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SPECIAL REPORT
BANNED!
27 Prescription Free Cures for Life
w w w . b e l m a r r a h e a l t h . c o m
BANNED! 27 Prescription-Free Cures for Life.indd 1
2014-07-11 3:37:49 PM
BANNED! 27 Prescription Free Cures for Life
BANNED! 27 Prescription Free Cures for Life is published by Bel Marra Health, Harvard
Square, One Mifflin Place, Suite 400, Cambridge, MA 02138; in Canada, P.O. Box 77001, RPO
Martin Grove, Woodbridge, ON L4L 9S3. Contents Copyright 2014 by Bel Marra Health. No
part of this report may be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any means or media without
written permission of the copyright holder. All rights reserved. BANNED! 27 Prescription
Free Cures for Life is presented for information purposes only, and should not be construed
as medical advice or instruction. On any matter relating to your health or well-being, please
check with an appropriate health professional. The opinions herein are exactly that, they are
opinions of the author.
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BANNED!
27 prescription free cures for life
Many of us have the idea that
aging happens mysteriously deep
inside the body, and that it is definitely a preordained type of thing.
With age comes failing eyesight, stiff
joints, and a slower brain—end of
story. While this may be partially true,
there’s another way to think about
getting older: you have to work harder
at repairing the damage that has
actually been happening to you your
whole life.
Safeguard your vision by
altering your Omega-6/
Omega-3 fatty acid ratio
Being able to see clearly is a tremendous gift that we should all invest
a little time and effort into protecting.
With that in mind, consider the
results of a recent study linking
omega-fatty-acid ratios to eye health.
Researchers in Croatia investigated
the possible connection between the
omega-6/omega-3 fatty-acid ratio
and the development and progression
of age-related macular degeneration (ARMD). They looked at 125
patients who were diagnosed with
ARMD and divided these patients
into five groups. They also had one
group without ARMD, which acted as
control.
Dietary-fatty-acid intake was
measured using a food-frequency
questionnaire. The research team
discovered that there was a statistically significant difference between
the omega-6/omega-3 ratios in “neovascular” ARMD (a severe form of
macular degeneration that they called
“stage 5”) compared to all other
groups, including the control group.
The researchers concluded with
this health advice: by changing nutrition habits, someone could prevent
the development of the severe
neovascular form of ARMD.1
Protect your cells from
damage with Quinoa
If you want to age gracefully
(and who doesn’t?), you need to give
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your body a little extra help to repair
cellular damage. That way, instead of
just accepting your fate and waiting
for everything to break down, you can
extend your warranty, so to speak, and
stay healthy at the same time.
Quinoa is a grain from South
America that has found its way to
local grocery stores in the U.S. and
Canada. This delicious grain is an
excellent addition to the North American diet. No longer do you need to
reach for white rice, potatoes, bread,
or pasta to complement a meal. Instead, you can boost your nutritional
stores and help slow the damage that
happens inside your cells.
Unlike some other processed
grains that are really just fillers—
they’re meant to fill you up, but they
add very little in the way of vitamins,
minerals and other nutrients—quinoa is a very good source of protein,
amino acids, manganese, magnesium,
folate, and phosphorus. If you are
vegetarian or vegan, quinoa is a great
way to keep your protein levels up.
Recently, researchers determined
that the manganese in quinoa could be
beneficial to your health in a special
way. It prevents oxidative damage
during energy production. It also
guards youth other cells, such as red
blood cells, from injury caused by
free radicals. This is a perfect food to
help slow down the aging process.
The research team also determined that quinoa has an unusual
composition and exceptional balance
between oil, protein, and fat. Along
with its ability to protect cell membranes, it could help protect and boost
the performance of brain-neuronal
functions, too. One final health benefit
of this super grain, according to the
researchers, is that quinoa also contains “phytohormones”—substances
from plants that act like hormones.
Give this grain a try. It’s easy to
cook. Just prepare it like you would
any grain. Put water and quinoa in a
pot at the ratio of two to one, and boil
it until the quinoa has absorbed all of
the water.4
Own a pet to help
lower your blood
pressure and more
Here’s an unusual heart remedy:
caring for a pet. Owning a pet can
involve some work and responsibility.
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Juice it up!
Vegetables are full of vitamins,
minerals, and contain antioxidants,
which help protect and repair your
bodily systems.
