Townsend Letter: The Examiner of Alternative Medicine back issues from July 2007:
Letter from the publisher.
Jul 01, 2007; ... When we consider the milestones and accomplishments of the past 20 years, we can look at technology--the Internet, e-mail, cell phones, iPods, digital cameras, and the computerization of nearly all machinery. We can also look at the rampant development of real estate around the globe: the ...
Norman Fritz remembered.(Cancer Control Society)(Obituary)
Jul 01, 2007 ... Norman Fritz, President of the Cancer Control Society, passed away in January 2007 at the age of 81 from circulatory disease. Norman graduated in 1949 from the University of Kansas in Lawrence with a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautical Engineering. Prior to that, he was awarded a ...
Natural health interests voice concern about possible new oversight by the Food and Drug Administration health claims.(American Association for Health Freedom and the Alliance for Natural Health)
Jul 01, 2007 ... The American Association for Health Freedom (AAHF) and its European affiliate, the Alliance for Natural Health (ANH), recently submitted written comments to the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in its current consultation on functional foods. As leaders in the health freedom community, ...
Beyond talk therapy: new frontiers in addiction treatment symposium.
Jul 01, 2007 ... In any given group of ten Americans, most likely two have a close family member addicted to drugs or alcohol. That was last year's sobering statistic from a Gallup Poll, published in August. This year, however, a more hopeful statistic may emerge, as a dozen or more speakers present their ...
Hormone therapy and cardiovascular disease in early postmenopause: the Women's Health Initiative data revisited.
Jul 01, 2007 ... The publication of data from the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study follows a certain pattern: first, we were given preliminary data, (1,2) which provided the basis for stopping the study before the end of its scheduled follow-up period; then we received separate and detailed ...
Healthy eating and exercise still difficult for many Americans.
Jul 01, 2007 ... A recent study indicates that a large proportion of Americans are still confused about what it means to have a healthy diet and regular exercise routine. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), roughly two-thirds of Americans are overweight, and nearly one-third ...
Give kids their smiles back: stop fluoridation.
Jul 01, 2007 ... One day a year, dentists country-wide celebrate "Give-Kids-A-Smile" (GKAS) day with much self-promotion and merchandising. This year it was February 2. But for the rest of the year, most dentists refuse children on Medicaid or other government-sponsored insurance. (1) Instead, dentistry ...
A new protocol for IBS treatment Dr. Mark Pimentel discusses a case study of a patient suffering with IBS.(irritable bowel syndrome)(Case study)
Jul 01, 2007 ... Irritable Bowel Syndrome. (IBS) is the most common chronic medical condition in the United States and affects people of all ages. Until recently many people have had to suffer in silence or "learn to live with it," because there has been no known cure. With symptoms of abdominal ...
The Farm Bill (it matters).(Web Page Potpourri)
Jul 01, 2007; ... In a previous column (Aug/Sep 2006), I shared resources on the US "Food System" and promised a future column on the national Farm Bill. My mailbox didn't bring hoards of letters expressing interest (okay, not even a one), but I'm hoping this column will activate your interest and ...
Women and heart disease.(Shorts)
Jul 01, 2007; ... A normal angiogram does not rule out heart disease in women, according to a New York Times article. Women are more likely than men to have microvascular disease, a form of cardiovascular disease that cannot be identified with an angiogram. Only one-third of women who complain of chest pain ...
Omega-3 warning.(Shorts)
Jul 01, 2007; ... In May 2006, Dean Ornish, MD, warned that some people with heart disease should avoid fish oil and foods that contain high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Several studies have indicated that regular consumption of omega-3 fatty acids reduces the risk of sudden cardiac death. These ...
Infrared lamp sauna and heart disease.(Shorts)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Short exposure to infrared dry sauna improves cardiac function and vascular health, according to Japanese research. A 2001 study by M. Imamura and colleagues compared vascular endothelial and cardiac function in 25 men (ages 25-51) at risk for heart disease with ten healthy men. Each man ...
How much angioplasty is too much?(Shorts)
Jul 01, 2007; ... The city of Elyria in northeastern Ohio has attracted attention for its high rate of angioplasty procedures, according to The New York Times (August 18, 2006). In 2003, the US averaged 11.3 such procedures per 1,000 Medicare patients, and Ohio averaged 13.5 per 1,000. But Elyria, with its ...
Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy.(Shorts)
Jul 01, 2007; ... In September 2003, researchers enrolled the first of over 2,300 patients in the five-year Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT). This study will look at the effectiveness and safety of ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid (EDTA) intravenous chelation therapy in the prevention of heart ...
