Simply 4 Alzheimer's

More about vitamin E

Make sure you are using fully natural vitamin E, no synthetics: "The hell with dl" 

Despite the occasional negative publicity surrounding vitamin E, this nutrient has proven itself time and again to be one amazing antioxidant. Case in point: Research published earlier this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association has shown that vitamin E can help slow functional decline associated with Alzheimer’s disease.¹

This development is particularly significant since no cure for Alzheimer’s exists—only treatments to slow the progression of the disease. Currently, two main classes of drugs are approved for Alzheimer’s treatment: cholinesterase inhibitors (such as Aricept®, Exelon® and Razadyne®) and memantine (Namenda®).

These drugs may treat the symptoms of Alzheimer’s—like memory loss and problems with reasoning—but they also have their fair share of troublesome side effects, including nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, increased bowel movements, headache and dizziness.

Researchers have found, however, that vitamin E may actually work better than certain conventional treatments in slowing cognitive decline.

In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, investigators wanted to determine the effectiveness of vitamin E, mematine or a combination of the two in slowing the progression of mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease in patients already taking a cholinesterase inhibitor like Aricept®.

Participants received 2,000 IU vitamin E (alpha tocopherol) per day, 20 mg memantine per day, a combination of the two or a placebo.

At the end of the five-year study period, the researchers analyzed data from 561 of the participants (140 taking vitamin E, 142 taking memantine, 139 using the combination treatment and 140 on placebo). They found that the group given the vitamin E had a delay in clinical progression of the disease of 19 percent per year (in other words, a delay of 6.2 months) compared to the placebo group.

In addition, those in the vitamin E group did not demand increased attention from caregivers.

More importantly, contrary to other studies that have implicated vitamin E as the cause of increased mortality—especially at higher doses^2-3—this study actually concluded that vitamin E has a good safety profile, with greater death frequency in the groups that took the memantine or the vitamin E/memantine combination than the vitamin E group.

In conclusion, the researchers wrote that, among patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s, “2,000 IU/day of alpha tocopherol compared with placebo resulted in slower functional decline. There were no significant differences in the groups receiving memantine alone or memantine plus alpha tocopherol. These findings suggest benefit of alpha tocopherol in mild to moderate Alzheimers disease by slowing functional decline and decreasing caregiver burden.”

This isn’t the first study to praise vitamin E’s brain-protective powers. Another study showed that people with the highest plasma levels of total vitamin E, total tocopherols and total tocotrienols had a reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease compared to those with the lowest levels.⁴
 
Specifically, people with the highest plasma total vitamin E or total tocopherols had a 45 percent decreased risk of developing the disease, and those with the highest total tocotrienols had a 54 percent reduction in risk, as compared to people with the lowest levels.

Is E an Option for You?

Only a qualified medical professional—ideally one with vast knowledge in nutritional supplementation—can determine whether or not high doses of vitamin E would be appropriate for you or your loved one with Alzheimer’s.

The recommended daily allowance for healthy adults is a meager 22.4 IU, but tolerable upper intake levels go as high as 1,500 IU.⁵ The JAMA study used 2,000 IU. For general brain and memory health/maintenance, 400 IU per day should suffice.

In many cases, the risks of disease progression far outweigh any potential risks of taking high doses of certain drugs or supplements—but only you and your doctor can make that determination. But, as this study shows, vitamin E offers great promise, and its potential should not be ignored.

References:

1. Dysken MW, et al. JAMA. 2014 Jan 1;311(1):33-44.
2. Miller ER 3rd, et al. Ann Intern Med. 2005 Jan 4;142(1):37-46.
3. Boothby LA and Doering PL. Ann Pharmacother. 2005 Dec;39(12):2073-80.
4. Mangialasche F, et al. J Alzheimers Dis. 2010;20(4):1029-37.
5. Institute of Medicine. http://iom.edu/Activities/Nutrition/SummaryDRIs/~/media/Files/Activity%20Files/Nutrition/DRIs/New%20Material/4_%20UL%20Values_Vitamins%20and%20Elements.pdf.

SOURCE: Larissa Long


Selections from Natural Health News

Natural Health News: Vitamins for Alzheimer's

Dec 27, 2009

Increased oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction have been identified as common pathophysiological phenomena associated with neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Cancer, Alzheimer's

Sep 12, 2010

Cancer, Alzheimer's · Flaraxin is effective in 90% of oncologic diseases. Alzheimer's = Flaraxin + B3 http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2009/05/alzheimers-what-you-wont-see-on-hbo.html. Posted by herbalYODA at 11:56.

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Alzheimer's drugs double death risk

Jan 10, 2009

LONDON – Anti-psychotic drugs commonly used to treat Alzheimer's disease may double a patient's chance of dying within a few years, suggests a new study that adds to concerns already known about such medications.

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Alzheimer's Reminder, Don't Overlook These Causes

Jan 11, 2010

According to the report, the equivalent of fluoridated drinking water in terms of elemental fluorine levels had an impact on brain tissue similar to the pathological changes found in humans with Alzheimer's and other forms of ...

Natural Health News: Vitamin E

Oct 12, 2011

My experience with these reports and the studies is that there are problems from the outset; the first being the use of SYNTHETIC vitamins (in this case dl-alpha tocopherol or synthetic vitamin E). This is the first mistake.

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Better to Use Vitamin E My Dear

Aug 16, 2010

I think it would be a great service to patients with pain, FMS, and neuropathy if SIM started a study to show you just how effective natural vitamin E can be to prevent and reverse neuropathy. Contact us FMI, and be sure to ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Vitamin E Critical for Your Health

Jan 23, 2008

Over the past several years there have been numerous reports trying to convince you that vitamin E is bad for health. One public television station even aired a program with panelist from a local Spokane WA area hospital ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Vitamin E, Women's Health and Myth Making by Experts

Sep 10, 2007

This is how you get confused, especially if you do to know the history of vitamin E and it's use to prevent are reverse heart disease (the medical studies on this date back to the 1940s and 50s). Natural vitamin E (listed on a ...

Vitamin E

I am once agin amazed at these studies that keep coming along telling you that if you take vitamins you will get very sick or worse.  I am not too sure this is the scientific method I learned in the years of science classes I took over many years of schooling.

I've been in health care since the early 1960s.  I statrted studying and using natural health in the mid 50s.  Over many years of education and work in this field I have yet to have come into contact with anyone harmed by vitamins.

We know people are harmed and killed every day by pharmaceuticals.  We do not hear this on the news.

My experience with these reports and the studies is that there are problems from the outset; the first being the use of SYNTHETIC vitamins (in this case dl-alpha tocopherol or synthetic vitamin E).

This is the first mistake.

Other negative vitamin E studies I have reviewed use synthetic vitamin E in the process.

Another concern I have is that generally, if you know your natural health inside and out like I do you know that the key elements for protecting the protate happen to be zinc (low dose) and selenium (selenomethionine or sea based).  If this study utilized zinc and selenium in the proper forms the results would be much different.