But, if you’re like most people,
you probably fall short of eating at
least five vegetable servings a day.
You might be too busy, or maybe you
simply don’t remember. Or you don’t
really like vegetables. Whatever the
reason, you may be short-changing
yourself from getting vital nutrients
that can protect you from premature
aging.
So, what to do? Well, here’s a
solution: drink some vegetable juice.
Researchers from the Department
of Nutrition at the University of California devised a study to determine
whether drinking vegetable juice is
a practical way to help meet daily
dietary recommendations for veggie
intake..
In the 12-week study all the participants received education on the
“DASH” (Dietary Approaches to Stop
Hypertension) diet and 0, 8 or 16
fluid ounces (oz) of vegetable juice
daily. Assessments were completed
of daily vegetable servings before
and after the addition of vegetable
juice. All health parameters were
measured.
The results: Without the juice,
vegetable intake was lower than the
2005 dietary guidelines and DASHdiet recommendations. However,
the consumption of vegetable juice
helped participants reach the recommended intake.
The researchers also discovered
that volunteers who were “pre-hypertensive” at the start of the study
showed a big decrease in blood
pressure during the 12-week intervention period. They concluded that
one to two cups of vegetable juice
daily was an effective way for healthy
adults to close the dietary-vegetable
gap.3
Nowadays most food stores now
have a large selection of vegetable
juices and delicious combinations.
The message is clear: if you can’t
eat them, drink them.
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When you go on a vacation, arrangements need to be made for your pet.
When your pet is sick, you have to
use extra time and energy to get it
better. Pets can be a financial responsibility, and they can give you more
chores to do in an already busy day.
So why get one? Besides being
great companions, pets could offer a
number of health benefits.
Researchers from the Center for
Cardiovascular Technology, Stanford
University Medical Center in San
Jose, CA, decided to investigate the
benefits of pet ownership in relation
to cardiovascular health and heartdisease risk factors. This is what they
found:
• Dog owners cope better with
mental stress
• Dog owners have improved
survival following “myocardial
infarction” compared with
non-pet owners
• Dog owners have lower blood
pressure
• Dog owners have lower plasma
cholesterol
• Dog owners have lower
triglycerides
• There is evidence that dog
owners are less sedentary
The researchers also found conflicting data with regard to the association between pet ownership and
non-cardiovascular effects, however.
Most of these benefits are part of the
“psychosocial” realm, which is complex, and can vary with demographic
and social realms, they say.
The research team concluded by
stating that, overall, ownership of
domestic pets, particularly dogs, is associated with positive health benefits.5
There you have it: four unique
remedies for protecting your cardiovascular system. Give this advice a
try, and keep your heart healthy for
years and years to come.
The secret ingredient that
protects your brain
“Resveratrol” was first discovered
by scientists in the 1940s. In 1942,
reports about resveratrol’s beneficial
effects on the heart began to appear.
It turned out that the “phytochemical”
could help significantly in the support
of cardiovascular health by promoting healthy cholesterol levels. Now,
in the latest health news, resveratrol
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is being touted for its brain-protecting
abilities.
Researchers in China have investigated the potential for resveratrol to
reduce the risk for and severity of age
related memory loss.
After conducting tests, researchers in China were able to determine
that resveratrol helps amyloid proteins break down in such a way that
they don’t produce beta amyloid—an
amino acid that is the main component of the amyloid plaques in aging
brains with memory problems.
When the amyloid-precursor
protein is functioning in a healthy
way, it regulates synapse formation
and boosts neural plasticity. Neural
plasticity plays a role in many things
in your brain, but the most important
for you to know about are learning,
memory, and recovery from brain
damage.
Make sure that you boost your
brain health and protect it from
disease by eating foods that are rich
in resveratrol. One heavily promoted
source of resveratrol is red wine, but
if you want to avoid drinking too
much alcohol. Try adding grapes, berries, and peanuts to your weekly diet.
Along with its neuro-protective
effects, there is also increasing evidence that this phytochemical may
play a beneficial role in a number of
other health issues.6
Fight blood sugar spikes
and even curb your
craving for sweets
with this herb
Gymnema sylvestre is a herb that
has been used in India for the treatment of blood sugar concerns. It is
less known in North America; though,
over the past few years, studies have
been conducted to measure its effectiveness.
