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July 2005 Vol. 10 No. 7
To maintain a joyful family requires much from both parents and the children. Each member of the family has to become, in a special way, the servant of others.
Pope John Paul, II
Table of Contents:
The Trainers Edge Software Program
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Fish Oil: An Essential Tool to Improve Autism
WARNING: Drinking Low-Fat Pasteurized Milk Triggers Obesity
Vitamin B6 Treats Colorectal Cancer
Study Confirms Red Meat Link with Bowel Cancer
Physicians Group Complaint to Federal Trade Commission Faults Milk Industry’s Advertising Claims
The Hidden Cause of Parkinson’s disease Lurking in Your Fridge
Which is Worse for you … Obesity or Smoking?
The Trainers Edge Software Program:
One of the Single Greatest Tools a Personal Trainer Can Utilize to Enhance Professionalism & Increase Revenue. This software will add revenue to any personal training business and easily pay for itself. For complete description and demonstration visit us at:
http://www.afpafitness.com/TrainersEdgeSoftware.htm
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
(CTS) is caused by pressure exerted on the median nerve at the wrist. The median nerve is the major nerve of the hand.
This nerve enters the hand through the gap formed by the carpal bones and transverse ligament. The median nerve supplies sensation to the thumb-side of the palm, and to the thumb, index finger, middle finger, and the thumb-side of the ring finger. It also supplies movement to part of the hand.
The carpal tunnel is a passage in the wrist formed by a semi-circle of carpal bones connected with a tough membrane called the transverse carpal ligament that holds the bones together. Nerves, tendons, blood and other soft tissues run through this passage or tunnel. The passageway or tunnel is rigid, with a defined space that is unable to enlarge.
Swelling of any of the tissues in this area can cause compression of the median nerve. This swelling has no place to expand because bones and ligaments encircle it. Pressure builds in the tunnel leading to compression of the median nerve and obstruction of blood flow that retards healing and causes further cell degeneration.
When this happens, carpal tunnel symptoms begin to present themselves. The goal in the relief of CTS is to alleviate pressure, reduce inflammation/swelling and improve circulation to the area.
Some common sense approaches to the relief of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome include: Taking periodic breaks from repetitive tasks. Resting the affected hand/wrist whenever possible. Performing stretching and strengthening exercises. Applying cool packs can help reduce swelling.
Yoga has been shown to reduce pain and improve grip strength among patients with CTS. Because a deficiency of certain nutrients may contribute to CTS, the following dietary supplements may assist its relief: Whatever your specific nutritional needs may be, a multivitamin should always be the foundation of any nutritional supplement regimen and will significantly increase the effectiveness of the other supplements you take.
Taking a multivitamin can provide some reassurance that you are obtaining the proper amounts of vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients needed for good health. Vitamins and minerals provide the foundation for all of the body’s biological functions and are required for normal metabolism, growth, and general well being. Therefore, a deficiency of even a single essential nutrient can affect your health.
Fish Oil: An Essential Tool to Improve Autism
With the autism epidemic surging, the number of autistic children in the United States has greatly increased. Estimates range from one in 500 to one in 1,000 cases in the United States each year. However, this condition — responsible for a range of social and developmental problems — doesn’t plague American children only.
Autism rates in Scotland have also increased dramatically within the past decade, leading Scottish researchers to conduct a study in hopes of revealing the cause. And they made an exciting breakthrough: Childhood autism may be associated with a deficiency of fatty acids (omega-3 fats) found in oily fish.
Promising Results
According to a pilot study of about 20 autistic children, cell membranes in the blood of autistic children processed fatty acids at a much faster rate than other children. Brain cell membranes are largely made up of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, substances found in oily fish such as:
- Mackerel
- Salmon
Based on their discovery, researchers speculate fatty acid deficiency may be a partial trigger for autism.
The Scotsman June 1, 2005
WARNING: Drinking Low-Fat Pasteurized Milk Triggers Obesity
Drinking Milk
The dairy industry has been heavily advertising the weight loss benefits of drinking more milk. And with the percentage of young people who are overweight reaching epidemic proportions, some parents’ feel making a switch from soda to milk is a wise health choice.
But is drinking milk much better? According to a study, children who drank more than three servings of milk a day were prone to becoming overweight.
Fattening Findings
Researchers analyzed data collected from more than 12,000 children (aged 9-14) participating in the Growing Up Today Study — an ongoing project examining the relationship between diet, exercise and other lifestyle factors, and an array of health issues — to uncover any links between milk consumption and weight over a 12-month period.
Results showed:
- The more milk children drank, the faster they gained weight.
- Children who drank more than three 8-ounce servings of milk a day put on the most weight.
- The link held even though most of the children were drinking low-fat milk.
Based on the findings, researchers recommend water as a healthy alternative.
