Multiple Sclerosis - Mineral Deficiencies

MS - Mineral Deficiencies

I was just completed a continuing education program on Multiple Sclerosis for my Pharmacist License requirements. The interesting thing about MS is the medical system doesn’t really know the causes. There are all kinds of theories about the cause but so far continued research has not proven any of them to be the definitive cause. It seems every time they think they have found something other research finds people with MS that don’t fit into the profile. My personal opinion is that there is not one particular cause. That MS is actually a symptom of multiple mineral and micro-nutrient deficiencies.

We know from research that large populations of MS sufferers come from areas where there are lower levels of sunlight during the winter months. The hypothesis is that Vitamin D – the sunshine vitamin therefore plays some role. This is probably true but since there are people suffering from the disease that do not have low Vitamin D levels we know it is not the only cause.

Many theorize that it is an auto-immune disease, where the immune system itself turns on the body causing damage. I have never been a big proponent of the auto-immune hypothesis. My question is always what started the immune system to turn on in the first place. To me the auto-immune hypothesis of any disease is much like the debate about whether a higher power, ie God, exist and is the cause for creating the universe. For many years the “Big Bang” has been promoted by science as the moment of creation of the Universe. My question is what then caused the Big Bang. Another example, for many years scientist thought the atom was the smallest particle but we now know that there are even smaller particles combined to make the atom and I am sure we will continue as technology allows to find even smaller and smaller particles. I believe the whole thing about auto-immune being the cause of so many diseases is just as flawed as these other theories have been proven to be.

In my opinion so called auto-immune diseases are actually caused by underlying deficiencies in the 90 essential nutrients that the body needs for optimal health. These 90 essential nutrients are involved in an unlimited amount of bio-chemical processes throughout the body and we have only scratched the surface of understanding what role these micro-nutrients play.

Just as an example in MS, we know that something causes the myelin sheaths around the nerve fibers to become inflamed and to become scarred. Science has yet to find one single cause of this probably because there are a multitude of different bio-chemical process that affect the myelin, problems with any one of these processes lead to similar damage. We know that there are a number of micronutrients involved with the overall health of the brain and nervous system yet we do not know every micronutrient and we do not know all the effects of deficiencies and combination of deficiencies have on the overall health. It is my opinion that the cause of this disease is multiple micro-nutrient deficiencies and the best way to prevent this disease and other auto-immune diseases is to supplement with all 90 known essential nutrients at levels according to ones body weight. I have seen other auto-immune diseases go into remission and I believe the same can be accomplished here.  

Unfortunately, with the way that research is funded, most research money is spent trying to find medications to treat symptoms. Medications that can be patented and large profits made, whereas micro-nutrients, since they are naturally occurring, can’t be patented so research in these areas are not funded.  

Here is a list of just some of the micro-nutrients used by the brain taken from an article from “Mineral Resources International, Inc’s” web site
( http://www.mineralresourcesint.com/basic/micronutrients-and-brain-function ). Remember this is only a partial list, we know that the human body actually needs 90 essential nutrients for optimal health.

Consequences of Select Micronutrient Deficiencies

Thiamin

Phosphorylated forms of thiamin (vitamin B₁) are required for reactions involved in the metabolism of carbohydrates, amino acids, and lipids, and one form of the vitamin has been implicated in membrane functions of neurons and in the generation of nerve impulses. Thus, inadequate intake of thiamin can negatively affect cognition. Severe thiamin deficiency causes beriberi; the dry and wet types of beriberi involve peripheral neuropathy, whereas cerebral beriberi can lead to cell death of neurons and the clinical conditions of Wernicke's encephalopathy and Korsakoff's psychosis, especially in those who abuse alcohol.

Niacin

Niacin (vitamin B₃) is needed for a number of redox reactions (reduction—"electron gain", oxidation—"electron loss") and other reactions in the body. Severe niacin deficiency, known as pellagra, has been historically associated with poverty and consumption of a diet predominantly based on corn, which is low in bioavailable niacin. Today, the condition is uncommon but can occur in cases of chronic alcoholism and in individuals with malabsorption syndromes. Neurologic symptoms of pellagra include headache, fatigue, apathy, depression, ataxia, poor concentration, delusions, and hallucinations, which can lead to confusion, memory loss, psychosis, dementia, and death.

Pantothenic Acid

Pantothenic acid (vitamin B₅) is needed for the oxidative metabolism of glucose and fats and also for synthesis of fats, cholesterol, steroid hormones, the hormone melatonin, and the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Pantothenic acid deficiency is very rare and has been observed only in cases of severe malnutrition. However, deficiency of this vitamin has been induced experimentally in humans by co-administering a pantothenic acid antagonist and a pantothenic aciddeficient diet. Participants in this experiment complained of headache, fatigue, insomnia, intestinal disturbances, and numbness and tingling of their hands and feet.

Experimentally induced pantothenic acid deficiency in laboratory animals has been shown to cause loss of the myelin sheath and peripheral nerve damage.

Vitamin B₆

Pyridoxal, pyridoxine, and pyridoxamine are collectively called vitamin B₆, which is required for the biosynthesis of several neurotransmitters, including GABA, dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. Severe deficiency of vitamin B6 is uncommon, but alcoholics are thought to be most at risk due to inadequate dietary intakes and impaired metabolism of the vitamin. Neurologic symptoms of severe vitamin B₆ deficiency include irritability, depression, confusion, and seizures.