Take, for instance, a clinical trial
that took place at King’s College
London, U.K. There, researchers
looked at the effects of a Gymnema
sylvestre extract in a small cohort of
patients.
After administration of the extract
for 60 days, the researchers found
that there was a significant increase in
circulating insulin in the participants.
This surge in insulin helped reduce
fasting and after-meal blood-glucose
levels.
The research team concluded that
a Gymnema sylvestre extract may
provide a potential alternative therapy
for combating blood sugar spikes.
Gymnema sylvestre contains an
active ingredient called “gymnemic
acid,” which is extracted from the
leaves and roots of the plant. It is
this ingredient that helps lower and
balance blood-sugar levels. It turns
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out that gymnemic-acid molecules
have a shape that is similar to that of
glucose. This allows the molecules to
fill cell receptors in the lining of the
intestines, which, in turn, prevents the
uptake of sugar molecules.7
Gymnema sylvestre could also
help curb your cravings for sweets.
It is also thought that taking the herb
with a high-carbohydrate meal or a
meal that is high in sugar could make
more carbohydrates available for
burning. When these carbohydrates
are burned, they can’t be turned into
fat stores, helping you slim down and
build more lean-muscle mass. Some
medical experts claim that this herb
also lowers triglycerides and bad
cholesterol.
One final note: if you want to add
Gymnema sylvestre to your diet and
you are already using insulin or medication to treat diabetes, it is important
that you talk to your doctor, as the
level of these conventional treatments
may need to be reduced once you are
taking the herb.
Try meditation and yoga
to help your heart
Yoga and meditation have been
practiced in India for thousands of
years to attain harmony between
the body and mind. A recent study
finds that yoga and meditation trig-
ger improvements in cardiovascular
functions.
In the last few decades, these two
practices have flourished in North
America. Yoga studios have popped
up between bars and restaurants on
main streets, and meditation classes
are offered everywhere, from churches to libraries.
There are many health benefits to
doing yoga and meditation. In Western culture, the two practices have
been utilized for their ability to reduce
the symptoms of stress associated
with a driven and fast-paced society.
It’s no secret that meditation and yoga
can calm the mind and unwind the
body, encouraging relaxation.
Researchers have recently been
investigating yoga and meditation for
cardiovascular benefits and,
according to one study, both practices
are great for lowering blood pressure.
A team of scientists wanted to
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find out if the short-term practice of
pranayama and meditation ushered in
improvements in the heart functions
of healthy individuals. Pranayama
consists of breathing exercises to promote good health; it’s often used in
conjunction with other yoga practices,
including meditation.
Fifty subjects (24 males and 26
females), ranging in age from 20 to
60, were recruited for the study.
The participants underwent two
hours of daily yoga practice for 15
days. The classes were taught by a
certified yoga teacher. The researchers
measured pre- and post-yoga cardiovascular functions. These included
pulse rate, systolic blood pressure,
diastolic blood pressure, and mean
blood pressure.
The research team found that
there was a significant reduction
in resting pulse rate, systolic blood
pressure, diastolic blood pressure,
and mean arterial blood pressure after
practicing and meditation for 15 days.
These cardiovascular benefits were
the same for both the men and women
who participated in the study, regardless of age.
The researchers concluded with
this health advice: short-term, regular
yoga, and meditation practice had
beneficial effects on cardiovascular
functions, irrespective of age, gender,
and body-mass index (BMI) in normal, healthy individuals.8
So, follow their health tip, and
add some yoga and meditation to your
weekly routine.
Protect your health &
keep chemicals out
of your body
Chemical exposure seems to be
an unavoidable reality at times. Everywhere you go, whether it’s inside
your home, outside on the streets,
or at work in the office, chemicals
are being off-gassed. You may have
very little control over some of these
chemicals when it comes to exposure—car exhaust in a city is a good
example. However, there are some
chemicals that you can definitely
try to avoid, while at the same time
lowering your risk for cancer, irritable
bowel syndrome (IBS), eye disease,
and a number of other health problems. So, here’s some timely health
advice about potentially harmful toxins that are in your power to avoid.
