Women with cancer "should be told more about fertility options"

Girls and young women with cancer in the UK are not being given enough information about the options for safeguarding their chances of having children after treatment, fertility experts have said, while describing access to such technologies across the UK as “haphazard”.

“Cancers in young people are largely treatable with good long-term survival [but] one of the most common ill effects of cancer therapy is permanent infertility,” said Melanie Davies, a consultant gynaecologist at University College London Hospitals. “If you ask people who have had cancer who are young: ‘What is the thing that bothers you most?’, top of the list is infertility.”

While men’s fertility can be preserved through freezing sperm samples, for women the options are more complex, involving the freezing of eggs, embryos or even tissue from the ovaries – although the latter is less well established and brings a number of risks, including the possibility of re-implanting cancerous cells.

But experts have raised concerns that patients, and even oncologists, are often unaware of the options, adding that there are huge variations in the availability of the technologies, storage and funding methods around the country, with funding often being granted by commissioners on a case by case basis.

“There is a very sketchy provision – in some places it is quite well organised, in other places it is not,” said Richard Anderson, professor of clinical reproductive science at the University of Edinburgh, who with Davies has co-authored an editorial on the topic, published in the British Medical Journal.

“There is an urgent need to improve information for patients, education for oncologists, and equity of funding, to overcome the barriers to more widespread use of fertility preservation in the UK,” they write.

While guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) have been issued, provision of fertility preservation remains patchy, they say.

“The Nice recommendation is that women [with cancer] should be aware of this and should be offered oocyte or embryo preservation, including adolescent girls,” said Anderson. “But the issue is that that doesn’t seem to have been established around the country by any means as yet.”

While data on the proportion of women with cancer who undertake fertility preservation is lacking, Davies and Anderson say the need for action is borne out by a number of surveys, together with feedback from both patients and clinicians up and down the country. “Colleagues [are] finding it difficult to get money [and] difficult to provide an adequate and funded service,” said Anderson. According to research from the UK charity Breast Cancer Care, 88% of 176 women under the age of 45 who had breast cancer said they were not referred to a fertility specialist after being diagnosed.

Valerie Peddie, senior charge nurse and fertility specialist at the Aberdeen Centre for Reproductive Medicine, agreed with the criticism. “It is absolutely fair and it is 100% accurate,” she said. “[Having children] is just part of the natural life cycle and they may be denied having children in the future if they are not given the opportunity for discussion.”

It isn’t only cancer patients who need access to information and technologies for fertility preservation, Anderson points out, noting that certain drugs and procedures used to treat conditions ranging from rheumatoid arthritis to sickle cell disease can also affect the fertility of patients. Peddie said: “It is all about quality of life and being afforded the opportunity for discussion and being given sufficient and accurate information regarding the implications, long and short term consequences [on future fertility] of any medical treatments that they might require.”

Stuart Lavery, director of IVF Hammersmith and a consultant in gynaecology, reproductive medicine and surgery, was upbeat about the provision of fertility preservation to patients.

“Our experience is that the NHS has become a lot more responsive to this issue – and we have got so busy now that we have had to set up a dedicated clinic just to see these patients urgently and get them into the system quickly,” he said, adding that the NHS had also become more supportive in funding such procedures.

Despite the progress, Lavery admitted there was room for improvement. “I think what is happening is that the oncology teams are really just finding out what is available in their local areas, and that perhaps the relationships and the referral pathways, that patient pathway, in many places may not be as smooth as it could be.”

Women with cancer "should be told more about fertility options"

What You Need To Know About Thyroid Function

The Thyroid gland is a vital hormonal gland which plays a role in metabolism, growth, and maturation of the human body. Stagnation in function with this butterfly shaped organ can provide serious consequences. Unfortunately, The American Thyroid Association states that 12% of the US population will suffer from thyroid dysfunction. The Environment and food quality in the United States are absolutely critical for our overall health in addition to triggering on, and off switches in our body, and in the case of thyroid, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Doctors are often perplexed that their patients have a thyroid problem. The problem is that allopathic practitioners don’t run enough tests or offer enough treatment option preferably about diet and lifestyle since many of illnesses today can be prevented by diet, lifestyle changes, and exercise implementation.

The thyroid gland is absolutely essential for every cell in your entire body. Every cell has a unique receptor for the thyroid hormone, and no cell can function without it. Deficiency and overactive thyroid hormones play a critical role in sickness and disrupting physical and mental capacities. Significant Deficiencies (Hypothyroidism) in thyroid function can drastically slow down metabolism. Other side effects include depression, constipation, fatigue, and brain fog, aches, and dry skin. Overactive thyroid (Hyperthyroidism) can cause restlessness, anxiety, diarrhea, followed by muscle weakness and tremors. This is what is known as Graves disease. Graves disease is usually managed with synthetic thyroid hormones with Synthroid being the most popular prescription from the MD. It can be very dangerous if not given optimal dosages since a variety of side effects can occur like impaired.  Detoxification and diet are crucial in helping rid of the issues that are plaguing your thyroid. Adequate levels of hormone D(vitamin D), will aid in good health and prevent multiple sclerosis, hypertension, cancer diabetes, depression. Hormone D will assure a functional endocrine system and will prevent toxins and pollutants from affecting the thyroid gland.

The Thyroid produces three important hormones through the TSH which are T3, T4, and calcitonin. Calcitonin which regulates calcium and bone metabolism all made possible by the thyroid stimulating hormone. TSH(Thyroid Stimulating hormone) is synthesized by the pituitary gland in our brain which is also needed to produce offspring and breast milk to nourish said offspring. Excess Calcium can lead to heart disease, dementia, hypertension, and kidney damage, and the wondrous thyroid hormone can regulate and fix this process. Thyroid hormones are essential for the growth, development, and maturation of children. Such growth factors include Somatomedins (skeletal growth), erythropoietin which is the formation of red blood vessels, Nerve growth factor, and growth of the epidermal layer. The hypothalamus is the brain region responsible for the thyroid resting hormone which measures the level of thyroid hormone and regulates its production. The thyroid along with T3 and T4 works with many nutrients to help it function and perform its many ubiquitous functions. All of these nutrient factors can be supplemented if are absolutely necessary.

                Selenium- is an essential component in assisting TSH in making T4 convert to T3. Selenium removes cellular debris that may be detrimental to thyroid health by combating free radicals and oxidation.

                Iodine- is one of the building blocks for the thyroid hormone and it is found in seaweed, saltwater fish, high-quality multivitamin or supplements. It is considered one of the most important nutrients to fix hypothyroidism/hyperthyroidism.

                Iron- is needed to convert iodide to iodine as well as the conversion of T4 to T3. It is found in animal foods, dark green vegetables, and could be used as a multivitamin supplement

                Omega 3 fats- needed for cellular development, immune system health, maintaining cell integrity so T3 can enter the cells. Pull harmful oxidized trans-fat molecules out of adipose tissue and helps reduce high blood pressure, hypertension

                Zinc- is responsible for aiding many critical systems of health nervous, skeletal, gastrointestinal health. Aid’s in hypothalamus receptors and assures it’s optimal functioning. Zinc can be found in seafood, green vegetables, organ meat, and supplements

                Vitamin D3- absolutely necessary for human life, essential for heart, health, relieves depression, promotes regular blood sugar levels. D3 is achieved mainly from the sun and found in small concentrations in mushrooms, cheese, seafood, and supplements.

                B vitamins- aids in helping the immune system function, regulates hormones, prevent defects and aids in bone and nervous system health.

                Vitamin A- Needed for healthy immune function and general well-being. It is found in many fruits and vegetables and liver.

                Tyrosine- an amino acid made from iodine, and it acts as a building block for the thyroid hormones.

There are many solutions to fixing thyroid issues. Humans must consume nutrients needed for optimal health which means getting iodine, selenium, zinc, iron, vitamin D, Omega 3s, and B vitamins. I would first consume whole fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds, along with full-spectrum sea salt. Consume a whole foods plant-based diet and eliminate animal protein, and consider supplementing with vitamin B12. If you must consume animal protein, purchase grass fed sources. Taking Curcumin supplements or raw turmeric root can protect the body from virtually all diseases. Those with sensitivity to gluten and dairy should avoid them.  This is a complicated issue since wheat has been a thriving tool for civilizations. The underlying problem is that certain genetic types are intolerant to wheat through zonulin. Zonulin is the molecule which interferes in tight intercellular junctions that are involved in trafficking of macromolecules and, therefore, irregular immune response balance. Zonulin encourages the intestines to expand which allows pathogens, pollutants, toxins, and other debris to affect our gut microbiome. Gluten is known to cause celiac disease, and celiac psychosis, so it is recommended that you avoid it if you are suffering from thyroid issues. One needs to evaluate their levels of stress and find ways to relieve their said stress if experienced to excess. Reduce your exposure to toxins and test some heavy metals in the water supply.

