Lung cancer risk cut by eating raw garlic

Eating raw garlic twice a week could potentially halve the risk of developing lung cancer, according to a study published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research.

Researchers from the Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention in China carried out a population-based case control study between 2003 and 2010, to analyze the link between raw garlic consumption and lung cancer.

The researchers collected data from 1,424 lung cancer patients, alongside 4,543 healthy controls.

Data was compiled through face-to-face interviews with the participants, who were asked to answer a standard questionnaire disclosing information on diet and lifestyle habits, including how often they ate garlic and whether they smoked.

Results of the study showed that participants who consumed raw garlic on a regular basis as a part of their diet (two or more times a week), had a 44% decreased risk of developing lung cancer.

The study authors say:

"Protective association between intake of raw garlic and lung cancer has been observed with a dose-response pattern, suggesting that garlic may potentially serve as a chemo-preventive agent for lung cancer."

Lung cancer is the second most common type of cancer in both men and women. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 205,974 Americans were diagnosed with lung cancer in 2009.

Long-term smoking is the most common cause of lung cancer, found to account for 9 out of every 10 cases of the disease.

Interestingly, when looking specifically at participants who smoked, researchers found that eating raw garlic still decreased their risk of lung cancer by around 30%.

The researchers say that the link between garlic and lung cancer prevention warrant further in-depth investigation.

Previous research has also shown that consumption of garlic may have preventive properties against certain forms of cancer.

A study from the New York Presbyterian Hospital and Weill Cornell Medical Center suggested that a compound found in garlic, selenium, may possess an anti-cancer property

Other research from the Medical University of South Carolina, found that organosulfur compounds found in garlic may play a part in killing brain cancer cells.

The widely used herb has also been cited as preventing and treating other ailments, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.

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Children With Type 1 Diabetes Helped To Produce Their Own Insulin With Diet Additions

Adding foods rich in specific amino and fatty acids to the diets of youth with Type 1 diabetes kept them producing some of their own insulin for up to two years after diagnosis, said researchers at the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill."

The youth still required supplemental insulin, but they may have reduced risk of diabetes complications by continuing to produce some of their own insulin, said Elizabeth Mayer-Davis, professor of nutrition at Gillings and medicine at UNC's School of Medicine, who led the study of more than 1,300 youth. "This also opens the door for a new approach that could really benefit the lives of these children."

The study, "Nutritional Factors and Preservation of C-Peptide in Youth with Recently Diagnosed Type 1 Diabetes," was published in the July 2013 issue of the journal Diabetes Care.

The participating youngsters, ranging from toddlers up to age 20, are part of a multi-center "SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth," the largest U.S. study of childhood diabetes. Mayer-Davis is national co-chair of SEARCH, funded by the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health.

Type 1 diabetes is almost always diagnosed between infancy and young adulthood, according to the American Diabetes Association. The body's pancreas is unable to produce adequate amounts of the hormone insulin, required to metabolize food properly and create energy for the body's cells.

Leucine, one of the branched-chain amino acids researchers looked at, is known to stimulate secretion. It is found in dairy products, meats, soy products, eggs, nuts and products made with whole wheat. Long-chain omega-3 fatty acids are found in fatty fish such as salmon.

The researchers analyzed how much (if any) insulin the subjects were producing up to two years after their diagnosis and compared this with nutritional intake.

Mayer-Davis noted the study reflects subjects eating actual foods rich in these nutrients, not taking supplements.

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Harvard Scientists Urge You to Stop Drinking Milk

Vegans may have had it right all along; while raw, organic milk offers numerous health benefits, a Harvard

researcher and pediatrician argues that conventional milk and dairy products alike are a detriment to your health – thanks to added health-compromising sweeteners.

As David Ludwig mentioned in his research, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics, there have been countless pieces of research concluding the ill effects of sugar-sweetened beverages. The over-consumption of sugar has been tied to obesity, diabetes, inflammatory-related pain, and much more. And because of sugar’s negative effects on our health, even the United States Department of Agriculture, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and other organizations are recommending against consuming calories from sugary drinks.

The one calorie-containing beverage they still heavily promote, however, is reduced-fat milk, where the organization recommends drinking 3 cups daily. This is where Ludwig questions the scientific rationale for such recommendations.

“This recommendation to drink three cups a day of milk – it’s perhaps the most prevailing advice given to the American public about diet in the last half century. As a result, Americans are consuming billions of gallons of milk a year, presumably under the assumption that their bones would crumble without them,” says David Ludwig.

As far as Ludwig is concerned, if the USDA is recommending to drink reduced-fat milk, it is also inadvertently encouraging the consumption of added sugars – a piece of advice that goes against all the research saying not to consume sugar and sugar-sweetened beverages. The idea of consuming low-fat milk or chocolate milk cancels out the whole reasoning for the recommendation in the first place since the fats are simply being replaced with dangerous sugars.

“The worst possible situation is reduced-fat chocolate milk: you take out the fat, it’s less tasty. So to get kids to drink 3 cups a day, you get this sugar-sweetened beverage,” Ludwig says. ”…we can get plenty of calcium from a whole range of foods. On a gram for gram basis, cooked kale has more calcium than milk. Sardines, nuts seeds beans, green leafy vegetables are all sources of calcium.”

