VITAMINS HAVE NEVER KILLED ANYONE

I am sure everyone is buzzing about the fallacious news stories from the last couple of days that are telling you taking vitamins is risky for your health.  Every time I hear reports on these studies I get mad.  I get more so when I hear the local ABC outlet news anchor say she does fair and balanced reporting.
If her reporting was fair and balanced she would include the following information from Mitch Stargrove an ND I have known over some years:
It is not advisable to make a causal statement of excess risk based on these observational data..." Without proper accounting of and informed choices for form, dose, combination, sequencing of nutrients this data says little of clinical consequence. Moreover, the fundamental premise of natural medicine is personalized and evolving care in concert with a healthcare professional trained and experienced in nutritional therapies. All contemplated supplement usage should be discussed with primary care providers, such as (licensed) naturopathic physicians, who are trained in their appropriate, prudent and proper usage. Lastly, reliance of foods, i.e., fruits and vegetables, is not what it used to be. Solid research shows that the nutrient content of commercially grown foods sold in the USA has declined markedly over the past 30 years; presumably due to industrial/petrochemical agribusiness practices and priorities. Other problematic factors have been mentioned by previous responses to this alarmist declaration which reveals a hostile and prejudiced posture in the conventional medical world that does not serve the patient's best interests nor the methodology of science and discovery.


The only concern I have fore vitamins used by people over 40 is iron unless the person is clearly anemic.  Iron is known to be a higher risk of heart attack in this age group.


Zinc is important for immune support and endocrine health.  If elevated Copper is usually low.  Too much copper is a risk but reputable supplements know the safe limits.


Magnesium is good for the brain and nervous system just like the B vitamins.  Magnesium is usually deficient especially if you are using Rx drugs. 


Many forms of calcium are not well absorbed and yet this "study" tells you to take it.


If you need help deciding on your supplements we offer this service through our Health Forensics programs. Email us for more information.


I'll continue taking my vitamins, Thank you!


From Natural Products Insider


Then consider this from MedPage Today

Readers Say Vitamin Levels Should Be Checked Yearly

By Chris Kaiser

Cardiology Editor, MedPage Today Published: October 07, 2011

Processed foods, mineral-depleted soil, overcooked vegetables, increased stress levels -- all of these increase the chances of having a vitamin deficiency, according to a vocal majority ofMedPage Today readers who commented on last week's poll. We asked readers if and when patients should be assessed for vitamin deficiencies. Of the more than 2,200 votes, 69% said that patients' vitamin levels should be assessed at least annually. "I cannot remember how many patients have been rescued from dementia and psychosis by B12, especially when I have a geriatric focus," said one doctor, who also touted vitamin D, calcium, fish oil, and thyroid testing. "Everybody deserves a look about once a year." But once a year was not enough for some (9% said every visit) and too much for others. One cardiologist said he or she tests vitamin levels every six months with a "pick up rate over 25%." Another commenter said that yearly testing seems too frequent. "Getting a baseline every five years with additional testing as needed seems better." We received several anecdotal accounts about vitamin deficiency being caught, but only when the patient requested the test. "I was diagnosed with severe insufficiency of vitamin D and only had it tested because I requested it," said one woman, who added that her mother and daughter were subsequently found to be vitamin D-deficient. "I have just been rescued from severely low vitamin D levels, and my daughter has been found to have low vitamin levels as well. I wish my doctors had been checking levels all along," noted another MedPage Today reader. And another expressed similar exasperation. "It was not until I was diagnosed with osteoporosis that I had a vitamin D 25-OH test, and found out that despite being outside every day, my level was insufficient. By then it was too late. I am very disappointed that my physician did not order this inexpensive test years ago. Now, I have asked for a B12 test as well." One woman's B12 deficiency mimicked multiple sclerosis and she went through a battery of tests before a neurologist ordered vitamin testing for her. "It baffles me that insurance companies aren't pushing for annual vitamin testing, because so many conditions can be resolved with proper vitamin supplementation," wrote one woman, who also was found deficient in vitamin D after she requested the test. The comments also parsed the meaning of "recommended daily allowance" (RDA). Most agreed that the RDA is not meant to prevent disease states but more to support optimum health. "The original purpose of RDAs was to specify the amounts of various micronutrients needed by the 'average' person to guard against deficiency disease; the fact that a person does not have scurvy or anemia doesn't mean she/he is getting enough vitamin C or B12, respectively, to be as healthy as possible," wrote one commenter. But what is the root cause of vitamin deficiency? "We need to start with nutrition," was how one physician simply put it. Others, as well, chimed in with the notion that vitamin deficiencies and chronic diseases are symptoms of malnourishment, which is symptomatic of poor eating habits. As expressed by one European, "Ultimately, there is simply no substitute for a healthy diet. Sadly, American diets often lean toward processed foods, which tend to be low in nearly every (micro)nutrient other than sodium." "Healthy eating is almost nonexistent today," said another commenter. "Processed and modified foods simply are not as nutrient-dense as their counterparts were perhaps 20 years ago." And, as usual, we had at least one post worthy of going in the X-file. "I wonder how much this 'concern' is being driven by yet more EU 'directives' banning the sale of 'natural' additives and supplements," this commenter wrote. "Whilst the profession should remain wary of too close an 'association' with what is considered as 'Big Pharma,' we should also remain acutely aware of signs and symptoms of deficiencies which have been known and recognized for centuries. The prescribing decisions must always be made as a result of knowledge, not some bureaucratic nonsense from an invisible and unaccountable back-room mandarin with several bees in his bonnet and 'fees' to be earned!" And now the meaningless study - Dec 27, 2009 NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – An analysis of "real-world" clinical data indicates that vitamin E, and drugs that reduce generalized inflammation, may slow the decline of mental and physical abilities in people with Alzheimer's ...