Fluoride is a component in water, antibiotics; toothpaste causes a myriad of health problems. Fluoride can calcify arteries and cause heart disease. It can increase the risk of developing tumors in the mouth and thyroid. Fluoride is overall detrimental to human health however impairing thyroid function can lead to In addition to producing side effects like the ones mentioned above and much more…  This is only one out of many endocrine disrupters that disrupt thyroid function. Chlorine, a disinfectant in water supply has an oxidizing effect of killing organic molecules in our body. It is commonly found in plastics, insecticides, and other manufactured cleaning products. Oxidation is particularly a disease-causing process that looks to destroy our immune system and our overall health by causing disease. Bromine is a flame-retardant commonly found in furniture, upholstery, and even in gluten free products. Bromine can cause the breakdown of iodine, thus causing iodine deficiency.

To wrap this up, I encourage you the reader to pick up the book “The Thyroid Connection,” by Amy Myers. This book will instruct you which tests to order to detect for hypo or hyperthyroidism. Myers has developed a unique protocol in healing your symptoms, which is a 28-day program you can go over with a functional medicine practitioner to help assure your specific needs and/or concerns or questions. Try finding a co-patient, a supportive online or in person community, family member, priest, Imam, Rabbi to provide you with optimism and advice if they or someone they know has suffered from thyroid issues. Expand your horizons in the field of health by picking up books by well-established doctors to give you a great understanding of how to care for yourself and save yourself from added stress and medical bills. Be aware that the environment and lifestyle choices will affect your general health and your ability to function. It seems like all of these toxins are right next to us wherever we go…. We need to detoxify our bodies at least every day if possible and find ways to prevent toxins from impacting our physiological health

Citations

Teotia SPS, Teotia M “Dental Caries: A Disorder of High Fluoride And Low Dietary Calcium Interactions (30 years of Personal Research)” Fluoride, 1994 27:59-66.

S Peckham, D Lowery, S Spencer. “Are fluoride levels in drinking water associated with hypothyroidism prevalence in England? A large observational study of GP practices data and fluoride levels in drinking water.” Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, February 2015;69:619-624.

Sharma C, Suhalka P, Sukhwal P, Jaiswal N, Bhatnagar M. “Curcumin attenuates neurotoxicity induced by fluoride: An in vivo evidence.” Pharmacognosy Magazine. 2014;10(37):61-65.

Seyed Fazel Nabavi et al., “Protective effects of curcumin against sodium fluoride-induced toxicity in rat kidneys.” Biol Trace Elem Res. 2012;145(3):369-74.

Hemlata Tiwari, Mandava V Rao, “Curcumin supplementation protects from genotoxic effects of arsenic and fluoride.” Food Chem Toxicol. 2010;48(5):1234-8.

Myers, Amy. The Thyroid Connection. 1st ed. New York: Little Brown, 2016. Http://www.amymyersmd.com/. Hachette Book Group. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Anthony W Norman et al. “From vitamin D to hormone D: fundamentals of the vitamin D endocrine system essential for good health.” Am J Clin Nutr August 2008 vol. 88 no. 2 491S-499S.

Endocrine Society. “Chemical exposure linked to lower vitamin D levels.” Science Daily. September 20, 2016. Ibid.

“Vitamin D Shows Heart Benefits in Study,” NYTimes.com, 11/16/2009

Zhang Y, et. al. “Vitamin D Inhibits Monocyte/Macrophage Proinflammatory Cytokine Production by Targeting MAPK Phosphatase-1.”Journal of Imm, March 1, 2012; vol. 188 no. 5 2127-2135.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0072572/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21248165

What You Need To Know About Thyroid Function

People with Alzheimer’s who enjoy singing songs from their youth | Letter

I read the heartwarming letter (29 November) in which Dennis Ruston said that even when his late wife had advanced Alzheimer’s she loved to join in the hymns on TV’s Songs of Praise and was word-perfect. Singing for the Brain groups, organised by the Alzheimer’s Society, allow people with dementia to join in songs from their youth. They normally each have a carer with them to support and encourage them to sing. Researchers have found that the brain’s musical pathways remain relatively unscathed by the illnesses that affect normal speech, and people who have lost their speech because of dementia, stroke and other conditions can often still access the words of songs. In such cases, singing is one of the few remaining activities that a dementia patient and their spouse can enjoy equally together.
Ann Wills
Ruislip, Middlesex

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People with Alzheimer’s who enjoy singing songs from their youth | Letter

Thyroid Dysfunctions & The Obesity Epidemic: Is Your Weight Loss Canary Suffering?

There’s no doubt that thyroid disease is on the rise. Now the question is why?

The reason your weight loss attempts might not be working is because your weight loss canary might be suffering…let me explain.

From the research, I have reviewed and the patients I have seen over the last 10 years, it’s clear to me that the thyroid gland is your body’s own yellow canary. It’s sensitive to many different influences—your diet, your lifestyle, and the world around you. And all these influences can affect how well your thyroid functions.

Remember how miners used to detect toxic methane gas and carbon monoxide? They sent bright yellow canaries into the mines. Canaries are highly sensitive to these gasses—so much so that they die when exposed to them. Their deaths served as a warning system for miners so they do not enter and become exposed to poisonous air.

So, it’s not surprising that as we eat more toxic foods and are increasingly exposed to pollution, petrochemical and industrial wastes, and heavy metals that thyroid problems have also skyrocketed. In fact, more than 20 percent of women and 10 percent of men in the United States have thyroid dysfunctions—and half of them don’t even know it (1, 2)!

But exactly how does your environment affect your thyroid?

We now have substantial research to demonstrate that environmental chemicals have a direct impact on the thyroid gland. It’s clear that PCBs and other industrial petrochemical toxins can lower thyroid function, as well as other pollutants such as chlorine, fluoride, and bromide.

Since the thyroid produces hormones that manage your metabolism, anything that affects your thyroid will ultimately affect your metabolism. In fact, there’s evidence that toxins boost the excretion of thyroid hormones, leaving you with less of this hormone to control your metabolism—and a decreased ability to burn fat.

The truth is, your thyroid plays a huge role in weight control, and in determining your metabolic rate.

The question is not if, but how much is today’s obesity epidemic linked to the harmful effects of environmental toxins on metabolism.

I’ve seen so many patients struggle with their weight, only to have the pounds melt off when we addressed their thyroid problems.

True, not everyone’s weight problems are caused by thyroid dysfunction—but if you’re overweight, you should consider the connection. That’s why the best medical doctors always check their patients’ thyroid functions and will consider all the possible causes of subtle thyroid imbalance, including toxins, food allergies, nutritional deficiencies, and stress.

Now let’s talk about some of those other factors.

For example, food allergies, like sensitivities to gluten and other foods, also negatively affect thyroid function—and are frequently undiagnosed. Likewise, deficiencies in nutrients important to good thyroid function—like selenium, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids. and iodine and tyrosine—can also trigger thyroid problems.

With all these factors that can affect your thyroid, it’s clear that we need a new approach to the diagnosis and treatment of thyroid disease. Many doctors can miss the subtle signs of thyroid problems, and conventional medicine often treats low thyroid function with inadequate, one-size-fits-all drugs like Synthroid.

However, thyroid dysfunction requires a more personalized, integrative approach—one that you can help control by becoming an active partner in your care. First, keep an eye out for the symptoms of a low thyroid function, including (3):

• fatigue


• sluggishness


• trouble getting up in the morning


• depression


• dry skin


• dry hair


• constipation


• fluid retention


• menstrual problems and PMS


• hair loss


• cracked or chipping fingernails


• low sex drive


• weight gain


• muscle aches


• cramps

Yes, a lot of those symptoms are common and vague—which is one reason why thyroid dysfunction often goes undetected. But if you notice any of these signs, bring them to your doctor’s attention, and ask him or her to test your thyroid function.

If you are diagnosed with low thyroid function, the following steps recommended:

1. Eliminate the causes of thyroid problems, like toxins, food allergies, and nutritional deficiencies.


2. Exercise


3. Eat foods that provide nutritional support to your thyroid—and avoid those that don’t.


4. Use supplements that protect your thyroid, such as vitamins A and D, selenium, zinc and fish oil.


5. Work with your doctor to choose the right thyroid proto

Remember, thyroid hormone is the master metabolism hormone. If your thyroid is out of balance, your metabolism is out of balance, too.