Nitric oxide and heart health.(Shorts)(Brief article)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Nitric oxide (NO), a compound produced by the cells that line the inner surface of blood vessels (endothelium), is a signaling molecule in the cardiovascular system. Robert F. Furchgott, Louis J. Ignarro, and Ferid Murad shared the 1998 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their ...
Heart disease, emotions, and homeopathy.(Shorts)(Case study)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Eric Udell, ND reports a case in which homeopathy relieved symptoms of cardiac illness in Homeopathy Today (September 2004). Dr. Udell teaches homeopathy at the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine (SCNM) in Tempe, Arizona. The case involved a woman in her early seventies with a ...
Polypill for heart disease.(Shorts)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Nick Wald, Malcolm Law, and others are advocating the development and widespread use of a "Polypill" for heart disease. The pill would consist of low-dose drugs, mostly generic, that modify cholesterol level, blood pressure, platelet function, and serum homocysteine level. Wald and Law ...
Niacin-statin trial.(Shorts)(Brief article)
Jul 01, 2007; ... AIM-HIGH, a multicenter study sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, is testing the effectiveness of a combination of extended-release niacin and simvastatin compared to simvastatin alone. Simvastatin, a statin, lowers LDL cholesterol levels and reduces plaque buildup ...
Harps and hearts.(Shorts)(physiological benefits for the heart of harp music)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Harp music has long had a reputation of relieving stress and soothing pain. Recent studies indicate that live harp music evokes measurable, physiological effects that benefit the heart. Maureen Reilly, a nurse-anesthetist in San Antonio, Texas, says that live harp music helps normalize ...
Replacing dry-cleaning: safer choices--Part two.(Health Risks & Environmental Issues)(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Perchloroethylene (PERC) has been the most commonly used chemical in the dry-cleaning industry for the past fifty years. It replaced kerosene and gasoline. These highly flammable petroleum byproducts were so dangerous that new laws imposed strict regulations about where these ...
Big blow to radiation therapy for breast cancer.(War on Cancer)(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Radiation is widely used as an adjuvant treatment after surgery for breast cancer. It is primarily administered to prevent recurrences and is quite effective at doing so. But a study published in the March 7, 2007 Journal of the National Cancer Institute (JNCI) has shown that radiation ...
Walter Reed caregivers revitalized by massage, acupuncture.(Pathways to Healing)(Walter Reed Army Medical Center)(Crossings: A Center for the Healing Traditions)
Jul 01, 2007; ... A complementary healing center in Silver Spring, Maryland is now offering services in a somewhat unusual setting. They are caring for the caregivers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Crossings: A Center for the Healing Traditions has been a pioneer in complementary medicine. Founded in ...
Interviews with Stephen DeFelice, MD, and Antonio Martinez II, Esq, on nutraceuticals, the 1994 Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, and the nutraceutical research and Education Act.(Townsend's New York Observer)(Interview)
Jul 01, 2007; ... <Pre> Despite the recent history of dishonesty and abuses of power in the CIA, the FBI, Congress, and even the Presidency, we are asked to put broad new powers into the hands of the Secretary of [Health, Education, and Welfare] HEW and his colleagues in the [Food and Drug and ...
Potassium protects the heart.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Genetically salt-sensitive rats were fed a normal diet (0.3% sodium chloride) or a high-salt diet (8% sodium chloride), with or without high potassium intake (8% potassium chloride) for eight weeks. High salt intake significantly increased blood pressure, impaired left ventricular ...
Improving cardiac risk factor with a nutritional supplement.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Forty men with a history of myocardial infarction who had completed a cardiac rehabilitation program (including supervised exercise training and lifestyle and dietary recommendations) were randomly assigned to receive 500 ml/day of a fortified dairy product (active-treatment group) or 500 ...
Does vitamin D deficiency lead to heart failure?(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief article)(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... This review article points out that the majority of patients with congestive heart failure have vitamin D insufficiency (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D < 50 nmol/L or < 20 ng/ml). Vitamin D deficiency in these patients is presumably due in part to relatively low amounts of outdoor activity ....
Don't forget thiamine for heart failure patients.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief article)(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... The prevalence of thiamine deficiency (as determined by erythrocyte thiamine pyrophosphate concentrations) was significantly higher in 100 patients with congestive heart failure than in healthy controls (33% vs. 12%; p = 0.007). Comment: Patients with congestive heart failure ...
