constitute medical advice. Natural Wellness Choices & Dr, Ellsworth advise you to consult your own physician before acting on any recommendations contained in this email or blog posting

Hypothyroidism and the Limitations of Blood Tests

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:17:00 +0000

Hypothyroidism is an important condition to recognize and properly treat. Some diseases associated with hypothyroidism include:

· Coronary artery disease
· Congestive heart failure
· Chronic fatigue
· Depression
· Memory problems
· Fibromyalgia – painful muscles
· Attention deficit
· Chronic or recurrent infections
· Fertility problems
· Menstrual irregularities

Medical Dogma & The Tyranny of the TSH

Since hypothyroidism causes so much suffering, disease and death, we must do everything possible to properly identify those who need treatment. Sadly, it appears that the medical community has actually taken many steps backward in their approach to hypothyroidism.

If you saw a doctor in 1960 and you had hypothyroidism, you would have been diagnosed based on your symptoms and physical exam findings and treated with natural thyroid. You would have improved and enjoyed good health. Today you would typically not be so fortunate.

Since the 1970’s doctors have been actually trained to ignore symptoms and signs of hypothyroidism unless they see an elevated pituitary hormone called the Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH). If the TSH is elevated doctors are taught to treat using L-Thyroxine (aka T4). The TSH was adopted as the standard for diagnosing hypothyroidism by a consensus opinion in 1973. This decision was made on the basis of “expert opinion” and consensus rather than actual studies which show that using the TSH is the best way to approach hypothyroidism. The advocates of the TSH standard felt that it provided a more objective means of determining thyroid status than clinical parameters and after more than 30 years the TSH Approach has become medical dogma. The assumption that it is the right thing to do appears to be validated by the fact that so many physicians are doing it. Could we be missing something?

Does the TSH Approach Work?

Yes and No. The TSH is an excellent indicator of severe underproduction of thyroid hormone. A high TSH is typically present when the production of thyroid hormone is dramatically lowered such as when the thyroid gland is removed. The regulation system detects a low level of thyroid hormone and attempts to get the levels back to normal by making an excessive amount of TSH in a vain attempt to get the thyroid gland to produce more.

While a high TSH does indicate the underproduction of thyroid, a TSH level within the reference range does not assure optimal thyroid status. Why? Hypothyroidism is low thyroid function within our cells. No blood test can directly measure the thyroid activity within the cells of our body.

Why would a cell have sluggish thyroid function?

A. Underproduction – the thyroid gland produces too little thyroid

B. Cellular Underutilization – thyroid hormone only does it job within the cells of our body. Numerous steps are involved in thyroid hormones effect to help the cells produce and use energy. The cell will function sluggishly if the thyroid hormone is not used efficiently

C. A Combination of A and B

One should realize that for the medical community to use the TSH as the sole basis for diagnosing hypothyroidism one must make several huge assumptions that are not typically discussed in textbooks or lectures. The majority of the medical community has adopted a model which knowingly or not has assumed the following to be true:

1) The central regulation mechanisms in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland are assumed to be working perfectly. The thermostat like set point for serum thyroid levels within our brain is assumed to function perfectly – unaffected by aging, stress, nutritional deficiencies, toxins or genetic factors.

2) Perfect utilization of thyroid at the cellular level is assumed. Once again this assumes that the delicate process of utilizing thyroid is unaffected by aging, stress, nutritional deficiencies, toxins or genetic factors.

3) “Anywhere in the range” is fine for an individual. The model that doctors typically use assumes that individuals are perfectly fine if they are anywhere within the reference range.

Is assumption #1 true? Do central regulatory mechanisms work perfectly?
No. Consider the following quote made in the respected Primary Care Clinics:

“With significant physiologic stress, illness, inflammation and aging, however, there is demonstrable suppression of thyrotropin, making the thyrotropin test unreliable”

Primary Care: Clinics in Office Practice Volume 35, Issue 4, (Dec 2008) 669–705

Is assumption #2 true? Is thyroid hormone perfectly used in our cells at all times?
No. Hormone resistance is common

Our new understanding of endocrine dysfunction suggests that hormone resistance is more common that previously recognized. Consider both leptin and insulin.

- Underproduction is uncommon: Underproduction of leptin is rare and underproduction of insulin constitutes less than ten percent of all diabetes

- Cellular underutilization of hormones is common: leptin is almost universal with obesity and most with type 2 Diabetes have high insulin levels associated with their insulin resistance

If leptin and insulin resistance is common, could thyroid resistance be common as well?

We now have strong evidence that the intracellular conversion of thyroxine (T4) to the active form triiodothyronine (T3) is inhibited by numerous common factors. Hypothyroidism related to intracellular factors will not be reflected in changes in either the TSH or free hormone levels. Drs. Boc and Starr have adopted a reference mechanism of Hypothyroidism Type I for underproduction and Hypothyroidism Type 2 for peripheral hypo-utilization (described in the book, Hypothyroidism Type 2, Mark Starr, M.D.).

Cellular resistance can be compared to a factory with enough workers showing up but they are unable to do their job efficiently. The workers are our hormones but the factory is the cell.

We can see how many workers are showing up for work by measuring the hormone level but we cannot see how well they are working inside the factory. To gain a window into the status of our cellular factories we must step back and look at the person who is made up of all those cells. If every cell in our body is sluggish, we will see it reflected in having some of the symptoms of sluggish cell function – tired, cold, dry skin, depressed mood, memory and focus issues, constipation, aches and pains, hair loss. The body temperature may be low.

It is a cellular world

The study of what happens in our cellular factories is more challenging and has only recently been worked out in detail. We now know that cells regulate thyroid function independent of the brain/pituitary regulation system. It is well known that many chronic illnesses produce the so called sick-euthyroid syndrome characterized by normal thyroid labs but decreased thyroid function. This is often seen in many hospitalized patients with serious illnesses. We now know that under stress our cells can slow metabolism of some tissues by increasing the intracellular conversion of T4 to Reverse T3 instead of the active form of thyroid T3.

The cellular regulation of thyroid is not reflected by changes in the serum thyroid levels or the TSH. In fact these changes may only occur in certain organs and not others. During starvation the brain thyroid function continues but less critical function in the muscles and GI tract will be slowed. The TSH remains unchanged while our tissues are adjusting thyroid function to cope with our stressors. Interestingly, those of Irish decent tend to have a higher rate of thyroid underutilization problems (Hypothyroidism Type 2) due to the fact that their ancestors were the ones who survived the great potato famine of 1845 and 1852. Those who more readily slowed their metabolism presumably by producing more reverse T3 would have had a survival advantage. Therefore, descendents of these survivors may be more prone to produce reverse T3 when they encounter stress from any source; however, their TSH levels are unchanged.

Is assumption #3 true? Is the entire reference range of the TSH or thyroid hormone level necessarily that which will be optimal for an individual?

No. The reference range simply describes where most of the population is. This is made up of people of all backgrounds, young and old, healthy and ill. In order for you to have the best possible thyroid status you need to be at your optimal level. For example, when one buys shoes, one is interested in getting a little more specific than getting a “normal” shoe. I have never heard anyone say “just give me any size normal shoe in that style.” In fact most normal shoes are not right for your foot. Similarly, a person with the signs and symptoms of low thyroid and a test result that is at the 50th percentile may feel great at the 60% percentile. Another person may be in the 10th percentile and be perfectly healthy because that is their optimum.

An optimal thyroid status is much more than feeling good. In 2008 the HUNT study showed that women with a higher TSH had a 69% higher rate of heart disease (odd ratio 1.69). This dramatically increased rate of heart disease was found with TSH levels within the reference range. (see Thyrotropin Levels and Risk of Fatal Coronary Heart Disease The HUNT Study Arch Intern Med. 2008;168(8):855-860 http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/168/8/855)

Autopsy Study shows Definite Evidence of Hypothyroidism with Normal blood tests

Autopsy tests for Mucin Deposition demonstrate the failure of blood tests

At autopsy, one can run a test for the presence of hypothyroidism by staining the tissue for mucin. In a research study designed to correlate the presence of mucin staining at autopsy with clinical information, Peterson, et al, concluded that those with mucin demonstrated abnormal laboratory data only 11% of the time, physical examination was only slightly better at 12%, whereas clinical history was shown to detect 76% of the cases of hypothyroidism West J. Med. 1992; 156; 163-65. Laboratory data alone was not a reliable guide to detect a low thyroid status.

Conclusion: When the TSH is used alone to diagnose hypothyroidism, most who suffer from hypothyroidism will be missed. A high TSH typically indicates underproduction of thyroid. A normal TSH can be present in those with severe cellular underutilization of thyroid. This appears to be common and must be addressed. The TSH Standard for hypothyroidism diagnosis and management needs to be revised to reflect our current understanding.

Next issue: What Causes Hypothyroidism and What You can Do About it

Strontium – For Strong Bones and More

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 21:50:00 +0000

In August I sent a newsletter about strong bones and made several suggestions. I have an important addition to make to my previous recommendations: Strontium

Strontium is a key component of our bone and connective tissues. If you look at the periodic table of elements you will notice that strontium is in the same row as calcium. What makes strontium unique is that it has the ability to actually increase the density of bone and connective tissue and help make it both stronger and healthier.

Strontium reversing Osteoporosis

1959 the Mayo Clinic gave 1.7 grams of strontium per day as strontium lactate to 32 with osteoporosis. The results showed 84% had less bone pain. There were no significant side effects bone mass appeared to increase (measuring tools were less precise then).

1985 McGill University in Montreal conducted a very small study with just 3 people. I mention this study because it was unique in that bone biopsies were actually done to directly measure the bone density both before and after 6 months of treatment with strontium. After 600 to 700 mg/day of strontium given as strontium carbonate there was a 172% increase in bone formation and less pain.

In 2002, the results of a large multi-center trial known as the STRATOS Trial (this stood for the “Strontium Ranelate for Treatment of Osteoporosis trial) showed that strontium given to 353 osteoporotic women with at least one previous vertebral fracture increased bone density. Strontium was given as strontium ranelate in the dose of 500 mg, 1000 mg or 2000 mg per day for 2 yr which provided 170, 340 or 680 mg of elemental strontium respectively per day. The lumbar bone density increased in a dose-dependent manner. Those who took the 680 mg/day of elemental strontium (2000 mg of strontium ranelate) appeared to have the best combination of efficacy and safety.

2004 - New England Journal of Medicine: 1649 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis and at least one vertebral fracture to receive 2 g of oral strontium ranelate per day (total of 680 mg of elemental Strontium) or placebo for three years. Strontium increased bone mineral density at by 14.4 percent at the lumbar spine and 8.3 percent at the femoral neck. Fracture risk was reduced a whopping 41%. The authors concluded that: “Treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis with strontium ranelate leads to early and sustained reductions in the risk of vertebral fractures.”

2005 Another large multi-center trial result was released in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism Vol. 90, No. 5 2816-2822 This study was a double blind study looking at 5091 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis for 5 years. Fracture rate again decreased 39-45%. Conclusion: “This study shows that strontium ranelate significantly reduces the risk of all nonvertebral and in a high-risk subgroup, hip fractures over a 3-yr period, and is well tolerated. It confirms that strontium ranelate reduces vertebral fractures. Strontium ranelate offers a safe and effective means of reducing the risk of fracture associated with osteoporosis.

Strontium and Cavities

Epidemiologic studies have shown that strontium concentrations of 6 to 10 mg/liter in the water supply are associated with a reduced incidence of cavities. Animal studies show that adding these levels of strontium reduced cavities.

Strontium and Arthritis

A study of the cartilage-forming cells known as found that strontium strongly promoted cartilage growth in-vitro (test tube like conditions). Hopefully we will see larger studies done one the benefits of strontium in osteoarthritis.

Bottom line

Strontium dosed at 680 mg of elemental strontium a day is a safe and effective way to prevent and reverse osteoporosis. While the largest and most recent studies used strontium ranelate, we have earlier studies which show that other strontium salts are effective including strontium carbonate, strontium lactate, and strontium gluconate. In other words, the key ingredient is strontium.

Strontium has also resulted in less bone pain in those with vertebral fractures and may be useful in reversing the pain and joint damage in osteoarthritis. Studies also suggest strontium helps prevent cavities.

Strontium is best absorbed on an empty stomach and when taken alone without other minerals. Calcium can block strontium absorption. Calcium may be taken at another time of day .

My updated recommendations for strong bones are to:

Avoid

· Soda/soft drinks (the acid in them weakens bone)

· Smoking

· Excessive caffeine

· Excessive grain intake

· Milk? There is actually an inverse relationship between how much a society drinks milk and bone density

· Optimize Vitamin D

· Daily eat 5-9 Servings of Fruit and Vegetables, drink Vegetable Juice, take Fruit/Vegetable capsules (www.NaturalWellnessChoices.com to order)

· Eat green leafy vegetables like spinach and collard greens

· Optimize Hormones: DHEA, Progesterone, Estrogen and Testosterone

· Exercise – weight bearing exercise

· Get natural sunlight

· Supplemental calcium, magnesium

· Vitamin K2 (about 100 mcg a day)

· Strontium 680 mg a day

One product with strontium is the NSI Strontium at Vitacost.com http://www.vitacost.com/NSI-Strontium. At our wellness center, Physicians Preference is currently formulating a bone formula which will contain strontium.

References

Reginster JY, Deroisy R, Dougados M, et al. Prevention of early postmenopausal bone loss by strontium ranelate: the randomized, two-year, double-masked, dose ranging, placebo-controlled PREVOS trial. Osteoporosis Int 2002; 13:925-31

Pierre J. Meunier, et. Al. The Effects of Strontium Ranelate on the Risk of Vertebral Fracture in Women with Postmenopausal Osteoporosis. New England Journal of Medicine Volume 350:459-468 January 29, 2004 Number 5 http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/abstract/350/5/459

Meunier, P.J., Slosman, D.O., Delmas, P.D., Sebert, J.L., Brandi, M.L., Albanese, C., Lorenc, R., Pors-Nielsen, S., De Vernejoul, M.C., Roces, A., Reginster J.Y. Strontium ranelate: dose-dependent effects in established postmenopausal vertebral osteoporosis&emdash;a 2-year randomized placebo controlled trial. J Clin Endocrinol Metab, May 2002; 87(5):2060-6.

Meunier, P.J., Roux, C., Seeman, E., Ortolani, S., Badurski, J.E., Spector, T.D., Cannata, J., Balogh, A., Lemmel, E.M., Pors-Nielsen, S., Rizzoli R., Genant, H.K., Reginster J.Y. The effects of strontium ranelate on the risk of vertebral fracture in women with postmenopausal osteoporosis, N Engl J Med, 2004, Jan 29;350(5):459-68.

Strontium: Breakthrough Against Osteoporosis by Ward Dean, MD

Osteoporosis Drugs – Fact versus Fiction

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 23:47:00 +0000

You see the ads. You hear the hype.

Your doctor recommends them…What do you do?

Bisphosphonates
The drugs for osteoporosis known as bisphosphonates decrease bone resorption by inhibiting the cells that break down bone (osteoclasts). They actually bind to and become part of the bone and eventually stop bone formation.

These drugs include:

Alendronate sodium - Generic and Fosamax
Ibandronate sodium - Boniva
Isedronate sodium - Actonel
Etidronate disodium – Didronel
Pamidronate disodium - Aredia
Tiludronate disodium - Skelid
Zoledronic acid - Aclasta; Reclast

All of these drugs are related and have similar side effects. They differ mainly by how often they are taken and whether they are a pill or IV. In this article I will refer to them collectively as Bisphosphonates

Why are these drugs so popular?
· Massive marketing campaigns
· They do increase bone density readings which leads many to mistakenly believe this means better bone
· They can produce a short term decrease in the risk of fractures in a few – a point that is greatly exaggerated by proponents of these drugs
· Doctors feel the need to do something and they are largely ignoring the best solutions

Reasons not to take Osteoporosis Drugs
· If you have osteopenia they have been shown to increase the fracture risk
· If you have osteoporosis, the chances of short term benefit is remote (1/81 chance)
· Long term these drugs essentially poison & kill bones and produce many side effects – some of them very serious
· The result in weaker, more brittle bone – especially after 5 years
· There are safer, natural approaches

Most Taking These Drugs Have No Personal Benefit
The studies showing benefit for these drugs are in the first 5 years of treating osteoporosis. The reason people take these drugs is to prevent fractures; however, a 2008 review of more than 12,000 women using alendronate showed only a 1-2% absolute risk reduction in women who have already developed osteoporosis.

The majority of the prescriptions written for these drugs are for individuals who have only some bone loss called osteopenia. The Hype in the media is the message that “these medications will protect your bones.” The reality is that they actually increase fracture risk. The FIT study – the Fracture Intervention Trial showed that when these drugs are used as for osteopenia, there is an increased risk of fractures. You can read this study in the reference section at the end.

Side Effects
Bone is alive and is in a constant state of remodeling by dissolving small bits of old bone (a process known as resorption) and building new bone. This remodeling allows bone to repair itself from fractures both large and microscopic.

When the levels of our bone building hormones begin to fall in midlife, bone resorption outpaces the bone building. This results in a net loss of bone which can be milder (osteopenia) or more severe (osteoporosis). The bone builders in women include Progesterone, DHEA and Estrogen. In men Testosterone and DHEA are important bone builders.

Instead of replacing declining hormones, many physicians are recommending bisphosphonates. Is this wise? Bisphosphonates do not just slow bone resorpting osteoclast activity, they poison them and eventually stop bone production by the osteoblasts.

These compounds strongly bind to the bone and become part of it. This is very unnatural.
As the graphs below show, these drugs eventually stop the bone building process.

These drugs transform living bone into inactive – essentially dead, chemically altered skeletons. Do they work to reduce fractures? In those with osteopenia they increase the fracture risk. In those with osteoporosis they temporarily decrease the fracture risk – for about 4-5 years. However, the chance of personally benefiting during this 5 year period is very low – about 1 in 86 chance.

After 5 years on these drugs, the cumulative effect of

1)preventing the repair of micro-fractures
2) blocking bone formation and
3)adding a foreign chemical to the matrix of the bone

results in bone that looks good on the bone density machine but is actually weak, brittle and essentially dead.

The increased fractures associated with these drugs may occur suddenly – even without trauma.

In addition to sudden fractures one can develop bone death in the jaw bone – especially after dental procedures and joint and muscle pain. In 2008 an FDA alert was issued warning of sudden bone and muscle pain with these drugs that can persist after the drugs are stopped.

To Summarize - Side Effects of Bisphosphonates include:
· Increased risk of fractures with osteopenia
· Increased fracture risk with osteoporosis after 5 years
· Irritation and ulcers of the esophagus
· Fractures of the femur (often without any trauma – they just snap)
· Low calcium in the blood
· Jaw bone decay (osteonecrosis) – especially after having a tooth removed
· Atrial fibrillation (increases risk 1.86 times) – this can lead to stroke/death
· Joint, bone, and muscle pain (potentially irreversibly) may occur within days, months, or years after starting a bisphosphonate

Bottom line: These drugs have serious side effects and poor effectiveness – Avoid Them
These drugs are most often used for osteopenia where they can actually increase fracture risk. Their long term effects in all who use the drugs is to possibly permanently impair the ability of the bone to grow as well as to remodel and repair small micro-fractures. The net result produces brittle, near dead bone. The bones appear to be able to recover partially when these drugs are stopped but some effects are permanent.