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2014-07-11 3:37:50 PM
Toxin Tip #1
Avoid cookware that is treated
with anti-stick chemicals. This can
include such coatings as “Teflon,”
which is commonly found in frying
pans. Look for stainless-steel or castiron cookware, and use a little olive
oil to keep food from sticking to the
pan. You are better off soaking cookware after use and using a little elbow
grease to clean rather than ingesting
chemicals that are found in non-stick
coatings.
Toxin Tip #2
Use green household cleaners.
Gone are the days when you could
use chemical warfare inside your
home. Your home has now become
your sanctuary from chemicals that
permeate the outdoor air. Stay away
from chlorine, ammonia, and other
toxic chemicals. It’s time to use vinegar, borax, lemon, and baking soda.
Toxin Tip #3
Be wary of cosmetics. They contain a number of substances that could
be harmful to your health, such as
parabens and pthalates. Both of these
chemicals can disrupt your endocrine
system. Go natural and buy alternative products that are free of such
ingredients. While you’re at it, the
next time you buy soap or shampoo
or toothpaste, get products that aren’t
tested on animals.
Toxin Tip #4
Stay away from plastics. That
means plastic cutlery, plastic bags,
plastic containers, and plastic wrap.
Don’t microwave your lunch in a
plastic container. Plastic contains a
number of chemicals that could negatively impact your health. If you need
some plastic in your life, look for
labels that state “free of BPA.
Toxin Tip #5
Be careful eating canned fish.
Some brands of tuna and salmon contain high amounts of mercury. Even
farmed salmon could be full of nasty
chemicals like DDT, PCBs, and “dioxin.” You can lessen your exposure
to mercury by buying canned skipjack, yellow or tongol tuna instead
of albacore tuna (which is said to be
highest in mercury).
Toxin Tip #6
Eat organic food. Yes, it’s more
expensive and, yes, it’s a little harder
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2014-07-11 3:37:50 PM
to find, but conventional food can be
sprayed heavily with harmful insecticides and pesticides that are invisible
to your eyes. To be sure you’re getting
something that’s certified as organic,
look for the USDA organic seal.
But, what can you do if you can’t
budget for organic produce?
Well, here’s a health tip in the
form of a list: the 15 conventional
foods you can buy that are deemed
lowest in toxic residues. These will
be the ones that you don’t necessarily
have to splurge on.
First, the fruits:
• Kiwi
• Mango
• Papaya
• Pineapple
• Watermelon
Now, for the vegetables:
• Asparagus
• Avocado
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Eggplant
• Onion
• Sweet corn
• Sweet pea
• Sweet potato
• Tomato
There you have it: a list of conventional fruits and vegetables that
you can buy in a pinch, without shelling out the cash for the organic variety. The important thing to remember
is to keep your intake up. There is no
better way to boost your antioxidant
intake than to eat fresh fruits and
veggies every day. Antioxidants help
protect your cells from damage.9
Fruits and vegetables are also
high in important vitamins and minerals. Without adequate vitamin and
mineral intake, you are pretty much
assured of suffering from health
problems. There isn’t a single organ
or function in your body that doesn’t
require at least one key vitamin or
mineral to operate smoothly and
efficiently.
Keep your levels up, and buy
these conventional foods when
you can’t purchase their organic
equivalents.
Toxin Tip #7
Try to avoid products containing
“triclosan”—an antibacterial agent
that is commonly used in soaps,
deodorants, and even facial tissues.
Triclosan can negatively affect your
hormones, create antibiotic resistance
to bacteria, and harm aquatic life
when it is washed into sewer pipes.
Toxin Tip #8
Avoid dry cleaners as much as
possible. If you do have clothes that
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have to go to the cleaners, look for
an environmentally friendly business
that doesn’t use harmful solvents like
PERC.
Toxin Tip #9
Be wary of commercial candles,
incense, and air fresheners. These
products could be full of phthalates
and parabens that could significantly
compromise the quality of breathable
air inside your home.
Toxin Tip #10
New furniture (and old furniture,
for that matter) can off-gas a number
of chemicals, from formaldehyde to
flame retardants. Purchase carefully,
spend a little more time researching,
and try to buy chemical-free tables,
mattresses, carpets, and shelving.10
Sweetened drinks
raise the risk for
heart disease
According to a research team at
the famed institution, drinking sugary beverages can up the risk not only
for diabetes, but for heart disease as
well. The researchers conducted a
study that involved 42,883 men. They
looked for a link between the consumption of sugar-sweetened (e.g.,
sodas) and artificially sweetened (e.g.,
diet sodas) beverages with fatal and
non-fatal coronary heart disease.
