Feverfew Extract for Leukemia
August 31, 2009
Scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center have found that an extract of Feverfew kills malignant stem cells like no other single therapy previously tested. Particularly exciting is the fact that this Feverfew extract is the first agent known to destroy myeloid leukemia at the level of the stem cells. An increasing number of scientists believe that unless cancer is attacked at this level, it can rarely be controlled, much less cured.
Parthenolide, a chemical derived from the feverfew plant, is the active agent which destroys the myeloid leukemia (AML) cells while leaving normal bone marrow cells relatively unscathed. Parthenolide agent was found to be much more specific to leukemia cells than the standard chemotherapy drug Ara-C.
The US National Cancer Institute is sufficiently excited by this work to have accepted it into the rapid access program, which aims to move experimental drugs from the laboratory to human clinical trials as quickly as possible.
Topics: Health News
Future Fathers and Vitamin C
August 31, 2009
Men planning to father a child should be aware that consuming adequate levels of vitamin C could mean the difference between healthy offspring and birth defects. Led by Dr. Bruce Ames, researchers at the University of California at Berkeley found that even a slight lack of vitamin C can lead to damaged sperm, increasing the chances of abnormality. In the study, 10 healthy men were deliberately switched from diets high in vitamin C (250 milligrams a day) to diets very low in the vitamin (5 milligrams a day). After the switch, the level of genetic damage in sperm jumped 91 percent.
Such damaged sperm, the researchers explain, could produce children with birth defects and genetic diseases, including leukemia, kidney disease, and brain cancer. Restoring vitamin C in the diet reversed the damage. Based on the study, it appears that future fathers should ensure an intake of at least 250 milligrams of vitamin C per day at the time of conception.
Topics: Health News
Space Available in the Nedley 10-day Residential Depression Recovery Program
March 23, 2009
There are still a few places available in the upcoming Nedley 10-day Residential Depression Recovery Program. Personal consultation with Dr. Nedley, full laboratory services, hydrotherapy, massage, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy are just a few of the benefits you’ll receive by attending this highly successful program.
This session will be held at the Lifestyle Center of America in Sulphur, Oklahoma. Call 1-888-778-4445 today for more information!
Dr. Nedley’s 10-day Residential Depression Recovery Program is scheduled for April 17-27 at the Lifestyle Center of America in Sulphur, Oklahoma. You will enjoy 10 days away from your stressful everyday surroundings in a calm, comfortable environment.
The program includes:
* Personalized consultation with Dr. Nedley
* Comprehensive health history review
* Full laboratory services
* Hydrotherapy
* Massage treatments
* Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
* Daily interactive presentations
* Aerobic conditioning
* Flexibility training
* Delicious healthy meals
Learn how to:
* Understand nutritional secrets to improve mood
* Recognize and correct distorted thoughts
* Manage stress
* Overcome addictions
* Deal with loss
* Treat depression through lifestyle changes
* Improve spiritual health
Dr. Nedley has researched the epidemic of depression sweeping society. He has discovered that one in three patients seeking medical help is plagued by depression. Through his ongoing study of the later scientific research related to diseases of the mind, combined with years of clinical experience, Dr. Nedley committed himself to finding the root causes of depression rather than just anesthetizing the symptoms with medicine.
In the Nedley Depression Recovery Program, Dr. Nedley provides you with an insightful and in-depth comprehension of your body’s physical, mental, and spiritual functions.
You will enjoy personal one-on-one consultations with Dr. Nedley and benefit from his years of clinical experience designing individualized depression recovery plans for his patients. He will help you create a recovery plan tailored to heal the specific causes of your depression.
Dr. Neil Nedley is a full time physician who practices acute internal care medicine. He is the author of the Nedley Depression Recovery Program, the widely acclaimed and successful DVD series. He is an experienced national and international speaker.
You will be supported, encouraged and cared for by a team of highly qualified lifestyle medicine experts who are totally dedicated to discovering and healing the root causes of your depression.
Results that Matter
At the conclusion of the program, 97% of the participants reported significant improvements in their depression with 54% reporting no depression at all. Four months after the program, participants reported additional reduction of symptoms in both depression and anxiety. In the last three programs, all depressed participants significantly improved in 10 days.
What to do Next Many people do not want to admit they are suffering from depression. The first step is to safely admit the truth to yourself, because there is hope.
For information and to register, call during business hours Monday-Thursday 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., or Friday 9 a.m. - 12 noon.
Topics: Health News
Eating Well on a Tight Budget by Erica Nedley
March 23, 2009
With no end in sight to the global financial crisis, many families are finding that now is a good time to bring back the basics (e.g. nutritious and affordable foods that were staples during the depression, but have been all but forgotten during more affluent times).