Do you have a dysfunctional thyroid?

Know that the problem can be fixed. By following the program here you can get your thyroid working properly, keep your weight under control and start feeling better today.
1. The Truth About Low Thyroid: Stories of Hope and Healing for Those Suffering with Hashimoto’s Low Thyroid Disease – August 30, 2016 Dr. Joshua J. Redd
2. Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms? when My Lab Tests Are Normal: a Revolutionary Breakthrough in Understanding Hashimoto’s Disease and Hypothyroidism, 1st Edition, Dr. Datis Kharrazian
3. http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20723100,00.html

Thyroid Dysfunctions & The Obesity Epidemic: Is Your Weight Loss Canary Suffering?

Snowflake’s fourfold symmetry is pure fantasy | Brief letters

When is a snowflake not a snowflake? Answer: when it has fourfold symmetry, like the graphic used with your article (Poor little snowflake, G2, 29 October). How could you make such a mistake? If you are determined to include a snowflake graphic, please get it right. Your snowflakes appear to be made of cubic ice, a metastable polymorph not seen in blizzards or snowballs. An interesting idea but sadly a fantasy. Regular bog-standard ice comprises a hexagonal array of water molecules, so snowflakes likewise have sixfold symmetry. You silly snowflakes!
Roger Davey
Chester

• Young people’s need for “safe spaces” is completely understandable. I’m quite old now but still need mine: it’s my bedroom, usually with a favourite book and a cat. But speakers’ platforms and debating chambers are intended as verbal battlegrounds and have no business being anybody’s safe space.
Jan Chamier
London

• Here’s a revolutionary idea from Jeremy Hunt (Apprentice nurses without degrees to learn job on wards, 30 November). Roll back 50 years and that’s what student nurses were doing, I was one of them. It would be interesting to know if patients’ mortality rate improved when this practice was replaced by insisting nurses get a degree first.
Sarah Akhtar
Stoke-on-Trent

• The Brexit aide’s notes mention having cake, eating it and “French likely to be most difficult” (Caught on camera, G2, 30 November). Understandable really, they’ve got history with cake.
Terri Green
Langley, Warwickshire

• I was encouraged to read that scientists reported that playing tennis can result in a 47% reduced risk of death (Report, 30 November). I had always worried that it was 100% – new balls please!
Murray Marshall
Salisbury

• Apparently the new fivers are 20% pony and 1% monkey (Petition calls for end to animal fat in plastic £5, 30 November).
Alasdair McKee
Lancaster

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Snowflake’s fourfold symmetry is pure fantasy | Brief letters

Ireland compensates woman forced to travel to Britain for an abortion

Ireland has for the first time in its history compensated a woman for the trauma caused by forcing her to travel to Britain for an abortion.

Pro-choice campaigners in the Republic said the Fine Gael-led minority government’s agreement on Wednesday to pay compensation to Amanda Mellet was highly significant.

Mellet and her husband James took their case all the way to the UN’s Human Rights Committee after the couple were forced to obtain a termination of her pregnancy in England.

In 2013 Amanda Mellet became the first of three Irish women to formally ask the UN to denounce the prohibition on abortions in cases of fatal foetal abnormalities as “cruel and inhumane”.

Under Ireland’s strict anti-abortion laws, if Mellet and the other two women had remained in the Republic they would have been forced to give birth to babies who would be born dead.

Campaigners arguing for a referendum to repeal an amendment to the Irish Constitution that gives full citizenship rights to the embryo after conception welcomed today’s decision by the Dublin government.

Ailbhe Smyth, convenor of the Coalition to Repeal the Eighth Amendment and a long-time campaigner on reproductive rights, said: “To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time ever that the Irish government has compensated a woman for having to leave the country for an abortion. This is long overdue acknowledgement of the profound denial of women’s right to autonomy in this country.”

“The government must immediately ensure no other woman suffers similar human rights violations. The eighth amendment is a profound source of discrimination and national shame for Ireland. It is simply not good enough to pass the book to the Citizen’s Assembly and not make any commitment to undertake the necessary constitutional and legislative reforms to end, once and for all, Ireland’s violation of international human rights law and obligations under human rights conventions and treaties.

“We cannot, as a country, continue to oversee the violation of women’s human rights. We’re saying that women deserve better and Ireland can do much better.”

In June the UNHCR ruled that by forcing Amanda Mellet to leave Ireland for an abortion in Britain, the Irish state had inflicted trauma and distress on her.

Irish Labour party senator and long term campaigner for abortion reform in Ireland Ivana Bacik said the government’s decision to accept the UNHCR ruling was a crucial step towards changing Ireland’s abortion regime.

The Trinity College Dublin law lecturer said: “The UN Human Rights Committee’s ruling in June of this year constituted an important acknowledgement that the highly restrictive Irish law on abortion violates the human rights of women. The government’s acceptance of the ruling through the announcement of the compensation award, and Minister Harris’s sincerity in apologising to Ms Mellet, are both welcome.

“But we need now to see official recognition that thousands of other women are being denied their basic human rights through being denied access to legal abortion in Ireland, due to the eighth amendment to the constitution. The UNHCR ruling in favour of Ms Mellet made clear the need for us to hold a referendum to repeal the eighth amendment.”

Ireland compensates woman forced to travel to Britain for an abortion

Isn’t It About Time For A Change?

Since going on the radio in 1981 and taking an active role in promoting good health, I have become appalled by the alarmingly decrepit state of health of the American people.

There is a huge difference that exists between the health of the people and the option for lack of disease and vibrancy.

Today, for the majority, wealth means how much you have. For me, wealth means good health.

The American medical profession has become nothing more than a “hooker” for the Big Pharma “pimp” by abandoning the Hippocratric Oath they pledged to serve skillfully and with sincere compassion.

Millions of Americans are dying unnecessarily by being the brutalized and agonized victims of indiscriminate manslaughter, crucified by the premeditated malpractice through improper conduct and negligent treatment by a totally misinformed and corrupt American medical community.

To add insult to injury, this disgraceful and dishonorable malpractice on living human beings is motivated by only money, sheer stupidity, and absurd medical application.

Most medical doctors, licensed to malpractice, should have their licenses revoked immediately to stop the grossly offensive and disgraceful malpractice of “guesstimation”, diagnosing and the horrendous use of poison chemical drug therapy pushed by the physical-chemical alleged scientists and Big Pharma, which results in broken lives and early deaths.

Bear in mind that Mother Nature does not require any outside interference from the medical community to care for or heal the human body. Yet, American medical schools are endlessly turning out future would-be murders, butchers, poisoners, electrocuters, zombie-makers and frauds. No where do we find healers. Vibrant health and the elimination of disease is contrary to the basic economic interests of the American medical profession and the medical-drug-hospital industry combined. Why? because there is no money to be made with healthy people.

The corrupt American medical profession is guilty of irresponsible deception and trickery in the promiscuous and senseless crimes of manslaughter in the deaths of millions of Americans due to the use of utterly stupid, archaic and immorally wrong Pasteurian methods of treating the ill, sick and diseased.

A medical doctor cannot cure you of any illness, sickness or disease. It’s your body that is the greatest doctor on the planet and can effectively prevent bodily disturbances and heal itself of any body-chemistry imbalance, if given the chance, through biological hygiene, nutrition, proper elimination and lack of energy and stamina.

Medical doctors have been taught to treat symptoms only and not causes. So, millions of innocent human beings will continue to die needlessly because medical doctors cannot effectively treat what they do not nor will not understand and seem to know little of – the natural biological processes of the human body – because they have no training in natural methods of body care and healing.

The American medical community makes no attempt to teach preventative medicine – how to become healthy and remain healthy – for they say, “that’s your problem. We’re only interested in treating symptoms and making money.”

How can a medical doctor help you health-wise when they lack the knowledge to actually do that? Medical schools do not teach nutrition or the natural reactions of the biological process of the human body. What’s really weird is that our highly educated doctors also die of the same illnesses, sicknesses and diseases they attempt to cure.

If you are afflicted with a major disease, going to a medical doctor for treatment is like playing Russian Roulette, and you have a way better than average chance of losing.

