Advice about Palindromic Rheumatism

Gary,
I was diagnosed 10 years ago with something called "Pallindromic Rheumatism" then I had a sports injury (flipped off my bike into a ditch) and had Fibromyalgia - the FM is completely gone - also I have as anyone would at my age 55 osteoarthritis. There never seems to be a definitive diagnosis in my mind - thats when 7 years ago I returned all the prescriptions to the Doc and went organic with supplements.

I take Calcium, a good multi, vitamin C with E and mix in a little baking soda to keep me alkaline, milk thistle when I'm on Robaxacet, niacin, super B's, probiotics and fish oil. I also stay totally away from anything that is processed. I juice at least every other day and basically start my day like no one else on the planet by eating vedge and fruit and I drink gallons of pure water.
The Pall R. migrates from major joint to major joint. The osteo affects both hips and spine, cervical, thoracic and lumbar....I do take something we have here called Robaxacet with a muscle relaxant that has helped me through a few hurdles. My biggest drug has always been exercise, and I'm very cognizant of not over doing, but movement is essential and my first drug of choice. I have started Bromelain which seems to help. Unfortunately they do not know what is causing the current problems (and frankly I don't expect them too) but I am having an MRI in July. Today I warmed up on the treadmill (slowly) did 30 minutes and then lifted light weights for a couple of sets.
All of the above started after consuming bad well water for 3 months just over 10 years ago - seemed to be a catalyst for the arthritis and it was at that time that I was diagnosed with hypothryoidism. BUT, a few years back I discovered that there were many foods that seemed to put me into a flare up i.e, salt, soya, peanuts etc......hence my organic and only fresh foods. I
also no longer clean with chemicals - it's all quite an amazing journey. I swam for a while but have some problems with chlorine so I wait for the warm weather and jump into any lake I can find.

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Gary Moller comments:

Please view the video commentary for rheumatoid arthritis along with these notes:

• Palindromic rheumatism is closely linked with rheumatoid arthritis. Read this.
• The osteoarthritis and the allergies may have similar underlying causes - a dysfunctional immune system.
• Fibromyalgia is related to mineral depletion and low vitamin D.
• The hypothyroidism may be similarly linked.
• Low vitamin D is a likely factor as is trace mineral depletion and deficiency in the fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K).
• All of these are essential for a robust immune system, strong bones, healthy joints and healthy metabolism (thyroid function).
• Drinking pure water flushes the body of minerals and water soluble vitamins. It may interfere with digestion by diluting the digestive acids and enzymes.
• Baking soda may interfere with digestion by neutralising the digestive acids.
• Acidity in the digestive processes is also important for uptake of minerals.
• A low fat diet that is also low in animal products, including organs like the liver, will not supply sufficient minerals or fat soluble vitamins.
• Multi vitamins and other supplements of synthetic origins, may not be as effective or as safe as natural ones that are rich with nutrient co-factors.

Recommendations:

• Get a blood test asap to assess vitamin D status.
• If less than 120nmol, take measures to boost it urgently (Free range egg yolk, organ meat from free range sources, raw grass fed full fat dairy products, fish head broth, beef bone broth, cod liver oil, natural vitamin D supplements (available from http://www.myotec.co.nz/ ).
• During winter take 2-4,000 iu supplementary Vit D per day, unless levels are already well over optimum.
• When you take the fat soluble vitamins, you must include fat in the diet with them otherwise their uptake is seriously compromised.
• Get a hair tissue mineral analysis right away. Details here.
• Stop taking baking soda. The juicing etc is alkaline enough.
• Take a quality mineral supplement right away in addition to the diet recommendations.
• Only drink as much water as needed to ward off thirst and this should be a rich mineral water - stay away from distilled water.
• Start taking daily glucosamine and chondroitin (Powder form is best value) from http://www.myotec.co.nz/ . This nutritional supplement is of proven benefit and is applicable to all forms of arthritis, including the inflammatory forms.
• Take up to 2,000mg of vitamin C per day through diet and natural supplements. Vit C is important for immune health as well as for healthy joints and connective tissue.

