This week’s featured stories:
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2JwJrHh via Aloe for Health
Search the mainstream medical journals, even search the Internet, and you won’t find this cheap, safe, and effective answer. Action Alert!
Half of teens and adults under the age of 50 are infected with the oral herpes virus, and one in eight has genital herpes. Despite the prevalence of herpes, public health authorities ignore a cheap, safe, and effective treatment for this common infection, and instead rely on expensive medicines that do not treat the underlying problem. This, unfortunately, is par for the course in our crony health system.
Everywhere you look, conventional medicine is singing the same tune: the Mayo Clinic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health all say that even though there is no cure for herpes, the best way to prevent or treat the symptoms is with antiviral medications like acyclovir (sold under the trade name Zovirax), famciclovir (Famvir), or valacyclovir (Valtrex). There is even a herpes vaccine in development—although the FDA has launched a criminal investigation into the (now deceased) lead researcher, who allegedly injected his experimental vaccine into human subjects without following safety protocols.
Conventional medicine recommends one of two basic approaches: episodic therapy (that is, taking the medicine whenever you experience an outbreak) or suppressive therapy (taking the medicine daily to minimize the chances of recurrent or future outbreaks). Suppressive therapy for herpes means huge profits for drug companies, particularly since these medicines are expensive—there is no generic version for Acyclovir as yet, and a one-month supply of Valtrex costs around $250. There is also the problem that these drugs tend to lead to drug-resistant superbugs.
But conventional medicine ignores the obvious natural prescription: get a vitamin D test! It is yet another example of a cheap, safe, and effective medicine that is effectively barred in today’s crony medical system. If it can’t make money for drug companies, the crony medical establishment will have nothing to do with it.
Vitamin D is a powerful natural antiviral, which is why we bang the drum about vitamin D therapy for colds and especially flu every chance we get. One study found that dialysis patients who receive vitamin D and iron were less likely to develop shingles, which is part of the herpes family of viruses; higher vitamin D levels corresponded with more antibodies to the herpes-simplex-2 virus.
Additionally, research from the University of Copenhagen shows that vitamin D activates the immune system by arming T-cells to fight off infections. Without vitamin D, the immune system’s T-cells remain dormant, offering little or no protection against invading microorganisms and viruses. But with vitamin D in the bloodstream, T-cells begin seeking out invaders, which are then destroyed and carried out of the body. You may recall the Japanese study we’ve mentioned previously which found that vitamin D was more effective than a vaccine in preventing flu, including pandemic flu. The report, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that school children taking vitamin D were 58 percent less likely to catch influenza A. By contrast, antiviral drugs such as oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza) reduced rates of infection by only 8 percent. Even vaccines had success rates significantly lower than the 58 percent achieved by vitamin D.
Our vitamin D–mediated immune response has been with us through more than 60 million years of pre-human and human evolutionary selection, as research from Ohio State demonstrates. Vitamin D is critical to our survival.
The problem is that a whopping 70% of the US population is not getting enough vitamin D, according to the Vitamin D Council.
According to John Cannell, MD, founder of the non-profit Vitamin D Council, “Current research has implicated vitamin D deficiency as a major factor in the pathology of at least seventeen varieties of cancer as well as heart disease, stroke, hypertension, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, depression, chronic pain, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, muscle wasting, birth defects, periodontal disease, and more.” All of this is in addition to viral and bacterial infections.
For anyone plagued by herpes, it’s essential that you are getting enough vitamin D. So please get your vitamin D level checked! If it is less than optimal—levels should be between 50–80 ng/ml, year-round—take a vitamin D supplement (be sure it’s D3—cholecalciferol), get your blood retested to verify that you’re taking the proper dosage, and get sufficient exposure to the sun. (Such exposure may not produce vitamin D in the winter, depending on where you live, or if you sunbathe too early or too late in the day.) Vitamin D works best when other cofactors are present, such as magnesium, vitamin K2, zinc, boron, and vitamin A.
Besides vitamin D, there are a number of other natural ways to increase the odds of avoiding herpes outbreaks:
Among natural treatments for active herpes lesions are vitamin C powder and propolis, a natural product found in beehives. The two can be combined. This is somewhat more realistic than the often-mentioned peppermint oil and tea tree oil because their pungent odor announces their presence—not something you want during a herpes eruption. Lemon balm oil also has some research behind it.
Why don’t our health agencies tell the public about vitamin D? It’s cheap—much cheaper than anti-viral drugs—and it works. The problem, as we’ve pointed out, is that vitamin D can’t be brought through the FDA’s expensive drug approval process; since it can’t be patented, it wouldn’t be worth the investment. In our broken system, only FDA-approved drugs can claim to treat or prevent disease. We have a government-created monopoly on disease treatment that blocks the public from learning about the benefits of vitamin D and other natural therapies. Until this changes, the epidemic of chronic disease will only get worse.
Action Alert! Tell the FDA and the CDC to tell the American public about the benefits of vitamin D for herpes, and copy Congress, which oversees these agencies. Please send your message immediately.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2HTK0h6 via Aloe for Health
ANH-USA staff underwent testing for glyphosate exposure, and the results were shocking! Action Alert!
Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide, is a toxic chemical that is becoming virtually ubiquitous in the modern world. Exposure to this chemical is associated with a number of health concerns, including cancer. A number of alarming reports also suggest that the chemical accumulates in the body, which can be of concern to those whose bodies cannot detoxify properly. ANH staff took a glyphosate urine test to see what kinds of exposures are possible given various lifestyle choices.
