Due to the sudden deterioration in my mum's physical & mental health and also due to struggling to come to terms with her having to spend the rest of her life in a nursing home (not the happiest of places), my diet went completely to pot.
I "went off" salmon, sardines & powdered linseeds and started to eat carbohydrate/fat-based comfort foods. A black cloud slowly descended over me. I lost the motivation to do anything, including updating this blog. I also slept a lot. This continued for several months.
Then, for no apparent reason, a few weeks ago I got an urge to eat smoked salmon. I added 200g of smoked salmon twice a week back into my diet and after a few weeks, the black cloud started to lift.
Before I started supplementing with Vitamin D3, I used to eat lots of oily fish but did not function correctly mentally. This time, my Vitamin D3 status was good (I never stopped taking supplements even when I had the black cloud over me) but my EPA (Eicosapentaenoic Acid) and DHA (Docosahexaenoic Acid) intakes were near zero.
In conclusion, it would appear that my brain needs adequate Vitamin D3 and EPA and DHA (and magnesium) to function correctly.
I won't be blogging as much as I have been previously, as I've now dumped the vast majority of the nutritional knowledge within my brain into this blog. If I come across anything new, I'll post it here.
Finally, I've found the cheapest source yet of 5,000iu Vitamin D3 gelcaps.
Kamis, 29 Oktober 2009
Minggu, 08 Maret 2009
Look after your brain.
"One in three people over 65 will die with dementia..." said Dr Susanne Sorensen, head of research at the Alzheimer's Society. I read this in a recent BBC News article Vitamin D 'is mental health aid' which referred to the study Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Concentration and Cognitive Impairment.
The article contained the usual phrase "...more work was needed..."
The above article also led to Parkinson's linked to vitamin D which referred to the study Prevalence of vitamin d insufficiency in patients with Parkinson disease and Alzheimer disease. "However, the Emory University researchers do not yet know if the vitamin deficiency is a cause or the result of having Parkinson's". "Further research is required...." yet again.
It's like someone standing by their broken-down car wondering whether it's the empty fuel tank that's made the car stop or whether it's the car stopping that's made the fuel tank empty. Does it matter? Just put some fuel in the tank and see what happens! See also Higher serum vitamin D3 levels are associated with better cognitive test performance in patients with Alzheimer's disease.
Severe Mental Impairment blights the lives of many old people and their loved ones. My mum developed Parkinson's Disease a few years ago. I didn't know anything about the condition at the time, but it's caused by the formation of Lewy Bodies (blobs of abnormally-folded alpha-synuclein protein) in the substantia nigra part of the brain, which controls movement. This part of the brain has high levels of the Vitamin D receptor. Why does the brain contain Vitamin D receptors?
As Lewy Bodies form in other parts of the brain, mental faculties decline. The hippocampus is involved with short-term memory. The neocortex is involved with concious thought.
Mum started showing obvious signs of mental impairment in August 2007. She was assessed by a Community Psychiatric Nurse (CPN) in January 2008 when she scored 14/30 in a MMSE. She was unable to remember 3 words or follow 2 simple instructions in a row (e.g. fold this piece of paper in half and put it on the floor). I started her on 5,000iu/day of Vitamin D3 as it was having a positive effect on my mental function. She was prescribed Aricept, starting at 5mg/day for a month then increasing to 10mg/day. In May 2008 she was re-assessed and scored 26/30 in a MMSE. EDIT: In 2010, Mum's consultant told me that Aricept increases MMSE score by 3 points on average.
Unfortunately, Aricept has side-effects including severe diarrhoea and worsening of the symptoms of Parkinson's Disease which she complained about, so her Aricept dose was reduced back to 5mg/day.
