We all want beautifully thick, glossy hair that shines like a shampoo commercial.

But how do we get and keep those silky locks when we’re swimming in saltwater and straightening our hair?

It’s easy, say the experts: you are what you eat. A balanced diet of protein, vitamins and minerals is the best way to get all the nutrients needed for a healthy body, skin and hair.

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BUILDING BLOCKS
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Essential fatty acids: Omega-3 and omega-6 improve hair texture, while deficiencies in both can cause dandruff and dull hair.

Naturopathic nutritionist Jan Purser says nuts, seeds, olive oil and avocados are rich in fatty acids.

“We should all be eating enough oily fish like salmon, sardines or mackerel, or taking fish oil supplements, because it helps on all sorts of levels,” Purser says. “What goes on inside your body directly affects how your hair grows.”

Tip: Eat fish three times a week.

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Zinc: A zinc deficiency can affect hair growth and cause it to fall out and be brittle, so make sure you include zinc in your diet. The best sources are mussels, oysters, lamb, pumpkin seed kernels, eggs, legumes, cheese, cashews and pine nuts.

Tip: Take a 15- to 20-milligram zinc supplement daily, particularly if you notice your hair is falling out or you have white spots on your fingernails.

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Protein: Hair is made up almost entirely of protein. Its two primary components are keratin and collagen.

Nutritionist Lilli Ng says a diet low in protein can lead to poor formation of these components, resulting in thin, brittle hair.

“Choose lean cuts of meat trim fat off before cooking,” Ng says. “Meat is also high in zinc, which is required for protein synthesis and growth.”

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Vegetarian proteins include tofu, legumes, seaweed, nuts and seeds. Eggs are a good source of protein and also include a range of essential nutrients.

Tip: Protein shakes are a good option – blend with ground flaxseeds, mixed berries and banana.

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Vitamin C: Improves scalp circulation and hair growth. Food sources include strawberries, kiwifruit, coconut juice, broccoli, red capsicum (lightly cooked) and freshly squeezed orange and lemon juice.

Tip: For a good therapeutic dose of vitamin C, take 1000 milligrams once or twice  a day.

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Vitamin E: Helps improve scalp circulation, prevents hair loss and split ends, nourishes the scalp and repairs damage to hair. Vitamin E is found in wheat germ, wheat germ oil, muesli, olive oil, sunflower oil, nuts and seeds.

Tip: Cut sugar from your diet to give dandruff the flick.

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Rosemary: Traditionally used to treat hair loss, rosemary stimulates hair growth and promotes regeneration of tired, lifeless hair.

Tip: Add 15 to 20 drops of rosemary oil into your shampoo or conditioner and shake well before using on lifeless hair.

via heraldsun

Vitamin D and calcium have long been touted as the best nutrients for strong bones, muscles and teeth. Recent studies have shown that vitamin D could be used to fight cancer, heart ailments, autoimmune diseases, even diabetes.

But too much vitamin D can damage the kidneys and the heart. So what’s the right balance?

After reviewing nearly 1,000 published studies on vitamin D and calcium, the Institute of Medicine on Tuesday recommended that most Americans and Canadians up to age 70, who are not pregnant, need no more than 600 international units (IUs) of vitamin D per day to maintain good health. People over age 70 may need as much as 800 IUs.

Vitamin D controls genes for cancer, autoimmune disease
A three-ounce serving of canned tuna contains about 200 IUs, the standard unit for vitamin D and many other nutrients.

The Institute of Medicine, an independent nonprofit agency, serves as an adviser to the U.S. government to improve health.

The agency’s calcium recommendations vary based on age and pregnancy, and range from 700 to 1,300 milligrams per day. One cup of whole milk, for instance, contains around 300 milligrams of calcium.
How vitamins E, D help the brain

“When making these recommendations, we took into account the study data, looking at national surveys of blood levels,” said Catharine Ross, professor of nutritional sciences, Penn State University, University Park, and chairman of the committee that set the recommendations.

“The blood levels indicate how much vitamin D you have in your blood, based on the amount of sunlight you are exposed to, how much vitamin D and calcium you have in your diet, and what type of supplements you are taking.”
The committee surprisingly found the majority of Americans and Canadians are getting enough vitamin D and calcium. Some adolescent girls may not get quite enough calcium, and some elderly may fall short of the necessary amounts of calcium and vitamin D. These individuals should increase their intake of foods containing these nutrients.

Sunlight is the best source of vitamin D, but not everyone receives the same exposure. According to the intitute, the new guidelines for vitamin D cover the needs of individuals who get little sun.

The minimum recommended amount of daily sunlight depends on your skin pigmentation. White people should get not less than 5 minutes without sunscreen. People of color should get 15 to 20 minutes. There is no recommended maximum.

Nutritionists recommend getting the rest of your vitamin D and calcium through foods, such as oily fish (salmon, tuna), milk, mushrooms, egg yolks and fortified cereal.