Biotin

Biotin (vitamin B₇) is required for carboxylase enzymes that are important in the metabolism of fatty acids and amino acids. While overt biotin deficiency is quite rare, deficiency of the vitamin has been observed in patients on prolonged intravenous feeding (parenteral nutrition) without biotin supplementation, in individuals consuming high amounts of raw egg white containing a protein that binds biotin and prevents its absorption, and in those with inherited disorders of biotin metabolism. Neurologic symptoms of biotin deficiency include depression, lethargy, hallucinations, and numbness and tingling of the extremities.

Folate

Folate (vitamin B₉) is required for the metabolism of nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) and amino acids. The vitamin is also needed for the synthesis of several neurotransmitters, including norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin, and, along with vitamin B₁₂, folate is required in the breakdown of norepinephrine and dopamine. Dietary folate deficiency in the absence of vitamin B₁₂ deficiency does not cause neurologic symptoms. However, individuals with genetic disorders of folate metabolism have experienced seizures and progressive neurologic deterioration.

Vitamin B₁₂

In humans, vitamin B₁₂ is a required cofactor for two enzymes: methionine synthase, which is needed for the production of methionine from homocysteine, and L-methylmalonyl-CoA mutase, which is involved in crucial metabolic pathways. Vitamin B₁₂ deficiency affects 10-15% of adults over the age of 60 years. It damages the myelin sheath of nerves and is frequently associated with neurological problems. Neurologic symptoms are the only clinical indicator of vitamin B₁₂ deficiency in about 25% of cases. Such symptoms include numbness and tingling of the extremities, difficulty walking, problems with concentration, memory loss, disorientation, and dementia. Severe B₁₂ deficiency is associated with pernicious anemia and, if untreated, can lead to "megaloblastic madness," characterized by delusions and hallucinations. Atrophic gastritis, an age-related condition resulting in diminished digestive factors, is often associated with decreased absorption of vitamin B₁₂ from food.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C accumulates in the central nervous system, with neurons of the brain having especially high levels. Vitamin C is an important antioxidant that is required for the synthesis of the neurotransmitter norepinephrine, the reduction of metal (e.g., iron, copper) ions in the brain, and for the regeneration of vitamin E. Vitamin C deficiency causes oxidative damage to lipids and proteins in the brain. Severe vitamin C deficiency, called scurvy, is potentially fatal. In scurvy, vitamin C is retained by the brain for neuronal function, and eventual death from the disease is more likely due to lack of vitamin C for the synthesis of collagen—an important structural component of blood vessels, tendons, ligaments, and bone. Vitamin C is also required for the conversion of dietary lysine to carnitine, a compound essential for energy production in the cells' mitochondria. Hence, scurvy is characterized by fatigue and depression in addition to physical manifestations.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is important for normal brain development and function, and vitamin D deficiency may impair cognitive abilities. Some studies in older adults have either linked lower 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels—the clinical indicator in the blood of vitamin D status&mdwith measures of poor cognitive performance or higher 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels with measures of better cognitive performance. However, the association between 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations and cognitive performance is not yet clear.

Vitamin E

In the brain and other tissues, the alpha-tocopherol form of vitamin E is a key fat-soluble antioxidant that prevents lipid peroxidation and helps to maintain the integrity of cell membranes. Thus, vitamin E deficiency causes lipid peroxidation in brain tissues. Severe vitamin E deficiency results mainly in neurological symptoms, including impaired balance and coordination (ataxia), injury to the sensory nerves (peripheral neuropathy), muscle weakness (myopathy), and damage to the retina of the eye (pigmented retinopathy).

Calcium

Calcium ions are important intracellular signals that regulate a number of physiological processes, including neuronal gene expression and neuronal secretion of neurotransmitters. Normal blood levels of calcium are maintained even when dietary intake of calcium is inadequate because the skeleton provides a large reserve of the mineral. Thus, dietary calcium inadequacy primarily affects bone health.

Iodine

Iodine is required for the synthesis of thyroid hormones, which are important for myelination of the central nervous system. Iodine is critical for normal development of the brain; therefore, deficiency of this mineral during critical periods of fetal development or childhood can have deleterious effects on cognition. The most extreme cognitive effect of developmental iodine deficiency is irreversible mental retardation; milder cognitive effects include various neurodevelopmental deficits, including intellectual impairment.

Iron

Iron is an essential component of hundreds of proteins and enzymes involved in various aspects of cellular metabolism. The mineral is needed for proper development of oligodendrocytes (the brain cells that produce myelin) and for several enzymes that synthesize neurotransmitters. Accordingly, iron deficiency during various stages of brain development has negative consequences. Maternal iron deficiency during pregnancy has serious consequences for the woman and the fetus, including permanent learning and memory deficits in the offspring. Iron deficiency during childhood may be associated with impaired cognitive development.

Magnesium

Magnesium is required for more than 300 metabolic reactions, many of which are important for normal brain function. Overt magnesium deficiency has been induced experimentally and results in neurologic and muscular symptoms that include tremor, muscle spasms, and tetany (involuntary muscle contractions). According to recent surveys, many Americans do not have an adequate intake of magnesium.

Selenium

Selenium is required for glutathione peroxidases (GPx), important antioxidant enzymes in the brain and other tissues. Selenium deficiency has been associated with decreased GPx activity in the brains of laboratory animals and may be linked to a reduced antioxidant capacity in the brain.

