Site Pirates

September 2, 2010 – 9:20 am

Hi, folks. I had an issue with my website in that some unscrupulous activity on the web blocked many of your questions from coming my way. I apologize if you sent an “Ask Cheryl” and did not receive a reply. Your own email integrity was never at risk. It seems to be an unfortunate aspect of human nature that if there is a way to gum up the works, someone for the sheer deviltry of it will do so! All is now repaired, so it is back to business as usual!

By Cheryl | Posted in Home Page | Comments Off

Phytoalexins—when stress brings out the best

August 23, 2010 – 5:53 am

Phytoalexins—when stress brings out the best

You’ve probably heard the riddle—how is a person like a tea bag? You don’t know how strong she is until she is in hot water. Stress can bring out the worst in us, but it can also bring out the best. It turns out that plants react to stress a lot like humans do. Too much stress, and the plant is stunted, its fruit scarce. It could even die. But some stress makes the plant respond by creating substances to protect itself against from damage, which makes the plant much stronger and more resilient. This group of substances is called phytoalexins.

OK, we are glad that plants have developed ways to protect themselves—but what has that got to do with us? Plenty. These very same substances that protect the plants from damage do the same for us when we eat them. I know one phytoalexin you’ve probably heard of—resveratrol from grapes. The more stress the grape experiences, the more it responds with higher levels of this amazingly healthy compound.

This may be part of the reason that organic produce is so much healthier—the plants are raised in conditions more close to nature, without artificial props. Non-organic agriculture uses a variety of chemicals and selection methods to remove stress, particularly pests and weeds. How amazing to find that plants need some competition and attack to develop the healthiest self-protective nutrients that in turn provide us benefit.

This research article reaches the conclusion that phytoalexins are the next big step in functional foods (foods with specific, often enriched health benefits) and the buzz on the net is that phytoalexin-enriched foods will be the next big thing in nutritional commerce.

What is a bit disturbing is that scientists are looking at ways to create controlled, artificial stress to induce plants to make optimal amounts of these compounds. It seems to me like another case of Mother Nature achieving complex systems of sheer genius, and Man bumps her aside because we can do it better. Unfortunately, our “better” is often so short-sighted and narrow of focus that we end up creating as many problems as we solve.

It sure sounds logical to kill the wolves so we can protect livestock and have a bigger deer herd. But now in my home in Wisconsin, the deer are destroying agriculture as they munch on whatever food they can find, cause car accidents and, in come areas, harbor a frightening illness called “Chronic Wasting Disease” that some have likened to mad cow syndrome. The deer herd is dysfunctional and starvation is rampant.

Predator and prey are locked together in a mutual dance for survival. Upset the balance and they both fail. I hope we someday learn this lesson.

Study identifies new class of functional foods
By Stephen Daniells, 19-Mar-2009
Related topics: Botanicals, Research, Phytochemicals, plant extracts

Stressing plants to induce their natural defences could lead to a new range of functional foods enriched with a plant’s natural defensive compounds, phytoalexins.
Researchers from the US Department of Agriculture report that stress can lead plants to produce higher levels of these beneficial compounds, which may possess antioxidant and anti-inflammation activity, and maybe even anticancer activity.

Writing in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the USDA researchers state that phytoalexins have been largely ignored as nutritional components in human foods.

“We propose a new area within functional food research called phytoalexin-enriched foods that utilize induced plant compounds or phytoalexins created either pre- or post-harvest that have been traditionally viewed only as plant defensive compounds, but have beneficial health effects,” wrote lead author Stephen Boue.

Global functional foods
The phytoalexin-enriched foods could soon be adding to the growing functional food market, expected to be worth about €175 billion by 2012, according to Euromonitor International data.

In a global health and wellness market, the researcher puts at €450bn, functional foods are the fastest growing sector and second in value to naturally healthy foods (€155bn), both now and in 2012.

By 2012, better-for-you foods (€140bn) will be the third highest selling category, followed by vitamins and food supplements (€60bn); organic (€24bn); botanicals (€22bn); slimming products (€8bn); food intolerance products (€6bn) and sports nutrition products (€2.4bn).

Phytoalexins science
“Phytoalexin-enriched foods would be defined as foods with health-promoting activities based on phytoalexins and would be a subclass of functional foods,” wrote Boue and his co-workers.

Production of the phytoalexins would be achieved by biotic and abiotic elicitors—substances that elicit the production of the phytoalexins—as well as other stress-inducing techniques. This would be done both before harvest and after harvest, they said.

The various methods for production of such plants include organic cultivation, which reportedly leaves plants more susceptible to pathogen and insect attack. This may subsequently lead to increases in secondary metabolites as the plants defend themselves.

