Fwd: DOCTOR YOURSELF Newsletter (Vol. 4, No. 8 March 20, 2004)

[Guest guest]

" Andrew W. Saul "

DOCTOR YOURSELF Newsletter (Vol. 4, No. 8 March 20, 2004)

Tue, 16 Mar 2004 12:33:43 -0500

 

To UN: dynewsletter-

 

To for free: dynews-

 

The DOCTOR YOURSELF NEWSLETTER (Vol. 4, No. 8 March 20, 2004)

 

" Free of charge, free of advertising, and free of the A.M.A. "

 

Written and copyright 2004 by Andrew Saul, PhD, of

http://www.doctoryourself.com , which welcomes a million visitors annually.

Commercial use of the website or the contents of this Newsletter is strictly

prohibited.

 

CONCEPTION AND CONTRACEPTION

 

Well, here's another of my greatest " Foot-in-Mouth Moments in Nutrition

Education, " in a series of hundreds:

 

Some years ago, while giving a talk on vitamin C at a local college, I made

reference to the 18th century British explorer James Cook. Captain Cook was

unusually dedicated in employing nutrition to wipe out scurvy on his ships.

I mentioned that, on a long voyage, the captain did experiments with his

seamen.

 

Boy, did that break the ice.

 

So, for whatever reason, I seem to get a lot of questions about natural

birth control. I'm asked, What options are there to drug or barrier methods?

Can a safe, natural form of contraception really cost nothing, and be over

99% effective? As a former school sex-education coordinator and author of a

Master's thesis on the subject, I offer the following excerpt, which surely

should be rated at least PG-13.

 

THE BILLINGS OVULATION METHOD OF BIRTH CONTROL

 

Even if it is granted that birth control education should begin very early,

and that fertility awareness is a desirable inclusion, some objections may

remain. One such objection is that there is no reliable indicator of

fertility. This erroneous idea is widely held but false. A woman's cervical

mucus secretion is a most reliable indicator of fertility (Clift, 1945;

Billings, 1981). Using this fact to prevent conception is the basis for the

Billings Method, or Ovulation Method, of Birth Control.

 

The Billings Method is named after Drs. John and Evelyn Billings of

Melbourne, Australia. They have been instrumental in developing, testing and

promoting this natural birth control method since the early 1950's. It is

also known as the Ovulation Method or the Mucus Method. It is not the Rhythm

Method. In fact, the reason the Billingses began their investigation of

natural birth control in the first place is because the Rhythm Method was

not reliable.

 

" Natural birth control " often conjures up images of ineffectiveness,

complexity and Catholicism. This is unfortunate and inaccurate. Natural

birth control methods are at the very least better than no contraception at

all. Even the Rhythm Method, when carefully and consistently employed, may

be as high as 80% effective in preventing pregnancy (Billings, 1978). Rhythm

has been widely used since 1930. Kantner and Zelnik (1972) said that

 

" Those who have heard about the Rhythm Method, however, generally know more

than those who have not about the time of risk within the menstrual cycle.

About 47 percent of those who have heard about rhythm know when the period

of greatest risk is, compared to 24 percent of those who have not heard

about rhythm. " (p. 17)

 

Learning rhythm, then, seems to increase fertility awareness.

 

Because the failure rate with rhythm is still too high, there have been

attempts to improve on it. The temperature method is perhaps one of the best

known refinements on rhythm. It is based on an observed temperature rise at

the time of a woman's ovulation each month. Three days after this

temperature rise, she is infertile until at least the next menstrual period.

While temperature indicates ovulation, it fails to predict it. Intercourse

before the thermal shift, then, again becomes a matter of rhythm-style

calendar estimation. Another drawback is that " Not all temperature curves

have a temperature rise which is easily recognizable. Often it is difficult

to correctly determine the beginning of the hyperthermic phase " (Doring,

1973, p. 173). A significant temperature rise may be as low as 0.1 degree

centigrade, making this quite reliable method demanding to use.

 

The Billings Method refines and simplifies natural birth control greatly.

