Daily ibuprofen use may produce a dangerous level of insidious blood loss in healthy people. Ibuprofen is widely considered the safest of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS).
A study conducted at Canada’s McMaster University Health Science Centre analyzed the results of two placebo-controlled trials. Nearly 70 healthy subjects were divided into two groups: One group received 800 mg of ibuprofen three times each day, and the other group took a placebo. For one week before the study, and during the four-week study period, blood loss was determined with radioactive analysis that identified red blood cells in stool samples.
The result was surprising. Average overall blood loss among those in the ibuprofen group was more than three and a half times higher than the placebo group. And even more revealing: Blood loss in the ibuprofen group ranged from 1/5 of a cup to an entire cup in just four weeks.
A 2,400 mg daily dose of ibuprofen is considered quite high, especially when taken for an extended period. But a dose this size is not uncommon among arthritis patients and others who suffer chronic pain. In fact, because of ibuprofen’s reputation for safety, many patients take the drug along with other painkillers.
For far safer methods of dealing with arthritis and other musculo-skeletal disorders see the relevant pages in the Herb Health Guide and at Healthy Vitamin Choice.
Several news sources are today carrying anti-vitamin stories. They reflect the predictable and really rather pathetic attempts by the ignorant majority of doctors to behave like threatened ostriches. We can be sure to see the story circulate for a while. Below are some excerpts from a story appearing in a British daily newspaper, along with some brief commentary.
A poll of about 250 GPs found 41% believed that some of their patients were overdosing on vitamins and remained ignorant of the risks.
Most polls of GPs are predictable and their views largely reflect self-interest rather than genuine concern for their patients. Quite likely many people do consume vitamins with too little knowledge to achieve best effects. Here and at Healthy-Vitamin-Choice.com we do our bit to address this proactively and in a way that supports vitamin users.
As for overdosing, that is too strong. Show me the evidence, but be prepared for some vigorous debate. If an overdose is defined as exceeding RDAs or similarly useless standards then many people, myself and scores of doctors included, regularly recommend overdoses. If they mean formally diagnosed hypervitaminosis, then show me the evidence that its incidence has significantly changed. In my view, such evidence cannot be produced because it isn’t a problem.
The Norwich Union Health of the Nation Index found that 80% of family doctors said their patients did not know that some supplements could react with common medication they may already be taking.
Big deal, so what? First, this is hearsay from a biased and underinformed group. The issue of vitamin – medication interaction is well known and has been addressed on this site more than once. But this is simply an issue to be addressed by education. The GPs think it means that people should have restricted access to vitamins. Shame on them.
What it means is that everyone should become better informed, a message I regularly convey. It also is an admission that those GPs are not providing acceptable patient education when prescribing the drugs. The problem here mainly rests with the drugs being prescribed and the inadequate performance of the prescribers. The problem they highlight reflects adverseley only on the GPs.
One example is that iron supplements can interact with antibiotics and make them less effective in fighting infection. High doses of vitamin B6, used to combat pre-menstrual tension, can cause nerve damage, and too much vitamin A during pregnancy can harm the unborn child.
The survey, conducted by independent health research specialists Dr Foster, showed that GPs were seeing more cases of vitamin misuse.
This is too much. Iron deficiency is known to be a massive problem in Britain and since sound research demonstrates the low dietary intake of most Brittons, supplementation should, quite properly, be widespread. The suspect element here is the antibiotics. The synthethic drug company produced antibiotics have been dangerously and foolishly overprescribed and misprescribed by these very GPs.
As for the GPs seeing more cases of "vitamin abuse", I would ask just how they define that term. In my opinion this is complete and utter nonsense. Most of those GPs are too ignorant about nutrition to venture an intelligent opinion on the topic. What about something that has been thoroughly demonstrated time and time again by government and university research like more cases of errors by GPs? Or the incidence of doctor recommended and prescribed drug abuse?
The research found that 13% of GPs reported seeing patients suffering adverse side-effects from vitamin use in the last year.
Again, what does this mean? No details are given so this is merely part of the scare campaign in the GPs’ propaganda. How many would report seeing patients suffering adverse side-effects from prescribed drugs in the last year?
Nearly all the doctors questioned (93%) said their patients overestimated the health benefits of taking vitamins. Many people were using them as a substitute for a balanced diet and lifestyle.