MLM USANA - is it really all that cheap or better quality?

I have written previously about the rip-offs of multi level markeing schemes (MLM). I am constantly being asked about one in particular, USANA.

Have a listen to this, bearing in mind we are talking about cheap synthetic rubbish duking it out among themselves. Stick to the natural vitamins please!

Excessive vitamin use increases men's prostate cancer risk

May 21, 2007
'Men who pop too many vitamins in the hope of improving their health may in fact be raising their risk of the deadliest forms of prostate cancer, especially men with a family history of the disease.Researchers at the National Cancer Institute found that men who exceeded the recommended dose — taking more than seven multivitamins a week — increased the risk of advanced cancer by about 30%.'

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Gary Moller comments:

Do not throw away all of your vitamins just yet! Just as a single Swallow does not make a summer, so a single study does not mean vitamins really do cause cancer.

There are many possible factors at play here, such as the men taking the most vitamins tend to lead the worst lifestyle - late night partying, alcolhol, cigarettes, working long hours indoors, eating poor food, like MSG laden fast food that is microwaved to death, or living in polluted cities and already being generally unwell. Its a bit like stretching and athletes. Most athletes only take up stretching regularly in response to injury leading some researchers to conclude that stretching causes injuries.

It may be that these men are consuming large quantities of synthetic vitamins which are of highly questionable benefit. Most naturally sourced vitamin supplements are chock full of nutritional co-factors. I am making it a point to stock my store with naturally sourced products ( http://www.myotec.co.nz/ ). Also, if too much on one or another vitamin is taken, deficiency may occur in others, including various minerals. If vitamin D is low, then it is possible that the body can not properly utilise large amounts of vitamins especially if they are pure synthetics.

When it comes to preventing and managing prostate cancer, I would place vitamin D as the number one priority with minerals second, omega 3 oils third and various vitamins fourth. If you are concerned about your prostate cancer risk, I suggest that the first thing you do is determine with scientific accuracy what your vitamin D and mineral levels are. You get the vitamin D test via your doctor and your minerals via me with a hair tissue mineral analysis. Once you have your results, you will know exactly what your nutritional requirements are. Most of the guessing about taking vitamins for health is eliminated.

How much vitamin C should an athlete take to avoid colds?

It is the common experience of many athletes to finish an exhausting event like a marathon or iron man triathlon and feel surprisingly good; only to crash several days later going down with a virus an injury like tendonitis or feeling very depressed and tired or all of the latter. This may be fully or partially due to the delayed effects of the extreme oxidative stress suffered during the exhausting exercise (This can be either from competition or heavy training). In many cases, such as multiday events there is the added stress of sleep deprivation which hammers one's immune system.

"A practical way to reason is that, if a person carrying out heavy exercise feels that he or she has colds too often, he or she could (should?) try vitamin C.

The doses have been about 0.5 to 2 grams per day in the controlled trials and that kind of doses are safe for ordinary people (and cheap). In the US nutritional recommendations they consider that safe range goes to some 2 g/day. That is a conservative limit in my opinion, but with the current knowledge, I do not think it makes much sense to use substantially larger doses even though I consider them safe.

If we assume that the oxidative stress caused by the marathon would b protected against by higher vitamin C levels in the body, I think that the time scale would be initiation a few days before and continuing a few days after the marathon (one or two times per day I would think)". Harri

(Excerpt from correspondence between Gary Moller and Harri Hemilä, MD, PhD,Department of Public Health,University of Helsinki, Finland. Dr Hemilä is one of the world's leading researchers into the benefits or otherwide of substances like vitamin C and vitamin E).

Dr Hemilä's impressive work in this area makes fascinating reading.

With what we know about free radicals and how they are generated during exhasting or intense exercise, it would make good sense to anticipate excessive oxidative stress to your body and take preventive measures, if you are doing heavy training or have an exhausting competition coming up. This migh also apply to work and personal situations that may be emotionally as well as physically exhausting.