The Case Against Low-Fat Dairy, and Other Dangers of Milk

Harvard researcher David Ludwig certainly has a point in analyzing and ultimately criticizing the USDA’s recommendations, but there is much more to the full-fat vs reduced-fat argument for milk and dairy products.

There are plenty of reasons to avoid certain fats such as trans-fats and refined polyunsaturated fats in vegetable oils (like corn, soy, sunflower, and canola), but the evidence for moderate consumption of saturated fat, which is found in milk, coconut oil, and grass-fed land animals, is coming to the surface. While saturated fat was villainized for decades, a 2010 analysis published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition concluded that “there is no significant evidence for concluding that dietary saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of [coronary heart disease or cardiovascular disease].”

Further, there are numerous benefits to drinking full-fat dairy products. In it’s most pure state (raw, organic, and coming from grass-fed cows), full-fat dairy has been found in research to potentially promote heart health, control diabetes, aid in vitamin absorption, lower bowel cancer risk, and even aid in weight loss. But while pure dairy could promote your health, conventional dairy may prove damaging.

Before you consume more conventional dairy, please educate yourself as to what’s in your dairy. You’d be surprised that there could be 20+ painkillers, antibiotics, and much more lurking in your milk.

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Swedish Study Suggests Bipolar Disorder Associated With Premature Mortality

Bipolar disorder was associated with premature mortality in a large study of Swedish adults by Casey Crump, M.D., Ph.D., of Stanford University, California, and colleagues.

The study used outpatient and inpatient data from more than 6.5 million Swedish adults, including 6,618 with bipolar disorder, to examine the physical health effects associated with bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is a chronic mental illness and a leading cause of disability worldwide.

According to the results, women and men with bipolar disorder died nine and 8.5 years earlier on average, respectively, than the rest of the population. All-cause mortality was increased two-fold among women and men with bipolar disorder compared to the rest of the population. Patients with bipolar disorder also had increased mortality from cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), influenza or pneumonia, unintentional injuries and suicide for both women and men, and cancer for women only.

"Timely medical diagnosis appeared to improve chronic disease mortality among bipolar disorder patients to approach that of the general population. More effective provision of primary, preventive medical care is needed to reduce early mortality among persons with bipolar disorder," the study concludes.

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Artificals sweeteners may harm your health even no-calorie ones

A new research in Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism along with previous studies indicate that everyone should say goodbye to these no-calorie sweeteners for several important reasons you may not even realize.

What’s not so sweet about artificial sweeteners

If you believe no-calorie artificial sweeteners are safe and healthy, that they can help you lose weight or prevent you from gaining weight, and that they are good to use if you have diabetes, you would not be alone in these beliefs. However, a new study, as well as previous investigations, suggests quite the opposite.

Two thirds of Americans are either overweight or obese, so providing more products with artificial sweeteners should be a good thing, right? One area where consumption of diet products has risen steadily is diet drinks, with a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noting that diet beverage intake increased from 18 percent in 2000 to 21 percent in 2010 among women and from 14 percent to 19 percent among men during the same period.

However, drinking just one artificially sweetened beverage per day may increase your risk for a variety of health problems, including type 2 diabetes, obesity, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease. If you thought sugar-based drinks were associated with these same risks, you are right.

In fact, according to Susan E. Swithers of Purdue University, the author of a new study, the data to support claims that artificially sweetened drinks help with weight loss, weight gain prevention, and other benefits “are not very strong.” She also stated that “although it seems like common sense that diet sodas would not be as problematic as regular sodas, common sense is not always right.”

What might be considered common sense, however, is avoiding both artificially sweetened and sugar-sweetened beverages, since both types reportedly are associated with major health problems. The reason for this finding, according to the authors, seems to be that artificial sweeteners alter certain patterns in the brain’s pleasure regions, causing people who drink these beverages to not feel satisfied by the sweet taste.

In fact, when lab animals have been given artificial sweeteners, they have tended to highly desire more sweets. The result has been a tendency to overeat sugary, high-calorie foods and gain significant amounts of weight.

Thus the not-so-sweet news for anyone who has been consuming artificially sweetened beverages and foods is that “the intake of sugars needs to be expanded to limit intake of all sweeteners, not just sugars,” according to the study’s author. But there is more.

More health hazards from artificial sweeteners

Let’s look at some previous studies on artificial sweeteners and their potential hazards. Aspartame is a good place to begin, as there are reports that the chemical has a negative impact on brain function.

One new study from the Washington University School of Medicine looked at aspartame (e.g., Equal, NutraSweet) and its safety record. Investigators reported several concerns about aspartame:
Aspartame metabolizes into phenylalanine, aspartic acid, and methanol, and excess phenylalanine has an impact on serotonin and dopamine levels, which are hormones involved in the regulation of appetite, mood, and sleep.

One of aspartame’s metabolites, called diketopiperazine, has cancer-causing properties and plays a role in the development of tumors of the central nervous system. Thus use of foods and beverages that contain aspartame may pose a health hazard.

Other dangers of using artificial sweeteners relate to an increased risk of developing conditions associated with type 2 diabetes, including glucose resistance and insulin resistance. In particular, investigators at Washington University School of Medicine looked at Splenda (sucralose) and its impact on glucose and insulin resistance.