So the Burning Question Is..
Considering milk’s detrimental effect on children, why has the National Dairy Council spent $200 million since 2003 to promote the polar opposite?
The dairy industry argues it had said that only adults may be able to lose weight if they drink milk while cutting calories. In a ditch attempt to strengthen their case, one dietician speaking for the council stated that most children don’t even get one serving of milk a day.
Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine June 2005; 159(6): 543-550
San Francisco Chronicle June 7, 2005
Vitamin B6 Treats Colorectal Cancer
Women
Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States; an estimated 28,000 women with colorectal cancer will die in 2005. However, there may be hope yet:
Researchers conducted a study that linked a high dietary intake of vitamin B6 over time with a decreased risk of colorectal cancer in women. Oddly, women who consumed moderate to large amounts of alcohol — along with the right amount of vitamin B6 — reduced their odds of developing colorectal cancer by more than 70 percent, while low vitamin B6 intake increased them.
Vitamin B6: A Ray of Hope
Researchers analyzed a study of some 67,000 women, ages 40-75, to assess the relationship between long-term dietary vitamin B6 intake from food sources and colorectal cancer risk. Participants responded to a questionnaire that implored data regarding diet, family history of colorectal cancer and the use of dietary supplements.
And while increased vitamin B6 consumption was found to reduce colorectal cancer risk, it did not rule out the importance of regular screenings (especially for individuals 50 and over). Moreover, the recommended daily dietary intake of vitamin B6 for non-pregnant women in the United States is 1.3-1.5 mg.
Vitamin B6 — found in fortified cereals, beans, meat, poultry, fish and some fruits and vegetables — performs a wide variety of functions in the body, including:
- Maintaining normal blood glucose levels.
- Fighting off infections.
- Creating hemoglobin to ensure that oxygen gets to important organs and tissues.
Gastroenterology February 23, 2005 (Free Full-Text Article)
Science Daily June 5, 2005
Study Confirms Red Meat Link with Bowel Cancer; Reuters Health Information
By Richard Woodman
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
LONDON (Agence de Presse Medicale for Reuters Health) - People who eat more than 160 grams of red or processed meat a day are 35 percent more likely to develop bowel cancer than those who eat less than 20 grams a day, according to one of the biggest nutrition investigations ever carried out.
The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) followed 478,040 men and women aged 35 to 70 from 10 European countries. All subjects were free of cancer at enrollment between 1992 and 1998, but after an average follow-up of almost 5 years 1,329 colorectal cancers had been reported.
The subsequent analysis, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, confirms the long-held suspicion that high intakes of red meat are associated with increased bowel cancer risk.
After factoring in age, sex, height, weight, energy intake, physical activity, smoking, dietary fibre, folate, and alcohol consumption, the investigators found that bowel cancer was associated with intake of red and processed meat but not chicken.
Risk of colorectal cancer dropped with increasing intake of fish. Eating more than 80 grams a day of fish was associated with a 31 percent reduction in risk compared with eating less than 10 grams a day.
Subjects with high red meat and low fish intake were at 63 percent higher risk of bowel cancer compared with subjects with low red meat and high fish intake. In addition, the risk of developing the disease was increased for those people who ate a low fibre diet.
Sheila Bingham, study investigator at the UK’s Medical Research Council nutrition unit, said: “People have suspected for some time that high levels of red and processed meat increase risk of bowel cancer, but this is one of the largest studies worldwide and the first from Europe of this type to show a strong relationship.”
She added in a statement: “The overall picture is very consistent for red and processed meat and fibre across all the European populations studied.”
Study coordinator, Elio Riboli, of the World Health Organization International Agency for Research into Cancer, said: “Other risk factors for bowel cancer include obesity and lack of physical activity. Smoking and excess alcohol may also play a role. These factors were all taken into account in the analysis.”
Professor Tim Key, Deputy Director of Cancer Research UK’s epidemiology unit, said: “We estimate that more than two thirds of colorectal cancer cases - 25,000 cases in the UK - could be avoided by changes in lifestyle in Western countries.”
SOURCE: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, June 15, 2005.
Physicians Group Complaint to Federal Trade Commission Faults Milk Industry’s Advertising Claims
Dairy Products Weight-Loss Claims Are Untrue, Says PCRM in FTC Petition
WASHINGTON—The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) today charged that the dairy industry has used “false and misleading” advertising in its multimillion-dollar campaign suggesting that milk causes weight loss, and petitioned the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), asking it to put an immediate stop to a series of advertisements.
“Scientific studies show that milk either causes weight gain or else has no effect at all on weight or body fat,” said Amy Joy Lanou, Ph.D., senior nutrition scientist of PCRM. In addition to filing this FTC petition, PCRM has called upon celebrities who have been paid to support the dairy promotion, including Dr. Phil McGraw and actress Kelly Preston, to dissolve their contractual relationships promoting dairy products.
