Infertility on the rise

It is no surprise to anyone that infertility rates are on the rise, the first study in more than two decades was recently completed to measure the number of Canadians having difficulty conceiving. According to the study 16% of couples aged 18-44 are having difficulty conceiving, this is DOUBLE since the last study was done in 1992! This is a very quick decline in fertility rates in a very short period of time.

Some of the usual suspects that affect fertility are age, obesity, smoking, and alcohol use. However there are so many other factors that can impact fertility including lifestyle, nutritional, environmental, and mental/emotional factors.

Naturopathic Medicine is ideal for addressing all issues of fertility. We take a holistic approach, addressing the many aspects of health that can contribute to fertility.

 

http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Infertility+rates+rising+Canadian+couples/6157547/story.html

 

Filed under General | Comments Off

The Overuse of Statin Drugs

A recent article in the Vancouver Sun discusses some of the negative effects of cholesterol lowering Statin Drugs. Statins are big business and big money; millions of Canadians take the pills, even those at low risk for heart disease.

Dr. Beatrice Golomb is an associate professor of medicine and lead researcher of the Statins Effects Study at the University of California. Dr. Golomb has seen an increase in aggression among people on Statins (especially women and the elderly).

Co-managing director Dr. Jim Wright of The Therapeutics Initiative at UBC has said that his group's previous research showed that among people without cardiovascular disease, the chance of dying or being hospitalized isn't reduced with Statins.

A study published last year in the British Medical Journal involving more than two million men and women from England and Wales linked Statin use to a decreased risks of esophageal cancer, but increased risks of liver dysfunction, kidney failure, moderate or serious myo-pathy and cataracts.

In Golomb's database, cognitive problems are the second most frequently cited complaint, after muscle pain, among Statin users.  The reason is that cholesterol plays a vital role in neuron signaling, and it makes sense that when cholesterol drops mood and behaviour will be affected.

There was a recent study in Clinical Cardiology that concluded: "Statin therapy is associated with decreased myocardial [heart muscle] function." Meaning Statins are causing the opposite of their intended affect.

Another negative affect of Statins is that it lowers CoQ10, an antioxidant, which helps, convert food into energy. CoQ10 is found in almost every cell in the body, it fights free radicals, which damage cell membranes, tamper with DNA, and cause cell death. CoQ10 helps with heart-related conditions, because it can improve energy production in cells, prevent blood clot formation, and is a very powerful antioxidant.

Statin drug labeling in Canada clearly warns of CoQ10 depletion. However most Doctors never recommend their patients take CoQ10 in conjunction with Statins. As the body gets more and more depleted of CoQ10, people may suffer from fatigue, muscle weakness and soreness, and eventually heart failure, so it is imperative if you take Statin drugs that you also take CoQ10.

There are many natural, healthy ways to maintain optimal cardiovascular health without resorting to the use of Statins.

http://www.vancouversun.com/health/growing+downside+cholesterol+drugs/5917977/story.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20027659

Filed under General | Comments Off

The Overuse of Statin Drugs

A recent article in the Vancouver Sun discusses some of the negative effects of cholesterol lowering Statin Drugs. Statins are big business and big money; millions of Canadians take the pills, even those at low risk for heart disease.

Dr. Beatrice Golomb is an associate professor of medicine and lead researcher of the Statins Effects Study at the University of California. Dr. Golomb has seen an increase in aggression among people on Statins (especially women and the elderly).

Co-managing director Dr. Jim Wright of The Therapeutics Initiative at UBC has said that his group's previous research showed that among people without cardiovascular disease, the chance of dying or being hospitalized isn't reduced with Statins.

A study published last year in the British Medical Journal involving more than two million men and women from England and Wales linked Statin use to a decreased risks of esophageal cancer, but increased risks of liver dysfunction, kidney failure, moderate or serious myo-pathy and cataracts.

In Golomb's database, cognitive problems are the second most frequently cited complaint, after muscle pain, among Statin users.  The reason is that cholesterol plays a vital role in neuron signaling, and it makes sense that when cholesterol drops mood and behaviour will be affected.

There was a recent study in Clinical Cardiology that concluded: "Statin therapy is associated with decreased myocardial [heart muscle] function." Meaning Statins are causing the opposite of their intended affect.

Another negative affect of Statins is that it lowers CoQ10, an antioxidant, which helps, convert food into energy. CoQ10 is found in almost every cell in the body, it fights free radicals, which damage cell membranes, tamper with DNA, and cause cell death. CoQ10 helps with heart-related conditions, because it can improve energy production in cells, prevent blood clot formation, and is a very powerful antioxidant.