Most doctors only guess at what the proper remedy might be for the symptoms they so erroneously diagnose. The wrong diagnosis, the wrong medical application, leads to death. Hell, the old-fashioned “witch-doctors” had more knowledge about the natural biological process of the human body than our elite doctors that graduated from Harvard.

Most doctors today are specialists because they see a human being as a chemical-physical mass of miscellaneous separate parts and cannot accept disease as something wrong with the entire being and do not have the foresight to treat it as such.

Most American medical doctors trust and depend exclusively on chemical-drug therapy for their own survival in the black art of malpractice in treating their patients, aka customers.

Because of the failure of the American medical community to recognize natural methods in disease prevention, healthy body maintenance and elimination of disease, American have experienced an overwhelming increase in chronic degenerative diseases.

Proper nutrition and the treatment of the body as a whole rejects the idea that chemical substances can substitute for natural biological processes. Each individual human body is a separate biological world with its own variety of distinct and unique characteristics, so that the identical physical-chemical therapy cannot be indiscriminately applied with the hope of any success in the treatment of bodily disturbances.

That being the case, why hasn’t the brilliant minds of physical-chemical science failed to accept this?

Chemical drugs can only give temporary relief to symptoms, and the prolonged use of poison chemical drugs will definitely damage the body’s chemistry balance to the point of total disaster.

Proper nutrition, organic sulfur crystals, biological medicine and naturopathic methods of treating the human body must, out of necessity, replace today’s conventional medical therapy if the afflicted are to become well and remain well.

It might be hard to believe but biological medicine and nutrition are not in conflict with conventional medicine. They are worlds apart and just two different approaches to the treatment of illness, sickness and disease. One is natural and one is dictated by Big Pharma.

We, the American people, have been so deviously, systematically and consistently brainwashed into accepting the established dogma of orthodox medicine that, by habit of acceptance of pseudo-authority, we have formed erroneous, preconceived ideas about most natural methods of healing not ordained by the medical profession. Because of this, millions of Americans will continue to suffer and die needlessly from the malpractice of the misguided, but sincere, apprentice physicians.

Medical doctors should be sent back to school to learn natural methods. But, if they did that, there would be a good chance that their medical licenses would be revoked by the American Medical Association that snuggle up closely in bed to Big Pharma.

It’s a proven fact that the conventional medical drug approach to healing, which treats symptoms and not causes, is unable to solve the problem of ill health in America. Patient deaths from medical doctor causing disease have reached unbelievable heights. Toxic drug illnesses involving medical service are so prevalent today that it’s actually dangerous to go to a medical doctor for treatment.

Remember, you are putting your life at risk because a safe, harmless drug does not exist.

So many medical doctors are “surgery-happy” idiots, incompetently performing surgical operations on hundreds of thousands of unsuspecting patients.

How many medical doctors can keep up on the properties and potential dangers of all the new drugs being introduced? How many patients have paid with their lives for their doctor’s experiments in drug use? Even x-rays are being used at will and the cumulative affect is disease-producing and even fatal.

It’s amazing that American doctors continue to purchase malpractice insurance at any price to continue to harm their customers because they do not understand the harm they do with their mistaken methods of treatment.

Isn’t it about time for a change?

Aloha!

To learn more about Hesh, listen to and read hundreds of health related radio shows and articles, and learn about how to stay healthy and reverse degenerative diseases through the use of organic sulfur crystals and the most incredible bee pollen ever, please visit www.healthtalkhawaii.com, or email me at heshgoldstein@gmail.com or call me at (808) 258-1177. Since going on the radio in 1981 these are the only products I began to sell because they work.
Oh yeah, going to www.asanediet.com will allow you to read various parts of my book – “A Sane Diet For An Insane World”, containing a wonderful comment by Mike Adams.
In Hawaii, the TV stations interview local authors about the books they write and the newspapers all do book reviews. Not one would touch “A Sane Diet For An Insane World”. Why? Because it goes against their advertising dollars.

Isn’t It About Time For A Change?

The emotional life of men: "you"ll be right" isn"t enough anymore | Louis Hanson

I love my father. He’s kind and caring.

He grew up in a rural family of boys. He learnt from his father, who in turn learnt from his father, that expressing emotion didn’t coincide with his maleness. Not only was vulnerability not a choice, it just wasn’t an option. Things were left unsaid. The masculine ego left seemingly fortifiable. They were a generation of men strong and powerful but emotionally detached.

When I was 18, I started to feel tired. It was this unending languor, clouding my emotions, hiding my motivation and affecting my concentration. I felt permanently drunk. At the same time, I started to become uneasy; butterflies in my stomach and panic became the norm.

“You’re in the middle of a major depressive episode,” my psychologist told me during my first appointment. Here, I cried for the first time. At 18, I realised that I had perfected the art of hiding, concealing, and building the perfect facade. As a male, I felt, vulnerability wasn’t an option for me.

“You need to learn how to talk to your parents,” she said. I didn’t know how to do that. At this point, I recognised that I had never properly learnt how to access my sadness, let alone to verbalise this to my family.

It was awkward to tell my father that I wasn’t okay. At first, he struggled to access his own emotions with me. It took a lot of learning, from both sides, to communicate with one another as we’d both been groomed not to speak. When I needed him, though, he was there for me.

A close friend of mine recently told me that he had been feeling sad. We were in my car; I had started taking anti-depressants at this point. “One could say it was depression,” he half-smiled, still unable to confirm it for himself. He seemed tense. He told me that he’d gone through bursts of sadness for years, even though he had no reason to feel this way. It was true; he was well liked, had a large network of friends, had done very well in school and had a promising career. From the outside, his life seemed perfect. Sometimes, though, a reason doesn’t need to exist. Together, in that car, we were silent wanderers, guided by our unknown concerns.

Initially, he told me, he could only talk about the black cloud when he was drunk and refused to think about it when he was sober. He thought the black cloud would pass. He was too embarrassed to talk about his sadness. He never dared to tell his family; it made him feel uncomfortable. Besides, he had a carefree reputation to uphold; to him, weakness was prey.

He told his mates down at the pub after our encounter in the car, about his bursts of sadness. His mates paused. They were visibly awkward. “Oh, that’s weird,” said one of them, before they pushed the conversation aside. This bruised my friend’s confidence. His sadness was merely swept under the rug from then on, and this made him more confused.

It’s not necessarily his friends’ fault, though. We have taught, and are continuing to teach, young boys in Australia that emotion is not okay. We are teaching young boys that intimacy between one another should be feared. They are taught that this would make them seem gay. Subsequently, to combat this inherent homophobia, the thought of two males in a close friendship must be humoured and justified within society in order for masculinity to be maintained. In a society where women value the bonds between each other, why doesn’t the same apply for men?

This mentality ultimately extends into adulthood, perpetuating a culture in which manliness does not seem to correlate with the sharing of emotion. At this point, it is important to note that suicide is roughly three times higher in Australian males than females. Why is it that we wait to speak about a man’s depression until it is too late? Reaching out and valuing our male friendships shouldn’t need to be accompanied by a joke. Alas, we have truly grown up into a society in which males fear sharing emotion with one another.

So, for the boys who are afraid to embrace emotion and for the boys who feel with no tears, let’s rid the fear of talking. For the men who feel silenced and for those who have already succumbed to their black cloud, let’s discuss the importance of emotion. For my friend shunned by fear and for my own 18 year-old self, let’s talk about mental health and anti-depressants. Let’s just talk. To speak of pain is to overcome struggle, and to advocate the truths of those still ostracised by the screaming mask. It’s this open and honest dialogue that is helping so many. It’s helping me.

As someone who takes anti-depressants, I’ve come to realise the importance of emotional vulnerability within such a hyper-masculine culture that prides itself on strength and invincibility. Let’s ask boys and men alike how they are feeling, behind the performance. There is strength in susceptibility, too.

“You’ll be right” isn’t enough anymore. No one deserves a black cloud.

The emotional life of men: "you"ll be right" isn"t enough anymore | Louis Hanson

Isn’t It About Time For A Change?

Since going on the radio in 1981 and taking an active role in promoting good health, I have become appalled by the alarmingly decrepit state of health of the American people.

There is a huge difference that exists between the health of the people and the option for lack of disease and vibrancy.

Today, for the majority, wealth means how much you have. For me, wealth means good health.

The American medical profession has become nothing more than a “hooker” for the Big Pharma “pimp” by abandoning the Hippocratric Oath they pledged to serve skillfully and with sincere compassion.

Millions of Americans are dying unnecessarily by being the brutalized and agonized victims of indiscriminate manslaughter, crucified by the premeditated malpractice through improper conduct and negligent treatment by a totally misinformed and corrupt American medical community.

