| Signs of Overdose: If supplements with over 1,000 meg used regularly, blocks insulin and can be toxic. Supplement Needed? Multinutrient supplement useful for most; not well absorbed.
COPPER EMDR: 1.5-3 mg (milligrams).
Purpose: Helps form hemoglobin; assists absorption of iron and regulation of blood pressure and heart rate; may help prevent cardiovascular problems.
Source: Seafood, organ meats, green vegetables, nuts, cocoa, copper-piped water.
Signs of Deficiency: Essentially limited to inherited diseases that prevent absorption. |
| Megadoses of certain nutrients, especially fat-soluble supplements such as beta carotene taken to prevent ill-
Vitamins, Minerals, and Colds
People seem to believe that vitamin C cures colds. But at least sixteen double-blind studies found no benefit. A classic study conducted by the University ofToronto divided 3,500 people into eight groups.Two groups each received 250, 1,000, or 2,000 mg of vitamin C daily; the final two groups got a placebo. |
Mark Stengler, N.D.
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 Keep in mind, however, that this approach alleviates the pain, not the underlying cartilage deteoriation. supplements such as glucosamine sulfate, SAMe, and antioxidants (selenium, vitamin C, alpha lipoic acid) help to regenerate cartilage tissue and should also be used simultaneously.
Rheumatoid arthritis can also be helped with capsaicin cream.
Diabetic Neuropathy
Diabetic neuropathy is the nerve damage related to a diabetic condition, and it's characterized by pain and abnormal sensations in the legs and feet. |
| The best long-term treatments involve herbs, supplements, and therapies that will help balance the internal environment. However, topical treatments with capsaicin have also proven effective.
For difficult cases, capsaicin is a treatment to consider.
Shingles
The pain from shingles can be excruciating. I've had patients who couldn't even lie on their side on the examining table because the pain was so bad. Yet these "worst cases" are, fortunately, the very ones who are likely to benefit the most from treatment with cayenne. |
| Remember that it may take a couple of months before the beneficial effects start to show.
The supplements work best when the doses are combined with a steady, good diet and regular exercise.
Coenzyme Q10
Several pictures come to mind when someone mentions the supplement coenzyme Q10 (also referred to as CoQIO). One is that of the heart. I see this big, red pumping muscle contracting and relaxing. Inside the heart cells are tiny explosions where energy is being created. Within these cells I see the spark plug. The spark plug is CoQIO. |
| When I recommend it, I often suggest other supplements as well, including the amino acid arginine, and vitamins B12, C, E, zinc, and L-carnitine.
^ Mitral Valve Prolapse
Mitral valve prolapse means that one of the heart valves is not closing properly as your heart contracts and expands. CoQIO may help this condition.
°^ Muscular Dystrophy
This refers to a group of genetic diseases characterized by progressive muscle weakness. Most of us have become familiar with this disease through the annual Jerry Lewis telethons. Dr. |
| Today, cranberry juice and supplements are used by millions around the world—and the medical community has become more accepting. In the past few years, many more conventional physicians have been recommending cranberry for their patients.
The fruit called cranberry comes from the vine of a plant that belongs to the same genus (Vaccinium) as bilberry and blueberry. It grows in North America in marshlike conditions, such as the famous "cranberry bogs" of Cape Cod, Massachusetts and southern New Jersey. |
| I suggested that Todd stop taking all the other supplements, as he had not noticed any improvement in his condition. I advised him to take only the rhus tox.
When he came to my office for a follow-up visit six weeks later, Todd reported a 70 percent improvement in his arthritic symptoms.
PALLIATIVE FROM A POISON
Rhus tox is the homeopathic dilution of poison oak. We know this as a plant that causes a nasty, blistering rash. However, this homeopathic is one of the best skin remedies for relieving symptoms in people who have touched poison ivy. |
Michael Castleman
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 Yet some supplements contain several times the RDA.
Take care with calcium. Different calcium compounds have different levels of bioavailability. Calcium carbonate is 40 percent calcium, but other forms of calcium contain considerably less. Look for the words calcium or elemental calcium on the label.
Check for selenium. For years some researchers have touted this trace mineral as a cancer preventive. That view gained considerable credence when the NCI's study in China showed that it helped prevent deaths from esophageal and stomach cancer.
Vegan vegetarians may need extra B12. |
| Under the direction of Dutch researchers, 38 healthy men in their seventies took daily vitamin B6 supplements (20 milligrams) for three months. Compared with untreated men, those who took the vitamin showed improved long-term memory.
Menstrual discomfort. Ten women with normal menstrual cycles had their menstrual symptoms evaluated by research psychologists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Human Nutrition Research Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota. |
| If you have any of the conditions listed below, consult your physician about the advisability of taking supplements therapeutically. Here's a summary of the latest findings.