Its refinements are that it requires no equipment (no thermometer, no

calendar), no guesswork, and that it will predict ovulation. It is simple

enough that " At least 80% of women learn the ovulation (Billings) method at

the initial instruction " (Billings, 1973, p. 167). " Experience has shown

that an overwhelming majority of women, probably nine out of ten, can

immediately interpret their own mucus system... The remainder can also be

taught to do so " (Billings & Billings, 1974).

 

The Billings Method is a one-step reading of a woman's cervical mucus. It is

performed by the woman herself in a moment and without internal examination.

Every day, she gently wipes the labia with clean, dry, white toilet paper.

She looks at the paper to see if there is any mucus on it. If there is, she

is likely to be fertile. If the mucus is wet and slippery, and can be easily

stretched, then she is very fertile. If the paper stays dry, she is likely

to be infertile that day. On the day of the most wet, slippery, clear mucus

she is most fertile of all. This day is called the peak day, and is the very

day she ovulates (Billings, 1978). She will also feel wettest on this day.

She remains fertile for three days after the peak.

 

It does not matter how old the woman is, nor does it matter how long her

menstrual cycles are. Unlike with the Rhythm Method, there is no need for

regular menstrual cycles. There is no need to " fit " into a normal,

clockwork-like 28 day model. If a woman has short menstrual cycles, she will

ovulate early. If they are long, she will ovulate late. The mucus is there

at ovulation, regardless. If she misses a period, there will simply have

been no ovulation, and therefore no fertile, wet mucus that cycle.

 

A woman does not even have to know how to read and write to use the Billings

Method Effectively. Trials in Tonga (Polynesian islands in the south

Pacific) between l970 and 1972 showed high levels of acceptance and success

with the Billings Method. " 331 couples opted for the ovulation method. Most

women found the mucus symptom immediately recognizable, and were pleased by

the simplicity of the method. " (Weissmann et al, 1972, p. 813)

 

Colored stamps, shells, beads and knots in a rope are sufficient for record

keeping. Even blind women can be taught to use the method (Billings, 1981;

Billings & Billings, 1974). Abnormal temperature, such as a low fever, will

interfere with the temperature method of birth control. It will not obstruct

accurate readings with the Billings Method, however. Abnormal vaginal

discharges, also, " do not prevent the woman from recognizing the time of

fertility " (Weissmann et al, 1972, p. 814).

 

The ovulation mucus symptom is common to all women, including post-menarche

girls. Given the knowledge, any woman can use the method for her entire

reproductive lifetime without financial cost. Unlike medical methods of

birth control, there are no harmful side effects with the Billings Method.

Since a significant number of adolescent girls avoid birth control because

they perceive it as harmful to their bodies (Zabian & Clark. 1987), this is

an important positive feature of the method. Indeed, increased

self-knowledge have very positive results. Says Billings: " This

self-awareness of the natural manifestations of female reproductive

physiology... offers warnings against impulsive sexual relationships which

might lead to pregnancy " (1981, p.194).

 

 

It is one thing for knowledge to exist and another thing to deliver that

knowledge to those who most need it. One of the problems in teaching the

Billings Method has been a shortage of informed teachers. In 1988, the

National Directory of Billings Ovulation Method Teachers listed fewer than

400 entries for the entire United States. Few physicians and nurses know of

the method's effectiveness, and fewer teach it. Billings (1972) said that

" The combined biological failure-rate and user-failure rate of the ovulation

(Billings) method in Tonga was 0.69% " (p. 1193). This is a very low failure

rate indeed, since Rossman (1967) places the birth control pill at 1.2%.

Planned Parenthood says that excellent use of natural birth control can be

up to 99% effective. (What's the best method of birth control for me? " ,

1986). It would not seem that lack of effectiveness explains failure to

promote the Billings Method. It is more likely that there is some other

reason.

 

The simplicity of the method has already been discussed above, as has the

universality of the mucus symptom among women. If it is a simple matter, and

if all women experience it, perhaps it has not been taught simply enough, or

not taught at all.