“It is tempting to speculate that in modern agriculture we are limiting at least to some extent the production of health-promoting compounds in our diets that may be present at higher levels in organically grown foods or have been at higher levels in foods grown before the advent of modern agricultural pest control,” wrote the researchers.

Another method is external challenge post-harvest plants such as grapes with UV radiation, which leads to an increase in the levels of resveratrol in grapes.

“These phytoalexin-enriched functional foods would benefit the consumer by providing ‘health-enhanced’ food choices and would also benefit many underutilized crops that may produce phytoalexins that may not have been considered to be beneficial health-promoting foods,” they concluded.

Source: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
Published online ahead of print, ASAP Article, doi: 10.1021/jf8040403
“Phytoalexin-Enriched Functional Foods”
Authors: S.M. Boue, T.E. Cleveland, C. Carter-Wientjes, B.Y. Shih, D. Bhatnagar, J.M. McLachlan, M.E. Burow

 

By Cheryl | Posted in Research & Commentary | Tagged , | Comments Off

Obesity damage prevented by Omega 3s?

August 23, 2010 – 5:51 am

Obesity damage prevented by Omega 3s?

New study
FASEB Journal Published online ahead of print, 11 February 2009, doi:10.1096/fj.08-125674 “Obesity-induced insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis are alleviated by -3 fatty acids: a role for resolvins and protectins.” A. Gonzalez-Periz, R. Horrillo, N. Ferre, et al.

What they found
Yes, we all know that carrying extra pounds around is not healthy, and the heavier you are, the more stress you place on your body. Yet we still have not found a solution for obesity and overweight. Therefore, we need to pay special attention to studies that show us how to be healthier even when obesity is an issue.

This study indicates that two substances in omega 3 fatty acids called protectins and resolvins, can protect the liver of obese people from damage that could lead to diabetes. In the study, it helped prevent insulin resistance.

This is a mouse study, and I always caution that just because things work in a mouse doesn’t mean it will have the same impact in humans. However, there have been other studies on omega 3s and obesity that show positive effects on heart and brain health.

Dr. Gerald Weissmann, MD, editor-in-chief of The FASEB Journal commented on the study: “Doctors are always looking for simple and easy ways to counter the harmful effects of obesity, and the great thing about this study is that the information can be used at dinner tonight. It’s not unlikely that eating lots more fish or a simple switch to canola oil will make a difference.”

What you can do
Even if you significantly increase Omega 3s in your diet, 100% protection of the challenges of obesity is not possible. So if you can lose even just a few pounds and get more exercise, you will benefit from these changes. However, adding more omega 3s to your diet via fish and healthy grains could go a long way towards a healthier body regardless of size, and a better chance of living to see the great grandchildren get married.

 

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Blueberries May Prevent Childhood Cancers

August 20, 2010 – 1:21 pm

Blueberries May Prevent Childhood Cancers

New study
Antioxidants & Redox Signaling. 1 January 2009, Volume 11(1): 47-58. doi:10.1089/ars.2008.2150 “Oral Administration of Blueberry Inhibits Angiogenic Tumor Growth and Enhances Survival of Mice with Endothelial Cell Neoplasm.” G. Gordillo, H. Fang, S. Khanna, J. Harper, G. Phillips, C.K. Sen

What they found
Substances found in blueberries could reduce the size of certain tumours found primarily in children, according to a mouse study at Ohio State University. They may also improve survival in children with certain types of cancer. In this study, mice fed a blueberry extract doubled their lifespan, and had tumours 60 per cent smaller that in mice not fed blueberry extract.

You must be cautious in extrapolating responses in mice to humans, but these are very promising results. Writing in the current issue of the journal Antioxidants and Redox Signaling, the researchers report their findings against tumours called hemangionendotheliomas (HE), which affect about 3 per cent of children. These tumours usually occur within four weeks of birth and more often affect premature infants. Sometimes these tumours dissapear, but they may reoccur and cause deformity, and can be life-threatening if they obstruct the airways.

“This work provides the first evidence demonstrating that blueberry extract can limit tumour formation by inhibiting the formation of blood vessels and inhibiting certain signalling pathways,” said lead author Gayle Gordillo. “Oral administration of blueberry extract represents a potential therapeutic strategy [against] endothelial cell tumours in children.”

“Our hope is that if we feed blueberry juice to a child with this type of tumour, we can intervene and shrink the tumour before it becomes a big problem,” said Gordillo, “Our next step is a pilot study with humans to see if we can measure response to the treatment using imaging techniques and the monitoring of chemical changes in the urine.”