Unsurprisingly, this resulted in a slight decline in mum's mental faculties. In November 2008, I increased her intake of smoked salmon to about 400g/week, as the consumption of long-chain pufas have benefits. See
Low Plasma N-3 Fatty Acids and Dementia in Older Persons: The InCHIANTI Study and
Disruption of glial (oligodendrocyte and astrocyte) cellular function leads to carnosine (b-alanyl-L-histidine) synthesis failure, and nutrient and protective factor deficiency in neurons with secondary development of oxidative stress and amyloid toxicity, with subsequent neuronal dysfunction and development of dementia which stated "Measures which reduce toxicity to vascular endothelium and glia, such as fish oil, may have potential for reducing the likelihood of development of the disease..."
After about four weeks, this had a noticeable (by myself and mum's friend) positive effect on her mental faculties so, inspired by Dr Art Ayers, I started her on Turmeric (curcumin) extract and Goldenseal (berberine) extract. See
Curcumin inhibits aggregation of alpha-synuclein
Neuroprotective effects of curcumin
Alpha-synuclein assembly as a therapeutic target of Parkinson's disease and related disorders
Curcumin labels amyloid pathology in vivo, disrupts existing plaques, and partially restores distorted neurites in an Alzheimer mouse model
Influence of piperine on the pharmacokinetics of curcumin in animals and human volunteers
Research on the mechanism of neuronal apoptosis in Alzheimer's disease and the effects of tetrohydroberberine on the apoptosis... and
Berberine chloride can ameliorate the spatial memory impairment and increase the expression of interleukin-1beta and inducible nitric oxide synthase in the rat model of Alzheimer's disease.
On January 12th 2009, mum was re-assessed and scored 26/30 in a MMSE. I thought that this was impressive considering that a) she was taking half the dose of Aricept compared to when she previously got that score, b) she had no adverse effects from taking any of the supplements and c) she was 8 months older and degenerative brain diseases worsen with time.
I mentioned to the CPN who did the MMSE that I was starting mum on 15mg/week Vitamin K2 as there were benefits. See
Menaquinone-4 concentration is correlated with sphingolipid concentrations in rat brain ,
Vitamin K status influences brain sulfatide metabolism in young mice and rats ,
Vitamin K and sphingolipid metabolism: evidence to date ,
Substantial sulfatide deficiency and ceramide elevation in very early Alzheimer's disease: potential role in disease pathogenesis and
The possible role of vitamin K deficiency in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease and in augmenting brain damage associated with cardiovascular disease
I don't know what sphingolipids are (I know who probably does) but sulfatides are good and ceramides are bad.
Around the time that mum collapsed, I received a copy of a letter from the CPN to mum's GP which stated "I have informed him (i.e. me) that I am unaware of any robust evidence that these substances are of any benefit." However, there is no evidence that these substances are of any harm.
And finally......
What started the cascade of confusion and collapse leading to hospitalisation and discharge to a nursing home was a simple Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) of e. coli. I don't know why UTIs cause so much confusion in elderly people, but elderly females are at a high risk of developing UTIs because a) elderly people don't drink enough so they don't pass enough urine, b) females have insufficient spacing between anus & urethra and c) elderly females who have any urinary/faecal leakage wear a Tena disposable "nappy/diaper", which increases the likelihood of faeces entering the urethra.
To reduce the risk of further UTIs, I have supplied the nursing home with a pot of D-mannose Plus, which contains d-mannose and cranberry extract, with instructions to add a heaped teaspoonful to a glass of juice once a week. See Intervening with urinary tract infections using anti-adhesives based on the crystal structure of the FimH-oligomannose-3 complex and
Natural approaches to prevention and treatment of infections of the lower urinary tract
EDIT: Thanks to Galina L for bringing the following study to my attention.
Magnesium supplementation in the treatment of dementia patients.
It's probably of no help to Lewy Body Dementia sufferers, as they already have high Mg levels in their CSF. See CSF Mg and Ca as diagnostic markers for dementia with Lewy bodies.
Continued on Look after your brain, Part 2.
The article contained the usual phrase "...more work was needed..."
The above article also led to Parkinson's linked to vitamin D which referred to the study Prevalence of vitamin d insufficiency in patients with Parkinson disease and Alzheimer disease. "However, the Emory University researchers do not yet know if the vitamin deficiency is a cause or the result of having Parkinson's". "Further research is required...." yet again.