Zinc (I use a low dose food based form) is the mineral for glandular health.  The prostate is a gland.  Selenium (in the correct form as noted above)  is well established as protectective of the prostate and has anticancer properties.

Please make sure you fail to accept reports on specious studies such as this one.  And make sure John LaPook does more research before he tells Scott Pelley and you that you can get the best health from your diet.

Duffy MacKay of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a supplement makers' trade group, said the study shouldn't be interpreted as questioning the benefits of vitamin E as an essential nutrient, and he said there is evidence that many Americans don't get enough.

Read comments from MedPage Today

Leaflady.org Vitamin E articles here and here

Orthomolecular Medicine News Service released this commentary -

October 14, 2011

Vitamin E Attacked Again

Of Course. Because It Works.

by Andrew W. Saul
Editor, Orthomolecular Medicine News Service

(OMNS, Oct 14, 2011) The very first Orthomolecular Medicine News Service release was on the clinical benefits of vitamin E. That was seven years ago. (1) In fact, the battle over vitamin E has been going full-tilt for over 60 years. (2)

Well, you can say one thing for vitamin critics: at least they are consistent. Consistently wrong, but consistent.

A recent accusation against vitamin E is that somehow it increases risk of prostate cancer. (3) That is nonsense. If you take close look at the numbers, you will see that "Compared with placebo, the absolute increase in risk of prostate cancer per 1000 person-years was 1.6 for vitamin E, 0.8 for selenium, and 0.4 for the combination." That works out to be a claimed 0.63% increase risk with vitamin E alone, 0.24% increase in risk with vitamin E and selenium, and 0.15% increase in risk for selenium alone.

Note the decimal points: these are very small figures. But more importantly, note that the combination of selenium with vitamin E resulted in a much smaller number of deaths. If vitamin E were really the problem, vitamin E with selenium would have been a worse problem. Selenium recharges vitamin E, recycling it and effectively rendering it more potent. Something is wrong here, and it isn't the vitamin E. Indeed, a higher dose of vitamin E might work as well as E with selenium, and be more protective.

And, in fact, this study did show that supplementation was beneficial. Vitamin E and selenium reduced risk of all-cause mortality by about 0.2%., and also reduced the risk of serious cardiovascular events by 0.3%. Vitamin E reduced risk of serious cardiovascular events by 0.7%. But what you were told, and just about all you were told, was "Vitamin E causes cancer!"

The oldest political trick in the book is to create doubt, then fear, and then conformity of action. The pharmaceutical industry knows this full well. One does not waste time and money attacking something that does not work. Vitamin E works, and the evidence is abundant.

Specifically in regards to prostate cancer, new research published in the International Journal of Cancer has shown that gamma-tocotrienol, a cofactor found in natural vitamin E preparations, actually kills prostate cancer stem cells. (4) As you would expect, these are the very cells from which prostate cancer develops. They are or quickly become chemotherapy-resistant. And yet natural vitamin E complex contains the very thing to kill them. Mice given gamma-tocotrienol orally had an astonishing 75% decrease in tumor formation. Gamma-tocotrienol also is effective against existing prostate tumors. (5,6)

Additionally:

• Vitamin E reduces mortality by 24% in persons 71 or older. Even persons who smoke live longer if they take vitamin E. Hemila H, Kaprio J. Age Ageing, 2011. 40(2): 215-220. January 17. http://ageing.oxfordjournals.org/content/40/2/215.short
• Taking 300 IU vitamin E per day reduces lung cancer by 61%. (Mahabir S, Schendel K, Dong YQ et al. Dietary alpha-, beta-, gamma- and delta-tocopherols in lung cancer risk. Int J Cancer. 2008 Sep 1;123(5):1173-80.) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18546288 For further information: Vitamin E prevents lung cancer. Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, Oct 29, 2008. http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v04n18.shtml
• Vitamin E is an effective treatment for atherosclerosis. Drs. Wilfrid and Evan Shute knew this half a century ago. (1) In 1995, JAMA published research that confirmed it, saying: "Subjects with supplementary vitamin E intake of 100 IU per day or greater demonstrated less coronary artery lesion progression than did subjects with supplementary vitamin E intake less than 100 IU per day." (Hodis HN, Mack WJ, LaBree L et al. Serial coronary angiographic evidence that antioxidant vitamin intake reduces progression of coronary artery atherosclerosis. JAMA, 1995. 273:1849-1854.) http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/273/23/1849.short
• 400 to 800 IU of vitamin E daily reduces risk of heart attack by 77%. (Stephens NG et al. Randomized controlled trial of vitamin E in patients with coronary artery disease: Cambridge Heart Antioxidant Study (CHAOS). Lancet, March 23, 1996; 347:781-786.) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8622332
• Increasing vitamin E with supplements prevents COPD [Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, chronic bronchitis] (Agler AH et al. Randomized vitamin E supplementation and risk of chronic lung disease (CLD) in the Women's Health Study. American Thoracic Society 2010 International Conference, May 18, 2010.) Summary at http://www.thoracic.org/newsroom/press-releases/conference/articles/2010/vitamine-e.pdf
• 800 IU vitamin E per day is a successful treatment for fatty liver disease. (Sanyal AJ, Chalasani N, Kowdley KV et al. Pioglitazone, vitamin E, or placebo for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. N Engl J Med. 2010 May 6;362(18):1675-85.) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20427778
• Alzheimer's patients who take 2,000 IU of vitamin E per day live longer. (Pavlik VN, Doody RS, Rountree SD, Darby EJ. Vitamin E use is associated with improved survival in an Alzheimer's disease cohort. Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord. 2009;28(6):536-40.) Summary at http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/719537/alzheimers_patients_who_take_vitamin.html?cat=5
  See also: Grundman M. Vitamin E and Alzheimer disease: the basis for additional clinical trials. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Feb;71(2):630S-636S. Free access to full text at http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/71/2/630s )
• 400 IU of Vitamin E per day reduces epileptic seizures in children by more than 60%. (Ogunmekan AO, Hwang PA. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial of D-alpha-tocopheryl acetate [vitamin E], as add-on therapy, for epilepsy in children. Epilepsia. 1989 Jan-Feb; 30(1):84-9.) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2643513
• Vitamin E supplements help prevent amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). This important finding is the result of a 10-year-plus Harvard study of over a million persons. (Wang H, O'Reilly EJ, Weisskopf MG, et al. Vitamin E intake and risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a pooled analysis of data from 5 prospective cohort studies. Am. J. Epidemiol, 2011. 173 (6): 595-602. March 15) http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/173/6/595.short
• Vitamin E is more effective than a prescription drug in treating chronic liver disease (nonalcoholic steatohepatitis). Said the authors: "The good news is that this study showed that cheap and readily available vitamin E can help many of those with this condition." Sanyal AJ, Chalasani N, Kowdley KV et al. Pioglitazone, vitamin E, or placebo for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. N Engl J Med. 2010 May 6;362(18):1675-85. http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa0907929

What Kind of Vitamin E?