Zinc

Zinc is present at high levels in the brain, where it has catalytic, structural, and regulatory roles in cellular metabolism. In the brain, most of the zinc ion is tightly bound to proteins, but free zinc is present in synaptic vesicles and has a role in neurotransmission mediated by glutamate and GABA. Experimentally induced zinc deficiency in humans has been shown to impair measures of mental and neurologic function. However, deficiency of the mineral during critical periods of cognitive development can be more devastating, causing congenital malformations or deficits in attention, learning, memory, and neuropsychological behavior.

Choline

Although not considered a vitamin, choline is an essential nutrient needed for myelination of nerves, synthesis of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, and synthesis of various structural and cell-signaling molecules, including phospholipids (phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin) that are important components of cell membranes. Choline deficiency during the perinatal period in laboratory animals results in persistent memory and other cognitive deficits in offspring.

Have a Health Challenge?

Want More Information?

Take Dr Wallach's Free Health Evaluation Today:

A Billion Dollar Decision That's Not Good For Your Health

I feel compelled to do a post today in response to medical news that
is all over the news wires today about statin drugs, that's the class
of drugs that lower your cholesterol levels. The LA Times Headline
says "about 70 million Americans could take statins under new
guidelines"

Let me just read the first few paragraphs of the article,

"The number of Americans taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs is
set to double under new guidelines unveiled Tuesday by the American
College of Cardiology and the American Heart Assn.

The goal of prescribing statins to as many as 70 million people is to
reduce the incidence of heart attacks and strokes in the United
States, not merely to get patient's LDL cholesterol – the "bad" kind
that's most closely linked to disease risk – into an ideal range,
experts said.

The new game plan for statins represents a stark shift from approaches
embraced by cardiologists and primary care physicians for most of the
past decade. Now, doctors will be urged to treat a wider range of
healthier patients, including those likely to suffer stroke or heart
disease as they age.

The new guidelines distinguish between patients who would benefit most
from high-dose statin therapy and those who can take a lower dose less
likely to cause side effects, such as muscle fatigue, a slight rise in
blood sugar and, in rare cases, hemorrhagic strokes and a toxic
breakdown of muscle tissue called rhabdomyolysis.
Cholesterol is essential for digestion, hormonal balance and cell
function, but at high concentrations can gum up arteries. Statins
reduce cholesterol by blocking the liver's production of the waxy
substance. Americans spent $21.3 billion on cholesterol-lowering
medications in 2010, including statins marketed under such brand names
as Crestor, Lipitor and Zocor.

Under the new guidelines, physicians should prescribe statin
medications to all patients with high odds of suffering a heart attack
or stroke in the short-term — that is, those who have had such an
event already, patients with Type 2 diabetes, and those with
exceptionally high levels of LDL cholesterol linked to familial risk.
But the guidelines also recommend that patients with a 7.5% risk of
suffering a stroke or heart attack over the next decade be prescribed
statin medication as well."

Not surprising the Wall Street Journal reports "AstraZeneca Applauds
the Release of New US Guideline for Management of Blood Cholesterol"

It's not surprising because according to WebMD AstraZeneca's Crestor
was the number 1 most prescribed drug last year with 23.7 million
prescriptions and total sales of $5.3 billion dollars. These new
guidelines are expected to double the number of prescriptions for the
statin drug class having a major positive impact on AstraZeneca's
bottom line.

Another amazing development, in a story reported in Endocrinology
Update on Nov 4 past American Medical Association president Professor
Kerryn Phelps advised the public via her Twitter account to consider
stopping their statins. She twitted her comment while watching ABCs
series called Heart of the Matter Part 2: Cholesterol Drug War which
claimed that the medical profession and the public had been duped into
believing that statins were essential for preventing death from heart
disease.
One of the studies that they used to come up with these guidelines is
a meta analysis by the Cochrane group that added up results from 18
different trials to conclude that statins reduced deaths from all
causes in people with low risk of heart disease. Their conclusion was
that if 1000 people took a statin over 5 years, 18 of them would avoid
a major cardiovascular event. The British Medical Journal in October
of this year argues that the "events" in the trials included
procedures to improve blood flow to the heart and who knows if the
person would have had a heart attack if this hadn't been done? It also
says that the side-effects of statins such as increased risk of
developing diabetes (about 10%) and muscle pain (50% more common) were
not adequately reported. It further points out that all of the
randomized trials in the Cochrane review were funded by the
manufacturers of the statins being studied. Interestingly, another
Cochrane review unrelated to this story showed that industry-sponsored
studies are more likely to find positive results than non-commercial
trials.

Let me review with you some articles that have been published in the
last few months about the risks associated with statins.

Oct 25, 2013 the Men's Journal had an article called Statin's Latest
Side Effects. In this article they pointed out that in a trial of more
than 46,000 adults, statin users had a 27 percent greater risk of
developing vision-skewing conditions than non users. According to Dr
Daniel Briceland, spokesperson for the American Academy of
Ophthalmology "The lens epithelial cells are very sensitive to changes
in oxidative stress" Since statins interfere with oxidation processes
the eye cells might not regenerate properly to clear away cataracts.
According to Dr Paul Thompson, chief of cardiology at Harvard Hospital
in Connecticut, "We know that statins inhibit a process that dissolves
collagen and other fibrous tissue, so it could be that this interferes
with the eye's ability to repair damaged tissue."

According to the Chicago Tribune Oct 30, 2013, when Mevacor also known
as lovastatin, the first statin drug, was being developed, animal
studies suggested that cataracts might be a side effect. On May 21,
2010 a British study reported in the British Medical Journal online
showed that statins increased the risk of cataracts and the risk
returned to normal within a year of stopping the statin medication.