Statin drug labeling in Canada clearly warns of CoQ10 depletion. However most Doctors never recommend their patients take CoQ10 in conjunction with Statins. As the body gets more and more depleted of CoQ10, people may suffer from fatigue, muscle weakness and soreness, and eventually heart failure, so it is imperative if you take Statin drugs that you also take CoQ10.

There are many natural, healthy ways to maintain optimal cardiovascular health without resorting to the use of Statins.

http://www.vancouversun.com/health/growing+downside+cholesterol+drugs/5917977/story.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20027659

Filed under General | Comments Off

Not all sunscreens safe!

The Environmental Working Group is an amazing non profit group that works to expose threats to our health and the environment. They have recently released their annual report to consumers on sunscreen, they say that only 39 of the 500 products they examined were considered safe and effective to use! In a perfect world the ideal sunscreen would block UV rays, immune suppression and damaging free radicals, it would remain effective on the skin for several hours and not form harmful ingredients when degraded by UV light. But in the US there is currently no sunscreen that meets all these criteria. The full list of the best and worst sunscreens can be found on the EWG's searchable database: http://www.ewg.org/2010sunscreen/ Filed under General | Comments Off

New Alarm Bells about Chemicals and Cancer

The 2008/09 Annual Report of the President's Cancer Panel was recently published; the title is "Reducing Environmental Cancer Risk". This report is groundbreaking because the President's Cancer Panel is extremely mainstream and conventional, finally mainstream docs are saying what Naturopath's have been saying for some time now, that environmental chemicals are harmful! An article by Nicholas D. Kristof in the New York Times reviews the recommendations made in the Report. These recommendations include:

• Choose foods, toys and garden products with fewer endocrine disruptors or other toxins, especially during pregnancy and childhood (Information about products is at www.cosmeticsdatabase.com or www.healthystuff.org.)
• Filter drinking water.
• Store water in glass or stainless steel containers, or in plastics that don’t contain BPA or phthalates (chemicals used to soften plastics). Microwave food in ceramic or glass containers.
• Give preference to food grown without pesticides, chemical fertilizers and growth hormones. Avoid meats that are cooked well done.
• Check radon levels in your home. Radon is a natural source of radiation linked to cancer.

The read the full 200+ page report visit:
http://deainfo.nci.nih.gov/advisory/pcp/pcp08-09rpt/PCP_Report_08-09_508.pdf

To read the entire article visit: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/06/opinion/06kristof.html

Filed under General | Comments Off

Agave Nectar worse than High Fructose Corn Syrup!

This is such bad news! Agave Nectar/Syrup has been marketed as a healthy alternative to sugar especially for diabetics because it has a low glycemic index and doesn't spike blood sugar. While it is true that it does have a low glycemic index, what it does have is the highest fructose content of any commercial sweetener! The fructose content ranges from 70 to 97 percent, depending on the brand, which is FAR HIGHER than high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which averages 55 percent. It is important to understand that fructose does not increase insulin levels, which is not necessarily good as what it does do is radically increase insulin resistance, which is FAR more dangerous. In addition to insulin resistance, your risk of liver damage increases, along with triglycerides and a whole host of other health problems.

To learn more about the dangers of high fructose corn syrup, watch this CBC video:

http://www.cbc.ca/video/player.html?category=News&clipid=1444422465

To read more about the dangers of agave nectar visit:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/03/30/beware-of-the-agave-nectar-health-food-fraud.aspx

http://www.westonaprice.org/Agave-Nectar-Worse-Than-We-Thought.html Filed under General | Comments Off

Please put down the Margarine

A new meta-analysis in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, concluded that evidence does not support the conventional idea that reduced saturated fat intake is beneficial for cardiovascular health. The study shows that increased carbohydrate consumption is to blame for poor cardiovascular health, not saturated fat. To read more about this study visit:

http://www.medpagetoday.com/Cardiology/Atherosclerosis/18538?utm_content=GroupC&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DailyHeadlines&utm_source=mSpoke

