OPTIMIZE YOUR VITAMIN D3
This takes the number one position for a reason: if you're vitamin-D3 deficient, and many are, your immune system will not activate to do its job.
Vitamin D3 also functions in many different tissues and affects a large number of different diseases and health conditions. So far, scientists have found about 3,000 genes that are regulated by vitamin D3.
Just one example of an important gene that Vitamin D3 regulates is your ability to fight infections, including the flu. It produces over 200 antimicrobial peptides, the most important of which is cathelicidin, a naturally occurring broad spectrum antibiotic. At least five studies show an inverse association between lower respiratory tract infections and vitamin D3 levels. That is, the higher your vitamin D3 level, the lower your risk of contracting colds, flu, and other respiratory tract infections.
Plus, studies have shown you can decrease your risk of cancer by MORE THAN HALF and lower your risk of many other common diseases like diabetes, heart disease, depression, hypertension and Alzheimer's disease-simply by optimizing your vitamin D3 levels.
OPTIMIZE YOUR INSULIN AND LEPTIN LEVELS
Eating sugar and grains will increase your insulin level, which is one of the fastest ways to get sick and also experience premature aging. Leptin is another heavyweight hormone associated with disease and the aging process.
Like your insulin levels, if your leptin levels become elevated, your body systems will develop a resistance to this hormone, which will wreck havoc in you body.
EXERCISE
If you are exercising regularly, just as if your vitamin D3 levels are optimized, the likelihood of your acquiring an upper respiratory infection decreases quite dramatically, and studies have clearly show this.
In one such study, staying active cut the risk of having a cold by 50 percent, and cut the severity of symptoms by 31 percent among those who did catch a cold. The researchers noted that each round of exercise may lead to a boost in circulating immune system cells that could help ward of a cold virus.
It is a well know fact that exercise improves the circulation of immune cells in your blood. The job of these cells is to neutralize pathogens throughout your body. The better these cells circulate, the more efficient your immune system is at locating and defending against viruses and diseases trying to attack your body.
Upon reviewing 40 papers published between 2006 and 2010, researchers found that exercise reduces he risk of about two dozen health conditions, ranging from cancer and heart disease to type 2 diabetes, stroke, dementia and depression.
EAT PLENTY OF RAW FOOD
One of the most important aspects of a healthy diet that is frequently overlooked is the issue of eating your food uncooked, in its natural raw state.
Unfortunately, as you may be aware, over 90 percent of the food purchased by Americans is processed. And when you're consuming these kinds of denatured and chemically altered foods, it's no surprise we have an epidemic of chronic and degenerative diseases, not to mention way too many cases of colds and flu.
LEARN TO COPE WITH STRESS
Many people with serious chronic illnesses have had previous emotional stress that contributed to their problem.And for most of the serious illnesses, the trauma stems back to their childhood.
But according to a least one recent study, it doesn't take serious trauma to cause these changes. Even normal everyday emotional experiences can have a detrimental impact ion your future health.
Emotional stressors can also predispose you to an infection while making cold symptoms worse. Finding ways to manage daily stress as well as your reactions to circumstances beyond your control will contribute to a strong and resilient immune system.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Processed Meats and Cancer
A review of more than 7,000 clinical studies examining the connection between diet and cancer came to a stark conclusion: No one should eat processed meats.
The World Cancer Research Fund came to the following conclusion: "There is strong evidence that processed meats are causes of bowel cancer, and that there is no amount of processed meat that can be confidently show not to increase risk. Try to avoid processed meats such as bacon, ham, salami, pastrami, pepperoni, hot dogs, corned beef, and some sausages."
Processed meats are those preserved by smoking, curing or salting, or the addition of chemical preservatives such as as nitrates. The nitrates found in processed meats are frequently converted into nitrosamines, which are clearly associated with an increased risk of certain cancers.
meats cooked at high temperatures, as many processed meats often are, can also contain as many as 20 different kinds of heterocyclic amines, or HCAs for short. These substances are also linked to cancer. In terms of HCAs, the worst part of the meat is the blackened section, which is why you should always avoid charring your meat, and never eat blackened sections.
Many processed meats are also smoked as part of the curing process and smoking is a well-known cause of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which enter your food during the smoking process.