To add insult to injury, this disgraceful and dishonorable malpractice on living human beings is motivated by only money, sheer stupidity, and absurd medical application.

Most medical doctors, licensed to malpractice, should have their licenses revoked immediately to stop the grossly offensive and disgraceful malpractice of “guesstimation”, diagnosing and the horrendous use of poison chemical drug therapy pushed by the physical-chemical alleged scientists and Big Pharma, which results in broken lives and early deaths.

Bear in mind that Mother Nature does not require any outside interference from the medical community to care for or heal the human body. Yet, American medical schools are endlessly turning out future would-be murders, butchers, poisoners, electrocuters, zombie-makers and frauds. No where do we find healers. Vibrant health and the elimination of disease is contrary to the basic economic interests of the American medical profession and the medical-drug-hospital industry combined. Why? because there is no money to be made with healthy people.

The corrupt American medical profession is guilty of irresponsible deception and trickery in the promiscuous and senseless crimes of manslaughter in the deaths of millions of Americans due to the use of utterly stupid, archaic and immorally wrong Pasteurian methods of treating the ill, sick and diseased.

A medical doctor cannot cure you of any illness, sickness or disease. It’s your body that is the greatest doctor on the planet and can effectively prevent bodily disturbances and heal itself of any body-chemistry imbalance, if given the chance, through biological hygiene, nutrition, proper elimination and lack of energy and stamina.

Medical doctors have been taught to treat symptoms only and not causes. So, millions of innocent human beings will continue to die needlessly because medical doctors cannot effectively treat what they do not nor will not understand and seem to know little of – the natural biological processes of the human body – because they have no training in natural methods of body care and healing.

The American medical community makes no attempt to teach preventative medicine – how to become healthy and remain healthy – for they say, “that’s your problem. We’re only interested in treating symptoms and making money.”

How can a medical doctor help you health-wise when they lack the knowledge to actually do that? Medical schools do not teach nutrition or the natural reactions of the biological process of the human body. What’s really weird is that our highly educated doctors also die of the same illnesses, sicknesses and diseases they attempt to cure.

If you are afflicted with a major disease, going to a medical doctor for treatment is like playing Russian Roulette, and you have a way better than average chance of losing.

Most doctors only guess at what the proper remedy might be for the symptoms they so erroneously diagnose. The wrong diagnosis, the wrong medical application, leads to death. Hell, the old-fashioned “witch-doctors” had more knowledge about the natural biological process of the human body than our elite doctors that graduated from Harvard.

Most doctors today are specialists because they see a human being as a chemical-physical mass of miscellaneous separate parts and cannot accept disease as something wrong with the entire being and do not have the foresight to treat it as such.

Most American medical doctors trust and depend exclusively on chemical-drug therapy for their own survival in the black art of malpractice in treating their patients, aka customers.

Because of the failure of the American medical community to recognize natural methods in disease prevention, healthy body maintenance and elimination of disease, American have experienced an overwhelming increase in chronic degenerative diseases.

Proper nutrition and the treatment of the body as a whole rejects the idea that chemical substances can substitute for natural biological processes. Each individual human body is a separate biological world with its own variety of distinct and unique characteristics, so that the identical physical-chemical therapy cannot be indiscriminately applied with the hope of any success in the treatment of bodily disturbances.

That being the case, why hasn’t the brilliant minds of physical-chemical science failed to accept this?

Chemical drugs can only give temporary relief to symptoms, and the prolonged use of poison chemical drugs will definitely damage the body’s chemistry balance to the point of total disaster.

Proper nutrition, organic sulfur crystals, biological medicine and naturopathic methods of treating the human body must, out of necessity, replace today’s conventional medical therapy if the afflicted are to become well and remain well.

It might be hard to believe but biological medicine and nutrition are not in conflict with conventional medicine. They are worlds apart and just two different approaches to the treatment of illness, sickness and disease. One is natural and one is dictated by Big Pharma.

We, the American people, have been so deviously, systematically and consistently brainwashed into accepting the established dogma of orthodox medicine that, by habit of acceptance of pseudo-authority, we have formed erroneous, preconceived ideas about most natural methods of healing not ordained by the medical profession. Because of this, millions of Americans will continue to suffer and die needlessly from the malpractice of the misguided, but sincere, apprentice physicians.

Medical doctors should be sent back to school to learn natural methods. But, if they did that, there would be a good chance that their medical licenses would be revoked by the American Medical Association that snuggle up closely in bed to Big Pharma.

It’s a proven fact that the conventional medical drug approach to healing, which treats symptoms and not causes, is unable to solve the problem of ill health in America. Patient deaths from medical doctor causing disease have reached unbelievable heights. Toxic drug illnesses involving medical service are so prevalent today that it’s actually dangerous to go to a medical doctor for treatment.

Remember, you are putting your life at risk because a safe, harmless drug does not exist.

So many medical doctors are “surgery-happy” idiots, incompetently performing surgical operations on hundreds of thousands of unsuspecting patients.

How many medical doctors can keep up on the properties and potential dangers of all the new drugs being introduced? How many patients have paid with their lives for their doctor’s experiments in drug use? Even x-rays are being used at will and the cumulative affect is disease-producing and even fatal.

It’s amazing that American doctors continue to purchase malpractice insurance at any price to continue to harm their customers because they do not understand the harm they do with their mistaken methods of treatment.

Isn’t it about time for a change?

Aloha!

To learn more about Hesh, listen to and read hundreds of health related radio shows and articles, and learn about how to stay healthy and reverse degenerative diseases through the use of organic sulfur crystals and the most incredible bee pollen ever, please visit www.healthtalkhawaii.com, or email me at heshgoldstein@gmail.com or call me at (808) 258-1177. Since going on the radio in 1981 these are the only products I began to sell because they work.
Oh yeah, going to www.asanediet.com will allow you to read various parts of my book – “A Sane Diet For An Insane World”, containing a wonderful comment by Mike Adams.
In Hawaii, the TV stations interview local authors about the books they write and the newspapers all do book reviews. Not one would touch “A Sane Diet For An Insane World”. Why? Because it goes against their advertising dollars.

Isn’t It About Time For A Change?

Antibiotics leave children "more likely to contract drug-resistant infections"

Children are at substantially increased risk of contracting drug-resistant infections in the months after taking a course of antibiotics, a leading public health official has warned.

Paul Cosford, medical director at Public Health England, told MPs on Wednesday that children are 12 times more likely to contract drug-resistant infections in the three months after being prescribed antibiotics, suggesting that their unnecessary use poses a direct risk to individual patients as well as a broader threat to society as a whole.

“We’ve got good evidence that if you or I have a course of antibiotics now, within three months our risk is three times to get a resistant infection of some sort because we’ve had the antibiotics affecting all the organisms in our bodies,” he told the Science and Technology Select Committee. “If you’re a child you’re 12 times more likely to get a resistant infection in the three months after a course of antibiotics.”

He said the figures, based on two major reviews, highlighted the need to continue driving down our reliance on the drugs. “There is a growing body of evidence that taking antibiotics makes it more likely that your next infection will be a resistant one, so prudent use of these life-saving medicines is essential,” he told the Guardian.

The study cited by Cosford, in fact found that children who had urinary tract infections (cystitis) were 13.23 times as likely to have contracted drug-resistant strains if they had been given antibiotics in the previous six months.

In a previous survey, 90% of GPs said they come under pressure from patients to hand out the antibacterial medication, and 45% said they had done so knowing it would not help.

Mark Woolhouse, professor of infectious disease at the University of Edinburgh, said that the figures matched his qualitative experience from the clinic. “In hospitals you definitely do get patients who will get a string of different drug-resistant infections,” he said.

Antibiotics pose a risk of subsequent illness, he said, because the drugs do not uniquely target the infection, but also eradicate useful bacteria in the gut. “They change the ecology of the gut, a bit like using a pesticide in a rich woodland,” he said. In the ecological niche that opens up after a course of antibiotics, opportunistic infections can spring up.

“This comes with the proviso that people should follow their doctor’s advice,” he added. “Antibiotics are a good thing when prescribed correctly, but they can have longer-term disadvantages of all kinds.”

The committee heard that that overall Britain had made progress on reducing the use of antibiotics since the government asked the economist Jim O’Neill to produce a report on antimicrobial resistance two years ago.

Prescriptions of antibiotics fell by 7.3% in the financial year 2015-16 compared with the previous year, Cosford told the committee.