Which work best: natural or synthetic vitamins? The general debate might not end anytime soon. However, with vitamin E, we already know. The best E is the most natural form, generally called "mixed natural tocopherols and tocotrienols." This is very different from the synthetic form, DL-alpha tocopherol. In choosing a vitamin E supplement, you should carefully read the label... the entire label. It is remarkable how many natural-looking brown bottles with natural-sounding brand names contain a synthetic vitamin. And no, we do not make brand recommendations. Furthermore, OMNS has no commercial affiliations or funding.

Unfortunately, that's not the case with some authors of the negative vitamin E paper. (3) You will not see this in the abstract at the JAMA website, of course, but if you read the entire paper, and get to the very last page (1556), you'll find the "Conflict of Interest" section. Here you will discover that a number of the study authors have received money from pharmaceutical companies, including Merck, Pfizer, Sanofi-Aventis, AstraZeneca, Abbott, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Amgen, Firmagon, and Novartis. In terms of cash, these are some of the largest corporations on the planet.

Well how about that: a "vitamins are dangerous" article, in one of the most popular medical journals, with lots of media hype . . . and the pharmaceutical industry's fingerprints all over it.

So How Much Vitamin E?

More than the RDA, and that's for certain. A common dosage range for vitamin E is between 200 and 800 IU/day. Some orthomolecular physicians advocate substantially more than that. The studies cited above will give you a ballpark idea. However, this is an individual matter for you and your practitioner to work out. Your own reading and research, before you go to your doctor, will help you determine optimal intake. If your doctor quotes a negative vitamin study, then haul out the positive ones. You may start with this article. There are more links to more information at http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v06n09.shtml and http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v06n25.shtml

Safety

And as for the old saw argument that supplement-users are supposedly dying like flies, consider this: Over 200 million Americans take vitamin supplements. So where are the bodies? Well, there aren't any. There has not been a single death from vitamins in 27 years. http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v07n05.shtml . Share that with your doctor as well. And with the news media.

Selections from Natural Health News about vit E

Natural Health News: VITAMINS HAVE NEVER KILLED ANYONE

Oct 11, 2011

16 hours ago

The most commonly used supplements were calcium, multivitamins, vitamin C, and vitamin E. Through 2008, 40.2% of the women died. After adjustment for demographics, dietary and lifestyle factors, comorbidities, and use of ...

Natural Health News: Better to Use Vitamin E My Dear

Aug 16, 2010

I think it would be a great service to patients with pain, FMS, and neuropathy if SIM started a study to show you just how effective natural vitamin E can be to prevent and reverse neuropathy. ...

Natural Health News: Vitamin E Critical for Your Health

Jan 23, 2008

Over the past several years there have been numerous reports trying to convince you that vitamin E is bad for health. One public television station even aired a program with panelist from a local Spokane WA area hospital ...

Natural Health News: Chemo Recipients Benefit from Vitamin E

Jun 08, 2010

Participants were randomly assigned to receive vitamin E supplementation (alpha-tocopherol 400 mg/day) or placebo. Treatment was started orally before chemotherapy and continued for 3 months after the suspension of ...


Selenium -

Natural Health News: The Mistake in Maligning Minerals

May 11, 2011

Most of the selenium in the body comes from the diet. The amount of selenium in food depends on where it is grown or raised. Crab, liver, fish, poultry, and wheat are generally good selenium sources. ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Pay No Attention to the Man Behind the Curtain

Dec 05, 2008

All they would have to do is to read the reports on E, C, Selenium and the Jupiter Study on Natural Health News. It's a simple thing to use our search function, and real data. You can even link to our reading site with ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

A Different Approach Needed for AIDS

Dec 01, 2008

KHA reported some years ago about manganese and selenium, thymus support to raise cell counts and other more natural things that have helped many people. They also encourage a whole food and organic food plan. ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Purposeful Confusion?

Jun 19, 2009

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lost its bid to overturn a health claim for selenium-containing dietary supplements last Thursday in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. District Court Judge Ellen ...

Better to Use Vitamin E My Dear

All over the TV ads in the Spokane market is an ad from Spokane Internal Medicine attempting to lure you into a Big PhRMA study allegedly for diabetic neuropathy relief using Lyrica.

Yes, you get paid, just as in most of these studies. But is this worth the risk?

Lyrica is a very controversial drug and comes with a high price in dollars and negative risks for your health.

I think it would be a great service to patients with pain, FMS, and neuropathy if SIM started a study to show you just how effective natural vitamin E can be to prevent and reverse neuropathy. 

Contact us FMI, and be sure to check out all the Lyrica related articles on Natural Health News.

Chemo Recipients Benefit from Vitamin E

In a new report of a study involving people treated with cisplatin chemotherapy and provided with daily vitamin E, good benefits were found.

Participants were randomly assigned to receive vitamin E supplementation (alpha-tocopherol 400 mg/day) or placebo. Treatment was started orally before chemotherapy and continued for 3 months after the suspension of cisplatin.

The results of our study indicate that vitamin E supplementation significantly protects against cisplatin peripheral neurotoxicity and reduces the incidence and intensity of neuropathic signs and symptoms.

Another important point is that vitamin E supplementation does not interfere with cisplatin antitumor activity.

No side effects were noted in any of the study participants.

Report published in the journal, Neurology, 2010;74(9):762-6. 47824 (5/2010)

Study Finds Colon Cancer Survival Not Extended Using Erbitux

Vitamin E is known to help prevent colon cancer. New studies also point to help from Omega 3.

UPDATE: Study Finds Colon Cancer Survival Not Extended Using Erbitux

Oh, I know, you are one of those health nuts

UPDATE: 11 May 2010 - Diabetes associated with statin use Reported Sattar N, Preiss D, Murray HM, et al, Lancet. 2010;375:735-742. Epub 2010 Feb 16.
Certainly the risk of diabetes is not one which you may wish to undertake. Changing foo and lifestyle can do many great things for health, and help you reduce cholesterol without risk of diabetes.

And from another source here's more old news about the benefits of raw nuts for health. I wonder how many times the same studies are done before the findings trickle down to the everyday public...

Nuts, by the way, in addition to containing vitamin E for cardiovascular health, do contain a fat that is found in deficient levels in people suffering with wheat allergy.

Remember, it's just 1/4 cup daily of raw nuts to help you reap a multitude of benefits to help you avoid using problematic drugs.

Eating nuts may help lower cholesterol levels, US research suggests.
The review of 25 studies, involving nearly 600 people, showed eating on average 67g of nuts - a small bag - a day reduced cholesterol levels by 7.4%.
The US Loma Linda University team believes nuts may help prevent the absorption of cholesterol.
UK experts said the research showed nuts were an important part of a healthy diet, but warned against eating nuts covered in sugar or salt.
Previous work has indicated eating nuts regularly is beneficial, but the Archives of Internal Medicine study set out to put an accurate figure on the effect.