It's like someone standing by their broken-down car wondering whether it's the empty fuel tank that's made the car stop or whether it's the car stopping that's made the fuel tank empty. Does it matter? Just put some fuel in the tank and see what happens! See also Higher serum vitamin D3 levels are associated with better cognitive test performance in patients with Alzheimer's disease.
Severe Mental Impairment blights the lives of many old people and their loved ones. My mum developed Parkinson's Disease a few years ago. I didn't know anything about the condition at the time, but it's caused by the formation of Lewy Bodies (blobs of abnormally-folded alpha-synuclein protein) in the substantia nigra part of the brain, which controls movement. This part of the brain has high levels of the Vitamin D receptor. Why does the brain contain Vitamin D receptors?
As Lewy Bodies form in other parts of the brain, mental faculties decline. The hippocampus is involved with short-term memory. The neocortex is involved with concious thought.
Mum started showing obvious signs of mental impairment in August 2007. She was assessed by a Community Psychiatric Nurse (CPN) in January 2008 when she scored 14/30 in a MMSE. She was unable to remember 3 words or follow 2 simple instructions in a row (e.g. fold this piece of paper in half and put it on the floor). I started her on 5,000iu/day of Vitamin D3 as it was having a positive effect on my mental function. She was prescribed Aricept, starting at 5mg/day for a month then increasing to 10mg/day. In May 2008 she was re-assessed and scored 26/30 in a MMSE. EDIT: In 2010, Mum's consultant told me that Aricept increases MMSE score by 3 points on average.
Unfortunately, Aricept has side-effects including severe diarrhoea and worsening of the symptoms of Parkinson's Disease which she complained about, so her Aricept dose was reduced back to 5mg/day.
Unsurprisingly, this resulted in a slight decline in mum's mental faculties. In November 2008, I increased her intake of smoked salmon to about 400g/week, as the consumption of long-chain pufas have benefits. See
Low Plasma N-3 Fatty Acids and Dementia in Older Persons: The InCHIANTI Study and
Disruption of glial (oligodendrocyte and astrocyte) cellular function leads to carnosine (b-alanyl-L-histidine) synthesis failure, and nutrient and protective factor deficiency in neurons with secondary development of oxidative stress and amyloid toxicity, with subsequent neuronal dysfunction and development of dementia which stated "Measures which reduce toxicity to vascular endothelium and glia, such as fish oil, may have potential for reducing the likelihood of development of the disease..."
After about four weeks, this had a noticeable (by myself and mum's friend) positive effect on her mental faculties so, inspired by Dr Art Ayers, I started her on Turmeric (curcumin) extract and Goldenseal (berberine) extract. See
Curcumin inhibits aggregation of alpha-synuclein
Neuroprotective effects of curcumin
Alpha-synuclein assembly as a therapeutic target of Parkinson's disease and related disorders
Curcumin labels amyloid pathology in vivo, disrupts existing plaques, and partially restores distorted neurites in an Alzheimer mouse model
Influence of piperine on the pharmacokinetics of curcumin in animals and human volunteers
Research on the mechanism of neuronal apoptosis in Alzheimer's disease and the effects of tetrohydroberberine on the apoptosis... and
Berberine chloride can ameliorate the spatial memory impairment and increase the expression of interleukin-1beta and inducible nitric oxide synthase in the rat model of Alzheimer's disease.
On January 12th 2009, mum was re-assessed and scored 26/30 in a MMSE. I thought that this was impressive considering that a) she was taking half the dose of Aricept compared to when she previously got that score, b) she had no adverse effects from taking any of the supplements and c) she was 8 months older and degenerative brain diseases worsen with time.