 

A nurse-midwife taught us the method in half an hour. It took another few

hours to read the Billing's 1978 book, The Ovulation Method. Collegeville,

Minnesota: Liturgical Press. The updated version you will now find is

Billings, Evelyn and Westmore, Ann (1983) The Billings Method New York:

Ballantine Books). We subsequently used the Billings Method for nearly 15

years and the method, properly used, never resulted in an unplanned

pregnancy. Again and again I say, you are designed to reproduce. Be certain

you are correctly instructed in this, or any other birth control technique,

by an experienced instructor.

 

(For more information: The international Billings Method website is

http://www.woomb.org. A Google search for " Billings method teachers " will

bring up other ovulation method websites and Billings chapters in your

country. Or, just http://www.woomb.org/national.html)

 

Commonsense caution: The Billings Ovulation Method obviously provides no

protection whatsoever from sexually transmitted diseases. This is one of the

most important reasons why it is appropriate only for strictly monogamous,

long-term relationships. For those in such a relationship, sex is more fun

(and maybe even more frequent) if you are confident about the outcome.

 

Speaking of outcomes, you can use the method backwards to assist conception.

If a woman knows when she is ovulating, obviously it will greatly increase

her chances of becoming pregnant.

 

So now to enrage GYN's, fertility specialists, and dietitians everywhere:

 

NUTRITION-ENHANCED FERTILITY

 

If you want to conceive, try having the man take megadoses of vitamin C for

a few weeks prior. At least 6,000 milligrams a day, and as much as 20,000

mg/day guarantees very high sperm production. Divide the dose throughout the

day for maximum effect. And that effect is what, exactly? More sperm,

stronger sperm, and better swimming sperm all occurred, at even lower daily

C doses, in a University of Texas study (Medical Tribune, May 11, 1983). A

Medline search for " vitamin C fertility " at

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi will bring up additional

studies. Vitamin C for fertility even works on trout. Take more C and

evidently, regardless of your particular species, you'll make vast

quantities of super sperm. You think this won't work? Have I shown you my

baby pictures?

 

Here's more: zinc and plenty of it helps the prostate and increases seminal

fluid production. There is a scientific literature a mile long about zinc

and male fertility. About five to ten times the RDA will do it. That is

approximately 50 to 100 mg of zinc daily. For best absorption and best

results, divide the dose into two, or better yet, four doses. Zinc gluconate

is well absorbed, and zinc monomethionine better still. These are available

at any health food store without a prescription.

 

A lot of wussy nutritionists will tell you that such levels of zinc are

harmful. Truth is, most men don't even get the puny RDA of zinc, set

laughingly at 10 or 12 milligrams. Zinc lozenges for the common cold are

many times higher than this. Up to 550 mg of zinc has been safely given

daily for a few weeks.

 

Continued high doses of zinc can produce a copper deficiency, and sometimes

a copper deficiency anemia. This is very easy to compensate for. To begin

with, most Americans have copper water pipes in their homes. Drink a glass

or two of cold water first out of the tap every morning and you'll get

copper. Secondly, eat more raisins and other copper-high foods. Third, take

a multiple vitamin (as you should be doing anyway) with copper in it.

Finally, do what the evidently fertile citizens in India have been doing for

thousands of years. Buy a copper metal cup, fill it with cold water at

bedtime, and drink it first thing the next morning. Make this Ayurvedic

routine your routine, and start knitting booties.

 

I have worked with supposedly " infertile " people who have tried " everything "

to conceive a child. Nutrition, especially the vitamin C part, is not even

mentioned in any fertility textbook I've ever seen. I've received some nice

postcards from couples who have taken an odd idea or two of mine and gotten

pregnant within a month or two. It is a wonderful feeling, by the way, to

have helped them bring a soul to the Earth.

 

(All references to this article are posted at

http://www.doctoryourself.com/fertility.html)

 

And looking optimistically ahead, my information on having a successful

pregnancy and delivery is posted at

http://www.doctoryourself.com/pregnancy_lactation.html

 

CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT:

 

I will have the honor of speaking on the same program as Dr. Abram Hoffer,

Dr. Hugh Riordan, and other outstanding nutritional physicians and

scientists at the International Society for Orthomolecular Medicine's 33rd

Annual Conference, " Nutritional Medicine Today, " to be held at the Fairmont

Waterfront Centre Hotel, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, April 29 - May

2, 2004.