“ The effects of nut consumption were dose related, and different types of nuts had similar effects ” Lead researcher Joan Sabate

The people involved ate 67g of nuts a day on average, over a period of three to eight weeks.
As well as improving cholesterol levels, it also reduced the amount of triglyceride, a type of blood fat that has been linked to heart disease.
However, the impact was least pronounced among the overweight.
It is not yet clear why nuts have this effect, although one suggestion is that it is down to the plant sterols they contain, which are thought to interfere with cholesterol absorption.
Lead researcher Joan Sabate said increasing nut consumption as part of a healthy diet should be recommended.
He added: "The effects of nut consumption were dose related, and different types of nuts had similar effects."
Ellen Mason, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, agreed, but she urged people to go for unsalted nuts.
"Apart from salted peanuts at the pub, nuts in sugary cereals or the traditional Christmas selection, nuts have been largely lacking in our diets in the UK," she added.
The study was carried out by independent researchers, although it was partly funded by the International Tree Nut Council Nutrition Research and Education Foundation.

Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/8673208.stm
Published: 2010/05/10 23:31:27 GMT © BBC MMX
12.15.08 - Nutty for sure but up on healthy foods for longer than most people ever thought of this so-called "new" report on why eating nuts is good for health.

About a dozen years ago I taught one of my seminars at Edmonds Community College about heart health. I had just found an excellent study about how just 1/4 cup daily of raw walnuts would go a long way to keep your heart healthy. Plus they would give you a food source of health promoting vitamin E.

Now someone has gone again and gotten some money to do research about something that could have been found in a thorough search of the literature.

So here you go, since it is "news", a few more facts on nuts.

Please note that the health benefits refer to using raw nuts and organic would be the best choice.

Walnuts

In addition to their omega-3 fatty acids, walnuts are an important source of monounsaturated fats — approximately 15% of the fat found in walnuts is healthful monounsaturated fat. A host of studies have shown that increasing the dietary intake of monounsaturated-dense walnuts has favorable effects on high cholesterol levels and other cardiovascular risk factors.

and

Did you know that just one-quarter cup of walnuts contains over 90% of the daily value for those hard-to-find omega-3 essential fatty acids? They are called .essential. because they are a special protective type of fat that cannot be manufactured by our body and therefore must be supplied by the foods we eat. Researchers believe that about 60% of Americans are deficient in omega-3 fatty acids, and about 20% have so little that tests cannot even detect any in their blood. The list of benefits derived from omega-3s is impressive, ranging from improving cholesterol levels and reducing the risk of stroke to acting as anti-inflammatory agents and improving bone density. Enjoying walnuts as part of your Healthiest Way of Eating not only adds wonderful taste and texture to your meals, but it is an easy way to include more omega-3s into your diet. Walnuts also contain ellagic acid a compound that supports the immune system and appears to have anticancer properties.

and don't forget that walnuts do have a thyroid lowering effect so perhaps this will aid those with hyperthyroid conditions who aren't sold on slaying their gland with radioactive iodine.

Prevention and Colon Cancer

Recently a study pointed to the usefulness of Omega 3 to help in the prevention of colon cancer.  Other studies looked at the preventive benefits of B complex vitamins like B9 and B6, and also the protective benefit of magnesium.

What hasn't been restudied of late is the well documented preventive effect against colon cancer from vitamin E.

This protective benefit was well covered in the 1990s and also in many studies from decades earlier.

Vitamin E (choose non-SOY) natural tocopherol and tocotrienol sources, as well as good foods. If you'd like vitamin consultation just get in touch with us for this service.

What foods provide vitamin E?

Walnuts are well established to provide a good source of vitamin E; raw and organic is the best choice, about 1/4 cup daily.  But do remember that walnuts are in the group of foods, like mustard greens and others in the brassica family, that effect the thyroid gland.

Excellent sources of vitamin E include mustard greens, turnip greens, chard, and sunflower seeds.

Very good sources of vitamin E include almonds and spinach.

Good sources of vitamin E include collard greens, parsley, kale, papaya, olives, bell pepper, brussels sprouts, kiwifruit, tomato, blueberries, and broccoli.  SOURCE

Natural Cures for Clinton's Maladies

Now that we have been bombarded with Bill Clinton's health status for the last two days, I wonder just how many people won't get the kind of health care he has had during this time. It is something to think about as AP's Marilynn Marchione, AP Medical Writer, writes that he "...has a new lease on life, but there's no cure for the heart disease that has twice forced the former president to get blocked arteries fixed."

Clinton's taking anti-clotting medication which has long term problems of its own and he was admonished for stopping cholesterol medication. Of course it wasn't considered that cholesterol medication doesn't do too much for atherosclerosis, and nutritional depletion from the drugs was not even mentioned.

There may be no medical cure, but certainly we know that nature cures.

In case Bill reads this while he's recovering in Chappaqua, he'd do well to research the benefits of garlic, cayenne, vitamins B-C-E, and lecithin and how these natural supplements would actually lead to better prevention and cure.

We'd like his doctors to do the same.

FMI:Low micronutrient intake may accelerate the degenerative diseases of aging through allocation of scarce micronutrients by triage.

Lecithin from HEALTH MATTERS

Bruce Ames

Help Prevent Colon Cancer: Hope for Whole Health

Natural Health News has at least 20 posts related to vitamins and other help that is protective for colon cancer.

Now another article relives us from the negative hype about vitamin supplements and cancer that you have heard now for at least a decade.

Selenium, Omega-3s May Stave Off Colorectal Cancer

HealthDay Reporter by Jennifer Thomas
TUESDAY, Dec. 8 (HealthDay News) -- Certain dietary supplements appear to affect the development of colorectal cancer or its recurrence, two new studies suggest.

In one study, researchers from the U.S. National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences found that eating a diet high in omega-3 fatty acids cut the risk of developing colorectal cancer by nearly 40 percent. In the other study, from cancer researchers in Italy, consumption of a dietary supplement containing selenium was found to reduce the chances of having polyps recur by a similar amount.

Both studies were to be presented Dec. 7 in Houston at a conference on cancer prevention sponsored by the American Association for Cancer Research.

In the selenium study, 411 people, 25 to 75 years old, who'd had one or more colorectal polyps removed took either a supplement or a placebo. The supplement, described as an antioxidant compound, contained 200 micrograms of selenomethionnine (a combination of selenium and methionnine - Our Note: This is the best form of selenium according to the most currant science), 30 milligrams of zinc, 6,000 international units of vitamin A, 180 milligrams of vitamin C and 30 milligrams of vitamin E.

Participants had a colonoscopy one year, three years and five years after starting the regimen.