Human exposure to glyphosate has increased by 500% since the introduction of genetically modified crops. Glyphosate is traditionally sprayed on genetically modified soy, corn, canola, sorghum, alfalfa, sugar beets, and cotton but it is also sprayed—sometimes right before harvest—on a substantial portion of wheat and oats grown in the US. Glyphosate is also sprayed on a wide variety of non-GMO crops such as almonds, rice, cherries, avocados, and apples.
Humans can be exposed to glyphosate in any number of ways, including eating foods on which it was sprayed or living near agricultural areas or golf courses where the sprayed herbicide can drift and contaminate people’s homes. There are also concerns that glyphosate is contaminating some organic crops. Our own testing found that glyphosate residues were widely distributed in a variety of breakfast foods like bagels, cereals, and eggs. It’s contaminating our air and water: in the 2007 growing season, glyphosate (or its degradation product, aminomethylphosphonic acid) was found in 75 percent of air and rain samples in the Mississippi Delta agricultural region. Other testing found glyphosate in 13 of 21 drinking water samples.
Due to the myriad health problems linked to glyphosate exposure, including cancer, and the ubiquity of this chemical, ANH staff decided to get tested using Health Research Institute Laboratories’ urine test for glyphosate. Note that reference levels for glyphosate exposure in the European Union (EU) are significantly lower than in the US, presumably because many countries in the EU have banned genetically modified crops.
We received a wide range of results:
Staff member #1 had very low levels, which made sense because, as they put it, they “avoid wheat and most grains like the plague,” drink only filtered water, and eat all organic food. Our guess is that the only way they could have been exposed is through cross-contamination of organic crops, and perhaps they are excreting slower than normal because of known single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that compromise their detoxification pathways.
Staff member #2 had glyphosate levels above the European average but just below HRI Labs’ average. They report that they eat mostly organic food, though cheat often. They are not gluten free, but have been trying to limit consumption of wheat. They also live in a highly agricultural area, meaning that glyphosate sprayed on nearby farms could be drifting to residential areas, as we know to be the case elsewhere.
Staff member #3 had high levels of glyphosate. They report eating gluten/wheat and not so many organic foods—although they are starting now!
Staff member #4 had low levels of glyphosate. They are not strictly gluten or wheat free, but don’t eat many grains. They eat mostly organic, but also eat out at restaurants fairly often and tend not to pay close attention to whether an establishment offers organic food.
Staff member #5 had high levels of glyphosate. They are mostly grain free, mostly gluten and wheat free, and dairy free. They buy organic groceries, but also order a lot of takeout from restaurants. They don’t eat any processed foods.
Staff member #6 had low levels of glyphosate. They eat a good amount of organic foods, and almost no processed foods. They eat gluten and wheat, but almost always homemade, whole foods (for instance, they bake their own bread from organic flour).
Staff member #7 had high levels of glyphosate. They are mainly vegetarian but do eat some fish and (occasionally) turkey. They are not wheat or gluten free. They suspect their high level is associated with the breakfast foods they eat—bagels, oats, cereals, etc.
It’s hard to draw strong conclusions from such a small sample size. There could be many explanations for the presence or absence of glyphosate in an individual. Someone with a great detox system might be able to regularly eat wheat without accumulating high levels of glyphosate; someone with a somewhat compromised detox system might avoid all wheat products and eat all organic, but still have detectable glyphosate levels (like Staffer #1). This testing shows that it is a good idea to get a handle on our individual SNPs and put in place detoxification support if those pathways are compromised due to our genetics or lifestyle. Detoxification is a complicated process (this article has more information). For example, there are two phases of liver detoxification, and if phase 1 is accelerated while phase 2 is still impaired, the individual can become very sick. For these reasons, it is best done under the supervision of an integrative doctor (for help finding a practitioner in your area, use our Practitioner Finder).
As we often say at ANH, it all boils down to the individual—there is no one-size-fits all prescription.
The government’s failure to properly regulate the spread of herbicides, like Roundup, further underscores the need for consumers to take matters into their own hands and get tested (we used this one). But we shouldn’t stop holding federal officials accountable. To protect our health, and the health of future generations, we must ban glyphosate.
Action Alert! Write to the EPA and tell them to ban glyphosate, and copy Congress, which oversees the EPA. Please send your message immediately.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2HvjG9n via Aloe for Health
This week’s featured stories:
Search the mainstream medical journals, even search the Internet, and you won’t find this cheap, safe, and effective answer. Action Alert!
Half of teens and adults under the age of 50 are infected with the oral herpes virus, and one in eight has genital herpes. Despite the prevalence of herpes, public health authorities ignore a cheap, safe, and effective treatment for this common infection, and instead rely on expensive medicines that do not treat the underlying problem. This, unfortunately, is par for the course in our crony health system.
Everywhere you look, conventional medicine is singing the same tune: the Mayo Clinic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health all say that even though there is no cure for herpes, the best way to prevent or treat the symptoms is with antiviral medications like acyclovir (sold under the trade name Zovirax), famciclovir (Famvir), or valacyclovir (Valtrex). There is even a herpes vaccine in development—although the FDA has launched a criminal investigation into the (now deceased) lead researcher, who allegedly injected his experimental vaccine into human subjects without following safety protocols.
Conventional medicine recommends one of two basic approaches: episodic therapy (that is, taking the medicine whenever you experience an outbreak) or suppressive therapy (taking the medicine daily to minimize the chances of recurrent or future outbreaks). Suppressive therapy for herpes means huge profits for drug companies, particularly since these medicines are expensive—there is no generic version for Acyclovir as yet, and a one-month supply of Valtrex costs around $250. There is also the problem that these drugs tend to lead to drug-resistant superbugs.