There were 3,683 heart-disease
cases over 22 years of follow-up in
this large study. Participants in the top
percentage of sugar-sweetened beverage intake had a 20% higher relative
risk of heart disease than those in the
bottom percentage. These statistics
remained true even after adjusting
for age, smoking, physical activity,
alcohol, multivitamins, family history, diet quality, energy intake, BMI,
pre-enrollment weight change, and
dieting.
As for artificially sweetened
beverage consumption, it wasn’t
significantly associated with heart
disease. The researchers concluded
that intake of sugar-sweetened (but
not artificially sweetened beverages)
was significantly associated with the
following factors.
Increased Triglycerides: Triglycerides are the major form of fat
stored by your body. Elevated triglyceride levels are considered to be a risk
factor for “atherosclerosis” (hardening of the arteries) and coronary heart
disease. This is because part of the job
that triglycerides do is helping transport cholesterol.
Increased CRP: When you have
atherosclerosis, the number of plaques
in your arteries is directly related to
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the amount that your
c-reactive protein (CRP) levels are
elevated. Basically, the levels of CRP
in your body will rise in response to
any type of inflammation, including
the type that leads to heart disease.
Decreased HDL: This is called
the “good” cholesterol.
Increased Leptin: “Leptin” is a
hormone that is produced by your fat
cells. It helps regulate your body fat
by interacting with the areas in your
brain that control hunger. Elevated
levels of leptin are also associated
with inflammatory diseases.11
Follow the health advice of this
study, and limit your intake of sugary
sodas and other drinks. Many supposed fruit drinks are also loaded with
fructose and other sugars, so always
read the label. Opt for pure fruit juices
instead when you really feel the need
to drink something other than water.
One good, healthy alternative to
drinking sugary drinks is green tea.
Tea drinking started in China about
5,000 years ago. Legend has it that tea
was discovered by a Chinese emperor
at this time when leaves from a nearby bush blew into his boiling water.
Long ago, Traditional Chinese Medicine recommended tea for healthy
individuals trying to prevent various
diseases. During the Tang dynasty
(618-907 AD), tea drinking, as well as
the tea trade, flourished in Asia.
True teas all come from the
Camellia sinensisshrub. Once the
leaves are plucked from the tree, the
way that they are processed determines what kinds of tea we get. For
example, black teas are crushed and
then exposed to oxygen before they
are dried, whereas green teas are nonfermented. Oolong teas are partially
fermented.
All teas contain a group of chemicals known as polyphenols, and are
especially high in flavonoids. However, the types and amounts will depend
on how teas are processed.
In green tea, the major polyphenol belongs to the family known as
catechins. It also contains many other
beneficial chemicals: caffeine, gallic acid, theophylline, theobromine,
theaflavins, and theanine.
Green tea has been shown to have
a bounty of health benefits, including fighting free radicals, supporting
healthy cholesterol and blood pressure, improving cognitive function,
and aiding in weight loss.
One cup of green tea contains 50
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mg to 100 mg of polyphenols. Three
cups, the average amount consumed
in Asian countries, contain anywhere
between 240 mg and 320 mg polyphenols. So, you can kill two birds
with one stone by drinking green
tea: replace your sugary drink intake,
giving yourself a greater chance at
avoiding heart disease, AND reduce
your risk for a slew of other health
problems.
The crucial exercise to do
after knee surgery
Here’s a health tip for anyone
who has had or is thinking about having knee surgery: head to your local
swimming pool. Replacing a knee is
a major operation, but for those who
are no longer able to maintain their
mobility without considerable pain,
it’s often the only option. How do
you recover, though? What’s the best
exercise after knee surgery that will
help you cut down on recovery time
and pain medication?
Researchers at the University
of Jyväskylä in Finland think that
aquatic-resistance training is the way
to go. They recently conducted a
study involving men and women aged
55 to 75. All of the participants had
had knee-replacement surgery four
to 18 months before the start of the
study. Fifty people participated in the
swimming-exercise trial and 42 in the
follow-up study.