AIDS. In one study done at the University of California at Berkeley School of Public Health, researchers looked at the progression to AIDS in men who tested positive for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Some of these men ate poorly, while others ate a diet high in fresh fruits and vegetables. Over six years, those in the good-diet group were significantly less likely to progress to AIDS. |
| Half of the group also took daily supplements of thiamin (ten milligrams), riboflavin (ten milligrams) and B6 (ten milligrams). Compared with people who took only the antidepressant, the vitamin group showed less depression and experienced improved functioning.
Fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is a form of arthritis that causes tenderness at various points around the body, plus other symptoms. Researcher Abraham Guy, M.D. |
| A four-year Harvard study of 39,000 male health professionals showed that compared with those who took no vitamin E supplements, those who took 100 international units a day for two years reduced their heart attack risk by 37 percent. An eight-year Harvard study of 87,000 female nurses showed 49 percent fewer heart attacks.
High blood pressure. In a study done at the Medical College of Georgia in Atlanta, 21 people with elevated blood pressure took 1,000 milligrams of supplemental vitamin C every day for four weeks. Their average blood pressure declined significantly.
High cholesterol. |
| If you have kidney disease, consult your physician before taking vitamin C supplements.)
Try a homeopathic remedy. Homeopathic physicians recommend a remedy known as Oscillococcinum (AH-sill-oh-cock-SINE-um) to prevent flu.
Like the common cold, flu is an upper respiratory viral infection, but the similarity ends there. Colds are minor illnesses that rarely cause fever in otherwise healthy adults. But one of the three flu viruses, influenza A, causes high fever, severe body aches and that awful death-warmed-over feeling that sends many otherwise healthy adults to their beds for several days. |
James A. Howenstine, MD
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 Chromium also needs extra supplements. Chromium increases the sensitivity to insulin, which helps lower glucose levels.
Vanadium is a valuable agent for diabetics, as it decreases their need for insulin. Large doses of Vanadium act like an oral insulin. Begin with 45 mg. daily and work the dose up to 100 to 150 mg. daily. A physician's help will be needed to monitor this. Gastrointestinal symptoms may require dose decrease or temporary cessation.
Banaba Therapy
An extract of the leaves of the banaba plant has a material called corosolic acid that lowers blood sugar values in diabetics. |
James S. Gordon, M.D.
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 Though scientific data and popular interest have significantly increased, the amount of information that medical students receive about supplements —or indeed, the entire field of nutrition —is hardly greater now that it was thirty years ago when I was in school. The problems of obesity and eating disorders are acknowledged, and an occasional but casual nod may be made to the benefits of a high-fiber diet, but usually that is all.
Students, now as then, are told that virtually everyone in this country receives an adequate supply of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. |
Artemis P. Simopoulos, M.D., and Jo Robinson
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 A note of caution: There is some indication that high doses of omega-3 supplements cause a slight decline in lung capacity in some asthmatics.12 Consult your doctor before taking them.
Alzheimer's Disease
Although few people realize it, Alzheimer's disease is, in part, an inflammatory disease. Autopsies show that the brains of Alzheimer's patients contain unusually high amounts of a proinflammatory element called "interleukin-lB" (IL-1B), and the IL-1B is most concentrated in the areas of the brain that are heavily damaged by the disease. |
Bill Gottlieb
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 While you could get the nutrients you need from taking vitamin supplements, the advantage to getting them in fruits and vegetables is that you also
Food Sensitivity: How to Discover the "Healthy" Foods That Can Cause Disease
Orange juice, whole-wheat toast and some low-fat yogurt with a banana on top. Sounds like a healthy breakfast, right? Maybe not, according to David Edelberg, M.D., an internist and | medical director of the American Holistic Center/Chicago. |
| You can get all of these vitamins in most multivi-tamin/mineral supplements, he adds. For Recommended Dietary Allowances, see "Getting What You Need" on page 142.
Sunburn ou paddled to the middle of the lake, cast a fishing line and promptly fell asleep. Two hours later, you could star in Invasion of the Lobster People from Outer Space.