But conventional medicine ignores the obvious natural prescription: get a vitamin D test! It is yet another example of a cheap, safe, and effective medicine that is effectively barred in today’s crony medical system. If it can’t make money for drug companies, the crony medical establishment will have nothing to do with it.
Vitamin D is a powerful natural antiviral, which is why we bang the drum about vitamin D therapy for colds and especially flu every chance we get. One study found that dialysis patients who receive vitamin D and iron were less likely to develop shingles, which is part of the herpes family of viruses; higher vitamin D levels corresponded with more antibodies to the herpes-simplex-2 virus.
Additionally, research from the University of Copenhagen shows that vitamin D activates the immune system by arming T-cells to fight off infections. Without vitamin D, the immune system’s T-cells remain dormant, offering little or no protection against invading microorganisms and viruses. But with vitamin D in the bloodstream, T-cells begin seeking out invaders, which are then destroyed and carried out of the body. You may recall the Japanese study we’ve mentioned previously which found that vitamin D was more effective than a vaccine in preventing flu, including pandemic flu. The report, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that school children taking vitamin D were 58 percent less likely to catch influenza A. By contrast, antiviral drugs such as oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza) reduced rates of infection by only 8 percent. Even vaccines had success rates significantly lower than the 58 percent achieved by vitamin D.
Our vitamin D–mediated immune response has been with us through more than 60 million years of pre-human and human evolutionary selection, as research from Ohio State demonstrates. Vitamin D is critical to our survival.
The problem is that a whopping 70% of the US population is not getting enough vitamin D, according to the Vitamin D Council.
According to John Cannell, MD, founder of the non-profit Vitamin D Council, “Current research has implicated vitamin D deficiency as a major factor in the pathology of at least seventeen varieties of cancer as well as heart disease, stroke, hypertension, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, depression, chronic pain, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, muscle wasting, birth defects, periodontal disease, and more.” All of this is in addition to viral and bacterial infections.
For anyone plagued by herpes, it’s essential that you are getting enough vitamin D. So please get your vitamin D level checked! If it is less than optimal—levels should be between 50–80 ng/ml, year-round—take a vitamin D supplement (be sure it’s D3—cholecalciferol), get your blood retested to verify that you’re taking the proper dosage, and get sufficient exposure to the sun. (Such exposure may not produce vitamin D in the winter, depending on where you live, or if you sunbathe too early or too late in the day.) Vitamin D works best when other cofactors are present, such as magnesium, vitamin K2, zinc, boron, and vitamin A.
Besides vitamin D, there are a number of other natural ways to increase the odds of avoiding herpes outbreaks:
Among natural treatments for active herpes lesions are vitamin C powder and propolis, a natural product found in beehives. The two can be combined. This is somewhat more realistic than the often-mentioned peppermint oil and tea tree oil because their pungent odor announces their presence—not something you want during a herpes eruption. Lemon balm oil also has some research behind it.
Why don’t our health agencies tell the public about vitamin D? It’s cheap—much cheaper than anti-viral drugs—and it works. The problem, as we’ve pointed out, is that vitamin D can’t be brought through the FDA’s expensive drug approval process; since it can’t be patented, it wouldn’t be worth the investment. In our broken system, only FDA-approved drugs can claim to treat or prevent disease. We have a government-created monopoly on disease treatment that blocks the public from learning about the benefits of vitamin D and other natural therapies. Until this changes, the epidemic of chronic disease will only get worse.
Action Alert! Tell the FDA and the CDC to tell the American public about the benefits of vitamin D for herpes, and copy Congress, which oversees these agencies. Please send your message immediately.
ANH-USA staff underwent testing for glyphosate exposure, and the results were shocking! Action Alert!
Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide, is a toxic chemical that is becoming virtually ubiquitous in the modern world. Exposure to this chemical is associated with a number of health concerns, including cancer. A number of alarming reports also suggest that the chemical accumulates in the body, which can be of concern to those whose bodies cannot detoxify properly. ANH staff took a glyphosate urine test to see what kinds of exposures are possible given various lifestyle choices.
Human exposure to glyphosate has increased by 500% since the introduction of genetically modified crops. Glyphosate is traditionally sprayed on genetically modified soy, corn, canola, sorghum, alfalfa, sugar beets, and cotton but it is also sprayed—sometimes right before harvest—on a substantial portion of wheat and oats grown in the US. Glyphosate is also sprayed on a wide variety of non-GMO crops such as almonds, rice, cherries, avocados, and apples.
Humans can be exposed to glyphosate in any number of ways, including eating foods on which it was sprayed or living near agricultural areas or golf courses where the sprayed herbicide can drift and contaminate people’s homes. There are also concerns that glyphosate is contaminating some organic crops. Our own testing found that glyphosate residues were widely distributed in a variety of breakfast foods like bagels, cereals, and eggs. It’s contaminating our air and water: in the 2007 growing season, glyphosate (or its degradation product, aminomethylphosphonic acid) was found in 75 percent of air and rain samples in the Mississippi Delta agricultural region. Other testing found glyphosate in 13 of 21 drinking water samples.
Due to the myriad health problems linked to glyphosate exposure, including cancer, and the ubiquity of this chemical, ANH staff decided to get tested using Health Research Institute Laboratories’ urine test for glyphosate. Note that reference levels for glyphosate exposure in the European Union (EU) are significantly lower than in the US, presumably because many countries in the EU have banned genetically modified crops.
