Month: December 2008

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Ailmemts & Remedies

Aluminium Toxity

Introduction:
While aluminum is not a heavy metal, it has been found to be toxic. Because aluminum permeates our air,water, and soil, small amounts are present in our food. The average person consumes between three and ten milligrams of aluminum a day. Only recently has research revealed that aluminum is absorbed and accumulated in the body. Aluminum is a popular metal used to make cookware, cooking utensils, and foil. Excessive use of antacids is the most common cause of aluminum toxicity. Mylanta, Maalox, Glusil, Amphojel, and many others have a high aluminum hydroxide content. Many over-the-counter drugs used for inflammation and pain contain aluminum, including Arthritis Pain Formula, Ascriptin, Bufferin, and Vanquish. Several douche preparations, including Massengil and Summer’s Eve, contain aluminum. It is also an additive in most baking powders and is sometimes evident in drinking water.

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The highest exposure to aluminum is most frequently due to the chronic consumption of aluminum-containing antacid products. Research shows that aluminum builds up in the body over time; thus, the health hazard to older people is greater.

Concentrations of aluminum that are toxic to many biochemical processes are found in at least ten human neurological conditions.

Recent studies suggest that aluminum contributes to neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, senile and presenile dementia, clumsiness of movements, staggering when walking, and inability to pronounce words properly.

Behavioral difficulties among schoolchildren have also been correlated with elevated levels of aluminum and other neurotoxic heavy metals.

Symptoms: Flatulence, headaches, dry skin, weak and aching muscles, senility, spleen pain, stomach pain, liver dysfunction, kidney dysfunction, neuromuscular disorders, osteomalacia, colitis, anemia, Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, hemolysis, leukocytosis, porphyria, heartburn, memory loss, numbness, paralysis, Parkinson’s disease, excessive perspiration, leg twitching, cavities, colds, behavioral problems, constipation .

Many symptoms of aluminum toxicity are similar to those of Alzheimer’s disease and osteoporosis. Aluminum toxicity can lead to colic, rickets, gastro-intestinal disturbances, poor calcium metabolism, extreme nervousness, anemia, headache, decreased liver and kidney function, forgetfulness, speech disturbances,and memory loss, softening of the bones, and weak, aching muscles. Research suggests that a chronic calcium deficiency may change the way in which the body uses minerals. Bone loss and increased intestinal absorption of aluminum and silicon combine to form compounds that accumulate in the cerebral cortex of the brain. These compounds prevent impulses from being carried to or from the brain.

An accumulation of aluminum salts in the brain has been implicated in seizures and reduced mental faculties. Autopsies performed on Alzheimer’s victims revealed that four times the normal amount of aluminum had accumulated in the nerve cells in the brain. This suggests that long-term accumulation of aluminum in the brain may contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, an unidentified protein not found in normal brain tissue has been discovered in the the brain tissue of Alzheimer’s victims.

Because aluminum is excreted by the kidneys, toxic amount of aluminum may impair kidney function. Working in aluminum smelting plants for long periods can lead to dizziness, impaired coordination, and losses of balance and energy. Accumulations of aluminum in the brain was cited as a possible cause for these symptoms as well.

Aluminum is excreted by the kidneys, therefore toxic amounts can impair kidney function. Aluminum can also accumulate in the brain causing seizures and reduced mental alertness. The brain is normally protected by a blood-brain barrier, which filters the blood before it reaches it. Elemental aluminum does not pass easily through this barrier, but certain compounds contained within aluminum, such as aluminum fluoride do. Interestingly, many municipal water supplies are treated with both aluminum sulfate and aluminum fluoride. These two chemicals can also combine easily in the blood. Aluminum fluoride is also poorly excreted in the urine.

When there is a high level of absorption of aluminum and silicon, the combination can result in an accumulation of certain compounds in the cerebral cortex and can prevent nerve impulses being carried to and from the brain properly. Long term calcium deficiency can further aggravate the condition. Workers in aluminum smelting plants on a long term basis, have been know to experience dizziness, poor coordination, balance problems and tiredness. It has been claimed that the accumulation of aluminum in the brain could be a possible cause for these issues.

It is estimated that the normal person takes in between 3 and 10 milligrams of aluminum per day. Aluminum is the most abundant metallic element produced by the earth. It can be absorbed into the body through the digestive tract, the lungs and the skin, and is also absorbed by and accumulates in the bodies tissues. Aluminum is found naturally in our air, water and soil. It is also used in the process of making cooking pots and pans, utensils and foil. Other items such as over the counter pain killers, anti-inflammatory products, and douche preparations can also contain aluminum. Aluminum is also an additive in most baking powders, is used in food processing, and is present in antiperspirants, toothpaste, dental amalgams, bleached flour, grated cheese, table salt, and beer, (especially when the beer is in aluminum cans). The biggest source of aluminum, however, comes from our municipal water supplies.