Using Dr Hemilä's advice as our guide, here is my guidance:

• If you are doing exhausting training take 1-2,000mg of vitamin C per day
• If you have a history of frequent colds, take towards the upper level (2,000mg)
• Take 2,000mg per day over the 2 days before an exhausting competition and for 2 days afterwards
• If you are taking Wagner Ester C, then you could reduce these guidelines to 50% and you will probably get the same protection or still better.
• Regardless of vitamin C supplementation, take a daily Super Smoothie that has red berries and whey protein added and eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables.
• Go to sleep before 11pm every night and be out of bed by 7am
• Get plenty of sunlight on your body to boost your vitamin D levels. Get a blood test of your levels.
• An athlete requires more minerals and B group vitamins than most
• Other antioxidant food extracts like high potency garlic extracts could be added to the diet
• Have recovery days within your training schedule and take 3-5 days rest after an exhausting competition like a marathon.

I will be posting some guidelines about use of vitamin E which is currently a confused and controversial matter.

Antioxidant supplements may raise death risk - study

CHICAGO - Beta carotene and vitamins A and E, antioxidant supplements taken by millions to fight disease, may actually raise the risk of death, a review of 68 studies on nearly a quarter-million people said today.
The finding drew fire from critics who said it was flawed and based largely on studies of people who were already chronically ill before they were treated with the supplements.
Tuesday's report related only to synthetic supplements and not to fruits and vegetables in everyday diets which are natural and contain less concentrated levels of antioxidants, said the study from the Centre for Clinical Intervention Research at Denmark's Copenhagen University Hospital.
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Gary Moller comments:
Over the last year I have shifted away from advocating anything other than supplements that are from natural food sources. This is due to concern that the synthetic copies of naturally occuring vitamins and other nutrients may not improve health and may even have a deleterious effect.

It is sensible to be cautious about the small one-per-day capsule that claims to contain every known vitamin, mineral and antioxidant needed by Man. To get all of that into such a small container probably means the contents are from pure synthetic sources. Supplements that are derived from natural sources, like herbs, look and smell like food concentrates and are usually the size of horse pills. Other forms for the Purists among us are elixirs like the Floradix range that are certified organic plant concentrates.
Synthetic vitamin E is not the same as the natural substance, nor is vitamin A. In their natural forms these vitamins actually include hundreds of different compounds (co-factors) that work together to do their healthy work. Pure synthetic Vitamin A, for example, can be highly toxic and is implicated in birth defects and should only be taken in small amounts, if ever. The natural form of vitamin A is derived from sources like egg yolk, butter and cod liver oil are very safe to take, despite the dire warnings that may come on the labels.

Funny isn't it? - Many of the best foods that contain the essential fats, minerals, vitamins and proteins are the ones that are bad for you - eggs, liver and butter! These are the high cholesterol foods that don't get the Heart Foundation tick. Do they really believe that margarine with synthetic vitamin A and cancer-producing trans-fatty acids is really better for you than pure New Zealand butter?

There is also the debate about "more being better". Of course, this is not the case and one should errr on the conservative side with vitamins unless the evidence tells you otherwise.

As an observation, when people with chronic health problems do consult me, there is usually more than a few signs of nutritional deficiency, such as magensium deficiency or low vitamin D. Often supplements are being taken but these may be synthetics that are poorly targetted to need. Another potential pitfall is to be taking too much of a single vitamin which may create an imbalance with others - nutrients need to be in balance with each other to be able to do their work.

So, take vitamins; but ensure they are mostly from natural sources. Take according to established need. Continue to ensure that your diet is your principal source of quality nutrients - quality meats, fruits, nuts, vegetables and whole grains.