Filed under General | Comments Off

The Devil in the Milk

There is no food I am asked about more than milk, should we drink it, should we not? What about raw milk? I wish there was a straightforward answer to that question, but unfortunately there isn’t. “The Devil in the Milk” is a new book by Dr. Keith Woodford which helps to clarify some of these issues.  Dr. Thomas Cowan wrote the books forward, in which he talks about the type of Cows that are used for milk today. Our milk comes from Holstein and Friesian cows, these cows give milk that contain beta-casein type A1, which behaves like an opiate and which epidemiological studies have implicated in heart disease, diabetes, autism and schizophrenia. Beta-casein is a protein, a protein is along chain of amino acids with many branches. Old fashioned cows such as Jersey’s have a beta-casein chain of amino acids with the amino acid proline at number 67 (these cows are called A2). Thousands of years ago a mutation occurred in this proline amino acid converting it to the amino acid histidine, cows that have this mutation are called A1, which include the Holstein’s where we get milk from today. The side chain that comes off either the histidine or proline amino acid is called BCM 7, which is a powerful opiate, proline (found in Jersey cows A2) binds strongly to BCM 7 so it stays in the animal, while histidine (found in Holsteins A1) only weakly holds onto BCM 7, so it is liberated into their milk. This book outlines all the research done on the effects of BCM 7 on humans, the author Dr. Woodford shows a direct correlation between the incidence of A1 milk consumption and auto-immune disease, heart disease, type 1 diabetes, autism and schizophrenia. It also binds to the epithelial cells of the mucus membranes (i.e. the nose) and stimulates mucus secretion. To read more about this subject and this book, visit:

http://thebovine.wordpress.com/2009/03/20/the-devil-in-the-milk-dr-thomas-cowan-on-how-a2-milk-is-the-answer-to-the-mystery-of-why-even-raw-milk-sometimes-does-not-seem-to-be-enough-of-an-improvement-over-store-bought/


The Weston A Price foundation is a great resource to read more about raw milk:
www.westonaprice.org

Another great resource is the amazingly informative cook book by Sally Fallon, “Nourishing Traditions”
Filed under General | Comments Off

Chemicals found in plastics linked to less masculine play behaviour in boys

The public and especially parents are becoming more aware of toxic chemicals found in plastic, and most ethical retailers are no longer carrying plastic items (baby bottles, water bottles, toys) that contain bisphenol A (BPA). BPA isn’t the only harmful chemical found in plastics, people also need to be aware of phthalates. Phthalates are pervasive in the environment and used in everything from vinyl floors, to food containers, to children’s toys, to cosmetics (hair sprays, lotions, make up, powders, nail polishes, perfumes).

Phthalates are used in some but not all PVC formulations, and there are no labeling requirements for phthalates specifically. PVC plastics are typically used for various containers and hard packaging are labelled "Type 3" for recycling reasons.

Since all cosmetic products in Canada should be labeled with their ingredients, check for phthalates in your cosmetics using their full name ie. dibutyl phthalate and diethyl phthalate. To see if there are harmful ingredients such as phthalates in your cosmetics or baby care products go to www.cosmeticsdatabase.com to find out more about the products you are using.

Recently a study published in International Journal of Andrology, found that elevated levels of phthalates in pregnant women’s urine are linked to less-masculine play behaviour by their sons several years later. Phthalates have become associated with changes in development of the male brain as well as with genital defects, metabolic abnormalities and reduced testosterone in babies and adults.

To learn more about phthalates and other harmful chemicals in our environment visit The Environmental Working Group at www.ewg.org.

Filed under General | Comments Off

I really hope this is my last H1N1 blog

I’m getting so sick of hearing about H1N1, yet I’m compelled to read every article about it. Finally there is a doctor willing to take a stand about the overblown panic of the whole thing. Dr. Richard Schabas is Ontario’s former chief medical officer, and he believes that the hype and hysteria around the H1N1 pandemic, the millions of dollars spent so far on responding to it, and the dire warnings are all unwarranted, he also questions the pandemic label. By December it is estimated that H1N1 will have killed between 200 and 300 Canadians – making it one-tenth as lethal as the seasonal flu. While mortality rates among people 20 and younger in Canada will be slightly higher than in a normal flu season, the actual number of deaths among healthy youngsters will be in the range of just seven. According to Schabas, "the risk of a young person being killed by a car in Ontario ... is 100 or more times higher than the risk of being killed by H1N1." Just about every media outlet is stating that H1N1 outbreak has peaked, yet Canada has ordered another 15 million doses (enough to vaccinate half the Canadian population). Not surprisingly making the infamous vaccine manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline the biggest beneficiary of all the H1N1 fear tactics.

Filed under General | Comments Off