A new study reported in JAMA Ophtamology online on Sept 19, 2013
showed that cataracts are more common in statin users than non users.

Diabetes, according to Renal and Urology News, atrovastin had no
significant affect on a combined endpoint of cardiovascular death,
myocardial infarction also known as MI and stroke among diabetic
patients on hemodialysis. After 11.5 years of follow up in both
groups, daily atrovastin or placebo, 90% of the patients had died
despite the fact that the patients who were given atrovastin during
the trial had an average reduction in LDL cholesterol levels by 42%.

In the New York Times October 22, 2013 Dr Hosam Kamel, the vice
chairman of the American Medical Directors Association, a group
representing physicians in nursing home practice, said there was
scarce scientific evidence supporting the use of statins in 70 to 80
year olds in their care. He said that the results don't conclusively
establish the benefits of using statins for seniors and he went on to
say there is evidence of harm linked to statin use in seniors
including muscle aches, liver toxicity, gastrointestinal distress, and
growing evidence of impaired memory, heightened risk of diabetes and
increased risk of cancer.

According to Dr Rita Redberg, cardiologist at the University of
California San Francisco Medical Center and editor in chief of JAMA
the side effects associated with statin use was not reported in
studies. According to her summary of the evidence for using statins to
prevent heart disease, heart attacks will be prevented in only 1 or 2
out of every 100 healthy people with high cholesterol who take statins
for 5 years while 1 person out of those 100 will develop diabetes and
older people are much more vulnerable to the side effects of the
medications. She also says there is some evidence that low cholesterol
is associated with higher mortality at an older age.

Back in 2009 I appeared on KSCO Radio's The Wellness Hour with Bernie
Owens. (link is coming soon) Back then on that show I laid out the
facts about cholesterol and statin drugs as I saw them using the drug
manufacturers own research to back up my opinions.

I pointed out back then that inflammation was a better predictor of
cardiovascular events than cholesterol. In fact I stated on that show
that cholesterol had NOTHING TO DO WITH HEART DISEASE, that it was
actually a warning sign.

I laid out how, when you actually look at a lot of the research on
statin drugs and look at the raw numbers, not the conclusions at the
beginning and end of the articles but the raw numbers, many times
there wasn't any real significant, statistical difference in outcomes
of cholesterol lowering from the placebo groups.

I showed that statin drugs actually do 2 things.
- it's true they lower cholesterol but
- they are actually anti-inflammatory as well and it was this property
that produced the positive cardiovascular benefits.

I showed that lowering cholesterol numbers actually caused many other
problems ranging from issues with muscles because of co Q 10
depletion, low testosterone, low vitamin d, increased risk of cancer,
and increase risk of Alzheimer disease. So it is really refreshing now
to have a well-known cardiologist back up some of what I said back
then.

See my blog post, "Truth About Cholesterol"
http://pharmacistkeith.blogspot.com/2011/09/truth-about-cholesterol.html

http://keithabell.info/2013/10/are-your-prescriptions-making-you-sicker.html

Have a Health Challenge?

Want More Information?

Take Dr Wallach's Free Health Evaluation Today:

CLICK HERE

Weight Management, Why Do Diets Fail, and How to Have Success.

Weight Management, Why Do Diets Fail, and How to Have Success.


Hello, I’m Keith Abell. I’m a pharmacist, wellness consultant, and Senior Executive Marketing Director with Youngevity Essential Life Sciences. I have been a pharmacist now since 1995 and I have worked in many practice settings in my career. In all those practice settings I have seen one common thread, we are very good at managing diseases, however, other than infectious diseases we don’t do a very good job at getting people healthier. I became a pharmacist because I wanted to help people get better and overcome their medical conditions. Since this was not happening, about 10 years ago I began looking at other approaches to wellness and I discovered that there are other ways, ways that the big pharmaceutical companies hope we never discover.

You see the human body was divinely designed, when given the proper building blocks, all 90 essential nutrients, it will heal and repair itself. Think about it, when you cut your hand you don’t have to tell the body what to do, it already knows how to repair the cut. When you fracture a bone there’s no magic drug to heal it. The doctor supports the bone to prevent further damage and your body heals itself. When given all 90 of the essential nutrients the body needs at doses according to your body weight, you give your body all it needs to support and promote the body’s ability to repair itself. I call these essential nutrients 90 for life because we need them all our life to a have a lifetime of disease free living.

Check Out My Kindle Book

During my wellness research I met Dr. Joel Wallach, a pioneer in the science of nutrition and supplementation. Dr. Wallach is a Veterinarian, Pathologist and Naturopathic Physician. Through his research in Veterinarian Medicine he discovered that over 900 diseases in animals can be prevented or cured through proper supplementation. The veterinary nutrition industry also discovered, that by manipulating the amount of nutrition added to or eliminated from the feed, they can cause the animals to gain weight more rapidly. Fattening them up quicker so they can be sold to the slaughter houses sooner.

It was this same research that led Dr. Wallach to find the key to proper weight management. The missing link that most weight loss programs completely overlook. Supplementing with all 90 known essential nutrients. Not a one size fits all formula, but based on the individuals body weight, just like they do in the veterinary nutrition industry.

Combining this information with Dr. Wallach's ASAP, As Slim As Possible weight loss drops, we now have a safe, quick, effective, and permanent weight management program.