What you can do
While it remains to be proven that humans will respond to extracts of blueberries the way the mice in the study did, there is certainly nothing wrong with adding more blueberries to your family’s diet. And if your child has hemangionendotheliomas, talk with your doctor about adding blueberries to meals once or twice a day.

 

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Have you ever heard of Still’s Disease?

August 20, 2010 – 12:51 pm

Have you ever heard of Still’s Disease? And if so, do you have any supplement suggestions that might be of use? Thank you.—M.C.

Dear M.C.,

I believe Still’s Disease is similar to rheumatoid arthritis, and I think it is more common in children than adults. You get the swelling and pain in the joints, but also occasional high fevers, sometimes a rash and severe fatigue. The symptoms come and go—good days and bad days.

Since Cat’s Claw, botanical name Uncaria tomentosa, has excellent, published studies for rheumatoid arthritis, with your doctor’s permission, you may want to try this herb to see if it has any effect for Still’s Disease. For full potency, Cat’s Claw should be standardized to POA (pentacyclic oxindole alkaloids) content and not contain any TOAs (tetracyclic oxindole alkaloids). A quality cat’s claw product is not an immune system stimulant—it is a modulator. Therefore, integrative doctors use this in autoimmune diseases because it will not over-stimulate the immune system (which could cause problems).

You also might what to consider goodly doses of a quality, natural fish oil to help settle down the inflammation. This is not in place of medical treatment, but in addition to medical treatment, which is why I always ask folks to check with their health care practitioner. I believe we can have excellent heath outcomes if we combine the best of all types of medical care, but sometimes a professional’s help is necessary to achieve this perfect blend.

Good luck! Cheryl

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My husband fell off the roof and broke both legs.

August 20, 2010 – 12:49 pm

My husband fell off the roof and broke both legs. Is there anything he can take to help him deal with the inflammation and make his bones knit strongly (and maybe more quickly)?—K.S.

Dear K.S.,

In serious injuries, I always encourage people to discuss supplement use with their healthcare practitioner, because the best outcomes occur when all modalities are integrated and synergistic, and everyone involved in care is in the loop and in agreement. He needs to make sure there are no contraindications to using dietary supplements before he starts taking them. That said, people who are healing broken bones need raw materials. Most people think first of calcium, but you need more than calcium to build bones. At a minimum, he needs a product that contains calcium, magnesium, and Vitamin D. Other helpful ingredients are vitamin C and the B-vitamins, vitamin K, and even copper and zinc. I don’t recommend products by name on this website, as I wish to remain objective. There are several good combination products that your local retail establishment likely carries. Look for good and absorbable forms of calcium and magnesium in the products—I like the citrate form and also triphosphates.

As for inflammation, he could try high potency pancreatic enzymes on an empty stomach three or four times per day, which is also quite useful to aid healing. Taking on an empty stomach is important. If you want to use enzymes as an aid to digestion, take them with your meals. But if you want to help reduce inflammation, they need to be taken away from food—an hour before or two hours after eating. Look for products that report units of activity for each enzyme listed in addition to mg strength. Make sure the product contains proteases and bromelain as well as other digestive enzymes.

Interestingly, there is some new research on omega 3 rich fish oil promoting bone mineral density. Since we already know that it aids with inflammation, it might make sense to add a high quality, natural fish oil at one or two teaspoons per day.

Good luck to your husband and try to remember that patience is a virtue! Cheryl

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I just learned that I have fibrocystic breast disease

August 20, 2010 – 12:48 pm

Can you help me? I just learned that I have fibrocystic breast disease and am wondering what supplements would be best for me to take?—S.M.

Dear S.M.,

I am sorry you are having this problem, but there are some things that may improve this situation. First, you need to follow up with your health care practitioner and have regular examinations, because fibrocystic breast problems can make it harder to do breast self-exams. Also, I always encourage people to discuss supplement use with their healthcare practitioner, because the best outcomes occur when all modalities are integrated and synergistic, and everyone involved in care is in the loop and in agreement.

That said, there are supplements that might be supportive of breast health. First, not all women experience the same problems. This is an incredibly common health issue, but it affects different women differently. If you have an increase in breast tenderness that is uncomfortable only related to the menstrual cycle, you might want to consider two things that are particularly helpful—chaste tree berry extract (Vitex angnus castus) and Diindolylmethane (DIM). Both will have an impact on how the menstrual cycle affects breast tissue, and both will reduce breast discomfort. Make sure you work with your practitioner or health food store to select products that are pure, standardized for key compounds, and absorbable. DIM is especially hard to absorb, so look for DIM complexes that include documentation of proven absorption.