I mentioned to the CPN who did the MMSE that I was starting mum on 15mg/week Vitamin K2 as there were benefits. See
Menaquinone-4 concentration is correlated with sphingolipid concentrations in rat brain ,
Vitamin K status influences brain sulfatide metabolism in young mice and rats ,
Vitamin K and sphingolipid metabolism: evidence to date ,
Substantial sulfatide deficiency and ceramide elevation in very early Alzheimer's disease: potential role in disease pathogenesis and
The possible role of vitamin K deficiency in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease and in augmenting brain damage associated with cardiovascular disease
I don't know what sphingolipids are (I know who probably does) but sulfatides are good and ceramides are bad.
Around the time that mum collapsed, I received a copy of a letter from the CPN to mum's GP which stated "I have informed him (i.e. me) that I am unaware of any robust evidence that these substances are of any benefit." However, there is no evidence that these substances are of any harm.
And finally......
What started the cascade of confusion and collapse leading to hospitalisation and discharge to a nursing home was a simple Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) of e. coli. I don't know why UTIs cause so much confusion in elderly people, but elderly females are at a high risk of developing UTIs because a) elderly people don't drink enough so they don't pass enough urine, b) females have insufficient spacing between anus & urethra and c) elderly females who have any urinary/faecal leakage wear a Tena disposable "nappy/diaper", which increases the likelihood of faeces entering the urethra.
To reduce the risk of further UTIs, I have supplied the nursing home with a pot of D-mannose Plus, which contains d-mannose and cranberry extract, with instructions to add a heaped teaspoonful to a glass of juice once a week. See Intervening with urinary tract infections using anti-adhesives based on the crystal structure of the FimH-oligomannose-3 complex and
Natural approaches to prevention and treatment of infections of the lower urinary tract
EDIT: Thanks to Galina L for bringing the following study to my attention.
Magnesium supplementation in the treatment of dementia patients.
It's probably of no help to Lewy Body Dementia sufferers, as they already have high Mg levels in their CSF. See CSF Mg and Ca as diagnostic markers for dementia with Lewy bodies.
Continued on Look after your brain, Part 2.
Kamis, 19 Februari 2009
The future: I just saw it.
Today is Thursday 19th February 2009. I've just read an article in The New York Review of Books 'Drug Companies & Doctors': An Exchange dated 26th February 2009. I don't even possess a Flux Capacitor!
The above article was linked from Drug Companies & Doctors: A Story of Corruption which I found on The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics (THINCS).
"Because drug companies insist as a condition of providing funding that they be intimately involved in all aspects of the research they sponsor, they can easily introduce bias in order to make their drugs look better and safer than they are. Before the 1980s, they generally gave faculty investigators total responsibility for the conduct of the work, but now company employees or their agents often design the studies, perform the analysis, write the papers, and decide whether and in what form to publish the results. Sometimes the medical faculty who serve as investigators are little more than hired hands, supplying patients and collecting data according to instructions from the company.
In view of this control and the conflicts of interest that permeate the enterprise, it is not surprising that industry-sponsored trials published in medical journals consistently favor sponsors' drugs—largely because negative results are not published, positive results are repeatedly published in slightly different forms, and a positive spin is put on even negative results. A review of seventy-four clinical trials of antidepressants, for example, found that thirty-seven of thirty-eight positive studies were published. But of the thirty-six negative studies, thirty-three were either not published or published in a form that conveyed a positive outcome. It is not unusual for a published paper to shift the focus from the drug's intended effect to a secondary effect that seems more favorable."
Oh dear!
The above article was linked from Drug Companies & Doctors: A Story of Corruption which I found on The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics (THINCS).
"Because drug companies insist as a condition of providing funding that they be intimately involved in all aspects of the research they sponsor, they can easily introduce bias in order to make their drugs look better and safer than they are. Before the 1980s, they generally gave faculty investigators total responsibility for the conduct of the work, but now company employees or their agents often design the studies, perform the analysis, write the papers, and decide whether and in what form to publish the results. Sometimes the medical faculty who serve as investigators are little more than hired hands, supplying patients and collecting data according to instructions from the company.