We received a wide range of results:
Staff member #1 had very low levels, which made sense because, as they put it, they “avoid wheat and most grains like the plague,” drink only filtered water, and eat all organic food. Our guess is that the only way they could have been exposed is through cross-contamination of organic crops, and perhaps they are excreting slower than normal because of known single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that compromise their detoxification pathways.
Staff member #2 had glyphosate levels above the European average but just below HRI Labs’ average. They report that they eat mostly organic food, though cheat often. They are not gluten free, but have been trying to limit consumption of wheat. They also live in a highly agricultural area, meaning that glyphosate sprayed on nearby farms could be drifting to residential areas, as we know to be the case elsewhere.
Staff member #3 had high levels of glyphosate. They report eating gluten/wheat and not so many organic foods—although they are starting now!
Staff member #4 had low levels of glyphosate. They are not strictly gluten or wheat free, but don’t eat many grains. They eat mostly organic, but also eat out at restaurants fairly often and tend not to pay close attention to whether an establishment offers organic food.
Staff member #5 had high levels of glyphosate. They are mostly grain free, mostly gluten and wheat free, and dairy free. They buy organic groceries, but also order a lot of takeout from restaurants. They don’t eat any processed foods.
Staff member #6 had low levels of glyphosate. They eat a good amount of organic foods, and almost no processed foods. They eat gluten and wheat, but almost always homemade, whole foods (for instance, they bake their own bread from organic flour).
Staff member #7 had high levels of glyphosate. They are mainly vegetarian but do eat some fish and (occasionally) turkey. They are not wheat or gluten free. They suspect their high level is associated with the breakfast foods they eat—bagels, oats, cereals, etc.
It’s hard to draw strong conclusions from such a small sample size. There could be many explanations for the presence or absence of glyphosate in an individual. Someone with a great detox system might be able to regularly eat wheat without accumulating high levels of glyphosate; someone with a somewhat compromised detox system might avoid all wheat products and eat all organic, but still have detectable glyphosate levels (like Staffer #1). This testing shows that it is a good idea to get a handle on our individual SNPs and put in place detoxification support if those pathways are compromised due to our genetics or lifestyle. Detoxification is a complicated process (this article has more information). For example, there are two phases of liver detoxification, and if phase 1 is accelerated while phase 2 is still impaired, the individual can become very sick. For these reasons, it is best done under the supervision of an integrative doctor (for help finding a practitioner in your area, use our Practitioner Finder).
As we often say at ANH, it all boils down to the individual—there is no one-size-fits all prescription.
The government’s failure to properly regulate the spread of herbicides, like Roundup, further underscores the need for consumers to take matters into their own hands and get tested (we used this one). But we shouldn’t stop holding federal officials accountable. To protect our health, and the health of future generations, we must ban glyphosate.
Action Alert! Write to the EPA and tell them to ban glyphosate, and copy Congress, which oversees the EPA. Please send your message immediately.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2qXuHcG via Aloe for Health
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2Htmwjr via Aloe for Health
Including the natural treatments your doctor won’t tell you about.
Half of teens and adults under the age of 50 are infected with the oral herpes virus, and one in eight has genital herpes. Despite the prevalence of herpes, public health authorities ignore a cheap, safe, and effective treatment for this common infection, and instead rely on expensive medicines that do not treat the underlying problem. This, unfortunately, is par for the course in our crony health system.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2Ju2Po2 via Aloe for Health
ANH-USAIncluding the natural treatments your doctor won’t tell you about.
Half of teens and adults under the age of 50 are infected with the oral herpes virus, and one in eight has genital herpes. Despite the prevalence of herpes, public health authorities ignore a cheap, safe, and effective treatment for this common infection, and instead rely on expensive medicines that do not treat the underlying problem. This, unfortunately, is par for the course in our crony health system.
From the Washington Post:
Inside a South Carolina factory, in industrial vats that stand five stories high, batches of algae are carefully tended, kept warm and fed corn syrup. There the algae, known as Schizochytrium, multiply quickly. The payoff, which comes after processing, is a substance that resembles corn oil. It tastes faintly fishy.
Marketed as a nutritional enhancement, the oil is added to millions of cartons of organic milk from Horizon, one of the nation’s largest organic brands. Rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, the oil allows Horizon to advertise health benefits and charge a higher price.
Comment: When consumer buy organic products, they are likely doing so because they want food that is free of additives, chemicals, and other laboratory experiments. Unfortunately, Big Food, as we’ve argued for many years, uses the government’s “organic” program to take advantage of the premium that organic foods bring while lowering the threshold of what can carry the “organic” label. With Big Food’s coopting of the organic program, and the flood of fake organic grains into the US, can we really trust the integrity of the USDA’s organic seal any more?
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2INAGrV via Aloe for Health
From the Washington Post:
Inside a South Carolina factory, in industrial vats that stand five stories high, batches of algae are carefully tended, kept warm and fed corn syrup. There the algae, known as Schizochytrium, multiply quickly. The payoff, which comes after processing, is a substance that resembles corn oil. It tastes faintly fishy.
Marketed as a nutritional enhancement, the oil is added to millions of cartons of organic milk from Horizon, one of the nation’s largest organic brands. Rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, the oil allows Horizon to advertise health benefits and charge a higher price.
Comment: When consumer buy organic products, they are likely doing so because they want food that is free of additives, chemicals, and other laboratory experiments. Unfortunately, Big Food, as we’ve argued for many years, uses the government’s “organic” program to take advantage of the premium that organic foods bring while lowering the threshold of what can carry the “organic” label. With Big Food’s coopting of the organic program, and the flood of fake organic grains into the US, can we really trust the integrity of the USDA’s organic seal any more?
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) sought funding for an alcohol study—from the alcohol industry.