Case report: parenteral magnesium for end-stage cardiomyopathy.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Case study)(Brief article)
Jul 01, 2007; ... A 57-year-old man came to see me from several hundred miles away with a 15-year history of slowly progressive dilated cardiomyopathy. He was still functioning relatively well, although he did experience shortness of breath after moderate exertion. The patient was advised to take various ...
"Fever of unknown origin" caused by food allergy.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Case study)(Brief article)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Between the ages of 21 and 30 months, a girl was seen by 16 doctors for fever of unknown origin and C-reactive protein concentrations of 100-200 150 mg/L (normal, less than 5 mg/L). Elimination of dairy products and subsequent challenge demonstrated that the fever was due to cow's milk ...
Folic acid prevents age-related hearing loss.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief article)(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Seven hundred twenty-eight older men and women (mean age, 60 years) residing in the Netherlands who had plasma total homocysteine concentrations of 13 micromol/L or greater, serum vitamin B12 concentrations of 200 pmol/L or greater, and no pathologic ear conditions were randomly assigned ...
Eggs are a good source of lutein and zeaxanthin.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Twenty-four female volunteers (aged 24-59 years) were assigned to consume six eggs per week or a placebo pill, while continuing their normal diet, for 12 weeks. The eggs were obtained either from a local supermarket (EGG 1) or from an organic farm (EGG 2). The lutein and zeaxanthin content ...
Health and anti-aging benefits of aged garlic extract.(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Introduction Garlic has been used as a medicinal remedy since antiquity to treat maladies as well as prevent disease and enhance vigor. Modern science and medicine have validated many of the traditional uses of garlic and identified its health-promoting compounds. Most of the ...
The WiFi blues: wireless broadband Internet access is all the rage. The noise is drowning out concerns for this technology's risks.(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love is going to have it; many in San Francisco want it: wireless broadband Internet access (WiFi) (1) seems too good to be true. At relatively low cost, anyone can get on the Internet anywhere in a city. All the city needs to do is install a network of ...
Chelation, heavy metals, heart disease, and health: an Oral Detoxification Program that is now essential for optimal health and longevity: Part Two.
Jul 01, 2007; ... [Editor's Note: Part One of this article appeared in our June 2007 issue. Part Two appears in its entirety on our website: www.townsendletter.com.] Synopsis by David Jay Brown This second installment of a two-part article by Dr. Garry Gordon summarizes ...
Bias, research, and complementary and alternative medicine.
Jul 01, 2007; ... My experience at the Association of Health Care Journalists' 2005 conference (Chapel Hill, North Carolina) incited much puzzling and questioning about bias. At first, I felt like an interloper. After all, years of reading little-acknowledged information on complementary and alternative ...
Applied kinesiology: an effective complementary treatment for children with Down syndrome.(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Author's Note: "Down's syndrome" was a term formerly used to describe these patients, but that is no longer the proper terminology. The use of People First Terminology is important when working with these patients and their families and advocates. People First Terminology encourages us to ...
Osteocavitations of the jaws.(Disease/Disorder overview)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Introduction Chronic undiagnosed pain of the face and head frustrates both patient and doctor. Each of us has a 24.3% risk of developing chronic facial pain by age 50 and a 33.8% risk by age 70, (1) yet only 46% seek treatment. (2) In 1995, the cost of chronic orofacial pain was ...
Integrative cardiac revitalization: bypass surgery, angioplasty, and chelation benefits, risks, and limitations.(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Abstract Coronary artery disease (CAD) is still the main cause of premature death in the industrialized world. The revascularization modalities, bypass surgery and angioplasty, when successful, provide restored blood flow to the myocardium. Bypass remains the most proven means ...
Shocking the dragon: the usage of electro stimulation in pain management.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the editor)
Jul 01, 2007; ... In acupuncture, there is a classical technique known as "surround the dragon." This technique is for localized pain in a specific area of the body. The technique involves the placement of a series of needles surrounding the area with one needle placed in the center of the affected area ....
Vitamin C and heart disease.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the editor)
Jul 01, 2007; ... The few species, which include humans, that do not make their own vitamin C suffer a condition called atherosclerosis, in which white plaques narrow the arteries. This disease has been misnamed "heart disease," because it often leads to a heart attack. The disease is not prevalent in ...
Chiropractic: science, not religion.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the editor)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Even though it was nice to see Ms. Christine Elliot ("Chiropractic from a Parent's Point of View" Townsend Letter. 285:119) praise the chiropractic profession, instead of trashing it like the rest of the world, I am afraid Ms. Elliot has been seriously misguided by one of my esteemed ...