Safer, natural approaches
Why would you want to take a drug that actually blocks bone formation when there are actually natural ways of increasing bone production?

Avoid
· Soda/soft drinks (the acid in them weakens bone)
· Smoking
· Excessive caffeine
· Excessive grain intake
· Milk? There is actually an inverse relationship between how much a society drinks milk and bone density

Do

· Optimize Vitamin D
· Daily eat 5-9 Servings of Fruit and Vegetables, drink Vegetable Juice, take Fruit/Vegetable capsules (http://www.naturalwellnesschoices.com/ to order)
· Eat green leafy vegetables like spinach and collard greens
· Optimize Hormones: DHEA, Progesterone, Estrogen and Testosterone
· Exercise – weight bearing exercise
· Get natural sunlight
· Supplemental calcium, magnesium
· Vitamin K2 (about 100 mcg a day)
-Strontium - 680 mg a day can significantly build bone

In many cases doctors may not be aware of the negative effects of these medications. I trust this information will help you make better decisions about your health care. Some references you may find useful are below.

Selected References
Effect of Alendronate on Risk of Fracture in Women With Low Bone Density but Without Vertebral Fractures Results From the Fracture Intervention Trial
http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/280/24/2077

Dr. Susan M. Ott at the University of Washington, Seattle wrote an article entitled Long-Term Safety of Bisphosphonates which was published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (Vol. 90, No. 3 1897-1899). You can read the text at http://jcem.endojournals.org/cgi/content/full/90/3/1897.

Alendronate for the primary and secondary prevention of osteoporotic fractures in postmenopausal women. Cochrane Database Syst. Rev., 23 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18253985

An emerging pattern of subtrochanteric stress fractures: A long-term complication of alendronate therapy? Injury, 39 (2), 224–231. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18222447

Drugs to build bones may weaken them. New York Times, July 15, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/15/health/15well.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Alonso–Coello, P., et al. 2008. Analysis. Drugs for pre-osteoporosis: Prevention or disease mongering? BMJ, 336 (7636), 126–129. http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/336/7636/126
Carmona, R. 2004. Bone health and osteoporosis. A report of the Surgeon General. http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/bonehealth/content.html

Brown, S. 2008. Vitamin D and fracture reduction: An evaluation of the existing research. Alt. Med. Rev., 13 (1), 21–33. http://www.thorne.com/altmedrev/.fulltext/13/1/21.pdf

Nasal Washing (AKA Sinus Irrigation/Rinse)

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 00:33:00 +0000

Nasal Washing (AKA Sinus Irrigation/Rinse)

Why should you do a nasal wash?

I have become a big fan of nasal washing. This simple and easy to use tool can be very powerful when used regularly. For many years, I only emphasized nasal washing when an upper respiratory illness began. While nasal washing is quite useful in relieving the symptoms of infections, it is even more useful when used regularly. I now recommend anyone with any respiratory issues perform nasal washing 1-2x/day and increase to 3-4x/day if allergies worsen or at the onset of a respiratory infection. Regular nasal washing cleans mucus, decreases swelling and flushes out allergen which can make a dramatic difference in your health. You can expect to see:

· Less sniffing
· Less nasal voice
· Less clearing of your throat (post nasal drip)
· Decreased snoring and potentially better sleep for all J
· Relieve pregnancy rhinitis – the congestion during pregnancy
· Clears passages for CPAP users
· Children who wash have less missed school days and less doctor visits
· Improved ability to taste and smell
· Less infections
· Less asthma symptoms
· Less use of antihistamines, antibiotics and asthma medications
· More energy
· Better concentration
· Less use of antihistamines, antibiotics and asthma medications

What Rinsing Device Should I Use?

The 2 most popular units are the NeilMed Device and the Neti Pot. The Neti Pot is like an Aladdin’s Lamp that uses gravity. The NeilMed and another Product called Nasopure involve gently squeezing the bottle and uses positive pressure to provide more thorough rinsing. You can the NeilMed and Neti Pot devices in most drug stores. You can order the Nasopure device at www.nasopure.com and it is also in some stores.

A Picture is worth a Thousand Words
In order to really understand what rinsing involves you really need to watch a video. You can click on the links below (or cut and paste). They are worth your time.

Nasal Rinsing 101 (using the NeilMed): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qen6kJdn-y8
Neti pot demonstration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8sDIbRAXlg
Nasopure Demonstration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOBQcLBxTe4

What is the correct nasal washing technique?

• Wash your hands
• Make the nasal wash solution
• Make the saltwater, or saline, solution fresh for every nasal wash
• To make an Isotonic saltwater solution, mix ½ teaspoon of uniodized salt in an 8-ounce glass of warm water. Uniodized salt is used because iodized salt may be irritating when used over a long period of time. Add a pinch of baking soda. A pinch is a small amount you can pick up between two fingers
• To make Hypertonic Saltwater Solution (more effective) use 1 tsp. of salt with ½ tsp. of baking soda per 8 oz.
• Use the entire 8 ounces of saltwater during the nasal wash
• Discard any unused saltwater and prepare a new saltwater solution before the next nasal wash

Isotonic Solution
An isotonic solution has the same concentration of salt as fluids in the body. While isotonic solutions do not have as many benefits as hypertonic solutions, many people like to begin nasal washing with these because they are milder.

Hypertonic Solution Studies show hypertonic solutions have benefits over isotonic:
Thins thick secretions most effectively
Removes 80% of allergens and can actually kill bacteria, fungi and viruses
Shrinks swollen membranes better

Precautions
Do not wash if nasal passage is completely blocked
Use only lukewarm water. Do not use cold or hot water
Avoid rinsing later than one hour before bedtime, in order to avoid any residual solution dripping in the throat
No Plain Water! Plain water without salt and baking soda will result in severe burning sensation
Can they brush their teeth? A person who does a nasal wash should be able to brush their own teeth. This ensures safe use of the product

Not in my nose!
I know many think “there is no way I am putting anything up my nose!” Nasal Washing really is quite easy and can even be pleasant. I encourage you to give it a try. Once you see the benefits, you will want to continue this simple wellness tool.

Stimulants lead to Increased Risk for Sudden Death in Children 7 Fold

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 00:28:00 +0000

Stimulants lead to Increased Risk for Sudden Death in Children 7 Fold
American Journal of Psychiatry June 15 2009

Previous studies have shown that stimulants like Ritalin have an increased risk of high blood pressure and medical visits. A new well done study just released June 15th looked at 7-19 year olds who died of sudden death and compared them to those the same age and sex who died in motor vehicle accidents. There was a seven fold increase in the use of stimulants used in treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in those who died suddenly versus those who died in traffic accidents. This study gives strong evidence that stimulant use dramatically increases the risk of sudden death by 7 fold or over 700% increase!

FDA Response: If this had been a report on a supplement you would have heard about it on all the news channels and the producers of the supplement would be shut down immediately. Instead, the FDA urged caution in interpreting the results and suggested the report should not serve as the basis for parents to stop a child’s stimulant medication. No bottles of medications are being seized. No factories shut down.

While the FDA points out correctly that since the risk of sudden death in children is rare, the absolute number of sudden deaths is going to be low. We must remember are talking about medications that are often used for questionable reasons in children which have lethal side effects. No country in the world comes close to drugging their children like the USA.

Natural Approaches to ADHD
We must find a better way to help children with attention problems. What are some natural ways to improve ADHD? By far and away, proper nutrition is the most important issue.

Eat Nutritious Food
Avoiding sugar, high fructose corn syrup & food additives
Identify food allergies (wheat and dairy are the two most common)
Omega 3 supplements (fish oil)

Dr. Stitt and her husband developed a school healthy eating program. In 1997 they were invited to Wisconsin’s Appleton Central Alternative High School to implement their program. This school was basically the last stop before prison. The students were disobedient, dropping out and crime was so rampant that full time policeman patrolled the halls to control the violence.
One Monday, students returned to see soda machines and sugar laden cafeteria food had been removed. No more including artificial colors and corn syrup. Instead they had water coolers with water and a cafeteria filled with wholesome fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and proteins. Within three months the police officer had little to do and grades were way up. Crime was gone and the drop out rate went to zero. WATCH this remarkable story:

IMPACT OF HEALTH FOOD PART 1

IMPACT OF HEALTH FOOD PART 2

The above information is not new. We have known the importance of nutrition for decades. Why do schools still allow soda machines? Why do we serve junk food in cafeterias?
While we wait for schools to clean up the junk, we can all take action at home now. Please do not bring home junk food. Good nutrition promotes a happy home as well as good students. Will some children still have attention and learning issues when you clean up the diet? Yes, but virtually all improve with good new nutrition. Additional non-drug alternatives can be used to help students who have persistent ADHD symptoms.

Additional tools to help address ADHD:

Neurofeedback (see addadhdadvances.com/neurofeedback.html)
Treating hypothyroidism when indicated
Detoxification programs
Targeted supplements based on Testing

Additional Resources:
www.feingold.org
www.endadhd.com
www.blockcenter.com

What Do You Do When Eating Well Is Not Enough?

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 17:29:00 +0000

What Do You Do When Eating Well Is Not Enough?

I hear this question almost every day. People are avoiding sugar, flour and processed foods. They are eating meat, fruit and vegetables and exercising regularly but …their weight is not where it needs to be. The blood pressure or blood sugar level is too high. They lack energy.
What can you do to go to the next level? Enjoy a plant based diet

Eating Plant Based Foods have been shown to have the following benefits:

1. Less obesity
2. Less heart disease
3. Lower blood pressure
4. Live longer
5. Less arthritis
6. Less bone loss
7. Lower cholesterol
8. Less food allergies
9. Less exposure to environmental toxins (which accumulate in animal fat)
10. Lower rates of cancer
11. Less diabetes (a low fat vegan diet can even reverse it)
12. Less kidney stones
13. Less gallstones
14. Less asthma
15. Less PMS and menstrual problems
16. Improved athletic performance and stamina

Daniel and Plant Based Eating
In the Old Testament Daniel had the opportunity to live like a king but Daniel asked asks to eat just vegetables for 10 days to see if he and is friends looked better or not. Results of this study: at the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished! (from Daniel 1)

Veggies worked for Olympian Carl Lewis as well
Olympian Carl Lewis achieved his peak athletic performance after eliminating all animal products from his diet http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOTETXwfIaY

Plant Based Eating Plan - One step beyond my usual recommendations
I have typically recommended eating meat, fruit and vegetables with limited grains as a healthy diet. Compared to the typical American diet, this is a dramatic improvement. I regularly see weight drop, blood pressure and blood sugar decline. Just eliminating sugar, high fructose corn syrup, processed foods and most flour goes a long way toward improving health. If you are in great health doing this, you may not need to do anything else.

However, if you find yourself struggling with any chronic disease, desire to lose weight, lower blood pressure or blood sugar, you may want to do what Daniel did & Carl Lewis did: try a Plant Based Eating Plan.

Advantages of a Plant Based Diet
For some reason, when people start talking about plant based diets they start calling people names. Those who eat eggs and dairy are called ovo-lacto-vegetarians. Those who eat no animal products are called vegans. It may be just me, but I think that referring to yourself by how you eat is a bit strange. To say you are omnivore, vegetarian or vegan sounds like a religious or political affiliation. I do not think these labels are helpful. I prefer to describe it as following a plant based diet.

Generally speaking, as animal products decrease the health benefits increase. Similarly, as sugar, fat/oil decreases we see additional benefits. This is particularly important in reversing heart disease, diabetes and obesity.

A plant based diet which avoids adding vegetable oil and chooses from lower glycemic index unprocessed vegetables, fruits and grains is the healthiest of all.

Metabolic Advantages of a Plant Based Diet
In the February 12, 2004 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, Yale researchers found that insulin resistance was associated with tiny amounts of fat that interfered with insulin’s ability to work. The fat called intramyocellular lipid “gums up” the delicate process in which insulin allows our cells to use glucose. When our body tries to compensate by making more insulin our appetite increases, fat is deposited around our waistline, blood pressure goes up and we accelerate aging.

In his book “Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes,” Dr. Barnard shows how avoiding animal products, vegetable oil and sugar dramatically lowers your intracellular fats or lipids.

The low fat, low sugar plant based approach turns on the genes for burning fat, increases our mitochondria and improves insulin sensitivity – all of which paves the way to slow aging, obtain an ideal body weight and lower the risk of virtually all chronic diseases we see in the USA.

Health Concerns about Plant Based Nutrition
Protein: Most people think you have to eat meat to get protein. This is not correct. A balanced diet with vegetarian foods provides plenty of protein. Anyone using a normal range of vegetables and grains will get plenty of protein. In fact, excessive protein is linked to health problems such as bone loss and kidney stones. A short video on the topic may help: Click HERE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtK16SfGlJI

Calcium & Iron: We do not need milk and meat to get these. The dark green leafy vegetables and beans are rich in calcium. Iron is found in whole grains, beans, and fruits.
B12: Vitamin B12 is a genuine issue for vegans. This is one vitamin that we do need to supplement.

Is it safe during Pregnancy? Infants, and Children
The American Dietetic Association has found vegan diets adequate for fulfilling nutritional needs during pregnancy, but pregnant women and nursing mothers should supplement their diets with vitamins B12 and D. Most doctors recommend adding iron and folic acid as well.
In fact a plant based diet reduces the risk of pre-eclampsia during pregnancy. Pre-eclampsia is a serious condition during pregnancy in which blood pressure rises and the blood vessels become leaky. Pre-eclampsia threatens the safety of both mother and child. Plant based eating also results in purer breast milk with much less environmental toxins.

Children also have high nutritional needs, but these are met within a vegetarian diet.

But what is wrong with eating some animal products?
There is nothing wrong with eating animal products in itself. However, most of us it eat far more than is optimal for our health. Additionally, our animals are raised in very unhealthy conditions; I recommend you watch The Meatrix http://www.themeatrix.com/ http://www.themeatrix1.com/

Dare to Daniel
You can read differences of opinion on optimal eating ad infinitum; however, you not know if plant based nutrition is for you unless you actually try it. Let me suggest you do what I just did, try a “Daniel Diet” - a low sugar, low fat plant based eating plan for at least 10 days.
Avoid all animal products – meats, dairy and eggs

Use minimal vegetable oils and nuts and of course avoid margarine

Choose from lower glycemic index foods -whole grain pasta, brown rice, sprouted grain breads, fruits, vegetables.

Give yourself 10 days and see how you feel. I just did and I am definitely seeing more energy and I have lost about 6 lbs. … eating all I want. Most say you will see even more improvement over 3 months.

You can always enjoy some animal products once you are enjoying ideal health but you might find it easier to completely avoid them. Moderation in an extreme society like ours is challenging.

Do not fear Complex Starches
Not all carbohydrate foods are created equal, in fact they behave quite differently in our bodies. Many people mistakenly believe all starches are“bad.”

What is the Glycemic Index?
Choosing low GI foods that have less insulin elevating effects is important to long-term health.
White flour has a glycemic index of 70 – this is high
Pasta is actually a low GI food coming in at 43-48 (do not overcook– this raises the GI)
Rice is 50 (brown is best)
Beans and lentils are low GI
Most fruit is fairly low (exceptions are watermelon and pineapple)
Yams and sweet potatoes are low while baking potato is high GI
Oatmeal and bran are lower GI breakfast foods – avoid most cold cereals

For more information see http://www.glycemicindex.com/

Resources for a low fat plant based diet

Books

The Engine 2 Diet: The Texas Firefighter's 28-Day Save-Your-Life Plan that lowers Cholesterol and Burns Away the Pounds (MY TOP RECOMMENDATION)

Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Caldwell Esselstyn

The McDougall Plan, by John McDougall, M.D.

Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes by Neal Barnard, M.D.

The China Study by T. Colin Campbell

Dr. Dean Ornish’s Program for Reversing Heart Disease, by Dean Ornish, M.D.

Websites:
http://www.drmcdougall.com/: the cookbooks are very useful. DVD’s help as well
http://www.plantbasednutrition.org/
http://www.pcrm.org/health

Mental Health & Nutrition Part B

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Tue, 26 May 2009 01:37:00 +0000

Of Locusts & Men

Shy loner green locusts versus gregarious brown swarmers

What is the difference between shy loner green locusts and brown gregarious ones that are ready to swarm? Serotonin.

Scientists have discovered that when the level of serotonin increases in locusts they become more aggressive and even change appearance. In the laboratory, solitary green locusts can be turned into swarming ones in just two hours simply by tickling their hind legs to simulate the jostling that locusts experience in a crowd. This period coincides with a threefold but transient (less than 24 hours) increase in the amount of serotonin in the thoracic region of the nervous system. Experiments were then designed to show that serotonin is indeed the causal link between the experience of being in a crowd and the change in behavior. First, locusts were injected with specific chemicals that block the action of serotonin on its receptors: when these locusts were exposed to the same stimuli, they did not become gregarious. Second, chemicals that block the production of serotonin had the same effect. Third, when injected with serotonin or chemicals that mimic serotonin, locusts turned gregarious even in the absence of other locusts. Finally, chemicals that increased the natural synthesis of serotonin enhanced the locusts becoming gregarious when locusts were exposed to the tickling stimuli. This indicates that it is the synthesis of serotonin that is driven by these specific stimuli and in turn changes the behavior. Source: 'Serotonin Mediates Behavioral Gregarization Underlying Swarm Formation in Desert Locusts' 30 January 2009 Science

Neurotransmitter-Related Symptoms in Humans
The above illustrates the profound importance of neurotransmitters in the appearance, personality and behavior of locusts. How does this apply to humans? I have already personally seen that by using L-Tyrosine and 5-HTP that many people will feel more balanced.

The four primary neurotransmitters are:

Dopamine – Energy & Drive
GABA – Calm/Stable/Nurturing
Acetylcholine – Thinking fast/Creativity
Serotonin – Mood, Playful

In “The Edge Effect” Eric Braverman introduces the concept of our dominant neurotransmitter. Each of us has a dominant neurotransmitter which can be determined by completing the “Braverman Assessment.” When we complete it, we know what your dominant neurotransmitter is, and which one you may be deficient in.

By correcting our deficiencies and augmenting neurotransmitter production appropriately, we can optimize our health and wellness.

Key Neurotransmitter Supporters

Two primary tools we have to balance neurotransmitters are amino acids and hormones

Amino acids are the raw material precursors to the neurotransmitters:

Tryptophan --> 5-HTP --> Serotonin

Phenylalanine --> Tyrosine --> Dopa --> Dopamine --> Norepi --> Epinephrine

Dopamine: L-Tyrosine, Phenylalanine, Methionine, Mucuna pruriens
GABA: Glutamine, L-Taurine, GABA itself
Acetylcholine: Phosphatidylserine, Acetyl-L-carnitine, Methionine
Serotonin: 5-HTP, Melatonin

Tyrosine and phenylalanine are transformed into dopamine; acetylcholine comes from choline, phosphatidylserine and N-Acetyl Carnitine; Glutamine converts to GABA; 5-HTP & Tryptophan are the raw ingredients for serotonin.