Farms are also on track to meet a Defra target for 2018 of reducing average antibiotic use on farms to 50mg of drug per 1kg of meat produced (56mg this year, compared to 62mg in 2014). The target is designed to combat the blanket use of antibiotics as a way of boosting the growth of livestock – particularly poultry and pigs.

Certain strains of drug resistant infections are decreasing, the committee heard, with only 800 cases of MRSA bloodstream infections last year, compared to 7,000 in 2003. “When we focus on specific infections that are causing a problem then we can be extremely successful,” said Cosford. However, a more worrying trend was the rise in drug resistant E coli strains, he said, mostly linked to urinary tract infections.

O’Neill said that the current government appeared “less passionate” about the issue than the previous administration. “There is interest, perhaps not with the same passion as with David Cameron,” he said. “The prime minister himself and the chancellor played an active role in international engagement on the issue. I have not seen this government talk about it anything like as much as the previous leadership did.”

He added that it was crucial for policy-makers to make international efforts now rather than waiting for the “scary outbreak of a crisis”.

“We need to stop treating these things like sweets,” O’Neill said. “We all need to be re-educated that these things aren’t a magical solution for as many things as people think.”

Antibiotics leave children "more likely to contract drug-resistant infections"

8 Collective Facts You Should Eat Kiwifruit Everyday

Kiwi was brought from China to New Zealand during the early 20th century by the missionaries. Kiwi fruit is known as the Chinese gooseberry. It is an edible berry. It is oval in shape with brown, hairy cover. It is green in color with black, edible seeds rowed in the center.

There are over 400 varieties of this fuzzy fruit, which grows off of vines on a trellis, much like grapes are cultivated. It is a very healthy fruit with dense nutritional value. It contains a high amount of antioxidants, flavonoids, and phytonutrients.

Nutritional Value of Kiwifruit

Kiwi provides a broad range of nutrition such as fiber, phytonutrients, folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin E, calcium, chromium, copper, iron, magnesium, potassium, and zinc.

8 Reason You Should Eat Kiwifruit Everyday

Cancer

Kiwi fruit is a rich source of antioxidants, phytonutrients, and flavonoid that make it highly beneficial to protect from cancer. Kiwi fruit has been traditionally trusted in the Chinese folk medicine for their effectiveness in healing various types of cancers such as liver cancer, breast cancer, stomach cancer and lung cancer. Extracts of the kiwi fruit inhibit the proliferation of cancerous cells and protect endogenous DNA damage.

Improve Vision

Kiwi fruit is effective to preserve eye vision. It contains carotene and Vitamin C which protects from free radicals and oxidative stress. In the research, it was found that eating kiwi fruit prevents eye vision loss.

Prevent Diabetes

Kiwi has a low glycemic index which makes it suitable for the individuals with diabetes. A study conducted on kiwi extracts demonstrated that consumption of kiwi helps in the regulation of adipogenesis which is critical for the prevention of diabetes.

Boost Immune System

Being rich in Vitamin C and antioxidants, kiwi provides protection for the cells from free radicals, particularly the DNA. Some studies also have shown that kiwifruit also provides a stronger immune system to those who regularly consume kiwifruit.

Beat Stress & Depression

Kiwi contains inositol, a precursor of an intracellular second messenger system, which helps in reduction of anxiety levels, relieving you from stress and depression.

Strengthen Bone

Kiwi fruit contains a right amount of calcium, potassium, Vitamin K, and magnesium. These nutrients are essential for the development of healthy bone. Apart from this, it contains potassium that is required for the development of bone.

Weight Loss

The low glycemic index and high fiber content of kiwifruit prevents a big insulin rush unlike other fruits with high sugar content. This prevents the storage of fat, thus making this fruit beneficial for weight loss.

DNA Protector

DNA damage is one of the leading causes of cancer. Kiwi being rich in antioxidants combination helps in prevention of cells DNA from oxidative damage. This property of kiwi can thus prevent from cancer.

Sources:

stylecraze.com, wiki-fitness.com, nextdoorlab.com, nextdoorlab.com

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8 Collective Facts You Should Eat Kiwifruit Everyday

CQC to investigate as mental health detentions hit 10-year high

The health and social care watchdog is to launch an investigation after government figures revealed the number of detentions for mental health treatment had risen to its highest level in at least a decade.

Patients were detained in England for treatment under the provisions of the Mental Health Act 63,622 times in the year to April 2016, the statistics from NHS Digital showed, a rise of 47% since 2006, the year comparable records began, when there were 43,361 detentions.

Dr Paul Lelliott, the deputy chief inspector of hospitals and lead for mental health at the Care Quality Commission, said the figures were concerning, particularly given a national commitment to reduce the number of mental health detentions.

“The causes of the rise in the use of the act are likely to be complex, but the increase in detentions needs to be examined carefully,” he said. “We do not know, for example, the extent to which the rise is due to repeated detentions, it could signal a lack of support in the community for people with serious mental health problems or if people are being detained repeatedly, it could be a sign that some services are operating ‘revolving door’ admissions.

“To get to the bottom of this, we are launching an investigation into the reasons why detentions under the Mental Health Act in England continue to rise. We expect to publish our findings from this next year.”

Much of the rise in detentions came recently, with a 31% increase in the past five years, the statistics showed. Detentions under section two of the Mental Health Act, which allows for people to be held against their will for up to 28 days for diagnosis and treatment, were up 36% over that period. Detentions under section three, which allows for patients to be held for up to six months of compulsory treatment, were up 7%.

Marjorie Wallace of Sane says doctors are being forced to use the act to obtain an inpatient bed for treatment. Photograph: Richard Saker for the Observer

A snapshot figure, taken on 31 March, found 20,151 people were being detained under the act, 30% of whom were being held in private hospitals.

Peter Kinderman, the president of the British Psychology Society, said the figures were “tragic and shocking, but not terribly surprising”. Cuts to health budgets, combined with widening inequality, social turmoil and economic austerity were leading to an ever tighter squeeze on the poor, he said.

“If there are pressures on the service from cutting community support, various forms of psychotherapeutic support or social support for people, you could see how the pressures would build up and the people who are on the edge of coping might be pushed into feeling as if there was no support for them and feeling as if they might want to take their own lives,” said Kinderman.

“It doesn’t take much of a threat to social support for people in crisis for them to feel like there’s no point in carrying on living, and at that point you need to step in and take quite drastic action to help them.”

Marjorie Wallace, the chief executive of the mental health charity Sane, speculated that the rise could be the result of situations where patients or their doctors felt detention was the only way to get proper mental health treatment. “We know that community mental health services are overstretched and in many cases unable to provide the early treatment that could prevent people becoming so desperately ill,” she said.

“Moreover, without available local psychiatric beds, doctors are being forced to use the act in order to obtain an inpatient bed for treatment, which may involve sending patients to unfamiliar hospitals where they cannot be easily visited by professionals they know, let alone their friends and family. It is a scandal that you have to be sectioned in order to get treatment. What we need is more rather than fewer beds, so that those who need sanctuary and healing can receive help without having to be deprived of their liberty.”

A Department of Health spokesperson said: “People with mental illness need the best possible care and local areas are investing £693m more to make sure the right services are in place. Decisions about detention under the Mental Health Act are clinically led but the Care Quality Commission will be looking into the rise in cases.”

CQC to investigate as mental health detentions hit 10-year high

This May Be The Number ONE Food to Prevent Stroke, High Cholesterol, and Blood Pressure

This May Be The Number ONE Food to Prevent Stroke, High Cholesterol, and Blood Pressure

Good luck getting healthcare in Donald Trump"s America | Miranda Yaver

After an election dominated by rhetoric and anti-establishment sentiment more than policy specifics, the upset of 8 November left open many questions as to how President-elect Donald Trump would steer the nation. More questions still were raised when it was suggested that, contrary to his campaign promise, some aspects of the Affordable Care Act might, indeed, be salvaged. Such hopes have been dashed.

Among Trump’s cabinet announcements this week is that of health and human services, for which he has chosen representative Tom Price, a staunch ACA and reproductive choice opponent. While qualified for the position as a long-time physician and member of Congress, much of his political record is deeply troubling in looking to the future of the American healthcare system.

To a long-time observer of American politics, it comes as little surprise that there is ample politics in policy. But that can be troubling when it comes to healthcare. After all, cancer, heart disease and diabetes do not discriminate among Democrats and Republicans. Physicians treat patients of different ideologies and socioeconomic status, and following the Hippocratic oath, they look after the safety and wellbeing of those who are in their care.