Dietary Supplements Linked to Higher Death Risk

By Todd Neale, Senior Staff Writer, MedPage Today Published: October 10, 2011 Reviewed by Zalman S. Agus, MD; Emeritus Professor University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Dorothy Caputo, MA, RN, BC-ADM, CDE, Nurse Planner In postmenopausal women, the use of several common vitamin and mineral supplements was associated with an increased risk of death, researchers found. After adjustment for multiple potential confounders, use of multivitamins and vitamin B6, folic acid, iron, magnesium, zinc, and copper supplements was associated with greater all-cause mortality through 19 years of follow-up (HRs 1.06 to 1.45), according to Jaakko Mursu, PhD, of the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio, and colleagues. Use of a daily calcium supplement, on the other hand, was associated with a lower risk of death (HR 0.91, 95% CI 0.88 to 0.94), the team reported in the Oct. 10 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

"Based on existing evidence, we see little justification for the general and widespread use of dietary supplements," they wrote, citing a body of literature generally supporting no association with mortality, with some suggestions of harm. "We recommend that they be used with strong medically based cause, such as symptomatic nutrient deficiency disease." "We cannot recommend the use of vitamin and mineral supplements as a preventive measure, at least not in a well-nourished population," they wrote. "Those supplements do not replace or add to the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables and may cause unwanted health consequences." Taking dietary supplements to improve health and prevent diseases is widespread, with about half of U.S. adults using one or more in 2000, according to Mursu and colleagues. Annual sales top $20 billion. The long-term impact of supplementation is unknown, however, and some studies have suggested a relationship between supplements and increased mortality. As Rita Redberg, MD, of the University of California San Francisco, wrote in an editor's note, "manufacturers are not required to disclose to the FDA or to consumers the evidence they have regarding their products' safety, nor must they empirically back up claims of purported benefits." In light of this uncertainty, Mursu and colleagues examined the use of vitamin and mineral supplements among 38,772 postmenopausal women participating in the Iowa Women's Health Study. The mean age of the women at baseline in 1986 was 61.6. The participants reported their use of supplements in 1986, 1997, and 2004. The percentage who reported using at least one supplement daily increased from 62.7% to 85.1% during the study. In 2004, more than one-quarter of the women (27%) said they used four or more. The most commonly used supplements were calcium, multivitamins, vitamin C, and vitamin E. Through 2008, 40.2% of the women died. After adjustment for demographics, dietary and lifestyle factors, comorbidities, and use of hormone replacement therapy, the following supplements were associated with a greater risk of death during follow-up: Multivitamins: HR 1.06 (95% CI 1.02 to 1.10) Magnesium: HR 1.08 (95% CI 1.01 to 1.15) Zinc: HR 1.08 (95% CI 1.01 to 1.15) Iron: HR 1.10 (95% CI 1.03 to 1.17) Vitamin B6: HR 1.10 (95% CI 1.01 to 1.21) Folic acid: HR 1.15 (95% CI 1.00 to 1.32) Copper: HR 1.45 (95% CI 1.20 to 1.75) Absolute increases in risk ranged from 2.4% with multivitamins to 18% with copper. After multivariate adjustment, use of calcium supplementation was associated with a lower risk of death (HR 0.91, 95% CI 0.88 to 0.94). The absolute risk reduction was 3.8%. To account for the multiple comparisons made, however, the researchers set a P value of less than 0.003 to establish significance. Only the increase associated with multivitamins, calcium, and copper remained significant using this threshold. "However, many of the additional statistical tests were confirmatory, strengthening confidence that findings were not explainable by chance," Mursu and colleagues noted. In particular, the findings related to iron and calcium remained consistent when the analysis was restricted to follow-up from 1986 to 1996, from 1997 to 2003, and from 2004 to 2008. In addition, the mortality risk associated with iron supplementation increased in a dose-response fashion. The relationship was not significant for doses of 200 mg/day or less, but was significant for a dose of 201 to 400 mg/day (HR 1.35) and for a dose of 400 mg/day or more (HR 1.57). "Iron is suggested to catalyze reactions that produce oxidants and thus promote oxidative stress," the authors noted, acknowledging that they did not examine possible mechanisms in the current study. "However, we cannot rule out the possibility that the increase in total mortality rate was caused by illnesses for which use of iron supplements is indicated," they wrote. "Chronic disease, major injury, and/or operations may cause anemia, which is then treated with supplemental iron. However, we could find no evidence for such reverse causality." In their commentary, Bjelakovic and Gluud said that "one should consider the likely U-shaped relationship between micronutrient status and health," with risks associated with both insufficient and excessive intake. "Therefore, we believe that politicians and regulatory authorities should wake up to their responsibility to allow only safe products on the market," they wrote. Added Redberg, "A better investment in health would be eating more fruits and vegetables, among other activities. Because commonly used vitamin and mineral supplements have no known benefit on mortality rate and have been shown to confer risk, this article has been given our 'Less Is More' designation." Mursu and colleagues noted that their study was limited by the possibility of residual confounding and changes in supplement use during the study, the inability to exclude the chance that some supplements were taken in response to symptoms or clinical disease, the lack of data on nutritional status or detailed information on the supplements used, and the study sample comprised of white women, which limits the generalizability of the findings. The study was partially supported by grants from the National Cancer Institute and the Academy of Finland, by the Finnish Cultural Foundation, and by the Fulbright program's Research Grant for a Junior Scholar. One of Mursu's co-authors is an unpaid member of the scientific advisory board of the California Walnut Commission. Bjelakovic and Gluud reported that they had no conflicts of interest. Primary source: Archives of Internal Medicine Source reference: Mursu J, et al "Dietary supplements and mortality rate in older women: the Iowa Women's Health Study" Arch Intern Med 2011; 171: 1625-1633. Additional source: Archives of Internal Medicine Source reference: Bjelakovic G, Gluud C "Vitamin and mineral supplement use in relation to all-cause mortality in the Iowa Women's Health Study" Arch Intern Med 2011; 171: 1633-1634. Selections from Natural Health News