There may be other factors at play as well, but at the very least it's known that eating processed meats exposes you to at least three cancer-causing substances: Nitrates and Nitrites (leading to nitrosamines), heterocyclic amines, and ploycyclic aromic hydrocarbons.
A 2007 analysis by WCRF found that EATING JUST ONE SAUSAGE A DAY can significantly raise your risk of bowel cancer. Specifically, 1.8 ounces of processed meat daily-about one sausage or three pieces of bacon-raises the likelihood of the cancer by 20 percent.
Other studies have also found that processed meats increase your risk of:
Colon cancer by 50 percent
Bladder cancer by 59 percent
Stomach cancer by 38 percent
Pancreatic cancer by 67 percent
Hot dogs, bacon, salami and other processed meats may also increase your risk of diabetes by 50 percent, and lower your lung function and increase your risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
People who eat processed meats regularly also tend to eat fewer vegetables than others.
The World Cancer Research Fund came to the following conclusion: "There is strong evidence that processed meats are causes of bowel cancer, and that there is no amount of processed meat that can be confidently show not to increase risk. Try to avoid processed meats such as bacon, ham, salami, pastrami, pepperoni, hot dogs, corned beef, and some sausages."
Processed meats are those preserved by smoking, curing or salting, or the addition of chemical preservatives such as as nitrates. The nitrates found in processed meats are frequently converted into nitrosamines, which are clearly associated with an increased risk of certain cancers.
meats cooked at high temperatures, as many processed meats often are, can also contain as many as 20 different kinds of heterocyclic amines, or HCAs for short. These substances are also linked to cancer. In terms of HCAs, the worst part of the meat is the blackened section, which is why you should always avoid charring your meat, and never eat blackened sections.
Many processed meats are also smoked as part of the curing process and smoking is a well-known cause of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which enter your food during the smoking process.
There may be other factors at play as well, but at the very least it's known that eating processed meats exposes you to at least three cancer-causing substances: Nitrates and Nitrites (leading to nitrosamines), heterocyclic amines, and ploycyclic aromic hydrocarbons.
A 2007 analysis by WCRF found that EATING JUST ONE SAUSAGE A DAY can significantly raise your risk of bowel cancer. Specifically, 1.8 ounces of processed meat daily-about one sausage or three pieces of bacon-raises the likelihood of the cancer by 20 percent.
Other studies have also found that processed meats increase your risk of:
Colon cancer by 50 percent
Bladder cancer by 59 percent
Stomach cancer by 38 percent
Pancreatic cancer by 67 percent
Hot dogs, bacon, salami and other processed meats may also increase your risk of diabetes by 50 percent, and lower your lung function and increase your risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
People who eat processed meats regularly also tend to eat fewer vegetables than others.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Vitamin D3 Protects Against Endometrial Cancers
Increased dietary intakes of vitamin D3 can prevent the cancer causing effects of obesity by up to 42 percent, according to researchers.
Vitamin D3 has been shown to be helpful in a number of cancers, but for endometrial cancer, our study suggests it protect only against cancer that develops due to obesity, said Dr Leena Hilakivi-Clarke, lead investigator of the research and Professor of Oncology at Georgetown University.
Endometrial cancer is the fifth most common cancer among women, with over 41,000 new diagnoses in the United States each year.
Exposure to high estrogen levels is the main risk for endometrial cancer. Another major factor is obesity, which is know to elevate chances of developing the cancer by between three and five fold.
The connection between vitamin D3 intake and cancer protection dates from the 1940s when Frank Apperly demonstrated a link between latitude (how far north you are from the equator)and deaths from cancer-suggesting that sunlight gave "a relative cancer immunity". SINCE THEN NUMEROUS STUDIES HAVE SUGGESTED ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN VITAMIN D3 AND LOWER RISKS OF MANY CANCERS.
Vitamin D3 has been shown to be helpful in a number of cancers, but for endometrial cancer, our study suggests it protect only against cancer that develops due to obesity, said Dr Leena Hilakivi-Clarke, lead investigator of the research and Professor of Oncology at Georgetown University.
Endometrial cancer is the fifth most common cancer among women, with over 41,000 new diagnoses in the United States each year.