The dairy industry’s weight-loss campaign is based solely on two small studies conducted by Michael Zemel, Ph.D., a professor of nutrition at the University of Tennessee whose funding came from industry sources.
“Nonfat milk is 55 percent sugar, while whole milk is nearly 50 percent fat, as a percentage of calories,” said Lanou. “Neither one is a formula for weight loss.”
Conflict of interest questions have also been raised.
Since 1998, Zemel has accepted more than $1.68 million in research grants from the National Dairy Council. Zemel has patented the so-called calcium consumption weight-loss/control program, and has licensed the International Dairy Food Association (IDFA) to market and promote the program.
Named in the FTC petition are the IDFA; Dairy Management, Inc. (DMI); the National Dairy Council; the Dannon Company, Inc.; General Mills, Inc.; Kraft Foods Global, Inc.; McNeil Nutritionals, LLC; Lifeway Foods, Inc.; and advertising agencies Draft Chicago, Lowe & Partners, and Weber-Shandwick.
Chug Milk, Shed Pounds? Not So Fast
By Melanie Warner
Published: June 21, 2005
A group of physicians is challenging the validity of a claim the milk industry has been making in its ads: Eat more dairy products to lose weight. To read full article sign up at: http://www.nytimes.com/gst/regi.html
Study: More Milk Means More Weight Gain
By Rob Stein, Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 7, 2005; Page A03 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/06/AR2005060601348.html
Dairy products do not lead to alterations in body weight or fat mass in young women in a 1-y intervention.
The Hidden Cause of Parkinson’s disease Lurking in Your Fridge
Milk
Middle-aged men who drink one or two glasses of pasteurized milk a day may double their risk of Parkinson’s disease later in life, according to a study. Researchers are uncertain of what is causing the link, whether an ingredient or contaminant in the milk, but believe it is not related to calcium.
The 30-year study followed over 7,500 men between the ages of 45 and 68 who were part of the Honolulu Heart Program. During the study, 128 men developed Parkinson’s disease, which is a degenerative disease of the nervous system.
Specifically, those who drank more than 16 ounces of milk each day were 2.3 times more likely to develop Parkinson’s than those who didn’t drink any milk. During each 12- month period, 6.9 cases of Parkinson’s would be expected per 10,000 people who drank no milk; however, among those who drank more than 16 ounces daily, 14.9 cases per 10,000 people would be expected.
Overall, however, researchers pointed out that the Parkinson’s risk was still very low, even among the men who drank a lot of milk.
The findings are in line with a previous study that found eating a lot of dairy products increased the risk of Parkinson’s in men (the findings did not apply to women). In the current study, no link between calcium and Parkinson’s was found, so researchers believe another component or contaminant of milk is responsible. Further studies are needed to determine what that component may be.
Neurology March 22, 2005; 64(6): 1047-1051
Which is Worse for you … Obesity or Smoking?
Obese Man
It has previously been stated by a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) spokesperson that, “A nation with an expanding waistline is in far better shape than one with a cigarette in its mouth.”
And while smoking is certainly dangerous to one’s health, when it comes to choosing the less harmful of two evils: Obesity does appear to be worse when it comes to accelerating the aging process and decreasing the time that you will remain on this planet.
Study of Telomeres
Researchers compared the length of telomeres — the ends of chromosomes — in the white blood cells of some 1,100 women ages 18-76. When a cell divides, its telomere loses a small piece of DNA; when it becomes too short, cells can no longer divide.
Thus, telomere shortening acts as a sign of aging, counting down the cellular generations. After calculating the amount of telomere shortening in the women, researchers compared the chromosomes based on lifestyle factors such as smoking habits and obesity. The results showed:
- Obese women were almost nine years older, genetically, than their counterparts.
- Those who smoked aged about half as slowly (4.6 years) as obese patients.
- Both obesity and smoking worked synergistically to age a patient even faster — by at least a decade — than a lean non-smoker.
What’s more, the effects are set in stone. In other words, while losing weight and quitting smoking reduce the rate of telomere loss, it cannot restore them.
Role of Free Radicals
Researchers speculate telomere damage is probably done by free radicals. That’s because both smoking and obesity cause oxidative stress, a source of free radicals. Free radicals play a role in DNA mutations, and there is some evidence that mutations in telomeres cause larger chunks than normal to be lost during cell division.
Further, animal studies have not established any simple relationship between telomere length and lifespan; therefore, it’s possible that shortened telomeres are merely a sign of how much free radical damage cells have suffered, rather than a direct cause of aging.
The Lancet June 14, 2005
New Scientist June 14, 2005
Selected segments are reproduced from Dr. Mercola’s excellent website:
http://www.mercola.com/index.htm
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
http://www.pcrm.org