Natural Health News: Vitamins for Alzheimer's

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: More Vitamins Please

Oct 13, 2008

More Vitamins Please. In the long ago days of the youth of my children our pediatrician rather naturally had us offer liquid vitamin drops daily from infancy onward. Back then it was common to find 400 to 800 IU 0f ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Good News About Vitamins

May 25, 2010

Good News About Vitamins. That TV Doctor Lisa Masterson would just love you to believe her propaganda force fed to medical students and reinforced by mainstream media that all you need for good nutrition is a healthy ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Vitality from Vitamins

Jul 03, 2008

Fatty meals may cloud the brains of people with type 2 diabetes, but antioxidant vitamins can help clear the fog, Canadian researchers demonstrated in a study they conducted. The findings suggest, the researchers say, ...

Vitamin C for Alzheimer's

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have discovered a new function for vitamin C. Treatment with vitamin C can dissolve the toxic protein aggregates that build up in the brain in Alzheimer’s disease. The research findings are now being presented in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

The brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease contain lumps of so-called amyloid plaques which consist of misfolded protein aggregates. They cause nerve cell death in the brain and the first nerves to be attacked are the ones in the brain’s memory centre.  Complete article

Selections from Natural Health News

Natural Health News: Vitamins for Alzheimer's

Dec 27, 2009

All of the patients were receiving standard-of-care treatment with a drug intended to help patients with Alzheimer's. As part of their clinical care, 208 patients also took vitamin E but no anti-inflammatory, ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Alzheimer's: What you won't see on HBO series

May 11, 2009

New research shows that Natto enzyme also has the ability to cleave and degrade the amyloid protein deposits that characterize Alzheimer's disease. That makes Natto one of the only known compounds with this crucial ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Cancer, Alzheimer's

Sep 12, 2010

Vitamins for Alzheimer's. July 2011 Ranks now in the TOP10 out of 3.9 M Access the May 2007 issue of herbal YODA Says! that focuses on vitamin B12 with a do... Links. Alchemille's Garden · Anne Vis · Before It's News ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: Alzheimer's drugs double death risk

Jan 10, 2009

Another issue to consider above most for problems with Alzheimer's disease. Fluoride suppresses proper function of the thyroid gland. As I have mentioned elsewhere, 67% of people in Alzheimer's care facilities in 1998 ...

If vitamins are so bad why is FDA giving them to PhRMA

Update: April 2011 - CDC: Half of US adults take vitamins, supplements

By MIKE STOBBE, AP Medical WriterWed Apr 13, 1:50 pm ET

ATLANTA – About half of U.S. adults take vitamins and other dietary supplements — a level that's been holding steady for much of the past decade, new government figures show.

But the data also show a booming number of older women are taking calcium.

Federal officials released figures Wednesday showing that the use of dietary supplements has grown since the early 1990s when it was about 42 percent. The data shows use leveled off in 2003 through 2008, with about half of adults 20 and older taking at least one dietary supplement.

The biggest change was for calcium. Two-thirds of women 60 and older take it, up from 28 percent in the early 1990s.

Experts note the ranks of the elderly have been growing, and include many women who have been encouraged for years to take calcium to help protect against osteoporosis.

The information comes from national, in-home surveys in 1988-1994 and 2003-2008. The surveys in the past decade included more than 2,000 people each year. Interviewers not only asked participants what supplements they took, but also asked to see the bottles to verify their answers.

Use of multivitamins — the most popular supplement — crept up to nearly 40 percent.