It is true that people do tend to think taking a vitamin supplement can undo the damage caused by a poor diet and lifestyle. This is something I regularly try to combat. As for overestimating the benefits, that is absurd. I don’t even grant that the GPs know enough about vitamins to form such an opinion.
This is part of their anxiety showing through. They fear that people will realize they can take active measure to achieve health and avoid the problems inflicted by their doctors’ pharmaceutical based abuse (of course, they call it treatment).
More than three-quarters (79%) of GPs said they had seen a notable increase in the number of patients self-medicating with vitamin supplements in the last five years.
GP Ann Robinson said: "If you have a healthy, balanced diet, you shouldn’t really need to be popping extra supplements. Most vitamins are safe but there’s a lot we don’t know yet about side-effects and possible interactions with other drugs."
Four out of 10 GPs (41%) said they felt there was simply not enough information available about vitamins for people to make an informed decision on their own. And 81% supported new legislation calling for more testing of supplements.
Yes, there it is. Their real anxieties are that people will not be dependant on them anymore and that people may know more about health and nutrition than they do. Frankly, given their position, they have good cause for these concerns. However, striking out against vitamin use, while in keeping with their long track record, is both stupid and futile. It is time for them to relinquish their arrogance and start learning.
Folic acid is a very important vitamin and essential to your life and your health. It also happens to be the most commonly deficient vitamin in Americans and the average American diet provides only about half the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA), the amount recommended by the Food and Nutrition Board. Folic acid is found in green leaves, such as spinach, asparagus, beans (legumes) and especially in brewers yeast and liver.
Deficiency of folic acid is a significant cause of birth defects, particularly spina bifida, a defect in the formation of the lower back which leaves the spinal cord exposed. Several studies have confirmed the value of folic acid in preventing these "neural tube defects" and the FDA now recommends that prospective mothers take folic acid supplements because women are unlikely to obtain a sufficient amount of folate to support a healthy pregnancy unless a supplement is taken.
Research reports indicate that a third of the psychiatric patients and two thirds of the medical patients in hospital are low in folic acid. Deficiency is not necessarily due to poor diet. Intestinal malabsorption and treatment with female hormones and birth control pills also cause low folic acid levels. Anticonvulsant therapy with Dilantin is most likely to block absorption and interfere with conversion to the active form in the brain and this can cause depression and loss of mental acuity, which are responsive to folic acid treatment.
Dr. Richard A. Kunin, M.D. points out that "At menopause many women produce extra amounts of homocysteine, an amino acid by-product of protein. Homocysteine is a powerful solvent, capable of attacking collagen and hence weakening all tissues, but especially blood vessels and bone. When bones weaken they lose calcium, become porous, hence the name, osteoporosis. Deficiency of folic acid (as well as B12 and B6) causes increased homocysteine accumulation and hence aggravates osteoporosis. Damage can be prevented by folic acid supplements and this therapy may be indicated even if folate blood levels are within the normal range. As you can see, there is more to osteoporosis than just calcium and there is more to folic acid than is revealed by simple measurement of blood levels. Functional tests, such as the presence of homocysteine, are actually more revealing."
The main chemical function of folic acid is in transporting a carbon atom in the form of a methyl group. This action has been put to good use in treating victims of methyl alcohol poisoning. A more common and therefore more important function of folic acid is in the manufacture of nucleic acids, essential for growth and repair in every cell in the body. Growing cells need folic acid; hence deficiency causes anemia and delays healing. Mature cells also need folic acid to assure repair of nucleic acids that get damaged by carcinogens, radiation and even by dietary oxidative by-products nucleic acids.
Folic acid has also been found effective against pre-cancerous cervical dysplasia. It is so effective here that abnormal cells can become normal again! Hence folic acid, along with vitamin A and vitamin C, which share this action, should be tried before resorting to surgical intervention.
Again, Dr. Richard A. Kunin explains that "Folic acid deficiency, even if temporary, has been found to weaken the immune system for about three months after since folate deficient lymphocytes do not recover function but must be replaced by new cells. Nerve cells are affected by folic acid in several ways. Methyl group transfer is critical to the production of choline, which is essential to repair cell membranes and in the production of acetylcholine, a key neurotransmitter. Folic acid is also essential in manufacture of catecholamine transmitters and in the removal of their end products, thus balancing the action of neurotransmitters, such as norepinephrine and epinephrine."