Some basic vitamins and trace minerals—vitamin A, E, and iodine—may help with fiborcystis, so taking a comprehensive, good quality multivitamin and mineral formula on a daily basis could be quite helpful, if you are not doing that already.

If you have discomfort all the time, in addition to Chaste Tree Berry and DIM, you might want to try some products that help with inflammation, because the discomfort of fibrocystis is an inflammatory process. The very best products for inflammation include Omega 3 rich natural, pure fish oil; pancreatic enzymes (especially the proteases and bromelain) BETWEEN MEALS, and if this is not enough, you could add a standardized green lipped mussel extract. I list this last because, even though it can do wonders for inflammation, it can be quite expensive, so I’d try the others first.

I hope this helps. Good luck! Cheryl

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A friend of mine has Bell’s Palsy

August 20, 2010 – 12:46 pm

A friend of mine has Bell’s Palsy and was recommended by her doctor to take a good quality fish oil but he wasn’t sure if there were other supplements that might help. Do you have any other suggestions on supplements? Thank you!!!—M.W.

Dear M.W.,

Bell’s Palsy can be quite troublesome for folks, and embarrassing, too, because it can cause a temporary facial droop that can last for months.

As for other suggestions, I always encourage people to discuss supplement use with their healthcare practitioner, because the best outcomes occur when all modalities are integrated and synergistic, and everyone involved in care is in the loop and in agreement. That said, there are products she might want to consider to help support the immune system. Most scientists believe that the symptoms of Bell’s Palsy are caused by a viral infection that has worked its way into the major nerves that control facial movement. Since the body’s immune system helps rid the body of infections, including viruses, it is an important system to support.

First, a good, buffered vitamin C is very supportive of immune health. Also, using Echinacea to stimulate the immune response for a few weeks will help her body get on top of this viral infection. Since symptoms of this problem can last up to 6 months (though they often start to improve after only 2 weeks or so) I would not use Echinacea for the entire duration—I’d just use it to help her get a jump start.

Next, she may want to consider Cat’s Claw, botanical name Uncaria tomentosa. For full potency, it should be standardized to POA (pentacyclic oxindole alkaloids) content and not contain any TOAs (tetracyclic oxindole alkaloids). A quality cat’s claw product can be used longer term, as it is not an immune system stimulant—it is a modulator. It will help her immune system strengthen its defenses over time to deal with virtually all chronic infections, of which Bell’s Palsey is only one.

Lastly, sleep and rest and reduce that stress! People have reported that symptoms worsen when they are tired or stressed. Sometimes people end up in a catch-22—they are stressed because their face is drooping on one side and they look odd, and because they are stressed, the symptom worsen, which makes them even more stressed. Try to break out of this unhealthy spiral and adopt a Zen like attitude that eventually you will be back to normal. If you can’t get a handle on the stress, try 100 to 200 mg of L-theanine and/or the botanical Holy Basil—both are great to help you regain your cool and calm.

I hope this helps. Good luck! Cheryl

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My 21 month old son has been diagnosed with verbal apraxia

August 20, 2010 – 12:33 pm

My 21 month old son has been diagnosed with verbal apraxia. He is not autistic, and the doctor says his intelligence is fine—in fact, he is quite bright. But for some reason, his speech is delayed. The doctor said that speech therapy can help tremendously, but also we might want to look into some nutritional supplements like fish oil. What should I look for, and is there anything else that might help?—T.R., Pennsylvania

Dear T.R.,

Verbal apraxia is a significant speech delay unrelated to intelligence. You are right in that it is often, but not always, seen in autism. It is a brain development issue and is often correctable as the child matures, especially with early speech therapy interventions. Your doctor is correct about fish oil. There has been good, published research on the essential fatty acids in fish oil and brain development. Two omega 3s that are getting a lot of attention are EPA and DHA—so much so that some supplements are extracting just these fatty acids for supplementation. I am not sure that is a good idea. Fish as a food contains may supportive elements that facilitate Omega absorption and support health as well. I think of fish oil as an orchestra with many instruments, and you get better results than using a single clarinet or violin.

That said, you need to be very careful in selecting fish oils. The very place that contains the good Omega fatty acids is also the place where toxins in fish are stored. Never buy a fish oil that tells you to trust its purity based on where the fish was caught. We have been poor stewards of our planet and there is no part of the ocean where fish are consistently, completely toxin free. Make sure the oil is intelligently purified to cause the least amount of damage to the delicate structure of the oil. There is some research that the most important part of fish oil for Omega absorption are the phospholipids, which are destroyed in most oil extraction. There is some research done in France that looks at Omega 3s from salmon with intact phospholipids showing more than 10X absorption, but thus far, their new supplement is in tablet form only, and there is no specific research in children. Still, I think the research shows tremendous promise and you may want to look into this type of supplement when your son is a bit older.