Hormones regulate neurotransmitter production

When hormone levels drop, neurotransmitter levels drop, and then health and quality of life decline. It is well known that some diseases are more likely to affect a particular gender. Depression and anxiety disorders are more common in women while compulsive disorders, substance abuse, and antisocial behavior are more prevalent in men.

Examples of the hormonal effects on Neurotransmitters

Progesterone: GABA
Testosterone: Growth Hormone secretion
Cortisol: Increase Dopamine
DHEA: Serotonin & Norepinephrine support

5-HTP by itself depletes dopamine. L-Tyrosine by itself depletes serotonin. The two supplements 5-HTP and L-Tyrosine should typically be used in balance. The daily doses of 5-HTP range from 50 mg to 500 mg. L-Tyrosine is used from 500 mg to 6000 mg.

Additional Tools to Balance the Brain

Rhodiola for stress
Mucuna Pruriens to support dopamine: libido, drive, motivation, depression
Lithium- neuroprotective, promotes better use of transmitters
CES - Cranial Electrical Stimulation for depression, anxiety and insomnia
Deep Breathing – to reduce stress, anxiety, insomnia

Rhodiola for stress, mood and fatigue
In Russian scientific literature, evidence exists that Rhodiola rosea supplementation improves speed and strength during track and field activities, swimming, speed skating, and ski racing, as well as in weightlifters, wrestlers, and gymnasts.

Most use Rhodiola rosea to improve mood and improving the ability to deal with stress.

A typical dosage is one or two capsules or tablets daily; one in the morning and when taking two, one in the early afternoon.

Dosing: Rhodiola rosea extract is often sold in 500 mg capsules which are often standardized to 3 percent rosavins. The usual dose is 1-2 a day.

Mucuna pruriens
Mucuna pruriens is a legume. This plant contains 4% L-Dopa, a precursor to the neurotransmitter dopamine. By helping to increase L-dopa the levels of dopamine increase.

In a few clinical trials in Parkinson's disease patients, three Mucuna pruriens treatments yielded positive results. This product should not be used in individuals with schizophrenia as dopamine is high in this condition.

Dosage: Mucuna Pruriens - 400 mg caps 15% L-DOPA
1-2 caps a day

Lithium- a misunderstood, essential element for the brain
What is the RDA for Lithium?
Most physicians would say there is no such thing. They are accustomed to the psychiatric use of extremely high doses of prescription lithium carbonate. The high dose lithium use is fraught with numerous serious side effect and must be carefully monitored. Most non-psychiatrists steer clear of using prescription lithium and most non-physicians assume lithium is a drug.

Lithium is #3 on the periodic table – it is an element not a drug. It has been used “drug like” but we cannot live without low doses of lithium. The Journal of the American College of Nutrition (vol. 21, No. 1, 14-21 2002) recommends an RDA of 1 mg. The biochemical mechanisms of action of lithium appear to be multifactorial by promoting the proper function of hormones, vitamins, growth and transforming factors and several enzymes.

Lithium for Depression, Anxiety, Alcoholism
I have seen lithium make a major difference in hundreds of people: depression resolving, anxiety calming. It works in most but not all who try it. In light of lithium being an essential element, easy to take, cost effective and available without a prescription at Physicians Preference - Lithate 20 mg 1 capsule a day, you may want to give this a try.
If it is going to help with the above symptoms, the results are usually seen within 2 months. Many take low dose lithium for general brain health apart from any symptoms, see below!

Growing a better brain? Helping prevent Alzheimer's?
Lithium is also neuroprotective from excitotoxins like MSG. It is associated with a decrease in the formation in the brain of harmful deposits called beta-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles which increase in Alzheimer’s disease. Lithium has also been shown to increase grey matter in our brains significantly. The Lancet, Volume 356, Issue 9237, Pages 1241 - 1242, 7 October 2000 stated:

“Rodent studies have shown that lithium exerts neurotrophic or neuroprotective effects. We used three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging and brain segmentation to study pharmacologically-induced increases in grey matter volume with chronic lithium use in patients with bipolar mood disorder. Grey-matter volume increased after 4 weeks of treatment. The increases in grey matter probably occurred because of neurotrophic effects.”

Lithium for Crime Prevention
Researchers found that the incidence of homicide, rape, burglary, and suicide, as well as other crimes and drug use, were significantly lower in counties whose drinking water supplies contained 70-170 micrograms of lithium per liter than those with little or no lithium in their water. They actually recommended adding lithium to water to prevent crime!.

Immune Boosting & Gout
Lithium has been shown to boost the immune systems’ ability to fight cold sores, herpes and EBV (Ebstein-Barr). Lithium along with vitamin C helps prevent gout.

Bottom line
Low dose lithium taken as a supplement is safe and effective. The adult dose is 1 – 20 mg cap of Lithate (Lithium aspartate) a day. You can order this from Physicians Preference.

Cranial Electrical Stimulation for depression, anxiety and insomnia
Cranial Electrical Stimulation (CES) units are useful for anxiety, depression, and
Insomnia. One well studied unit is the Alpha-Stim. This device is FDA approved.
http://www.alpha-stim.com/

I have this unit and have used it for 4 years.

Click to watch the news reports discussing Alpha-Stim

Relaxation Techniques
Deep Breathing – to reduce stress, anxiety, insomnia

I have found that the most important part of doing deep breathing is doing deep breathing. What I mean is – keep it simple enough so that you do it often.

Basic – very do-able Deep Breathing Exercise

1. Sit or stand in a relaxed position.
2. Slowly inhale through your nose, counting to five in your head.
3. Let the air out from your mouth, counting to eight in your head as it leaves your lungs. Repeat several times.

Tips:
Just doing this will promote health. You can keep it as simple as you want.

As you breathe in you might want to imagine that you are inhaling relaxation into your body and flowing through your limbs, reaching every part of you. As you exhale, imagine that all the stress from your body is being exhaled. After a few minutes, you should feel more relaxed and the stress in your body should be reduced.

Some find it helpful to imagine breathing in & out through the center of your forehead. Some find it helpful to count their breaths (prevents distraction). Some combine deep breathing with muscle relaxation.
You can do your deep breathing any time! In your chair at the office for just a few minutes to decompress, in the car at a stop light or lying down while going to sleep.

Mental Health & Nutrition Part A

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 01:29:00 +0000

Perhaps nothing is more disturbing than seeing a loved one experience the symptoms of mental illness. In this months’ edition, I would like to share Anthony Stephan’s passionate search to find a cure for his families’ mental health problems. DE

Not satisfied with standard treatments
Anthony Stephan is a hero to both his family and to thousands who have benefited from his efforts. Stephan not only lost his wife to mental illness (she committed suicide) but he also saw two of his children develop symptoms of mental illness as well. His daughter Autumn began acting erratically and experienced hallucinations. His son Joe experienced symptoms of his mother’s manic-depression (alternating depression with bouts of hostility, high energy and impulsive acts). The drugs used to control their symptoms caused them to experience side effects such as fatigue, gain weight and feeling indifferent.

Anthony Stephan was not happy with the standard approaches to mental illness which rely heavily on drugs. As Stephan began his quest for a better approach, he read medical books and searched the internet for answers. Stephan shared his concerns about his family with his friend David Hardy. David listened to the symptoms and commented that it sounded like a disease he had seen in pigs known as “ear-and-tail-biting syndrome.” David described the pig condition as one in which the pigs “become hyper-irritable, hyperactive, and they'll actually kill one another, or tear off an ear or a tail, if it doesn't stop.”

A breakthrough for bipolar disorder
David was a former high school biology teacher who was now making his living formulating and selling pig feed. He explained how a mixture of minerals in precise ratios was useful in correcting “ear-and-tail-biting syndrome.” Since the treatment sounded safe, Stephan decided to try it on Joe and Autumn.

While the results of the initial formula were very limited, Stephan and Hardy kept working and they came up with a formulation which actually normalized his son’s behavior. Joe was able to go off all his medications within a few days. His daughter was able to wean off and stay off her 5 psychiatric medications.

The Medical Community takes Interest
Anthony Stephan and his friend David Hardy worked on many revisions of the formula. After treating 100 volunteer patients, Mr. Stephan approached scientists at the University of Calgary, who began testing the pill.

"I was skeptical at the outset of this study," said Dr. Bonnie Kaplan, the principal investigator "However, the results are quite striking." In most cases, the supplement has entirely replaced psychoactive drugs and the patients have remained well, Dr. Kaplan said.

She found that 80 percent of the participants in her uncontrolled trial showed a significant reduction in symptoms, and half of those (40 percent) were able to discontinue all psychiatric medications within the first six weeks.

The key findings of this supplement are:

1. 80 percent have significant results (over 3,000 have used it)
2. Psychiatric medications seem to slow effectiveness. Those starting the supplements while not taking psychiatric medications often saw results within 5 days. Being on the medications typically slows the results.
3. When the supplements are added to psychiatric medications, the side effects of the medications often worsen. Adding this product requires the dose of medications to be lowered. Therefore, if you are taking medications you must work with your doctor before using this product. You should not do this on your own.

In Canada, Dr. Kaplan published the positive results of her preliminary uncontrolled study in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

In the U.S., Dr. Charles Popper, a specialist in psychopharmacology from Harvard Medical School heard of these results and assumed the claims were being overstated. He reluctantly shared the product with a colleague for use on his 10 year old son with bipolar related tantrums. The results amazed Dr. Popper. Dr. Popper then tried the supplement formula in 22 other bipolar patients (10 adults, nine adolescents, and three more children). He found 86 percent showed a positive response to the supplement and 73 percent were able to gradually get off their medications.

Dr. Popper is careful to point out that when the supplement works, it’s a control, not a cure, and that going off it leads to relapse.

Opposition to Natural Solutions
Sadly, as we have seen in the US, the Canadian drug regulators are biased against natural products. The Canadian government launched a legal battle against those who smuggled the product into Canada despite a ban. During the trial, the evidence of effectiveness was presented by highly credible researchers such as Harvard psychiatrist Dr. Charles Popper. In the end, the judge ruled that those using the product were not guilty of any wrong doing and were well justified in using the product.

What is this Product?
I need to repeat that if you are currently taking psychiatric medications or high-dose lithium (not low dose supplemental lithium such as Lithate) it is critical that you work with a physician if you want to try this alternative supplement. This formula can increase the side effects of these medications and you will need help to safely see if you can wean off medications.
The supplement is called Empowerplus®— you can learn more about it at www.truehope.com.
You can read about the various ingredients. The exact amounts of some of them are proprietary.
To order, I suggest you go through Dr. Jonathan Wright’s Tahoma Clinic Dispensary http://www.tahomadispensary.com/istar.asp?a=29&search=empowerplus

Additional Mental Health Applications
Empowerplus® has been used primarily to control the symptoms of bipolar disease but it appears to contain the nutrients that are key to help correct many mental health problems. In very preliminary research from the University of Calgary, Empowerplus has been found useful in controlling mental symptoms in two children diagnosed with atypical obsessive- compulsive disorder and pervasive developmental delay. 9 of 11 children variously diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), Asperger syndrome, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), Prader-Willi Syndrome depression, anxiety, and rage, compulsive disorder (OCD), Asperger syndrome, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), Prader-Willi Syndrome depression, anxiety, and rage also saw improvement.

Bottom line

We are learning more and more about the fundamental factors which are behind mental disorders. I would like to see more studies on this product so that we can gain a better understanding of exactly how these nutrients help. Empowerplus is the newest natural tool I have found for promoting mental health. Please remember that those already taking psychiatric medications should work with their doctor before using this supplement.

Next month, I will cover several other supplements that I have used with very good results. I will focus on two common conditions - depression and anxiety.

NUCCA – An amazing tool for wellness

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 01:06:00 +0000

Would you be interested in a safe and pain-free treatment which can relieve pain, lower blood pressure and may even improve depression, ringing in the ears, dizziness and more?

I named this newsletter/website “Natural Wellness Choices” because I want to give you just that. Today I want to introduce you to a powerful but little known natural wellness choice.

About a year ago, a woman suffering from debilitating headaches and neurologic symptoms which defied explanation told me how had traveled some distance to a specialized chiropractor. This chiropractor was successful in helping many with challenging problems and used a very gentle adjustment to the upper neck which he used on her and she improved after just a few treatments.

Introducing NUCCA

NUCCA is the National Upper Cervical Chiropractic Association. Chiropractors who perform upper cervical chiropractic care are NUCCA members and form an elite group of perhaps no more than 200 members. I am going to use the term NUCCA to refer not just to the association but to the technique they employ.

Why is this area of the body so important?

The first vertebra is called the Atlas– remember from mythology that Atlas holds up the world.

The Atlas or C1 (cervical vertebrae #1) holds up the globe of our head. If the alignment of our first vertebrae is out of position by even the thickness of a finger nail there will be abnormal pressure on the nervous system receptors and this stress can produce a host of illnesses. Think about how many times you put stress on this area? Our neck is usually stretched at childbirth and then we have the usual falls, running into things, bumpy roads and car accidents which all add up to a lot of forces that can shift our atlas out of proper position.

NUCCA –getting our head on straight

A NUCCA chiropractor uses precise x-rays to determine the exact alignment of the first upper vertebrae and uses a very light touch to correct any misalignment. I have had this done on myself and I would think they were pulling my leg if I did not see the results. You lay on your side and the NUCCA doctor puts his hand behind the ear and applies about the same amount of pressure and you use to turn a page with your finger. No jerking. No pain.

NUCCA is clinically shown to lower blood pressure 17 points

You may be thinking, this sounds interesting but does it really work? Could this just be placebo? A recent study on NUCCA with patients with hypertension suggests that NUCCA can significantly lower blood pressure without prescription drugs.

In a study at the University of Chicago Medical Center, Dr. George Bakris M.D. led a blinded study using 50 patients with hypertension. Half of this group received the actual upper cervical manipulation by Dr. Marshall Dickholtz (D.C.) and the other half had “sham treatments” which simulated actual treatment so that the patient did not know if they had the real treatment or not.

Results – after 1 treatment the blood pressure dropped 17 points and stayed down during the 8 week observation period

Repeat- 1 treatment, BP down 17 points for 2 months.

You can read the actual study at http://www.nucca.org/files/Hypertension2007.pdf

A PBS broadcast discussing this study can be seen at: http://www.nucca.org/BP1.htm

Some Benefits of NUCCA
Case Reports are obviously not as convincing as the above clinical study but NUCCA has been noted to help a wide variety of medical problems including:

Arthritis
Back pain
Depression
Dizziness
Ear infections
Hypertension
Neck pain
Neurologic disorders such as M.S.
Tinnitus (Meniere’s)
Trigeminal Neuralgia
Seizures

Is the improvement permanent?
Once the misalignment is corrected, you may stay aligned and experience long term health. Often the stress of daily life results in the misalignment to reoccur but most will stay in position for extended periods of time (months to even years).

Bottom Line: NUCCA is a power tool to improve health
Most of us will find that at some time we have a medical condition that may benefit from NUCCA. Upper cervical chiropractic care does not cure everything and does not work in everyone but it has a high success rate and is completely safe and painless.
Also, if you are personally looking for a rewarding medical career, I would highly recommend becoming an upper cervical chiropractor. It will take many years of study but you will be in great demand and will have mastered an incredibly powerful technique.

How can you find a NUCCA Chiropractor?

A NUCCA chiropractor can be found at http://www.nucca.org/find_doctor.php

Amazingly in the Greater Houston area there is only one NUCCA practice – Houston Spinal Care (see www.hspinalcare.com). I have personally benefited from NUCCA care provided by both Dr. Robert Ramirez and Dr. Jason Minogue.

For more information: www.nucca.org

A Wellness Approach to Breast Cancer Screening

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 00:28:00 +0000

In this report, we will be discussing the very important topic of screening for breast cancer. My hope is that this information will facilitate your own investigations so that you will be able to make wise choices with confidence. I have included numerous quotations and citations from medical journal to facilitate your own investigations. DE

A Wellness Approach to Breast Cancer Screening

I am dividing this topic into two major sections:

Part A – the limitations of mammography

Part B – the benefits of thermal imaging (aka thermography or digital infrared thermal imaging -DITI)

Part A – the limitations of mammography

Summary: Recent studies have emerged which question both the effectiveness and safety of screening mammography

Screening mammography may not significantly reduce breast cancer death

Despite the fact that mammography can detect some breast cancers earlier, we have been surprised to learn that mammography is not very effective at reducing breast cancer deaths. I would like to take a look at the some recent studies that discuss this issue:

Articles 1-2 are against mammography
Article 3 recommends screening with mammography
Article 4 discusses the need for us to move forward

Please note that I have included a portion of direct quotes from these articles (emphasis and italics mine). Links to the actual articles are included to facilitate your own research.

Article #1 “Is screening for breast cancer with mammography justifiable?”

From The Lancet, January 8, 2000 Volume 355, Issue 9198, Pages 129 – 134
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(99)06065-1/abstract
Note: You can see the full text free as well; just sign up with a username and password

Their strongly-worded conclusion against mammography is as follows:

“Screening for breast cancer with mammography is unjustified. If the Swedish trials are judged to be unbiased, the data show that for every 1000 women screened biennially throughout 12 years, one breast-cancer death is avoided whereas the total number of deaths is increased by six. If the Swedish trials (apart from the Malmö trial) are judged to be biased, there is no reliable evidence that screening decreases breast-cancer mortality.”

Article #2 The 2001 Cochrane Review of Breast Mammography
http://www.cochrane.org/reviews/en/ab001877.html
The Cochrane Collaboration is an international, independent non-profit group which is often cited as one of the best medical reviewing organizations. They concluded the following:
“Based on all trials, the reduction in breast cancer mortality is 20%, but as the effect is lower in the highest quality trials, a more reasonable estimate is a 15% relative risk reduction. Based on the risk level of women in these trials, the absolute risk reduction was 0.05%. Screening also leads to overdiagnosis and overtreatment, with an estimated 30% increase, or an absolute risk increase of 0.5%. This means that for every 2000 women invited for screening throughout 10 years, one will have her life prolonged. In addition, 10 healthy women, who would not have been diagnosed if there had not been screening, will be diagnosed as breast cancer patients and will be treated unnecessarily. It is thus not clear whether screening does more good than harm.”

Comment: Again – a widely respected source doubts the benefits and raises concern of possible harm. This is in contrast with the next article which reflects the prevailing view in the US.

Article #3 Annals of Internal Medicine “Breast Cancer Screening: A Summary of the Evidence for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force”

These are the recommendations which are most commonly followed in the US.
Annals of Internal Medicine 3 September 2002 Volume 137 Issue 5 Part 1 Pages 347-360
http://www.annals.org/cgi/reprint/137/5_Part_1/347.pdf

Their conclusions included
“In the randomized, controlled trials, mammography reduced breast cancer mortality rates among women 40 to 74 years of age. Greater absolute risk reduction was seen among older women. Because these results incorporate several rounds of screening, the actual number of mammograms needed to prevent one death from breast cancer is higher. In addition, each screening has associated risks and costs.”