Daily supplements are also helpful, but experts advise people to pay attention to how much they’re taking. Because people are becoming more aware of their diets and more individuals are taking supplements, the chance is higher that people may consume too much of these nutrients. Getting too much vitamin D can be dangerous and has been associated with kidney stones as well as damage to the kidneys and the heart.

“No one can overdose from sun exposure because of the way the body processes it. And too much of these nutrients in your diet is highly unlikely,” noted Ross. “People can take too many supplements. That’s why we made these recommendations.”

Ross also noted that while the report found most of the data confirmed that calcium and vitamin D do play a huge role in skeletal growth and keeping up good bone health, they could not find strong evidence that vitamin D protected the body against cancer, heart disease, autoimmune diseases and diabetes.

Lack of vitamin D linked to whites’ stroke death
“While we found these studies point to the need for further investigation on the role of vitamin D and these illnesses, ” said Ross, “we found conflicting and actually mixed results in these studies on the effects of vitamin D on these conditions.”

Katherine Tallmadge, spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association supports the call for more research.
“In its most recent recommendation, the [Institute of Medicine] has established the level they believe will protect bones,” Tallmadge said. “More studies need to be conducted to validate if we need to recommend higher levels of vitamin D supplementation or higher levels in the blood for protection of other diseases which have recently come to light.”

For now, Ross said she believes the guidelines are the best way for people to get the most out of vitamin D and calcium without causing problems.

“We scrutinized the evidence, looking for indications of beneficial effects at all levels of intake,” Ross said. “Amounts higher than those specified in this report are not necessary to maintain bone health.”

via cnn

New Zealanders get enough vitamin D without deliberately exposing themselves to the midday sun, skin cancer prevention groups say.

The Cancer Society, Health Sponsorship Council and the Melanoma Foundation today warned sunseekers to avoid deliberately exposing themselves to midday sun after a speaker at a recent health symposium suggested it was a good way to increase vitamin D levels.

Cancer Society health promotion manager Jan Pearson said vitamin D was essential for general health but most New Zealanders got enough “just being out and about” during summer.

“People deficient in vitamin D have the option of taking supplements. This is far safer than being out unprotected, in the midday sun,” she said.

Pearson also warned against the use to sunbeds to boost vitamin D levels.

“The intensity of radiation at some wavelengths from some sunbeds is several times higher than the intensity of radiation that occurs in sunlight at the earth’s surface,” she said.

“The use of sunbeds increases the risk of melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer.”

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Melanoma Foundation executive director Heather Hyland said more than 250 New Zealanders died from melanoma each year.

“It is important New Zealanders cover up to avoid sunburn, and reduce their melanoma risk,” she said.

SunSmart spokesman Wayde Beckman advised those going out in the sun to “slip, slop, slap and wrap” – slip on a shirt or into the shade, slap on a wide-brimmed hat, slop on broad spectrum sunscreen and wrap on a pair of sunglasses.

“It’s important not to underestimate the power of the sun at this time of the year, and to remember that it’s not the sun’s heat that burns, but UV radiation, which is at its highest between September and April, especially from 11am to 4pm.”

via tvnz

If you suffer from acne you may feel reassured to know that you are not alone – it is one of the most common skin conditions. And although it affects young people, 51 per cent of women aged 20-29 report still having acne. High-profile sufferers include Keira Knightley, Cameron Diaz and Katy Perry.

The good news is that for most people acne can be straightforward to treat. The goal is to stop new spots and to reduce redness. Treatments are not, however, intended to reverse any existing scars and they are not one-off wonders that need to be used for only a few days. Any treatment must be given at least two months to work.
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SPOTS AND ACNE?
There is no medical distinction. However, some people mistakenly believe you need to have a lot of spots for it to be classed as acne.

Others think that acne is only acne when you have been to see a dermatologist. None of these are true.

WHEN SHOULD I SEE MY DOCTOR?
It would be advisable to consult your GP when:
* You have tried at least two different types of self-medication.
* Your skin is getting worse.
* Your skin is starting to scar.
* You feel very distressed about your skin and unable to carry on with normal daily activity.

WHY ANTIBIOTICS FOR MY ACNE?
There are a more than 100 treatments available on prescription from your doctor. Many types of antibiotics are useful for treating acne and these are usually well tolerated by the skin and have few side effects.

Research has proven that applying antibiotics to the skin can be as helpful as taking them orally. They should be prescribed for no less than six months.
The most common types are tetracyclines, erythromycin, minocycline and trimethoprim. These fight the bacteria present in inflamed acne and also reduce redness and swelling.

They will not help with the non-inflamed type of acne. If you suffer from this you should take antibiotics alongside topical gels, creams or lotions. Antibiotics do not help blackheads or whiteheads.