In the study, researchers evaluated the effect of artificial sweeteners among severely obese people who did not have diabetes and who did not use artificial sweeteners regularly. They found that use of an artificial sweetener “was related to an enhanced blood insulin and glucose response.”

A Danish study evaluated the impact of both sugar-based and artificially sweetened beverages on pregnant women. Overall the investigators discovered that high intake of both types of beverages is associated with an increased risk of preterm delivery.

A possible link between artificial sweeteners and cancer has long been debated, with scores of studies indicating an increased risk of various types of tumors in animal studies. Far fewer studies have examined the association in humans.

One example in the latter category is a study that was published in the December 2012 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The Boston-based researchers looked at the intake of artificially sweetened and sugar-based sodas and the risk of leukemia and lymphoma in adults.

The investigators reviewed data from the Nurses’ Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, spanning 22 years of information. They found an increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphomas and multiple myelomas among men (but not women) who consumed at least one diet soda daily when compared with men who did not drink diet soda.

The bottom line is that much controversy and debate surround the use of artificial sweeteners. Scores of studies in animals suggest their use can cause a variety of cancers, allergic reactions, and even neurological problems, yet authorities such as the Food and Drug Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the European Food Safety Authority, among others, have continued to declare these synthetic products are safe for human consumption.

A number of health experts and consumer advocate groups, such as Dr. Andrew Weil and the Center for Science in the Public Interest, have pointed out the health dangers of artificial sweeteners. Weil, for example, explains in a Prevention article that these synthetic sweeteners have “never been shown to help anyone lose weight, and some of them are downright bad for you.”

Weil also warned that “aspartame, saccharin, and sucralose all have been shown to increase the risk of some health problems, including obesity, headaches, and some types of cancer.” Are these products you want to feed to your children and yourself?

Evidence against the safety of artificial sweeteners continues to build, despite resistance from food industry manufacturers and others with a financial interest in their remaining on the market. Perhaps it’s time for everyone who is concerned about their health to say goodbye to artificial sweeteners.

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GlaxoSmithKline plc

Glaxo Wellcome plc and SmithKline Beecham plc merged in 2001 to become GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK), the largest pharmaceutical company in the world.

At present, private pharmaceutical companies control the development of new medicines. Profit margins, not global health needs, are what determine the next new drug. GlaxoSmithKline’s corporate motto is ‘committed to improving the quality of human life’. GSK has shown it’s commitment by suing the South African Government for trying to supply AIDS victims with medicine they can afford, knowingly producing toxic drugs, and by emitting more carcinogens than almost any other chemical producer in the UK.

Industry areas: Prescription Medicines, Vaccines, and Consumer Health Products [i.e. toothpaste, nutritional drinks and over the counter (OTC) medicine]

Market share and importance:

GlaxoSmithKline is the world’s largest pharmaceutical company. In 2000 GlaxoWellcome and SmithKline Beecham had a seven per cent share of the global pharmaceutical market, combined. In addition, the two combined companies accounted for 26 per cent of all vaccine sales, and 17 per cent of all anti-invectives (antibiotics, etc.).

History:

In January 2001 Glaxo Wellcome plc and SmithKline Beecham plc officially merged to become GlaxoSmithKline plc. GSK’s history dates back to 1715, when Plough Court pharmacy, a predecessor to SmithKline Beecham, was opened in London.

Glaxo Laboratories Limited (the predecessor to Glaxo Wellcome) was set up in 1929, with director Alec Nathan. “Nathan formed the company when it was discovered that their dried baby food ‘Glaxo’ was the cause of rickets in children. The first product Glaxo Laboratories Ltd produced was therefore Ostelin, a vitamin D concentrate to replace vitamins that were destroyed in the food drying process.”

From the 1930s onwards there was a flurry of mergers and acquisitions. The business of Glaxo Laboratories Ltd expanded greatly with the new market created by the founding of the National Health Service (NHS).[8] And in 1972 Beecham Group Ltd made an unsuccessful bid to buy Glaxo Group Ltd.

Products:

GlaxoSmithKline’s pharmaceuticals include the antidepressant Paxil/Seroxat the HIV/AIDS treatment Combivir, Zofran, a treatment for alcoholism, and Avandia a treatment for Type 2 diabetes.

Their Consumer Health Products [see Corporate Crimes, Animal Welfare] include Aquafresh Toothpaste, Tums antacid, Nicorette and the ‘nutritonal drinks’ Horlick’s, Lucozade and Ribena.

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El té verde: mucho más que antioxidantes

Además de ser un maravilloso antioxidante, esta infusión alivia problemas recurrentes de salud, de manera rápida y natural. Algunos de sus principales beneficios son:

Disminuye el riesgo de cáncer: las catequinas del té contienen sustancias anticancerígenas, gracias a los polifenoles. Según un estudio del Instituto Nacional del Cáncer de los Estados Unidos y también el Instituto del Cáncer de China, reveló que quienes bebían, al menos una taza de esta infusión a la semana, tuvieron el 57% menos de riesgo de padecer cáncer de esófago y en las mujeres, aumento a un 60%.

Quema grasas: al ser un agente de termogénesis, ayuda de manera natural a gastar más energías, conllevando un descenso de peso. Acelera el metabolismo mediante los polifenoles (sustancias antioxidantes), aceleran el metabolismo, ayudando a las enzimas digestivas a que trabajen mejor, logrando un efecto adelgazante. Y también, es diurético, es decir colabora el proceso de diuresis, depurando el organismo de toxinas acumuladas.