 

Actress Margot Kidder (http://www.doctoryourself.com/lois.html) will be

doing a special presentation, and Barbara Reed Stitt, author and former

probation officer, will speak on " Nutrition and Behavior in School and

Prison. " Other presentations include " Down Syndrome and Vitamin Therapy, "

" IV Vitamin Therapy for Schizophrenia, " " Nutrition and Cardiovascular

Disease, " and " Intravenous Vitamin C Therapy in Cancer. " My presentations

will include " Taking it to the People: Orthomolecular Medicine on the

Internet " and inaugurating the brand-new Orthomolecular Hall of Fame. There

are many other scheduled presentations and topics in addition to those I've

listed here. It is going to be one terrific conference and I hope many of my

readers can attend.

 

If you would like more information, please write to the Journal of

Orthomolecular Medicine office at 16 Florence Ave., Toronto, Ontario,

Canada, M2N 1E9 (requires 60 cents postage if you are writing from the USA),

or you can email centre .

 

GUEST BOOK REVIEW:

 

DOCTOR YOURSELF: Natural Healing That Works

 

Reviewed by Julia Woodford, Editor, Vitality Magazine

 

(Reprinted with permission of Vitality http://www.vitalitymagazine.com, Feb.

2004, p 74, 78-79.)

 

In his newly released Doctor Yourself: Natural Healing That Works (Basic

Health Publications Inc.; 2003

http://www.letsliveonline.com/BasicHealth/doctorYourself.html), author

Andrew Saul, Ph.D, presents us with the combined wisdom of his research,

personal experience, and outcomes derived from his work as a consulting

specialist in natural healing for more than 25 years. Although he doesn't

get into the environmental triggers that can instigate some diseases, Saul

does cover a lot of ground in the nutritional medicine field. The book is

even endorsed by the father of orthomolecular psychiatry, Abram Hoffer, who

comments in the book's introduction:

 

" With this book, Dr. Saul is making a major contribution toward

consolidating what is known in the huge and growing field of natural,

orthomolecular medicine. Some day it will be considered malpractice for any

healer anywhere to ignore the vast importance of nutrition and the optimum

use of nutrients in preventing and healing disease. "

 

The various health issues covered in this book - everything from acid

reflux/hiatus hernia to psoriasis to vaccinations (52 health issues in

total) - contain many insights on genuinely effective natural treatments,

most of them rooted in orthomolecular medical theory.

 

ON ADD/ADHD.

 

For example, Saul's research and experience cited in the use of vitamin

megadose therapy to alleviate ADD/ADHD is fascinating. If what he says is

true, that 3,000 mg a day of niacinamide can in some cases eliminate or

drastically reduce the learning and behavioral problems associated with ADD,

then this is obviously a valid alternative to the standard

" Ritalin-for-lunch " approach. Could it really be this simple? (To decide,

please see http://www.doctoryourself.com/adhd.html

 

http://www.doctoryourself.com/hoffer_imbalance.html

 

http://www.doctoryourself.com/kidraise.html

 

and http://www.doctoryourself.com/hoffer_ABC.html)

 

ON CANCER

 

In the section on cancer, Saul shares convincing arguments for the efficacy

of alternative medicine. In his words: " Worthy adjuncts and alternatives to

chemotherapy, radiation and surgical treatments are unpopular with organized

medicine, yet are employed by far thinking physicians and self reliant

persons around the world. Why is this? Because all possibilities need to be

considered in undertaking the treatment of such a serious disease for which

there are too few survivors. "

 

These alternative " possibilities " endorsed by Saul include mega-dose vitamin

C therapy, as utilized by Nobel prize-winning scientist Linus Pauling in the

1980s, American physician Hugh Riordan in current day, and Frank Watts, MD,

at his cancer clinic in Mexico. More specifically, according to Saul:

" Vitamin C has been shown to be preferentially toxic to tumor cells.