FACE FACTS:
* Acne can be just as effectively treated from the outside (using creams) as it can from the inside (taking tablets).
* Treatment that dries out your skin will not make the problem worse. Some degree of drying will help remove the surface grease and reduce blockages in the skin.
* Stopping any treatments suddenly can result in the skin temporarily flaring up. This is known as rebound acne. Many doctors will not consider this possibility when they prescribe treatments so ask about what happens when you withdraw treatment.

VITAMINS AND OTHER SUPPLEMENTS
Omega 3 (fish, nuts, eggs, chicken) is recommended to help promote healing, fight infection and improve cell function.

Vitamin A has a variety of roles in the body’s systems, including our vision, immunity and bone and skin health. Also known as a retinoid, Vitamin A is used in prescription creams and can be very effective for acne.

Vitamin E has been hailed as the ultimate vitamin to help the skin heal. It is sometimes recommended in liquid form to rub on to the skin to help acne scarring. However, be aware that this can actually make it worse for some as the oil can block pores.
Applying zinc to the skin as part of an antibiotic/zinc combination can be very useful in managing acne as it has anti-inflammatory properties.
STEAM AND SAUNA – FRIEND OR FOE?
Saunas and steam rooms make you sweat, which purges some people’s skin. However, sweating traps in dirt and can cause more harm than good. It is advisable that anyone prone to acne avoids saunas and steam rooms.

IS IT MY DIET?
Given all the theories that link diet and acne (chocolate, greasy or fried food, cakes, milk) it is disappointing that there is little or no funding for scientific research to provide definite evidence one way or another.

However, some research has revealed that two remote tribes, one in Paraguay and the other from Papua New Guinea, had almost no incidence of acne.

From examining their diet of fruit, fish, vegetables and nuts with little or no refined sugar or carbohydrates, it seems plausible that their diet has influenced their skin. It’s worth remembering other factors may influence whether we develop acne – these tribes rarely move beyond their place of origin and therefore do not greatly mix their gene pools.
DOES SMOKING GIVE YOU SPOTS?
Research offers conflicting results. One Italian survey published in the British Journal of Dermatology in 2007 studied women aged 25-50. It concluded that 42 per cent of women who smoked had acne compared with 10 per cent of non-smokers.
Theories about smoking causing blockages in the skin may sound credible but do not explain why, according to the study, 58 per cent of women who smoke do not get acne.
AND WHAT ABOUT STRESS?
There is some evidence that suggests stress alone may cause acne. This might be due to stress increasing the steroid hormone levels, which trigger acne. If you believe that stress makes your acne worse, seek suitable treatments straight away.
DOES SUNLIGHT DRY UP ACNE?
A tan will often mask acne and work on the inflammatory factors in the skin to reduce the surface redness. However, the quick fix that some sufferers get from exposure to the sun hides a bigger problem; long-term exposure to ultraviolet light can prematurely age the skin and raise the chances of developing skin cancer.
WHAT ABOUT MY BACKNE?
Acne on the back can be hard to treat because it is awkward to reach to apply creams. Ask the doctor to give you the largest size of any creams as they will need to go further. Why not invest in a body baster – a tool to spread creams on to the back. If you would rather not struggle to reach your back, ask the doctor for tablets instead.

via dailymail

If you’re one of those people that find it hard to swallow your vitamins, you’re in luck. A new breathable vitamin debuted this month in the UK and will be making its’ way to the U.S. very soon.

The Le Whif Vitamin comes in a container that looks somewhat like a tube of lipstick. You breathe it in like you would an inhaler, and the vitamins are absorbed through the mouth. Their website claims that because it skips the digestive tract, the vitamins are absorbed through your bloodstream at a higher concentration.

David Edwards, a Harvard biomedical engineer, created the inhalable vitamin. Prior to Le Whif, he had also created an inhalable insulin, inhalable chocolate and inhalable coffee, Popular Science reported.

The device works like a pipe. Every time you inhale, a powder is released and absorbed in your mouth. To get 100 percent of the daily recommended dose of vitamins A, B1, B2, B3 and B5, it takes inhaling the powder eight times. The vitamins come in three flavors: Antioxidant Green Tea, Age Smart Wine Tea (with resveratrol) and Hibiscus Tea.

The price of Le Whif hasn’t been determined here in the U.S., but in the UK it is selling for around $8 for a three day supple – not cheap. As for the right technique to inhaling the vitamins, Edwards advises a simple gentle breath. Breathing in too hard will force the particles to the back of the throat and may make you choke, as the author of the Popular Science article found out when he tried some inhalable chocolate.

Breathable vitamins are also making their way into cars. The new Nissan Leaf will feature air conditioners that will disperse breathable vitamin C into the car, reported physorg.com . This is to help moisturize the occupants skin.

“We want drivers to feel that they are healthier staying in the car instead of on the outside,” a Nissan engineer said

Pick up a bottle of fish oil capsules and squint hard at the label.