Most people who take vitamins and other supplements are educated, have good incomes, eat pretty well and already get the nutrients they need from their diets, the surveys suggests.

"It's almost like the people who are taking them aren't the people who need them," said Regan Bailey, a nutritional epidemiologist with the National Institutes of Health.

Federal surveys have only recently started asking people why they take supplements, Bailey said.

The government supports some supplements as an option for certain people — such as iron for women who are pregnant, folic acid for women thinking of getting pregnant and calcium for older women.

But health officials say people should talk to their doctors first, and consider enriched foods that can accomplish the same goal.

Much of the new data is in a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report released Wednesday. SOURCE

Online: CDC report: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs

Read more on Natural Health News

March 2011

Don’t Be a Victim of Drug Company Propaganda

It is in the economic interests of drug companies to steer Americans away from healthier lifestyles and dietary supplements. As more Americans fall ill to degenerative disease, drug company profits increase exponentially.

Enormous amounts of pharmaceutical dollars are spent influencing Congress, the FDA, and other federal agencies. The result is the promulgation of policies that cause Americans to be deprived of effective, low-cost means of protecting themselves against age-related disease.
The fact that the diets of more than 90% of Americans supply less than the 12 milligrams a day of vitamin E the government proclaims to be adequate is a startling revelation. It documents an epidemic deficiency of vitamin E among Americans who do not take supplements. Despite these grim statistics, the medical establishment continues to question the value of supplemental vitamin E. SOURCE

APRIL 2010
Help protect your right to supplements -

Alert: Protect Your Right To Natural and Bio-available Vitamin B-6!
ANH-USA On April 6, 2010 @ 3:18 pm

Human beings cannot live without vitamin B-6. It is also important for the prevention of cancer and the prevention and treatment of seizures, anemia, mental disorders including schizophrenia, carpal tunnel syndrome, and other conditions. Its effect on carpal tunnel can seem almost miraculous [1].

A natural form of the vitamin, Pyridoxamine, was recently yanked off the market by the FDA. Why? Because a pharmaceutical company, BioStratum, wanted sole use of pyridoxamine in a drug, a drug which may or may not ever appear. The company filed a so-called citizens petition and the FDA agreed, notwithstanding protests from ANH-USA, other organizations, and thousands of citizens. You might ask: how can Pharma take a supplement off the market and claim exclusive use of it as a prescription drug? The FDA does not presently feel obligated to answer this question.

Unfortunately, this isn’t all the bad news about vitamin B6. All forms of B-6, natural or synthetic, must be converted to P5P, another natural form, for the body to use it. Another drug company, Medicure Pharma, wants sole use of P5P and so has petitioned the FDA to ban its use as a supplement as well.

Medicure has yet to market a drug made from P5P, but wants the ban to take place now. And never mind that any individual unable to convert synthetic B6 to P5P would have to rely solely on Medicure’s product to stay alive.

How does Medicure think it can get away with this? Its petition states rather candidly: “Pharmaceutical companies developing new drugs must be protected from companies that may seek to market the ingredients in those drugs as dietary supplements. The marketing of such products has the potential to undermine the incentive for the development of new drugs because many people may choose to purchase the supplements rather than the drugs.”

This is not of course a case of supplement producers creating a product to compete with an existing prescription drug. It is just the reverse. P5P, the natural and bioactive form of B6, has existed in food for as long as there have been humans and has been available as a supplement for years. Medicure seems to be saying: If it seems profitable, let’s just turn a critical vitamin, one essential for human life, into a drug, make it available only by subscription, and mark up the price. This is truly outrageous.

The FDA has not yet responded to Medicure’s petition. We have asked you in the past to send a message to the FDA and Congress protesting Medicure’s P5P grab, and the time has come to send some more messages. So if you haven’t sent in a message to the FDA and Congress yet, or even if you have, please send one today [2].

[2]

While we are discussing Vitamin B6, here is the latest scientific report. An analysis of 13 U.S., European and Asian studies of vitamin B6 and colon cancer, conducted from 2002-2009, has been published in a special edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Studies of the range of B6 doses found that vitamin B6 taken in higher doses reduced the risk of colon cancer by 21 percent. In one study, Dr. Susanna Larsson and her colleagues at Sweden’s National Institute of Environmental Medicine reported an inverse relationship between the intake of vitamin B6 or pyridoxine and the risk of colon cancer. Dr. Larsson linked the effect to bloodstream levels of pyridoxal-phosphate (PLP), the main active coenzyme form of vitamin B6 [3]. Pyridoxal-phosphate is also known as pyridoxal 5-phosphate or (as we referred to it above) P5P.

Don’t let the FDA take away our access to the natural and most bioavailable form of B6, P5P. Please take action now [2].


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Article printed from Alliance for Natural Health – US: http://www.anh-usa.org

URL to article: http://www.anh-usa.org/alert-protect-your-right-to-natural-and-bio-available-vitamin-b-6/

URLs in this post:

[1] Its effect on carpal tunnel can seem almost miraculous: http://search.vitasearch.com/search?q=pyridoxine+carpal+tunnel+syndrome&restrict=Summaries&site=CP&client=CP&proxystylesheet=CP&output=xml_no_dtd&filter=0&getfields=*

[2] please send one today: https://secure3.convio.net/aahf/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=334

[3] inked the effect to bloodstream levels of pyridoxal-phosphate (PLP), the main active coenzyme form of vitamin B6: http://www.physorg.com/print187978106.html

Where are the Niacin Studies for Schizophrenia?

from November 2009, timely today in regard to the discussion about psychiatry currently in the news.