Polyps recurred in 4.2 percent of those taking the supplement, compared with 7.2 percent of the placebo group. Overall, the study found, people taking the supplement had about a 40 percent reduction in risk for a return of polyps.

The researchers estimated that, after 15 years, about 48 percent of those taking the supplement would still be free of polyps, versus about 30 percent of those not taking the supplement.

Polyps, or adenoma, are benign growths on the large bowel. Though only a small proportion progress to become cancer, about 70 to 80 percent of colorectal cancer cases begin as polyps, according to the American Association for Cancer Research. About one in four people, most older than 60, will have at least one adenoma.

Selenium is found in soil (Our Note: Western US states bordering Canada are known to be severely low in selenium and as such has a negative impact on thyroid function.), and human consumption comes by eating plants that have absorbed the nutrient or fish or animals that have eaten plants as part of their diet. "The content of selenium in the food depends on the soil content of this trace element, and in the same country there are areas at high, adequate or low content of selenium in the soil," said the study's lead author, Dr. Luigina Bonelli, head of the unit of secondary prevention and screening at the National Institute for Cancer Research in Genoa, Italy.

Earlier research had suggested that selenium can inhibit cell proliferation in the colon and rectum, Bonelli said.

Michele Forman, a professor of epidemiology at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, said that, though the findings are interesting, it's impossible to tell if the benefit was attributable to the selenium or to the other vitamins and minerals included in the supplement.

"You really don't know if it's the selenium or some combination that reduces risk of recurrence," Forman said.

In addition, the daily dosages of vitamins A and E taken by the participants were higher than the recommended daily allowances, Forman added. High levels of such vitamins can be detrimental, she said. (Our note: Not all supplements at high dose levels are harmful.)

In the omega-3 study, U.S. researchers surveyed 1,509 whites and 369 blacks about their dietary habits in the past year. About half of the participants had colorectal cancer.

Among the white participants, those whose diets were in the highest fourth of omega-3 fatty acid consumption were 39 percent less likely to have colorectal cancer than those in the lowest fourth. However, for reasons the authors said they did not know, no association was noted between omega-3s and a reduction of colorectal cancer risk among black participants. The disease occurs at a higher rate among blacks than whites.

"Our finding clearly supports the evidence from previous experimental and clinical studies showing that long-chain omega-3 fatty acids inhibit tumor growth," said the study's lead author, Sangmi Kim, a postdoctoral fellow at the U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in Research Triangle Park, N.C.

Kim said the research supports boosting omega-3 intake through diet or perhaps by taking an omega-3 supplement. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in fish, especially oily fish such as salmon, mackerel, herring, anchovies, sardines and tuna. Plant-based sources include flax and flaxseed oil, Brussels sprouts, soybeans and (soybean oil, canola oil - NOTE: We suggest you avoide both these oils), spinach, walnuts and kiwi.

Previous studies have suggested that omega-3 fatty acids act as anti-inflammatory agents and help prevent cancer. But in the new study, Forman noted, participants were asked about their diets after they had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer so it's possible that their recollections were not fully accurate.

In addition, she said, it's possible that the benefit was not the result of omega-3s. Those who ate more fish might have had a healthier diet overall, she said.

"Were they eating a salmon-and-broccoli diet or a hamburger-and-french-fry diet?" Forman asked. "We don't know enough to say that it's truly the effect of the omega-3s."

Our Note:  We beleive that the dose levels in the supplement mentioned in this areticle is well below therapeutic levels.

While I am not an institutionalized thinker, I am in support of those who have tried to help make more people aware of the role of nursing, probably a truly wholistic profession on its own. I would like to see the same support from the organizationally based groups to the work we do.

I will say however that I support this comment from the AHNA:

The American Holistic Nurses Association (AHNA) has formally requested that US Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) not move to re-name the NIH National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) the "National Center for Integrative Medicine." Harkin brought up the idea of the name change in public comments surrounding the Institute of Medicine Summit in February of this year. In a letter co-signed by 23 other nursing organizations, the AHNA wrote:
"There are so many in this country who enthusiastically support a vision to put integrative health care at the heart of national health reform. However, to facilitate this vision; to reinforce a more inclusive, representative, and collaborative partnering of every health and health-related profession and constituency; and to recognize and maximize the valuable contributions of all, we would like to suggest the renaming of the National Center for Complementary and Alterative Medicine to the National Center for Integrative Health and Healthcare. In transforming the health care paradigm, a shift in language can be a critical influence in supporting and adopting that change. The use of Integrative Health and Healthcare focuses on people’s health and well-being, rather than on a specific profession, and broadens the array of disciplines involved in promoting it."

As of this writing, Harkin had not formally responded to the nurses nor had an Integrator query to Harkin's staff elicited a response.

I do not support the use of the terms "integrative" or "complementary" in regard to health care.  I believe this promotes more separation from what used to be quite common, the "team" approach. And I believe it further sets up barriers to health and limits access both for providers but for patients.

In the classes I taught in the Pueget Sound area for so many years, always, in my discussion of vitamin E, its protective benefit for colon cancer was always noted.
See "Vitamins Enhance Chemotherapy" from leaflady.org

Pistachios Cut Cancer Risk

Not so very long ago mainstream media and uniformed health care workers were telling you to avoid vitamin E because it caused cancer.

Of course those of use who are among the (health) cognocenti knew all along that vitamin E, an excellent anti-oxidant and oxygen transporter, would help protect you not only from cancer but heart dis-ease, diabetic neuropathy and many other maladies.

I find this article informative to some extent.  I like the fact that it does make the claim that vitamin E is health promoting.

I don't like the fact that the dietician also suggests peanuts (highly allergenic), soybean oil (genetically modified (GMO) for most sources and highly allergenic) and corn oil ( can be allergenic, can be GMO and is subject to a very hazardous chemical called atrazine in most conventional agriculture.

Also it is not mentioned that most pistachio nuts are roasted and salted. 

It is best to look for unsalted nuts and and also to avoid using any nuts cooked in oil.

More about health benefits of nuts and vitamin E, nuts

Want to Cut Cancer Risk? Try Munching Pistachios


WEDNESDAY, Dec. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Eating pistachios every day might reduce your risk for lung cancer and other malignancies, according to a new study.

Pistachios are a good source of a type of vitamin E called gamma-tocopherol.

"It is known that vitamin E provides a degree of protection against certain forms of cancer. Higher intakes of gamma-tocopherol ... may reduce the risk of lung cancer," Ladia M. Hernandez, a senior research dietitian at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and a doctoral candidate at Texas Women's University, said in a news release from the American Association for Cancer Research.

The study included 18 people who ate 68 grams (about 2 ounces or 117 kernels) of pistachios a day for four weeks and 18 people in a control group who did not add pistachios to their normal diet.

As the study progressed, those in the pistachio group showed significantly higher blood levels of gamma-tocopherol.