Exposure to high estrogen levels is the main risk for endometrial cancer. Another major factor is obesity, which is know to elevate chances of developing the cancer by between three and five fold.
The connection between vitamin D3 intake and cancer protection dates from the 1940s when Frank Apperly demonstrated a link between latitude (how far north you are from the equator)and deaths from cancer-suggesting that sunlight gave "a relative cancer immunity". SINCE THEN NUMEROUS STUDIES HAVE SUGGESTED ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN VITAMIN D3 AND LOWER RISKS OF MANY CANCERS.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
60 Percent of All Surgeries are Medically Unjustified
An estimated 7.5 million unnecessary medical and surgical procedures are performed each year,writes Gary Null, PhD., in Death by Medicine. Rather than reverse the problems they purport to fix, these unwarranted procedures can often lead to greater health problems and even death. A 1995 report by Milliman & Robertson, Inc. concluded that nearly 60 percent of all surgeries performed are medically unnecessary, according to Under the Influence of Modern Medicine by Terry A. Rondberg. Some of the most major and frequently performed unnecessary surgeries include hysterectomies, Cesarean sections and coronary artery bypass surgeries.
Coronary bypasses are the most common unnecessary surgeries in America. "When faced with heart disease, doctors recommend a bypass. By so doing, they bypass the real problem. Bypasses are the single most commonly performed unnecessary surgery in the country," write Dr mark Hyman and Dr Mark Liponis in Ultraprevention. In fact, according to Burton Goldberg, author of Heart Disease, most coronary artery bypass surgeries and angioplasties produce no real benefit to the patient and dangerous side effects like stroke or brain damage may result from the operations. "Coronary artery bypass surgery is called an over prescribed and unnecessary surgery by many leading authorities, " Goldberg writes. "Complications from such treatments are common and the expense to the health care system is extraordinary high. In 1994, an estimated 501,000 bypass surgeries at $44,000 each were performed on Americans, 47 percent of which were done on men."
Women are at an especially high risk of unnecessary surgery, since hysterectomies and Cesarean sections also top the list of "over prescribed and unnecessary" surgeries. Of the approximately 750,000 hysterectomies performed each year, 90 percent are unnecessary, writes Goldberg in Alternative Medicine. 2,500 women die each year during the operation.
Coronary bypasses are the most common unnecessary surgeries in America. "When faced with heart disease, doctors recommend a bypass. By so doing, they bypass the real problem. Bypasses are the single most commonly performed unnecessary surgery in the country," write Dr mark Hyman and Dr Mark Liponis in Ultraprevention. In fact, according to Burton Goldberg, author of Heart Disease, most coronary artery bypass surgeries and angioplasties produce no real benefit to the patient and dangerous side effects like stroke or brain damage may result from the operations. "Coronary artery bypass surgery is called an over prescribed and unnecessary surgery by many leading authorities, " Goldberg writes. "Complications from such treatments are common and the expense to the health care system is extraordinary high. In 1994, an estimated 501,000 bypass surgeries at $44,000 each were performed on Americans, 47 percent of which were done on men."
Women are at an especially high risk of unnecessary surgery, since hysterectomies and Cesarean sections also top the list of "over prescribed and unnecessary" surgeries. Of the approximately 750,000 hysterectomies performed each year, 90 percent are unnecessary, writes Goldberg in Alternative Medicine. 2,500 women die each year during the operation.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Quotes on Vitamin D3 Benefits by Major Health Experts
The following quotes are from the website,www.vitamindcouncil.org:
Because vitamin D is so cheap and so clearly reduces all cause mortality, I can say this with great certainty: Vitamin D represents the single most cost effective medical intervention in the United States~ Dr Gred Plotnikoff, Medical Director, Penny George Institute for Health and Healing, Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis.
I believe vitamin D is the number one public health advance in medicine in the last twenty years.~Dr John Whitcomb, Aurora Sinai Medical Center.
I do think vitamin D is one of the most promising nutrients for prevention of cardiac disease and cancer, and I believe in it strongly.~Dr JoAnn Manson, Professor, Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Chief Division of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital.