The research team assigned the
participants to 12 weeks of progressive aquatic training. A group that received no exercise intervention acted
as a control. To measure the effectiveness of the swimming exercises, the
researchers tested knee-extensor and
knee-flexor power (the main muscles
that help you bend and flex your
knee), thigh-muscle strength, walking
speed, stair-ascending time, and a sitto-stand test.
After a 12-month follow-up,
the researchers found that the
benefits from aquatic-resistance
training remained in the following
percentages: a 32% increase in kneeextensor power and a 50%
increase in knee-flexor power. Unfor-
tunately, the same could not be said
for the training-induced improvement
in thigh-muscle strength—that disap-
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peared by the time of the follow-up
study. All of the other 12-week improvements during the aquatic training also disappeared after one year.
The researchers concluded that,
after one year, the 12-week aquatictraining benefits disappeared in
all but knee-extensor and knee-flexor
power. They suggest that to maintain
the benefits related to mobility—
walking speed, stair climbing and
standing—aquatic training should be
continued for longer than 12 weeks
after surgery.12
Aquatic-resistance training is a
great way to work out. You can build
muscle strength and flexibility without having to bear any real weight on
your joints and cartilage. If you are
overweight, swimming may also be
the best exercise for you. You can get
a workout without the added stress of
carrying around extra weight.
Four natural remedies
for leg cramps
Leg cramps are a common health
complaint. Diagnosing a leg cramp
can be tricky, however. The exact
cause often proves illusive. Of course,
the odd leg cramp can be endured
without much suffering, but for those
who experience frequent cramping,
the pain can be intense, and sometimes, even excruciating. Frequent leg
cramps can also be quite disruptive to
your sleep.
The good news is that there are a
number of natural treatments that you
can try to rid yourself of nighttime leg
cramping. The best alternative-health
advice is to make sure that you’re
getting enough calcium and magnesium—these are the most common
risk factors for leg cramps. Low levels
of potassium could also be a culprit.
Another potential cause of leg
cramps may be a deficiency in “hesperidin.” Hesperidin is a bioflavonoid that is sometimes referred to as
“vitamin P.” Some medical research
suggests that hesperidin, along with
other bioflavonoids like citrin, rutin,
flavones, flavonals, catechin, and
quercetin, may be able to help prevent
night leg cramps.
In one clinical trial that was performed in Italy, researchers set out to
investigate the preventative action of
“Pycnogenol” on cramps and muscular pain in different groups of subjects
and patients. Pycnogenol is a brand
name for a combination of bioflavonoids that are obtained from the
bark of the Pinus maritima pine tree,
and are known for their antioxidant
properties.
The study included a five-week
observation period (four weeks treatment and one follow-up week after
the suspension of treatment) to evalu13
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ate the effectiveness of Pycnogenol.
Four 50-mg capsules (total dose: 200
mg/day) were prescribed with a
suggestion to drink at least 1.5 liters
(L) of water every day.
In the first part of the study, 66
healthy subjects completed a fiveweek follow-up period. The research
team found that the difference between the number of cramp attacks
recorded within the two weeks before
inclusion in the study and the number
of episodes during the fourth and fifth
weeks were statistically significant. In
normal subjects, the average number
of episodes was reduced from 4.8
events per week to 1.3 at four weeks.
In venous patients, the decrease in
cramping went from 6.3 to 2.6 per
week. In athletes, the number of
episodes decreased from 8.6 to 2.4.
The decrease was still present at five
weeks in the three groups, to levels
significantly lower than at the start of
the study.13, 14
Replace dairy fat with
this oil to protect
your heart
This section concerns fats—the
good kind and the bad kind. North
Americans, on average, get a lot of
their fats from dairy products, and
while this is not necessarily a bad
thing in moderation, you may want
to add other fats to your diet to boost
heart health. According to Danish researchers from the Department of Nephrology at the University of Odense,
replacing dairy fat with canola oil
could help lower LDL-cholesterol
levels.
Cholesterol, of course, is that
stuff that circulates in your blood. It
can slowly build up in your arteries if
you are consuming too much of the
bad type of fat. Eventually, these fatty
deposits harden, and a clot may form,
blocking the flow of blood in your arteries. HDL cholesterol could actually
help remedy this situation. It carries
cholesterol from your arteries to your
liver, where it is removed from your
body.
