Alternative Health News November 13, 2007

A compound in green tea, EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate), works as well in moderately diabetic mice as GlaxoSmithKline’s diabetes drug Avandia, according to researchers from Sweden’s Karolinska Institute.

In the study, 5-week-old moderately diabetic and severely diabetic mice were fed EGCG or given Avandia. After five and 10 weeks of treatment, the blood sugar and insulin levels of the mice were tested.

Moderately diabetic mice did just as well on the green tea extract as they did on Avandia. Severely diabetic mice did not benefit as much from EGCG.

Researchers said the EGCG, though less potent than Avandia, “exerted changes that were similarly beneficial.”

Upon examining the mice’s pancreases at the end of the study, the researchers found that EGCG preserved insulin-producing tissue and limited damage that could worsen diabetes.

The results suggest that green tea extract supplements may also help treat diabetes in humans.

Worldwide, more than 240 million people have diabetes, and the number may reach 380 million within two decades, according to the International Diabetes Federation.

European Association for the Study of Diabetes meeting in Amsterdam, Netherlands September 19, 2007

The China Post September 21, 2007

To read the full article, follow this link :

Green Tea -- Beats Avandia for Diabetes, and No Deadly Side Effects by Dr. Mercola - October 13, 2007

High blood cholesterol is known to contribute to atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, which in turn increases your risk of heart attack and stroke. Now, researchers from the Saint Louis School of Medicine have found out how it does this.

The researchers found, using an animal model, that cholesterol limits the activity of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta), a key protective protein that protects your heart’s aorta and other vessels from damage caused by hypertension, high cholesterol, and other factors.

Cholesterol suppresses the responsiveness of cardiovascular cells to TGF-beta, which allows atherosclerosis to develop.

Atherosclerosis damages and narrows arteries of your heart and other tissues, which prevents blood from pumping through properly. This increases your risk of heart attack and stroke.

The findings also suggest a possible mechanism by which people with high cholesterol are at an increased risk for other diseases such as cancer. TGF-beta is a known tumor suppressor, and when its protective effects become limited by high cholesterol, it could increase your risk of certain cancers.

The researchers hope their findings will lead to the development of new drug therapies to treat or prevent atherosclerosis.

Journal of Cell Science September 18, 2007

Science Daily September 21, 2007

To read the full article, follow this link :

 Here's How Cholesterol Damages Your Heart by Dr. Mercola - October 13, 2007

Gluten Intolerance, also known as Celiac Disease, was once thought to be a rare genetic disorder until 2003 when it was discovered that it is, indeed, quite common. Where once gluten intolerance was thought to affect 1 in 4000 people it is now thought to affect 1 in 133 and researchers expect that number to drop even lower. Yet, even with this new discovery many people in America are going undiagnosed.

Celiac disease is an inherited disease of the digestive system that damages the villi in the small intestine causing chronic inflammation rendering it unable to digest foods. The villi enables food digestion. The damage to the villi is caused by the protein gluten found in the following grains: wheat, rye, barely. Some gluten intolerant people are also sensitive to oats and millet. Many with gluten sensitivity are also allergic to milk.

When people with celiac disease eat grains that contain gluten their immune system responds by damaging the small intestine which, over time, causes malnutrition due to malabsorption of nutrients. Malabsorption can cause someone to appear anorexic, but also, obese.

To read the full article, follow this link :

Is Gluten From Grains Making You Sick? by NewsTarget - October 15, 2007

How many overweight wild antelope have you ever seen? What about morbidly obese zebras waddling around the savannah? Wild animals don’t deal with overweight or obesity issues. Wild animals don’t usually eat cooked or processed foods. They eat raw foods, in their natural state and maintain ideal body weight. The human body is designed to run on the clean fuel of raw foods too, just like all the other animals. Through our experiments with cooking and processing foods however, we have moved ever further away from simplicity, towards the so-called ‘Franken-foods’ and we pay for it with our health. Our addictions to processed starches, refined sugars and greasy foods lead to widespread obesity, which we then try to ‘fix’ with yet more processed, chemical pills, powders and packet ‘diet’ foods.

The majority of people in the UK and USA are dealing with overweight or obesity issues. The consequences are enormous – from increased illness and medical costs, to ‘lost’ work days, family tensions and more. The obesity epidemic infiltrates all aspects of life. Not surprisingly then, the weight loss market is one of the largest industries in the world and growing constantly. Bombarded with slimming plans, pills, powders, and pre-packaged, processed diet foods, slimmers fret about calories, fat grams, low-carb, no-carb and all number of issues. There are literally thousands of different diets available and a HUGE amount of conflicting information. It can be very confusing to decide how to lose weight.

In contrast, a raw food lifestyle is all about keeping it simple. No more calorie counting or portion controlling – it’s about returning to natural, nutrient-rich foods. Choosing to simply include more raw foods daily, as part of a permanent lifestyle change, can help you lose weight, detox and enjoy much more energy.