Excessive use of antacids is also a common cause of aluminum toxicity in this country, especially for those who have kidney problems. Many over the counter type antacids contain amounts of aluminum hydroxide that may be to much for the kidneys to handle properly.

In addition to aluminum cookware, foil, antacids, baking powders, buffered aspirin, and most city water,aluminum is also used in food processing (pickles and relishes, in particular), antiperspirants, deodorants, beer (especially when in aluminum cans), bleached flour, table salt, tobacco smoke, cram of tartar, Parmesan and grated cheeses, aluminum salts, douches, and canned goods.

Those who enjoy fast foods should be aware that processed cheese has a high aluminum content. The food product having perhaps the highest aluminum content is the cheeseburger. This mineral is added to give processed cheese its melting quality for use on hamburgers.

Sources: Aluminum foil, antacids, aspirin, dust, auto exhaust, treated water, vanilla powder, nasal spray, milk products, salt, commercially-raised beef, tobacco smoke, anti-perspirants, bleached flour, cans, animal feed, ceramics, commercial cheese.

Supplument Helpful.

*Calcium(1,500 mg daily) in the chelate form with magnesium.(750mg daily)………This chelating agent binds with aluminum and eliminates it from the body.

*Garlic tablets(kyolic)… 2 capsules 3 times daily…….. Acts as a detoxifier.
*Kelp….. 6 tablets daily………. has a balanced mineral content. Acts as a detoxifier of excess metals.
*Lecithin…. 2 tbsp. 3 times daily with meals….. Aids in healing of the brain (and other cell membranes).

*Multivitamin and mineral complex (high potency, hypoallergenic).. As directed on label… Basic in stabilizing vitamin and mineral imbalance in toxic conditions.
*Vitamin B complex plus vitamin B6(pyroxidine) and B12 lozenges or B12 injections …100 mg 3 times daily and 50 mg 3 times daily. But Injections under doctor’s recommendation and supervision only…..The B vitamins, especially B6, are important in ridding the intestinal tract of excess metals in in removing them from the body.

So, what can we do to prevent aluminum toxicity from happening to ourselves and our families?

1. Eat a diet that is high in fiber and includes apple pectin.
2. Use stainless steel, glass, or iron cookware. Stainless steel is the best choice.
3. Beware of any product containing aluminum or dihydroxyaluminum.
4. A hair analysis can be used to determine levels of aluminum in the body.
5. Research has shown that the longer you cook food in aluminum pots, the more they corrode, and the more aluminum is absorbed into the food and hence into the body. Aluminum is more readily dissolved by acid forming foods, such as coffee, cheese, meat, black and green tea, cabbage, cucumbers, tomatoes, turnips, spinach and radishes.
6. Acid rain leeches aluminum out of the soil and into drinking water.

Recommendations
*Make sure that your diet is high in fiber and contains apple pectin.
*Use glass, iron, or stainless steel cookware. There is still much controversy as to whether aluminum collects in the neurons as a result of a dysfunctions of the neurons or if it actually causes the dysfunction of the neurons. It is best to avoid aluminum as much as possible!
*Beware of products containing aluminum. Read the labels and avoid those that contain aluminum, bentonite, or dihydorxyaluminum.

Considerations
If you use chelation therapy, use oral chelating agents only. Aluminum cannot be chelated out of the body, but it can be displaced or moved.

YOU can reduce excess aluminum in the body with the herbs like Apple pectin, Norwegian kelp, coral calcium and trace minerals, high-potency garlic extract.
Click to see the recent Tesearch Papers on Alzimers due to Aluminium Toxity

Disclaimer: This information is not meant to be a substitute for professional medical advise or help. It is always best to consult with a Physician about serious health concerns. This information is in no way intended to diagnose or prescribe remedies.This is purely for educational purpose

Resources:
http://www.relfe.com/Chelation%20by%20Suppository/aluminum_toxicity.htm
http://www.vitawise.com/Nutritional_Healing/aluminum%20toxicity.htm
http://herbnews.org/aluminumdone.htm
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art7739.asp

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Obesity Fuels Fears of Diabetes Rise

Silhouettes representing healthy, overweight, ...
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The prevalence of diabetes worldwide will far outstrip even the sharp increase currently projected unless rising trends of obesity are controlled, health experts said on Saturday.

Adult-onset diabetes has been linked to risk factors like aging, an inactive lifestyle, unhealthy diets, smoking, alcohol and obesity.

The silent, chronic disease damages the heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys and nerves and was responsible for 3.8 million deaths worldwide in 2007.