Chances are it won’t say where the pills came from. But that’s something you should know.

We calculate that fish oil imports from China, a country notorious for hazardous products, now account for roughly 10 percent of the Australian market. And it’s a big market, because one in five Australian adults now takes fish oil.

We also found that companies sidestep import labeling rules.

No big recalls or health scandals have been linked to Chinese fish oil. And a spokesman for the People’s Republic of China said his country’s “fish oil was of good quality”.

But consumer advocates, a leading trade group for the supplements industry, and legal experts who have examined labeling laws agree: Consumers ought to be able to tell, at a glance, whether their fish oil capsules are coming from China.

Leo Hepner, an international consultant on food and dietary supplement ingredients, said that if he knew some fish oil capsules were manufactured in China, “I would prefer to buy something else.”

And Sidney Wolfe, whose Public Citizen Health Research Group has advocated for consumer safety for decades, said, “People have a right to know.”

A few years ago, nearly all fish oil consumed in the Australian was manufactured domestically.

But the Australian fish oil use has soared, making it the No. 2 dietary supplement. As sales increased, some Australian companies started importing from Chinese facilities.

TGA rules say supplement labels should include “a truthful representation of geographical origin.” And Federal Trade Commission rules say they can supplement the Tariff Act when it fails to require the disclosure of countries that process or manufacture products.

But enforcement of import labeling is left up to yet another agency, which has been letting the importers get around the law. Those companies assert that simply bottling the capsules in Australian “transforms” them into a Australian product, so they don’t have to be labeled as imports.

Other Australian companies are buying the Chinese fish oil in bulk and then getting the capsules produced by an Australian contract manufacturer.

The Chinese factories that make fish oil for export to the Australia are supposed to meet TGA standards. But the TGA, according to several sources, has never inspected any Chinese dietary supplement plants.

Chinese companies also have shown little interest in having independent third parties inspect their plants or in joining industry groups dedicated to ensuring the quality of fish oil.

One such group is GOED — the Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega 3s says “There’s not a single Chinese manufacturer in GOED,”. “You tell me why.”

Careful processing of fish oil is important to keep it from becoming rancid. Without proper refining it can contain high levels of some nasty substances, such as PCBs and mercury.

In addition, lightly regulated plants introduce the possibility of products’ containing odd contaminants or additives that no one would think to test for.

For example, in 2008 a contaminated ingredient from China showed up in heparin, a blood-thinning medicine that was linked to 149 deaths. The previous year, dogs and cats died after eating pet food made with wheat gluten from China that apparently contained melamine, a toxic compound.

As a result of China’s past troubles, the supplements industry is becoming concerned about a potential scandal involving fish oil — one that could jeopardize all sales of the product.

Evidence is mounting that levels of vitamin B12 may be connected to the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

A study of 271 Finns found those with the highest levels were the least likely to be diagnosed with dementia.

However, an Alzheimer’s charity said despite the findings, published in the journal Neurology, it was “too early” to think about taking supplements.

It called for more research into the protective power of vitamins such as B12 – found in meat, fish and eggs.

Vitamin B12 can also be found in milk and some fortified cereals.

Continue reading the main story
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Vitamin B ‘puts off Alzheimer’s’
Alzheimer’s drugs U-turn hailed
Alzheimer’s has been linked to B vitamins for some years, and scientists know that higher levels of a body chemical called homocysteine can raise the risk of both strokes and dementia.

Homocysteine levels can be lowered by increasing the amount of vitamin B12 in the blood.

A recent trial found that “brain shrinkage”, which has been associated with Alzheimer’s, was slowed in older people taking high doses of vitamins, including B12.

The volunteers for the latest study, carried out by scientists from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, were all aged 65 to 79, and did not have dementia at the start of the study.

Over the next seven years, 17 of them were diagnosed with the condition, and researchers were able to work out whether high or low levels of the active component of B12 had made any difference.

Again, those with high levels of homocysteine appeared to be at greater risk, and those with the highest levels of the vitamin appeared to be at lower risk.

Professor Helga Refsum, from the University of Oslo, another B-vitamin researcher, said that the study was “further evidence” that low levels of B12 were linked to Alzheimer’s.

“Though relatively small, with few cases of dementia, it should act as another incentive to start a large scale trial with homocysteine-lowering therapy using B vitamins to see whether such a simple treatment may slow the development of Alzheimer’s or other dementia.”

Rebecca Wood, the chief executive of the Alzheimer’s Research Trust, was cautious about the findings.

She said: “It might be tempting at this stage to stock up the cupboard with B vitamin in the light of recent findings – it remains too early to do that at this stage.

“The strongest evidence we have for reducing dementia risk is to eat a healthy, balanced diet, take moderate exercise, and keep cholesterol and blood pressure in check, particularly in mid-life.”

A separate study offered some encouragement to those looking for future treatments for the disease.