I have compiled all this information and I have posted the information in this video, an e-book version is coming soon. This is going to be an interesting look at weight management, why diets fail, and what to do to overcome the failures in order to have success in managing ones weight. I purposely used the words “weight management” because the primary goal is not just to lose weight but also to keep it off.

Throughout this video we will explore what has led us to become one of the most obese peoples in recorded history. We will look into some of the different diet programs out there and discuss why aspects of the diets may or may not work. Finally we will look at what needs to be done so people will not only have success with weight loss; but also how to keep the weight off once it is lost.

I hope you enjoy the video. For more information complete the contact form on this page.

Have a Health Challenge?

Want More Information?

Take Dr Wallach's Free Health Evaluation Today:

CLICK HERE

Join The Theo Ratliff ReboundFx Revolution

Take The 1st Step Today For More Information

Have a Health Challenge?

Want More Information?

Take Dr Wallach's Free Health Evaluation Today:

CLICK HERE

How Does Your Sports Drink Stack Up?

To Join Dr. Wallach and Help
to Get His Message Out
and
Create Extra Income For Yourself
Complete This Form:

Have a Health Challenge?

Want More Information?

Take Dr Wallach's Free Health Evaluation Today:

CLICK HERE

We will NOT rent, trade, or release your name to any third party for any reason - ever. We respect YOUR email privacy and hate spam with a passion.

Dead Athletes Don't Lie

Dr Wallach discusses the effects of mineral depletion amoung athletes.

To Join Dr. Wallach and Help
to Get His Message Out
and
Create Extra Income For Yourself
Complete This Form:

Have a Health Challenge?

Want More Information?

Take Dr Wallach's Free Health Evaluation Today:

CLICK HERE

We will NOT rent, trade, or release your name to any third party for any reason - ever. We respect YOUR email privacy and hate spam with a passion.

EXERCISE WITHOUT SUPPLEMENTATION IS SUICIDE!

Exercise WITHOUT SUPPLEMENTATION Is Suicide!

by Joel D. Wallach, BS, DVM, ND

Everyone 'knows' the medical dogma that "exercise is good for you." Now as Paul Harvey says, "You are going to hear the rest of the story!" Exercise without complete and optimal supplementation is self destructive and suicidal! 

After dropping this heretical bombshell, I will give you enough food for thought to gauge the value and the hazards of exercise for yourself. For the last four years, I have crisscrossed America lecturing for almost 300 days per year and the have taken up the daily task of reading five to ten national and local newspapers and magazines (and international when I can get them). Using these information sources as teaching materials, I have been able to "connect the dots" and see the true picture of health (or lack of it) in America without having to do thousand of surveys or studies that would bridge hundreds of years of time and squander billions of taxpayers dollars.

Growing up in rural Missouri associated with the agricultural and livestock industries, I observed as a teenager that we very systematically put vitamins, minerals and trace minerals in the animal fed to prevent and cure disease; not because we were altruistic but primarily because we were market driven and didn't have major medical or hospitalization for calves or chickens; therefore, if we were to use a human health care system for them, your hamburger would cost you $275 per pound and chicken breast fillets would cost $450 per pound.

We also learned that "working and producing" animals (i.e. - dairy cattle, draft horses, racehorses and dogs, breeding animals) need additional nutrients above and beyond the maintenance level to support them during "production time" to maintain and repair their tissues and organ systems.

As a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for the Biology of Natural Systems (Washington University) I received the benefit of a $7.5 Million NIH training grant to cross-educate 30 young scientists from different professions to accelerate the conclusion making process from existing research. We were taught the language and tenets of each others specialties (i.e. math, biology, molecular biology, pathology, medicine, engineering, anthropology, forestry, chemistry, computer science, etc.), at least enough to know where to look for information and how to interpret the studies published in their professional journals.

Invariably, a good scientist will generate as many questions as they answer - this leads to more research which can be exciting and a career track as the person doing the studies learns new skills, buys additional equipment and writes more articles - but in the great scheme of things, this wastes time as the question probably has already been asked, answered and published by a very skilled scientist somewhere before. 

We were to be a "strike force" of multi-disciplinary scientists employed to quickly identify and solve major regional and world ecological problems with the published information already at hand. My job as a veterinary pathologist on the project was to become a comparative pathologist by studying human and animal diseases and be able to identify known human health problems in zoo animals - specifically I was to do autopsies on animals dying of natural causes in the large zoos of America and humans looking for pollution related diseases and find a species that was ultra sensitive to pollution and one that could be used as an early warning biological system.

To make a long story short, after having done some 17,500 autopsies on over 454 species of zoo animal and 3,000 humans, I learned that all of the animals and all of the people who died of "natural causes" died of nutritional diseases. As a result of these original studies, I was able to publish more than 70 peer reviewed and refereed papers on nutritional deficiency diseases and pharmacology, contribute papers to eight multi-author veterinary and medical texts on the subject and write a tome on the comparative pathology of most of the known species of animals and humans (W. B. Saunders, 1983) and most recently, write two self-help texts (Let's Play Doctor and RARE EARTHS: Forbidden Cures).

Unable to convince the academic world of the importance of nutrition in the mid to late 60's, I became frustrated enough to go back to school for four years and become a primary care physician. I successfully used everything I learned in the veterinary nutrition and in my studies as a postdoctoral fellow for my human patients for more than 12 years.

It was necessary to provide you with an understanding of my academic background to answer your logical questions, "Where does this guy come off? Everybody knows exercise is the number one health activity!" The picture that unfolds in this article as I "connect the dots" for you it will not make sense as you now know that I have had some very unique training at a great expenditure of your tax money.