The findings were to be presented Dec. 8 in Houston at a cancer prevention conference sponsored by the American Association for Cancer Research.

"Pistachios are one of those 'good-for-you' nuts, and two ounces per day could be incorporated into dietary strategies designed to reduce the risk of lung cancer without significant changes in body mass index," Hernandez said.

"Other food sources that are a rich source of gamma-tocopherol include peanuts, pecans, walnuts, soybean and corn oils," she added.

Surgery and Risk of Blood Clots

Years ago it was very common to provide therapeutic vitamin E prior to surgery in order to avoid these post-op clots ( that can kill ).  Now vitamin E is demonized.

Pehaps older methods are simpler, safer, and healthier...

Risk of blood clot after surgery higher and lasts longer than previously thought

ScienceDaily (2009-12-05) -- The risk of having a potentially fatal blood clot after surgery is higher and lasts for longer than had previously been thought, concludes new research. ... > read full article

Natural Blood Thinning

UPDATE: 11/8/09
This week we're published the most recent issue of our long-standing column, "Natural Notes" featuring the cranberry, another healthy food offering natural blood thinning.  Once it is published the links where you can find it will be added.

Recent post on benefits of Ginkgo
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted 4/28/08

I started compiling this month's edition of my newsletter, herbalYODA Says! today and have been reviewing notes I've collected to include in this edition.

While not directly related to this month's topic, I found an old note addressing coagulation.

I thought this relevant because of the current heparin controversy.

Ginkgo biloba in a dose around 325 milligrams, will thin the blood, improve blood flow, and prevent platelet stickiness very efficiently. It is very safe and has the added advantage of being a powerful antioxidant. It also protects brain cells, improves memory, and prevents heart arrhythmias (such as atrial fibrillation).

Magnesium also reduces atrial fibrillation and reduces blood coagulation.

There are a few other natural supplements that also reduce blood coagulation, such as
curcumin, quercetin, and grapeseed extract. The anticoagulation for these compounds is mild, but they are powerful antioxidants.

Your doctor may not know that antioxidants also reduce arrhythmias as does another anticoagulant supplement, fish oils (omega-3 oils). Combining fish oil supplements with Ginkgo biloba will thin your blood as efficiently as Coumadin.

In addition, other blood thinners are nattokinase, vitamin E, garlic or red clover.

The benefit of natural products is that they do not tend to cause failure of the clotting mechanism.

If you are taking Rx coumadin and want to change to natural treatment, make sure you do not stop the drug abruptly, and discuss it with your health care provider.

If you would like to sign up for the newsletter, do so here.

Warning over fibroids treatment

I would really like to have someone justify the use of the procedure at a time when it is well known that fibroids are caused by estrogen excess and there are nutritional therapies and herbal therapies that will correct the problem.

I am referring to the use of B complex vitamins and herbs that balance hormones such as Vitex. Heavy bleeding can be helped with nettle, and vitamin E is also of great help.

None of these nutritional supplements lead to such serious problems in and after pregnancy as related to the surgical procedure. Consider as well generalized nutritional therapy.

I am also sure that the economic effect is much smaller as well.

Fibroids Treatment Warning

UK doctors say a treatment for heavy periods caused by fibroids can seriously harm a subsequent pregnancy.

An Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital study looked at the outcomes of 215 pregnancies following uterine artery embolisation (UAE) treatment.

The researchers found much higher rates of miscarriage, caesareans and heavy bleeding after delivery, and call for caution in recommending the treatment.

The study appears in the journal, The Obstetrician and Gynaecologist.

UAE has been available as a treatment in the UK since 1995.

Pregnancy problems

The doctors pulled together the data from five small studies carried out in the UK, Czech Republic and Canada.

Fibroids are small, benign lumps of smooth muscle in the womb.

THE UAE TECHNIQUE

A catheter or thin tube is inserted into the blood vessels in the groin which lead up to the womb
A gel is injected
This sets and blocks some of the blood vessels supplying the womb
Fibroids shrink

Sometimes, because of their number, size and location, they cause heavy period pain or difficulty in getting pregnant and treatment is needed.

Doctors at the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital say as many as 40% of women of reproductive age have fibroids.

They found that the risk of miscarriage following UAE was 35% compared with a rate in untreated women of 10 to 15%.

The incidence of caesarean sections was much higher at 67% compared with a normal rate of 20 to 25%.

And bleeding after delivery was more than twice as common at 14% compared with 5%.

The babies tended to be smaller and they were more likely to present in an awkward position.

'Increase awareness'

Ertan Saridogan, who led the research, said although a large number of women had already undergone the procedure, there had been relatively little study of its long-term effects.

He said: "We do not offer it as a first-time treatment, but, for some women, surgery and other treatments do not work.

"We want to increase awareness of the pitfalls of this widespread procedure.

"I hope this will inform women before they make their decisions, so they can make an informed choice - they've been going at it blindly without realising what it might imply for their future pregnancies."

Henry Annan, from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said he agreed that care should now be taken in recommending the treatment.

"A proper randomised controlled trial of this procedure would take many years - it's important that patients should have some idea of the pros and cons of all the various treatments for fibroids."

Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/8310263.stm
Published: 2009/10/16 23:01:50 GMT © BBC MMIX

Protect and Restore Hair Health

UPDATE: 2 August, 2009 - The use of coconut oil as a hair treatment can be helpful to retain hair color.

"Coconut oil has been a popular oil treatment for thousands of years where coconuts are plentiful, like Sri Lanka and the Philippines. It keeps hair strong and vitalized against the signs of aging. If you visit India today, it's perhaps why you see women in their 70s who still have healthy black hair," says Blaire Kessler.

Apply coconut oil to hair and allow it to work overnight for best results. (Hint: Cover hair with plastic wrap or a plastic bag before bed). Rinse out in your morning shower.

-------------------------------------
Originally Posted 12/8/08: The effective use of natural Vitamin E prior to certain treatments such as chemotherapy protects you from hair loss. Pantethine, according to 1940s biochemistry research protects hair color.

Vitamin B complex is an anti-stress nutrient, vitamin E an anti-oxidant.

Perhaps it is worthwhile to pursue nutritional support for this concern.

Hair colour loss 'reversal hope' People whose hair has turned white because of illness or extreme stress are being offered hope that scientists may be able to reverse the process.

Researchers from Manchester University and Lubeck University, in Germany, used a molecule to stimulate the pigment responsible for hair colour.

But they said the technique still had to be tested on humans and would not reverse the natural greying process.

However, experts said the development was an encouraging breakthrough.

The research team recreated a naturally-occurring molecule called K(D)PT, which is very similar to the hormones in the body that stimulate the hair pigment melanin.

The researchers took hair follicles from six women aged between 46 and 65 and mimicked two conditions which can turn hair white - a skin disease known as alopecia areata and stress-related disorder telogen effluvium.