In view of this control and the conflicts of interest that permeate the enterprise, it is not surprising that industry-sponsored trials published in medical journals consistently favor sponsors' drugs—largely because negative results are not published, positive results are repeatedly published in slightly different forms, and a positive spin is put on even negative results. A review of seventy-four clinical trials of antidepressants, for example, found that thirty-seven of thirty-eight positive studies were published. But of the thirty-six negative studies, thirty-three were either not published or published in a form that conveyed a positive outcome. It is not unusual for a published paper to shift the focus from the drug's intended effect to a secondary effect that seems more favorable."
Oh dear!
Minggu, 15 Februari 2009
A slight hitch.
On Friday 13th February, my mum collapsed and had to go to hospital. She's stable but completely incoherent at the moment, due to a combination of a) having a Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) and b) discontinuing her anti-dementia medication last week in the (mistaken) belief that it was giving her hallucinations.
It's hard to believe just how rapidly mental function in an old person can decline due to a UTI, but mum had a Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) score of 26 out of 30 on Monday 12th January. It would have been 0 last Friday.
Normal Blogging will be resumed when mum's infection has been treated and she is back on her medication. I will be getting mum to use D-mannose in her juice in future, as this is effective against E. coli and Klebsiella.
Continued on A slight hitch, Part 2.
It's hard to believe just how rapidly mental function in an old person can decline due to a UTI, but mum had a Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) score of 26 out of 30 on Monday 12th January. It would have been 0 last Friday.
Normal Blogging will be resumed when mum's infection has been treated and she is back on her medication. I will be getting mum to use D-mannose in her juice in future, as this is effective against E. coli and Klebsiella.
Continued on A slight hitch, Part 2.
Kamis, 12 Februari 2009
Cancer.
By request, I'm writing about cancer. I didn't know this, but cancer is now the No.1 killer of men in the UK. I previously thought that coronary heart disease was the No.1 killer.
Cancer is such a huge subject that, rather than oversimplify it, I'll put a link to Wikipedia. Warning: Pictures of tumours.
Vitamins get a mention, particularly Vitamin D, but EFAs aren't mentioned. This is odd, as typing "Omega-3 Cancer" into PubMed yields 612 human studies going back to 1984. Here are some of them:-
Some effects of the essential fatty acids linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid and of their metabolites gamma-linolenic acid, arachidonic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, and of prostaglandins A1 and E1 on the proliferation of human osteogenic sarcoma cells in culture.
Selective killing of human cancer cells by polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Chronic arachidonic acid eicosanoid imbalance: a common feature in coronary artery disease, hypercholesterolemia, cancer and other important diseases. Significance of desaturase enzyme inhibition and of the arachidonic acid desaturase-independent pathway.
n-3 fatty acids and cancer.
Fish consumption and breast cancer risk: an ecological study.
Effect of docosahexaenoic acid on rate of differentiation of HL-60 human leukemia.
N-3 and N-6 fatty acids in breast adipose tissue and relative risk of breast cancer in a case-control study in Tours, France.
Opposing effects of dietary n-3 and n-6 fatty acids on mammary carcinogenesis: The Singapore Chinese Health Study.
Induction of apoptosis in human pancreatic cancer cells by docosahexaenoic acid.
Dietary intakes of omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and the risk of breast cancer.
Nutritional knowledge of primary health care physicians in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
13.12.09: Some newer studies:-
A systemic review of the roles of n-3 fatty acids in health and disease.
Anticancer actions of omega-3 fatty acids--current state and future perspectives.
The effect of omega-3 FAs on tumour angiogenesis and their therapeutic potential.
Therapeutic potential of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in disease.
Fish oil enhances the antiproliferative effect of 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 on liver cancer cells.
EDIT: I've been reading about a substance called methylglyoxal, a glycolysis inhibitor. As many types of malignant cancer cells rely on the glycolysis pathway for energy, methylglyoxal looks like a promising anti-cancer agent.