Folic acid acts along with vitamin B12 in the production of adenosyl-methionine, an amino acid with a powerful ability to elevate mood and enhance mental acuity. One of the early signs of folate deficiency is mood depression and, as I said earlier, studies of hospitalized patients with depression show a tendency to low folic acid levels. When depression is accompanied by fatigue, treatment with folic acid is particularly likely to work.
Wheat allergy or intolerance is a common cause of folate deficiency. Gluten, the wheat protein, causes inflammation of the intestine and mal-absorption of folic acid in sensitive individuals. Infection with the parasite, Giardia, can also inflame the bowel and interfere with folate absorption. It is a good idea to check folic acid levels in anyone who suffers from persistent intestinal symptoms, particularly diarrhea or excessive gas and bloating. Since folate must be digested by pancreatic juice in the duodenum, any malfunction in that area is likely to interfere with this vitamin.
There are many other conditions where folic acid therapy should be considered. Neuropathy, nerve damage, and restless legs; mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, post-partum depression and confusional states of the elderly; aplastic anemia, even if due to a poisoning or drug reaction. These may be responsive to folic acid. In every case of recovery from any acute illness or trauma a person is likely to benefit from extra folic acid.
Dr Kunin adds that "Folate deficiency is rare in breast fed infants but common in infants fed cows milk and commercial formula. Due to heat treatment, pasteurization, a milk protein that transports folate into the blood stream is destroyed. Without this protein, half the folic acid in food and supplements never makes it into the tissues where it is required for optimal cell function." Asked "Does this contribute to impaired growth and impaired brain development?" Dr Kunin said "I really worry about that when I know that the majority of American mothers do not nurse their babies and that the level of intellectual ability, as measured by scholastic test scores (SAT) has declined over 10 percent in the past 20 years. I think it is more likely that impaired brain development is behind this disaster than any lack of ability or effort on the part of our teachers and schools. When it comes to feeding children, Mother Nature still seems to know best!"
Natural foods in their raw state contain plenty of folic acid. Avoid highly processed and refined foods. If you are considering a sudden or substantial increase in your folic acid (folate) intake, for example by using supplements, please be cautious. There have been reports of people having seizures after such moves. It would appear that the combination of folate rich foods in the diet and regular low-dose supplementation is best, unless you can have your supplementation monitored by your health care professional.
The nonprofit American Botanical Council (ABC), an Austin, Texas-based herbal medicine research and education organization, has been selected to receive one of the inaugural grants by the newly-formed Weil Foundation. The Weil Foundation was established earlier this year by Andrew Weil, M.D., best-selling author and pioneering educator in integrative medicine. The other three grants went to university programs and teaching hospitals.
"We are pleased to be able to provide this support to four outstanding organizations," said Dr. Weil, chairman of the Foundation board. "Their pioneering work will help to create a healthcare system that fully recognizes the natural healing capacity of human beings, emphasizes prevention above treatment, ensures appropriate use of both conventional and alternative therapies, and makes doctors and patients true working partners."
ABC received $5,000 toward the cost of completing Healthy Ingredients, an online database of plants and other ingredients used in supplements, cosmetics and body care products. There are currently 63 ingredient overviews in the database and this number will increase to 130 by the end of 2005. Healthy Ingredients, geared to consumers and healthcare and industry professionals alike, provides an overview of each ingredient, including:
- Descriptions of plants, including native growth regions
- Historical and current uses of plants and parts used
- Clinical studies and other scientific research
- Market outlook, sustainability and future commercial growing
The Weil Grant will also be used to continue the development of ABC’s Literature Database, a searchable reference catalog of journal articles and other printed materials pertaining to medicinal plants and the science behind their use. The system is used internally for ABC staff members and writers. Support will permit the system to be brought more up-to-date and will improve the functionality of the system.
"ABC deeply appreciates the Weil Foundation’s confidence in and support of our nonprofit educational activities," said ABC Founder and Executive Director Mark Blumenthal. "For over 30 years Dr. Weil has been a pioneer in educating the public in the role that natural foods and beneficial herbs can play in modern self-care and healthcare and his work clearly reflects the mission of ABC."
"ABC has had a long relationship with Andrew Weil, his colleagues, and one of the programs that he founded, the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. We applaud the formation of this charitable foundation and are honored to receive its support," said Wayne Silverman, PhD, ABC’s Chief Administrative Officer. "Healthy Ingredients is a prime example of ABC responding to the needs of the natural product community to present simple yet science-based information," Silverman continued.