Poor Athletic Performance Linked To Vitamin Deficiency

Science Daily — Active individuals lacking in B-vitamins -- including college athletes and other elite competitors -- may perform worse during high-intensity exercise and have a decreased ability to repair and build muscle than counterparts with nutrient-rich diets, according to recent Oregon State University research published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism.

The B-vitamins include thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B-6, B-12 and folate. These micronutrients are necessary during the body's process for converting proteins and sugars into energy, and are used during the production and repair of cells, including red blood cells.

For active individuals a marginal deficiency in the nutrients may impact the body's ability to repair itself, operate efficiently and fight disease, said Melinda Manore, researcher in the Colleges of Agricultural and Health and Human Sciences. Manore analyzed the athletic performance of several elite and collegiate athletes in her research, as well as less competitive individuals.

The stress on the body's energy producing pathways during exercise, the changes in the body's tissues resulting from training, an increase in the loss of nutrients in sweat, urine and feces during and after strenuous activity and the additional nutrients needed to repair and maintain higher levels of lean tissue mass present in some athletes and individuals may all affect an individuals B-vitamin requirements, said Manore.

"Many athletes, especially young athletes involved in highly competitive sports, do not realize the impact their diets have on their performance," said Manore, who is also an Extension Service nutrition scientist. "By the time they reach adulthood they can have seriously jeopardized their abilities and their long-term health."

Current national B-vitamin recommendations for active individuals may be inadequate, and athletes who follow the recommended daily allowances set by the U.S. government may be receiving lower amounts of nutrients than there bodies need, said Manore.
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Gary Moller comments:
The B group of vitamins is especially important for any person who is under stress, be that physical or emotional - which probably applies to 99% of the population! Stress not only steps up the body's need for these vitamins, it also chews through them at a higher rate. While a wholesome diet will supply the RDA (recommended daily allowance) this is not the case when the body is under constant stress.

Stress also chews through magnesium. Organs, like the adrenals, require ample magnesium, as well as the B vitamins, to function poperly.


Let me tell you about Beriberi. Beriberi is a third World disease, causing paralysis and heart failure. It is unheard of in a well-nourished country like New Zealand (Last seen on the sailing ships that carried explorers to this far-flung land 150+ years ago). Beriberi is caused by chronic thiamine (vit B-1) deficiency. Well, I can tell you that I have seen two severe cases over recent years in older men who have been in ill health which has caused enormous stress and affected their digestion. They have suffered varying degrees of nerve damage, inclusing limb paralysis. Frustratingly, treatment has consisted of powerful medications, including large doses of prednisone. Needless to say, this has been without any benefit.

All they required was a diet rich in B vitamins and a quality B vitamin supplement. Modern medicine can be very frustrating at times. I'll write more about this later.

Gary: Do you recommend Coenzyme Q-10?

Hello Gary,
A friend has suggested that coenzyme q 10 is “the” supplement that should be taken above any other. I had a look at your store, but couldn’t find any reference to it. Have you any thoughts on the subject that you’d care to share?"B"
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Gary Moller comments:

"B", Do you really need it? That’s the big question. I assume that coenzyme Q-10 was recommended because you may feeling tired, possibly a bit off the pace and not recovering quite as quickly as before – or something like that.

I have tossed up on stocking Q-10; but have not to date. The problem is that almost every supplement has its enthusiastic proponents and research to back it; but we can’t take the lot, can we? So, one of my roles as a natural health advisor is to help a person work through the thousand or so options to settle on the few essential supplements that will hopefully cover their needs.

Q-10 is definitely essential for health and energy. However; the body produces it and you also get it through a healthy diet. I do worry that, if a person habitually ingests an artificial source of an internally manufactured substance, the body reduces its own natural production in response. This is what happens if caffeine is ingested habitually, causing the body to reduce its production of natural neurotransmitters; hence addiction. This is known to be the case with various substances other than caffeine and may even be the case with coenzyme Q-10, so it is prudent to exercise caution until the hard evidence is in, if ever it is that this does not happen.