From the Washington Examiner:
Scientists and officials from the National Institutes of Health worked to solicit donations from the alcohol industry for a study they said would likely conclude that moderate drinking is healthy, according to a new report.
The report said that presentations by NIH officials gave the alcohol industry an opportunity to look at how the studies were being designed and to see who was conducting the investigation.
Comment: This is government cronyism at its finest, echoing our previous coverage of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s ties to Coca-Cola, and the USDA’s support of the biotech industry. More reasons that the government cannot be trusted when it comes to the latest science—especially science about what is and what is not healthy.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2qtDu5R via Aloe for Health
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) sought funding for an alcohol study—from the alcohol industry.
From the Washington Examiner:
Scientists and officials from the National Institutes of Health worked to solicit donations from the alcohol industry for a study they said would likely conclude that moderate drinking is healthy, according to a new report.
The report said that presentations by NIH officials gave the alcohol industry an opportunity to look at how the studies were being designed and to see who was conducting the investigation.
Comment: This is government cronyism at its finest, echoing our previous coverage of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s ties to Coca-Cola, and the USDA’s support of the biotech industry. More reasons that the government cannot be trusted when it comes to the latest science—especially science about what is and what is not healthy.
Don’t let FDA stifle free speech and suppress the scientific evidence that vitamin D helps prevent preterm births. Action Alert!
As we reported recently, Ocean Spray’s petition for a qualified health claim for cranberry products and reduced risk of urinary tract infections demonstrates the horrible track record FDA has in allowing free speech about the benefits of foods and supplements. The agency now has a chance to approve a health claim for vitamin D in reducing the risk of preterm births. Will the agency allow this information to be communicated to consumers, potentially saving thousands of lives, or will it once again protect drug industry monopolies by stifling free speech about cheap, safe, and effective food supplements?
The role of vitamin D in preventing preterm births is well established scientifically. Recently, the Medical University of South Carolina, in partnership with GrassrootsHealth, found that pregnant women who maintain vitamin D levels of 40-60 ng/ml experience a 60% reduction of preterm birth risk, with zero safety issues.
This information could alleviate a lot of suffering. In 2016, one in ten babies were born prematurely in the US, costing $12.7 billion annually and creating an increased risk of death, breathing and intestinal issues in the short-term, and potentially leading to long-term developmental delays. Vitamin D is an inexpensive and safe preventative method. To us, this seems like a no-brainer, but the FDA has fought tooth and nail against many legitimate health claims for food and food supplements. In our article last week on the qualified health claim for cranberries, we mentioned that currently approved claims for supplements have largely been the result of court victories over the FDA.
Our friends at the Organic & Natural Health Association (ONHA) have petitioned the FDA to allow a health claim for vitamin D describing its role in reducing preterm births. We hope the FDA will let the science speak for itself and grant ONHA’s petition to allow a health claim for vitamin D and preterm births—but we must hold the agency’s feet to the fire.
Action Alert! Write to the FDA and Congress in support of ONHA’s petition. Please send your message immediately.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2JE6lxc via Aloe for Health
A new study shows newborns injected with 17 times the allowable level of aluminum. Action Alert!
The peer-reviewed study demonstrates that aluminum doses in vaccines are based on efficacy—that is, spurring the body’s immune response—rather than safety. This means, according to the researchers, that on their first day of life, infants receive 17 times more aluminum than would be allowed if aluminum doses in vaccines were set according to a baby’s body weight. The researchers also contend that errors were made in establishing “safe” levels of aluminum exposure in humans, leading to dangerous levels of aluminum being injected into young children.
Another recent study found that autistic children have up to ten times more aluminum in their brains that what is considered safe in adults.
ANH-USA has been raising the alarm about aluminum in vaccines for a number of years. As the researchers note, safety testing proving aluminum adjuvants to be safe when injected into children has never been conducted. Established safety levels for aluminum exposure that are often referenced are based on ingested aluminum, of which only about 0.25% is absorbed, rather than injected aluminum, where almost all of it is absorbed over time—accumulating in various organs, including the brain. Animal studies have also demonstrated a link between repeated inoculation with aluminum-containing vaccines and severe neurobehavioral outcomes (restlessness, muscle tremors, loss of response to stimuli), the presence of aluminum in central nervous system tissue, and altered expression of certain genes in the brain.
Given the mounting research showing both the dangers of aluminum exposure and concerns about the safety of injecting young children with multiple aluminum-laden vaccines, it is imperative that parents are afforded the right to choose which vaccines are appropriate for their children. It’s also time for the FDA and the CDC to stop relying on mere belief that aluminum adjuvants are safe, and to conduct rigorous safety testing on these vaccines.
Action Alert! Write to the FDA, CDC, and Congress telling them of this new study and urging more study of aluminum adjuvants. Please send your message immediately.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2EE8uVP via Aloe for Health
Don’t let FDA stifle free speech and suppress the scientific evidence that vitamin D helps prevent preterm births. Action Alert!
As we reported recently, Ocean Spray’s petition for a qualified health claim for cranberry products and reduced risk of urinary tract infections demonstrates the horrible track record FDA has in allowing free speech about the benefits of foods and supplements. The agency now has a chance to approve a health claim for vitamin D in reducing the risk of preterm births. Will the agency allow this information to be communicated to consumers, potentially saving thousands of lives, or will it once again protect drug industry monopolies by stifling free speech about cheap, safe, and effective food supplements?
The role of vitamin D in preventing preterm births is well established scientifically. Recently, the Medical University of South Carolina, in partnership with GrassrootsHealth, found that pregnant women who maintain vitamin D levels of 40-60 ng/ml experience a 60% reduction of preterm birth risk, with zero safety issues.