Natural Mental Health

UPDATE 12/21 - Food Sources of Niacin (B3)

UPDATE: 12/18 - If you have been a proponent of natural mental health you would already have known that omega 3 EFAs have been an effective help to many who live with several mental health issues.

BETHESDA, Md., Dec. 18 (UPI) -- Deficiencies in omega-3 fatty acids may be a factor in mental illnesses, U.S. researchers suggest.

The study, published in Behavioral Neuroscience, named two omega-3 fatty acids -- docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid -- as key to maintaining a nervous system capable of avoiding sensory overload.

The researchers suggest low omega-3 may be linked to the information-processing problems found in people with afflictions of the nervous system including schizophrenia and bipolar, obsessive-compulsive, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorders.

The researchers looked at nervous system function in the offspring of four groups of pregnant mice that had been fed different diets with no or varying types and amounts of omega-3s. Only the mice raised on the two omega-3 fatty acids showed normal, adaptive sensorimotor nervous responses that did not result in the animals being perpetually startled and easily overwhelmed by sensory stimuli.

"It is an uphill battle now to reverse the message that 'fats are bad,' and to increase omega-3 fats in our diet," study leader Norman Salem Jr. of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in Bethesda said in a statement.

-----------------------------------------------------
Travelling back some 50 or more years ago there were some members of the medical profession who took a totally different look at mental health issues.  Instead of fluoride based anti-psychotics, these courageous fellows relied on nutritional supplementation and effectively treated thousands of people diagnosed as schizophrenic.

And to make it all the more respectable, numerous scientific reports were issued on this care that came to be known as orthomolecular medicine.

And you might wonder why PubMed fails to include the orthomolecular journal so you might be more able to find related data.

Schizophrenia and Schizoaffective Disorders
Double blind controlled therapeutic trials in Saskatchewan in 1952 showed that adding vitamin B-3 to the treatment then available, which was electro convulsive therapy, doubled the recovery rate. From this start, and corroborated by a large number of clinical studies and by one double blind corroborative study that was sponsored by National Institute of Mental Health, Washington, this early treatment has been refined and expanded. There are no negative studies. It now includes examination of the diet for possible food allergies; includes using optimum doses of vitamin B-3, which range from 3 to 12 or more grams daily; includes the use of vitamin C as an important antioxidant and other vitamins if needed, plus the best medication. As patients respond, the doses of medication and the nutrients are adjusted until the optimum doses of all nutrients and drugs is achieved. This treatment should be under medical control.

Nutrients Most Commonly Used For Schizophrenia and Schizo-Affective Disorders (under medical supervision):



* Vitamin B-3

* Vitamin C

* Vitamin B-6

* Zinc

* Vitamin B complex

* Selenium

Mood Disorders: Anxiety, Bipolar or Depression -
The following nutrients are helpful in controlling mood disorders (under medical supervision):


* Niacinamide

* B complex

* Vitamin C

* Folic acid

* Vitamin D

* Vitamin B-6
* Zinc citrate

* Essential fatty acids


In contrast to anti depressant medication I have not yet seen the type of warning issued by Professor Lana Watkins PhD, Duke University, who told the Annual meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society held in Denver, March 4, 2006, that current anti depressants increased the risk of dying from heart disease by 55 percent.

"Orthomolecular treatment does not lend itself to rapid drug-like control of symptoms, but patients get well to a degree not seen by tranquilizer therapists who believe orthomolecular therapists are prone to exaggeration. Those who've seen the results are astonished." 
---Abram Hoffer, M.D., Ph.D., 1917-2009

Read: http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2009/08/arthritis-drugs-pose-cancer-risk.html

FDA Okays New Antipsychotic for Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder
By Cole Petrochko, Staff Writer, MedPage Today, August 14, 2009

WASHINGTON -- The FDA approved the atypical antipsychotic asenapine (Saphris) for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder in adults, making it the first psychotropic drug to gain initial approval for both conditions.

The drug is indicated for first-line use in acute treatment of schizophrenia and of manic or mixed episodes in bipolar I disorder, with or without psychotic features.

FDA approval was based on data from more than 3,000 patients showing statistically significant efficacy versus placebo in acute schizophrenia trials and statistically significant reduction of bipolar mania symptoms versus placebo.

The drug showed signs of treating negative schizophrenia symptoms better than risperidone (Risperdal) in early clinical trials, but the advantage was not subsequently confirmed against olanzapine (Zyprexa, Zydis). (See APA: New Drug No Better for Negative Schizophrenia Symptoms)

Like other atypical antipsychotics, asenapine's side effects include sedation, weight gain, tardive dyskinesia, and diabetes risks. However, a clinical trial showed that asenapine's rate of weight gain was significantly lower than that experienced with olanzapine, a similar antipsychotic.

