Petition US congress re: drug safety

This just received from Consumer's Union regarding drug safety legislation before the U.S. Congress. Consider adding your voice to say the track record has been unacceptable. Here's the link from the email:

https://secure2.convio.net/cu/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=691

or go to http://www.consumersunion.org/ and click on the "Take Action" tab.

The Savvy Label Reader - Part 1

High Fructose Corn Syrup

How often do you read the "Ingredients" information on the label of the food you purchase? If you do, do know what to look for in making choices between products?

I won't repeat here the wealth of information already published on the use of the Nutrition Facts label, required in the U.S. by the FDA. Here's one resouce for doing some homework on that:
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/foodlab.html

And I wouldn't claim to be an expert on analyzing all the things you find in the Ingredients listings. But at our house, we've seen enough concern raised over a few very common ingredients, that we've started watching for these more closely in our shopping over the past year. Let's take a look first at "high fructose corn syrup", that ubiquitous goody that shows up in just about everything once you start watching for it.

This article by the San Francisco Chronicle is a good overview of the cautions that we've heard from a variety of sources. If you're frustrated with your lack of success in battling excess body fat, read this article and consider shopping for foods that do not contain this sweetner, as an additional part of your strategy. You'll probably find it frustrating how many common foods you currently use contain it. And you'll also need to be watchful for other sweetners that may not be helpful as well, such as dextrose, maltodextrin, etc. (We won't go into artificial sweetners such as aspartame, sucralose, etc. which are under scrutiny for having their own potential issues.)

From the Chronicle article: "Almost all nutritionists finger high fructose corn syrup consumption as a major culprit in the nation's obesity crisis. The inexpensive sweetener flooded the American food supply in the early 1980s, just about the time the nation's obesity rate started its unprecedented climb."

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2004/02/18/FDGS24VKMH1.DTL

The good news is that this kind of selective buying can be done without buying exclusively from the organic or health food section of your grocery store. (Although that is probably a good idea anyway. See earlier posting on study regarding toxins in childrens' food.) So take a few minutes to read the package before you buy for the next several months, and see for yourself what happens.

Good hunting!

PS: If you want to be sure you have a balanced outlook on HFCS, here's an information site provided by the Corn Refiners Association. We certainly have no axe to grind with corn growers and processors.

http://www.hfcsfacts.com/

And, here are a couple of general links for U.S. and U.K. requirements for food labeling.

http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/label.html
http://www.food.gov.uk/foodlabelling/

Uganda: unique mix of science and traditional

In a November 16, 2005 press release Mannatech, Inc. (Coppell, TX) described its unique partnership with scientists from the Uganda Ministry of Health to analyze the functional ingredients of plants long used by local healers to treat various health challenges. A Mannatech spokesman points out that Uganda is unusal in being home to "an estimated 30 percent of the world's biodiversity," and that "a number of their plants probably have substantial functional value."

While forging ahead with accepted scientific methods of research and development, such as those being used in the Mannatech partnership, Uganda is also seeking a blend of these discoveries with its heritage in traditional medicine:

"Uganda President Yoweri Museveni has diligently pushed the nation toward recognizing and elevating the role of traditional healing. The Ugandan parliament is working to pass the Traditional Medicine Bill, which would integrate the crafts plied by local healers into the national health-care system by creating training programs for healers and establishing working relationships with medical doctors."

That will be fascinating to watch develop. May it be a trend.

Full text of the release is available at:

http://www.mannatech.com/USA/FOMPressReleases.asp

Podcast review: NPR Health & Science

If you enjoy "All Things Considered" and other fine programs on National Public Radio, you'll recognize the same excellent production qualities and writing in their Health & Science podcast. If you are new to podcasting, there are even some short explanations of podcast essentials on the NPR site. With a list as of today of 189 different podcasts, NPR should be on your short list of sources for this kind of 'offline radio'.

Here are some of the stories in the last 3 Health & Science podcasts:

- The Links Between the Dalai Lama and Neuroscience
- Intelligent Design and Academic Freedom
- Flu-Vaccine Shortages and Distribution Delays
- Making Affordable Drugs in Africa
- Vietnam Takes Steps to Head Off Flu Pandemic
- Jury Rules Merck Not Liable for Heart Attack Death
- Flying Doctors to the Rescue
- Scientists Identify Dyslexia Gene

Enjoy ... and be informed!

http://www.npr.org/rss/podcast/podcast_directory.php

Organic food lowers pesticides in kids

More data that the economic and convenience challenges around shifting to organic food in your household may be worth it.

CNN.com published this article discussing the growth in the organic food segment in the U.S. (18% jump for organic baby food in one year), and the results from this study focused on pesticide levels in children:

"A study of children whose diets were changed from regular to organic found their pesticide levels plunged almost immediately. The amount of pesticide detected in the children remained imperceptible until their diets were switched back to conventional food. 'We didn't expect that to drop in such dramatic fashion,' said Emory University's Chensheng Lu, who led the Environmental Protection Agency-funded research. Lu's findings will be published in February in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives."

http://www.cnn.com/2005/HEALTH/diet.fitness/11/08/organic.kids.ap

In a world with alarming increases in environmental toxins every year, exercising the choice to avoid any of it has gone beyond prudent. It could be a life-and-death choice in the long run.

