|
FDA Claims "Cherries" May Now be a Drug
More than 2,000 years ago, Hippocrates, the "Father of Medicine," wrote, "Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food." This is wise advice, indeed. Just don't try to market food as medicine because the FDA might not approve. Recently, more than 20 companies that produce and market products made from tart cherries and cherry juice concentrate were issued warning letters from the government agency.
Tart cherries, like many fruits and vegetables, contain numerous antioxidants and flavonoids that are known to promote health and have been shown to improve certain conditions, including arthritis pain. But according to the FDA, advertising the healing properties of tart cherries causes them to be considered a "drug." And any company that sells a "drug" must have an approved "New Drug Application" on file, proving that its drug is safe and effective.
Editor's Comment: What a crock! Do you really think this is about "proving" that cherries are safe? I don’t think so. In my view this is just Big Brother running interference for Big Pharma under the guise of consumer protection. It is especially telling that the FDA singled out several offending claims where customers of these companies "stopped taking drugs for arthritis pain" after consuming tart cherries.
Hippocrates was right. Food is medicine. But today's medical profession barely works with diet, instead promoting the prescription of profitable chemicals to repair the damage done from decades of poor lifestyle choices. And the pharmaceutically compliant FDA ensures that foods (real medicine)...read entire article
Get More than 20 Health Benefits from One Single Source
What if there was a magic pill that could raise your children's IQ, improve their behavior, and cause them to pay more attention in the classroom? And what if the same pill could improve your cholesterol and triglycerides, reduce inflammation, and lower your risk of heart attack and stroke?
But that's not all. The same magic pill would also reduce the risk of cancer and diabetes, improve arthritis symptoms, foster weight loss, reduce asthma and allergies, increase fertility and improve sexual function, fight cognitive decline, reduce wrinkles, improve skin tone, and increase your overall energy.
It might sound too good be true, but it's not. All of these health benefits - and many more - are right at your fingertips. read entire article
Lifestyle and Diet Changes Help Fight Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men. Approximately 200,000 new cases are diagnosed every year and there are approximately 31,000 deaths from the disease annually.
Making dietary changes and exercising on a regular basis may slow the progress of prostate cancer.
Studies from around the world suggest that staying within a healthy weight range and eating more plant-based foods and fewer animal products can possibly delay or prevent the development of prostate cancer.
Evidence is mounting that foods...read entire article
YES! Soft Drink Users Are Down!
 For the first time in more than 15 years, more adults drink a cup of coffee daily than drink a soft drink daily. A survey of nearly 3,000 adults found that 57 percent said they drank coffee every day (up from 56 percent last year), but only 51 percent drank a soft drink daily, down a remarkable six percentage points from just a year ago.
Once-a-week coffee drinkers came in at 67 percent, down from 68 percent in 2006. Gourmet coffee drinkers also dropped slightly, from 16 percent to 14 percent.
The survey has a margin of error of three percentage points, and has been conducted every year since 1950.
--Reuters March 3, 2007
Don't be Fooled by a Whole-Wheat Doughnut
 Krispy Kreme has introduced a whole wheat, caramel-flavored glaze doughnut, containing 180 calories. In comparison, a typical doughnut has 400 to as much as 650 calories.
Editors Comment: Here is an example of a company seeking to take advantage of the health conscious eaters. It is patently obvious to anyone but the ill-informed that whole-wheat doughnuts aren't a any healthier than the regular ones. Doughnuts are one of the worst foods you could eat, certainly one of the worst five at least. Another snack-food giant, Hostess, has also just joined the calorie-conscious fray, introducing 100-Calorie Packs of three tiny cupcakes, marketed as "portion-controlled convenience." Portion-controlled convenience? What a joke, they help you eat less of a bad food. Next thing you know they will be telling you may live longer because you’re eating less of their junk.
A Sunny Treatment for Alzheimer's
 Over the course of a small study, researchers at the University of Wisconsin uncovered strong links between low levels of vitamin D in Alzheimer's patients and poor outcomes on cognitive tests.
Scientists launched the study after family members of Alzheimer's patients who were treated with large doses of prescription vitamin D reported that they were acting and performing better than before.
Researchers believe that optimal vitamin D levels may enhance the amount of important chemicals in the brain and protect brain cells.
Other recent studies have indicated that vitamin D and sunlight exposure can substantially reduce the risk of cancer, the flu, diabetes, heart disease, autoimmune diseases and neurological disorders. Vitamin D plays a role in the activation of at least 100 genes, many of which are involved in disease prevention. What's the best way to increase Vitamin D? If you guessed sunshine you are correct. Now if you want more sunshine but are you concerned about sunburn or overexposure? Read about Tanamins, our over exposure solution.
---Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, January 8, 2007 |
