ETERNAL HEALTH  JULY NEWSLETTER 2006

How can we live longer and become healthier and do vegetarians have a better stab at this than meat-eaters?  My experience leads me to believe that meat-eaters outnumber vegetarians by a country mile.  I regularly give talks to community groups on matters of health and well-being and when I enquire as to whom in the audience is a vegetarian precious few are in the affirmative. Which is a pity because all the evidence points towards the anti-aging benefits of vegetarianism. According to a study on Californian Seventh-day Adventists those who ate meat had higher rates of heart disease, bowel and prostate cancer while the vegetarians had lower risks of diabetes, high blood pressure and arthritis.  This is not good news for consumers of animal flesh.  And then there’s a recent review in a journal entitled ‘Antioxidants and Redox Signaling’ which indicates that free radicals, those chemicals which are harmful to our cells when present in larger amounts, might multiply more in meat-eaters and the article goes on to assert that it is the accumulation of free radicals which expedites the aging process. 

Meat contains a substance called methionine which is metabolized to another substance called homocysteine.  Raised levels of homocysteine are associated with all sorts of health disasters including heart disease, blood clots, stroke, Alzheimer’s dementia, macular degeneration, osteoporosis and cancer.  Just to set the record straight methionine is also found in vegetable protein however this protein is more abundant in animal sources.  Homocysteine has reared its ugly head quite frequently on this website in recent times.  If you want to discover whether you are being exposed to damaging levels of homocysteine then having a blood test would be the way to go.  Aside from being a meat-eater there are a host of other events which increase homocyteine to dangerous levels and these include excessive free radical stress and heavy metal toxins amongst other factors enumerated in ‘You have the power.’  The other problem with meat, dairy and fish consumption is the presence of saturated fats in these substances.  Saturated fats are subject to a high amount of oxidative or free radical stress leading to a build-up of toxins in our bodies whereas monounsaturated fats found in olives, almonds, macadamia nuts, avocado, pecans, hazelnuts and cashews are beneficial.  To add further salt to the gaping wound inflicted on carnivores the article then proceeds to indicate that one of the ways you can live longer and healthier is to decrease free radicals by eating less protein which is something that might just come a little more naturally to vegetarians. 

If you want to live longer you might have to find a way to eat less of all foods which for most would be decidedly unpalatable.  However salvation for those who balk at the thought of sacrificing all those culinary delights for some extra playing time might be found in the form of an extract of red grapes called resveratrol and a drug called metformin used to treat diabetes both of which have the ability to dupe your body into thinking you are consuming less.

The number one cause of death in the western world is heart disease for both sexes.  More than 50% of the time you can have a heart attack with normal cholesterol levels and the OK from routine medical investigations like stress tests which give you the false impression that everything is going just fine and that you are not at risk.  To ensure that you are not about to succumb to a heart attack it would be advisable to have a battery of tests which investigate all the underlying processes that clog of your arteries.  One of the primary events that initiates this process is the accumulation of oxidized LDL.  LDL is the so-called bad cholesterol and once this form of cholesterol is attacked by free radicals oxidized LDL multiplies which starts to block up your blood vessels.  ‘You have the power’ enumerates all the other events that set you up to develop a heart attack.

TITBITS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION

According to recent articles in this highly prestigious journal obtaining more vitamin D from sunlight and cod liver oil would be a good idea as this hormone has numerous benefits aside from being good for your bones.  It reduces your chances of developing cancer, is beneficial for your immune system, minimises a process called inflammation that promotes heart disease and boosts your energy. 

Along with vitamin D, cconsumption of coffee, a major source of dietary antioxidants, may also inhibit inflammation and thereby reduce the risk of cardiovascular and other inflammatory diseases in postmenopausal women. For lovers of this rich beverage coffee has also been shown to lower the risk of developing diabetes and Parkinson’s disease.

For those who are still doubters when it comes to the benefits of soy, soymilk and supplemental isoflavones found in soy were shown to augment immune function and appear to be protective against DNA damage in postmenopausal women.

Macular degeneration is the number one cause of blindness in the elderly.  Eating foods with a high glycaemic index such as bagels, potato, pumpkin, white rice and sweet biscuits escalates the incidence of this disorder.  Homocysteine also increases macular degeneration with vitamins B2, B3, B6, B12, folic acid and a substance called betaine found in spinach helping to reduce homocysteine.  Vitamins C and E, betacarotene, zinc, selenium, lutein and zeaxanthin and the herb gingko biloba found in memozeal have been found to limit the progression of macular degeneration.