Reduce el estrés: ciertos compuestos de este té disminuyen la formación y la actividad de radicales libres, reduciendo el estrés. Asimismo, posee un aminoácido llamado L-teanina, cuyo efecto principal es la relajación, sin somnolencia y aumenta los niveles de hormona llamada dopamina que mejora el estado de ánimo.

Sin embargo, esas no son todas sus bondades, sino que sólo unas pocas. El té verde también reduce el riesgo de cáncer, previene enfermedades cardiovasculares, combate el envejecimiento, previene las arrugas, reduce el riesgo de artritis, fortalece los huesos, ayuda a bajar el colesterol, previene la obesidad, es bueno para la diabetes, fortalece la memoria, protege contra el mal de Parkinson, es hepatoprotector, previene la hipertensión, protege de intoxicaciones alimentarias, reduce los niveles de glucosa en la sangre, estimula la inmunidad, evita gripes y resfriados, alivia el asma, combate infecciones en los oídos, contribuye en el tratamiento contra el herpes, previene caries, reduce el estrés y alivia las alergias.

¿Cómo consumirlo?

Según la Escuela de Medicina de Harvard, se debe tomar una taza de té tres veces al día. La hierba debe permanecer en agua caliente de tres a cinco minutos y es mejor si se consume recién macerado.

El mejor momento para beberlo es entre comidas, ya que puede impedir la absorción de hierro de las frutas y vegetales. Y si prefieres tomarlo en el desayuno o durante la comida, el problema se soluciona añadiéndole limón o leche.

Por último, los médicos recomienda beberlo al menos, dos horas antes de dormir, para prevenir el insomnio.

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Bolivia busca la industrialización de la hoja de coca para su exportación

El presidente boliviano, Evo Morales, aplaudió los avances en la industrialización de la hoja de coca y los diversos productos que se elaboran en base a ese arbusto de uso tradicional y milenario en la región andina, y anunció gestiones con los países del ALBA (Alianza Bolivariana para los Pueblos de Nuestra América) para exportar mate de coca, por sus cualidades curativas, sobre todo para aliviar la diabetes.

En un acto público en el que inauguró la IV Feria de la Coca en la población de Padre Sama, en el trópico de Cochabamba, el Jefe de Estado ratificó su permanente defensa a la denominada 'hoja sagrada', de uso medicinal y ceremonial desde tiempos inmemoriales en Bolivia.

En ese marco, felicitó a los cocaleros de los Yungas, que inaugurarán en los próximos días una planta de producción de mate de coca en El Alto de La Paz, y pidió a los cocaleros del Chapare similar esfuerzo para abrir un mercado internacional de ese producto.

"Vamos a pedir a Sudamérica o Celac (Comunidad de Estados Latinoamericanos y Caribeños), especialmente a los países del ALBA que nos compren mate de coca, basado en los convenios internacionales. Si antes Estados Unidos compraba coca, ahora por qué los países del ALBA no pueden comprar mate de coca", argumentó.

El presidente boliviano dijo que los cultivadores de coca deben garantizar programas y proyectos para avanzar en la industrialización de la coca, mientras la obligación del Gobierno es garantizar el mercado.

"Yo tengo mucha confianza en los países del ALBA bajo convenios legales, basados en procedimientos internacionales exportar mate de coca para curar diabetes en toda Sudamérica y en los países del ALBA", fundamentó.

Una lucha política para ocnservar una tradición ancestral

El Primer Mandatario, que emergió a la vida política como dirigente sindical de los cultivadores de coca del trópico de Cochabamba, recordó la lucha de muchos años en defensa de la coca que, a su juicio, es parte de la cultura, de la identidad boliviana, que ha sido atacada, "porque detrás de la coca estaban intereses geopolíticos de Estados Unidos para dominar las naciones y para después saquear los recursos naturales".

"Defendiendo la coca hemos defendido la soberanía nacional, defendiendo la coca hemos defendiendo la economía nacional", fundamentó.

Aseguró que en Bolivia existe una cultura de consumo de la hoja de coca y no de cocaína, porque la coca en su estado natural no hace daño a la salud humana, al contrario, es una medicina como recordó, reconoció a principios del '90 la Universidad de Harvard, una de las más prestigiosas universidades de Estados Unidos, que "no solamente recomendó masticar, sino comer coca", por sus bondades medicinales.

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How High-Fat Extra Virgin Olive Oil is good for your immune system

One tablespoon of high-fat extra virgin olive oil can provide numerous benefits to the immune system.

Skip the butter and stick margarine in the kitchen and use oil — extra virgin olive — to improve your immune system. The consumption of this oil has increased dramatically in recent years with a United States purchase of 292,925 metric tons (MT) in 2011, reports the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS). This high-fat oil contains 73 grams of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and is popularly used as for frying and baking as a healthier replacement for vegetable oil. It can also serve as a dressing for salads. Its health benefits derive from its nutritional content of high MUFAs that are considered to be a healthy dietary fat. MUFAs have been linked to lower cholesterol and control the insulin levels in the body as they replace the saturated fats or trans fats that can increase LDL cholesterol levels and the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Extra virgin olive oil is a good source of antioxidants with vitamins E and K that can protect the body from oxygen-free radicals and promote healthy cognitive function, says the USDA. Implementing olive oil in cooking provides numerous health benefits if used correctly. The nutritional value of olive oil is affected by heat, light, and air. For storage, Mayo Clinic recommends to keep the oil in a dark, room-temperature cupboard or in the refrigerator to preserve the healthy fats and the taste that can wither over a long period of time.