Laboratory and clinical studies indicate that in high enough doses one can

maintain blood plasma concentrations of ascorbic acid high enough to

selectively kill tumor cells. " These megadoses, which can range anywhere

from 5,000 mg per day to 50,000 mg per day (depending on the patient's

individual requirements) are administered intravenously at the higher end of

the dosage spectrum, since it is not possible to consume 50,000 mg/daily by

oral means. (DY Editor's note: It is possible, all right, but not

convenient. IV's are not all that convenient, either. Very large oral C

doses require buffering. http://www.doctoryourself.com/news/v4n5.txt)

 

Vitamin B complex, chlorophyll, vitamin E and zinc supplementation are also

included as part of the nutritional approach to treating cancer, and good

evidence is presented for each. According to Saul: " It is our

population-wide, but medically disavowed vitamin deficiency that is almost

certainly the single most overlooked predisposing cause of cancer. " By

repairing these deficiencies, Saul believes that the human body has a shot

at returning to homeostasis, disease-free.

 

Of special note is the subsection on " Comfrey for Cancer. " Here we find

numerous historical accounts of the use of comfrey leaf for external

cancers, as well as comfrey root for internal tumors, tuberculosis, and

ulcers. (http://www.doctoryourself.com/news/v2n15.txt)

 

ON DEPRESSION

 

In this section, Dr. Saul puts tryptophan at the top of his best remedy list

because the human body is able to break it down into " anxiety-reducing,

snooze-inducing niacin " , as well as " the feel-good neurotransmitter

serotonin. " Again, clinical evidence is presented to back up the almost

miraculous effect of tryptophan on some types of depression. Because

tryptophan supplements are illegal for sale in both the U.S. and Canada,

Saul includes a list of tryptophan-rich foods (think brewers yeast; poultry,

beans) and mentions 5-HTP as a legal alternative for those who want a

tryptophan derivative in supplement form.

 

ON ENDOMETRIOSIS

 

In this section, the author explores the role of both selenium and folic

acid, deficiencies of which are known to cause endometriosis in cattle.

Thus, he recommends that women supplement daily with 400 to 1000 IU vitamin

E plus 100 to 200 mg selenium as a prevention and treatment for

endometriosis. Further, folic acid deficiency (often caused by birth control

pills) is alleviated by regular intake of leafy green vegetables, asparagus,

organ meats, or supplements. Other nutrients recommended for endometriosis

treatment and prevention include vitamin C, B complex, EFAs, and magnesium.

While I to the traditional Chinese medicine theory that

endometriosis is often caused by liver congestion, and is therefore

alleviated by liver cleansing arid repair, I nevertheless am very interested

in this theory of Saul's that endometriosis can also be caused by

malnutrition, and therefore cured by supplementation with specific

nutrients.

 

And on it goes. From natural remedies for failing eyesight (sprouts instead

of laser eye surgery) to infertility ( " Fertility: His and Hers, " by Andrew

Saul: see Vitality magazine, page 32-36, and further below) to sleep

disorders, the author brings thoughtful commentary, case histories, and

prevailing research to the reader in search of answers. In justifying his

seeming obsession with vitamin megadose therapy, Saul comments: " The

quantity of a nutritional supplement that cures an illness indicates the

patient's degree of deficiency. It is therefore not a megadose of the

vitamin but rather a megadeficiency that we are dealing with. "

 

Overall, the chapters are somewhat shorter and less detailed than I would

like, sometimes raising more questions than they answer. But the natural

solutions which Dr. Saul presents are provocative and exciting, and the

bibliography at the end of each chapter gives the reader ample resources to

explore available research further. Doctor Yourself is nutritional medicine

in action, and as such deserves a prominent place in the library of anyone

serious about self health care.

 

( " DOCTOR YOURSELF: Natural Healing that Works " is available through all

booksellers. Of course, getting your copy directly from me means you also

get it autographed. Please go to

http://www.doctoryourself.com/saulbooks.html for more information and

 

http://www.doctoryourself.com/order.html to order.)

 

JUST THE FACTS, MA'AM

 

Here are some of your vital statistics:

 

In just ONE SQUARE INCH of your skin, there are:

 

77 FEET of nerves,

 

19 FEET of blood vessels

 

In your one human lifetime:

 

Your eyes will blink 450 million times.