War on cancer goes cellular

In a Nov. 7 article, "A Nantotech Cure for Cancer?", Brandon Keim at Wired.com summarizes some of the R&D in progress on creating specialized particles only a few nanometers wide (a thousand times smaller than a red blood cell) that can act in a targeted way on cancer cells.

From the article:
"The first cancer nanotech applications will likely involve detection. Nanoparticles could recognize cancer's molecular signatures, gathering the proteins produced by cancerous cells or signaling the presence of telltale genetic changes."
"But nanoparticles can be made not only to find those cells, but to destroy them. One such application involves metallic molecules that adhere to cancer cells and can then be heated with microwaves, a magnetic field or infrared light, destroying the tumor while leaving surrounding tissues unharmed."
"Also promising is the design of molecular envelopes for chemical compounds that would otherwise be toxic to ingest. "

The article closes with a perspective on the timetable for seeing this technology in action (years), and an acknowledgement that evaluations for economic feasibility, reliability, efficacy, and safety represent major hurdles to its widespread use.

http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,69206,00.html

Indeed. It's intriguing as heck to see us push the envelope on what we can see, understand, and affect, within the body. If only that progress came with no accompanying 'price' of unexpected side effects, unidentified toxicity, and astronomical cost. Especially when we already have the ultimate nanotechnology already in our bodies, in the form of our natural defense and repair systems. Hard not to wonder what our life would be like if we directed the funds around development of artificial medical technologies toward increased understanding and leverage of our existing natural 'technologies'. Thomas Edison was right: "The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human body, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease."

Asian diet pyramid

One plus to the globalized life we live now is to benefit from information in other places on the planet we may never visit, or make the focus of in-depth study. In a time of alarming increases in chronic and degenerative disease in most 'modern' cultures, getting a peek into the diet and lifestyle of people groups with significantly better longevity or disease rates should rank high on a list of such benefits. This is not newly-published information, but offers a look at an alternative food or diet pyramid, based on patterns common in much of Asia. It's relatively easy reading, so check it out.

"To offer a healthful alternative to the 1992 U.S. Food Guide Pyramid, which lumps some animal and plant foods together in a single group, Cornell and Harvard University researchers have teamed up with other experts to assist the non-profit foundation, Oldways Preservation & Exchange Trust, unveil an official Asian Diet Pyramid. It reflects the traditional, plant-based rural diets of Asia, which research increasingly shows to be linked to much lower rates of certain cancers, heart disease, obesity and, in some cases, osteoporosis and other chronic, degenerative diseases than those found in the United States."

Here's the full article and a graphic depiction of the Asian diet pyramid:

http://www.news.cornell.edu/science/Dec95/st.asian.pyramid.html

Here's the similar article on the web site for Oldways Preservation & Exchange Trust, mentioned above:

http://www.oldwayspt.org/pyramids/asian/p_asian.html

And a site that promotes Mediterranean/Asian eating and lifestyles:

http://www.mediterrasian.com

To cherry or not to cherry

The US Food and Drug Administration web site documented the recent enforcement action listed below regarding apparent health claims being made for cherries and cherry-related products. Look for more of this in the U.S. as the FDA moves to enforce more of the provisions of the 1994 Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), and require more rigor in the development, manufacturing, and sale of dietary supplements. As long as enforcement focuses on meeting standards and not eliminating our choices, this should be a welcome thing for all of us. We need supplements that are effective, contain what they say then contain, and have reliable information on their use and risks.

"The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued Warning Letters to 29 companies that manufacture, market, or distribute products made from cherries or other fruits. The Warning Letters told the firms to stop making unproven claims on the firms’ web sites and product labels that their fruit products treat or prevent disease."

From: http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/news/2005/new01246.html

For more information on DSHEA and the U. S. supplement industry's involvement in regulation policy, see the Council for Responsbile Nutrition (http://www.crnusa.org).

Avian flu redux

Some more on the growing concern over the H5N1 avian flu. I caught most of last weekend's airing of "The Next Plague" on The History Channel, described thusly on their web site (http://www.historychannel.com):

"With the current threat of Avian Flu spreading worldwide, President Bush talked openly about the possibility of an epidemic in the coming years. The Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization say that we are long overdue for a deadly epidemic, and it isn't a question of if but when. Here in the US the questions are already being asked. Are we ready? How can we prevent it? What will be the cost in lives? We'll look at what effect a large-scale epidemic would have on the United States and the rest of the world. We'll ask what steps pharmaceutical companies are taking in developing vaccines and an antidote. If a nationwide quarantine is put into effect, who will enforce it--the National Guard? We also examine new evidence that the Great Epidemic of 1918 may have been an Avian Flu."