See In vivo assessment of toxicity and pharmacokinetics of methylglyoxal. Augmentation of the curative effect of methylglyoxal on cancer-bearing mice by ascorbic acid and creatine,
A brief critical overview of the biological effects of methylglyoxal and further evaluation of a methylglyoxal-based anticancer formulation in treating cancer patients,
Selective inhibition of mitochondrial respiration and glycolysis in human leukaemic leucocytes by methylglyoxal and
Critical evaluation of toxic versus beneficial effects of methylglyoxal.
It looks like the Indians are ahead of everyone else on this stuff.
Well, well, well. Controversy!
"Methylglyoxal is a regular chemical, not cleared for human use. It is made without conforming to sound manufacturing practices and widely respected codes of good laboratory practices followed throughout the world." O, RLY? See below.
"The IACS' main supplier of Methylglyoxal is an American warehouse corporation, Sigma Medical Company, which sells it for research purposes at $1 to 2 per gramme and specifically states that none of its chemicals is meant for medical use." If everyone stuck to the "rules", humankind would never make any progress.
The principal scientist involved is Professor Manju Ray, a biochemist, not a pharmacologist or cancer specialist." Biochemists know how cells work, so I would say that's a plus point, not a minus point. It's also argumentum ad-hominem.
"The "secret" of the "miracle" lies in the anti-tumour effect of Methylglyoxal - a property shared by hundreds of toxic chemicals. Methylglyoxal, it is claimed, inhibits electron flows in cancerous cells and blocks a crucial step necessary for the production of ATP, the cellular energy "currency". Methylglyoxal isn't anywhere near as toxic as standard chemotherapy drugs. Someone needs to learn some basic biochemistry!
"A critical ingredient, a control group with which the treated patients are compared, is absent from the study." It's unethical to have one group denied a treatment that might save their lives. The Lyon Diet-Heart trial was discontinued because the control group had a much higher mortality than the treated group.
"The researchers treated 24 patients, mostly in highly advanced stages of cancer, with oral administration of Methylglyoxal, with Vitamin C, over eight to 10 weeks. They claim that after treatment, 11 were in "excellent physical condition" and five were in a condition that "can be considered stable". "The rest either opted out of treatment or died during the course of study." This is disturbing enough." You left out the creatine and 0 out of 24 would almost certainly have survived without treatment.
"The study does not show how, through what process, the "cure" occurs." That's not the purpose of the study.
"What is equally astonishing is that the drug should be used in clinical trials on human beings in the first place. Such trials are permissible only after the pharmaco-kinetics (the way and the speed with which the body will handle the drug) is properly understood, and trials on experimental animals have been carried out. In this case, the first criterion was not fulfilled. And there is no mention of animal trials." An animal trial had been done. See the 1st study above.
Cancer is such a huge subject that, rather than oversimplify it, I'll put a link to Wikipedia. Warning: Pictures of tumours.
Vitamins get a mention, particularly Vitamin D, but EFAs aren't mentioned. This is odd, as typing "Omega-3 Cancer" into PubMed yields 612 human studies going back to 1984. Here are some of them:-
Some effects of the essential fatty acids linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid and of their metabolites gamma-linolenic acid, arachidonic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, and of prostaglandins A1 and E1 on the proliferation of human osteogenic sarcoma cells in culture.
Selective killing of human cancer cells by polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Chronic arachidonic acid eicosanoid imbalance: a common feature in coronary artery disease, hypercholesterolemia, cancer and other important diseases. Significance of desaturase enzyme inhibition and of the arachidonic acid desaturase-independent pathway.
n-3 fatty acids and cancer.
Fish consumption and breast cancer risk: an ecological study.
Effect of docosahexaenoic acid on rate of differentiation of HL-60 human leukemia.
N-3 and N-6 fatty acids in breast adipose tissue and relative risk of breast cancer in a case-control study in Tours, France.
Opposing effects of dietary n-3 and n-6 fatty acids on mammary carcinogenesis: The Singapore Chinese Health Study.
Induction of apoptosis in human pancreatic cancer cells by docosahexaenoic acid.
