Blood Pressure -- Know This!

High blood pressure is a major problem in the U.S. and other western societies.

Below is a link to  an excellent summary, in chart form, what you need to know.  It explains much better than I can what you can do to keep your blood pressure down.

Click here to see the chart!

Have a good Christmas and New Years!

HFCS: Is it Really "Just Sugar"

We all know consuming too much sugar is not good -- obesity, diabetes, etc. come to mind.  But . . . what you may not know is that the composition of sugar has changed radically in the last twenty years or so.  More and more we consume sugar in the form of High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) rather than natural sugar from fruit, sugar cane and beets. Currently HFCS make up about 1/2 of sugar consumption in the U.S.

So what's the big deal?  Is there a difference between HFCS and cane or beet sugar?  Both consist of nutrient poor, but sweet, calories.  Both are composed of fructose and fructose. HFCS, however, is not natural, being a processed sugar from corn.   See what Wikipedia says  for a quick introduction to HFCS -- a good place to start if you are not familiar with it.  Back to the controversy.  Lets look at both sides of the issue.

Claims that HFCS is "Just Sugar"

See the Corn Refiners Association (CRA) website to start.  The CRA, not surprisingly, has a vested interest in selling HFCS so take their statements with a grain of salt (er . . . I mean sugar).  Also, see this article from the Mayo Clinic which finds little difference between natural sugar and HFCS.

Claims that HFCS is a Major Cause of Obesity

See this article from Princeton University which finds a strong relationship between obesity and HFCS consumption.  Also, see here for a damning indictment of HFCS, apparently the journal of Obesity found sodas like Coke, Pepsi, Sprite may contain up to 65% fructose --- the fructose component of HFCS has been demonstrated to cause rapid weight gain.

Then, see this: Fox News has weighed in (pun intended) on the potential link between HFCS and diabetes which is increasing rapidly in the U.S. and elsewhere.

Some Perspective

For thousands of years sugar was only available to humans in the small quantities found in fruit and vegetables.  This is what humans adapted to over thousands of years.  Only in the last 150 years or so sugar been concentrated and added to foods.  We get large quantities in a small package - think of soda.  A medium soda (20 ounces) from Mc Donalds contains the equivalent of 17 packets of sugar -- the HFCS kind.

The Genetic Component in Diabetes

We are not all created equal.  Some people (such as many north Europeans) can eat lots of sweets and never develop diabetes while others (such as Hispanics and Native Americans) seem much more susceptible.

You Can't Easily Escape it

It is almost impossible to escape HFCS, as it is added to all kinds of processed foods.  HFCS, being a liquid,  made adding sugar to food even easier, so it is a great way for processors to sweeten and make more desireable food such as catsup, relish, canned vegetables, and a vast host of other processed food.  Is any of this good for us?  No, but we are seduced by the sweet taste and the food industry knows it.

Currently, the U.S. government subsidizes corn crops in places like Iowa, Nebraska and throughout the U.S.  A major part of this crop goes for cattle consumption (another story) and HFCS production.  It is scary to thing but if HFCS does cause obesity our government is promoting it with subsidies.

Conclusion

I feel the evidence is quite strong HFCS is worse than sugar.  Even if it is not true, I would avoid HFCS and most natural sugar in any case.  Most everyone likes sweets to some extent, but try to limit them and keep to the natural sugars.  Your tastes adapt.  At first I didn't like unsweetened tea, now I much prefer it.  Last week McDonalds, by mistake, gave me sweet tea.  I found it sickly sweet and threw it out.

The Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen Vegetables and Fruits

Many studies of vegetables and fruits have shown which ones have the highest pesticide content.  You can see some of the results here, here and here.  Vegetables and fruit are good for you but unfortunately modern growing procedures often leases high pesticide contamination.  Even washing will not rid the produce of all the pesticides.

The "Dirty Dozen", listed below, are vegetables and fruits should only buy only organic as non-organic ones carry high pesticide residues.

Celery, Peaches, Strawberries, Apples, Blueberries, Nectarines, Bell Peppers, Spinach and Greens, Cherries, Potatoes, Grapes (imported), and Lettuce.


The "Clean Fifteen" listed below, should be reasonably safe to purchase in your neighborhood supermarket.

Onions, avocados, sweet corn,  Pineapples, Mangoes, Sweet Peas, Asparagus, kiwi, cabbage, Egg plant, Cantaloupe, Watermelon, Grape Fruit, Sweet Potatoes, Sweet onions.

Does Wearing a Bra Cause Cancer?

Yes, say Ty Bollinger in his book Cancer - Step Outside the Box.  Ty cites convincing statistics showing how breast cancer rates increased dramatically once bras came into common usage (they have only been around a hundred years or so).  The correlation seems to be strongest for tight-fitting bras.

I found this position somewhat surprising coming from a conservative christian.  Yet, if the bra-cancer correlation exists health can (and rightly should) trump prudery.

Here are some links from the internet, including a Harvard study:

• Bras may inhibit the way our bodies cleanse themselves -- See here 
• Article from Health 101 -- See here 
• Read the Book Dressed to Kill --  See here
  
• A history of research on the subject -- See here

Getting women to do something they may feel impairs their looks may be futile but the above links should be a good start.  Ladies, those bras may be literally killing you and. really, most guys, don't like them much either.

The hippies and woman's rights activists of the 60's and 70's may have had somethings right!  Give them credit for pushing organic, healthy foods and bra-burning.

Are Your Dental Fillings Poisoning You?