This is like the Holy Grail of cancer medicine: vitamin D produced a drop in cancer rates greater than that for quiting smoking, or indeed any other countermeasure in existence.~Dennis Mangan, clinical laboratory scientist.
No other method to prevent cancer has been identified that has such a powerful impact.~ Dr Cedric Garland, Vitamin D expert.
I would challenge anyone to find an area or nutrient or any factor that has such consistent anti-cancer benefits as vitamin D. The data are really quite remarkable.~Dr Edward Biovannucci, Vitamin D expert.
We estimate that vitamin D deficiency is the most common medical condition in the world.~ Dr Michael F Holick, Vitamin D expert.
In all my many years of practice of medicine, I've never seen one vitamin, even vitamin C, have such profound effects on human health.~ Dr Soram Khalsa, Board-certified internist and medical director for the East-West Medical Research institute.
Natural sunlight's benefits are not limited to vitamin D production. As light enters the eyes,photoreceptors convert the light into nerve impulses that travel along the optic nerve to the brain. These impulses trigger the hypothalamus gland to send neurotransmitters to regulate digestion, moods, immune and hormonal modulation, and circadian rhythm.~ John Maher, DC, DCCN, FAAIM.
The problem is that vitamin D is not really a vitamin, it's a hormone. If your thyroid hormone level was low, you'd gain 20, 30, or more pounds in weight, you blood pressure would skyrocket, you'd lose your hair, become constipated, develop blood clots, be terribly fatigued. In other words, you'd suffer profound changes. Likewise, if thyroid hormone levels are corrected my giving you thyroid hormone, you'd experience profound correction of these phenomena. That's what I'm seeing with vitamin D: restoration of this hormone to normal blood levels (25-OH-vitamin D3 50 ng/mL) yields profound changes in the body.~ Dr William Davis, cardiologist.
Because vitamin D is so cheap and so clearly reduces all cause mortality, I can say this with great certainty: Vitamin D represents the single most cost effective medical intervention in the United States~ Dr Gred Plotnikoff, Medical Director, Penny George Institute for Health and Healing, Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis.
I believe vitamin D is the number one public health advance in medicine in the last twenty years.~Dr John Whitcomb, Aurora Sinai Medical Center.
I do think vitamin D is one of the most promising nutrients for prevention of cardiac disease and cancer, and I believe in it strongly.~Dr JoAnn Manson, Professor, Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Chief Division of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital.
This is like the Holy Grail of cancer medicine: vitamin D produced a drop in cancer rates greater than that for quiting smoking, or indeed any other countermeasure in existence.~Dennis Mangan, clinical laboratory scientist.
No other method to prevent cancer has been identified that has such a powerful impact.~ Dr Cedric Garland, Vitamin D expert.
I would challenge anyone to find an area or nutrient or any factor that has such consistent anti-cancer benefits as vitamin D. The data are really quite remarkable.~Dr Edward Biovannucci, Vitamin D expert.
We estimate that vitamin D deficiency is the most common medical condition in the world.~ Dr Michael F Holick, Vitamin D expert.
In all my many years of practice of medicine, I've never seen one vitamin, even vitamin C, have such profound effects on human health.~ Dr Soram Khalsa, Board-certified internist and medical director for the East-West Medical Research institute.
Natural sunlight's benefits are not limited to vitamin D production. As light enters the eyes,photoreceptors convert the light into nerve impulses that travel along the optic nerve to the brain. These impulses trigger the hypothalamus gland to send neurotransmitters to regulate digestion, moods, immune and hormonal modulation, and circadian rhythm.~ John Maher, DC, DCCN, FAAIM.
The problem is that vitamin D is not really a vitamin, it's a hormone. If your thyroid hormone level was low, you'd gain 20, 30, or more pounds in weight, you blood pressure would skyrocket, you'd lose your hair, become constipated, develop blood clots, be terribly fatigued. In other words, you'd suffer profound changes. Likewise, if thyroid hormone levels are corrected my giving you thyroid hormone, you'd experience profound correction of these phenomena. That's what I'm seeing with vitamin D: restoration of this hormone to normal blood levels (25-OH-vitamin D3 50 ng/mL) yields profound changes in the body.~ Dr William Davis, cardiologist.
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