Dietary intakes of omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and the risk of breast cancer.
Nutritional knowledge of primary health care physicians in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
13.12.09: Some newer studies:-
A systemic review of the roles of n-3 fatty acids in health and disease.
Anticancer actions of omega-3 fatty acids--current state and future perspectives.
The effect of omega-3 FAs on tumour angiogenesis and their therapeutic potential.
Therapeutic potential of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in disease.
Fish oil enhances the antiproliferative effect of 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 on liver cancer cells.
EDIT: I've been reading about a substance called methylglyoxal, a glycolysis inhibitor. As many types of malignant cancer cells rely on the glycolysis pathway for energy, methylglyoxal looks like a promising anti-cancer agent.
See In vivo assessment of toxicity and pharmacokinetics of methylglyoxal. Augmentation of the curative effect of methylglyoxal on cancer-bearing mice by ascorbic acid and creatine,
A brief critical overview of the biological effects of methylglyoxal and further evaluation of a methylglyoxal-based anticancer formulation in treating cancer patients,
Selective inhibition of mitochondrial respiration and glycolysis in human leukaemic leucocytes by methylglyoxal and
Critical evaluation of toxic versus beneficial effects of methylglyoxal.
It looks like the Indians are ahead of everyone else on this stuff.
Well, well, well. Controversy!
"Methylglyoxal is a regular chemical, not cleared for human use. It is made without conforming to sound manufacturing practices and widely respected codes of good laboratory practices followed throughout the world." O, RLY? See below.
"The IACS' main supplier of Methylglyoxal is an American warehouse corporation, Sigma Medical Company, which sells it for research purposes at $1 to 2 per gramme and specifically states that none of its chemicals is meant for medical use." If everyone stuck to the "rules", humankind would never make any progress.
The principal scientist involved is Professor Manju Ray, a biochemist, not a pharmacologist or cancer specialist." Biochemists know how cells work, so I would say that's a plus point, not a minus point. It's also argumentum ad-hominem.
"The "secret" of the "miracle" lies in the anti-tumour effect of Methylglyoxal - a property shared by hundreds of toxic chemicals. Methylglyoxal, it is claimed, inhibits electron flows in cancerous cells and blocks a crucial step necessary for the production of ATP, the cellular energy "currency". Methylglyoxal isn't anywhere near as toxic as standard chemotherapy drugs. Someone needs to learn some basic biochemistry!
"A critical ingredient, a control group with which the treated patients are compared, is absent from the study." It's unethical to have one group denied a treatment that might save their lives. The Lyon Diet-Heart trial was discontinued because the control group had a much higher mortality than the treated group.
"The researchers treated 24 patients, mostly in highly advanced stages of cancer, with oral administration of Methylglyoxal, with Vitamin C, over eight to 10 weeks. They claim that after treatment, 11 were in "excellent physical condition" and five were in a condition that "can be considered stable". "The rest either opted out of treatment or died during the course of study." This is disturbing enough." You left out the creatine and 0 out of 24 would almost certainly have survived without treatment.
"The study does not show how, through what process, the "cure" occurs." That's not the purpose of the study.
"What is equally astonishing is that the drug should be used in clinical trials on human beings in the first place. Such trials are permissible only after the pharmaco-kinetics (the way and the speed with which the body will handle the drug) is properly understood, and trials on experimental animals have been carried out. In this case, the first criterion was not fulfilled. And there is no mention of animal trials." An animal trial had been done. See the 1st study above.
Minggu, 08 Februari 2009
Supplements: Who needs 'em?
According to Health Professionals, nobody. Apparently, we get all of the vitamins, minerals & other nutrients that we need from a "Healthy Balanced Diet" (whatever that is!).