While the research is still at a very early stage, these findings could potentially pave the way for new therapies that restore colour to white hair
Nina Goad, of the British Association of Dermatologists

They found that, once treated with K(D)PT, the amount of melanin in the follicle increased significantly.

Lead researcher Dr Ralf Paus said the melanin stimulation suggested the technique could be used as an "anti-greying agent".

But he warned it was still early days and it was not known if it could be used to restore hair to its full colour.

Nina Goad, of the British Association of Dermatologists, said: "It's important to note that this is laboratory research and not yet ready for use on patients.

"However, while the research is still at a very early stage, these findings could potentially pave the way for new therapies that restore colour to white hair.

"At the moment, this research only applies to people whose hair has turned white following illness, but this is an important step for such patients."

Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/7727320.stm
Published: 2008/11/14
© BBC MMVIII

Borrowed in part from my favorite food and nutrition web sites.

What foods are best to promote healthy hair and prevent hair loss?

Unfortunately, no dietary interventions of any kind have been shown to universally guarantee healthy hair or prevent hair loss. Hair quantity and hair quality are whole-health, whole-person, and total-lifestyle issues. They also depend upon genetic tendency and family history. Diet can definitely be important in promotion of healthy hair, but there is no evidence for establishing diet as a primary approach to hair loss prevention.

The factors that can compromise hair health include severe stress, damaging effects of hair treatments, and the use of some types of prescription drugs such as blood thinners and medications for gout, arthritis, depression, heart problems, and high blood pressure. Excessive alcohol intake can also compromise hair health, as can decreased thyroid function. If you are concerned about hair loss that is presently occurring in your own health situation, we recommend a consultation with your healthcare provider to determine all the possible underlying reasons for this occurrence.

Our focus on the World's Healthiest Foods as the basis for a nutrient-rich, whole foods diet is an approach that we recommend for optimal health of all body systems, including the scalp and hair. With respect to the skin of the scalp, however, there would be specific nutrients that we would pay particular attention to as a foundation for health of this body system.

The first would be omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids aren't a part of your hair's composition, but they are a part of the scalp cells that are responsible for generating the hair follicles and sebaceous glands. You can optimize your intake of these important fatty acids by adding cold-water fish such as salmon, sardines, or herring to your diet two to three times a week. To increase your omega-3 intake, you can also add about two tablespoons of ground flaxseed daily to cereals or salads. (Since flaxseed is fiber-rich, you may want to start out slowly with the amount you consume, building up to the two tablespoons over time, so that you don't increase your fiber intake too quickly for your digestive tract to readily handle.) You can go to the section on omega-3 fatty acids on the website for a detailed list of foods rich in this important nutrient. We would emphasize the fact that omega-3 fatty acids will not help you grow hair. They can, however, improve the integrity of your skin cells, including the cells of your scalp. The health of your hair depends in part upon the health of these cells.

Optimal hydration is also very important to the health of your skin cells and scalp. For this reason, you'll want to drink optimal amounts of clean, filtered water (or clean spring water) to support the health of your skin and scalp. Mineral waters can also be a good choice in this respect since hair itself is highly mineralized and sometimes used in lab measurements of mineral status.

Although you will need exercise, and possibly massage or other approaches to assure good circulation to your head and scalp, good circulation can also be supported by complete nutrition. A full complement of vitamins and minerals is required for proper functioning of your heart and cardiovascular system. One of your best ways for obtaining a full supply of all vitamins and minerals is to increase your intake of fresh, minimally processed vegetables-trying to stick with organically grown vegetables as much as possible. These foods provide the greatest number of nutrients for the least amount of calories.

Additionally, since hair is made up primarily of protein, adequate protein can be an important factor for healthy hair. Most adults need a minimum of about 45 grams of protein per day, and in some cases where protein needs are particularly high or protein has been chronically deficient, 75-100 grams may be at least temporarily required. Animal-derived foods-such as lean meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, and eggs-are typically rich in protein and typically provide a complete array of amino acids. Plant-based food groups-whole grains, legumes/beans, nuts, seeds, and vegetables-can also support your protein needs and can provide a full array of amino acids if chosen properly and consumed in required amounts. If you eat a strictly plant-based diet, you may want to solicit the help of a nutritionist or other licensed healthcare practitioner to develop an optimal plan in the area of protein and amino acid intake. Protein metabolism can sometimes be hampered by low stomach acid, a condition also known as hypochlorhydria. Even though research studies have not shown that low stomach acid is in any way connected to hair loss, some healthcare practitioners have anecdotally reported hair loss as a symptom of low stomach acid in their patients. Any concerns you might have in this area should be expressed directly to your healthcare practitioner for evaluation.

We continue to believe that the full-spectrum of vitamins and minerals are important for scalp and hair health. Much of this research has been reported in the work of Adele Davis. In this context, we recommend that you try to evaluate your own potential dietary deficiencies in all vitamin and mineral areas and take steps to boost up intake of these nutrients in your meal plans.

One non-dietary step that's particularly important to remember is your choice of hair care products. You'll want to select products that are non-damaging to the hair, and you'll also want to use these products appropriately.
References:

Gonzalez-Reimers E, Aleman-Valls MR, Barroso-Guerrero F, et al. Hair zinc and copper in chronic alcoholics. Biol Trace Elem Res 2002 Mar;85(3):269-75.

Lachat CK, Van Camp JH, Mamiro PS, et al. Processing of complementary food does not increase hair zinc levels and growth of infants in Kilosa district, rural Tanzania. Br J Nutr 2006 Jan;95(1):174-80.

Oken E, Wright RO, Kleinman KP, et al. Maternal fish consumption, hair mercury, and infant cognition in a U.S. Cohort. Environ Health Perspect 2005 Oct;113(10):1376-80.

Trost LB, Bergfeld WF, Calogeras E. The diagnosis and treatment of iron deficiency and its potential relationship to hair loss. J Am Acad Dermatol 2006 May;54(5):824-44.

Tip: Keep Your Hair with Chemo

The show filmed Hannah at home getting her head shaved rather than waiting for chemotherapy

While it is very sad that this young girl is facing this situation there are a few considerations to review.

One should be how this happened, and what is the connection to vaccines.

The second is that there is NO need to lose your hair while undergoing chemo.

If, on each of the two days prior to a chemo treatment you take 2000 IU of natural vitamin E, you will more likely than not, keep all of your hair.

Now why isn't the medical cancer industry telling people this safe nutritional information, especially when it is well known that vitamin E has a protective effect against cancer?

SoCal 10-year-old copes with breast cancerWed Jun 3, 5:16 pm ET

LA MIRADA, Calif. – Ten-year-old Hannah Powell-Auslam is trying to remain brave as she copes with a rare form of breast cancer. "I feel like a kid inside but sometimes I feel like an adult, when I'm always at the hospital," Hannah told ABC's "Good Morning America" in an interview that aired Wednesday.