You don’t have to eat stone soup or junk food to save money. By turning to some Depression-era standbys, however, you may also be able to carve a significant chunk out of your grocery budget. In addition to a lower food bill, these tried-and-true foods also provide the benefit of improved health—and a reduction in girth.
Cheap, empty-calorie foods are not the answer. The key is to look for the most healthy nutrients (as opposed to the most calories) for the dollar. Fortunately, there are many foods that are affordable, nutrient-rich, and not loaded with empty calories.
Value-Added Foods
So which foods provide the best “nutrient bang” for your buck? A short list would include beans, tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, kale, collards, onions, bananas, apples, peanut butter, and almonds, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread, and brown rice. Frozen foods to consider include corn, broccoli, and peas.
Contrary to popular opinion, fruits and vegetables do not have to be fresh to be nutritious. While fresh food is certainly wonderful, canned and frozen foods generally cost loss and require less preparation. People tend to waste less when using canned and frozen foods. Also, because such foods are harvested at the peak of ripeness (as opposed to fresh fruits and vegetables which are often harvested early), they may even contain more nutrient value. This is not to recommend canned or frozen over fresh foods—only to say, don’t rule them out as less healthy because they’re not fresh.
Though often maligned as salty or high in fat, potatoes are actually one of the “good guys” when it comes to high nutrient, inexpensive, and versatile foods. Potatoes can be prepared in many delicious ways with little or no added fat, and they are nutritious. For example, one potato alone can provide 35% of the daily allowance for Vitamin C, 20% of Vitamin B6, 6% of the daily protein allowance, and 10% of niacin, iron, and copper.
Beans are another low-cost, nutritional powerhouse that is rich in nutrients, low in fat, and richer in protein than any other plant-based food. Cabbage, collards, and kale are other nutrient-dense foods that are low in sodium, calories, and price. In terms of fruit, it’s hard to beat apples and bananas for foods that are economical, versatile, and nutritious. Ranging from snacks to smoothies, there are many great ways to prepare these fruits as well.
Other budget-minded tips include:
• selecting less expensive store brands of canned and frozen produce
• cooking in batches, then freezing some ahead
• whipping up main-dish soups and stews for filling yet low-calorie meals (a crockpot or slow cooker can be a great help in this regard).
In a study observing of families of overweight children at the State University of New York at Buffalo, researchers found that basing the family diet on low-calorie, high-nutrient foods provided a double benefit: improving the health of the entire family and reducing the amount spent on food. While no one wants to go hungry during lean economic times, there are ways to be satisfied, healthy, and budget-conscious—all at the same time.
Topics: Health News
Exercise: Some is Good, but More is Better
March 23, 2009
A recent study emphasizing the value of relatively limited amounts of exercise for sedentary Americans should not be misinterpreted to mean that small amounts of exercise are adequate for maintaining good health.
Findings by British researchers, published in the journal BioMed Central Endocrine Disorders, suggests that those who are unable to meet governmental guidelines calling for 2-3 hours of moderate to vigorous exercise per week can benefit from small amounts of activity.
The researchers, led by James Timmons at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, reported that just seven minutes of exercise each week helped a group of 16 men in their early twenties control insulin levels. Study participants, who were relatively unfit but otherwise healthy, rode exercise bicycles in 30-second spurts four times daily, two times per week.
At the end of a two-week period, the men’s bodies showed a 23% improvement in ability to effectively use insulin to clear glucose from the blood stream. The positive effect lasted up to 10 days from the last round of exercise. Other important benefits of exercise, such as weight control or lower blood pressure, were not considered in the study.
There certainly are benefits to be derived from even short spurts of physical activity, and interval training is something I do recommend. While even small amounts of exercise may have a beneficial effect, however, there is much more to be gained from an active lifestyle incorporating generous amounts of movement into the daily routine.
Topics: Health News
Heart Attack Victims Need to Start—and Keep—Exercising
March 23, 2009
While starting an exercise program is important to any heart attack victim, the real key is not only to start, but to keep exercising on a regular basis. So say a team of Swiss researchers, who report that long-term, continued physical activity is an important factor in preventing a second heart attack.
In an effort to gauge the effects of different types of exercise, and measure results when the exercisers ceased participating in regular physical activity, a Swiss team of researchers observed 209 heart attack survivors. Study participants were assigned to receive training in aerobic exercise, resistance workouts, a combination of the two, or no exercise at all.
Four weeks into the study, the researchers found blood vessel function to be improved in the three groups of exercisers, regardless of exercise type. As expected, there were no improvements in the control group who didn’t work out.
Researchers then requested some of the exercise group participants to stop physical activity. Within a month, all the positive benefits of working out had vanished.
This study, which was performed by the Clinique Valmont-Genolier in Montreux, provides just one more example of why exercise (such as gardening), when made a way of life, is so beneficial.