THE BENEFITS OF WITHANIA

Withania is an Indian herb with numerous benefits.  The June 2006 edition of the ‘Life Extension’ foundation indicates that this herb has the ability to reduce free radical toxicity, limit the negative effects of stress, regenerate nerve cells, inhibit the growth of breast, lung and colon cancer cells in the laboratory, prevent the spread of cancer cells and boost the immune system.  It would be extremely difficult to come up with any medication that comes even close to providing all these advantages. 

CONDITION OF THE WEEK

MANAGING MIGRAINE HEADACHES IN WOMEN

Lately I’ve encountered many women in my practice who suffer from migraine headaches around period time or approaching the menopausal transition.  It might have a lot to do with fluctuating hormone levels as well as the presence of the mineral magnesium.  Research indicates that low doses of both oestrogen and progesterone increase magnesium levels and that magnesium supplementation relieves migraine headaches.  Further research indicates that taking 56mg of genistein and 20mg of diadzein found in soy significantly reduced the incidence of menstrual migraines.  Therefore if you are struggling to find a cure for your migraines it would be worthwhile having your hormone and magnesium levels evaluated and if these are low consider supplementing with magnesium and low doses of hormones or phyto-oestrogens found in soy.

CASE OF THE WEEK

Fatigue is a problem I encounter repeatedly in almost all of my patients and something that is managed poorly by conventional medical wisdom. Have you ever gone to your doctor complaining of a lack of energy and vitality only to be fobbed off or told that you are depressed or you receive a battery of blood tests that suggest there is nothing wrong with you?  Three of my female patients recently had this type of experience.  As it turns out one was suffering from food allergies, another had hormone and vitamin deficiencies and third patient had difficulty metabolizing sugar, excess free radical levels and a liver that was functioning sub-optimally.  None of these factors were identified by their doctors.  This is why it’s so important to have all the appropriate tests that identify the underlying cause of your condition otherwise you run the risk of receiving inappropriate medical care.

Q & A segment

Question: What treatment do you recommend for psoriasis, one that works!

Answer:  It would be difficult to guarantee a cure for this condition.  I’ve reviewed this on my site in a previous news item.  Food allergy tests would be helpful.  Improving liver and bowel function and having tests that identify abnormal bowel germs would also be useful. Consuming omega-3 fatty acids and monounsaturated fats found in flaxseed, avocado, cashews, olives and almonds and reducing your consumption of fats found in meat and dairy products might improve your condition.

Question: I’m about to commence memozeal as I’m a meniere's sufferer to help with tinnitus primarily.  How long before you would expect me to find any benefits? (taking one tablet twice a day as recommended on the bottle)

Answer: You’d have to give this approach one to two months to work.

Question: I’ve had Barrett’s oesophagitis since 1985 then aged 30.  I’ve lost weight since and have never been able to put it back on. I also get chest pain, bloating stomach sickness, headaches, heartburn and anaemia.  Is it possible
that I have cancer?

Answer: It’s unlikely you have cancer although you will have to check this evaluated by your doctor and have whatever investigations are deemed necessary to rule this out.  Allergies and a lack of digestive enzymes can lead to heartburn, bloating and abdominal discomfort.  It is possible that you have food allergies which can be identified by means of blood and skin prick tests. 

Question: What is your opinion on the natural anti-inflammatory KAPREX - I have a severe case of plantar fasciitis and have only had relief by taking celebrex which I have been taking for 2 weeks.

Answer:  Kaprex contains hops, rosemary and olive leaf extract which are herbs that have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.  I’m not convinced that this is the best formulation for your problem however you could give this product one month to work and then review its efficacy. The combination of boswellia, turmeric and ginger might be more effective.

Question: I have a number of things wrong with me and don't know where to turn.  Specialists just look at their one piece.  I have had 5 back surgeries for stenosis and am awaiting my 3rd fusion. Last summer my upper jawbone turned to mush and I lost all teeth on upper left side.  The bacterial cultures were "inconclusive."  My testosterone level is less than 10 and I have very low levels of LH and FSH.  My dentist said I have bacteria in my mouth that is destroying my teeth and possibly related to my bone infection, if that is what it was.  HELP, please.

Answer: It would be worthwhile finding a holistic physician who can attempt to unravel all the factors that are leading to your distress.  Low levels of testosterone together with inadequate production of FSH and LH which are manufactured by your pituitary to prime your testes for making hormones suggest a pituitary problem which suggests that other pituitary priming hormones need to be measured including thyroid stimulating hormone and all the others that emanate from this gland.  A CT scan or MRI of your pituitary might be appropriate in this context.  If your pituitary is compromised then excessive stress or an underlying autoimmune problem might be present.  Your jaw infection might be related to a low level of immune protective nutrients as well as low levels of vitamin D together with other hormones that look after your bones.  You would also have to have food allergies and heavy metal toxicity evaluated.