This information could alleviate a lot of suffering. In 2016, one in ten babies were born prematurely in the US, costing $12.7 billion annually and creating an increased risk of death, breathing and intestinal issues in the short-term, and potentially leading to long-term developmental delays. Vitamin D is an inexpensive and safe preventative method. To us, this seems like a no-brainer, but the FDA has fought tooth and nail against many legitimate health claims for food and food supplements. In our article last week on the qualified health claim for cranberries, we mentioned that currently approved claims for supplements have largely been the result of court victories over the FDA.
Our friends at the Organic & Natural Health Association (ONHA) have petitioned the FDA to allow a health claim for vitamin D describing its role in reducing preterm births. We hope the FDA will let the science speak for itself and grant ONHA’s petition to allow a health claim for vitamin D and preterm births—but we must hold the agency’s feet to the fire.
Action Alert! Write to the FDA and Congress in support of ONHA’s petition. Please send your message immediately.
A new study shows newborns injected with 17 times the allowable level of aluminum. Action Alert!
The peer-reviewed study demonstrates that aluminum doses in vaccines are based on efficacy—that is, spurring the body’s immune response—rather than safety. This means, according to the researchers, that on their first day of life, infants receive 17 times more aluminum than would be allowed if aluminum doses in vaccines were set according to a baby’s body weight. The researchers also contend that errors were made in establishing “safe” levels of aluminum exposure in humans, leading to dangerous levels of aluminum being injected into young children.
Another recent study found that autistic children have up to ten times more aluminum in their brains that what is considered safe in adults.
ANH-USA has been raising the alarm about aluminum in vaccines for a number of years. As the researchers note, safety testing proving aluminum adjuvants to be safe when injected into children has never been conducted. Established safety levels for aluminum exposure that are often referenced are based on ingested aluminum, of which only about 0.25% is absorbed, rather than injected aluminum, where almost all of it is absorbed over time—accumulating in various organs, including the brain. Animal studies have also demonstrated a link between repeated inoculation with aluminum-containing vaccines and severe neurobehavioral outcomes (restlessness, muscle tremors, loss of response to stimuli), the presence of aluminum in central nervous system tissue, and altered expression of certain genes in the brain.
Given the mounting research showing both the dangers of aluminum exposure and concerns about the safety of injecting young children with multiple aluminum-laden vaccines, it is imperative that parents are afforded the right to choose which vaccines are appropriate for their children. It’s also time for the FDA and the CDC to stop relying on mere belief that aluminum adjuvants are safe, and to conduct rigorous safety testing on these vaccines.
Action Alert! Write to the FDA, CDC, and Congress telling them of this new study and urging more study of aluminum adjuvants. Please send your message immediately.
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Q: I just found out I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). I go from diarrhea to constipation and it’s been happening for the last month. It’s hard to leave the house!
My doctor said to take Imodium when it happens, but I don’t want to live like that. Any suggestions?
A: Unfortunately, Imodium is only taking care of the symptom of diarrhea—not the cause of your IBS.
The prevalence of IBS has increased dramatically over the last decade. There can be many causes of IBS. Here are just a few:
Candida overgrowth: Poor diet, stress and use of antibiotics causes the overgrowth of candida in the gut. Candida normally resides in the GI tract but it’s the overgrowth that’s problematic. Often gas, bloating, and alternating diarrhea with constipation are the main symptoms.
Antibiotics also wipe out beneficial bacteria which is part of our microbiome. Probiotics are necessary to reinoculate the gut with good bacteria during and after the use of antibiotics. A qualified practitioner can advise you on their best use for your personal situation.
Dysbiosis/SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth): Antibiotic use can cause further dysbiosis in the gut but more and more people are being diagnosed with acid reflux (GERD) and put on acid blockers and inhibitors such as Prilosec, Nexium and Dexilant. These drugs are only intended for short term use (a few weeks) but doctors are increasingly putting their patients on them indefinitely to manage their GERD.
The long term use of these drugs causes pH changes farther down in the gut that favor the growth of undesirable bacteria. Once they flourish they can populate the large intestine and cause symptoms of IBS.
Food allergies/intolerances: Eating foods that you’re allergic to or otherwise intolerant of can cause your gut to be “irritable.” Proper testing and elimination of problematic foods will bring much relief to those suffering with IBS.
Your best bet is to go to an integrative practitioner who can search for the root cause of your IBS so you can cure it with the right therapies.You can listen to an in-depth Intelligent Medicine podcast with Dr. Hoffman about IBS here.
To your health!
Leyla Muedin, MS, RD, CDN
Email your questions to RadioProgram@aol.com.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2EAF9vt via Aloe for Health
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2v8aiHi via Aloe for Health
Q: I just found out I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). I go from diarrhea to constipation and it’s been happening for the last month. It’s hard to leave the house!
My doctor said to take Imodium when it happens, but I don’t want to live like that. Any suggestions?
A: Unfortunately, Imodium is only taking care of the symptom of diarrhea—not the cause of your IBS.
The prevalence of IBS has increased dramatically over the last decade. There can be many causes of IBS. Here are just a few:
Candida overgrowth: Poor diet, stress and use of antibiotics causes the overgrowth of candida in the gut. Candida normally resides in the GI tract but it’s the overgrowth that’s problematic. Often gas, bloating, and alternating diarrhea with constipation are the main symptoms.
Antibiotics also wipe out beneficial bacteria which is part of our microbiome. Probiotics are necessary to reinoculate the gut with good bacteria during and after the use of antibiotics. A qualified practitioner can advise you on their best use for your personal situation.