A treatment to lower levels of a protein called “STEP” in mice bred to develop a condition similar to Alzheimer’s disease appeared to reverse some of their memory and learning problems.

The Alzheimer’s Research Trust said it was too soon to know whether a similar treatment might be viable in humans.

via bbc

A drug based on vitamin A could prevent millions from going blind as they get older, doctors believe.

The treatment was able to stop the most common cause of blindness in old age during trials.

Researchers behind the drug, fenretinide, found it halted the advance of age-related macular degeneration, for which there is currently no cure.

They targeted the most prevalent form of the condition, known as ‘dry’ AMD, which is caused by the deterioration and death of cells in the macula – the part of the retina used to see straight ahead.
The disease robs sufferers of their sight by creating a blackspot in the centre of their vision.

It can make it impossible to carry out everyday tasks such as reading, driving and watching television.
While the less common ‘wet’ form can be treated, nothing can be done to help the bulk of patients.
The U.S. research studied fenretinide, which is derived from vitamin A, the vitamin found in carrots, and which was originally designed to tackle arthritis.

Almost 250 men and women with dry AMD took a fenretinide pill a day or a placebo.

In the highest dose, the drug halted visual deterioration after a year. This suggests that while it was unable to do anything to stop cells that were already damaged from dying, it protected healthy cells. Although the research is still preliminary, it offers promise of a treatment for the disease.

It affects millions across the world and 300,000 Britons. The number of UK sufferers could more than treble to one million within 25 years as the population ages.

Dr Jason Slakter, of New York University School of Medicine, said: ‘There are currently no effective treatments for dry AMD and the need for finding one is grave.

‘Our study wasn’t designed to give a final answer.

‘It was designed to see if there was a biological effect and if the drug was working in the way we’d expect and to find out if it was well tolerated by patents.

‘I think we answered all of these points favourably. The bottom line is that I am excited about doing more studies.’

Further, larger trials are planned for the end of next year.

If the drug lives up to its initial promise, it could be in widespread use for dry AMD by 2015.

The treatment works because in normal circumstances the eye needs vitamin A to help it see. The retina naturally uses the vitamin and is helped to do so by a compound called retinol binding protein, or RBP.
However in some patients, the vitamin can produce poisons that kill the delicate cells, leading to loss of vision.

Fenretinide acts as a decoy, attaching itself to the RBP and stopping vitamin A from causing harm, the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s annual conference heard.

Wet AMD, in which tiny blood vessels bleed into the retina, is less common, but progresses more rapidly, with central vision being lost within months of diagnosis.

Caught early enough, wet AMD can be stopped in its tracks by a technique called photodynamic therapy, which uses a light-activated dye to destroy abnormal blood vessels. Drug treatments are also available.

Fenretinide also halved the odds of the patients, who already had dry AMD, going on to develop wet AMD.

A spokesman for the research team said: ‘Years of use of fenretinide to treat cancers, rheumatoid arthritis have shown it to be safe and well-tolerated.’

via dailymail

Taking multi vitamins may help women without cardiovascular disease to ward off a heart attack, new research shows.

But vitamin pills seemed to have less of an effect in women with heart disease, Dr. Susanne Rautiainen of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, and her colleagues found.

The results don’t settle the question of whether it’s actually the vitamin pills that are protective, Rautiainen told Reuters Health via e-mail.

“It is very important to keep in mind that multivitamin users tend be ‘healthier’ in general. They usually smoke less, are more physically active and have a healthier diet,” the researcher wrote. “Even if we have controlled for many of those factors that are associated with a healthy behavior we cannot exclude the possibility that we might measure a healthy lifestyle via multivitamin use.”

Approximately half of American adults report taking a multivitamin regularly.

In industrialized countries, Rautiainen and her team note in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, multivitamin use is widespread. While conventional wisdom holds that taking vitamins could help prevent heart disease, the researchers add, there’s actually little evidence to back up this claim.

To investigate the relationship between vitamin use and heart disease in women, Rautiainen and her team followed 31,671 women with no history of heart disease and 2,262 women who did have cardiovascular disease for about 10 years. The women ranged in age from 49 to 83 at the study’s outset, and about 60 percent in each group used some type of dietary supplement.

During the observed period, 932 heart attacks occurred among the women without heart disease, while 269 women with existing heart disease had heart attacks.

Among the women who initially had no heart disease and did not take any dietary supplements, 3.4 percent had heart attacks, compared to 2.6 percent of the women who took multivitamins plus other supplements; this translated to a 27 percent lower heart attack risk with vitamins. Among the women with heart disease, 13 percent of the non-supplement-users had heart attacks, compared to 14 percent of women who took multivitamins only, which wasn’t a statistically significant difference (meaning it could have been due to chance).

For the women without heart disease at the study’s outset, taking a multivitamin for less than five years reduced heart attack risk by 18 percent compared with non-users of supplements. Taking vitamins for 10 or more years cut risk by 41 percent.