About ten years ago during the early 80's, ominous articles began appearing in news media, medical and veterinary journals as well as pathology journals. These articles brought to light an increase in the frequency and severity of sports injuries (i.e. sprains, strains, degenerative joint problems, fractures, paralysis), behavior problems in athletes and coaches (i.e. sociopathic behavior, fights, uncontrolled rages, drug and alcohol addiction, anorexia, bulimia) degenerative diseases (i.e. arthritis, diabetes, cancer and cardiomyopathy) and sudden death (Cardio-myopathy and ruptured aneurysms.)

It is not surprising that young athletes develop these diseases even though they are "highly conditioned", have professional trainers, coaches and nutritionists hovering over them at all times. In fact, unsupplemented high-output athletes, amateur or professional, are more susceptible to emotional, traumatic and degenerative diseases than the classic "couch potatoes".

The rationale for this unbelievable statement can be illustrated by comparing two Mercedes automobiles one with no oil and no coolant, stored in a garage (the couch potato) and one with no oil and no coolant running at 70 mph (the athlete) - which car (the couch potato or the athlete) will last longer?

Even though the Mercedes is engineered to go 300,000 miles before it needs a major overhaul or a new engine, it is obvious that in our scenario the "couch potato" Mercedes will last longer, because the basic needs of the "athlete" Mercedes engine running at 70 mph were not met by providing simple oil and coolant.

This simple Mercedes illustration can then be carried back to the human analogy. As always, there are cases of famous athletes dying or developing some health challenge that grabs the public's attention; however, the cases of the twenty four year old cyclist dying of cardio-myopathy in Jacksonville, Florida, the high school athlete from backwater towns in Missouri or Pennsylvania who goes berserk, develops diabetes or dies suddenly on the field of play, are just as valuable in "connecting the dots" to complete our picture of the underlying problem. For each example of famous athletes that I am about to share with you, there are literally hundreds of thousands and perhaps millions of amateur athletes of various ages that will fit the profile.

Reggie Lewis, the 27-year-old captain of the Boston Celtics, collapsed on the basketball court in April of 1993 during a game against the San Antonio Spurs. He was quite accurately diagnosed with cardio-myopathy, a muscular dystrophy of the heart muscle caused by a selenium deficiency. Twelve world class cardiologists known as the "Dream Team" of cardiologists were hired by the Boston Celtics to save Reggie, a $65 million contract basketball super star. This "Dream Team" of cardiologists considered pacemakers, pharmaceuticals, defibrillators and heart transplants as treatment for Reggie, but not one gave him 20 cents worth of selenium! Reggie Lewis died of his second cardiomyopathy heart attack on July 28, 1993.

Hank Gathers, from Loyola Marymount, Los Angeles, died from a selenium deficiency cardiomyopathy heart attack on the basketball court during the "March Madness" playoffs in 1990 at the age of 23.

Evander Hollyfield, the 31-year-old, two time heavy weight boxing champion of the world, suddenly retired from boxing because of the onset of a chronic wasting form of selenium deficiency cardiomyopathy known as a "stiff heart".

Thirty-seven years ago, in 1957, it was proven in animal studies that the trace mineral selenium was essential to life and that a deficiency of selenium produces a variety of diseases ranging from cardiomyopathy (known in animals as "Mulberry heart disease" or white muscle disease) to muscular dystrophy. Additional research proved with 100 percent certainty that cardiomyopathy was preventable and, in the early stages of diagnoses, curable with supplementation of selenium.

Historically, selenium deficiencies in humans that result in cardiomyopathy, "Mulberry heart disease" or "White muscle disease" are known as Keshan Disease. In Keshan Province, Peoples Republic of China, Keshan Disease (cardiomyopathy) killed 13 out of every 1,000 preschool children, teenagers and pregnant women.  The soil in Keshan Province is almost totally devoid of selenium. In the 1930's Keshan Disease was thought to be caused by a viral infection; later in the sixties Keshan Disease was thought to be caused by mold contaminants of stored grain. It was not until 1972 when the World Health Organization sent a team of pathologists to China to study Keshan Disease was the mystery solved. 

On the WHO pathology team was a veterinary pathologist who recognized that Keshan Disease in humans was in fact identical to "Mulberry heart disease" in pigs with a selenium deficiency.

To prove the connection between selenium deficiency and the cardiomyopathy of Keshan Disease, the WHO funded a large double blind study in which 39,000 school children were given selenium as a daily supplement and a control group of 9,000 children were given a placebo. At the end of two years the rate of Keshan Disease in those children receiving the daily selenium supplement dropped to zero, while the rate of Keshan Disease in the control group remained at 13 per 1,000.

Selenium has a wide variety of functions in the human body including protection of the cellular membranes of cardiac and skeletal muscle fibers from peroxidation (free radical damage to the bi-lipid layer membrane) and replacement of viable muscle tissue by fibrous connective tissue.

A Selenium deficiency is exacerbated by exercise (athletes) and high intake of polyunsaturated fats and oils that are found in salad dressings, frying oils, frozen and soft serve desserts or margarine.

It is a sad fact that commercially prepared diets of pet, laboratory and farm animals contains optimum levels of selenium specifically to prevent cardiomyopathy, while humans and especially athletes at the behest of their trainers, sports medicine doctors and family doctors are led to believe that they can get everything they need from the "four food groups", primarily because the orthodox health profession's ignorance of and bias against vitamins and mineral supplementation.