Comment – Interestingly, the authors of this analysis were looking at basically the same overall data which was evaluated in articles 1 & 2. Why the difference in conclusions? Unfortunately, this analysis did not include the negative effect of false positives (i.e. – no cancer but study looks abnormal). The study leaves out the impact of unnecessary interventions such as surgery and this has a significant effect on making mammography look more attractive than it should. Additional issues with this article are cited below in article #4

Article #4 Annals of Internal Medicine – “The Mammography Dilemma: A Crisis for Evidence-Based Medicine?”

http://www.annals.org/cgi/reprint/137/5_Part_1/363.pdf
Annals of Internal Medicine 3 September 2002 Volume 137 Issue 5 Part 1

“If we take a step back, this controversy looks almost Swiftian when we consider that even under the most optimistic assumptions, mammography still cannot prevent the
vast majority of breast cancer deaths. Improving methods of risk prediction, communication, disease detection, and treatment will probably yield more public health benefit than continued debate about mammography. There will come a time when all the study patients have been followed up, all the analyses have been done, all the expert groups have met, and all the editorials have been written, and we still won’t be sure how much benefit and how much harm are caused by mammography. We must find good ways to help women deal with this uncertainty, for that time is imminent.”

Steven N. Goodman, MD, MHS, PhD

Comment: Dr. Goodman makes several excellent points. Basically he is saying that at best mammography has very limited benefit and cannot prevent most breast cancer deaths. I agree with his bottom line: we can go on arguing this issue forever but what women need is a better way.

The currently recommended series used for screening mammography exposes the breast tissue to potentially harmful radiation doses

You might take the position that perhaps these studies are somehow not recognizing the benefits of mammograms and choose to get a screening mammogram anyway. As you make your decision about having a screening mammogram, you should know that we now have evidence that the biologic effect of the radiation used in mammography is higher than previously believed.

Most quote the radiation dose from mammography as 0.7 mSv. A chest x-ray is about 1/7 of this i.e. 1 mammogram = 7 chest x-rays. Most would reassure you that the dose is negligible; however, one must factor in several additional issues:

Mammography is repeated frequently.

In the US – radiologists typically perform 2 views per breast – doubling the dose.

The current guidelines for screening mammograms were based on the assumption that the biologic effect of the radiation was the same as the higher energy x-rays like those used in chest x-rays. Recent articles demonstrate the biologic effect of mammographic x-rays is actually 2-5 times greater (see Radiation Research 162, 120–127 (2004) and International. Journal Radiation Biology (2002, vol. 78, no. 12, 1065-1067). This would make each mammogram more comparable to 14-35 chest x-rays

Implications of this new understand on mammography screening

When we look at the current protocols in light of this higher biologic effect, we realize the need to significantly reduce mammography exposure. The International Journal of Radiation Biology calculated the risk to benefit ratio using this new understanding of the radiation used in mammography. This new calculation results in changing the mammographic recommendations to a later age: starting screens at age 47 instead of 40 and starting annual mammograms at around age 60 instead of 50. These ages would be much higher if, instead of 2x, the upper end of the estimate is used (5x).

You may not realize that the United States is the only country that routinely screens premenopausal women. The U.S. also extends its screening practice by taking two or more mammograms per breast.

Younger women desperately need more than the status quo

In his article Beyond Mammography, Len Saputo, MD points out that the most devastating loss of life from breast cancer occurs between the ages of 30-50. The breast is not only more sensitive to radiation during this period but the mammograms are less useful due to the increased breast density. The minimal effectiveness of screening mammography as well as the complications of false positives and radiation exposure requires us to develop a better approach. A new tool is needed to help women, especially young women, and this is where thermal imaging comes in.

Part B – the benefits of thermal imaging

What is thermal imaging?

Thermal imaging (aka Thermography or Digital Infrared Thermal Imaging - DITI) is a powerful tool which enhances the ability to detect breast changes and can enable earlier cancer detection

Digital Infrared Thermal Imaging ‘DITI’ is a 15 minute non invasive test of physiology
Non invasive
No radiation
Painless
No contact with the body
F.D.A approved

This quick and easy test starts with your medical history being taken before you partially disrobe for the scanning to be performed. This first session provides the baseline of your “thermal signature”. A subsequent session assures that the patterns remain unchanged.
All of your thermograms (breast images) are kept on record and once your stable thermal pattern has been established any changes can be detected during your routine annual studies.

Clinical studies have shown Breast Thermal Imaging to be a powerful tool to detect breast cancer

Oncology News International (September 1997 Volume 6 Number 9) reported the results of a detailed study 100 women with non-invasive stage I and II breast cancer. In this study, the 84% sensitivity rate of mammography alone was increased to 95% when infrared imaging was added.

All patients had undergone preoperative clinical examination, mammography, and infrared imaging:

Clinical examination alone was positive in 61% of the study patients
Mammography was highly suspicious in 65% of patients, with an additional 19% having contributory but nonspecific (intermediate) mammography findings
Infrared imaging was considered abnormal in 83% of patients

Thermal imaging also had 1/3 less false alarms (in the medical jargon it had the highest specificity)

Conclusion: Breast screening using breast thermography is able to safely and effectively detect changes which can lead to an earlier diagnosis of breast cancer

A Suggested Wellness Oriented Recommendations for Breast Imaging

Wellness Recommendation: Use breast thermal imaging to safely identify those at the highest risk.

Rational mammography: Mammography should be used selectively to follow up abnormal exams rather than as a routine screen.

Mammograms will continue to have a role in evaluating breast health; however, this role may best reserved to complement thermal images that suggest changes and warrant further evaluation.

Wellness Recommendations

Starting around age 30 - a baseline “thermal fingerprint” should be done by having 2 breast thermal imaging studies 3 months apart and then yearly.

Have a clinical breast exam done annually.

Follow up abnormal thermography with diagnostic mammography, ultrasound, breast MRI and biopsy if needed.

If you choose to have screening mammography done, remember that you adding annual thermal imaging improves detection.

Prevention of Breast Cancer
Obviously, the most important aspect is to do everything possible to decrease breast cancer. I am not going to cover all of this big topic, but I would point out 4 important areas:

Progesterone
We have multiple studies which lead us to conclude that Progesterone plays a powerful role in preventing cancer:

The higher the level of progesterone, the lower the rate of breast cancer in premenopausal women High progesterone levels were associated with 1/8 risk of breast cancer.

Women with normal progesterone levels had 1/5 the rate of cancer deaths seen in progesterone-deficient anovulatory women.

Progesterone has been documented to activate the p53 gene which is involved in preventing cell division.

Progesterone has been documented to kill breast cancer cells in the lab.

For more on the importance on hormones, please see my July 20, 2008 posting.

Vitamin D at optimal levels is associated with a 50% lower all-cause death rate.

Avoid Sugar – Sugar and simple carbohydrates weaken the immune system and feed cancer cells. Avoid sugar and high-fructose corn syrup completely. Keep simple carbohydrates like bread, pasta, pizza, cereal, cakes, cookies, crackers, milk, honey & fruit juice to a minimum.

Fruit & Vegetables - Eat 5-9+ servings of fruit & vegetables daily. If you are not consistently getting this I would highly recommend taking fruit/vegetable caps – 2 fruit caps in am; 2 vegetable caps in pm. You can order at: www.naturalwellnesschoices.com

Candida, Celiac, Thyroid Connection, Vitamin C, Not Statins for Inflammation

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 05:20:00 +0000

In this post:

The Candida, Celiac, Thyroid Connection
Vitamin C is as effective as statin drugs at reducing inflammation

The Candida, Celiac, Thyroid Connection

Candida can cause celiac disease complications
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder that is associated with inflammation and malabsorption when gluten containing foods such as wheat, barley, or rye are consumed.

We are now finding that celiac related problems are much more common than we used to think. Why all the celiac disease? Why would our immune system start reacting to something as common as wheat? Part of the answer is related to a very common condition - the overgrowth of candida in the gastrointestinal tract. If you have ever taken antibiotics, been pregnant or taken birth control pills you most likely have an overgrowth of yeast or Candida. Candida overgrowth in our intestines appears to trigger the production of antibodies that not only attack candida but also react to gluten - found most commonly in wheat. Candida contains amino acid sequences that are identical to or very similar to those found in the celiac induced immune response. When we eat gluten containing foods, we then experience an inflammatory response characteristic of celiac disease.

While anyone can get celiac disease, people of Irish descent are significantly more prone to celiac disease and should be very reluctant to take antibiotics or do anything else that promotes candida overgrowth.

Candida and celiac disease can cause thyroid problems
Celiac disease is not just about the GI tract. The immune response can also damage our nervous system and even our thyroid gland. People with the diagnosis of celiac disease have a high rate of being low on thyroid. About 10- 14% of celiac patients are hypothyroid and they have 10X increased chance of having thyroid nodules and autoimmune antibodies. Candida appears to cause “friendly fire” and the collateral damage is widespread.

Bottom Line: Yeast overgrowth in our intestines causes our immune system to malfunction and it will attack our own thyroid and causes inflammation when gluten containing food is eaten.
If you want to be healthy, a healthy GI tract is essential. If you have not done a yeast cleanse you need to do this. The general approach we have to yeast overgrowth at the Hotze Health & Wellness Center is on my website: www.naturalwellnesschoices.com under Health & Wellness Center Guests/Yeast Free Eating Program.

Vitamin C, Not Statins Should be Used to Fight Inflammation
Recently the media has been reporting the results of the JUPITER study which looked at 17,800 people who had high levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) - a marker of inflammation. Ongoing silent inflammation quietly can cause damage to our body and damage the blood vessels causing atherosclerosis/heart disease.

This study simply demonstrated that statin drugs can lower the CRP in individuals with a normal cholesterol level. Since we already knew that statins lower the CRP, what would be the motive for this study? The answer is to boost statin sales by encouraging healthy individuals with normal cholesterol levels to start taking statin drugs - daily for the rest of their lives.

I am afraid that many mainstream doctors will be recommending statin drugs to even more of their patients but this would not be smart medicine. Missing from the press releases concerning statins and the CRP issue has been any discussion of the true causes of inflammation and what can be done naturally to lower it.

Folks, the cause of inflammation is not a deficiency of statin drugs! There are many known causes of inflammation which include:

Gingival disease from not flossing daily
Chlorine in our drinking & bathing water damaging our blood vessels
Low intake of antioxidant fruit & vegetables
Low intake of omega 3 rich foods
Eating partially hydrogenated oils with trans-fatty acids
High consumption of sugar and starchy processed foods
Inadequate Vitamin C intake

Statin Drugs are not the answer
While statin drugs are effective at lowering the CRP, they have far too many negatives to recommend their use for the purpose of lowering the CRP. These negative effects include tripling the rate of cancer, nerve and muscle damage, nausea, irritability, homicidal impulses and poor memory. On top of this, these drugs are not effective at achieving their actual goal – the primary prevention of heart attacks and stroke (the NND – Number Needed to Treat is 70 to 100, i.e. only 1 out of about 70-100 see any benefit in 5 years of daily use. Most who take statins are just getting their side effects and filling the pharmaceutical industries’ pockets). For more details see the blog posting on September 15th and August 3, 2008 at www.NaturalWellnessChoices.com

Natural Solutions to Inflammation

1. Vitamin C 1-6 gram/day
A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley found that 1000 mg of Vitamin C is just as good at lowering CRP as statin drugs! The researchers stated that “It has recently been suggested by some researchers that people with elevated CRP should be put on statins as a preventive measure. For people who have elevated CRP but not elevated LDL cholesterol, our data suggest that vitamin C should be investigated as an alternative to statins…..” (emphasis mine)

2. Floss Daily – gingivitis causes inflammation throughout the body
3. Fruits & Vegetables: Eat 5-9 serving of fruit & vegetables and add fruit/vegetable caps if you are not getting enough daily (2 fruit caps in am, 2 vegetable in pm – this can be order via www.naturalwellnesschoices.com)
4. Take Nordic Naturals ProOmega Fish Oil 2-12 caps a day (1/2 -3 tsp) Physicians Preference carries this quality product www.physicianspreference.com
5. Avoid sugar and starches and maintain an optimal weight
6. Use a filter to remove chlorine from your tap water and shower – you can order these from www.aehf.com. For more information read my posting on October 6, 2007 on Chlorine.
7. Eat less processed foods
8. Eat organic to avoid pesticides
9. Get enough sleep

Selected References:

Gut 1994;35: 844-846 Counsell et al. Coeliac disease and autoimmune thyroid disease.

European Journal of Endocrinology 1994;130:137-140 Collin et al. Autoimmune thyroid disorders and coeliac disease.

Lancet. 2003 Jun 21;361(9375):2152-4. Is Candida albicans a trigger in the onset of coeliac disease? Nieuwenhuizen WF, Pieters RH, Knippels LM, Jansen MC, Koppelman SJ.

Free Radic Biol Med. 2008 Oct 10 Vitamin C treatment reduces elevated C-reactive protein Block G, Jensen CD, Dalvi TB, Norkus EP, Hudes M, Crawford PB, Holland N, Fung EB, Schumacher L, Harmatz P.

Avoiding Excitotoxins

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:30:00 +0000

Why I am Excited about Excitotoxins

The Dark Side of Aspartame & Processed Food
When we buy processed food or eat out, we are exposing our bodies to hundreds of food additives. In this edition, I would like to highlight the problems associated with a group of additives knows as excitotoxins (named after their property of over-stimulating and injuring the nervous system).

Glutamate containing products (MSG and its chemical siblings) and aspartame are the two biggest groups of excitotoxins in our diet. They are associated with increasing the risk of obesity, cancer, seizures, ADHD, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Depression.

Aspartame
Aspartame (i.e. Equal or NutraSweet™) is a sweetener made from two amino acids, phenylalanine and the aspartate. Common example include most diet soft drinks, sugar free gums, children’s' medications, and thousands of other products claiming to be 'low calorie', 'diet', or 'sugar free'. Aspartame related complaints accounts for approximately 70% of all complaints to the FDA and is implicated in everything from blindness to headaches to convulsions. The FDA has essentially ignored these concerns.

Not only can too much of the amino acids in Aspartame overstimute the brain, but once aspartame breaks down it produces several more toxic compounds:

1. DKP (diketopiperazine - chemically similar to a powerful brain tumor causing agent)
2. Formic Acid (i.e. ant venom)
3. Formaldehyde (i.e. embalming fluid)
4. Methanol (causes blindness in higher amounts)

MSG & Glutamates
While the presence of Aspartame is relatively easy to identify, MSG like compounds are much harder to spot. Restaurants and food processing companies have long known they can enhance taste and sales with monosodium glutatmate (MSG). A well known MSG Symptom Complex can involve numbness, a burning sensation, tingling, facial pressure or tightness, chest pain, headache, nausea, rapid heartbeat, drowsiness, and weakness. Those with asthma may experience these symptoms as well as difficulty in breathing.

Hidden Sources of MSG
Unfortunately, the excitotoxins that make MSG a problem are found in many sources that are not labeled as MSG. The glutamate (MSG) manufacturers are always on a mission to hide the MSG added to food. Below is a partial list of the most common names for hidden MSG:

According to Dr. Blaylock the following Food Additives that ALWAYS contain MSG *

Monosodium Glutamate
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
Hydrolyzed Protein
Hydrolyzed Plant Protein
Plant Protein Extract
Sodium Caseinate
Calcium Caseinate
Yeast Extract
Textured Protein (Including TVP)
Autolyzed Yeast
Hydrolyzed Oat Flour
Corn Oil

Also, remember that the powerful excitotoxins, aspartate and L-cysteine, are frequently added to foods and according to FDA rules require no labeling at all.

* Food Additives That FREQUENTLY Contain MSG *

Malt Extract
Malt Flavoring
Bouillon
Broth
Stock
Flavoring
Natural Flavors/Flavoring
Natural Beef Or Chicken Flavoring
Seasoning
Spices

* Food Additives That MAY Contain MSG Or Excitotoxins *

Carrageenan
Enzymes
Soy Protein Concentrate
Soy Protein Isolate
Whey Protein Concentrate

Also: Protease Enzymes of various sources can release excitotoxin amino acids from food proteins.

Excitotoxins & Obesity
Animals exposed to MSG were found to be short, obese, and had difficulty with sexual reproduction. This appears to be related to a lesion in the hypothalamus (part of the brains’ appetite and metabolism center). Could the US epidemic of obesity be related to early exposure to food additive excitotoxins? Obesity associated with excitotoxin exposure is not necessarily related to the number of calories consumed. Sadly, many drink diet soda with aspartame (NutraSweet®) which like MSG is an excitotoxin and can produce obesity.

Excitotoxins & Cancer
Rats fed aspartame had a 25 x increase (2500% increase) chance of having brain tumors compared to rats that were on a normal diet. Several possibilities explain the high rate of cancer in these animals. One is that aspartame breaks down in the body into a substance called diketopiperizine or DKP, which chemically closely resembles a group of cancer-causing chemicals. aspartame also contains methanol, which breaks down in the body into formaldehyde and formic acid. Formaldehyde had been shown to accumulate near DNA, causing serious damage that is accumulative. That means that drinking even one diet cola a day can cause formaldehyde buildup in cells, so that the amount of the toxin increases daily.

Breast cancer - a new study on aspartame conducted by the Ramazzini Foundation demonstrated that aspartame causes an increase in cancers. There was a dose – dependent increase in lymphomas, leukemias and breast cancers when consumed at levels consumed by humans in diet soft drinks.
Excitotoxins like Aspartame & MSG can cause seizures, depression and addiction
Aspartame intake produces an unnatural amino acid balance. Unlike amino acids consumed in natural protein sources, aspartame gives large amounts of excitatory amino acids without the natural balance which protects the brain. Large doses of phenylalanine are toxic to the brain and aspartic acid acts as an excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain - stimulating the neurons in the brain to "fire." Both aspartic acid and phenylalanine cause the brain to get out of balance with the inhibitory amino acids. This imbalance can lower the threshold of seizures and cause depression. This altered brain chemistry may also be responsible for the addictive nature of aspartame.

Neurodegenerative diseases
Alzheimer's and autism and ADD and Parkinson's disease have increased dramatically. Why? Normally the brain is protected from toxins in the blood by the Blood Brain Barrier. MSG – Glutamates open the Blood Brain Barrier and create a highway for toxins like heavy metals and excitotoxins to damage our brains. When you add MSG to the diet, you add a toxin which dramatically increase the toxicity of other toxins in the environment and food.

Watch the 60 Minutes Video on MSG http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=599381265368100582

Bottom line

The inconvenient truth is that the vast majority of what we eat needs to be unprocessed food. Buy organic meat, fruit, vegetables and grains and make most of our food at home.

We must definitely avoid all aspartame and diligently seek to avoid MSG containing products.

We need to eat out less and when we do we need to understand it is impossible to avoid all the glutamates used in the restaurant industry.

Finally, we should add supplements which help protect the brain against excitotoxins.