Similar studies have been done in men, with some confirming the current findings and others contradicting them, Rautiainen said. She concluded: “The question of whether multivitamins are good for you still remains!”

via: reuters

High doses of omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish or fish oil or plant sources may help fight lung cancer, according to a case report published by researchers at the University of Nevada in the journal Nutrition and Cancer.

Ron Pardini, biochemistry professor of the Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station and colleagues helped his neighbor “D.H.” with terminal lung cancer defeat his disease, which doctors said would kill the 78 year-old man in a few months.

With high doses of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and low intake of omega-6 fatty acid known as linoleic acid, D.H. was still alive five years later at the time the report was published.

CT scans showed the gentleman developed a few tumors on the lungs. He refused to accept the conventional radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Instead, he started a dietary regimen including taking high doses of DHA and EPA from fish oil and golden algae oil and avoiding intake of linoleic acid.

Previous studies have found DHA and EPA inhibit cancer cell growth and people who eat lots of fish are less likely to develop cancers such breast cancer and prostate cancer.

As expected, the tumors in the man got shrunken and eventually disappeared after taking dietary supplements mainly DHA and EPA and avoiding vegetable oils which are high in the omega-6 fatty acid.

The effective dose of DHA and EPA together to eliminate all tumors was 15 grams per day and the ratio of linoleic acid to omega -3 fattyacids was about 0.8 compared to more than 16 in most Americans.

Linoleic acid is found high in many vegetable oils, particularly in corn oil and very low in Canola oil and olive oil. This fatty acid has been found to promote tumor growth.

Dr. Pardini’s research on the anticancer effect of fish oil was inspired by observations that Inuit Eskimo populations have less breast and prostate cancer deaths.

This is the first case study of its kind in the US.  Animal models were commonly used to study the anticancer effect of omega-3 fatty acids in the past.

via foodconsumer

People who consumed the most magnesium in foods and from vitamin supplements were about half as likely to develop diabetes over the next 20 years as people who took in the least magnesium, Dr. Ka He of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and colleagues found.

The results may explain in part why consuming whole grains, which are high in magnesium, is also associated with lower diabetes risk. However, large clinical trials testing the effects of magnesium on diabetes risk are needed to determine whether a causal relationship truly exists, the researchers note in Diabetes Care.

It’s plausible that magnesium could influence diabetes risk because the mineral is needed for the proper functioning of several enzymes that help the body process glucose, the researchers point out. Studies of magnesium and diabetes risk have had conflicting results, though.

To investigate the link, the researchers looked at magnesium intake and diabetes risk in 4,497 men and women 18 to 30 years old, none of whom were diabetic at the study’s outset. During a 20-year follow-up period, 330 of the subjects developed diabetes.

People with the highest magnesium intake, who averaged about 200 milligrams of magnesium for every 1,000 calories they consumed, were 47 percent less likely to have developed diabetes during follow up than those with the lowest intakes, who consumed about 100 milligrams of magnesium per 1,000 calories.

He and colleagues also found that as magnesium intake rose, levels of several markers of inflammation decreased, as did resistance to the effects of the key blood-sugar-regulating hormone insulin. Higher blood levels of magnesium also were linked to a lower degree of insulin resistance.

“Increasing magnesium intake may be important for improving insulin sensitivity, reducing systemic inflammation, and decreasing diabetes risk,” He and colleagues write. “Further large-scale clinical trials are needed to establish causal inference and elucidate the mechanisms behind this potential benefit.”

Via: Reuters

It’s no surprise that while we have a plethora of choices when it comes to food, we don’t always get the vitamins and minerals we need on a daily basis. Unlike our ancestors, we aren’t eating mostly plant-based foods, exercising all day, sleeping well and then getting up to do the same thing all over again. We don’t move enough and we certainly don’t eat fresh foods like nature intended.

While you should try to get the majority of your vitamins and minerals from whole, natural foods, this isn’t always possible. But, stepping into a supplement shop can be an overwhelming experience. Throughout the years, I have tried multiple supplements, studied how they affect the body and have tried numerous whole food, natural supplements myself.

Contrary to popular belief, if you want to get “shredded,” you don’t need to take fat burners or pick supplements that promise weight loss. These are packed with stimulants and cheap products that will end up doing more harm than good. The only stimulant I ever put in my body is coffee or green tea. Eating right and training hard can wield amazing results all on their own. So, picking vitamins that gently help supplement the diet is very important. But, which to choose? I love many different companies and their products, but my favorite by far is NEW CHAPTER. They are diligent about using organic ingredients and are careful when packaging supplements (all vitamins come in glass bottles and then in a cardboard box, so when they are scanned, frequencies do not compromise the vitamins). Solaray is another great brand, as well as Source Naturals.