According to me, just about everybody. Due to modern farming methods, food ain't what it used to be. Dammit, even nostalgia ain't what it used to be! Due to changes in lifestyle:-
a) Most people are more sedentary than they used to be. This means that they require less food than they used to in order to not get fat. Less food, coupled with less nutrients in the food = dietary deficiencies.
b) Most people don't get as much sun on their skin as they used to, as they now work, play & live mostly indoors and when they do go outside, they are encouraged to Slip Slop Slap (slip on a shirt, slop on sunscreen and slap on a hat). This results in hypovitaminosis D, as only an Eskimo's diet contains enough dietary Vitamin D. The RDA of 200/400/600iu/day (depending on age) is woefully inadequate and totally out of touch with modern research.
c) Most people don't eat much oily fish. Also, animal & vegetable produce now contains more omega-6 & less omega-3 than it used to. This results in an imbalance.
d) Diets low in vegetable & fruits lack Potassium & Magnesium.
e) Diets low in fermented products lack Vitamin K2.
Because of the above, I supplement with:-
300mg/day of Magnesium as Citrate/Amino Acid Chelate, or 600mg/day as Oxide.
5,000iu/day of Vitamin D3.
15mg/week of Vitamin K2.
I also use Losalt, which provides 2 parts Potassium to 1 part Sodium.
According to me, just about everybody. Due to modern farming methods, food ain't what it used to be. Dammit, even nostalgia ain't what it used to be! Due to changes in lifestyle:-
a) Most people are more sedentary than they used to be. This means that they require less food than they used to in order to not get fat. Less food, coupled with less nutrients in the food = dietary deficiencies.
b) Most people don't get as much sun on their skin as they used to, as they now work, play & live mostly indoors and when they do go outside, they are encouraged to Slip Slop Slap (slip on a shirt, slop on sunscreen and slap on a hat). This results in hypovitaminosis D, as only an Eskimo's diet contains enough dietary Vitamin D. The RDA of 200/400/600iu/day (depending on age) is woefully inadequate and totally out of touch with modern research.
c) Most people don't eat much oily fish. Also, animal & vegetable produce now contains more omega-6 & less omega-3 than it used to. This results in an imbalance.
d) Diets low in vegetable & fruits lack Potassium & Magnesium.
e) Diets low in fermented products lack Vitamin K2.
Because of the above, I supplement with:-
300mg/day of Magnesium as Citrate/Amino Acid Chelate, or 600mg/day as Oxide.
5,000iu/day of Vitamin D3.
15mg/week of Vitamin K2.
I also use Losalt, which provides 2 parts Potassium to 1 part Sodium.
Jumat, 06 Februari 2009
Research shows.....
....that people who eat a low-fat breakfast like Special K are more likely to be slimmer than those who don't.
So states the Special K advert. I wonder whether the researchers used a control group who ate a high-fat breakfast? Somehow, I doubt it. I eat a high-fat breakfast, if you look at the Blog post immediately below this one and I am slimmer than when I didn't eat breakfast. Skipping breakfast causes low blood glucose, which encourages over-eating later-on. Therefore, people who eat breakfast are more likely to be slimmer than those who don't.
That's the problem with "Research". It usually shows what people want it to show. By omitting control groups, such research is utterly worthless. While I'm on a mini-rant, "Clinically proven" is another phrase often bandied about in advertisements. I have news for you. Clinical studies can only disprove something. The best that a clinical study can do is provide evidence that something is beneficial to some or most of the people in the study only. It cannot be extrapolated to the rest of the population.
So states the Special K advert. I wonder whether the researchers used a control group who ate a high-fat breakfast? Somehow, I doubt it. I eat a high-fat breakfast, if you look at the Blog post immediately below this one and I am slimmer than when I didn't eat breakfast. Skipping breakfast causes low blood glucose, which encourages over-eating later-on. Therefore, people who eat breakfast are more likely to be slimmer than those who don't.
That's the problem with "Research". It usually shows what people want it to show. By omitting control groups, such research is utterly worthless. While I'm on a mini-rant, "Clinically proven" is another phrase often bandied about in advertisements. I have news for you. Clinical studies can only disprove something. The best that a clinical study can do is provide evidence that something is beneficial to some or most of the people in the study only. It cannot be extrapolated to the rest of the population.
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