Atypical antipsychotics also show an increased likelihood of death in elderly patients treated for dementia-related psychosis.

The tablets are available in five and 10 mg doses and should be taken twice daily.

Manufacturer Schering-Plough said it plans to make the drug available in the fourth quarter of 2009.

A Fool is Born

I took some time this morning to motor about 12 miles down the road to my service dealer for my rig's regular 3000 mile checkup and service.

I carried a book with me to pass the time while I waited in the showroom of the once Chrysler dealer, now showcasing a 66 Dodge Charger while the used cars of their trade fill the lot.

I read my fascinating book, written in 1892, for a while then picked up a few of the magazines for perusal.

In the rack was an April 2010 issue of Reader's Digest. Featured on the cover was this article about vitamins you'll find below.

The first myth of this writer is the falsity of being able to get adequate nutrition, vitamins and minerals, from today's food, even if it is organic.

The "tooth fairy" reference is insulting and I have to wonder who is this woman's audience, really!

She further denigrates multi-vitamin-mineral caps as almost like taking poison.

This woman must not know that if people with diabetes took a daily multi of good quality it would go far to help offset the problems of the dis-ease.

Once Upon A Time real science found that vitamin E prevented and reversed heart disease.

Once Upon A Time real science found that vitamin A, not beta carotene alone, helped prevent and reverse pneumonia.

Once Upon A Time real science found that not only did vitamin C prevent colds but it prevented and cured many health problems.

Once Upon A Time real science found that vitamins have a major role in preventing and booting recovery from mainstream cancer therapy today.  There is even a PhD researcher that spends all of his effort at his university studying vitamins for cancer.  Plus he IS a published author!

Oh, and yes, vitamin D is really a helpful hormone and yes, too many are deficient, and 1000 units a day might not be enough to build up your reserve.

Fortunately for me I know that drugs may not always help you and the truth and lies about them are often hidden so you won't think that might not be your best choice.

Fortunately for me I know that there is real science behind the use of orthomolecular medicine for health.

And hopefully you'll now be a bit wiser that to believe in the following hype.

5 Vitamin Truths and Lies

Are you still relying on vitamins to keep you healthy? Learn the truth about which supplements help and which ones you can toss.

Once upon a time, you believed in the tooth fairy. You counted on the stability of housing prices and depended on bankers to be, well, dependable. And you figured that taking vitamins was good for you. Oh, it's painful when another myth gets shattered. Recent research suggests that a daily multi is a waste of money for most people—and there's growing evidence that some other old standbys may even hurt your health. Here's what you need to know.

Myth: A multivitamin can make up for a bad diet

An insurance policy in a pill? If only it were so.

Last year, researchers published new findings from the Women's Health Initiative, a long-term study of more than 160,000 midlife women. The data showed that multivitamin-takers are no healthier than those who don't pop the pills, at least when it comes to the big diseases—cancer, heart disease, stroke. "Even women with poor diets weren't helped by taking a multivitamin," says study author Marian Neuhouser, PhD, in the cancer prevention program at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, in Seattle. 

Vitamin supplements came into vogue in the early 1900s, when it was difficult or impossible for most people to get a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables year-round. Back then, vitamin-deficiency diseases weren't unheard-of: the bowed legs and deformed ribs of rickets (caused by a severe shortage of vitamin D) or the skin problems and mental confusion of pellagra (caused by a lack of the B vitamin niacin). But these days, you're extremely unlikely to be seriously deficient if you eat an average American diet, if only because many packaged foods are vitamin-enriched. Sure, most of us could do with a couple more daily servings of produce, but a multi doesn't do a good job at substituting for those. "Multivitamins have maybe two dozen ingredients—but plants have hundreds of other useful compounds," Neuhouser says. "If you just take a multivitamin, you're missing lots of compounds that may be providing benefits."

That said, there is one group that probably ought to keep taking a multi-vitamin: women of reproductive age. The supplement is insurance in case of pregnancy. A woman who gets adequate amounts of the B vitamin folate is much less likely to have a baby with a birth defect affecting the spinal cord. Since the spinal cord starts to develop extremely early—before a woman may know she's pregnant—the safest course is for her to take 400 micrograms of folic acid (the synthetic form of folate) daily. And a multi is an easy way to get it. 

Myth: Vitamin C is a cold fighter

In the 1970s, Nobel laureate Linus Pauling popularized the idea that vitamin C could prevent colds. Today, drugstores are full of vitamin C–based remedies. Studies say: Buyer, beware.

In 2007, researchers analyzed a raft of studies going back several decades and involving more than 11,000 subjects to arrive at a disappointing conclusion: Vitamin C didn't ward off colds, except among marathoners, skiers, and soldiers on subarctic exercises.

Of course, prevention isn't the only game in town. Can the vitamin cut the length of colds? Yes and no. Taking the vitamin daily does seem to reduce the time you'll spend sniffling—but not enough to notice. Adults typically have cold symptoms for 12 days a year; a daily pill could cut that to 11 days. Kids might go from 28 days of runny noses to 24 per year. The researchers conclude that minor reductions like these don't justify the expense and bother of year-round pill-popping (taking C only after symptoms crop up doesn't help).