Dysbiosis/SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth): Antibiotic use can cause further dysbiosis in the gut but more and more people are being diagnosed with acid reflux (GERD) and put on acid blockers and inhibitors such as Prilosec, Nexium and Dexilant. These drugs are only intended for short term use (a few weeks) but doctors are increasingly putting their patients on them indefinitely to manage their GERD.
The long term use of these drugs causes pH changes farther down in the gut that favor the growth of undesirable bacteria. Once they flourish they can populate the large intestine and cause symptoms of IBS.
Food allergies/intolerances: Eating foods that you’re allergic to or otherwise intolerant of can cause your gut to be “irritable.” Proper testing and elimination of problematic foods will bring much relief to those suffering with IBS.
Your best bet is to go to an integrative practitioner who can search for the root cause of your IBS so you can cure it with the right therapies.You can listen to an in-depth Intelligent Medicine podcast with Dr. Hoffman about IBS here.
To your health!
Leyla Muedin, MS, RD, CDN
Email your questions to RadioProgram@aol.com.
Created by ANH-International.
from The Alliance for Natural Health https://ift.tt/2ql6OMM via Aloe for Health
Created by ANH-International.
An FDA supplement policy infringes on free speech and makes it more difficult to study the health benefits of food and food supplements. Help us fight back! Action Alert!
For years, ANH has fought against the federal government’s censorship of free speech about the benefits of food and supplements. One important battle in that war is to stop the FDA from forcing researchers who are studying nutrients to submit investigational new drug (IND) applications, which are costly and burdensome, have stifled important research about the health benefits of nutrients, and in fact can end up turning those nutrients into drugs.
In 2014, the FDA released a guidance that, under certain conditions, required those studying the benefits of supplements to meet the same standards as new drugs. This policy has made it exponentially more difficult to study the many health benefits of vitamins and nutrients.
ANH staff recently met with the FDA to discuss a variety of issues, this flawed guidance among them. Thanks to the grassroots activism of ANH members, FDA staff showed a willingness to re-examine this policy in light of the information ANH presented. To drive the point home, ANH submitted a Citizen’s Petition explaining in detail FDA’s flawed reasoning and requesting the policy be modified.
Here’s how this policy works. If a researcher—be it an academic working at a university or a supplement company—is studying a nutrient for its potential to treat or prevent a disease, an IND application must be filed. This is the process that drug companies must go through to develop new drugs.
Companies are required to submit an IND application if their research could support new health claims or the expansion of existing health claims. Historically, INDs haven’t been required for nutrients or food products because research does not speak to the intended use of the food product.
Requiring IND applications to study supplements is ludicrous. By definition, supplements are not drugs. IND regulations were created as part of the drug approval process, not as a way to regulate the clinical study of foods and dietary supplements. In the IND guidance, FDA explains that an IND is needed if the research involves a drug. As the FDA has made painfully clear in other areas, supplements are not drugs—so IND regulations should not apply to them.
Further, a supplement company may need to conduct a study that investigates a supplement’s ability to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent a disease in order to substantiate a legal dietary supplement claim, like a structure/function claim (e.g. “Helps maintain cholesterol levels already within the normal range”). Yet if such a study conducted under an IND were to be published, according to the letter of the FDA’s policy, the supplement can become a drug. That’s right: by doing the necessary legwork to substantiate a legal dietary supplement claim, the supplement being studied can be turned into a drug if those studies are published, according to the FDA.
This does not apply to dietary supplements and foods “marketed in or as dietary supplements” before October 1994, and there is an exception made for those that came into the market afterwards—as long as the FDA’s “new dietary ingredient” (NDI) protocols have been followed. The problem is that the FDA hasn’t told supplement companies how to comply with these rules yet—the supplement industry has in fact been waiting for 24 years (and counting) for direction from the FDA on this issue.
Not only has the FDA’s IND policy chilled research on food and supplements; it has provided a back channel by which supplements can be turned into drugs. With your help, we can make the FDA change this guidance.
Action Alert! Send a message to the FDA supporting ANH’s Citizen’s Petition. Please send your message immediately.
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FDA’s treatment of fruit illustrates what scientific censorship looks like. Action Alert!
The FDA is currently considering a petition from Ocean Spray, the juice company, to allow a qualified health claim that cranberries can reduce the risk of recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs) in healthy women. Denying free speech about the benefits of food and supplements bolsters Big Pharma’s monopoly over medicine—natural products cannot compete on an unlevel playing field.
Ocean Spray’s petition points to several randomized clinical trials (RCTs)—what the FDA considers the “gold standard” of scientific evidence—that support their claim that cranberry products can help with UTIs. Recall that the FTC—most likely at the behest of the FDA—tried to stop POM Wonderful from making claims about its pomegranate juice unless it had two RCTs to back them up. Ocean Spray’s petition indicates three RCTs that support their claim.
A qualified health claim is a claim that communicates a relationship between a substance and a disease or health condition. These claims must be accompanied by a disclaimer or qualifying language to accurately covey to the consumer the level of scientific evidence supporting the claim. By definition, qualified health claims do not need to meet the same scientific standard as traditional health claims, which require “significant scientific agreement” that the claim is truthful and not misleading. The bar for a qualified health claim is lower to reflect that the science is not as conclusive as full-scale drug trials (which themselves are often far from conclusive). A notable example is the qualified health claim for folate supplements and their role in preventing neural tube defects in infants, as well as omega-3 fatty acids reducing the risk of heart disease.