To be sure, physicians have their own policy and partisan preferences, though typically they are not (or should not be) on display in an exam room. Indeed, there are matters of healthcare that may well be in contest with a doctor’s partisan politics, such as the virtues of Medicaid expansion under the ACA or access to women’s health clinics that provide abortions alongside cancer screenings. While scaling back the ACA and restricting access to clinics such as Planned Parenthood is a popular talking point for members of the Republican party, many physicians see the benefit that their patients reap from obtaining insurance regardless of preexisting conditions.

Yet Price’s voting history places partisanship above patient wellbeing. In 2015 he co-sponsored HR 3134, the Defund Planned Parenthood Act of 2015. He has additionally voted against Infant Mortality Pilot Programs (2010), Funding to Combat Aids, Malaria and Tuberculosis (2008); Children’s Health Insurance Reauthorization Act of 2007, and he has voted in favor of repeals of provisions of the ACA.

Among the most deeply partisan issues of the recent election cycle was the expansion versus repeal of the ACA which – for all its faults, like the continued underinsurance of millions – expanded the number of insured Americans by approximately 20 million. Price, who practiced as an orthopedist for over 20 years, should know the impact that insurance coverage has on someone’s willingness to pursue treatment for injuries, and the sometimes dire consequences of going untreated due to lack of insurance.

Despite this, he has sought to repeal the ACA, challenging the “stifling and oppressive federal government,” with the GOP replacement plans, which are all estimated to reduce the number of insured Americans. If there were any doubt as to Trump’s seriousness about dismantling the ACA, those doubts have now been vanquished.

Moreover, while opposition to abortion access is a position commonly held among those on the right, the Planned Parenthood clinics that Price has sought to defund provide a range of affordable family planning services that contribute to the physical and economic well-being of the nation. The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy estimated that the cost to taxpayers associated with teen childbearing was $ 9.4bn in 2010 alone.

My own research has demonstrated that greater access to Planned Parenthood clinics is associated with marked declines in teen childbearing, with additional effects of curbing sexually transmitted diseases and HIV. These are outcomes that are surely beneficial from both medical and economic standpoints, and yet even as a physician this information has yet to sway Price from his vehement support for defunding the organization. He has even going so far as to dispute that any women struggle to afford birth control.

One cannot expect a cabinet appointee to be devoid of partisan preferences. And unlike the selection of Jeff Sessions for attorney general, Price, for all his staunch conservatism, does not present existential threats to democratic institutions, but rather strident challenges to policy issues.

But the consequences of Price consistently ignoring empirical evidence in favor of widely-used healthcare programs – despite his medical expertise – have both vast economic and human consequences that will be all the graver upon his presumptive confirmation.

Good luck getting healthcare in Donald Trump"s America | Miranda Yaver

LDL Particle Number: Possibly an Accurate Predictor of Heart Disease Risk

Many people today prefer to consume foods that contain less cholesterol such as lean meat, eating eggs by discarding the yolk or only taking a few eggs per week, and avoid eating seafood as they are believed to have high cholesterol levels. The main reason behind that is because we have been told that dietary cholesterol in foods raises blood cholesterol.

More recent evidence does not support the idea, which is based on a study performed on rabbits 50 years ago.

What is cholesterol?

Cholesterol is an organic molecule, a fat-like substance that occurs naturally in our body and all other animals living on earth. It is a 27-carbon molecule that many scientists and general public view it as being harmful, to the contrary, it is essential for our body to function.

Being a steroid alcohol, it can be “free” or “esterified” which is its active form. It also can exist in its “esterified”, a storage form which is known a cholesterol ester.

Cholesterol contributes to the strength of the membrane structure of every single cell in our body. It plays a crucial role in strengthening lipid rafts that contain protein-based molecules such as receptors and ion channels.

It is a building block for the production of vitamin D and various steroid hormones (including reproductive hormones) and bile acids. It is a very little known fact that cholesterol and its derivatives, namely vitamin D, bile acids, and bilirubin act as antioxidants.

Dietary cholesterol has little effect on body cholesterol

All this while, many people believe that dietary cholesterol would raise blood cholesterol levels. It’s only true for some people that are ‘high responders, which comprises about 25% of the population.

It’s also so true for diabetics, for instance, they are advised against taking eggs as elevated free radicals caused by high blood glucose (oxidative stress) leads to oxidative damage – meaning damage occurs at cellular levels to plasma and mitochondrial membrane. This condition causes blood cholesterol levels to rise because they are needed to repair both membranes.

Our body tightly regulates the synthesis of cholesterol by producing almost all the cholesterol it needs. At the same time, it absorbs a relatively small amount of cholesterol from foods containing it. When our dietary intake of cholesterol decreases our body would respond by producing more cholesterol. In contrast, when we eat larger amounts of cholesterol, our body produces less.

Most of the dietary cholesterol is not absorbed and is excreted by our gut in the form of stool. Much (> 50%) of the cholesterol we ingest from food is esterified, hence we don’t actually absorb much if any, exogenous cholesterol (i.e., dietary cholesterol). As only unesterified cholesterol is easily absorbable, dietary cholesterol which is high in esterified cholesterol has to be de-esterified to become an unesterified form in order to be easily absorbed into hepatic veins.

The aforementioned arguments are typically ignored by many scientists, dieticians, allopathic doctors, and educators. Their ignorance is believed to stem from focusing too much on lectures and materials in their college-year textbooks. The truth is that the material they obtain from lectures and textbooks can be very out of date.

Dr. Peter Attia says,

“About 25% of our daily “intake” of cholesterol – roughly 300 to 500 mg — comes from what we eat (called exogenous cholesterol), and the remaining 75% of our “intake” of cholesterol — roughly 800 to 1,200 mg – is made by our body (called endogenous production).  To put these amounts in context, consider that total body stores of cholesterol are about 30 to 40 gm (i.e., 30,000 to 40,000 mg) and most of this resides within our cell membranes.”

Our liver synthesizes about 20% of the made or synthesized cholesterol while the rest (80%) is synthesized by other cells in our body. This may be translated as only very few cells require a delivery of cholesterol because most of the cholesterol resides within our cell membranes.

Does particle size matter?

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is responsible for carrying cholesterol particles throughout our body. It makes up 60–70% of total blood lipoproteins and often referred to as “bad” cholesterol because it has been linked to atherosclerosis, or the buildup of plaque in arteries. High LDL levels are associated with an increased risk of heart disease – the higher the level, the greater the risk.

There are different types of LDL categorized according to particle size, namely small LDL, dense LDL or large LDL. People who have mostly small LDL particles are found to be at a greater risk of developing heart disease than those with mostly large LDL particles.

Still, some scientists argue that the most important risk factor is not the size of LDL particles. It is the number that matters the most. This measurement is called LDL particle number, or LDL-P. In fact, the higher number of LDL particles one have, the greater his/her risk of developing heart disease. Some experts believe it is a much more accurate of cardiovascular disease risk than either LDL or total cholesterol levels.

Elevated LDL particle number – affected by triglycerides levels

Besides cholesterol, LDL also carry triglycerides, fat-soluble vitamins, and antioxidants. You may imagine LDL primary task is to deliver all those vital nutrients to cells and tissues of the body.

Each LDL has a certain limit in term of the number of cholesterol it can carry. When the number of triglycerides increases, the amount of cholesterol it carries decreases, which in turn causes the liver to produce more LDL particles to transport the same amount of cholesterol around the body.

Elevated LDL particle number – mechanism

Several factors have been associated with elevated LDL-P, including insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, poor thyroid function, infections, leaky gut, and genetic. Mechanism of each factor is not discussed here as it would make the article becomes very long.

In alternative medicine, well-trained practitioners would always focus on finding the underlying or root cause of the problem. After identifying, appropriate measures such as lifestyle changes are always used as the first line of treatment. In a case of leaky gut, for instance, clients are always advised to change their diet by avoiding foods believed to exacerbate the condition while at the same time take more foods thought to be beneficial in alleviating it.

If the clients experience chronic stress, they are advised to manage the stress diligently. Some herbs such as adaptogens and relaxants may also help to relieve the stress. Most of the time, proper lifestyle intervention makes medication unnecessary.

All the factors associated with elevated LDL-P are believed can be addressed by adopting proper lifestyle changes, except genetic.

Note

Heart disease is a complex, multifactorial process, therefore, the likelihood of having a heart attack depends on numerous factors. This article does not suggest that LDL-P is the only risk factor that matters, or that other risk factors should not be taken into consideration.