Combats Inflammation

The phenolic compound — oleocanthal — found in olive oil has anti-inflammatory properties. A study from the Monell chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, Pa. examined the effects of daily intake of teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil on pain. Researchers found that four teaspoons of this high-fat oil per day for 12 weeks acted as an anti-inflammatory drug, such as ibuprofen, to reduce pain. While extra virgin oil and ibuprofen have the same effect on treating inflammation, they have different effects on the body. According to Science Daily, ibuprofen can increase bleeding and gastrointestinal damage whereas olive oil has no such effect on the body.

Tip: The amount of oleocanthal differs in olive oils. To see how strong the oleocanthal content is in an olive oil, you can take a sip and see how it stings the back of your throat. The stronger the sting, the more oleocanthal it has, says Arthritis Today.

Combats Diabetes

Diabetics are often told to limit their daily intake of dietary fat because they are at high risk of developing cardiovascular disease. In a landmark government study, it was determined that foods with high MUFAs does not cause weight gain in diabetics and can even reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by approximately 60 percent. MUFAs help diabetics regulate their insulin levels and blood sugar, especially for those who have type 2 diabetes.

Combats Cancer

The consumption of olive oil has been linked to a decrease in tumors of colon, prostate, and breast cancer. Before recent studies, researchers concluded that higher incidences of breast cancer are linked to a high saturated fat diet. In a study published in Annals of Oncology, researchers found that oleic acid — the main MUFA in olive oil — can weaken a cancer gene found in 25 to 30 percent of all breast cancers. What's more, with oleic acid, the effective of the breast cancer drug Herceptin improved dramatically.

Reduces Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

MUFAs in olive oil have been shown to reduce heart problems and rate of heart disease deaths. In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers conducted a randomized trial of the Mediterranean diet pattern and its prevention of cardiovascular disease. In Spain, participants who were at high risk of cardiovascular disease but did not develop it yet were assigned to a Mediterranean diet with extra virgin oil, a Mediterranean diet with the addition of mixed nuts, or a control diet with advice on how to reduce dietary fat. Researchers found that a Mediterranean diet with either extra virgin olive oil or mixed nuts can significantly reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease.

Promotes Healthy Fetal Development

Pregnant women are often advised to include olive oil in their diet due to its high content of omega-3 fatty acids. This heart healthy oil has the ability to improve brain function and learning capacities in young children. The consumption of extra virgin olive oil has been linked to a positive effect on a child's height, weight, and cognitive and behavioral development. In a study published in the Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry, researchers tested the effects of consuming olive oil in relation to body weight gain and foot efficiency as well as placental and fetal development. The results of the study showed that a pregnant rat's consumption of olive oil as the only dietary fat source did not have any detrimental effects on the expectant mother's weight gain or placental and fetal development.

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Januvia User Says Side Effects Worse Than High Blood Sugar

Against his doctor’s advice, Don, age 47, stopped taking Januvia, saying he would rather deal with high blood sugar than kidney stones, blood in his urine and severe abdominal pains.

“As soon as I started taking Januvia, my stomach started burning, and about a year ago, I started to urinate blood clots,” says Don, who was on Januvia for about two years. “Then my urine turned a brownish color and I passed some kidney stones - the pain was so bad I wound up in hospital. They x-rayed my abdomen and found a sharp kidney stone that I hadn’t passed. By January, I could barely urinate at all and my toes went numb - not pleasant.”

Don adds that, after researching the side effects, he is worried about Januvia pancreatitis and Januvia cancer. His doctor advised him to stay on the diabetes drug to keep his blood sugar levels in check, but Don decided to stop taking it anyway. “I didn’t have any of these problems before I took Januvia,” he says, “and nobody could tell me why I was getting these symptoms. I wasn’t on any other meds so it was too much of a coincidence. But I did take antibiotics for a urinary tract infection because the kidney stone I passed was sharp as a razor blade.

“Before I took Januvia, my blood sugar was about 400, and after I took the pill, it ran up to 490 for an hour or two, then went back down to 400. ‘You aren’t worried that you could destroy your kidneys and your heart could shut down?’ my doctor asked me. I would rather live with high blood sugar and take my chances than possibly develop Januvia side effects. Now I’m afraid to take any drug now. Instead I just watch my diet and exercise, and I’m feeling a lot better since I stopped Januvia - it just made things worse.”

Don adds that his health issues first started when he was prescribed Seroquel: he developed diabetes from the drug, filed a lawsuit against AstraZeneca and settled in federal court.

Don is hopeful that he can join other patients who have filed Januvia lawsuits against Merck, and whose cases have now been consolidated to a special federal multi-district court in California. 