Ty Bollinger in his book Cancer - Step Outside the Box claims that one reason the incidence of cancer has gone up so dramatically in recent years is because of mercury, a toxic metal, from fillings in our teeth.

Mercury is a major component in the "silver" fillings or amalgams dentists put in our teeth to plug the holes left after removing cavities.  These so called "silver" fillings contain approximately 50% mercury.

Mercury containing "silver" amalgams are used because of their ease of application, durability, low cost and antibacterial effects.  Substitutes are available but "silver" amalgams are still in use by most dentists.
 
Is there any truth to the alarming claims of mercury toxicity originating from our teeth?  Well, I'll try to present both sides and then my take on it.

First, Ty's side.  Ty claims that since mercury is a toxic metal it has no place in our mouth, just inches from the most sensitive of all our organs, our brain. There is disagreement that elemental mercury is very toxic metal.  That is one reason why you don't see mercury in thermometers any more.  Ty claims the mercury is labeled as bio-hazardous when shipped to dentists, before being placed in patient's mouths.

The major concern is that small quantities of mercury out-gas from the solid metal.  Since the vapors out-gas into the mouth it is easy for the mercury to pass into your lungs by inhaling, then absorbed by your body thus poisoning us.  See some of the evidence here and here.

Many people have elected to have amalgams removed from their teeth because of concern over toxic mercury out-gassing from the amalgams.

As might be expected the American Dental Association (ADA) has a different take on things.  Below is an excerpt from their website.  You can read their statement in its entirety here.

Dental amalgam is considered a safe, affordable and durable material that has been used to restore the teeth of more than 100 million Americans. It contains a mixture of metals such as silver, copper and tin, in addition to mercury, which binds these components into a hard, stable and safe substance. Dental amalgam has been studied and reviewed extensively, and has established a record of safety and effectiveness. 

My position:  I do find suspect extremely alarmist claims put forth by some anti-mercurial critics, especially those selling costly remedies.  On the other hand, it is wrong to denigrate or ridicule those who may be rightly concerned over long term chronic effects of mercurial poisoning from amalgams.

The ADA is way out of line if they censor dentists for removing amalgams.  This is a legitimate issue.  Dr. Russell Erickson DDS of Portland Oregon probably reflexes my views best.  You can read his take on the controversy by clicking here.

Dr. Erickson listens to his patients and to some extent agree with their concerns over the mercury in their teeth.  Read his position.

Cancer Prevention and Alternative Treatments

Ty Bollinger in his book Cancer - Step Outside the Box  claims natural, low cost measures and treatments are the best way to prevent and even cure cancer.  He asserts that traditional western medicine is very expensive and mostly ineffective in its approach to cancer, using only a slash (operate), burn (radiation) and poison (chemotherapy) methodology which, Ty claims, is often counter productive.

I recently read Cancer - Step Outside the Box and will comment on it in this and upcoming blogs.  I will try to be open minded, not biasing myself toward or away from Ty's view.

If you haven't read Ty's book, but would like to get an overview, you can see his website at www.cancertutor.com

Traditional Approaches to Cancer Prevention and Cure

Prevention:  Not a lot, you are encouraged to quit smoking, stay out of the sun, and to some extent avoid toxic chemicals (as in precautionary labels on household products).

Cures: Primarily surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy.  We will get more into this later

Alternative, Natural Approaches to Cancer Prevention and Cure

Prevention:  There is a wealth of preventive measures that natural practitioners recommend in addition to the measures recommended by traditional sources.  Some are avoiding chemicals by eating organic foods, avoiding red meat, and avoiding sugar.  We will look at these closely as some of them make quite a bit of sense.

Cures:  Yes, in Ty's book he claims that natural and much much less expensive methods will cure cancer.  Here things can get controversial.  In upcoming blogs we will investigate these supposed cures a little closer.

Eskimos, Fat and Health

Several years ago, at the peak of the low fat craze, I read an article about Eskimos.  You see, Eskimos eat (or at least used to eat) a diet high in fat -- lots of seal blubber and fatty fish.  According to the thinking of the time this had to be bad as high fat causes heart disease.  Right?  But, no the Eskimos actually had a very low incidence of heart disease.  How could that be?

One theory was that Eskimos were genetically adapted to high fat and thus had low heart disease rates.  This, however, is not true.  Once Eskimos became "civilized" and ate a standard western diet their incidence of heart disease rocketed up.

So, what is going on here?

Well, now it is known that it is not the amount of fat in your diet that matters, it is the type of fat.  Fat from wild animals such as seals is high in Omega-3 fats.  This is why the high fat Eskimo diet is healthy.  Fat in domestically raised, grain fed animals, however, is low in Omega-3 fat and high in Omega-6 fats.

Food high in Omega-6 fats and refined foods such sugars and grains is inflammatory to the human body.  This is the real explanation of why western societies have high incidences of heart disease, diabetes and other chronic illnesses.

Moral of the story:  Keep the most of your diet in organic vegetables, non-refined foods and wild meats.  I know it is rather hard to find seal blubber but any wild meat such as fish (sardines are great), deer, bison etc. is high in Omega-3 fats.  Avoid processed foods (most cans and packages) as they are high sugar, salt and refined carbohydrates.  Avoid most grocery store beef, pork and chicken as it is from grain fed animals which may also give you unwanted feed additives such as hormones and antibiotics.  Because processed foods are usually high in salt (check the label) you increase your probability of getting a stroke.