 

You will breathe 650 million times

 

You will grow 1,000 layers of skin

 

Your nails will grow 7 feet

 

You will lose 70 miles of hair from your head

 

And your heart will beat 2,500,000,000 times!

 

If you rub your forearm briskly for a few seconds, 300,000 skin cells will

come off of it. By age 70, you will shed 105 pounds of skin.

 

Your bones are 50% water.

 

IN ONE MINUTE: a hamster's heart beats about 500 times, and a whale's about

9 times.

 

IN ONE DAY: a baby cries an average of 133 minutes

 

(Sources included The Body Almanac, by Neil McAleer (Doubleday, 1985) and

Science Kit/Boreal Labs.)

 

VIRUS WARNING

 

A reminder to all that the ONLY email I send out to my mailing list

rs is this Newsletter and **nothing but** this Newsletter. It is

always in plain text, and NEVER sent as an attachment. I never send

" attachments " or " downloadable " items of any kind. Period. You should never

open attachments or downloads from anyone because of the considerable risk

of computer viruses that may be contained in them.

 

If you receive anything but this Newsletter purporting to be from

" doctoryourself.com " it is completely bogus and probably a virus. It is most

certainly not from me. Any email trying to tell you that " something is wrong

with your account " is a fraud and conceals a virus. Don't be fooled. Just

delete it. Yes, it's true: computer viruses routinely make up phony return

addresses to attempt to cover their tracks. Additionally, I send NO

advertisements, ever, and endorse NO products whatsoever. It is my

longstanding policy to ensure that your email address is held strictly

confidential.

 

Free downloadable antivirus software (not a trial edition, no ads, free

updates, and I use it personally) is available from http://www.grisoft.com .

(Select " Download AVG Free Edition. " ) Remarkably, updates from the Grisoft

website are also free of charge. They are currently at update number 400,

which I think illustrates the magnitude of the computer virus problem.

Taking care of your computer is much like taking care of your body: an ounce

of prevention is worth a ton of cure.

 

CAFFEINE-CLOUDED CHILDREN

 

" Nearly three-quarters of all children over the age of 6 months regularly

use caffeine, according to the Medical Tribune, a newspaper for physicians. "

(Jean Carper, " Your Food Pharmacy " June 15, 1994.)

 

Why caffeine whacks you out so much:

 

http://www.doctoryourself.com/caffeine2.html

 

http://www.doctoryourself.com/caffeine_allergy.html

 

KIDS, ALLERGIES, FOOD ADDITIVES

 

" Dear Dr. Saul,

 

 

" I am accustomed to reading descriptions of Dr. Feingold's work and the

Feingold Association that make me wonder what planet generated the

information. So it was a delight to read your page describing the above.

Thank you! "

 

" Jane Hersey, Director

" Feingold Association of the US "

 

Thank you for the kind words. Here follows, for all to read, an excerpt of

the article (http://www.doctoryourself.com/placebo.html) that you refer to:

 

Back in the 1970s, Dr. Benjamin Feingold, an allergist, noticed that some

children seemed to be noticeably sensitive to artificial colors and other

food additives. He worked primarily with hyperactive kids, had their parents

clean up their diets and go chemical-free, and the hyperactive behavior

stopped. From this came a classic book, Why Your Child Is Hyperactive.

 

Feingold was an M.D.. He was credentialed in every way and then some. I

posses correspondence from him and you should see just the letterhead.

Feingold's diet was so effective that Feingold Associations, grass roots

groups of parents, sprung up across the nation. Basically all they did was

keep painted foods out of their children's stomachs.

 

The food industry's response was predictable. Study after study has been

bankrolled to show that food additives, and sugar, for that matter, have no

negative effect on children's behavior. Yeah, right! Been to a kid's

birthday party lately? Ever taught school during the week following

Halloween? Ever tried to nap a toddler full of M & M's? Most importantly, did

you ever read Feingold's book? This man knows what he is talking about and

got good results.