Topics: Health News
Erica’s Kitchen - a recipe for garden vegetables
March 23, 2009
2 c. frozen peas
1 1/2 c. white sauce (see recipe below)
Topics: Healthy Recipes
Broccoli Sprouts and Other Cruciferous Vegetables May Prevent Respiratory Inflammation
March 23, 2009
Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), report that sulforaphane may help reduce the risk of respiratory inflammation that leads to such chronic diseases as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. In the study, researchers tested the upper airways of 65 participants, some of whom were fed escalating doses of broccoli or alfalfa sprouts for three days (the alfalfa sprouts served as a placebo). At the end of the three days, participants with the highest dose of broccoli sprouts were found to have up to three times as many antioxidant enzymes (which help protect against environmental pollutants) in their upper airway cells, compared to baseline.
In a UCLA press release, the researchers reported that they “found significant increases of antioxidant enzymes at broccoli sprout doses of 100 grams and higher, compared with the placebo group. The maximum broccoli sprout dosage of 200 grams generated a 101-percent increase of an antioxidant enzyme called GSTP1 and a 199-percent increase of another key enzyme called NQO1.”
Other cruciferous vegetables containing sulforaphane include cabbage, cauliflower, kale, and collards.(1)
The take-away point for asthma sufferers and others struggling with respiratory challenges: eating your cruciferous vegetables and sprouts is more important than ever.
(1) Riedl MA, Saxon A, Diaz-Sanchez D. Oral sulforamphane increases Phase II antioxidant enzymesin the human upper airway. Clin Immunol. 209;130:244-251.
Topics: Health News
Gardening Grows More than Flowers and Food
March 23, 2009
Garden-based nutrition-education programs for youth are gaining in popularity, and with good reason. Many see gardening as a promising strategy for encouraging young people to increase their appetites for fruits and vegetables. A review of eleven scientific studies published between 1990 and 2007 found that garden-based nutrition intervention programs may have the potential to promote increased fruit and vegetable intake among youth and increased willingness to taste fruits and vegetables among younger children.
Getting youngsters to eat what they grow is only one of the benefits attributed to the gardening programs springing up around the country. Leaders of programs such as the “Edible Schoolyard” in California and “National Farm-to-School Program” report positive benefit in a wide range of characteristics among youth, including improved environmental attitudes, community spirit, social skills, self-confidence, leadership skills, volunteerism, motor skills, scholastic achievement, and nutritional attitudes.(1)
While the benefits of gardening extend across all age spectrums, recent studies have also highlighted the positive impact of gardening on seniors. Researchers at Kansas State University, who found earlier that gardening results in improvements in mental health and depression, now report that gardening can fulfill the daily recommendation for exercise prescribed by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). Results of this more recent study were published in the doctoral dissertation of Sin-Ae Park (entitled “Gardening as a physical activity for health in older adults”).
The researchers, who studied 14 gardeners aged 63-86 years, took measurements of the gardener’s heart rates, oxygen intake and energy expenditure. Participants in the study also kept weekly logs of their gardening activity. At the conclusion of the study, the Kansas State researchers reported that gardening is an excellent way for older adults to meet the physical activity recommendations set forth by both the CDC and ACSM. The researchers also found that senior gardeners had better hand and other physical functions than non-gardeners. Furthermore, gardening was found to be a predictor for leading a physically active lifestyle and high life satisfaction in older adults.
The usefulness of gardening as a health-promoting and/or teaching tool was promoted in the 1800’s by well-known author Ellen White, who wrote that “as a rule, the exercise most beneficial to the youth will be found in useful employment. The little child finds both diversion and development in play; and his sports should be such as to promote not only physical, but mental and spiritual growth. As he gains strength and intelligence, the best recreation will be found in some line of effort that is useful. That which trains the hand to helpfulness, and teaches the young to bear their share of life’s burdens, is most effective in promoting the growth of mind and character.”
(1) Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2009 Feb;109(2):273-80
(2) Ellen White, Education, page 214, 215.
Topics: Health News
The Upside to the Downside
December 5, 2008
The global financial crisis has impacted Russia so greatly that Russians are dramatically decreasing their personal alcohol consumption simply because they have much less disposable income. As a result, factories are producing the “Russian national drink”, vodka, much faster than they can sell it. Stockpiles of vodka are 6 times higher than they were this time last year. Even a 15% decrease in production during October 2008 did nothing to “stem the tide” of excess vodka inventory.
Russian fatalities related to alcohol poisoning have also steadily declined, confirming scientific evidence that physical health improves during tough economic times. As a general rule, people tend to eat at home more and consume healthier meals during periods of financial hardship. Smoking, illicit drug use, and obesity also decrease during economic downturns. For every 1% increase in unemployment rate, deaths from heart disease decrease by 0.75%. In the United States, that translates into 3009 fewer heart disease deaths per year for every percent rise in unemployment.
(Robert Stuart, Psychosomatic Medicine, Oct. 2008.)
Topics: Health News
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