Is coenzyme Q10 an effective treatment for heart failure?(Editorial)(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is widely used by nutritionally oriented practitioners to treat heart failure. However, conventional review articles on heart failure either do not mention CoQ10 or conclude that additional research is needed before its use can be recommended. Are the natural-medicine ...
Analysis of faulty data yields inaccurate results: thousands benefit from growth hormone replacement therapy for aging-related disorders.(Guest Editorial)(Report)
Jul 01, 2007 ... Proven, Real-World Track Record of Benefits of Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency Therapy Disputes Publication A4M Official Response Statement, Issued 15 January 2007 to Liu H, Bravata D, Olkin I, Nayak S, Roberts EB, Garber A, Hoffman A. Systematic review: the safety and efficacy ...
For women only: appropriate treatment for heart disease.("From the Heart: A Woman's Guide to Living Well with Heart Disease" by Kathy Kastan)(Book review)
Jul 01, 2007; ... From the Heart: A Woman's Guide to Living Well with Heart Disease by Kathy Kastan, LCW, MAEd; President, WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease Published by Da Capo Press, a Member of the Perseus Books Group http://www.dacapopress.com ...
Heart disease--defeating a modern plague with ancient wisdom.("Total Heart Health: How to Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease with the Maharishi Vedic Approach to Health" by Robert H. Schneider)(Book review)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Total Heart Health: How to Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease with the Maharishi Vedic Approach to Health by Robert H. Schneider, MD, FACC, and Jeremy Z. Fields, PhD Basic Health Publications, Inc., 28812 Top of the World Dr., Laguna Beach, California 92651 ...
A patient's guide to selecting a nutritional supplement.(Therapeutic Nutrition)
Jul 01, 2007; ... In this article you will learn how to do the following: * Select the right forms of vitamins and minerals * Maximize the effectiveness of isolated vitamins and minerals * Attain supra-levels of energy, strength, and endurance * Optimize the ...
D-Ribose--fantastic in congestive heart failure and other cardiac problems.(Pain Free 1-2-3!)(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Energy Utilization and Depletion in Ischemic Failing Hearts Ischemic heart disease and congestive heart failure (CHF) remain the major causes of death in the US today. Other than systemic hypertension, ischemia is the most common etiology of congestive heart failure, and ...
Phytotherapy for Buerger's disease.(Phytotherapy Review & Commentary)(Disease/Disorder overview)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Buerger's disease (or thromboangiitis obliterans) is an unusual, chronic vascular disorder particularly linked to heavy smoking in young men, although about 20% of cases occur in women. (1,2) While it was alluded to in case reports in the mid-1800s, the first accurate description was ...
The Chinese medical treatment for coronary heart disease angina.(Chinese Medicine)(Clinical report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Keywords: Chinese medicine, Chinese herbal medicine, cardiology, coronary heart disease (CHD), angina pectoris, Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang (Blood Mansion Dispel Stasis Decoction) ********** During the nineteenth century, Wang Qing-ren published an extremely influential book ...
Limbic breathing.(Oxygen Homeostasis)(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... <Pre> There is more wisdom in your body than in your deepest philosophy. Nietzsche </Pre> In mid-1980s, I coined the term limbic breathing for a specific type of breathing (illustrated later in this column) to enhance the clinical neurophysiological and metabolic benefit of a protocol ...
Calendar of events.(Calendar)
Jul 01, 2007 ... CALL FOR ABSTRACTS: 5th Annual World Congress on the Insulin Resistance Syndrome. Deadline is AUGUST 15, 2007. CONTACT: http://www.insulinresistance.us/login.php JUNE 21-22: JOHNS HOPKINS CENTER FOR COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE presents its 3rd ANNUAL CURRENT CONCEPTS ...
Non-hormonal approaches to enhancing women's sexual function.(Women's Health Update)(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Sexual dysfunction in women is a common health problem, affecting a large percentage of women. The study cited most frequently, is based on the US National Health and Social Life Survey of 1992. Published in 1999, it evaluated a sample of 1749 women and 1410 men, aged 18-59. The study ...
The influence of minerals on congestive heart failure.(Nutritional Influences on Illness)(Report)
Jul 01, 2007; ... Low Sodium Diet In patients with congestive heart failure (CHF), myocardial sodium tends to be elevated, while serum sodium may be reduced. Sodium retention is due to activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, while the secondary hyperaldosteronism may give rise to ...