With not one, not two, but three RCTs behind their claim, one would think that Ocean Spray would have no trouble meeting the evidentiary bar for a qualified health claim.
Yet we’ve seen how this scenario can play out. The FDA previously blocked walnut and cherry growers from telling consumers about the health benefits of those foods, because only FDA-approved drugs can claim to “prevent, treat, cure, or mitigate a disease.” Diamond Foods, a walnut company, listed some of the health benefits of walnuts on their site, backed up by scientific studies—yet the FDA ignored the science and sent them a warning letter charging that this information turned walnuts into unapproved drugs. The FDA also swooped in on cherry growers even though no health claims were being made—cherry companies dared to link to some of the scientifically-supported health benefits of these foods from their websites. For example, when cherry companies linked to peer-reviewed research that showed tart cherries may help with gout, arthritis, and inflammation, the FDA sent warning letters threatening regulatory action if they did not remove the link from their websites. Telling the truth about the benefits of tart cherries and walnuts, in the FDA’s twisted thinking, turned those foods into misbranded, and therefore illegal, drugs subject to raids, seizures, and criminal prosecution. Some companies were even forced to sign consent decrees, violation of which came with stiff financial penalties–$1,000 per violation per day, in addition to paying the cost of FDA inspections, including gas mileage and nearly $100 an hour for each FDA employee involved.
Qualified health claims were established by the landmark decision of Pearson v. Shalala, of which ANH was a co-plaintiff. Qualified health claims are critical in communicating important health benefits of natural foods and dietary supplements otherwise forbidden by the FDA. Unfortunately, the FDA has consistently limited the information available to consumers about the real health benefits of food and supplements and routinely rejects qualified health claims: what qualified health claims do exist have been won largely through legal challenges to the FDA on the part of ANH-USA and allies in the natural health community. In fact, qualified health claims for folate/neural tube defects, B-vitamins/vascular disease, omega-3’s/heart disease, vitamin C/gastric cancer, vitamin E/bladder cancer, and selenium/prostate, colon, bladder, and thyroid cancer, were all the result of court victories over the FDA of which ANH-USA was a plaintiff.
Even if there is some disagreement about the evidence supporting Ocean Spray’s claim, the very nature of a qualified health claim is that it is “qualified” to communicate to consumers that the product is not a drug, but that there is strong evidence that it can help with a particular condition. Denying consumers this knowledge serves no one but the drug industry. We must not let the FDA once again prevent free speech about the benefits of natural foods.
Denying legal qualified health claims is yet another way that the federal government protects Big Pharma’s monopoly over medicine and elbows out cheap, safe, and effective natural medicines. If consumers aren’t allowed to learn of the benefits of healthy foods and supplements, these products cannot compete with pharmaceutical drugs—which is just the way the FDA wants it. We can’t let them get away with it.
Action Alert! Write to the FDA and tell them to grant Ocean Spray’s petition for a qualified health claim on cranberry juice. Please send your message immediately.
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FDA wants to act as your physician and regulate your access to customized medications. Action Alert!
With its new guidance, the FDA is further tightening the screws on pharmacies that produce customized medications for individual patients. The agency is inserting itself into the role of “doctor” by deciding for patients whether there is a “clinical need” for certain medicines to be made at pharmacies. The reason? We believe they want to protect the monopoly of FDA-approved drugs.
Since the passage of the Drug Quality and Security Act (DQSA) in 2013, ANH-USA has been closely following the FDA’s implementation of the law—which, by and large, has been a non-stop assault against compounding pharmacies—pharmacies that produce customized medicines for individual patients, such as intravenous vitamin drips and bioidentical hormones, including estriol. We’ve been concerned mostly with “traditional” (503A) pharmacies, but DQSA created a second category called “outsourcing” (503B) pharmacies. Outsourcing pharmacies are generally larger manufacturing facilities and will only make medicines that appear on a pre-approved list by the FDA. (By contrast, “traditional” pharmacies can compound anything that either 1) has a USP monograph, 2) is a component of an approved drug, or 3) appears on a pre-approved list from the FDA.)
In its latest guidance, the FDA is signaling that it will further restrict the medicines that can be made at outsourcing pharmacies by adopting a stringent definition of “clinical need” if there is already an FDA-approved drug for a given condition. This is important for sensitive patient populations, such as autistic children who need their drugs allergen free or in a liquid, as opposed to pill, form. For example, an FDA-approved drug may contain peanut oil, so it would be inappropriate for patients with peanut allergies, and thus there should be a clinical need to compound that substance in a modified form, without the peanut oil. But if an FDA-sanctioned clinical need cannot be demonstrated according to their new criteria, the variation needed for patients with peanut allergies won’t make it to the preapproved list, and thus won’t be available for those who need it.
The very idea that the FDA has the expertise to decide every patient’s “clinical need” is ludicrous—these are decisions that should be left up to doctors and their patients. It also undermines consumer choice—if a patient prefers an alternative dosage form out of comfort or convenience, that should be enough, even if there isn’t necessarily an FDA-approved “clinical need.”
This guidance, and the FDA’s entire treatment of customized natural medicines to this point, demonstrate to us that patients and consumers are not the agency’s top priority—rather, it’s protecting Big Pharma’s monopoly over medicine. The guidance admits as much. It says, “compounding a drug product from a bulk drug substance that is a component of an FDA approved drug when there is no clinical need to do so…undermines the drug approval process (emphasis added).”
We need to send a message to the FDA that patients will stand up to these attacks against customized medicines.
Action Alert! Write to the FDA and tell them that the bar set for “clinical need” in the new guidance will undercut patient health and consumer choice. Please send your message immediately.
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