Here’s a list of my top 10 favorite supplements to be taken on a daily basis. And as with any vitamins, take 2 days off per week, to give the body a break and let it reset naturally:

1. BoneTone Advanced Bone and Teeth Formula (Solaray) It’s said that the staple of someone’s health can be directly related to the teeth. And, with constant acidity, lack of flossing and harmful bacteria, our teeth do need supplements. Bone Tone is just that supplement. Packed with vitamins C, D, K, folate, iron, magnesium, zinc, selenium, copper, and calcium, it’s like a full course meal for your bones and teeth. There’s a noticeable difference in nail and hair growth, as well as stronger teeth when taking this supplement. A great everyday multivitamin.

2. Coral Calcium (Source Naturals) One of the best supplements I have ever found, coral calcium is a salt derived from fossilized coral reef. With magnesium and trace minerals, this supplement goes beyond the duties of regular calcium in promoting a wide array of health benefits, such as building strong bones, teeth, hair, and nails, as well as keeping your muscles, nerves and blood working properly. It also promotes healing, may help with weight loss and staves off many diseases.

3. Coenzyme B Food Complex (New Chapter) B vitamins are directly correlated to energy, and sometimes, we can become deficient (especially if you are a vegetarian or are pregnant). This supplement delivers 8 different probiotic vitamins as well as 11 stress-balancing, soothing and restorative herbs. This particular supplement has immune response support and many superfoods, such as spinach, blueberry and ginger. I notice an immediate surge in my energy level when I take this supplement.

4. Wellness Formula (Source Naturals) Perhaps my number one, all-time favorite supplement, this little vitamin has saved me from having so much as a cold for the last 3 years. An herbal defense complex, people can take this as their daily multi-vitamin as well, due to all the wonderful ingredients. With vitamin A, C, D, and zinc, as well as garlic clove, olive leaf extract, ginger root, and about 20 other natural herbs, this is a powerhouse of a supplement to prevent sickness from invading the body. It literally acts as a shield. At the first sign of sickness, pop 3 pills every 3 hours, or take 1 everyday as a “maintenance” vitamin.

5. Cell Food (Lumina Health Products) This super energized mineral concentrate provides high levels of oxygen and hydrogen to the body, aiming to improve endurance and promote overall health. Little drops that you can add to your water, cell food contains dissolved oxygen, trace minerals, plant source amino acids and enzymes to help boost energy and immunity.

6. Advantage (Wisdom of the Ages) Perhaps the powerhouse of all supplements, this little bottle of liquid is a potent antibacterial concentrate that can kill strep, staph, salmonella, e. coli, candida, herpes, influenza, cholera, parasites, fungi and diarrhea, just to name a few. A few drops a day in your water can ward you (or your pet or child) from all types of invaders. It can also be applied directly to rashes or skin disorders, help heal earaches and is said to kill over 800 bacteria and virus strains, 100 strains of fungi and numerous parasites. A mixture of distilled water, citrus seed extract, green tea and jasmine tea, it is one of the best and most useful supplements I’ve ever seen.

7. Unbounded Energy (New Chapter) Known as the multivitamin for power and performance, this supplement contains tons of vitamins and minerals, as well as probiotics, herbal extracts and flower essences. Known to increase energy, the 22 essential vitamins and minerals are derived from natural sources.

8. Whole Mega (New Chapter) Most of us know how important omegas are, but now, there’s one supplement to supply ALL the omegas – 3, 5, 6, 7 and 9, in one little pill. This supplement is made from 100% sustainably-caught wild salmon oil and has been shown to benefit cardiovascular, immune system, brain and digestive health.

9. Amino Vital Fast Charge (Ajinomoto) If you work out hard, you deplete your body. Period. You can become deficient in many vitamins and minerals, amino acids being a major one. Amino acids are the construction materials of muscles – they are vital for strength, performance and long-term conditioning; branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) for energy and repair plus arginine and glutamine for overall health. You can pop these little packets before, during and after exercise, as they provide 2400 mg of amino acids per packet, as well as many vitamins for energy, including B1, B6 and B12.

10. Shark Cartilage (Bell) Made from the dried and powdered cartilage of sharks, this little pill combats a number of diseases – most notably, cancer. There have been numerous articles about how sharks “don’t get cancer,” and soon, this supplement made its way into holistic health food stores. And, most notably, it has been known (in many cases) to have cured stage 4 breast cancer for $30/bottle instead of hundreds of thousands of dollars in chemo and radiation. It shrinks tumors in the body, and coupled with other forms of detox, can literally be a natural life saver.

Via: Chicago Now

With the advent of folic-acid supplementation of certain foods, few Canadians are now getting too little of the B vitamin, a new study estimates — in findings that question the need for children and men to get additional folic acid from vitamins.

The study does not challenge the need for women of childbearing age to take folic acid supplements, researchers say, since they need extra amounts of the vitamin to reduce the risk of having a baby with neural tube defects — birth defects of the brain or spine, including spina bifida.

