A new study shows that Cocoa is beneficial to the flora of your gut.  The daily consumption of cocoa for 4-weeks significantly increased levels of bifidobacterial and lactobacilli in the gut.  These bacteria are the hallmark of healthy gut function and healthy nutrient absorption.  Additionally, high counts of these bacteria have been associated with healthy immune function.  

The researchers also saw a reduction in triglycerides (high triglycerides are associated with heart disease and diabetes), and a decrease in C-reactive protein which is a sensitive marker of inflammation associated with risk of heart attack.  Several other studies in recent years have shown that regular consumption of dark chocolate can lower blood pressure. 

I recommend getting powdered, unprocessed, unsweetened cocoa from your health food store.  It can be easily used in smoothies and sweetened with a banana or berries for a chocolaty, health giving meal!

Read the study here.

A new study demonstrates that older people are more likely to get pneumonia if they use statin drugs.  Statin drugs are the current rage for treating people with "high cholesterol".  If you have not yet read my Cholesterol Article, please do--this article delineates why cholesterol is not a problem, it is a symptom.  Unfortunatley, the entire statin industry is built around a fallacy--that cholesterol is the cause of heart disease.

This new study shows that older people have their immune systems weakened by statins--they are more likely to get pneumonia.  Ironically, in a time when people are so concerned about flu, we are giving the very population that is most susceptible to severe compromise (older adults)  drugs that make them more susceptible to illness!

Also, please watch this youtube video on memory loss and dementia caused by statins.   In the video the memory problems are fairly represented, but the benefits are overblown.  At the end a commentator comes on and recommends changing statins if you experience memory loss--this is akin to changing poisons if you get sick taking one!

Read the article here.

Vitamin D has been getting a lot of press lately, and rightly so.  If your read my blog you know that supplementing with some vitamins increases your chance of disease--specifically, supplemental vitamin C has been shown to increase cancer and cardiovascular death, vitamin E increases death rates in smokers, and vitamin A is toxic at high levels.  Vitamin D, however, is coming out looking like a gem--supplementation boosts the immune system, builds bone, decreases cancer, gives resistance to the flu, and decreases death rates significantly (read this study).

Further, we now know that vitamin D requirements are higher than we once thought.   New research shows that "the actual observations in both younger and older adults show that to ensure the goal of a vitamin D of 80 nmol/L in almost all adults, 100 mcg/d is required."  This dosage in I.U. (which is how most vitamin D supplements are labled), is 4,000 I.U.

For these reasons I now carry an excellent vitamin D supplement in my office.  In addition to a high dose of emulsified vitamin D, it contains Cod Liver oil, Genistein, and cofactors for absorption.  Check it out!

A new review of 22,000 people being treated for high blood pressure reveals absolutely no benefit for using medication to lower blood pressure below 140/90.  Over the past several years "experts" with ties to industry have created "expert panels" to recommend lower and lower guidelines for when to use blood pressure medications.  Amazingly, these recommendations have not been supported by evidence, yet have been unquestioned by most doctors.  This new review came to the following conclusions (the following is quoted from this medscape link):

"We found there is no evidence that reaching a target of below 90 mm Hg diastolic BP will provide additional clinical benefit, but we can't say whether lowering systolic BP below 140 mm Hg will be beneficial or not; there are no data."

Dr Franz Messerli (St Luke Roosevelt Hospital, New York, NY), who was not involved with this review, told heartwire that there is no question that the 140/90-mm-Hg BP limit is "absolutely arbitrary, and the benefits of antihypertensive medications are most obvious in patients with the highest BP. The closer we get to 'normotension,' the more difficult it becomes to show benefits of BP lowering.

"This strategy did not prolong survival or reduce stroke, heart attack, heart failure, or kidney failure," they note. "More trials are needed, but at present there is no evidence to support aiming for a blood-pressure target lower than 140/90 mm Hg in any hypertensive patient."

The take-home from this review is two-fold: first, if your blood pressure is under 140/90 without medication, don't medicate!  Second, don't believe expert panels unless there is evidence--too often we have recommendations that are based on what is profitable to drug companies rather then what benefits the patient.

Link to the MedScape commentary.

It's in everything--high fructose corn syrup.  This is a sugar that exists in nature which man has figured out how to produce cheaply in large quantities, and at a great expense.  One new study shows that the more high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) you eat, the more food you want to eat.  The authors concluded that "The fact that fructose metabolism by the brain increases food intake and obesity risk raises health concerns in view of the large and increasing per capita consumption of high fructose sweeteners, especially by youth."  It is likely that soda makers and other marketer's of HFCS know that the products make you eat more, and that is precisely why they use them--the more you eat, the more you want.  Read the study here.