As for fish oil, I prefer products that are all fish oil, not a blend of fish and vegetable oils. Some argue that the vegetable oils add Omega 6s and Omega 9s, but we get such a huge amount of these omegas from our diet that we really need to focus more on the missing Omega 3s. Also, pure fish oil is what has been used in the research on children and brain function.

Don’t be tricked into buying products that are DHA only or have high levels of DHA. In fish, there is 1 ½ to 2 times as much EPA as DHA. This is the natural amount. Some companies are spiking with additional DHA to get more on the label, which upsets the natural balance in the oil and drives it to earlier levels of rancidity, which has some health consequences. Plus, we have evolved to utilize essential fatty acids in the brain in exactly the ratios and spectrum as found in fish. There are more fatty acids in fish natural oil than EPA and DHA, and they all work together (remember the orchestra?).

I don’t recommend specific companies or brands, but know that there is a great deal of difference in purity and stability between companies. Look for an established company with a good reputation. A visit to the local natural pharmacy or health food store may help point you in the right direction. Make sure it is guaranteed free of heavy metals such as mercury and lead, and free of toxins such as PCBs, pesticides, and herbicides. Lastly, try to choose a brand that has actually been used by doctors in a published clinical study. Hopefully, the doctors had insider information that allowed them to pick a higher quality oil for their study.

To help your child take the oil your doctor recommends, try mixing it in some natural applesauce or yogurt. Good fish oil is not terribly fishy, and the taste should be fairly easy to cover up. If it smells like cat food, it is not a high quality oil. That strong fishy odor is a sign of rancidity. You can’t mix the fish oil in many liquids because oil and water don’t mix. Oil will mix with a liquid with a little fat or substance—such as a smoothie.

As for other supplements, there is a recent study on apraxia in autistic children that used fish oil and vitamin E. Fish oil often contains a little vitamin E, but you may want to choose a high quality children’s vitamin that contains the RDA (recommended daily allowance) of vitamin E in the tablet.

I would wait on looking at further dietary supplements until your child is older. However, incorporating healthy, good tasting foods into his diet is always a good idea. Limit empty sugar calories and try to introduce him to a variety of fruits. Berries are especially good, and though they can be expensive, they are well worth the health investment. When I see a $3.99 price tag on a small container of blueberries, I pause. But then I think—that is less than one super dooper double extra crispy bacon cheeseburger—or a fancy coffee at the café—or a mixed drink in the cocktail lounge. Children are worth our berry money!

Good luck with your son, and best wishes always.Cheryl

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I have asthma

August 20, 2010 – 5:51 am

Hi, I have asthma and I was wondering if there was anything I could take to help with the breathing?—Mr. L.

Dear Mr. L.,

First, I always preface any answer with the recommendation that you discuss the use of supplements for medical conditions with your doctor prior to use, especially if you are also on prescription medications for a chronic condition like asthma.

That said, there are some very helpful natural products that can be quite useful in facilitating healthy breathing and reducing lung inflammation. One product is a blend of highly-bioavailable curcumin (an extract of the spice, turmeric) and boswellia. These two herbs reduce some of the inflammation triggers inside the body. Reducing inflammation in your lungs reduces lung irritation and swelling, and lets the air go in and out more easily. This special curcumin and the boswellia are also heart and brain healthy as well, so it is a good, multipurpose product. Your local health food store or integrative medicine clinic should have a blend like this. I prefer a type of curcumin called BCM-95 as it has been shown in human studies to have over 7 times the absorption of plain curcumin, so it is much more effective. This special raw material is a component in some successful curcumin-based formulas in the natural medicine market.

The second recommendation would be for something that helps improve how your lungs get rid of the “stuff” that accumulates in your lungs, especially mucous. Two herbs that greatly facilitate this process are concentrated oil of Thyme and English Ivy extract. Both are very effective in helping keep the lungs clear, which promotes more effective air exchange. It would be even better if you could find a formula that combines these compounds at therapeutic levels.

While these products may help tremendously with reducing asthma attacks, it is important that you always maintain emergency rescue medication, like inhalers, because you don’t want to run into a situation with an attack and have nothing with you. Dietary supplements are useful in prevention and long-term maintenance, but they cannot replace the effects of emergency asthma medication that works quickly in the event of an acute attack.

I hope these recommendations are useful for you. Good luck! And please drop us a line to let us know how you are doing!

Cheryl

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