Buster Douglas, once the heavyweight boxing champion, suddenly developed diabetes and went into a diabetic coma two years after losing the championship. Adult onset diabetes is known to be caused by chromium and vanadium deficiencies. 

Tonya Harding (figure skater) and Jennifer Capriotti (tennis player) both became sociopathic (i.e.- aggression, drug and alcohol addiction) after years of participating in their respective sports. Deficiencies of chromium, vanadium and/or lithium are associated with volatile behavior, sociopathic behaviors, depression and addiction to drugs and alcohol (especially if they consume large quantities of sugar).

Running is often put forth as the universal "fitness" exercise, and yet numerous world class runners have lost their lives by not supplementing. Jim Fixx, the runner who started the whole jogging craze in America with his best selling books on jogging and running for fitness, died at age 48 following his fifth cardiomyopathy heart attack.. He purposely did not supplement because he wanted to prove that running was the pure way to health and longevity.

Dr. George Sheehan, the longtime medical editor for Running World Magazine, died at age 74 from prostate cancer even though he ran for 25 years. Dr Sheehan had no understanding of or interest in supplements, "Nutrition, to my mind, occupies an area somewhere between religion and science, and is a confusing amalgam of these great subjects." A National Cancer Institute Study showed that faithful daily use of even the small levels of double the American RDA for beta-carotene, vitamin E and selenium together can reduce the rate of cancer by 13 to 21 percent.

There are literally tens of thousands of people in America in all age groups who die each year while running as a result of a ruptured cerebral, coronary or aortic aneurysm. Aneurysms were proven to be the result of a copper deficiency in turkeys in 1957.

Fred LaBeau, 56, founder of the New York Marathon and world class runner himself and Wilma Rudolph, 54, winner of three Olympic gold medals in track and field, both died of brain cancer which can be produced in laboratory animals placed on a gallium deficient diet.

Then there is the spectacular statistic that "connect the dots" and completes the picture, the last clue needed to clearly show that exercise without supplementation is self-destructive and is , in fact suicidal - 62% of women gymnasts at the university level are anorexic and/or bulimic (in fact a zinc deficiency aggravated by malabsorption, i.e. celiac disease). Is it genetic that there is this connection between gymnasts and eating disorders - I believe not.

What is the common denominator that 'connects the dots' between the 85 pound gymnast, the lithe runner, the 220 pound heavy weight boxing champion and the six foot eleven inch basketball player?

SWEAT!

When we sweat, we sweat out more than just water for cooling our overheated bodies; we sweat out more than just the electrolytes (potassium, sodium and chloride) - we sweat out all 72 of the essential minerals; and if we don't consciously replace them by supplementation, the minerals consumed by cellular biochemical reactions and sweated out during exercise, as sure as God made little green apples, we are inviting disaster!

• If we sweat out all of our selenium during exercise and don't replace it by supplementation, we are at high risk of developing cardiomyopathy. 
• If we sweat out all of our chromium and vanadium during exercise and don't replace them by supplementation, we are at high risk of developing low blood sugar, diabetes, depression or antisocial behavior. 
•  If we sweat out all of our lithium and don't replace it by supplementation, we are at high risk of developing depression, manic depression or addiction to alcohol or drugs. 
•  If we sweat out all of our copper and don't replace it by supplementation, we are at high risk of developing joint and/or cartilage problems, varicose veins or a fatal ruptured aneurysm. 
•  If we sweat out all of our gallium and don't replace it by supplementation, we are at high risk of developing a brain tumor. 
• If we sweat out significant amounts of calcium, magnesium manganese, sulfur, boron and strontium and we don't replace them by supplementation, we are at high risk of developing joint, cartilage and bone degeneration (arthritis) or injuries (hairline fractures, fractures). 

Athletes, especially the university and professional levels, are supposed to have training tables filled with the very best quality food, yet the only guarantee that they can get from their meals are protein, fats, carbohydrates, and calories.

Depending on our food for vitamins, minerals and trace minerals is, at best a "crap shoot." Certainly, the average weekend athlete, jogger or aerobics buff with common sense wouldn't throw their life away by not supplementing with the known 103 essential nutrients each day (72 minerals, 16 vitamins, 12 essential amino acids and three essential fatty acids). Certainly then, the highly conditioned serious athlete (amateur and professional) who invests considerable time and money in their training and fitness programs would not throw their health or lives away by not supplementing with all 100 plus essential nutrients.

Yet, the majority of people who exercise don't supplement with minerals let alone all 100 plus essential nutrients, because they have bought into the medical dogma that "if you eat right, you don't need to supplement - you can get everything you need from the four food groups" or, if you supplement..., "it only gives you expensive urine." Most Americans have not been told the fact that our farm and range soils are depleted as a result of 100 to 200 years of intensive farming without appropriate mineral replacement - or if they have read the information about depleted soils in America, they don't make the connection that the food on their dinner plate is, in fact anemic.

U.S. Senate Document 264 (1936) stated 59 years ago that our farm and range soils are depleted. More recently at the Earth Summit in Rio (June 1992) one report pointed out that American farm and range soils were 85% depleted of minerals compared with the soil mineral levels of 100 years ago. There is a clear and present danger and potentially fatal effect to each and everyone of us as a result of consuming minerally depleted foods - and that hazard is magnified many-fold by exercise.

Article submitted by Dr. Joel D. Wallach

To Join Dr. Wallach's
to get this message out
and
Create Extra Income For Yourself

Have a Health Challenge?

Want More Information?