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Actos Bladder Cancer

In light of mounting concern over Actos and bladder cancer, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has amped up its review of the once popular type 2 diabetes medication. First introduced by Takeda Pharmaceuticals in 1999, Actos (pioglitazone) has been the subject of increasing scrutiny over the side effects of Actos, and its causal link to bladder cancer – so much that in 2002, the FDA ordered a 10-year epidemiological study of the drug and its inherent risks. In June 2011, the federal agency issued a safety communication regarding its findings of a 40% increased risk of bladder cancer among patients who took Actos at high doses for one year or longer.

Before Actos was released on the market, early clinical trials revealed an association between pioglitazone and bladder cancer. Nevertheless, health care providers and patients were uninformed about potential bladder cancer risks, and sales of the diabetes drug skyrocketed. Over the years, medical studies conducted both in the U.S. and abroad have shown that these risks may be much greater than originally thought. New research published in the British Medical Journal suggests that individuals who take Actos may actually have an 83 percent increased chance of developing cancer.

Studies reveal Actos and bladder cancer link

Research published in the May 2012 edition of the British Medical Journal revealed the surprisingly high risk of bladder cancer among Actos users. The study analyzed data regarding more than 115,000 patients who were treated with diabetes medications from 1988 to 2009. The researchers discovered an 83 percent increased bladder cancer risk among those who took pioglitazone. Lead researcher Laurent Azoulay PhD. concluded, “Patients with type 2 diabetes and their physicians need to be fully aware of the potential association between Actos and bladder cancer.”

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) published a report in March 2011, which reviewed FDA adverse drug reports concerning Actos and bladder cancer. The report concluded that “preliminary data found an increasing risk of bladder cancer with pioglitazone exposure, with statistical significance after 24 months.”

One of the most notable studies cited in Actos lawsuits is the 10-year epidemiological trial conducted by Kaiser Permanente and overseen by the FDA. The extensive research was mandated in 2002 after early Actos studies in rats showed an increase in bladder tumors. The final results are slated to be published in late 2013, but a review of the five-year interim data prompted the FDA’s 2011 pioglitazone label update alerting consumers about the heightened risks of Actos bladder cancer.

On June 9, 2011, the French Medicines Agency decided to suspend the use of Actos after its three-year PRO-active study showed a statistically significant increase in the risk of bladder cancer in men exposed to the drug for more than a year. The study included 1.5 million patients and was conducted from 2006 to 2009. On June 10, 2011, Germany joined France in suspending the sale of Actos, and urged doctors not to prescribe the medication to any new patients. In 2011, Takeda issued a voluntary recall of Actos in France and Germany, but the type 2 diabetes medication remains on U.S. shelves.

How does Actos cause bladder cancer?

According to research from the National Cancer Institute, individuals with type 2 diabetes are already at a higher risk for developing bladder cancer. Actos belongs to a class of drugs called thiazolidinediones (TZD), which are used to help regulate blood sugar levels in diabetics because they make the body more sensitive to insulin. Cancer cells have insulin receptors, meaning they can use insulin to grow. Because Actos functions by reducing the amount of available insulin, the association between Actos and bladder cancer may be a direct effect of the way the medication works. Though scientists are unsure as to how pioglitazone provokes the development of cancerous cells within the bladder, numerous medical studies have demonstrated an elevated risk of bladder cancer among patients who ingest high doses of Actos for prolonged periods of 12 months or longer.

Risk factors for bladder cancer

In their 2011 safety announcement, the FDA warned the public that individuals who take pioglitazone for longer than a year have a 40 percent increased risk of developing Actos bladder cancer as compared to patients who did not use the medication. This warning was based on the five-year interim analysis of 193,099 diabetic patients who were treated with Actos for an average of two years. The FDA concluded that patients with the longest exposure to and the highest cumulative dose of the medication were at greater risk.

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Diabetes and Crestor, Zocor and Other Cholesterol Reducing Drugs

There has been a lot of publicity surrounding one of the side effects of the cholesterol-reducing drug Lipitor and some of its side effects. It has been shown that the highly prescribed drug increases the risk of diabetes slightly, especially in older women and those already at risk of the Type II form of the illness.

Other cholesterol-reducing drugs, particularly Crestor (rousuvastatin) and Zocor (simvastatin), also have been shown to increase the risk of diabetes. The connection is much less clear with earlier cholesterol reducing drugs, such as Pravachol and Prevocor, probably because they are less powerful.

Patients taking 20 milligrams of Crestor had a one in 167 chance of developing Type II diabetes. The risk increased to one in 125 at higher doses. According to one New York Times article, patients taking the three most popular cholesterol-reducing drugs have a one in 200 chance of developing Type II diabetes, when all doses and drug brands are taken into account.

It turns out that for people who have already had a heart attack or stroke, the benefits of taking Crestor or Zocor outweigh the risks of developing diabetes. However, people who have not had any health incidents before may do better trying non-drug methods of reducing their cholesterol levels. These include diet, exercise, weight loss and stress reduction and other approaches.

Crestor is manufactured by AstraZeneca. The company has issued warnings that there is an increased risk of side effects in Asian populations in general, and that it is more potent among those of Asian ethnicity than Caucasians. Doctors should begin treating Asian patients with Crestor at the lowest dose available, five milligrams.