Myth: Vitamin pills can prevent heart disease 

Talk about exciting ideas—the notion that vitamin supplements might help lower the toll of some of our most damaging chronic diseases turned a sleepy area of research into a sizzling-hot one. These high hopes came in part from the observation that vitamin-takers were less likely to develop heart disease. Even at the time, researchers knew the finding might just reflect what's called the healthy user effect—meaning that vitamin devotees are more likely to exercise, eat right, and resist the temptations of tobacco and other bad habits. But it was also possible that antioxidant vitamins like C, E, and beta-carotene could prevent heart disease by reducing the buildup of artery-clogging plaque. B vitamins were promising, too, because folate, B6, and B12 help break down the amino acid homocysteine—and high levels of homocysteine have been linked to heart disease.

Unfortunately, none of those hopes have panned out. 

An analysis of seven vitamin E trials concluded that it didn't cut the risk of stroke or of death from heart disease. The study also scrutinized eight beta-carotene studies and determined that, rather than prevent heart disease, those supplements produced a slight increase in the risk of death. Other big studies have shown vitamin C failing to deliver. As for B vitamins, research shows that yes, these do cut homocysteine levels …but no, that doesn't make a dent in heart danger. 

Don't take these pills, the American Heart Association says. Instead, the AHA offers some familiar advice: Eat a varied diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. 

Myth: Taking vitamins can protect against cancer 

Researchers know that unstable molecules called free radicals can damage your cells' DNA, upping the risk of cancer. They also know that antioxidants can stabilize free radicals, theoretically making them much less dangerous. So why not take some extra antioxidants to protect yourself against cancer? Because research so far has shown no good comes from popping such pills.

A number of studies have tried and failed to find a benefit, like a recent one that randomly assigned 5,442 women to take either a placebo or a B-vitamin combo. Over the course of more than seven years, all the women experienced similar rates of cancers and cancer deaths. In Neuhouser's enormous multivitamin study, that pill didn't offer any protection against cancer either. Nor did C, E, or beta-carotene in research done at Harvard Medical School. 

Myth: Hey, it can't hurt

The old thinking went something like this—sure, vitamin pills might not help you, but they can't hurt either. However, a series of large-scale studies has turned this thinking on its head, says Demetrius Albanes, MD, a nutritional epidemiologist at the National Cancer Institute.

The shift started with a big study of beta-carotene pills. It was meant to test whether the antioxidant could prevent lung cancer, but researchers instead detected surprising increases in lung cancer and deaths among male smokers who took the supplement. No one knew what to make of the result at first, but further studies have shown it wasn't a fluke—there's a real possibility that in some circumstances, antioxidant pills could actually promote cancer (in women as well as in men). Other studies have raised concerns that taking high doses of folic acid could raise the risk of colon cancer. Still others suggest a connection between high doses of some vitamins and heart disease. 

Vitamins are safe when you get them in food, but in pill form, they can act more like a drug, Albanes says—with the potential for unexpected and sometimes dangerous effects.

Truth: A pill that's worth taking

As studies have eroded the hopes placed in most vitamin supplements, one pill is looking better and better. Research suggests that vitamin D protects against a long list of ills: Men with adequate levels of D have about half the risk of heart attack as men who are deficient. And getting enough D appears to lower the risk of at least half a dozen cancers; indeed, epidemiologist Cedric Garland, MD, at the University of California, San Diego, believes that if Americans got sufficient amounts of vitamin D, 50,000 cases of colorectal cancer could be prevented each year.

But many—perhaps most—Americans fall short, according to research by epidemiologist Adit Ginde, MD, at the University of Colorado, Denver. Vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin: You make it when sunlight hits your skin. Yet thanks to sunscreen and workaholic (or TV-aholic) habits, most people don't make enough.

How much do you need? The Institute of Medicine is reassessing that right now; most experts expect a big boost from the current levels (200 to 600 IU daily). It's safe to take 1,000 IU per day, says Ginde. "We think most people need at least that much."

So here's the Reader's Digest Version of the truth about vitamins: Eat right, and supplement with vitamin D. That's a no-brainer coupled with a great bet—and that's no lie.

What a panel of doctors and others have to say about the RD nonsense...