 

 

As long as we let kids eat chemically dyed " foods " and " drinks, " we might

just as well give them a can of Sherwin-Williams housepaint and a spoon.

 

The worst that can be said about the Feingold approach is that it doesn't

work for all children. Somewhere around 45% to 50% of kids will improve on

his program. Maybe it is no more than a placebo effect. But it may still be

worth a try because there is no harm to it. Doctors give chemotherapy with a

success rate of under 30%, and chemo has serious side effects. What is the

down side of not feeding kids food paint? How can it possibly hurt to try

avoidance of unneeded chemicals? What really rankles you is that allergists

have made a subculture out of avoiding various molds, pollens, hairs and

foods... all substances that we have had millions of years of evolutionary

exposure to. Allergists will be quick to tell you that your child is

allergic to cats or to corn... but not, of course, to an industrial

synthetic chemical dye. For it would somehow seem to them that only

substances found in nature can produce an authentic allergy. Factory foods

and artificial colors bearing molecular names a yard long cannot cause

hyperactivity. But corn can.

 

Logic like that does not even pass the straight-faced test.

 

MORE INFORMATION:

 

1) My thoughts on food allergies continue at

http://www.doctoryourself.com/allergies.html

 

and at http://www.doctoryourself.com/allergies_2.html

 

2) A bibliography of Dr. Feingold's work is posted at

http://www.doctoryourself.com/biblio_feingold.html

 

3) The Feingold Association's toll-free telephone number is 800-321-3287.

 

4) If you have a child with ADHD (or any of the other junk-food

designer-diseases courtesy of the chemical food industry), be sure you look

at the excellent website of the Feingold Association of the USA,

http://www.feingold.org/home.html , our Doctor Yourself " Website of the

Month. " Although their print Newsletter, " Pure Facts " costs $38.00 per year

(including bulletin board access), it is among the very best I've seen and

worth every penny. You can request a free sample issue from the Association

right at their website.

 

I did, and here's what was on just the first page of the 8-page February,

2004 issue (Vol 28, No. 1):

 

" Supplements Found to be as Effective as Ritalin for ADHD. " (Harding KL,

Judah, RD, Gant C. Outcome-based comparison of Ritalin versus

food-supplement treated children with AD/HD. Alternative Medicine Review

2003 Aug; 8(3):319-330.

 

" Consumer's Ability to buy Supplements Threatened (About S. 722, a bill to

limit your access to vitamins. Fight it now at

http://www.doctoryourself.com/limitUSA.htm .)

 

" Junk Food Wars Accelerate " (About soft drink vending machines in schools)

 

And here's an especially nice quote from page 5:

 

" The Charleston, South Carolina school district signed a five-year contract

valued at $8.1 million with the Pepsi Bottling Group. Pepsi's profit? A lot

more than lunch money. " (Jim Guest, President, Consumer's Union.)

 

REPORT THE BENEFITS OF VITAMIN SUPPLEMENTS

 

OK, here's a worthy task: let's get Consumers Union (who publishes Consumer

Reports magazine) to change their pro-pharmaceutical position on vitamin

supplements. In testimony to the Senate Commerce Committee on October 28,

2003, Charles W.F. Bell, C.U.'s Programs Director said:

 

" Pre-market safety testing should be required for dietary supplements . .

Many consumers are surprised to learn the government does not currently

evaluate the safety of dietary supplements before they are sold. This

situation poses a serious risk to public health, and amounts to a vast,

uncontrolled clinical trial on an unsuspecting public. . . We support the

provisions in S. 722 that would authorize the Secretary of the Department of

Health and Human Services (DHHS) to require the manufacturers of dietary

supplements, or any ingredient in a dietary supplement to submit data

demonstrating that the dietary supplement is safe. The Secretary would then

be authorized to review the data and issue a determination that either the

ingredient is safe and that continued marketing is approved, or that

continued marketing is disapproved. . . "

 

I think Mr. Bell has it quite wrong. Vitamin supplements a " serious risk to

public health? " Is he kidding? There is not even one death per year from

vitamins. (http://www.doctoryourself.com/replace.htm)

 

Really now: What could possibly make better cost-effective, preventive

consumer-sense than nutrient supplementation? Consumer Reports

(http://www.consumersunion.org) would do well to emphasize to their readers

that, as long as they such a lousy diet, that supplements are the solution,

not the problem.