The fifth-grader at Escalona Elementary School in this Los Angeles bedroom community complained of itching in her side in April. Her mother discovered a lump, and that led to a diagnosis of breast cancer.

Her family said she was diagnosed with invasive secretory carcinoma, a type discovered in children in the 1960s.

"Hannah's prognosis is very good and the type of cancer is very slow growing," her father, Jeremy, said in an e-mail Wednesday.

Children still represent only a fraction of a percent of all breast cancer cases.

Hannah had surgery and has begun chemotherapy.

"You feel like you're sick all the time. You just want to go lay in bed," she said.

The show filmed Hannah at home getting her head shaved rather than waiting for chemotherapy to take its toll. Other family members got buzz cuts, too, in solidarity.

"I might be just a little bit afraid. I love my hair. I worked so hard to grow it," Hannah said before the event to take its toll.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090603/ap_on_re_us/us_breast_cancer_child_9

Also consider this -
Vitamins Enhance Chemotherapy
by Erik T. Paterson, M.D., Creston, BC. -
A recent article (National Post of Canada, 6 June 2005) gave an interesting account of problems with the use of supplements with cancer therapy. As far as the antioxidants are concerned, the article is far from as balanced as it would like the readers to believe. In low doses, those usually advocated by conventionally minded professionals, there is little or no value in the use of such substances. In high (remarkably safe) doses they can be highly valuable. For example, high dose vitamin C given experimentally to cultures of any type of cancer cells is lethal to them, but entirely harmless to similar cultures of normal cells. In clinical practice, when prescribed by knowledgeable doctors, high dose vitamin C does not ever interfere with chemotherapy, helps to protect against the adverse (often enough lethal) effects of chemotherapy, enhances the efficacy of chemotherapy, and frequently induces complete remission of cancer (disappearance of all clinical signs of tumour) where chemotherapy cannot. The evidence for this efficacy of high dose vitamin C is voluminous, a good starting point being Hoffer, A. & Pauling, L., Vitamin C and Cancer: Discovery, recovery, controversy, Quarry Health Books, 2000. But similar research shows the value of the other antioxidant supplements, but only when given in high, but safe doses. I am living proof that this works, having fallen ill with a near lethal Acute Mylegenous Leukemia nearly nine years ago. The effects of the chemotherapy nearly killed me. Once in remission (not cure) I have kept myself healthy with vitamin C 8,000 milligrams, niacin 3,000 milligrams, vitamin E 1000 units, vitamins A and D (in Halibut liver oil) and selenium 500 micrograms, along with other supplements all per day. I advocate that people ought to READ, READ, READ but not just journals with a bias against the unconventional use of vitamins.

Another physician comments on natural cancer care -
The first patient I treated for cancer decided not to undergo chemotherapy. He did have surgery to remove the tumor in his colon. Afterward he wanted to stick to natural therapies.

I recommended the basics. We cleaned up his diet and took him off wheat, dairy and sugar – which can drag down the immune system.

Next, I recommended he drink Essiac tea.

For several years, I followed his progress. He saw a full recovery. His post-surgery roommate, who simply went with chemotherapy, died soon after.

Essiac was likely not the sole reason for his recovery. It does, however, have quite a history of success. Yet, even today, it suffers unwarranted suppression and little mainstream investigation.

The herbal formula is named after the Canadian nurse, Rene Caisse (pronounced “reen case”) who formulated it in1920. Essiac is merely Caisse spelt backwards. The recipe is reportedly passed down by an Ojibwa medicine man.

This herbal infusion has recently been highlighted in the news with the case of Daniel Hauser avoiding chemotherapy. Daniel’s situation, likewise, has brought attention back to Billy Best, who used Essiac to help cure his cancer 15 years ago.

Antidepressants risk breast cancer return

These fluoride based antidepressants SUPPRESS THE IMMUNE SYSTEM AND THE THYROID. Perhaps if people used vitamin E - which is effective in reducing and eliminating hot flashes as well as helping mood and improving immunity - this would not be an issue.

Some antidepressants may risk breast cancer return
By MARILYNN MARCHIONE, AP Medical Writer

ORLANDO, Fla. – Breast cancer survivors risk having their disease come back if they use certain antidepressants while also taking the cancer prevention drug tamoxifen, worrisome new research shows.

About 500,000 women in the United States take tamoxifen, which cuts in half the chances of a breast cancer recurrence. Many of them also take antidepressants for hot flashes, because hormone pills aren't considered safe after breast cancer.

Doctors have long known that some antidepressants and other medicines can lower the amount of tamoxifen's active form in the bloodstream. But whether this affects cancer risk is unknown.

The new study, reported Saturday at a cancer conference in Florida, is the largest to look at the issue. It found that using these interfering drugs — including Prozac, Paxil or Zoloft — can virtually wipe out the benefit tamoxifen provides.

Many doctors question the magnitude of harm from combining these medicines, and a second, smaller study suggests it may not be very large.

But the bottom line is the same: Not all antidepressants pose this problem, and women should talk to their doctors about which ones are best.

"There are other alternatives we can consider" that are safer, said Dr. Eric Winer, breast cancer chief at the Dana-Farber Cancer Center in Boston.

He had no role in the study, which was done by Medco Health Solutions Inc., a large insurance benefits manager. Researchers used members' medical records to identify 353 women taking tamoxifen plus other drugs that might interfere with it, and 945 women taking tamoxifen alone. Those taking a drug combo did so for about a year on average.

Next, researchers checked to see how many were treated for second cancers in the following two years. Breast cancer recurred in about 7 percent of women on tamoxifen alone, and in 14 percent of women also taking other drugs that could interfere — mainly the antidepressants Paxil and Prozac, and, to a lesser extent, Zoloft.

If women want to take an antidepressant, "you probably want to stay away from those three," said Medco's chief medical officer, Dr. Robert Epstein.

No greater breast cancer risk was seen in women taking the antidepressants Celexa, Lexapro or Luvox with tamoxifen, and there are reasons to think that other antidepressants may be safe as well, Epstein said.

A second study led by Dr. Vincent Dezentje of Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands found little risk from combining tamoxifen and popular antidepressants. However, only 150 women in the study took such combos for more than two months, and they were compared to women taking combos for a shorter time — not to women using tamoxifen alone.

The Dutch and Medco studies were presented at a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

The federal Food and Drug Administration has been considering a change to tamoxifen's label to warn about the antidepressants drugs and a gene variation some women have that can make tamoxifen less effective. An advisory panel unanimously recommended a change in 2006, but the agency is still considering it.

"This is a very controversial area," said Dr. Claudine Isaacs, a breast specialist at Georgetown University's Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. "Until these data are absolutely clear, I would avoid drugs that impact on tamoxifen metabolism."

Breast cancer is the most common major cancer in American women. More than 182,000 new cases were diagnosed last year, and it caused nearly 41,000 deaths.

On the Net:
Cancer meeting: http://www.asco.org
Cancer institute: http://www.cancer.gov