Take Dr Wallach's Free Health Evaluation Today:

CLICK HERE

We will NOT rent, trade, or release your name to any third party for any reason - ever. We respect YOUR email privacy and hate spam with a passion.

Statins - What Big Pharma Doesn't Want You to Know

I believe it was back in 2009 when I was a guest on KSCO Radio's The Wellness Hour with Bernie Owens where I discussed statin drugs and what the big pharmaceutical companies don't want us to know. Here is the audio from that show:

For more articles on statins and cholesterol,
visit my blog:
ProsperityRx.com

Studies cited on the radio program:

If reducing cholesterol levels lowers the risk of heart disease you would assume that people who lower their cholesterol levels will live longer compared to those who do not lower cholesterol levels. The most important statistic of any study is the mortality rate – how many are alive at the end of the study.

Let’s take a close look at the mortality rate of the five studies cited by the American Heart Association.

1. Heart Protection Study (2002) Over 20,000 adults in UK age 40-80 who were at a high risk for heart disease were followed for 5 years.  They were divided into 2 groups. A placebo group and a group getting simvistatin 40mg/day. At the end of 5 years the placebo group had an 85.4% chance of survival. The statin group had an 87.1% chance of survival. That is not even a 2% difference. In fact the Doctor involved in the study wrote “Low cholesterol concentrations have been related to depression, cognitive impairment, and suppression of the immune system. Does a reduction of 1.7% in mortality balance these risks?” Funny that wasn’t mentioned by the American Heart Association.
2. Prosper (2002) 5804 adults were examined to look at the effect of pravastatin versus placebo in the risk of developing heart disease and stroke. At the end of the 3 year trial the placebo group had 89.5% alive compared to the treatment group of 89.7% alive. That is only 2 tenths of a percent difference. This is not even statistically significant. As a side note cancer was significantly increased in the treatment group.
3. ALLHAT (2003) 10,355 adults over 55 were randomized to receive either pravastatin or usual care (which means diet and lifestyle changes). At the end of 6 years 84.7% of the “usual care” group was still alive compared to 85.1% of the statin group. That is again less than 1% difference. Not statistically significant.
4. ASCOT-LLA 19,342 high blood pressure patients between 40 and 79 with risk factors of cardiovascular disease. The statin group in this case did have reduce the number of cardiac events compared to the placebo group however at the end of 3.3 years 95.9% of the placebo group were still alive compared to 96.4% of the statin group. Only ½ % difference.
5. PROVE-IT 4,162 patients who had a heart attack or angina were given either atorvastatin or pravastatin. In this study there was no placebo group. The absolute reduction in death of atorvastatin was 2.2% versus 3.2% from pravastatin.

So when we look at these studies the reduction in the risk of death was insignificant. Does this insignificant change in death rate warrant the increased risks of side effects from statins? 

Let’s look at some other studies and what the outcomes of low cholesterol compared to higher cholesterol was:

• In women of all ages and men over 55, higher cholesterol levels may actually result in a decreased mortality (Q J Med 2003;96:927-34)
• One study showed that in the elderly female, a lower cholesterol level (less than 155mg/dl) was associated with  5.2 times higher death rate as compared to a woman with a cholesterol level of 272mg/dl (Lancet 1:868-870. 1989)
• Breast cancer rates in humans that took statins were shown to increase by 1,200% (relative risk)
• JAMA reported on a study of 5,170 subjects taking a statin versus 5,185 subjects treated with "usual care" (lifestyle changes) found that the statin did reduce cholesterol however (not widely reported) the mortality rate between the 2 groups was nearly identical (so why take the statin with all its side effects) also the coronary heart disease rates were not different between the control group and the statin group (JAMA Dec 18, 2002 18;288:2998-3007)
• The Framingham study (one of the longest ongoing studies on heart disease) reports after 30 years of follow up, there is no increased overall mortality with subjects with high cholesterol for those over 50. Furthermore, researchers reported that FALLING cholesterol levels were found to increase the cardiovascular death rate - a 14% increase for every 1mg/dl drop in cholesterol. (JAMA Vol 257. No 16, 4.24.1987)
• A study of 11,563 subjects found that those with cholesterol below 160mg/dl had 49% increases in all-cause mortality as compared to those subjects with a cholesterol level over 160mg/dl. Non cardiac death increased 2.27 times in the low cholesterol group compared to the control group (Eur Heart Journal 1997 18, 52-59)
• In 977 elderly patients (>70 y/o) studied, researchers found no correlation between elevated cholesterol levels and increases in mortality from coronary heart disease, all-cause mortality or hospitalization from heart attacks or angina. (JAMA Vol 272 No 17 Nov 2, 1994)
• Studies have found a correlation with low cholesterol levels and increased risk of mortality from cancer of the lung, liver, pancreas and bone marrow as well as increased risk of death from respiratory, hepatic and digestive disease (Arch. Intern. Med 192;152. 1490=1500)
• A study of 5,491 men aged 45-68 y/o found that falling cholesterol levels from 180-239mg/dl down to less than 180mg/dl were associated with a 30% higher risk of all-cause mortality and a significant increased risk of death from cancers of the esophagus, prostate, and bone marrow (Circulation 1995;92:2396-2403)

So as seen above the overall mortality rate of taking statins compared to placebo is insignificant. Further the increased risk for mortality from other causes is increased in the lowered cholesterol group. So what exactly does statins do and why does it seem to decrease cardiovascular events?

Have a Health Challenge?

Want More Information?

Take Dr Wallach's Free Health Evaluation Today:

CLICK HERE