Magnesium – low magnesium dramatically increases MSG toxicity. I recommend taking take 400-1200 mg daily (back off if you get loose stools)

Other key players to protect against neurotoxins are: vitamin E, milk thistle, ginkgo biloba, curcumin (as in the Indian spice turmeric) and lithium Note the recommended dose for lithium is 5-15 mg a day and this can be ordered form the Tahoma Clinic (www.tahoma-clinic.com)

If you are not eating the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables (at least 5 a day), I highly recommend fruit and vegetable capsules (2 fruit in the am, 2 vegetable caps in the pm). You can Order these caps on the NaturalWellnessChoices.com website

Cell and Cordless Phones Increase Cancer rates 4-5 fold in Children, 50% in Adults

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:23:00 +0000

Cell and Cordless Phones Increase Cancer rates 4-5 fold in Children, 50% in Adults

Dear friends,

I have been watching this area for a while and I am now convinced that we must dramatically reduce our exposure to electromagnetic radiation from both cell and cordless phones. Future studies will help better define the exact risk but the time to take action is now. Much of the following was from Dr. Joseph Mercola and the recent World Health Organization report (see references below)

Swedish research was reported this month at the first international conference on mobile phones and health. Professor Hardell from Sweden told the conference: People who started mobile phone use before the age of 20 years old had more than five-fold increase in glioma.
Cordless phone use resulted in cancer rates that were four times higher than expected.

A glioma is a cancer of the glial cells that support the central nervous system. The concern is not limited to just cell phones. By contrast, people who were in their twenties before using handsets were only 50 per cent more likely to contract gliomas and just twice as likely to get acoustic neuromas.

Professor Hardell told the IoS: "This is a warning sign. It is very worrying. We should be taking precautions." He believes that children under 12 should not use mobiles except in emergencies and that teenagers should use hands-free devices or headsets and concentrate on texting. At 20 the danger diminishes because then the brain is fully developed. Indeed, he admits, the hazard to children and teenagers may be greater even than his results suggest, because the results of his study do not show the effects of their using the phones for many years. Most cancers take decades to develop, longer than mobile phones have been on the market. David Carpenter, dean of the School of Public Health at the State University of New York – who also attended the conference – said: "Children are spending significant time on mobile phones. We may be facing a public health crisis in an epidemic of brain cancers as a result of mobile phone use." According to a University of Washington scientist: 70 percent to 80 percent of the energy emitted from the antenna of a mobile phone is absorbed in your head. This expert was particularly concerned about kids using mobiles because their younger skulls are thinner and their growing brains much more susceptible to radiation exposure.

Last year, a scientific review of 11 studies found that using your cell phone for 10 years or longer will double your risk of getting a tumor on a nerve connecting your ear to your brain. And earlier this year Toronto's department of public health warned that because of possible side effects from radio frequency radiation, children under 8 should only use a cell phone in emergencies, and teenagers should limit calls to less than 10 minutes. An analysis of early unpublished data, some of which shows just how much higher the electromagnetic radiation absorption rates are in a 5- and 10-year-old’s brain versus that of an adult.

Electromagnetic radiation, the data shows, can penetrate almost straight through the entire brain of a 5-year-old child.

Use “Safer Cell” Practices for both cell and cordless phones

Children Should Never Use Cell Phones Barring a life-threatening emergency, children should not use a cell phone, or a wireless device of any type. Children are far more vulnerable to cell phone radiation than adults because of their thinner skull bones.

IF a child is going to use a cell phone, they need to at least use the speaker phone function or a safe headset, and keep the phone as far away from their body as possible.

Use a Corded Land Line at Home and Work

Do you remember corded phones? They work great when you are sitting & function during power outages.

Pregnant Women Should Also Avoid Cell PhonesWomen who use mobile phones when pregnant may be more likely to give birth to children with behavioral problems.

Use the Speaker Phone function. When I call I ask “do you have me on speaker mode?”Please do not let you loved ones keep a cell phone to their ear.

The most dangerous place to be, in terms of radiation exposure, is within about six inches of the emitting antenna. You do not want any part of your body within that area.

A cell phone that is on in our pocket may effect reproduction. A study showed abnormal sperm movement when exposed to cell phone emissions.

Turn Your Cell Phone Off When Not in Use. As long as your cell phone is on, it emits radiation intermittently, even when you are not actually making a call.

Use Your Cell Phone Only Where Reception is Good: The weaker the reception, the more power your phone must use to transmit, and the more power it uses, the more radiation it emits, and the deeper the dangerous radio waves penetrate into your body. Ideally, you should only use your phone with full bars and good reception.

Consider Safer Headset Technology: Wired headsets will certainly allow you to keep the cell phone farther away from your body. However, if a wired headset is not well-shielded -- and most of them are not -- the wire itself acts as an antenna attracting ambient information carrying radio waves and transmitting radiation directly to your brain. Make sure that the wire used to transmit the signal to your ear is shielded. The best kind of headset to use is a combination shielded wire and air-tube headset – They are called BlueTube (instead of BlueTooth). These operate like a stethoscope, transmitting the information to your head as an actual sound wave; although there are wires that still must be shielded, there is no wire that goes all the way up to your head. References: http://www.who.int/peh-emf/meetings/archive/en/slovenia04_abstracts.pdf http://products.mercola.com/blue-tube-headset/?source=nl

Stevia - A Healthy Sweetener

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:18:00 +0000

What is Stevia?

Stevia is a fairly unassuming perennial shrub native to the northern regions of Paraguay. It has now been grown commercially in Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Central America, the United States, Israel, Thailand, England, Russia and China.

If you have not heard of Stevia – you will soon be seeing Stevia everywhere. Despite efforts to suppress Stevia from the US markets, Stevia has many natural qualities which make it ideal for sweetening:

Stevia is an all-natural sweetener that contains no chemicals

Stevia is up to 300x as sweet as sugar and has no calories

Unlike man-made sweetners which have a host of negative effects (i.e. Neutra-Sweet & Splenda), Stevia has a long history of use among millions in Paraguay, Japan and China without any health concerns

Stevia can be mixed with the natural alcohol sweetners Xylitol or Erythitol – allowing less of these to be used and avoid the gas or loose stools associated with the use of higher amounts

Studies indicate Stevia may lower blood pressure and blood sugar

Health & Political Controversy
A 1985 study reporting that steviol (a metabolite of Stevia) may be cancer causing; however, this study has been criticized on procedural grounds that the data were mishandled in such a way that even distilled water would appear mutagenic.

In 1991, at the request of an anonymous complaint, the United States Food and Drug Administration labeled stevia as an "unsafe food additive" and restricted its import. The FDA's stated reason was "toxicological information on stevia is inadequate to demonstrate its safety." This ruling was controversial because it violated the FDA's own guidelines under which any natural substance used prior to 1958 with no reported adverse effects should be generally recognized as safe (GRAS). Many have suspected that the real issue has been to protect the billion dollar interests in the sweetener industry – especially Splenda and Neutra-Sweet.

Recent Studies Support the Safety of Stevia and Even Point to Health Benefits
More recent studies have not shown any problems with Stevia and cancer. At least 1 animal study showed a stevia extract actually produce a decrease in breast tumors. The most recent studies bolster the safety record of steviol and its glycosides. In 2006, the World Health Organization (WHO) performed a thorough evaluation of recent experimental studies of stevia extracts conducted on animals and humans, and concluded that stevioside and rebaudioside A are not cancer causing.

The report also suggested the possibility of health benefits, in that "stevioside has shown some evidence of pharmacological effects in patients with hypertension or with type-2 diabetes" but concluded that further study was required to determine proper dosage.
Stevia remained banned until after the 1994 Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act forced the FDA in 1995 to revise its stance to permit stevia to be used as a dietary supplement, although not as a food additive — a position that stevia proponents regard as contradictory because it simultaneously labels stevia as safe and unsafe, depending on how it is sold.

Today you can find Stevia in grocery stores everywhere but you may notice the word sweetener is often missing to comply with the FDA restrictions.
Bottom line: The best evidence available shows Stevia is Safe and may reduce blood sugar and blood pressure

Stevia may lower blood sugar
Studies have suggested it may be Stevia has been widely used for diabetes in South America and animal studies have had promising results. Studies report decreases in plasma glucose when stevia was taken in normal volunteers. Additional study is needed in this area to confirm these findings.

Stevia may lower blood pressure
Stevioside is a natural plant glycoside isolated from the plant Stevia rebaudiana, which has demonstrated blood pressure lowering effects. Despite evidence of benefits in some human studies and support from laboratory and animal studies, more research is warranted to compare stevia's effectiveness with the current standard of care and make a firm recommendation. Stevia appears to have no major side effects.

Stevia is Catching On
You can get Stevia at grocery stores and health food stores right now and you are going to see a lot more of it as major players are enter this field.

Cargill has begun marketing of Truvia, a no-calorie sweetener made from certain compounds in the leaves of stevia. Truvia is intended to provide a natural alternative to artificial sweeteners such as Sweet ‘N Low, Equal and Splenda. Since Truvia is made only with compounds from the stevia plant, it can be legally used as a natural sweetener

Max WLX for Weight Loss - Leptin Part 2

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 22:11:00 +0000

The Discovery of Leptin

• Leptin communicates between fat cells and the brain

• Leptin was discovered in 1994 at Rockefeller University by Jeffrey M.
Friedman, MD, PhD, and his team

• Leptin is a hormone made by fat cells that regulates food intake and
energy expenditure

• Leptin’s messages: Stop eating/burn fat or store fat

• Scientists thought if they gave leptin to overweight people they would lose weight

• WRONG! Overweight people have too much leptin due to Leptin Resistance

Too Much of a Good Thing

• An overwhelming amount of leptin makes the brain ignore the weight-loss messages

• So the brain says “keep eating!” and “store more fat!”

• More fat means more leptin messages sent out creating “Leptin Resistance”

• Leptin resistance sabotages your dieting efforts

• It’s a vicious cycle creating fat you don’t need or want!

How Can You Normalize Leptin?

Until very recently the only way to address Leptin Resistance was to follow the Leptin Diet and Exercise.

Now Max International has made available a breakthrough product called Max WLX – Max Weight Loss Accelerator. Max WLX is compositionally patented by the University of Minnesota.

Max WLX is a 100% safe & natural product that lowers leptin resistance and resulted in 90% more weight loss than placebo in a study conducted by the University of Connecticut (notice a 3rd party University tested the product under rigorous conditions).

1. Eat Sensibly

2. Take 2 Max WLX caps 30 min before your 2 largest meals of the day

The Power of Max WLX – University Patented and Tested

In an eight-week double-blinded, placebo-controlled study at the University of Connecticut, the Max WLX group:

• Lost 21.5 pounds of body fat
• Lost 3.96 inches off their waist
• Lost 3.28 inches off their hips
• Lost 1.20 inches off each thigh

Enjoyed a 90 percent greater fat loss than the placebo group!

Why Max WLX WORKS!

• Max WLX gently decreases leptin levels to restore accurate communication between fat cells and the brain

• Max WLX allows the “stop eating” and the “burn fat” messages to be heard

• Max WLX contains no harmful stimulants and is made of all-natural polysaccharides and fatty acids (see patent and supplement information below)

• Max WLX is safe for long-term weight-loss plans

Getting the Most from Max WLX

• Take two capsules 30 minutes before your two largest meals
• Create a sensible diet plan you can live with
• Make exercise a part of your life
• Clinical trials showed most of the weight loss was in the 2nd month of taking Max WLX (very little was lost the first month)

How to Order Max WLX (Weight loss Accelerator)
2 options (Click below)

1. Join as a Preferred Customer (make sure the preferred customer option is clicked) Sign up for a monthly AutoShip and receive wholesale pricing. This is the most common way to sign up.

2. Join as a New Associate (make sure the New Associate option is clicked). If you are interested in taking advantage of the business opportunity. This option is best for those who have already seen the results of the Max products and are interested in a helping others get healthy and build a home based business at the same time.
Additional Information

University of Connecticut Study
University of Minnesota Patent
Suggested Use. Supplement information

Statin Drugs - The Misguided War against Cholesterol

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 21:59:00 +0000

Note – much of this material is from “Statin Drugs, Side Effects and the Misguided War on Cholesterol ” by Dr. Graveline, M.D, see www.spacedoc.net. If you are taking a statin drug, you should not stop taking this medication on your own. You should work with a wellness oriented physician to optimize your care and work with your doctor to wean off them. Abruptly stopping these medications can produce a rebound increase in inflammation which may be harmful.

This is a fairly detailed article. As a student of molecular biology I tend to overly enjoy molecular detail. I realize many of you will want to get to the “bottom line.” For a quicker read you can get the main points by covering the first section up to “digging deeper” and skip to the last 2 sections “summary” and “action points” DE

Statin Drugs, Side Effects and the Misguided War on Cholesterol

For nearly four decades, those in medicine have been taught that cholesterol was the culprit in cardiovascular disease because it was found in atherosclerotic plaques.

Guilt by association was the primary justification for the decision back in the mid-fifties to force upon our nation the now infamous low fat/ low cholesterol diet/high sugar diet. Now forty years later, the prevalence of atherosclerosis remains unchanged and we have become a nation of gross obesity and type 2 diabetes. For forty years our doctors and their patients have been told that cholesterol was their enemy.

How did this happen? A lot of the blame must go to Ancel Keys. Ancel Keys published the “Seven Countries Study” which claimed to have found strong associations between the rate of heart disease and the intake of cholesterol and saturated fatty acids in 7 countries. His data combined with the guilt by association mindset of the time led to the low fat dietary strategies which have prevailed to this day.

Problems with Keys research
When Keys data was reviewed by others it was found that actually the majority of the countries he studied did not show any association between the intake of fat and heart disease. Apparently, when Keys did not see an association between cholesterol and heart disease he left them out of the sample which was presented in his famous report. In other words, he “cherry picked” the data to get the answer he wanted. When all the data is used and the missing countries are included we see that the “strong association” Keys reported is completely erased.

Some are now realizing that the 40-year war on cholesterol through the use of drugs and the now infamous low fat/low cholesterol diet has been a terrible mistake. We have become a nation prone to obesity, type 2 diabetes and a rapid decline in the health of our children. Sadly, largely due to obesity and diabetes, children today are now expected to have a shorter life span than their parents. We are not making medical progress.

Unfortunately, the public and physicians continue to use statins because they “know” statins work. The war on cholesterol has become a dogma that is not to be questioned. Ironically, cholesterol never was the issue. Heart disease is caused by inflammation and oxidative damage. For more detail - Please see my posting on December 4th, 2007 in “Preventing Heart Disease.”

Cholesterol deposition in the arteries actually turns out to be a repair mechanism and not the actual cause of the atherosclerosis process. The primary factors leading to the damage of our arteries is related to our poor nutritional status: trans fats, too much sugars, too little fruits & vegetables and omega 3 fatty acids, low vitamin intake such as D and C. Adding to this we have chlorine and fluoride in our water with too little exercise and we have a recipe for disaster.

Cholesterol Lowering Drugs Are Not the Answer
As you know statin drugs are the most commonly used medications to lower cholesterol and Lipitor is the best seller. Ironically, it turns out that the small beneficial effect these drugs have on the heart is not due to lowering cholesterol but rather is a result of their anti-inflammatory effects. While reducing inflammation is beneficial, we have better ways to accomplish this goal.

The mainstream media and medical publications fail to highlight the powerful, natural ways to reduce inflammation that do not have the negative effects we see with cholesterol lowering medications (see below).

Statin drugs block a process that we were designed by our Creator. The enzyme that statin drugs block is called HMG CoA Reductase. Blocking this enzyme produces not only a reduction in the critical nutrient, Cholesterol but also CoQ10, Vitamin D, Bile Acids and most of our hormones. As a result of this we see a long list of side effects of statin drugs such as:

Nausea
Irritability and short tempers
Hostility
Homicidal impulses
Rapid loss of mental clarity
Amnesia
Kidney failure
Muscle aching and weakness
Tingling or cramping in the legs
Inability to walk
Problems sleeping
Muscle damage
Erectile dysfunction
Nerve damage
Mental confusion
Liver damage and abnormalities
Neuropathy
Global Amnesia
Congestive Heart Failure
Cancer
Death

Digging Deeper
Statins are ineffective in the Primary Prevention of Heart Attacks and Strokes
Studies Show Statins do not work in the Primary Prevention of Heart Attacks. The NNT (number needed to treat to prevent an endpoint) for statin drugs in the primary prevention of heart attacks and strokes is 100. That is to say you would need to have 100 people take a statin daily for 5 years in order to prevent 1 heart attack or stroke. Researchers consider a NNT above 50 as worthless. If you were offered an antibiotic for your sinus or urinary tract infection would you be satisfied with a NNT as low as 5 (a 1 in 5 chance of working)? Why do we accept a 1/100 chance with our hearts and accept all the negative effects of statin drugs. It does not make since. Just adding fish oil lowers the risk of heart attacks by 32%! Statins do nothing but raise the risk of cancer and death for 99/100 who take them to prevent a heart attack (note - the benefit is higher if you have already had a heart attack or stroke but again there are safer choices.)
Please see Business Week Cover Story January 17, 2008 http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_04/b4068052092994.htm?chan=search

CoQ 10 Depletion (Coenzyme Q10 or Ubiquinone)
Ubiquinone (a.k.a. Coenzyme Q10 or CoQ10) is arguably our most important essential nutrient. Its role in energy production is to make possible the transfer of electrons from one protein complex to another within the inner membrane of the mitochondria to its ultimate recipient, ATP.The adult human body pool of this substance has been reported to be 2 grams and requires replacement of about 0.5 gms per day. This must be supplied by our body making it or dietary intake. Our ability to make CoQ10 decreases progressively in humans above age 21, and the average ubiquinone content of the western diet is less than 5 mg/day.

In the June 2004, Archives of Neurology, the Neurology Department of Columbia University reported a greater than 50% fall in plasma Coenzyme Q10 (ubiquinone) in their group taking Lipitor 80 mg for 30 days, in a striking documentation of the impact of statin therapy on ubiquinone biosynthesis.CHF and CoQ10 Depletion Depriving the body of this important nutrient for energy utilization would be expected to cause damage to the most active parts of our body like the heart and our immune system. Statin drug use has been noted to increase the incidence of congestive heart failure or CHF. This has been documented as well as the prompt response to statin induced CHF to CoQ10.Although the heart may be the first to show effects of ubiquinone deprivation, every cell and every tissue in the body is dependent upon mitochondrial energy supply.

Recently the relationship between chronic fatigue and ubiquinone deficiency has been reportedMitochondrial DNA Damage Our mitochondria enable us to use oxygen and therefore must be in contact with it. This makes having a strong defense against free radicals essential to prevent damage. Without adequate amounts of CoQ10 superoxide and hydroxyl radicals can cause oxidative damage to mitochondria DNA The resulting mitochondrial DNA mutations may contribute directly to many chronic muscle diseases (myopathies), diabetes and even aging itself.Ubiquinol Depletion Ubiquinone is related to ubiquinol which maintains cell membrane integrity. Ubiquinol depletion is felt to lead to the frequently fatal form of muscle damage known as rhabdomyolysis.