Nor should women older than 70 feel a need to cut back on folic acid: they were the one group the study found to have a high rate of inadequate folate/folic acid intake. (Folate is the natural form of the B vitamin, found in foods such as spinach, asparagus, dried beans and peas, and orange juice; folic acid is the synthetic form used in vitamin supplements and added to certain “fortified” foods, including wheat flour and breakfast cereals.)

The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, is the first to estimate the national level of folate inadequacy in Canada since the nation mandated in 1998 that folic acid be added to white wheat flour to help prevent neural tube defects.

Researchers used data from a national survey of more than 35,000 Canadians to create statistical models estimating the prevalence of folate inadequacy in different age groups of women, men and children.

“Inadequacy” means that a person is not getting enough total folate — from food and supplements — to meet the average nutrient needs for his or her age and sex, and may run the risk of becoming deficient in the vitamin over time.

Based on survey answers, the researchers estimated how much folate and folic acid individuals were consuming in foods, and how much additional folic acid they were getting from vitamin supplements.

Overall, the estimates found folate inadequacy to be low — and close to zero among children younger than 14 – with most people getting sufficient folate and folic acid from food sources alone.

Among men younger than 70, folate inadequacy was estimated to be under 7.5 percent — and virtually non-existent in men younger than 50 — based on food intake only.

Among elderly men and women age 70 or younger, folate inadequacy was relatively uncommon, being less than 20 percent, based on food intake alone. And within that category, just 10 percent of women ages 19 to 30 were estimated to be getting inadequate amounts of the vitamin from foods alone.

The only group with what the researchers considered a high prevalence of folate inadequacy — greater than 20 percent — was women older than 70: even with intake from folic acid supplements along with food, 25 percent of women in this age group were estimated to have folate inadequacy.

Taken together, the findings offer some good news, according to senior researcher Dr. Deborah L. O’Connor of the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. Mandatory folic-acid fortification of white flour has apparently worked well, she told Reuters Health.

TOO MUCH FOR SOME?

In fact, O’Connor said, fortification may have been so effective for certain groups — namely, children younger than 14 and men — that folic acid from vitamin pills may be unnecessary for them.

“There really is no reason to be having folic acid in supplements designed for children and men,” she said.

That’s because there are potential risks to getting too much folic acid, O’Connor explained. High folic acid intake can, for example, “mask” and worsen any deficiency in vitamin B-12 (although that should not be a problem if people are taking a supplement that also contains B-12, O’Connor noted).

Studies have also found an association between high folic acid intake and increased risks of certain cancers, such as colon and prostate cancers. Those studies did not, however, prove that folic acid was the reason for the elevated risks.

O’Connor said that no one should “panic” about the possibility of getting extra folic acid from their multivitamins. But she suggested that parents who are concerned about overdoing the nutrient look for children’s multivitamins that contain either no folic acid or relatively low amounts. The same advice goes for men using multivitamins.

The recommended daily intake of folate from all sources is 150 micrograms (mcg) for children ages 1 to 3; 200 mcg for ages 4 to 8; and 300 mcg for ages 9 to 13. Older teens and men are advised to get 400 mcg.

The upper limits for folate intake — the levels beyond which adverse effects might occur — are 1,000 mcg per day for adults and range from 300 to 800 mcg for children and teens, depending on age group.

In this study, the researchers estimated that anywhere from 1 percent to 4 percent of Canadian children got too much folate when food and supplement sources were combined. The same was true for up to 5 percent of adults, depending on their sex and age group.

WOMEN STILL NEED MORE

The caution on folic acid supplements does not, however, apply to women of childbearing age, according to O’Connor.

While the study found that relatively few women between the ages of 14 and 50 had inadequate folate intakes that put them at risk of outright deficiency, that does not mean they were getting enough folate to cut the risk of neural tube defects in their babies should they become pregnant.

Only an estimated 18 percent of women in that age range were getting at least 400 micrograms of folic acid per day from fortified foods and supplements combined; experts recommend that women get 400 mcg of folic acid, in addition to any naturally occurring folate from food, to help prevent neural tube defects.

O’Connor said that it’s important for women who might become pregnant to keep taking supplemental folic acid.

As for women who are older than 70, it is not clear why they still had a high prevalence of folate inadequacy even with supplement use taken into account. O’Connor said that more research is needed to see whether any change in official recommendations for these women will be necessary. (As with adult men, older women are advised to get 400 mcg of total folate each day.)

The findings could also be relevant beyond Canada, according to O’Connor. She noted that studies from the U.S. have indicated that folate inadequacy is similarly low — but that, as in Canada, only a minority of women of childbearing age get the recommended amounts of folic acid from supplements.

Since 1998, the U.S. has required manufacturers to add folic acid to enriched flours, breads, cereals, pasta, corn meal and other grain products.

Via:Reuters Health