Stop counting calories – ENJOY your weight loss…
The effects of going raw are well-documented – we look younger, hair and nails strengthen, skin gets clearer, pores tighten, eyes brighten, depression lifts, diseases heal and we feel energised. People undergo ‘raw-markable’ transformations. In addition to all those benefits, swift, sustainable weight loss is one of the primary effects of beginning a diet rich in raw foods. In my first year raw, for example, I lost around 7.5 stone (105lbs). If this lifestyle’s sustained, the weight loss is also easily maintained. I released around 11.5 stone (160lbs) in total and have kept it off for over three years.
This is a completely different approach to ‘dieting’. It’s not about how many calories something contains, the fat grams or the endorsements on the packaging. It’s about how it feels in your body - do you enjoy it, are you energised by it, are you feeling better?

The raw lifestyle is extremely cleansing. The body goes through an incredible transformation: toxins, including fats that have accumulated over years are released through massive detox. The body always works towards health, so when it suddenly receives potent enzyme and nutrient rich food with which to clean and cure itself, it seizes the opportunity to become much healthier, very quickly. In my opinion, eating more raw is easily the most natural, simple and rapid path to sustained weight loss available.

Most people however seem to look towards those unsustainable ‘quick-fix’ solutions for weight loss like dieting, ‘miracle’ powders/pills or even bariatric surgery. These solutions rarely provide satisfactory results in the long-run.

To read the full article, follow this link :

Going Raw for Weight Loss by NewsTarget - October 15, 2007

More evidence has been uncovered that Alzheimer’s disease may actually be a third form of diabetes, according to researchers from Northwestern University.

Insulin and insulin receptors in your brain are crucial for learning and memory, and it’s known that these components are lower in people with Alzheimer’s disease. In your brain, insulin binds to an insulin receptor at a synapse, which triggers a mechanism that allows nerve cells to survive and memories to form.

The Northwestern University researchers have found that a toxic protein in the brain of Alzheimer’s patients -- called ADDL for “amyloid ß-derived diffusible ligand” -- removes insulin receptors from nerve cells, and renders those neurons insulin resistant.

The findings suggest that ADDLs accumulate at the beginning of Alzheimer’s disease and thereby block memory function.

The process is currently thought to be reversible.

The researchers speculated that drugs used to treat type 2 diabetes, which also causes insulin resistance, may “supercede currently available Alzheimer’s drugs.”

The FASEB Journal August 24, 2007

Physorg.com September 26, 2007

To read the full article, follow this link :

 Is Alzheimer's a Form of Diabetes? by Dr. Mercola - October 16, 2007

On September 14, Cephalon Inc. urged U.S. doctors to take special precautions in selecting patients and prescribing the correct dosage of the cancer drug Fentora.

The letter, which was issued in collaboration with the FDA, was in response to the recent deaths of several patients receiving the drug.

Fentora (fentanyl buccal) is a highly potent, opioid pain medication, indicated for use in cancer patients already receiving opioid treatment but who have become tolerant to it. However, doctors are also prescribing Fentora “off-label” for headache and back pain.

According to the FDA, Fentora should also not be used as a substitute for Actiq – another fentanyl product used to treat breakthrough cancer pain – as it may result in a fatal overdose.

Science Daily September 26, 2007

Science Daily September 14, 2007

To read the full article, follow this link :

This Pain Medication Could Kill You by Dr. Mercola - October 16, 2007

Poor people in the United Kingdom do not have any worse of a diet than the general population, according to a study by the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

The study found that general nutrition, cooking skills and access to food were the same among the poorest one-sixth of the population as among the population at large.

Among the 3,500 low-income people surveyed, 80 percent reported access to large supermarkets and the majority had good facilities in their homes for cooking and storing food. The overwhelming majority of respondents -- 91 percent of women and 64 percent of men -- said that they know how to "cook from basic ingredients."

In the areas of fruit and vegetable consumption and sugar intake, the respondents' diets were slightly worse than that of the general population. Levels of smoking and alcohol consumption were higher, while activity levels were lower.

"The encouraging news from this research is that the gap between the diets of people on low incomes and those of the rest of the population is not as big as some feared," said Rosemary Hignett, FSA's head of nutrition. "However, the bad news is that this group -- like the general population -- are not eating as healthily as they could be."

In numbers comparable to those of the general UK population, 62 percent of adults and 34 percent of children in the study were either overweight or obese.

Dr. Alan Maryon Davis, president of the Faculty of Public Health, expressed surprise and pleasure with the results. But he said that if the survey results have been compared with the wealthiest sixth of the population rather than the average, the disparity might have been much greater.

As the study was conducted in the United Kingdom, it is unknown to what extent trends in other countries, such as the United States, might differ.

To read the full article, follow this link :

Choice, not cost, leads to unhealthy diet among poor, research reveals by NewsTarget - October 16, 2007

The demand for organic food in the United States outstrips the supply, according to industry groups such as the Organic Trade Association (OTA) and Organic Farming Research Foundation. This means that imports of organic food are rising, but industry leaders want the U.S. government to take steps to help boost domestic production.

To be certified as organic, food must be grown without the use of any synthetic pesticides or fertilizers, antibiotics, or genetically modified crops or animals. In addition, a field must be free of chemicals for three years before any crops grown there can be certified as organic. The lower profits during those three years prevents many farmers from making the switch.

"The conversion process may be quite daunting," the OTA says. The group says that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides too little guidance for farmers wanting to switch to organic production, and is calling for measures to strengthen the industry and allay farmers' fears through more money for research, strengthened crop insurance for organic farms, and expert advice for growers.

U.S. farmers can barely keep up with demand for organic produce by NewsTarget - October 16, 2007