The Weil Foundation is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization supporting integrative medicine through grant-making and other activities. The Foundation seeks to improve the training of physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and allied health professionals; educate the public about health, healing, and lifestyle; reform public policies governing health care and the practice of medicine; and expand and deepen research in integrative medicine.
Established in 1988, ABC, also a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, is the leading nonprofit, member-based international organization working to educate consumers, healthcare professionals, researchers, educators, industry, and the media on the safe and effective use of herbs and medicinal plant products. ABC is located on a 2.5 acre site in Austin, Texas where it publishes HerbalGram, a peer-reviewed quarterly journal, reviews clinical studies and other scientific literature, produces continuing education for healthcare professionals, and engages in innovative, science-based programs to promote its educational mission.
Well I must say it is heartwarming to see comments such as these. Dr Weil said, I repeat from above, "Their pioneering work will help to create a healthcare system that fully recognizes the natural healing capacity of human beings, emphasizes prevention above treatment, ensures appropriate use of both conventional and alternative therapies, and makes doctors and patients true working partners." What a thoroughly laudable objective. I sincerely wish them much success.
New research from the Harvard School of Public Health finds that cigarette makers are targeting young smokers with candy and liqueur-flavored new brands that mask the harsh and toxic properties found in tobacco smoke, and in one case, embedding a hidden flavor pellet within the filter. Despite assurances from cigarette makers that they no longer target the youth market, the researchers found that new brands are being marketed to young smokers and racial/ethnic groups using colorful and stylish packaging and exploiting adolescents’ attraction to candy flavors. The study appears in the November/December issue of the journal, Health Affairs.
The researchers sifted through a database of more than 7 million internal tobacco industry documents spanning more than 30 years for information on alternative flavors and flavor technology used in the development of products targeting new and younger smokers. Carrie Carpenter, lead author of the study and a research analyst at HSPH stated, "Flavored cigarettes can promote youth smoking initiation and help young occasional smokers to become daily smokers by reducing or masking the natural harshness and taste of tobacco smoke and increasing the acceptability of a toxic product."
A 1993 internal document stated, "Growing interest in new flavor sensations (i.e. soft drinks, snack foods) among younger adult consumers may indicate new opportunities for enhanced-flavor tobacco products that could leverage [a brand’s] current strength among younger adult smokers."
Internal research by the tobacco industry showed manufacturers that they could capitalize on youths’ attraction to candy flavors. They used innovative product technology, such as a flavor pellet imbedded in one company’s cigarette filters, to deliver fruit and liqueur flavors. Some of the flavored cigarettes the companies have developed include; Mandarin Mint, Mocha Taboo, Mintrigue, Kauai Kolada, Margarita Mixer and others. Fruit and candy flavors were also added to smokeless tobacco products, cigars and cigarette rolling papers.
Gregory Connolly, senior author of the study and a professor of the practice of public health at HSPH noted, "Tobacco companies are using candy-like flavors and high tech delivery devices to turn a blowtorch into a flavored popsicle, misleading millions of youngsters to try a deadly product. Adding candy flavors to a toxic product (cigarettes) isn’t any different than adding sugar to contaminated meat a century ago. The only difference is that today one is regulated by the FDA and the other is not."
Dr. Cheryl Healton, president and CEO of the American Legacy Foundation, a funder of the study, commented, "The public should recognize these products for what they are – a tool to lure younger smokers to their brands, and then potentially to a lifetime of tobacco addiction."
The study; "New Cigarette Brands with Flavors That Appeal to Youth: Tobacco Marketing Strategies; Health Affairs, November/December 2005, Volume 24, number 6", was funded by the American Legacy Foundation and the National Cancer Institute.
Harvard School of Public Health is dedicated to advancing the public’s health through learning, discovery, and communication. More than 300 faculty members are engaged in teaching and training the 900-plus student body in a broad spectrum of disciplines crucial to the health and well being of individuals and populations around the world. Programs and projects range from the molecular biology of AIDS vaccines to the epidemiology of cancer; from risk analysis to violence prevention; from maternal and children’s health to quality of care measurement; from health care management to international health and human rights.
It is good to have the input of the Harvard people. It seems that the leopard cannot change its spots: the tobacco companies remain immoral. I suppose people who actively promote disease, suffering and death by painting it as something else lack the moral fibre to actually tell the truth. The internal documents show cigarette manufacturers developed candy-flavored brands specifically to target youth market despite promises to the contrary.
So what’s the bottom line? Never trust the tobacco industry.