Some take-aways for me: even more contrast between the U.S. preparation efforts versus U.K. and France (as it regards stockpiles of Tamilflu) than what I recalled from the September piece on ABC's PrimeTime. Although I don't have 'magic bullet' faith in Tamiflu saving us all, it was interesting that apparently the U.S. has stockpiled enough courses of treatment for about 1% of the population, versus 25% and 20%, respectively, for U.K. and France. Makes you go, "why is that?"

Another take-away: probably should review whether a few more days worth of food and supplies on hand would be prudent, in the event that quarantine activity, or our own good judgement, means we can't go out for food and basics. It's a challenge, though. Most people don't want to go nuts planning for emergencies, but also don't want to overlook low-effort/low-cost opportunities to make these potential situations better for their families. Where do you draw that line? One of the comments from "The Next Plague" offered an image that fuels that kind of thinking: consider the disruptions and gaps in service that occurred in Louisiana and the Gulf Coast with Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath. Now broaden that from regional impact, to where its happening in just about every city and town to some degree. Yeah, I probably will grow the pantry inventory a bit.

May we all get ready, and then not need it!

Are outside the box food solutions safe?

I was cruising through some of the article links at The Endowment for Medical Research (http://www.endowmentmed.org) and came across this item about a food-related element of China's successful manned space flight earlier this month. An excerpt from the article: "'The experiment results show vitamin content of vegetables grown from space seeds is 281.5 per cent of that of ordinary vegetables,' the state media said, with customary precision."

http://news.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/10/22/wseeds22.xml

Not a new idea, as you can find numerous articles from a variety of sources on that subject, such as these from 2003 and 1995, respectively.

http://www.china.org.cn/english/MATERIAL/77416.htm
http://www.gi.alaska.edu/Quarterly/Q95_1/vegetable.html

Great to think about energy going into how to produce more quantity, better quality, etc. where food is concerned. But how can we tell the penicillin-level discovery from the wish-we-hadn't-done-that invention. Especially with our track record for more of the latter than the former. Ask the Romans about lead plumbing, or our age about DDT, and the 75,000+ synthetic chemicals loose in our environment since the early 20th century*. Which is why there are a few questions like this one regarding space-radiated seeds:

http://ens-newswire.com/ens/jan2001/2001-01-26g.asp

When we have a choice on food, may we use it wisely. It makes a difference now, as well as later.

DB

(* as quoted from 2001 Bill Moyers PBS report in "How To Survive On A Toxic Planet" 2nd edition, Dr. Steve Nugent, pg.17)

Defending your house against H5N1

The latest strain of the avian flu continues to march across the globe, with a confirmed occurence in the UK, according to these reports from MSNBC and BBC.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4370106.stm
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9776460&&CM=EmailThis&CE=1

More and more of us are able to remember its technical "H5N1" name as the media exposure increases. If it rivals the 1918 "Spanish" flu pandemic as many are warning, we are in for an experience that most on the planet have never known. We can barely imagine what it could be like, and probably mostly don't want to think about it -- running late for work, can't miss the favorite TV show.

A Sept 2005 item on ABC's PrimeTime

http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/Investigation/story?id=1130392&page=1

indicated that the US probably had around 2 million treatments of the only known drug thought to be effective after infection (Tamiflu), out of a planned 20 million treatments thought to be needed for this kind of outbreak. With no vaccine available for this strain, this drug, and any efforts to limit exposure, are seen as the only weapons we have to deal with this. No need to argue about the competency of the planning, greed of suppliers, etc. If these numbers are accurate, and the pandemic risk has been portrayed accurately, we have a big, fat exposure ... of biblical proportions, as they say.

If you don't feel like waiting to see if US authorities are successful in getting access to Tamiflu in competition with the EU, Australia, Japan, OPEC nations, and anyone else with the funds, start doing your homework on what this could be like for you and your family. Find the best immune-boosting strategies you can get, and start using them now. Optimizing your body's own defenses might be your best hope against a million-death event like this.

For more background on the flu, see:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4949542
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/secrets/case_killerflu/clues.html

The beginning ...

"The end of a matter is better than its beginning" according to the writer of Ecclesiastes.

You ever meet anyone that lives like that is true? Maybe our circumstances have too much to dread to get continuously excited about how they'll end. But I'm sure there are many in the southern coastal regions of the U.S. who are glad the 2005 hurricane season is coming to an end, even if their recovery challenges continue. Wowee.

Being just tired enough of how we're all robbed of what we should be getting in the way of health and quality of life, I was thankful to hear new stories last month of other 'ends of matters' that were dramatically better than the beginning. Of child and parent told to accept and cope with a toxic reaction to a vaccine, apparently permanent. Of a nutrition change that got natural defense and repair systems back in the game. And a restoration of quality of life than no one had told them they could expect.

Here's hoping that we all get tired enough of the health status quo that we take back individual responsibility, and press to get back what's been stolen. Are you happy with your state of health? I'm ready to find out what we've had coming to us all along. We were designed for better than this.