Sources: The Times Of India

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CT Scan Scores Over Angiography

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A reports on a study that highlights the safety issues involved in detecting coronary blockages:-

Noninvasive CT scans are nearly as accurate at imaging coronary artery blockages as conventional angiography and are much safer for many patients, according to researchers who published a study released recently in the New England Journal of Medicine.

A CT scanner could eliminate the risks involved with traditional angiograms

.Angiograms are considered the gold standard for detecting blockages. But the procedure involves inserting a guide wire and catheter into the groin, threading them through the blood vessels to the heart and injecting a dye that allows the blockage to be seen in an X-ray.

Using a CT machine instead to make a three-dimensional image of the heart could eliminate the risks involved with traditional angiograms, including heavy bleeding, damage to blood vessels and even death, said Dr. Julie Miller, an interventional cardiologist at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore and lead author of the study.

More than 1.2 million patients in the US undergo cardiac catheterisations each year, and 1-2 per cent of those cases result in complications, according to the American Heart Association. The National Center for Health Statistics at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about 25 people die each year as a result.

About 20 per cent to 30 per cent of those tests give patients a clean bill of health, and that means that hundreds of thousands of people are exposed to needless risk, Miller said. Many cardiologists see CT scans as a safer alternative because the scans are powerful enough to create a high-resolution image even when the contrast dye is administered by a simple intravenous line and thus more dilute.

Miller and her colleagues at nine hospitals in the US, Canada, Germany, Japan, Brazil, Singapore and the Netherlands identified 291 patients with symptoms of coronary artery disease who were candidates for traditional angiograms. Their median age was 59, and 74 per cent were men.

Before the patients had their angiograms, their hearts were imaged in 8.5 seconds with a 64-slice CT scanner made by Toshiba Medical Systems, which funded the study along with the National Institutes of Health and private foundations.

Two physicians examined each image and graded the degree of narrowing in 19 places in the main coronary arteries. Then the researchers compared the results from both procedures.

In the 163 patients with the highest degree of coronary artery disease — a narrowing of at least 50 per cent in at least one artery — the CT angiograms were 93 per cent as good as traditional angiograms, according to the study. Overall, the CT scans accurately identified 85 per cent of the patients who had the biggest blockages and 90 per cent of the patients who did not.

The researchers also found that 91 per cent of patients who were identified by the CT scans as having the most severe disease were correctly diagnosed, as were 83 per cent of patients whose scans did not reveal large blockages.

Two of the patients in the study had a reaction to the contrast dye used to perform the CT angiogram, and one patient died as a result of the conventional angiogram.

Dr. Matthew Budoff, director of cardiac CT at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, California, said the study confirmed results from his own research using a similar scanner made by General Electric Co. His study, funded by GE, was published this month in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

“It’s not quite but almost as good as an invasive angiogram,” said Budoff, who also receives speaking fees from GE. The CT test is faster and costs thousands of dollars less, and patients leave “with a Band-Aid and a bottle of water.”

“The benefits for many patients outweigh the risk of missing 1 per cent of disease,” he said.

But other doctors say that more data are needed to prove that CT angiograms are worthwhile, especially as a screening tool.

“What we really need is a study that compares cardiac CT to traditional ways of working up chest pain, like stress testing, and look at patient outcomes in both groups,” said Dr Rita Redberg, director of women’s cardiovascular services at University of California, San Francisco, Medical Center, who co-wrote a perspective article accompanying the study. “Without actual outcome data, we don’t know that this is going to help patients at all.”

Sources:Los Angeles Times

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Washing Hands Affects Judgement


Good health is in your hands, it is often said. And, now a new study has suggested that washing hands is not only an easy way of preventing infection, but it can also affect one’s moral judgement.

………………………….

Researchers in Britain have carried out the study and found that people who clean themselves are less judgemental — in fact, they are more likely to be lenient before making such judgements, the ‘Daily Mail‘ reported.

According to them, the findings mean jurors who wash their hands may make their verdict less severe — and what is more interesting is that people who take shower before voting may be more likely to overlook political misdemeanours.

“We like to think we arrive at decisions because we deliberate, but incidental things can influence us. This could have implications when voting and when juries make up their minds,” lead researcher Dr Simone Schnall said.

Dr Schnall and colleagues at Plymouth University came to the conclusion after analysing the impact of washing hands on a group of people.

In the study, 22 people who had washed their hands, and 22 who had not, were made to watch a disgusting scene from the film ‘Trainspotting‘, about heroin addicts. They were then to rate how morally wrong a series of actions were on scale of one to nine with one being acceptable and seven being wrong.

The actions included stealing money from a wallet, lying on a job application, cooking and eating the family dog, killing a dying plane crash survivor to avoid starvation, and abusing a kitten.