This is exactly the type of situation that the Swedish researchers
found when they conducted a trial
comparing cholesterol levels after the
consumption of dairy fat versus canola-oil fat. The study was a three-week
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randomized, controlled, crossover
trial involving 20 participants with
high levels of lipids in their blood.
The researchers performed tests to
measure “lipoprotein” profile, coagulation, and the ability to break down
and remove small blood clots. The
researchers found that the canola-oil
diet—but not the dairy-fat diet—reduced levels of serum cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL cholesterol. The
canola-oil diet also increased the rate
at which glucose was utilized. The
research team concluded that in a diet
that is moderately high in total fat, replacing dairy fat with canola causes a
rapid and clinically relevant improvement in serum-lipoprotein profiles,
including lowering of triglycerides in
“hyperlipidemic” individuals.15
Follow this health advice: boost
your nutritional health by using
canola oil where you might normally
use butter. Try putting a little canola
oil on toast in the morning, or use it
when cooking main dishes. Canola oil
generally retains its nutritional value
when exposed to moderately high
cooking heat, although deep-frying
is generally the least healthy way
of cooking, so generally should be
avoided.
The delicious juice that
super-charges your
immune system
Imagine if a fruit juice could actually boost your health significantly, in
much the same way that some drugs
are purported to? Wouldn’t drinking
a delicious beverage be preferable to
swallowing a pill or downing a horrible tasting spoonful of medicine? If
you answered “yes,” then read further
to find out more.
Researchers at the University of
Florida did some pretty interesting
investigations recently into “T cells.”
T cells are one of the two main types
of white blood cells in your body that
are crucial for the proper functioning of your immune system. This is
because these specialized cells are responsible for attacking any invaders,
such as toxins or bacteria. They bind
to the invaders and help remove them
15
2014-07-11 3:37:50 PM
from your body. Your body contains
millions of T cells that can respond to
virtually any antigen.
The research team conducted a
randomized, double-blind, placebocontrolled trial. They used 100%
grape juice made from Concord
grapes or a placebo beverage, which
were consumed by 85 individuals
daily for nine weeks. The participants
were asked not to consume other red,
blue or purple fruits during the study.
Blood samples, taken at the beginning and the end, were analyzed for T
cell numbers, along with vitamin C,
antioxidant capacity and the ability to
protect DNA from strand breaks.
The researchers found that those
who were consuming the grape juice
had significantly greater numbers
of circulating T cells. They also had
higher vitamin-C levels compared to
the placebo group. The placebo group
had lower antioxidant activity, less T
cell proliferation, and increased DNA-
strand breaks when compared to their
grape juice drinking counterparts. The
researchers concluded with this health
advice: regular consumption of purple
grape juice could benefit immunity
in healthy, middle-aged human
subjects.16
Go ahead and do your T cells a
favor—add some grape juice to your
diet today. You’ll also be boosting
your nutritional health by getting an
extra dose of vitamin C.
Competing therapies for
easing migraine pain
When it comes to headaches,
fast, effective relief is crucial. No
one wants hours of throbbing pain to
contend with. It’s this sort of pain that
is the hallmark of migraines. When
it settles in, it can incapacitate you,
making it impossible to do anything
but lie down in a darkened room.
Many turn to painkillers to get
relief, but what if you want to avoid
prescription side effects? Are there
any alternative remedies available?
How about two therapies that have
been featured in alternative-health
news of late: craniosacral therapy and
magnet therapy?
Researchers at the School of
Medicine, University of North Carolina, conducted a trial that not only
looked at the effectiveness of these
16
2014-07-11 3:37:50 PM
two therapies, but also looked at the
perceived credibility of craniosacral
therapy versus magnet therapy in
the eyes of the 65 patients who were
enrolled in the study.
Craniosacral therapy is an
alternative treatment that involves
a practitioner laying hands on the
patient to manipulate the body’s life
force and rhythms. Magnet therapy,
as you may know, involves the manipulation of magnetic fields to bring
about health benefits. Both of these
therapies are controversial, but are
being researched carefully.
For this particular study, adults
with moderate or severe migraines
were divided into groups that received
craniosacral therapy, sham therapy,
or magnet therapy.
Participants received eight weekly
treatments. The researchers were careful to make sure that the craniosacral
therapy and magnet therapy matched
in terms of setting, visit timing, body
positioning, and therapist-patient
interaction. This made it possible to
determine which therapy better helped
alleviate migraine symptoms and
which therapy was perceived by the
participants as being the best one.