A 2008 study sponsored by Crestor showed that there was an elevated risk for Type II diabetes, as did later studies of the same drug and other statins. Researchers have hypothesized that the link between such drugs and diabetes is because the medicine increases muscle resistance to insulin. This, however, has not been conclusively demonstrated.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) responded to research indicating the increased risk of developing diabetes when taking cholesterol-lowering drugs by issuing a warning label for Crestor, Lipitor and for other cholesterol-lowering statin drugs that include:

Zocor 

Lescol 

 

Pravachol

Mevacor 

 Livalo

The warning says that patients taking these drugs and their generic equivalents face a slightly increased risk of high blood sugar levels and of being diagnosed with diabetes. The warning was added in 2012. However, studies conducted earlier, including those mentioned above, established some degree of risk several years prior to the FDA changing required warnings. 

If you developed diabetes after taking one of these drugs, call the Cleveland attorneys at Elk & Elk. They will know what to do.

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New Study Suggests Diabetes Risk with High-Potency Statins (Lipitor)

A growing concern surrounds the potential for diabetes associated with higher-dose statins. The potential for Lipitor diabetes is among those concerns.

To that end, a new study by Canadian researchers suggests the diabetes risk amongst higher-potency statins such as Lipitor remains higher than lower-potency statins. Lipitor has been described as the most popular statin, used by patients to control their Lipitor mdl levels.

According to the Edmonton Journal (5/25/13), Dr. Muhammad Mamdani and colleagues were dissatisfied with previous studies that afforded conflicting results. Thus, Mamdani et al scrutinized the records of more than 470,000 individuals age 66 and above who resided in the province of Ontario and without symptoms of diabetes prior to starting on a statin.

Lipitor was one of three statins found to increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Mamdani and colleagues estimated that for every 1,000 patients taking a higher-potency statin such as Lipitor, six to 10 patients will emerge as symptomatic of type 2 diabetes. Mamdani identified the risk as relatively small. “But there are a lot of people taking these high-potency statins. In fact, atorvastatin is by far - by far - the most popular statin.”

Margaret Clark knows all about that risk and the potential to see that risk realized. The South Carolina plaintiff filed a Lipitor diabetes lawsuit March 25 in US District Court for South Carolina, Charleston Division, Case No. 2:13-cv-00796, alleging that Lipitor manufacturer Pfizer failed to adequately warn physicians and consumers about the potential for diabetes associated with Lipitor. Clark was diagnosed with atorvastatin type 2 diabetes.

Clark, it was reported, was put on Lipitor in 1999 to combat high levels of LDL cholesterol and took it for 10 years before developing atorvastatin type 2 diabetes in 2009, in spite of a healthy lifestyle and a body mass index (BMI) of 24.8. Health Canada, the Canadian counterpart to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), mandated a label change to Lipitor and other high-potency statin drugs to reflect a small, increased risk for diabetes.

Mamdani, director of the applied health research center at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto, maintains that doctors and their patients have to individually weigh the risks between the possible onset of diabetes, against potential heart risk tied to Lipitor mdl cholesterol levels that remain unchecked.

The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) statin study, published in January of last year, concluded that statin medications such as Lipitor mdl used by postmenopausal women were associated with an increased risk for diabetes mellitus (DM). “This may be a medication class effect. Further study by statin type and dose may reveal varying risk levels for new-onset DM in this population,” the researchers wrote.

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What about Overweight and Obesity in United States?

According to the first CLINICAL GUIDELINE ON THE IDENTIFICATION, EVALUATION, AND TREATMENT OF OVERWEIGHT AND OBESITY IN ADULTS based on evidence from approximately 394 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) found in MEDLINE from January 1980 to September 1997:

Highlights

1. According to the latest statistics from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 97 million Americans are overweight or obese.
2. Excess weight is often accompanied by hypertension, dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, gallbladder disease, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea and respiratory problems, and endometrial, breast, prostate, and colon cancers.
3. The total costs attributable to obesity-related disease approach $100 billion annually in the United States.
4. Overweight is here defined as a body mass index (BMI) of 25 to 29.9 kg/m2 and obesity as a BMI
   of 30 kg/m2.
5. A variety of effective options exist for the management of overweight and obese patients, including
   dietary therapy approaches such as low-calorie diets and lower-fat diets; altering physical activity patterns; behavior therapy techniques; pharmacotherapy*; surgery; and combinations of these technique.
6. *As of September 1997, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requested the voluntary withdrawal from the market of dexfenfluramine and fenfluramine due to a reported association between valvular heart disease and the use of dexfenfluramine or fenfluramine alone or combined with phentermine. The use of these drugs for weight reduction, therefore, is not recommended in this report. Sibutramine is approved by FDA for long-term use. It has limited but definite effects on
   weight loss and can facilitate weight loss maintenance.
7. Weight loss drugs that have been approved by the FDA for long-term use can be useful adjuncts to dietary therapy and physical activity for some patients with a BMI of 30 with no concomitant risk factors or diseases, and for patients with a BMI of 27 with concomitant risk factors or diseases. 
8. Weight loss surgery is one option for weight reduction in a limited number of patients with clinically severe obesity, i.e., BMIs 40 or 35 with comorbid conditions. Weight loss surgery should be
   reserved for patients in whom efforts at medical therapy have failed and who are suffering from the complications of extreme obesity.
9. Randomized trials suggest that weight loss at the rate of 1 to 2 lb/week (calorie deficit of 500 to
   1,000 kcal/day) commonly occurs for up to 6 months.
10. A review of 44 pharmacotherapy RCT articles provides strong evidence that pharmacological therapy (which has generally been studied along with lifestyle modification, including diet and physical activity) using dexfenfluramine, sibutramine, orlistat, or phentermine/fenfluramine results in weight loss in obese adults when used for 6 months to 1 year. Strong evidence also indicates that appropriate weight loss drugs can augment diet, physical activity, and behavior therapy in weight loss. Adverse side effects from the use of weight loss drugs have been observed in patients. As a result of the observed association of valvular heart disease in patients taking fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine alone or in combination, these drugs have been withdrawn from the market. Weight loss drugs approved by the FDA for long-term use may be useful as an adjunct to diet and physical activity for patients with a BMI of 30 with no concomitant obesity-related risk factors or diseases, as well as for patients with a BMI of 27 with concomitant risk factors or diseases; moreover, using weight loss drugs singly (not in combination) and starting with the lowest effective doses can decrease the likelihood of adverse effects.
11. Women in the United States with low incomes or low education are more likely to be obese than those of higher socioeconomic status.
12. In the majority of epidemiologic studies, mortality begins to increase with BMIs above 25 kg/m2.
13. The environment is a major determinant of overweight and obesity. Environmental influences on overweight and obesity are primarily related to food intake and physical activity behaviors. In countries like the United States, there is an overall abundance of palatable, calorie-dense food. In addition, aggressive and sophisticated food marketing in the mass media, supermarkets, and restaurants, and the large portions of food served outside the home, promote high calorie consumption.
14. Since 1995, the use of the prescription drugs fenfluramine or dexfenfluramine for weight loss had increased greatly to 14 million prescriptions in 1'5 years. The increased interest in drug treatment of obesity derives from the poor long-term results often obtained with behavior therapy, including diet and physical activity, as noted earlier in this report. The rationale for the addition of drugs to these regimens is that a more successful weight loss and maintenance may ensue. However, as of September 1997, the FDA requested the voluntary withdrawal of fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine from the market, due to a reported association between valvular heart disease with the drugs dexfenfluramine and fenfluramine, alone or combined with phentermine. In November 1997, the FDA provided clearance for marketing the drug sibutramine hydrochloride monohydrate for the management of obesity, including weight loss and maintenance of weight loss when used in conjunction with a reduced-calorie diet.

Food Inc - Alimentos SA

Highlights

"There is no seasons in the American supermarket. Now there are tomatoes all the year,

farmed around the world, picked when they are green and ripened with ethylene gas"

"In the meat area (supermarket) there is no bones anymore"

"The food industry doesn't like you know the truth about what you're eating, 

because if you knew you may not wanna eat it"

"Mc Donald's recruitment's policy: when you have workers that only have to do one thing, 

they can pay them low wage and it's very easy to find someone to replace them"

Big food companies chains want big suppliers so there are

a few companies controlling the food system

"Chicken Fast-growing: There is antibiotics that put into the feed and

of course that pass through the chicken"

"If you go to a supermarket I would bet a 90% of the products contain corn

or soy ingredient. And most of the time they contain both"

"Cows are not designed evolutively to eat corn, they are designed evolutively to eat grass.The only

reason we feed them with corn is because corn is really cheap and corn makes them fat quickly"

"There are research studies that indicate high corn diet results in E.Coli

are acid resistant. That makes more harmful the bactery"

"As much bigger is the food processing plant, that's perfect for taking bad pathogens"


"The hamburger of today has pieces of thousands of different cattle ground up in that
one hamburger patty. The odds increase exponentially that one of those animals
was carrying a dangerous pathogen" 

Does this complicate the traceability tracking? 

"Hamburgers vs Veggies: You can find candy that's cheaper. We can find
chips that are cheaper. The sodas are really cheap. We've skewed our
food system to the bad calories"


"1 in 3 born after 2000 will contract early onset diabetes"
Mostly type 2

"People (corporative committee) make decisions and don't live
with the consequences of those decisions"
The same than politicians around the world

"We've become a culture of technicians. We're all into the
How of it and nobody's stepping back and saying But why?"

"Large companies (Coca-cola, Pepsi, Kellogg's, General Mills,...) don't
grow organically. They grow by acquisition of other smaller companies"

"Monsanto has a staff devoted to investigating and prosecuting farmers.
Anyone caught saving seeds can be investigated for patent infringement"

"When you genetically modify a crop, you own it"
Therefore you get your patent.


"Lady Justice had the scales and you piled cash on the scales and the one that
piled the most cash on the scales, hired the most experts and was most willing
to tell the biggest lies, that was the winner. That seems to be how our justice system
functions now"

"In the case of Monsanto, their control is so dominant. If you want to be
in production agriculture, you're gonna be in bed with Monsanto"

"Now 78% of the processed food in the supermarket
has some genetically-modified ingredient"


"Not only do they (food companies) do not want you to know what's in it,
they have managed to make it against the law to criticize their products"

Sales of food are really sensitive to the public criticism of their products


"The irony is that the average consumer does not feel very powerful. They think
they are the recipients of whatever industry has put out there for them to consume.
Trust me, it's the exact opposite"

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