Another study that just came out demonstrates that consuming a diet high in fructose for just seven days causes "ectopic lipid deposition in liver and muscle and fasting VLDL-triacylglycerols and decreased hepatic insulin sensitivity."  This means that fat is deposited in the liver and in muscle where it shouldn't be, and that the riskiest type of cholesterol changes occur, and that insulin resistance begins.  This is the beginning of the road to diabetes, heart disease, fatigue, and other chronic illness.  Read the study here.

I suggest eating sugars in moderation, and only in there natural form; agave nectar, molasses, maple syrup, and fruits are good alternatives to precessed sugars.  And, quit eating high fructose corn syrup! 

A new study demonstrates that people with the highest levels of omega-3's have the lowest levels of inflammation in their bodies.  The authors were seeking to shed light on the powerful reduction in heart disease in people who use omega-3's.  They looked at two blood markers for inflammation, CRP and IL-6.  If you've read my article on Cholesterol you know that inflammation is the true culprit in heart disease and many other modern illnesses.  The authors found drastic reductions in CRP and IL-6 in people with the highest levels  of omega-3 in their blood.

The moral is: take your omega-3's!

Read the study here.

Another study shows no benefit of aspirin in preventing cardiovascular disease.  The new study published in the British Medical Journal found that aspirin did nothing to prevent risk of cardiovascular disease (stroke or heart attack) in people with diabetes (read the study).  The study also found no benefit from taking supplemental antioxidant pills containing vitamin C, E, B vitamins, and zinc.  This is not surprising if you’ve read my article on Antioxidants, which explains why food based antioxidants are far superior to man-made pills.

If you or someone you know takes aspirin for health reasons please read the article.  Here is a link to another article on aspirin—in it they found a 60-80% increase in stroke in women who use aspirin, and an increase in certain types of stroke in men. 

If you want to decrease your chances of having cardiovascular problems, taking a high quality, purified fish oil is your best bet.  If you want to decrease damage caused by stroke consider using Gingko and/or Ashwagandha.

Stroke is a common manifestation of cardiovascular disease.  We worry about blood pressure, cholesterol, and obesity for heart disease risk, but also for stroke risk.  A new study in rats found that if you give a rat a daily dose of Ginkgo, then give the rat a stroke, the rat will have only half of the brain damage it would have had normally!  That is incredible protection—better than any pharmaceutical I know of.  The authors of the study then tried another experiment; they gave the rats a stroke, then 5 minutes later gave the rats Ginkgo.  Astonishingly, the rats had nearly 60% less brain damage with the single dose of Ginkgo!  They also found that giving the rats Ginkgo four-and-a-half hours later resulted a 30% decrease in damage!

The moral of the story is this: if you are over 50, keep a high quality Ginkgo supplement in your house.  Stoke is common, and can result in death, permanent disbility, or a long hard road to recovery.  Taking a Ginkgo either regularly or soon after a stroke appears to offer a great deal of protection against damage.

Remember too that similar protective benefits have been found for the Ayurvedic herb Ashwagandha

Read commentary on the Johns Hopkins study here.

Babies who are breastfed have lower cholesterol as adults, researchers say.  It should be noted that breast milk itself is full of cholesterol.  Infant formulas actually tout themselves as "low cholesterol" as if that were somehow healthier, despite the facts that infants who breastfeed have lower rates of allergy and asthma and less cardiovascular risk. 

We must remember that cholesterol is a necessary part of each of our cells, and that consuming it as an infant is crucial to normal nervous system development.  Additionally, cholesterol that we consume as part of a healthy diet does not adversely affect our health!  Cholesterol is only a problem when our our metabolism spins out of control due to an unhealthy lifestyle and the liver starts to create unhealthy cholesterol ratios.  Please read my Cholesterol Article for more information on the subject.

Read the study. 

I've written in the past about the traditional Chinese supplement, Chinese Red Yeast Rice.  A new study has shown that this natural remedy decreases the risk of "major coronary events" (ie. heart attacks) by 50%! 

The authors stated that "The decrease in these events found in the present study appears to exceed those reported with statin monotherapy in a similar trial of Western patients enrolled in the Cholesterol and Recurrent Events and other statin trials."  In other words, Chinese Red Yeast Rice works better than the statins.  High dose, purified fish oil (available in my store) also works better than statins.

If you are at risk for heart disease, talk to your holistic doctor about using fish oil and red yeast rice--it could save your life! 

Read about the study here. 

You can read more about Red Yeast Rice in my article on the topic—click here. 

You can read more about fish oil and heart disease here.  

Read more on the side effects/down side of statins on my cholesterol page here.