Additional Problems Caused by Statin Drugs

Low Levels of Vitamin D: Statins block the production of cholesterol which is the building block of vitamin D which becomes a very important hormone. If you lower your vitamin D and you may double your risk of death. June 2008 new study showed that vitamin-D deficiency is associated doubling the deaths from all causes. (see Dobnig H, Pilz S, Scharnagl H, et al. “Independent association of low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D levels with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality.” Arch Intern Med 2008; 168:1340-1349Low levels of hormones: Low hormonal status in associated with an increase in inflammation, heart disease, impotence, cognitive decline

Dolichol Synthesis Inhibition and Brain Dysfunction

The dolichols are another area of collateral damage from statin use. Dolichols direct proteins to their proper target. Without dolichols the proteins are sent to the wrong address. This results impaired neuropeptide formation which leads to abnormal emotions. The Departments of Medicine and Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego published a paper called “Severe irritability associated with statin cholesterol-lowering drugs” which details even homicidal tendencies due to these medications You can read this article at: http://qjmed.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/97/4/229. Dr. Graveline recounted his experience taking Lipitor for only six weeks. Soon after he went for a walk, Dr. Graveline was found wandering, confused, and reluctant to enter his own home because he didn't recognize it or remember his wife's name. The amnesia cleared but came back again after restarting the Lipitor.

Cancer due to inhibition of NF-κB

NF-κB serves as an important regulator of genes that control cell multiplication proliferation. With this in mind it is not surprising that many different types of cancers have been associated with abnormal NF-κB activity.

Increased cancer deaths among recipients of statin drugs already are being observed. The PROSPER trial demonstrated that statin therapy increased the incidence of cancer deaths, completely offsetting the slight decrease in deaths from cardiovascular disease. The Journal of the American College of Cardiology revealed that driving down cholesterol levels actually triples the risk of cancer (Alsheikh-Ali, A. A. et al. J Am Coll Cardiol 2007; 50:409-418) http://content.onlinejacc.org/cgi/content/abstract/50/5/409

Natural Ways to Reduce Heart

DiseaseIs there a natural way to reduce inflammation and oxidative injury to our heart? Can we keep our hearts healthy? Absolutely! Proper nutrition, exercise, thyroid, hormones, fish oil, vitamins – C,D vitamins B6,12 and folic acid, CoQ10, lysine and proline, avoiding toxins and detoxification programs. Most of us do not eat enough fruit/vegetables (5-13 servings recommended daily). The Framingham Study showed a strong protective effect of fruits and vegetables. I highly recommend adding clinically proven supplemental fruit/vegetable capsules – 2 fruit in am and 2 vegetable caps in pm. These Fruit/vegetable capsules can be ordered at naturalwellnesschoices.com.

Summary

People take statin drugs because they are encouraged to do so by well done commercials & Ads which are reinforced by their well meaning doctors. FDA approval, well done ad campaigns and good intentions do not negate the basic problem: We are ingesting a poison to our delicate intracellular biochemistry and we are paying a heavy toll for it.
Any student of biochemistry and molecular biology would immediately point out the folly of trying to block cholesterol production at the expense of massive collateral damage. Statin drugs block the pathway involved in the production of life essential CoQ10, dolichols, vitamin D and hormones.

Even if you still believe in the cholesterol hypothesis, believe the studies which show their NNT – number needed to treat is 100. They just do not work. Even if cholesterol was the problem, statins would be a terrible solution – they do not work and they have far too much collateral damage.

Action points
Avoid statin drugs and take extra CoQ10 if you have ever taken a statin: 300-400 mg a day
Eat 5+ servings of fruit & vegetables & take fruit/vegetable capsules (see http://www.naturalwellnesschoices.com/ if you eat less
Eliminate Trans fats / partially hydrogenated fats such as corn oil and margarine. Use olive & coconut oil and butter instead
Optimize your Vitamin D status
Take a high quality fish oil like Nordic Naturals
Take Vitamin C, L-Lysine and L-Proline
Minimize intake of refined carbs - cookies, white bread, and even fruit juice
Avoid tap water (contains fluoride and chlorine)
Avoid Pesticides, Herbicides & Plastics
Take a daily combination of vitamins, CoQ10 Selenium, fish oil (i.e. Physicians Preference Power Pak) 1-2 /d
Exercise (Interval training and not just “cardio”
Suspect hypothyroidism and get it treated with natural thyroid. Test your basal body temperature first thing in the morning to see if your thyroid function is lower than normal (97.8-98.2 degrees is normal)

Vitamin D and Mortality

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 23:43:00 +0000

The data continues to mount which strongly suggest a link between low levels of vitamin D many diseases such as cancer and heart disease. This June a new study showed that vitamin-D deficiency is associated doubling the deaths from all causes (known as all-cause mortality).

Why the low vitamin D levels?
We rarely see an optimal vitamin D level in our practice unless we have been helping our guests supplement by checking blood levels and making recommendations.
Over 95% of the results of our new guests show low, often very low vitamin D levels
It is probably related to factors such as urbanization, decreased outdoor activity, use of sun screen, air pollution and decreases in the skin production of vitamin D with age. The highest risk of extremely low vitamin D levels are the elderly and African Americans.

Dangers of low vitamin D

- Bone loss, falls, and fractures
- cancer rates dramatically increase
- immune dysfunction resulting in more infections & autoimmune diseases
- cardiovascular disease (i.e. heart attacks and stroke)
- hypertension – increased blood pressure
- metabolic syndrome (a.k.a. syndrome X or pre-diabetes)
- increased inflammation Low 25-hydroxyvitamin-D levels were also significantly correlated with markers of inflammation (C-reactive protein [CRP] and interleukin 6 [IL-6])
- oxidative stress increase (biologic rusting)
- Osteoporosis (painless) or osteomalacia. With osteomalacia muscle pain and proximal muscle weakness with symptoms such as sensation of heaviness in the legs, rapid fatigue, and problems with climbing stairs and getting up from a chair.
- Autoimmune disease. Any levels below 20 ng/ml are considered serious deficiency states and will increase your risk of breast and prostate cancer and autoimmune diseases like MS and rheumatoid arthritis.
- osteoarthritis and increase in pain experienced from it
- psoriasis
- seasonal affective disorder
- diabetes
- multiple sclerosis
- migraines
- polycystic Ovary Syndrome and Infertility

Vitamin D and Heart Health
Vitamin D has been noted to play a key role in fibrinolysis, blood lipids, thrombogenicity, endothelial regeneration, and smooth-muscle-cell growth.

Vitamin D Status is better than heart catherization at predicting death
The authors also report that the increase in risk of all-cause mortality with lower levels of vitamin D was seen regardless of the degree of coronary artery disease seen on angiography, and they comment: "Low 25-hydroxyvitamin-D and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin-D levels seem to be important mediators of mortality even when there is little or no indication of overt vascular disease."

Low Vitamin D Correlates with Doubling of Death Rate
Now, in addition to all the above concerns about low vitamin D, we have the doubling of the death rate of all causes.
I have noted that people tend to be diligent in taking their hormones than their vitamins. I hope this new study in the Archives of Internal Medicine will help everyone remember to have their vitamin D level checked and take your vitamin D daily (see Dobnig H, Pilz S, Scharnagl H, et al. Independent association of low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D levels with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Arch Intern Med 2008; 168:1340-1349).

Action Steps

Know your vitamin D status. The 25-OH Vitamin D level is considered the best test of vitamin D status and is the blood test you would want to get checked. Most labs list 30 100 ng/ml as normal. We consider 50-100 ng/ml to be optimal. We rarely see these levels achieved without supplementation.

Take Vitamin D Supplements
The correct form of vitamin D to take is vitamin D3 (not D2) – this is what we have in Physicians Preference, 1000 IU / cap. We are looking to add a capsule with more D in it to reduce the number of caps.

Pending having your 25-OH (hydroxy) Vitamin D level done I would recommend taking at least 2000 IU of Vitamin D (D3) daily
Note, you may be susceptible to toxicity at lower dosages if you have excess blood calcium levels, hyperparathyroidism or granulomatous diseases such as sarcoidosis

To your health!

Donald P Ellsworth, M.D.
www.naturalwellnesschoices.com
Feel free to pass this information on to others

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Hormones are Critical to Health

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 23:39:00 +0000

Below are some thoughts to help clarify the confusion we hear in the media. If you are really interested there are extensive footnotes at the end for more research.

Hormones Are Critical for Health

Without hormones, we cannot live. Why then do we speak as though hormones are dangerous substances? And why do we assume that the harmful effects of non-hormones will be like those of our endogenous hormones?

The answer is suggested by the fact that medical students and doctors in training have minimal exposure to physiology and massive exposure to pharmacology. Exogenous chemicals, different from the actual hormone they are meant to replace, are used interchangeably in clinical practice, the popular press, and in prestigious medical journals, producing much of the controversy that surrounds hormone replacement

With the increase in life expectancy we enjoy in the 21st century, we can expect to live a substantial part of our lives in a state of hormonal deficiency. The age-related decline in hormones produces many of the diseases associated with midlife. We have several options:

1) Do nothing and experience the adverse effects of hormonal deficiency
2) Take exogenous chemicals (drugs) to ameliorate the effects resulting from this decline; or
3) Treat the root causes of disease by replacing exactly what is missing.

Hormonal decline is associated with a loss of function as well as an increase in diseases such as heart disease. Effects include bone loss, cognitive decline, loss of muscle mass, and thinning of skin.

There are many specific benefits of hormonal supplementation. Testosterone reduces neuronal secretion of Alzheimer's β-amyloid peptides and improves cognitive function. Progesterone increases bone mass. Mood is improved with testosterone and progesterone. Hormones also improve sleep; decrease inflammation; ameliorate chronic fatigue; improve sexual function, mood, muscle strength, and body composition; normalization blood clotting; improved spatial recognition; and induced apoptosis of breast cancer cells.

The Importance of the Identical Structure

Molecular structure determines activity. The smallest of changes can completely change the physiologic effect. Consider how similar testosterone is to one of the estrogens – Estrone. While chemically they are very close to one another – we all know the effects of these two hormones differ radically.

Why the Confusion?
Much of the confusion about bioidentical hormone replacement flows from the failure to distinguish hormones from non-hormones. Obtaining FDA approval for a hormone-mimicking compound, such as medroxyprogesterone (Provera) or conjugated equine estrogens (Premarin), does not turn it into a hormone. Unfortunately, many scholarly articles have even referred to Provera as “progesterone,” and to and conjugated equine estrogens as “estrogen.”

Before the release of the results of the Woman’s Health Initiative (WHI), the medical community expected PremPro to help mitigate the postmenopausal increase in cardiovascular disease. While the extract of pregnant mares urine known as Premarin does contain one human estrogen, Estrone, it also contains numerous equine estrogens foreign to human physiology. The WHI study demonstrated that the combination of Premarin with Provera produces the following adverse effects: a 26% increase in risk of invasive breast cancer; a 29% increase in risk of myocardial infarction or death from CHD; a 41% increase in risk of stroke; and a 200% increase in risk of 200 % increased risk thromboembolism.

The Importance and Safety of Progesterone Supplementation

Many of the adverse effects in the WHI apparently result from the failure to use the human hormone progesterone. We should not expect the exogenous chemical medroxyprogesterone to necessarily have the same physiologic effect. Physicians who prescribe bioidentical hormones emphasize the importance of balancing estrogens with progesterone, rather than progestins. There are critically important differences between the two.

Progesterone is a pregnancy class B drug. It is used in assisted reproductive technology as Crinone and may be useful for pre-term labor. Medroxyprogesterone is a pregnancy class X drug—a compound known to cause birth defects, and never to be used in pregnancy.

Progesterone and physiologic levels of estrogens down-regulate inflammation. Medroxyprogesterone prevents the cardioprotective and anti-inflammatory effects of estradiol.

In contrast to medroxyprogesterone, several lines of evidence suggest that progesterone reduces breast cancer risk. It is known to have an anti-proliferative effect.

Higher Progesterone levels correlate with dramatically lower rates of Breast Cancer

1. A low progesterone level has been correlated with a 500% increase in premenopausal breast cancer risk in women experiencing infertility when compared with infertile women with normal hormone levels.

2. Contrariwise, a higher progesterone level in premenopausal women correlates with lower risk of breast cancer. Comparing the highest with the lowest tertile for progesterone in women with regular menses, the adjusted risk for breast cancer was 0.12 or about 1/8 the risk.

Combined these two studies suggest progesterone may have a dramatic protective effect against breast cancer. A potential mechanism for the protective effect is suggested by an in vitro study that evaluated the effect of progesterone on the growth of T47-D breast cancer cells. It demonstrated increased breast cancer cell death (apoptosis) as mediated by regulation of the controlling genes.

The Essential Balance between Progesterone and Estrogen

Physiologically, progesterone levels fall faster than estrogens; therefore, progesterone supplementation is typically needed years before estrogen declines. The physiologic role of progesterone goes far beyond the need to prevent unopposed estrogen stimulation of the endometrium of the uterus. The French E3N-EPIC study showed that while estrogen alone slightly increased the risk of breast cancer (up 10%) the risk was actually reduced 10% when estrogen was combined with progesterone. Independent of the presence or absence of the uterus, progesterone (not progestins) should always be used to balance estrogen.

Why Estriol?

Although estriol has been used in western Europe since the mid-1900s, most U.S. physicians are not familiar with it. It offers most of the benefits of estradiol, such as relief of vasomotor symptoms and vaginal atrophy, but appears safer.

One argument for the safety of estriol (as well as progesterone) is that human zygotes have been demonstrated to experience healthy embryogenesis and development in a milieu of high estriol and progesterone concentrations—levels present physiologically during pregnancy.

If carcinogenesis does not occur with high levels of estriol during the most fragile phase of life, why should it be expected at much lower levels in mature adults? Estriol has even been shown to protect against carcinogen-induced breast cancer. Clinical studies have demonstrated that daily dosing results in minimal proliferation of breast and endometrial tissue.

Studies on the ability of estriol to prevent bone loss have produced inconsistent results. For this reason many physicians use Bi-Est with 20% estradiol and 80% estriol.
Currently the FDA is banning the use of estriol on the basis that it has not gone through new-drug FDA approval—even though the FDA has said that there is no safety issue with estriol and despite its inverse correlation with breast cancer (i.e. the more estriol, the lower the rate of cancer). This blatant play to big pharma should enrage all who love freedom. Let freedom ring! Please go to www.projectfans.org and let your congressmen hear from you.

Vitamin D & Breast Cancer; The Leptin Diet reviewed

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 21:38:00 +0000

Staying Healthy with …..
Natural Wellness Choices
www.naturalwellnesschoices.com

June 1, 2008,

In this issue:

Vitamin D status dramatically effects breast cancer outcomes
The Leptin Diet

Inadequate Levels of Vitamin D Linked to Sharply Increased Odds of Cancer Spread and Death

Vitamin D deficiency is common among women diagnosed with breast cancer, and it may raise the risk of cancer spread and death, researchers report.

In a new study, women with vitamin D deficiency at the time of breast cancer diagnosis were:
94% more likely to experience cancer spread
73% more likely to die over the next 10 years compared to women with adequate vitamin D levels

More than 1 in 3 women studied had a vitamin D deficiency.

The findings are scheduled to be reported at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago.

Vitamin D Puts Brakes on Breast Cancer
Vitamin D is found in some foods, especially milk and fortified cereals, and is made by the body after exposure to sunlight. It is necessary for bone health, and some studies suggest that it may protect women from developing breast cancer in the first place.
The author of the study, Goodwin, points out that from a biological point of view, it makes sense that vitamin D would put the brakes on breast cancer development and spread. "Breast cancer cells have vitamin D receptors, and when these receptors are activated by vitamin D, it triggers a series of molecular changes that can slow down cell growth, cause cells to die, and make the cancer less aggressive," she says.

For the new study, Goodwin and colleagues measured vitamin D levels in the blood of 512 women diagnosed with breast cancer in Toronto between 1989 and 1995. They were followed for a median of 12 years.

Vitamin D Deficiency Linked to Poor Breast Cancer Prognosis
After 10 years, 83% of women with adequate levels were alive without signs of cancer spread (metastasis) vs. only 69% of women with vitamin D deficiency. Most of the deaths were from breast cancer.

Vitamin D Testing & Optimal Dosing of Vitamin D
At the Hotze Health and Wellness Center we routinely monitor the vitamin D status with the 25 – Hydroxy Vitamin D level. Some physicians are not aware of which test to order – it should be the 25-OH Vitamin D also written as 25-hydroxy-vitamin D3 level.
If you have not had your vitamin D level checked, I would suggest you take 2000 IU of Vitamin D. Most need more than this dose to be in the optimal zone; however, You should not take more without knowing your blood level. Too much vitamin D can be harmful just like too little. We try to keep the blood level between 50 and 100.
Goodwin and colleagues are now trying to confirm the findings in a second, similar study; results are due by the end of the year. If confirmed, the next step will be a study to determine whether giving supplements actually lowers the risk of recurrence and death in women with breast cancer.

The Leptin Diet
Do you eat after dinner?
Do you snack between meals?
Do you eat a breakfast containing a lot of protein?
Do you tend to eat fast?
Do you regularly eat products with sugar or made from flour such as bread, pasta, pizza, cereal, cakes, cookies, crackers or tortillas?
Do you drink soft drinks? Regular or diet?
Is your waist size (at belly button level) >40 inches (>102cm) for men, and a waist size of >35 inches (>88 cm) for women? (see Appendix A)

If you answered yes to these questions you may a problem you have never heard of: leptin resistance

I recently read “The Leptin Diet” by Byron J. Richards. Before I read this book I had heard of leptin and knew it was involved in fat metabolism; however, I did not appreciate how central it role is. Byron Richards shows that the hormone made by our fat cells called leptin plays a crucial role in our overall health. Leptin also effects our ovaries, thyroid levels, pancreas and pituitary and the brain itself.

One major paradigm shift I have made is that I now think of fat as a major part of our endocrine system. We should start referring to our endocrine system as consisting of our thyroid, ovary, adrenals, pancreas and …fat. Leptin resistance explains a big part of what we address every day in our office. We are not just addressing the age related decline in the production of some hormones but the decreased utilization of all hormones including thyroid and testosterone due to the global hormone resistance produced by leptin resistance.
It is incorrect to assume that if an individual takes Armour thyroid that their weight issues will always resolve. Leptin resistance develops when we keep our triglyceride levels up with too much simple carbohydrates, eating too late in the day and by eating too frequently. I would recommend everyone read this book; especially those who wish to lose weight, lower triglycerides, reduce inflammation (i.e. the CRP) or slow the aging process.

How Leptin Problems Develop
Excessive Sugars à Triglycerides increase à Triglycerides block leptin entrance into the brain causing leptin Resistance à Body Acts like it is Starving: Hunger goes up; thyroid function is down regulated à Fat Cells swell as a result of leptin resistance and this produces low thyroid function à Swollen fat cells activate the inflammatory cascade via NF-kappa B activation which results in the production of adipokines à Inflammation results in global hormone resistance including insulin resistance and peripheral hypothyroidism due to the inhibition of the conversion of T4 to T3 à inflammation and hormone resistance produce the clinical pictures we see daily such as obesity, heart disease, depression, fatigue and premature aging
The pathway to health is to avoid simple sugars, eat protein with complex carbohydrates and work with the circadian rhythm of our body which likes nutrition to be robust in the morning and sparse in the evening. These concepts are summarized in the Five Rules.

5 Rules for Managing Leptin:

Rule 1: Never eat after dinner. Allow eleven to twelve hours between dinner and breakfast. Never go to bed on a full stomach. Finish eating dinner at least 3 hours before going to bed. Leptin follows a 24 hour pattern: it is highest in the evening hours and peaks late at night. It coordinates the function of melatonin, thyroid hormone, growth hormone, sex hormones and the immune system to carry out rejuvenating sleep.