"From start to finish, the Reader's Digest article, '5 Vitamin Truths and Lies' was one of the worst bits of propaganda I ever saw. There was not one word in it discussing the benefits of multivitamins, vitamin C, and studies supporting the use of vitamins for preventing cancer and heart disease. Not once was a single dose mentioned. This alone makes the entire effort a farce aimed at a readership that is relying on the publication for accurate information."
Allan N. Spreen, M.D. (Mesa, AZ)
"Vitamins are among the safest substances known. They have the most minimal side effects, even in large doses, compared with the death rate due to conventional drugs taken according to the manufacturers' advice. Vitamin C is among the most powerful immune modulators if given in large doses. Scare stories against the use of vitamins do the public no good."
Erik Paterson, M.D. (Vancouver, BC)
"This is not the first time Reader's Digest has written about "bad" vitamins, and they always seem to manage to put it on the front page. But look at their advertising: so much of it is for pharmaceutical drugs. No wonder the article states virtually nothing of the thousands of positive results with vitamins."
James A. Jackson, Ph.D. (Wichita, KS)
"The author of the Reader's Digest article has not understood the articles used to support her arguments. For example, with vitamin C and the common cold, the article appears to refer to the 2007 Cochrane report. However, this report has been updated frequently since 2007. The last update was on February 2nd of this year. Either the reporter did not read the up-to-date review, or she was unable to understand its content. The review applies only to low intakes, and contains major objections that studies of large doses and orthomolecular intakes were not included. All the data were for intakes far below the levels actually claimed to be effective. The summary of the paper does indeed give a misleading impression, but people might expect an intelligent reporter to check the rest of the report before giving advice."
Steve Hickey, Ph.D. (Manchester, UK)
"The material was not well-researched, and a bias was clearly in play. 15 pages of drug advertisements in that issue of Reader's Digest is very telling, indeed."
Thomas E. Levy, M.D. (Colorado Springs, CO)
"What a poor job! Reader's Digest needs to review the literature. Haven't they read any articles by Dr. Bruce Ames? Do they know what quantities of vitamin C ascorbic were used in the cold studies mentioned in their one-sided report? Do they know of the high doses that showed benefit? Do they know of the many studies that have reported benefit from vitamin E and carotenes? It's easy to be ignorant but biased. Before a magazine does such a public health disservice, first get the all the facts."
Michael J. Gonzalez, Ph.D. (San Juan, PR)
"As a family practitioner who has prescribed vitamins for many reasons, with beneficial results over the past 25 years, I have removed Reader's Digest from my waiting room. Unless there is a follow-up article disclaiming most of what was written, I will discourage my patients from reading Reader's Digest because of their biased and misleading information."
Stephen Faulkner, M.D. (Duncan, BC)
Owen Fonorow of The Vitamin C Foundation adds:
"Why did Reader's Digest deem it appropriate to publish unbalanced opinions about the value of vitamins in the April 2010 issue? A balanced report would have quoted experts from both sides of the argument. The negative studies of vitamins are biased, utilizing too small amounts, especially of vitamin C, to fairly evaluate the therapeutic use of the vitamins. There is a 70-year-long history of vitamin C research (now more than 80,000 papers) that consistently shows therapeutic results at higher dosages of many thousands of milligrams. Linus Pauling recommended at least 5,000 mg of vitamin C daily for reversing heart disease. It is a serious public health mistake for Reader's Digest to recommend against a multivitamin."
To give Reader's Digest one more chance at the truth, send your thoughts directly to the people responsible: RDEditorial_RDW@ReadersDigest.com
To learn more about how high doses of vitamins safely and effectively fight disease: http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/index.shtml

the above article is with thanks to a loyal reader!

Upper Respiratory Infection (URI) and Vitamin C
Naama Constantini, MD, DFM, FACSM, Dip. Sport Med. (CASM) Director-Sport Medicine Center, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, The Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem 4 Ha'razim St., Jerusalem, Israel

"The Effect Of Vitamin C On Upper Respiratory Infections In Adolescent Swimmers: A Randomized Trial,"
Eur J Pediatr, 2010 August 6; [Epub ahead of print]. 48142 (10/2010)

Yes, it worked! 

a beneficial role for vitamin C in sepsis

Research conducted at the University of Western Ontario and Lawson Health Research Institute has uncovered a beneficial role for vitamin C in sepsis, an immune system reaction to bacterial infection that results in the formation of blood clots, impaired blood flow and potential organ failure. The condition occurs mainly in infants, individuals with impaired immune systems, and older men and women. The current study's findings were reported in the November, 2010 issue of the journal Intensive Care Medicine.

Severe sepsis carries a mortality rate of 40 percent, according to University of Western Ontario Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry professor Karel Tyml. Capillaries that have been blocked by blood clots, caused by oxidative stress and activation of the blood clotting pathway, are the cause of multiple organ failure and death in septic patients. "There are many facets to sepsis, but the one we have focused on for the past 10 years is the plugging of capillaries," he noted. Dr Tyml's laboratory was the first to discover this phenomenon via the use of intravital microscopy.

In experiments with three strains of mice, Dr Tyml's team demonstrated that vitamin C administered intravenously early in the development of sepsis prevents capillary blockage as well as reverses the condition by restoring blood flow if administered later. Reversal of blood flow blockage by vitamin C appeared to be dependent upon the production of nitric oxide, which dislodges platelets from the capillary wall.

"Our research in mice with sepsis has found that early as well as delayed injections of vitamin C improves chance of survival significantly," Dr Tyml remarked. "Furthermore, the beneficial effect of a single bolus injection of vitamin C is long lasting and prevents capillary plugging for up to 24 hours post-injection."

"Vitamin C is cheap and safe," he added. "Previous studies have shown that it can be injected intravenously into patients with no side effects. It has the potential to significantly improve the outcome of sepsis patients world-wide. This could be especially beneficial in developing countries where sepsis is more common and expensive treatments are not affordable."