Oxidized cholesterols and other oxidized lipids such as lipid peroxides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and aldehydes, all of which formed when vegetable oils are heated and carried by LDL are also believed to be possible causes of atherosclerosis. So, frequent consumption of deep fried foods especially fried using polyunsaturated fats might not be a good idea. Chronis stress, smoking, heavy drinking, and toxin overload due to poor diet, overeating, or poor detoxification are also believed to cause atherosclerosis.

Studies also found that polyunsaturated fats are easily oxidized to aldehydes even when heated below smoke point. Aldehydes are potent oxidizing agents, meaning they are able to oxidize any molecules including that in the cell membrane, ie., various ion channels (for instance, they cause damage to calcium channel, eventually may cause calcium to enter cells at higher levels, which results in atherosclerosis).

LDL Particle Number: Possibly an Accurate Predictor of Heart Disease Risk

Jeremy Hunt says calls for more NHS money are a "misjudgment"

Jeremy Hunt has said calls for more money for the NHS are a “misjudgment” less than a year after the health service received a “good settlement” from the government.

The health secretary was reacting to comments from Chris Hopson, the head of NHS Providers, the body that represents hospitals across England, who said on Tuesday that NHS trusts “simply cannot deliver all that they are being asked to deliver on the funding available”.

There have been repeated calls for more money, with charities, thinktanks and royal colleges all saying the NHS requires extra funding.

The chancellor, Philip Hammond, offered no extra cash for the NHS or social care in his autumn statement. He repeated the government’s claim that the NHS will receive an extra £10bn in funding to 2020-21 – a figure that has been challenged by MPs on the Commons health committee and health experts.

MPs have said the government is misleading the public over the “incorrect” figure, saying it is only being achieved through reductions in other areas of health spending outside of NHS England’s budget, such as public health and investment in training.

They said the real increase was £4.5bn while the King’s Fund thinktank has put the figure at £4.2bn.

According to the Health Service Journal (HSJ), Hunt, who is attending the NHS Providers conference in Birmingham, said of Hopson’s speech: “I read Chris’s speech, and I thought it was a very thoughtful speech, and indeed I think he’s a very thoughtful person when it comes to the challenges facing the NHS.

“But I did think it was a misjudgment for NHS Providers, less than a year after they had a settlement for the NHS which they themselves described as a good settlement, to say that there isn’t enough money.

“And the reason is that when we’re negotiating with the Treasury for extra support for the NHS, if less than a year ago you’ve got the biggest settlement that any government department got, in a period when most government departments have seen their budget cut, and less than 12 months later you’re saying, ‘there isn’t enough money, please sir can I have some more’, then you devalue the currency.

“What you do is you risk the NHS not being at the table in these discussions going forward because people will say, ‘whatever we do it’s not enough’.”

Jeremy Hunt says calls for more NHS money are a "misjudgment"

Growing crisis in children and young people"s mental health demands action

Self-harm among young people, particularly girls, has rocketed in the last decade. The number of girls admitted to hospital after cutting themselves has quadrupled, incidents of poisoning have risen by more than 40%, and demand for university counselling services has mushroomed. Behind these figures are young people and families struggling to cope with toxic levels of mental distress.

In part these numbers reflect a greater awareness of mental health and willingness to seek help but more is going on than that. These figures are also evidence that the today’s generation of young people are facing unprecedented levels of social pressure leading to serious psychological distress. Our response, as a society, has not, as yet, been anywhere near sufficient to answer this cry for help.

At the Tavistock and Portman specialist mental health trust, we have been engaged for nearly 100 years in understanding the causes of psychological distress among young people and, in particular, the impact of childhood experience, relationships and trauma, on mental health. It is why we feel strongly that it was the right thing to do to let the cameras in and help tell the story of young people, their families and clinicians working with them.

Channel 4’s documentary Kids on the Edge, screened over the last month, is the result. For us it has captured, with great sensitivity, the challenges faced by young people and their families, and which our services are working through on a daily basis. Some of what is shown is shocking but not in a sensationalist way. Only by better understanding, both intellectually and emotionally, the level of distress that can drive a young person to self-harm or to think of taking their own life can we begin to move forward.

Ash, featured in Channel 4’s documentary Kids on the Edge. Photograph: Jude Edginton/Channel 4

There is a growing crisis in children and young people’s mental health. It demands a response, it requires urgent action. We would highlight three priorities.

First, demand for help is outstripping supply. A target has been set that 30,000 more young people are able to access help by 2020. That is welcome. However, the treatment gap is enormous. It is estimated that only 25-35% of young people who need help for mental health difficulties receive it. If this was true for cancer there would be a public outrage. Furthermore many services are seeing year-on-year increases in demand of more than 10%, often combined with a rise in case complexity. If the goal is to get good quality and timely help to the young people who need it, the new money promised by the government for children’s mental health must reach the frontline. So far the story on this has been mixed.

Second, dealing with emotional and mental distress is part of the day-to-day business of teachers, social workers and other professionals. This workforce need the right skills, recognition and support to help build resilience in children and keep them engaged with education.

This is more than just mindfulness, helpful though that might be. Some of these challenges were brought into focus by the programme in our school, Gloucester House, which supports some of the most troubled children who have been excluded from other parts of the educational system.

As a society we must acknowledge the negative impact growing social pressures and targets are having on our children and young people, and the part our education system plays in turning up that pressure. A child’s wellbeing should never be sacrificed in the pursuit of educational achievement.

The third issue, graphically illustrated in the final programme, is the difficulty of supporting a young person in transition between adolescent and adult services. An arbitrary age cut-off can do untold harm. Mental healthcare relies on strong therapeutic relationships between service users and clinicians. Care should be organised around an individual’s circumstances not the arbitrary diktats of service boundaries and funding.

There is, in our view, no area of work in the NHS more valuable and rewarding than investing in the health and wellbeing of young people. They are our future and when we get things right there is a lifetime of benefit to be gained for individuals and society.

We have opened our doors at the Tavistock and Portman because we wanted to create a platform for the young people and families using the services and the clinicians who work with them. There is a growing public demand for children and young people’s mental health to be awarded the priority and the investment it needs. This government has made important commitments, but for kids on the edge turning sympathy into action cannot come too quickly.

Paul Jenkins is chief executive of the Tavistock and Portman NHS trust. Paul Burstow chairs the Tavistock and Portman NHS trust and previously served as minister for mental health.

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Growing crisis in children and young people"s mental health demands action

Should women with PMS get free therapy on the NHS?

More than a million women who struggle with severe PMS should be offered free therapy, according to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. It argues that Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is more effective than antidepressants. Is this a breakthrough, or yet another way of pathologising femininity?

Four in 10 women report anxiety, depression, irritability, mood swings and a dip in confidence in the days leading up to their period. Women, and their partners, often describe a Jekyll-and-Hyde type “me” and “not me” difference. This discourse stems, partly, from the media – women are often portrayed as being “out of control”, and at the mercy of their raging hormones.

CBT for PMS seems to work – when it works – by giving women back a sense of hope. For example, where a woman might interpret changing physiological cues as unmanageable, leading to a sense of loss of control, a CBT therapist might encourage them to keep a diary to map their experiences at different phases of the menstrual cycle, in order to train the body to self-soothe. Or perhaps even to question perfectionist standards that make feeling bad seem disastrous.

Though CBT may help individual women feel empowered, the advice is pretty basic. And, at a societal level, the medicalisation of PMS has huge costs. The NHS is broke. It’s difficult to get therapy for even the most serious problems. By framing PMS as a disorder that 40% of women suffer from, we create a new population that views its experiences as abnormal, and without the means to be helped. By framing it as a disorder, we also turn our gaze away from its causes: the sexism of the Jekyll and Hyde depictions that provide the lens through which we interpret body and mood changes. The issues that the emotional premenstrual surge often attempt to communicate are often far from irrational. The sudden fury, say, at always doing the washing-up, the feelings of not being appreciated, being ugly; such issues are deeply embedded within gender dynamics. Framing PMS as a disorder requiring medical intervention is thus an obscurating political act.

Rather than promising to offer CBT to more than a million women, a call unlikely to be heeded in cash-strapped times, we must attempt instead to educate girls in the trials, tribulations, beauty and power of the female reproductive system. We must listen to our bodies, and to one another again – not to the discourse of disorder.

Jay Watts is a clinical psychologist, psychotherapist and senior lecturer working in London

Should women with PMS get free therapy on the NHS?