Why not assist the body with its natural production of Q-10? It is no coincidence that Q-10 exhibits many of the physiological benefits of the B group of vitamins and also magnesium. These are essential for cardiovascular and nervous health and it just so happens that a rich supply of B vitamins (and various proteins) is necessary for the synthesis of coenzyme Q-10. So why not assist the body to do its work, rather than take over the whole job? I would definitely not take supplementary Q-10 if the intake of B vitamins is low.

Now, because you are in a full-on stressful job ("B" is an aquaintance) and because you just don’t know how to relax after work – running about the hills and plummeting down mountainsides on bikes all days of the week – it is reasonable to assume that your need for the B vitamins and magnesium is much higher than most. You are also at ­that age, or thereabouts, where you need to be giving the body a little more TLC than previously.

So, my advice is to stock up on the nutrients that assist your body with manufacturing coenzyme Q-10 naturally. That means taking a quality vitamin B supplement 2 times per day. You should probably add a mineral supplement that has magnesium due to all the exercise you are doing and that age thing. Because you work indoors and because riding a bike about Wellington does not have you exercising in a near-naked state, I urge you to get a blood test for vitamin D levels. Low vitamin D is responsible for many ailments, as well as low energy and even flagging libido. So get it checked out and then you will know where you stand. So far, the highest levels of anybody I have had tested is 68 (my own) which is pretty damn poor (optimum is 120-160). The odds are on that you are too low.

To assist recovery and energy you might like to consider the latest product that I have added; effervescent glutamine. These few supplements are probably all you need to give those energy levels a boost, so long as your diet is rich in quality protein, nuts, colored fruits, vegetables and berries and whole grains.

It is possible that your requirements are more specific than this advice is for. In that case, it would be best to arrange to come and see me some time.

New Product added

In the quest to get you the best products at the best prices, I have added Red Seal Cod Liver Oil capsules. This replaces the Kordels Cod Liver Oil.

And, what about the price? $5.91

Cod Liver Oil is a traditional source of Vitamins A and D, two fat-soluble vitamins and is derived from the livers of selected codfish, caught for food. When taken regularly it can help to maintain the integrity of the mucous membrane linings of the respiratory tract and other membranes, increasing the body’s natural resistance to respiratory infections including colds and ‘flu.

Cod Liver Oil’s source of Vitamin A and D also makes it beneficial for the maintenance of healthy teeth, bones and tissue including the eyes, skin and hair.

Why should you take Vitamin E when you take fish oil?

Essential fatty acids, such as fish oil, and flax seed oil tend to oxidise rather quickly. And when they oxidise, they form free radicals and lipid peroxides, both of which are toxic to nearly all of our cells.

Vitamin E is one of the most powerful antioxidants (with many health benefits), so taking it along with any sort of essential fatty acid -- including fish oil -- helps prevent this oxidation, which allows you to get the most nutritional benefit from the oil. This is especially the case with fish oil which is most unstable.

When purchasing fish oil capsules, look for the ones with added natural vitamin E. (Stay away from synthetic vitamins which are of questionable benefit). While they may be a little more expensive than the budget fish oils, the added Vit E more than makes up for it.

When taking other oils such as flax seed oil, consider taking a capusule of natural vitamin E with it.

By the way; natural vitamin E helps stabilise all fats in circulation, including cholesterol, thus reducing the possibility of harm to arterial walls by rancid cholesterol.

kiwifruit slashes risk for heart attacks and strokes in just 28 days

Effects of kiwi fruit consumption on platelet aggregation and plasma lipids in healthy human volunteers.
Duttaroy AK, Jorgensen A.
Department of Nutrition, University of Oslo, Norway.
"...Kiwi fruit which contains high amounts of vitamin C, vitamin E and polyphenols may be beneficial in cardiovascular disease; however very little is known about its cardioprotective effects.... We report that consuming two or three kiwi fruit per day for 28 days reduced platelet aggregation response to collagen and ADP by 18%... In addition, consumption of kiwi fruit lowered blood triglycerides levels by 15%... whereas no such effects were observed in the case of cholesterol levels. All these data indicate that consuming kiwi fruit may be beneficial in cardiovascular disease.
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Gary Moller comments:
An 18% reduction in potential for blood clotting and a 15% reduction in blood triglycerides is spectacular to say the least. This is as effective as one could expect when on drugs medication and without the risk of terrible side effects and crippling financial costs to you and the country.