 

Keep in mind that this whole flap has never really been about ephedra or any

other such anomaly. Consumer Reports has previously and repeatedly published

strikingly negative articles about vitamin supplements in general. They

should know better.

 

Well, at least the Consumers Union has the right position on soda pop in

schools.

 

LOADED SMOKING GUN + EMPTY NUTRITION = DEAD PEOPLE

 

A new study shows that unhealthy lifestyle choices kill nearly a million

Americans each year. (Mokdad AH et al. Actual causes of death in the United

States, 2000. JAMA. 2004;291:1238-1245.)

 

" The leading causes of death in 2000 were tobacco (435,000 deaths; 18.1% of

total US deaths), poor diet and physical inactivity (400,000 deaths; 16.6%),

and alcohol consumption (85,000 deaths; 3.5%) . . . These analyses show that

smoking remains the leading cause of mortality. However, poor diet and

physical inactivity may soon overtake tobacco as the leading cause of death.

These findings, along with escalating health care costs and aging

population, argue persuasively that the need to establish a more preventive

orientation in the US health care and public health systems has become more

urgent. "

 

Like, say, advocating that everyone take vitamin supplements? JAMA has begun

to do so already. (Fletcher RH and Fairfield KM. Vitamins for Chronic

Disease Prevention in Adults. JAMA. 2002; 287:3127-3129. Also: JAMA. 2002;

287:3116-3126.)

 

And let's not forget that over 100,000 people die each year from

correctly-prescribed pharmaceuticals, obediently taken as directed. (JAMA.

July 26, 2000; 284(4):483-5.)

 

For more on what you can do to insure your access to your vitamins:

http://www.doctoryourself.com/news/v3n23.txt

 

http://www.thehealthcrusader.com/pgs/CrusadorNewsletterJan04.pdf

 

http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2003/2003_preprint_eu_02.html

 

http://www.iahf.com

 

http://www.alliance-natural-health.org

 

TOBACCO ADDICTION THEN AND NOW

 

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO:

 

" Queen Victoria permitted no smoking in the royal palaces, even in guest

bedrooms. Count Paul von Hatzfeldt, the German Ambassador, once was

discovered at Windsor Castle, lying in his pajamas on the bedroom floor with

his head in the fireplace, blowing smoke up the chimney. " (Robert K. Massie,

Dreadnought, p 15-16.)

 

IT WAS TEN YEARS AGO TODAY:

 

" I deny that cigarettes cause cancer and are not safe. " (Charles Whitley,

Tobacco Institute spokesman, to the Associated Press, March 26, 1994.)

 

AND RIGHT NOW:

 

Tobacco kills 50 Americans every single hour, 24 hours a day, 365 days a

year.

 

Stop this madness. Get yourself on the all-volunteer, no-advertising

Smokefree mailing list at http://www.smokefree.net .

 

BON APPETITE

 

" Eating Records: Tree: 11 ft. birch (4.7 inch diameter trunk) in 89 hours by

Jay Gwaltney, age 19, on WKQX's Outrageous Contest, Chicago, September

11-15, 1980. As he finished, he said, about the taste, 'As far as trees go,

it's not bad.' " (Guinness Book of World Records, NY: Bantam, 1989, p. 499)

 

" The greatest omnivore is Michel Lotito (b. 1950) of Grenoble, France, known

as Monsieur Mangetout, who has been eating metal and glass since 1959.

Gastroenterologists have X-rayed his stomach and have described his ability

to consume 2 lb of metal per day as unique. His diet since 1966 has included

10 bicycles, a supermarket cart (in 4 1/2 days), 7 TV sets, 6 chandeliers,

and a low-calorie Cessna light aircraft, which he ate in Caracas, Venezuela.

He is said to have provided the only example in history where a coffin

(handle and all) ended up inside a man. " (Guinness, p. 496.)

 

How about that. And I forgot my spoon.

 

 

 

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