Sunburns hurt, and the damage they inflict on your skin is long lasting and dangerous. The redness of a sunburn is caused by clogged and swollen capillaries that supply blood to the skin. |
Bradley J. Willcox, D. Craig Willcox, and Makoto Suzuki
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 In a study of sunscreen users, almost 50 percent of subjects in Springfield, Illinois, who always wore a sunscreen before going outdoors and did not take vitamin D supplements were vitamin D deficient, some of them severely so.69
Vitamin E
What it does. Despite its current fame as a free-radical warrior, vitamin E was for years a vitamin searching for a disease. All other vitamins had special roles as enzymes (speed up or slow down chemical reactions) or in a particular body function. But after seventy-five years of research, vitamin E is still waiting. |
| The Okinawan elders have a higher dietary intake of vitamin C than other Japanese and Americans, but don't take supplements. Eating a diet high in vegetables and fruits is the best initial course of action, but for optimal levels, take 500 mg once a day.54
Cautions. As a water-soluble vitamin it is safe even in large doses (several grams per day). Some people, however, report nausea and diarrhea with doses as low as 2,000 mg/day, since vitamin C can have an osmotic effect
(draws out water) in the gut.5 |
| Scientists have developed certain algae that produce a large amount of DHA-containing oils. supplements using these DHA-rich oils solve the problem of getting enough DHA for optimal brain function for the vegetarian.30 These are found in most supermarkets and health food stores.
Omega-3—Heart Health and More
As mentioned earlier, the type of polyunsaturated fat in your diet may be the most critical factor in reducing mortality, especially from heart disease. There has been a wealth of evidence to support eating omega-3 foods, including fatty fish like salmon, tuna, and mackerel. |
| Cod liver oil is without a doubt one of the world's worst-tasting supplements, but it contains high levels of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.
One type of omega-3 fatty acid is called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). DHA is found throughout the fatty tissue in our brains, and it appears to play a role in how our brain functions. A growing body of research has confirmed that infants who are deficient in levels of this fatty acid have less than optimal neurological function, especially intelligence. |
| You can also buy gas-aid supplements such as Beano. Don't forget to drink plenty of water, as extra water is needed to move fiber through your digestive tract.
FIBER HELPS KEEPS OFF THE POUNDS!
Wheat bran, whole-grain bread, baked beans, and other high-fiber foods may be keys to a trim figure. Over a period of ten years, young men and women who ate at least 21 grams of fiber a day gained 8 pounds less than people who ate the same number of calories but 40 percent less fiber.16
HOW TO INCREASE YOUR FIBER'6
• Get breakfast cereals with at least 7 grams of fiber in one serving. |
Lesley Tierra
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 All your senses are immediately greeted with jars, bottles of all sizes, containers filled with different supplements, smells of strange herbs, pretty potpourris, rows and rows of vitamins and much more. Not knowing where to go first, or even where to begin looking for what you came in to get, you may head to the checkout counter and ask a sales person, "Where can I find mullein for my child's cold and cough?"
The response can be even more confusing: "Do you want mullein leaves or flowers? What form do you need, bulk herb or capsule? Or do you want a glycerine extract? |
Zorba Paster, M.D. and Susan Meltsner
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 What are the doctor's views of complementary and alternative medicine, such as chiropractic, megadoses of vitamins, and other supplements?
• What does the doctor think about personal issues of importance to you, such as breast-feeding, jogging, yoga, estrogen replacement therapy, mammograms, and so on? Many people—including doctors—have strong opinions on these topics.
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Do the answers fit into your worldview? If you believe that alternative and complementary medicine or natural health modalities are good for you, ask about them and listen to the response. |
| It's a time of consideration, a time to:
• Think about getting immunized
• Reflect on your diet and exercise regime
• Decide whether or not you should take supplements such as aspirin, wine, or estrogen
• Examine your mental sphere—are you happy or depressed?
• Look at your social sphere—what about those relationships?
But to do this well you need to have a good relationship with your doctor. It's crucial. Your doctor should be your advocate, not your adversary. |
| However, no such correlation has yet been made for beta-carotene supplements. In fact, one study showed higher lung cancer rates for smokers who took beta-carotene than for smokers who did not. A sensible dosage would be 6 to 15 mg a day. But at this point your best bet may be to stick with dietary sources.
• Selenium. Selenium, found in meat, poultry, fish, and vegetables grown in soil that contains large concentrations of this mineral, fires up our immune system and may protect against lung, colorectal, and prostate cancers. |
Bill Gottlieb
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| These supplements are available in most health food stores.
Imagery
In his book Healing Visualizations, Gerald Epstein, M.D, a New York City psychiatrist, suggests that you close your eyes, take three very slow, deep breaths and imagine yourself as a tightrope walker standing on a stationary platform high in the air. On this platform, you have a balancing pole, bicycle or parasol. Before crossing the wire, envision yourself reaching the other side. Then start your crossing, knowing that as you do it successfully, your dizziness will disappear. |
Zorba Paster, M.D. and Susan Meltsner
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| And the medical establishment is finally seeing the value of vitamin E, vitamin C, and folic acid supplements, touted for years by natural healers.
By doing their part to curb premature death and disabling conditions, all of the advances I've mentioned lengthen life span and improve life quality. But they're not the whole show. Technology doesn't operate in a vacuum. Indeed, it is rendered valueless if we don't elect to use it. |
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