Rule 2: Eat three meals a day. Allow 5-6 hours between meals and do not snack
Most advise eating 5-6 small meals a day or to snack between meals to maintain a steady blood sugar level and to keep the metabolism stoked with food. It is vital to create times during the day when triglycerides are cleared from the blood. If triglycerides build up during the day, they physically impede the entry of leptin into the brain causing leptin resistance.
When we snack we cause a rise in insulin which shuts off our fat burning mode.

Rule 3: Do not eat large meals. Eat slowly

Rule 4: Eat a breakfast containing protein. A high protein meal can increase metabolism by thirty percent for as long as twelve hours (the calorie burning equivalent of a two to three mile jog.) The two signs of a poor breakfast are 1) being unable to make it five hours to lunch without food cravings or a crash of energy and 2) being much more prone to leptin resistance later that afternoon or evening, a condition that sets in motion strong food cravings.

Rule 5: Reduce the amount of carbohydrates you eat
The whole purpose of the Leptin Diet is to create energy and metabolic efficiency to the body. Those with normal weight will get more energy from it and those who need to lose weight will find it will help normalize weight. Richards states that a person needs to be in a normal leptin mode for a good 6 months before the new set point is truly in place. There may be numerous temptations that divert one from the fat-burning mode but we need to stick to the five rules. Our fat cells are waiting to refill themselves at a moments notice. We must avoid breaking the Five Rules to prevent going into the Famine Recovery mode in which we try to put on extra fat to protect us from the next ‘famine’.

TESTING FOR LEPTIN RESISTANCE: THE TAPE MEASURE
An abdominal pouch an important red flag that we are dealing with leptin resistance. Another way of saying this is: “If the waist is resisting staying in – we have leptin resistance.”

Legumes
Richards points out that all long-lived healthy cultures have legumes in their diet. Legumes of Mediterranean people include lentils, chickpeas and white peas. Scandinavians eat more brown beans and peas. Japanese enjoy soy in the form of tofu, natto and miso. Research shows that for every 80 calories of legumes the risk of premature death is reduced by 8%.
We generally should avoid one legume – soybeans. Years ago soy protein was thrown away and considered useless. Then the soy industry got the idea to come up with trying to extrapolate from ethnic soy use and convince people to eat soy protein for health reasons. The idea worked and has made the soy industry millions and is causing digestive problems, poor thyroid function and poor hormone signaling. On top of all this 90% of all soy in the US is genetically modified. Peanuts are actually not a nut but a legume; however, peanuts can be contaminated with aflatoxin (a dangerous mycotoxin). Generally we should be limiting our peanut intake.

Got Isoprenoids?
Whole grains, fruits and vegetables contain nutrients known as isoprenoids. These nutrients often give vegetables and fruit their deep colors and can deactivate oncogenes (cancer causing genes). Cultures with a diet of fresh fruit, vegetables and whole grains have a lower rate of cancer. Ideally these foods should be organic since organophosphate pesticides are toxic to living cells and work in the opposite direction of the health benefits.
Most vegetables qualify as an unlimited food. We should eat a variety of colors. Juicing vegetables is okay as long as we get enough other fiber in our diet. However, vegetable juice primarily from carrots has too much sugar.

Corn, squash, carrots and potatoes are higher in sugar content and need to be considered as part of the carbohydrate total of a meal.

If you are not eating at least 5 servings a day, I highly recommend adding fruit/vegetable capsules to your daily regimen. You can order them at www.naturalwellnesschoices.com

Skewed taste buds
The taste of simple sugar is a major source of pleasure based addiction. The tongue has leptin receptors on it – we need to rebalance these receptors. Using no calorie sweetners should be avoided because they numb the receptors to leptin. By avoiding these sweet nothings we get rid of the cravings for sugar.

Glycemic Diet caveats
Potatoes get a bad rap in that if they are eaten with protein they have a much lower glycemic index than when eating separately or with excess calories.
We need more fiber in our diet. Fiber is found in whole grains, fruit, nuts, seeds, vegetables and legumes.

Fat & Milk
A 2004 study from the British Journal of Nutrition found that milk fat intake is inversely correlated with heart disease and the risk for a heart attack. Surprisingly the insulin and leptin levels were lower in relationship to the higher percentage of milk fat in the diet. 2% milk is fine as long as the total calories in a meal does not get too high.

Leptin problems and Addictions
There is a fine line between healthy pleasure seeking, eating and addictions. Individuals who develop leptin problems are at significantly increased risk for developing addictions to substances (alcohol or drugs) as well as addictive behavioral patterns (sexual compulsions, gambling, shopping). The widespread use of brain medications in children, medications which produce dopamine surges or alter appetite signals, it setting the stage for late life problems with addictions. The apparent need for brain meds in children is likely due to poor brain development in the womb and early childhood.

Things to avoid
MSG is a neurotoxin. It damages the structure in the brain that is supposed to be registering the leptin signal of fullness. MSG makes us act like the mouse that makes no leptin and no normal appetite regulation.

HFCS: High Fructose Corn Syrup is devastating to metabolism. The standard way to induce diabetes in rats is to give them high fructose corn syrup and excess saturated fat.

Perchlorates – Lettuce woes and tap water blues
The water supply in many regions of the United States is contaminated with perchlorate, a rocket fuel ignition catalyst. Perchlorates bind to the thyroid gland more tightly than iodine and disrupt metabolism. Almost all lettuce contains high amounts of perchlorates. The only way to avoid it is to buy produce grown in regions which do not have a perchlorate contaminated water supply. Unfortunately, California, Arizona, Texas and Florida all have serious perchlorate contamination issues.

To your health!

Donald P Ellsworth, M.D.
www.naturalwellnesschoices.com
Feel free to pass this information on to others

Appendix A How to measure waist circumference
Fat in your belly is linked with greater health risks than fat from other parts of your body. Measuring the circumference of your waist, or how wide your torso is all the way around, is an easy way to determine whether you have excess fat in your abdominal area. Here’s how to do it:

Step 1. PREPARE
Use a soft tape measure to assess your waist size. Pull up or remove your shirt and lower the waistline of your skirt, shorts or pants, if needed, so that your middle is exposed. Stand in front of a mirror, if possible, to make sure you’re positioning the tape measure correctly.

Step 2. FIND THE RIGHT SPOT
Press your fingers into your torso near the right side of your waist. Push your fingers into your skin to find the bony pelvis. Keep pushing and moving your fingers along the edge of the hip bone until you find the top curve of the bone. This spot is known as the iliac crest. The highest point will be located on the side of your torso, just underneath the lower portion of your ribcage. Generally, this spot will be at around the same level as your bellybutton, and near, or at, the narrowest part of your torso.

Step 3. WRAP THE TAPE MEASURE
Position the tape measure horizontally at this spot at the top of your hip bone. Then circle it around your abdomen and entire torso. Make sure that the tape lies horizontal on all sides of your torso. Place the end of the tape measure which reads “0” at the spot on the tape where the loop circles your waist completely.

Step 4. MEASURE
Avoid sucking in your gut. Stand up straight and exhale gently as you pull the tape so that it stays taut against your body, but make sure it is not squeezing into your skin. Look at the number at the point where the “0” end of the tape intersects around your waist. This is your waist measurement.
A waist size of >40 inches (>102cm) for men, and a waist size of >35 inches (>88 cm) for women is considered high-risk. A high number may indicate that you have excess fat in your abdominal area. If your BMI is 25 or higher, this can increase your risk of certain diseases such as type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia (uncontrolled cholesterol), high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

Appendix B How To Read Labels On Fruits And Veggies - Yes They Have Labels
We hear daily to read labels on packages of food, pet food cleaning products, vitamins and more, but did you know fruits and vegetables have important labels also? Today the banana might not be just an average banana. If you care about how your food is grown the label tells all.As much as we may dislike them, the stickers or labels attached to fruit do more than speed up the scanning process at the checkout stand.

The PLU code, or price lookup number printed on the sticker, tells you how the fruit was grown.As reported by Maria Gallagher, in the June 26, 2002 issue of the Philadelphia Inquirer, by reading the PLU code, you can tell if the fruit was genetically modified, organically grown or produced with chemical fertilizers, fungicides, or herbicides.Here's how it works:For conventionally grown fruit, (grown with chemicals inputs), the PLU code on the sticker consists of four numbers.

Organically grown fruit has a five-numeral PLU prefaced by the number 9.
Genetically engineered* (GM) fruit has a five-numeral PLU prefaced by the number 8.

For example,A conventionally grown banana would be: 4011

Note: All combinations of the four-digit code beginning with the numeral "4" have been used up, so new labels beginning with the numeral "3" will also be used to designate conventionally raised produce.An organic banana would be: 94011A genetically engineered (GE or GMO) banana would be: 84011

Are Genetically Modified Foods Safe?

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 23:58:00 +0000

Staying Healthy with
Natural Wellness Choices
www.naturalwellnesschoices.com

April 28, 2008

Inside: Genetically Modified Food (GMO)

As an undergraduate at Vanderbilt, I studied molecular biology and absolutely loved it. In the lab we could do amazing things like take enzymes and isolate genes and insert them into other species to impart new traits (and this was back in the early 1980’s). Now we have strong evidence that despite the wide use of GMO products, they are not safe.

The health information is from the book Genetic Roulette: The Documented Health Risk of Genetically Engineered Foods, by Jeffrey M. Smith and related websites. I have hear Jeffrey Smith speak twice and have all his books. I highly recommend all of his resources. Please see:

www.seedsofdeception.com
www.responsibletechnology.org
www.truefoodnow.org/shoppersguide
www.truefoodnow.org/documents/guide%208_11%20layout.pdf

Plastic, Butter, Carotenoids and Smart Gene

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 01:31:00 +0000

Staying Healthy with
Natural Wellness Choices
www.naturalwellnesschoices.com

March 30, 2008

Inside:

Why we should avoid plastic
Butter as a health food
Boosting Carotinoids
Fish Oil & Our Smart Gene

Plastics – We really do need to avoid it

A recent study by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention discovered that about 93% of the United States population have bisphenol-A in their body at a median concentration of 2.7 ppb. A group of BPA experts determined that the average levels seen in people are above those seen to cause harm to animals during laboratory experiments.

Why should you be concerned? BPA has been associated with:

Obesity
Type 2 diabetes (and metabolic resistance)
Estrogen dominance – BPA mimics the hormone estrogen.
Abnormal sexual organ development
Hyperactivity
Schizophrenia
Enlarged prostate gland
Breast cells predisposed to cancer
Decline in testicular testosterone
Breast cells predisposed to cancer
Reversal of normal sex difference in brain structure

Bisphenol-A (BPA) is mainly found in polycarbonate plastic, which is labeled with the number 7; in plastic food wrap, and in the resins that coat the inside of metal cans for food. It is so prevalent in today's products that it is even in refrigerator shelving, water bottles, baby bottles, plastic food storage containers, water pipes, flooring and as a fire retardant.Studies have shown harmful biological effects on animals using low-doses of the chemical and harmful effects on humans have been observed outside of studies. Hormone disrupting effects have been shown to occur at levels of application as low as 2-5 parts per billion and many canned foods are within and over this range.

Bottom Line: Plastics including Bisphenol-A can be hard to completely avoid but it is wise to store and heat food in glass or metal – never plastic. This is especially important for women of child bearing age before and during pregnancy as well as small children.

Is Butter a health food?

Speaking of plastic, margarine is similar to plastic. Most of you know that butter is better than margarine – a synthetic material not far from the molecular structure of plastic. I recently reviewed an article on butter by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig, PhD. They demonstrate that butter contains ingredients which has numerous positive effects such as: antioxidant, antifungal (yes – it can fight yeast), anticancer, bone building qualities, great source of vitamins A, K2, D & E as well as the important trace mineral Selenium. Butter also contains Lecithin for fat metabolism and cholesterol which has anti-oxidant properties.

Butter contains short and medium chain triglycerides which enhance metabolism and weight loss along with strengthening the immune system.

Butter even has iodine for the thyroid gland.

Got Carotenoids?

I recently had my carotenoid level measured will attending the A4M – Anti-Aging Conference this past December. The person doing the scan said he had only seen 2 with a level higher than mine – out of hundreds. The main source of carotenoids I was taking was fruit/vegetable capsules

Fish Oil & Smart Gene
Did you hear about the discovery of a “smart gene”? It’s called homologene 7245. It codes for “brain-derived neurotrophic factor” (BDNF).
BDNF enhances the growth and health of nearly every kind of brain cell, including:
synapses (the connections between nerve cells)
synaptic transmission (how neurons talk to each other)
the formation of the “glial” cells that support brain tissue
the development of dendrites (your brain cells’ “antennae,” these cells receive signals from other parts of the brain and communicate them to the cell body)
brain cell formation and protection
A nutrient you can take to stimulate BDNF production is already readily available. It is one of the two main components of fish-derived omega-3 –“docosahexaenoic acid,” or DHA.

Evidence has been mounting over the past several years that highlight just how critical BDNF is to brain function – and DHA’s power to activate it:

In a landmark study published in the American Journal of Nutrition, researchers showed that breast-fed infants whose mothers who took 200 mg of DHA per day outperformed DHA-deficient infants at every level. They had better hand-eye coordination, as well as enhanced “gross motor skills” like standing up, walking, going up and down stairs, and keeping their balance.

Researchers at UCLA found that rats given high levels of DHA enjoyed significantly higher BDNF levels. They were far more resistant to injury from brain trauma. And those who didn’t get enough DHA in their diet suffered from learning disabilities.

A recent Japanese study added to the good news: memory and learning ability improved dramatically with boosted BDNF production.

Turning on the “smart gene” is as easy as taking high quality fish oil. I recommend Nordic Naturals – at least 2 caps or ½ tsp a day.

In the first year of life, continue breast-feeding and getting your DHA. Children also benefit from taking at least 100 mg of DHA from six months on.

From years 2-5, ramp it up to at least 200 mg per day. Physicians Preference carries Nordic Naturals for children but I found that my child loves the liquid since she was raised on it.

Cod liver oil is also a great source of DHA as well as vitamin D and A.

To your health!

Donald P Ellsworth, M.D.
www.naturalwellnesschoices.com
Feel free to pass this information on to others

The Absolute Tooth: Dental Related Disease Part 1

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 00:11:00 +0000

Many of you are concerned about the effects of mercury on your health. Below is Part 1 on the issue of amalgam related disease. Please note that only a dentist trained to safely remove amalgams should do so. You can learn more by reading:

http://iaomt.org/

www.hugginsappliedhealing.com

Did you know that “Silver” fillings are 50% mercury?

Dental amalgam has been controversial ever since it was introduced, early in the nineteenth century, because of its mercury content. People of the Napoleonic era knew full well that mercury was poisonous, and the best that anyone has ever claimed about amalgam is that the mercury exposure may be too small to hurt anyone. Over time, though, a great body of evidence has accumulated showing that mercury is release from amalgam in significant quantities, that it spreads around the body, including from mother to fetus, and that the exposure causes physiological harm. This article will sketch out the main points of the scientific case against amalgam.

The toxic effects of mercury, including dementia and loss of motor control, were common knowledge in the post–Napoleonic era, and many dentists objected to the obvious disadvantage of using such a dangerous material in people’s mouths. In 1845, the American Society of Dental Surgeons asked its members to sign a pledge never to use it. The economics were compelling, though as they remain today. At a time when the only other feasible restorative material was gold, amalgam looked to be the restorative material for the masses. Then, as today, patients did not show signs of acute poisoning as they left the dentist’s office, so there did not appear to be a problem. As the use of amalgam grew, the American Society of Dental Surgeons fell apart, and in 1859, the pro–amalgam faction formed the American Dental Association, the same organization that leads the dental profession in the USA to this day, and remains steadfast in its defense of amalgam.

The argument was reopened in the late 1970’s, as modern methods of detecting the presence of trace amounts of mercury were introduced, including mass spectrophotometry and the Jerome mercury vapor detector.

There is a formidable body of evidence establishing the chain of toxic events:

1) amalgam releases significant amounts of mercury

2) the mercury distributes to tissues around the body, and is the biggest source of mercury body burden

3) the mercury from amalgam crosses the placenta and into breast milk, resulting in significant pre- and post-partum exposures for infants

4) adverse physiological changes occur from that exposure on the immune, renal, reproductive and central nervous systems, as well as the oral and intestinal flora

The current best accepted reference on absorbed dose of mercury from amalgam fillings comes from the World Health Organization proceedings of 1991. The conclusion of that group was that the average person in the industrial world with an average number of amalgam fillings, and no occupational exposure to mercury would absorb between 3 – 17 μg per day, with an average of 10 μg, from the fillings; 2.3 μg from all dietary sources; and 0.3 μg from all other environmental sources.

Does the mercury in ‘silver amalgams’ get out of the tooth to effect our body?

You must see “The Smoking Tooth” at: http://iaomt.org/videos/

A pioneer in researching the link between unexplained diseases and our dental practices is Dr. Hal Huggins. The following are diseases that Dr. Huggins has related to the presence of dental mercury and root canals:

Multiple sclerosis
Lou Gehrig's disease
Alzheimer's
Parkinson's
Seizures
Diabetes
Arthritis
High blood pressure
High cholesterol
"Female problems" (long list)
Infertility

Other dental toxins that adversely effect the immune system or overall general health

Nickel
Present in crowns, bridges, orthodontic braces, children's chrome crowns and some removable partial dentures.

Root canals
Anaerobic bacteria within root canal teeth produce toxins that are among the most poisonous chemicals on the planet. For this reason, they can produce disease at little more than the molecular level. Far below what can be seen on an X-ray. Just a handful of molecules can create autoimmune diseases in susceptible people.
Important to know is that the problem is the presence of these toxins in the periodontal ligament - the attachment between tooth and bone, and not in the pulp chamber. While a dentist can sterilize a column of air in the center of a tooth the tooth is dead and a healthy body will reject dead things and this can create an immune action around the dead part.

Implants
This is a bad topic, again, because both dentistry and patients have adopted them wholeheartedly. Financially rewarding and easy to sell. No one wants removable appliances in their mouth, nor the additional care it takes to wear these appliances. Anything implanted in bone will create an autoimmune response. The only difference is the amount of time it takes.

Cavitations
Although described by the Father of Modern Dentistry, Dr. G.V. Black in the early 1900's, and published in many dental articles (mostly outside the US), they are unknown to many dentists. Even the ADA claims they do not exist. When a tooth is removed, the periodontal ligament that attaches the tooth to bone (similar to the afterbirth around a fetus) is left in according to instructions from dental schools. The ligament often prevents bone healing of the socket area. Today, this hole is termed a "cavitation". These holes left unhealed are generally lined with necrotic (dead) bone and many of the same anaerobic bacteria that are found in dead or root canal teeth. The ones that are often related to autoimmune diseases. Porphyrins (the energy producing molecule in the blood stream) are particularly attacked by products within the cavitation, therefore offering less oxygen transport and energy molecules for healing and daily operation of the body

Maternal – fetal transfer of mercury

Babies, with their still-developing nervous systems, are known to be more sensitive to the effects of mercury exposure than adults. Pediatric authorities say: “The developing fetus and young children are thought to be disproportionately affected by mercury exposure, because many aspects of development, particularly brain maturation, can be disturbed by the presence of mercury. Minimizing mercury exposure is, therefore, essential to optimal child health." And “Mercury in all of its forms is toxic to the fetus and children, and efforts should be made to reduce exposure to the extent possible to pregnant women and children as well as the general population.”