Now for the results: patients felt
that craniosacral therapy was doing a better job than magnet therapy
when it came to easing their migraine
pain. Those who tried the craniosacral therapy had more confidence
that their migraines would improve.
Interestingly, more participants in
the craniosacral therapy group would
confidently recommend the treatment
to a friend than those in the magnettherapy group.
Don’t write off magnet therapy
just yet as a migraine treatment,
though. The research team suggests
that the design of the study and the
way that it was executed may have
contributed to the difference in results
between the two therapies. Don’t
forget that there’s some positive news
about magnet therapy, too: it may
have the potential to treat depression.17
17
2014-07-11 3:37:50 PM
Sources:
1. Mance, T.C., et al., “The role of omega6 to omega3 ratio in development and progression of age-related macular
degeneration,” Coll Antropol 2011 Sep; 35 Suppl 2: 307-10.
2. Simopoulos, A.P., et al., “The importance of the ratio of omega-6/omega-3 essential fatty acids,” Biomed Pharmacother
2002 Oct; 56(8): 365-79.
3. Shenoy, S.F. et al., “The use of a commercial vegetable juice as a practical means to increase vegetable intake: a
randomized controlled trial,” Nutr J, 2010 Sept 17; 9: 38.
4. Miranda, M., et al., “Nutrition facts and functional potential of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa willd.), an ancient
Andean grain: a review,” J Sci Food Agric 2010 Dec; 90(15): 2,541-7.
5. Arhant-Sudhir, K., et al., “Pet ownership and cardiovascular risk reduction: supporting evidence, conflicting data and
underlying mechanisms,” Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol 2011 Nov; 38(11): 734-8.
6. Gong, Q., et al., “Resveratrol, a neuroprotective supplement for Alzheimer’s disease,” Curr Pharm Des 2012; 18(1):
27-33.
7. Koley, N., et al., “A novel Gymnema sylvestre extract stimulates insulin secretion from human islets in vivo and in vitro,”
Phytother Res 2010 Sep; 24(9): 1,370-6.
8. Ankad, R.B., et al., “Effect of short-term pranayama and meditation on cardiovascular functions in healthy individuals,”
Heart Views 2011 Apr; 12(2): 58-62.
9. EWG’s 2012 Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce, The Environmental Working Group, accessed online,
Feb. 17, 2012.
10. Crinnion, W.J., et al., “The CDC fourth national report on human exposure to environmental chemicals: what it tells us
about our toxic burden and how it assists environmental medicine physicians,” Altern Med Rev 2010 Jul; 15(2): 101-9.
11. De Koning, L., et al., “Sweetened Beverage Consumption, Incident Coronary Heart Disease and Biomarkers of Risk in
Men,” Circulation 2012 Mar 12.
12. Valtonen, et al., “Maintenance of aquatic training-induced benefits on mobility and lower-extremity muscles among
persons with unilateral knee replacement,” Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2011 Dec; 92(12): 1,944-50.
13. Young, G., “Muscle cramps: quinine derivatives likely to be effective but not recommended for routine use due to
toxicity; vitamin B complex, naftidrofuryl and calcium channel blockers possibly effective,” Evid Based Med 2010
Aug; 15(4): 114-5.
14. Vinciguerra, G., et al., “Cramps and muscular pain: prevention with pycnogenol in normal subjects, venous patients,
athletes, claudicants and in diabetic microangiopathy,” Angiology 2006 May-Jun; 57(3): 331-9.
15. Iggman, D., et al., “Replacing dairy fat with rapeseed oil causes rapid improvement of hyperlipidaemia: a randomized
controlled study,” J Intern Med 2011 Oct; 270(4): 356-64.
16. Rowe, et al., “Regular consumption of concord grape juice benefits human immunity,” J Med Food 2011
Jan-Feb; 14(1-2): 69-78.
17. Curtis, P., et al., “Credibility of low-strength static magnet therapy as an attention control intervention for a random
ized controlled study of Craniosacral therapy for migraine headaches,” J Alt Comp Med 2011 Aug; 17(8): 711-21.
18
2014-07-11 3:37:50 PM

banned! - Bel Marra Health

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