All put the actions on the “wrong” side of the scale. But, in results which echo Pontius Pilate washing his hands of Christ’s death, those who had washed their hands were less likely to judge the actions as harshly as those who had not, the researchers found.

Sources: The Times Of India

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Plants Are Smart

Jagadish Chandra Bose in his lab
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Nearly 100 years after Sir J.C. Bose proposed the radical idea, new evidence has surfaced that plants can think.

...

The dodder vine sniffs out a victim (1st) before strangulating it (above)

Professor Virginia Shepherd knows it isn’t easy being green in the world of physics: she’s a plant neurobiologist who wants to reinstate the idea that plants have a sophisticated electrical signalling system similar to the human nervous system. It is a controversial idea, first proposed by the multifaceted physicist Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose nearly a century ago.

“Bose had argued all along the importance of electrical signalling in plants, and the world has now come around to this view. I consider him my guru,” said Shepherd, a biophysicist at Sydney University in Australia, while delivering a lecture — titled Reflections on the Many-in-ones: J.C. Bose and the roots of Plant Neurobiology — to commemorate the scientist’s 150th birth anniversary last week at the Bose Institute, Calcutta.

Bose had shown that electrical activities are associated with the dipping of mimosa leaves and the rhythmic movement of desmodium leaflets, and that these plants have an electromechanical pulse, a nervous system, a form of intelligence and are capable of remembering and learning. “The idea was not well received and even ridiculed by the contemporary scientific establishment — perhaps because of a colonial or a racist bias against his work,” she suggested. Said Sibaji Raha, a physicist and the director of Bose Institute, “Bose extended his specialist knowledge of physics of electromagnetic radiation — which first made radio communication possible – into insightful experiments on the life processes of plants.”

Shepherd first got to know about Bose’s electrophysiological experiments 16 years ago when she stepped into the world of biophysics in her university. Ever since then she’s been trying to decipher how plant cells communicate with one another, how they sense touch, and how they transmit electrical signals.

Soon after she took up research, Shepherd discovered that she was not alone in the emerging field of plant neurobiology. “I found a growing body of research showing how plants perceive their circumstances and respond to their environment in an integrated fashion. And some sort of a structure of information network operates within the plants,” said Shepherd. Indeed, scientists around the world began discovering how the tiny strangle weed can sense the presence of friends, foes, and food, and make adroit decisions on how to approach them. Siblings of the sea rocket can recognise other plants that have grown from its own mother’s seeds and don’t compete with each other as fiercely as unrelated plants do. The ground-hugging mayapple was found to plan its growth two years into the future, based on computation of weather patterns. “The most remarkable finding, however, was the parasitic dodder vine’s ability to sniff out victims,” said Shepherd.

Last year, in a symposium on plant neurobiology, researchers at Pennsylvania State University showed a chilling video footage in which a dodder vine (Cuscuta pentagona) sinisterly sniffed for its prey and grabbed a succulent tomato plant. “It was amazing to watch that given the choice of wheat and tomato, the dodder picked the tomato,” she said.

However, in spite of such definitive evidence, most plant biologists are loath to believe that such responses to the environment are the result of active intentional reasoning. “Bose had proposed way back in the 1920s that plants are sensitive explorers of their world, co-ordinating movements and responses like intelligent organisms. The recent findings vindicate his work, reaffirming that plants have an integrated communication system. They have also been found to use the hormone auxin, akin to serotonin — a human neurotransmitter that transmits nerve signal,” says Shepherd.

Virginia Shepherd :->
Yet sceptics say it’s less a product of intelligence than mechanical directives. “For centuries, plants have been regarded as passive creatures. Their development is thought to be predetermined, with only temporary interruptions in response to stress,” Anthony Trewavas, a plant biochemist at the University of Edinburgh and a prominent scholar of plant intelligence, wrote in the journal Nature. The root of the problem is the assumption that plants have, or should have, human-like feelings in order to be considered intelligent life forms.

Shepherd believes that further damage was done by the 1970s hit book The Secret Life of Plants and the film based on it, which propagated quite unscientifically that greenery had feelings and emotions. Ever since then many scientists started avoiding discussions on plant intelligence. “Basically it was a clash of philosophies between materialistic and holistic thoughts, exactly like what happened in Bose’s time,” expounded Shepherd.

“But the attitude of scientists is changing quite substantially,” added Shepherd. Three years ago the Society for Plant Neurobiology was established to discuss research on plant signalling and behaviour at the molecular, genetic, cellular and electrophysiological level. “The society holds an annual meeting every year to discuss both sides of the controversy,” she added. Their heated arguments reiterate how Bose’s research is relevant till this day. “Intelligence isn’t only about having a brain, or eyes or ears,” she clarified. “If you define intelligence as the capacity to solve problems, plants have a lot to teach us,” she added.

Sources: The Telegraph (Kolkata, India)

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