I have always been a fan of NZ Kiwi Fruit which has a number of powerful nutritional qualities, including guaranteeing "regularity". Here in New Zealand where the modern Kiwi Fruit was first developed and commercialised, fat juicy ones can be purchased from the famer's market for as little as $1/kg. In fact, I have just returned from the market this morning with another large bag of Kiwi Fruit. At this time of year I ravenously consume 4-5 per day at a cost of about 50-60 cents. The oversized, blemished, or misshapen fruit are rejected for export so we get to buy them for a bargain. Often they are the best inside.

The message coming from this kind of research is loud and clear: There are highly effective natural therapies for preventing and managing most modern day ailments and getting old (Obesity, heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, droopy dick, depression, anxiety etc).

New products added to www.myotec.co.nz

A new range of products has been added to the myotec store. These are the Red Seal Floradix Tonics which provide rapid and complete absorption with nothing other than ntural ingredients, no preservatives, colourings or sweeteners:

Floradix Magnesium
Floradix Kinderval for children
Floradix Tonic and
Floradix Calcium and Magnesium

Also added is Red Seal's Crampbuster which is a special magnesium and potassium formulation for athletes to use during intense training and competition.

The Red Seal Effergize range is replaced by these delicious and natural formulations.

Purchase more than $50 worth of product and you will definitely save as compared to what you pay in the stores, including supermarkets.

Here is the direct link to these products for more information.

• Floradix
• Crampbuster

Anti-aging Supplements Inquiry

Gary
Can I ask if you have read the above book by Stephen Cherniske?
It is quite fascinating - he talks about taking supplements to assist the body to delay aging, A lot of it really makes sense, but I want to get a 2nd opinion on it as he advised using things like DHEA and other controversial supplements.
I guess I am also suspicious as he works for a company that sells anti aging goodies!
Anyway - any comment will be appreciated!
thanks
JOhn
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Gary Moller comments:
The jury is still out about the supposed anti aging qualities of substances like DHEA, so I can not recommend them at this stage. I also note that Stephen Cherniske is being prosecuted by the regulatory authorities for making excessive claims about his anti-aging products. From the little I have read, he sure does seem to be overstating the claims.

A couple of years ago I attended a lecture by a strikingly young looking professor in gerontology who was supposedly one of the world's experts in aging. He believes that we must die at about 100 years principally because our genetic code becomes too riddled by about that age with errors as an inevitable conseqence of of cell division. He explained that the main reason we die earlier than 100 years (infection and accidents aside) is additional damage to our genetic code that happens mostly from free radicals and radiation that knock it around.

He explained that the best way to prevent premature aging is to ensure that we have plenty of anti oxidants in our bodies and that we minimise exposure to conditions that cause damage to our genetic code. Among other things, this means avoiding old, rancid and burned foods, preventing sunburn, avoiding xrays and not overdoing the exercise. Once our genetic code is damaged beyond a certain point our cells simply cannot do their work and we die and there is nothing we can do about it once the damage is done.

As we get older our bodies change, including our hormones. While we can supplement with artificial hormones, I wonder if this is really necessary in most cases. Surely we should be accepting that our bodies change with time and these changes in hormones are possibly for a reason? Tinkering with one area may adversly affect another. Aging gracefully is a pleasant thought.

Stay young at heart: Smile and laugh with others each day, exercise moderately, have regular sex, eat fresh foods, take some key supplements, have regular medicals, avoid regular drugs use (including prescription ones) unless absolutely needed, get your toes in the dirt or sand, get wet and cold and challenge your brain daily.