A recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition demonstrated disease-promoting changes in liver function with consumption of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).  The authors discuss the dramatic increase in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease as a direct effect of HFCS intake.  They describe the following effects on metabolism of 6 days of increased HFCS intake:

• A doubling of VLDL and total triglycerides in the liver
• An increased efficiency of turning fructose into liver fat
• A significant decrease in the ability to break down VLDL triglycerides
• A significant increase in liver fat 

In an editorial on the article the author states "One of the most remarkable medical developments over the past 3 decades is the emergence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) as a public health problem in the United States and internationally. When I was a medical resident in the early 1980s, chronic liver disease was almost always due to alcohol intake, viral infection, or hepatobiliary conditions. Now, the leading cause of chronic elevations in liver enzymes in the serum is NAFLD."

HFCS is a major contributor to weight gain, fatty liver disease, metabolic syndrome, and ultimately heart disease and diabetes.  Please note that agave necter--a popular natural sweetener, is higher in fructose than HFCS, and likely has the same effects!  Read the study here.

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 meta-analysis of over 90,000 patients being treated with statin drugs showed that statin use increases the risk of developing diabetes by 9%.  Currently, cholesterol levels out of the "normal range" are routinely treated with statins.  These drugs have many problems including muscle pain, lever problems, increased risk of dementia, and increased risk of sudden cardiac death.  Add a 9% increase in diabetes rates (diabetes already affects 8% of the US population), and the picture is complete: statins are causing trouble.  

Please read my article on Cholesterol--it will explain when to worry about your cholesterol and what to do about it in a way that builds health rather than eroding it!

Read the study here.

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! 

New research shows that pynogenol, an extract from pine bark, significantly decreases pain and inflammation related to arthritis.  The study followed 156 patients with painful arthritis of the knee; 77 were given 100mg of pycnogenol per day, while the remaining 79 were given a placebo.  After 3 months the treatment group outperformed the placebo group with less pain, increased walking distance, less edema (swelling) in the foot, and 58% less anti-inflammatory use.  

A follow-up to that study found large reductions in CRP (an inflammatory marker in the blood), fibrinigen (an indicator of inflammation and fibrosis), and free radicals following pycnogenol use (read the study here).

Keeping in mind that the diseases that plague modern man are all associated with inflammation and free radical production, on would expect pycnogenol to be helpful in other disorders as well.  A review of the literature over just the recent pasts reveals the following (you can click each topic to read the research): pycnogenol is very effective in the treatment of diabetes, fertility disorders, ADD/ADHD, and dementia (pycnogenol improves memory).

Read the study on knee arthritis.

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.

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 recently had a patient tell me that she attended a health screening and was told to eat less olive oil and avocados.  The idea, apparently, was that these are both high sources of fat, and that fat causes you to become fat and increases your risk for heart disease.  This completely blew my mind, because it flies in the face of all the evidence on the subject.  I wanted to comment on it here to be certain that no one believes advice like this!

Here are the facts:

Just adding avocados to the daily diet for 7 days provided the following results in people with high cholesterol:

• 17% reduction in total cholesterol
• 22% reduction in LDL cholesterol
  
• 22% reduction in triglycerides
• 11% increase in HDL cholesterol

These changes are better than any drug I know, and they taste great!  If you've read my Cholesterol Article, you know that the 2 most important numbers in your cholesterol panel are your triglycerides and HDL's.  You want relativley high HDL's and relatively low triglycerides.  That makes avocados an ideal treatment for cholesterol imbalance!  The researchers attributed the beneficial changes to the high monounsaturated fat content of avocados--the same type of fat found in olive oil.  Olive oil is attributed with a host of benefits too long to list here including decreases in diabetes, heart disease, dementia, chronic pain, and improvements in cholesterol.

The authors of the study conclude: "High lipid (fat), high monounsaturated-avocado enriched diet can improve lipid profile in healthy and especially in mild hypercholesterolemic patients, even if hypertriglyceridemia (combined hyperlipidemia) is present."  In other words, eating a diet rich in fats from avocados and olive oil helps your cholesterol levels--eat your olive oil and avocados!

Read the study here.

I’ve been writing since 2003 on the negative effects of statin drugs.  An article in today’s New York Times confirms everything I’ve written—it begins:

“For decades, the theory that lowering cholesterol is always beneficial has been a core principle of cardiology. It has been accepted by doctors and used by drug makers to win quick approval for new medicines to reduce cholesterol.  But now some prominent cardiologists say the results of two recent clinical trials have raised serious questions about that theory — and the value of two widely used cholesterol-lowering medicines, Zetia and its sister drug, Vytorin.”

The article goes on to highlight how in both of those studies the drugs killed more people than using no drugs.  This is not surprising, since this has been a theme in most published studies on statins, the papers usually go like this:

This is a study on our new drug—we gave our drug to 100 suckers, and followed a similar population of 100 who did not take the drug.  In the drug group 7 people died, in the none-drug group 3 people died.  The increases in death in the drug group were due to suicide, sudden cardiac death, and cancer.  All of these disorders have been linked to statins in the literature, but we don’t think our drug caused these things.
Conclusion:  Our drug did lower LDL cholesterol—we think that LDL cholesterol alone is related to heart disease even though the literature does not support this hypothesis.  Since our drug lowered LDL cholesterol and we think this reduces heart disease risk, we will spend 4 billion dollars in the next year educating doctors as to what a smashing success this trial has been.

The disgusting truth is that that is not an exaggeration—do a search on my site for “statins” and read more of the research yourself.  The other disgusting truth is that the doctors buy the hype—without carefully reading the studies.

While the Times article only highlights the two drugs mentioned—I think we will see the truth coming out on all statin drugs soon.

Read my Cholesterol Article here—it shows how to read your numbers, what they really mean, and what to do about it naturally.

Read the New York Times article here.

Another study demonstrates the efficacy of Chinese Red Yeast Rice in lowering cholesterol safely.  The study involved giving people with high cholesterol 600mg of red yeast rice twice daily for 8 weeks.  All cholesterol values improved dramatically.

Red Yeast Rice is an extremely safe product (read more about it here) from which the statin drugs were derived.  While statin drugs are riddled with side effects, side effects are extremely rare with red yeast rice.  Read this article on red yeast rice, then read my cholesterol article here...and don't forget your fish oil!

Read the study here.