Immune System:
The “allergic hypersensitivity” to mercury issue is interesting. It is not very, very rare, as certain dental authorities would have us believe. The North American Contact Dermatitis Group, in 1972, determined that 5 - 8% of the US population demonstrates allergy to mercury by skin patch testing.

Renal System:
Mercury, we now know, concentrates in the kidneys, and experimental evidence shows that it can inhibit kidney function.

Are dentists harming themselves?
One of the statements made to support the use of amalgam has been that dentists’ health status is not different from that of the general population, despite the fact that we are exposed in our work to mercury. One must remember that they follow hygiene rules such as always using gloves, storing scrap amalgam in tightly closed containers under various liquids to prevent vapors from escaping in the office and disposing of it with licensed hazardous waste handlers. Even so, there is some evidence that mercury–exposed dentists and staff do suffer various effects.

In one study, dentists with high baseline urinary mercury levels showed neuropsychological and motor control deficits. In another, dentists and staff with high mercury levels, proven by DMPS challenge, had altered porphyrin (hemoglobin) metabolism, as well as neurobehavioral changes, including impairment of attention, motor and perceptual skills, and increased irritability.
In a survey of 7,000 female dental assistants, a subgroup of 418 women who placed over 30 amalgams per week, and had poor mercury hygiene habits, had a low fertility rate of 63%

To your health!

Don Ellsworth, M.D. naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com
www.naturalwellnesschoices.com

Emotional Freedom Technique,Benefits of Tea, Vytorin Study results,Detoxification

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 02:38:00 +0000

Inside:

How to live an extra 14 years
EFT – A Rapid, Free and Powerful Tool
Benefits of Tea
Lessons from Vytorin
Diabetes increased by Organochlorines

How to Live an extra 14 years
Stay active, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, drink in moderation and don’t smoke.
You’ll live an extra 14 years, according to a study of 20,000 people in the U.K. who were between the ages of 45 and 79 and had cardiovascular disease or cancer. Researchers signed the patients up in the mid-’90s and followed them until ‘06. The steps seem remarkably manageable. Being active simply meant having a non-sedentary job or doing some form of recreational exercise for a half hour a day. Lots of fruits and vegetables meant five or more servings a day. And moderate drinking meant between one and 14 drinks per week. Khaw KT, Wareham N, Bingham S, Welch A, Luben R, et al. (2008) Combined Impact of Health Behaviours and Mortality in Men and Women: The EPIC-Norfolk Prospective Population Study . PLoS Med 5(1): e12 doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.0050012

If you are not getting at least 5 servings daily you should increase your intake and I highly recommend adding the clinically proven concentrated fruits and vegetables in capsules.

EFT – Tapping for Health
The first time I ran across EFT about 5 years ago I must say it seemed a bit unusual. If you are unfamiliar with emotional freedom technique, I would ask you to keep an open mind as you look into it. If you stop and think about it, energy travels through the body and we use this all the time to evaluate how the brain and heart are working (EEG and EKG). In the East they take the concept of energy flow to its logical extension – they use it for both diagnosis and treatment. We know from actually measuring the energy on the surface of the body that there are meridians in which the energy travels. When the flow is altered it produces diseases which are both emotional and physical.

These ideas have been largely ignored in the West but recently Gary Craig has developed a modified form of acupuncture that uses no needles and can be done at home. You stimulate well established energy meridian points on your body by tapping on them with your fingertips. The process is easy to memorize and is portable so you can do it anywhere. Emotional Freedom Technique ot EFT works to correct the flow of energy and resolve many issues quickly. Again, I know it sounds strange but take a look at the video and website below and give it a try. I would love to hear your results at naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com

Why I like EFT?
1. EFT often works where nothing else will
2. EFT is free or very low cost
3. EFT has no side effects
4. EFT works quickly
See the Emofree Video
Visit http://www.emofree.com/

Tea for Health (white, black, oolong, green – they are all good for you!)
Human use of tea began between four and six thousand years ago. Today, tea is the most commonly consumed beverage in the world (after water) and with good reason. In addition to being a delicious, low-calorie beverage, research has shown that tea has numerous health benefits:

Promotes a healthier immune system and can help ward off infection
Helps prevent hypertension
Can increase thermogenesis which may help aid in natural weight loss
Antioxidant -destroys free radicals
Shows evidence of preventing and destroying certain tumors and cancer cells
Decreases stress
Decreases food cravings
Reduce the build up of bacteria-causing plague

What is Tea?
We tend to call many beverages “tea”. Technically, tea is the dried and processed leaves of Camellia sinensis, a tree indigenous to Asia.

There are four main types of actual tea (Camellia sinensis): black, oolong, green and white. Black tea is the strongest in flavor and highest in caffeine content. Black tea is produced when the tea leaves undergo an oxidation process which causes them to turn black. Oolong tea is slightly less oxidized than Black tea and has less caffeine. The term ‘red tea’ may refer to either black or oolong tea. Green tea is steamed, rolled and dried immediately after harvest so that the oxidation process is halted - allowing the leaves to retain their green color rather than turning black. White tea is the least processed - the young tea buds are simply picked and air-dried.

Tea, like all plant materials, contains numerous chemical compounds called phytochemicals. The health benefits of tea have been mainly attributed to a particular group of phytochemicals called flavonoids. Flavonoids have wide-ranging beneficial effects on the body. They act as antioxidants, meaning that they deactivate free radicals that can cause cellular damage. Other mechanisms for their health benefits are currently being studied. Researchers believe that compounds in tea may reduce cancer promoters and neutralize enzymes that are necessary for tumor growth.

Recent research has found that tea may protect against heart disease and many types of cancer, reduce inflammation, reduce blood pressure, increase bone density and boost the immune system. There is enough evidence to become a moderate tea drinker even if only half of these benefits pan out with further research.

Which type of tea is the best for your health? They are all very beneficial. Black only has slightly less antioxidants than the less oxidized green. In a study involving bladder cancer cells, green tea extract seemed to make the cancer cells behave oddly. They matured sooner, bound together tightly, and had a hard time multiplying. Another study found that men who drank oolong tea plus green tea extract lost more weight and total body fat, compared with men who drank plain oolong tea. Also, the green tea drinkers had lower LDL cholesterol.

On average, a cup of black tea contains about one third of the caffeine you would get from the same cup of coffee. Green tea contains about one sixth of that amount. The caffeine content will vary with the particular tea and the brewing time. Unlike coffee, tea has a lot of the calming amino acid L-Theanine which lowers the stress response and gives a sense of calm. EGCG has been studied and has been shown to be an excellent antioxidant, have anti-tumor activity and helps with weight loss.

To get the most health benefits out of your tea, brew it fresh from loose leaves or tea bags. Instant and bottled teas contain less active compounds. To extract the most beneficial compounds from the tea leaves or bags, let them steep for three to five minutes. Beware of bottled, sweetened teas that contain added sugar and extra calories.
Need decaf? Caffeine is superficial on the tea leaf. Just steep regular tea for about 1 minute

Vytorin/Zetia Study Results Are In...Not only ineffective, it can double the rate of atherosclerosis
Why was this ever approved? Why were the results held back for so long before being published?

This month, scientists announced the result of the long-awaited ENHANCE study of the cholesterol-lowering drug Zetia (ezetimibe). This drug alone or in combination with the popular statin drug, Zocor (simvastatin) conveyed no medical benefit to patients. In fact, the company-sponsored study found that the pace at which artery-clogging plaque formed within blood vessels actually doubled in patients taking the two-drug combination.

Both Zetia and Zocor reduced their LDL cholesterol by 41 percent and patients who took Vytorin reduced their cholesterol by a whopping 58 percent. However, despite the greater reduction in cholesterol, patients taking Vytorin actually had more growth of fatty plaque in their carotid arteries than those who were on Zocor alone. Please do not fall for the cholesterol is the enemy line. The problem is inflammation and endothelial damage – not cholesterol.

"This drug doesn't work. Period. It just doesn't work," said Dr. Steven E. Nissen, the chairman of cardiology at the Cleveland Clinic. " This is as bad a result for the drug as anybody could have feared. Millions of patients may be taking a drug that does not benefit them, raising their risk of heart attacks and exposing them to potential side effects." (Nissen recently played a central role in exposing the dangers of Avandia, a drug widely used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes.)

"The long-awaited results of a trial of Zetia, a cholesterol-lowering drug prescribed to about a million Americans, shows the drug confers no medical benefit to users." - HealthDay News

"We have no evidence that taking a cholesterol-lowering medication like a statin will prevent them [people like you] from getting heart disease," - Elizabeth Nabel, director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Please see the previous blog postings on http://www.naturalwellnesschoices.com/ for information about reducing the risk of heart disease without statins.

Diabetes increased by Organochlorines
In a study released by the American Diabetes Association, scientists have discovered that herbicide exposure poses a real threat to our health. It can cause high levels of blood sugar and insulin. Both of these can lead to Type II diabetes and can drastically decrease life span. To limit the health risks of herbicides, buy organic foods whenever you can.

The biggest culprits were classes of compounds known as organochlorines. Excess exposure among pregnant women leads to a 2.2-fold higher risk of developing gestational diabetes. Men showed a 47 percent increased risk.

The most commonly used organochlorine in the U.S. is atrazine. Banned in Europe, 76 million pounds of it are dumped on U.S. foods each year. Non-organic corn and coffee can have particularly high levels of atrazine. So choosing organic versions of these foods in particular would be very smart.

Looking for a way to detoxify?
One way to enhance detoxification and remove what we have already absorbed is to use the impressive glutathione boosting ability of MaxGXL. The usual dose is 1 packet of 3 caps twice a day with or without food. Some have detoxification symptoms similar to yeast die off for the first could of weeks – this can be eliminated by reducing the dose to 1 cap twice a day and slowly working up. You can order MAXGXL by clicking on the MaxGXL logo on the homepage of http://www.naturalwellnesschoices.com/

To your health!

Donald P Ellsworth, M.D.
http://www.naturalwellnesschoices.com/
Feel free to pass this information on to others

Asthma – caused by insecticides and chlorine?

naturalwellnesschoices@gmail.com (Donald P. Ellsworth, M.D.) — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 02:59:00 +0000

Inside:

New Link for natural home products
Asthma – caused by insecticides and chlorine?
Update on Glutathione boosting MaxGXL

Healthy Home Products for a Happy New Year!
I wanted to share with you that a guest at the wellness center has started a company to provide quality products that are friendly to your health as well as the environment. Please visit www.organicabode.com "Where you reconnect with nature." The site is very well done and has a wide selection.

Asthma as an environmental disease

For the past several months I have been sharing information on environmental illnesses. Here are a couple of common environmental offenders and what you can do to avoid them.

Insecticides
Generally growing up on a farm is a good thing for your health; however, a recent study showed that women who grew up on a farm where pesticides were used are 46% more likely than nonusers to develop asthma as adults. Hoppin, J., American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care, Jan. 1, 2008; vol 177: pp 11-18. News release, American Thoracic Society

Bottom line: Avoid chemical pesticides as well as herbicides. Look for products that offer pest control without organochlorides. In the Houston area you call Drop Dead Pest Control at: 281-261-6934, Robert Schoppe

Lung Health & Chlorine
Several years ago, at the 2000 Olympic games in Sydney, Australia, the United States swim team announced that more than one-fourth of its members suffered from some degree of asthma. This high rate of asthma symptoms among competitive swimmers inspired several health researchers to find an explanation and cause for the disproportionate number of asthma cases among the swim team members. The studies produced some alarming results. Although chloramines and trihalomethanes (THMs) have long been known to be agitators of asthma and its symptoms, studies have now proven that these harmful chemicals may actually cause asthma in previously healthy individuals. The truly frightening aspect of this finding is that you and your family are likely exposed to these asthma inducing chemicals every day. Chlorine, when combined with organic substances forms THMs. Does this matter? In the US researchers have not paid much attention to this issue. Fortunately, in Europe researchers have recently published two studies deeply scrutinizing these substances in order to determine their negative health effects. Researchers found that nitrogen trichloride, one of the many known THMs, was a main culprit in many forms of occupational asthma. Fortunately, once the study participants were removed from exposure to the harmful chemical, their asthma symptoms showed dramatic improvements over a relatively short period of time. Many did not need their steroid inhalers once removed from exposure to chlorine.

Dr. K. Thickett, a physician in the occupational lung diseases unit at the Birmingham Heartlands Hospital, conducted one such study in which workers suffering from asthma or asthma symptoms at an indoor swimming pool were analyzed. The study participants were asked to change jobs and move away from the swimming pool. Amazingly, each of the subjects either stopped taking inhaled steroids, altogether, or noticed a significant dissipation in their asthma symptoms as a result of this measure. Explaining the reason for these results, Dr. Thickett stated, “It isn’t just the exposure to the chlorine that is causing asthma in swimmers. more important is the chemical reaction that takes place when chlorine mixes with sweat, urine, skin, and hair, and releases derivatives such as aldehydes, halogenated hydrocarbons, and chloramines, all of which contribute to asthma.” Prolonged inhalation of levels of THMs and such chlorine gases as those found near an indoor swimming pool, will not only cause asthma, but will irritate the sensitive areas in the eyes, nose, and throat, as well. Amazingly, the chemicals found near indoor pools constitute only about 1/4 of the chemical vapors that result from showering in chlorinated water! Dr. Thickett summed her study by stating, "Our results show that nitrogen trichloride is a cause of occupational asthma in swimming pool workers, lifeguards and swim instructors." The good news is that the effects of exposure were reversible and that the asthmatic symptoms all but disappeared once the subjects were placed in a new environment, free of chlorine gas.

A second study, conducted by Dr. Simone Carbonnelle of the industrial toxicology and occupational medicine unit at the Catholic University of Louvain, involved 226 healthy school children with an average age of 10. In her study, Dr. Carbonnelle exposed the children to air around the school’s swimming pool for an average of just over fifteen minutes per day. After analyzing the study results, she found levels of lung tissue damage in the children that were directly proportional to the amount of time the children spent around the pool. In some study participants, Dr. Carbonnelle was shocked to find levels of tissue damage that were similar to what she would expect to find in a heavy smoker. Concluding her study, Dr. Carbonnelle explained, “These findings suggest that the increasing exposure to chlorine-based disinfectants used in swimming pools, and their byproducts, might be an unsuspected risk factor in the rising incidence of childhood asthma and allergic diseases.”

The dangerous chemicals to which Dr. Carbonnelle was referring are the same THMs and chloramines we are exposed to in our homes every day, due to showering, washing clothes, washing dishes, flushing toilets, and running the tap. Even Ralph Riley, head of the National Pool Water Treatment Advisory Group, admitted, "We have known for a long time that chloramines can trigger, rather than cause asthma.” These studies contradict Mr. Riley by implicating chloramines and THMs as a direct cause of asthma. Tempering his earlier statement, Mr. Riley added that the industry was constantly looking at ways of reducing the levels of chloramines while continuing to retain the necessary protection against infection in the water. In one recent examination of tap water contaminants, several health professionals reported, "Assessments of drinking water safety rely on the assumption that ingestion represents the principle route of exposure." In fact, it was long believed that the greatest exposure to dangerous chemical contaminants came from eating foods prepared in chlorinated water or drinking that water. However, recent studies have shown that the greatest risk of exposure may come from inhalation of chlorinated water.

The U.S. EPA, the primary regulatory health agency in the country, has stated that every household in America on a chlorinated water system has an elevated level of chloroform gas in the indoor air. This elevated level is directly attributable to showering, washing dishes, washing clothes, and flushing toilets with chlorinated water. The fact of the matter is, every time you open a waterspout in your house, you are releasing asthma-causing substances into your household atmosphere. We have all experienced rough, brittle hair and dry, itchy skin as a result of swimming in a chlorinated pool. These reactions in the body occur when chlorine chemically bonds with proteins in the hair, skin, and scalp. Precisely for this reason, it is recommended that swimming pool water be kept at a concentration of 1-3 parts per million of chlorine. An unfortunate finding for the health of many water consumers, however, is the fact that our tap water regularly exceeds these levels, especially during summer months when bacteria levels are at their highest. In 1986, the National Academy of Sciences estimated that 200 to 1000 people may die in the United States each year from cancers caused by drinking or eating foods prepared in chlorinated water.

Conversely, Dr. Julian Andelman of the University of Pittsburgh found that the major threat caused by these water pollutants is far more likely to occur as air toxins in the home. Andelman discovered that, in the shower, hot water will liberate about 50% of dissolved chloroform and 80% of dissolved TCE into the air. Both the heat of the water and the large surface-to-volume ratio of small droplets increase vaporization. Chlorine, TCE, chloroform, benzene, and other dangerous chemicals are readily absorbed through the lungs into the bloodstream, thus contributing to the effects of asthma. In the past two decades, the incidence of childhood asthma has quadrupled. Asthma is now the leading cause of hospital admission in Canada and the leading cause of student absenteeism in the U.S. Despite these appalling figures, the gold standard in asthma treatment today remains in inhaled steroid products, rather than in prevention. Before resigning yourself or your child to a life attached to an inhaler, first try improving your indoor air quality as a preventive measure.

BOTTOM LINE: I highly recommend removing chlorine from your drinking water, showering water, pool and consider a whole house water treatment to remove chlorine.

We are blessed to have several options for chlorine removal. For whole house removal I would recommend one of the following:

Environmentalprogress in Houston, 281-347-4811, Jimmy Bandfield.

AMACWATER.com 713-937-8630, Al or Sue McDonald (also the source for Mountain Valley Spring Water that we use in the office. It comes in glass – a big plus for health.

AQUASAUNA.com also provides filters

AEHF.com, I purchased a shower filter shown below from them (Dr. Bill Rea in Dallas started this company)

The Glutathione Booster - MaxGXL Update

In November I featured a new product developed by Dr. Keller over 10 years to boost Glutathione. I quoted Dr. Nelson in a previous newsletter; however, there was a typo and it appeared as Nelson. Dr. John C. Nelson, 159th President of the American Medical Association said about MaxGXL:

“This product, in my opinion, represents the single most important breakthrough in health that I will witness in my life time. I believe it will revolutionize, change, and transform the practice of medicine world-wide and make Dr Robert Keller more famous than Jonas Salk who created the polio vaccine.”

This quote came from a February 2007 meeting of Max Associates, in which Dr. Nelson was a guest speaker. Dr. Nelson is not a member of Max International and is not a paid spokesperson for MaxGXL.

I can now share that several of you have told me that sleep has dramatically improved, energy and athletic performance is up. Several of MaxGXL have reported detoxification effects (this is what glutathione does). If you notice anything other than improvement, I suggest a dose reduction – try 1 cap twice a day. The positive effects of MaxGXL are typically results are seen within 1 month.

To your health!

Donald P Ellsworth, M.D.
www.naturalwellnesschoices.com
Feel free to pass this information on to others