Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients articles from April 2005

Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients archives from April 2005

Dr. Walter D. Sturm, BEd, DAcu, PhD, HMD: November 23, 1994-July 5, 2004.(In Memoriam)(Obituary)
April 1, 2005... Walter was a big bear of a guy with a heart of gold. "The boss"--he loved life, lived it very full, and has without question left his mark on this planet. He was kind and passionate in a Walter sort of way. He pushed boundaries and accepted...

William Donald Kelley, DDS, MS (1925-2005).(In Memoriam)(Obituary)
April 1, 2005... William Donald Kelley, DDS, MS, one of the most significant figures in the history of alternative cancer treatments, passed away on January 30, 2005, at the age of 79. The cause of death was congestive heart failure. He had a long history of...

Bone loss & acidity.(Shorts)
April 1, 2005... In a 1968 article for The Lancet, A. Wachman and D.S. Bernstein proposed the theory that the body draws minerals from the bones to neutralize acid or alkaline challenges to blood pH. Recent studies have indicated support for their theory. The...

Bisphosphonate warning.(Shorts)
April 1, 2005... In December 2004, Novartis released a warning concerning two of its bisphosphonate drugs: Zometa (zoledronic acid) and Aredia (pamidronate disodium). Zometa and Aredia are specifically indicated for cancer-induced hypercalcemia, osteolytic bone...

Calcium supplements & bioavailability.(Shorts)
April 1, 2005... In marketing nutritional supplements, manufacturers often promote the superiority of their product by focusing on the supplement's bioavailability and ease of absorption. In a Journal of Nutrition article, Robert P. Heaney, MD, of Creighton...

Drug-induced osteoporosis.(Shorts)
April 1, 2005... Some pharmaceutical drugs are known to cause bone loss. In November 2004, Depo-Provera Contraception Injection became the latest to join the list that also includes glucocorticoid medications, chemotherapy drugs for prostate and breast cancers,...

Exercise & osteoporosis.(Shorts)
April 1, 2005... To create and maintain healthy bones, people must engage in physical activity. Mechanical stress, such as walking, stair climbing, weight-lifting, or hard physical labor, apparently causes calcium phosphate crystals in the bone to produce tiny...

Ipriflavone.(Shorts)(use to treat osteoporosis)
April 1, 2005... Ipriflavone (7-isopropoxyisoflavone) is a synthetic isoflavone derivative, used as a prescription treatment for osteoporosis in Italy, Japan, Argentina, and other countries. According to research (mostly from overseas), ipriflavone can inhibit...

Nutrition & bone health.(Shorts)
April 1, 2005... In their article, "Nutrition in Bone Health Revisited: A Story Beyond Calcium" (American College of Nutrition, 2000), Jasminka Z. Ilich, PhD, RD, and Jane E. Kerstetter, PhD, RD, say that the body needs more than calcium and vitamin D to keep...

Bone mineral density & fracture risk.(Shorts)
April 1, 2005... A commentary in the British Medical Journal that cites a meta-analysis by Deborah Marshall and colleagues highlights some of the problems with using bone mineral density measurements as the sole determinant for antiresorptive therapy. In the...

Osteoporosis screening guidelines.(Shorts)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2005... In September 2002, a US Preventive Services Task Force determined that it had enough clinical data on effective treatments for reducing fracture risk to make its first recommendations concerning osteoporosis screening. An earlier task force, in...

Vitamin K, Crohn's disease, and osteoporosis.(Literature Review & Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Vitamin K status and rate of bone resorption were measured in 44 patients (mean age, 36.9 years; mean disease duration, 10.5 years) with Crohn's disease in clinical remission and 44 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Vitamin K status was...

Antioxidants: some good news finally.(Literature Review & Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Some 13,017 French men and women (aged 35-60 years) were randomly assigned to receive, in double-blind fashion, a daily nutritional supplement or placebo for a median of 7.5 years. The supplement provided daily 120 mg of ascorbic acid, 30 IU of...

Glutamine for childhood diarrhea.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2005... One hundred twenty-eight (128) otherwise healthy children (aged 6-24 months; mean, 12.6 months) with acute diarrhea were randomly assigned to receive, in double-blind fashion, oral glutamine (0.3 g per kg of body weight per day) or placebo for...

Vitamin E for hayfever.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2005... One hundred-twelve people (aged 18-70 years) with seasonal allergic rhinitis were randomly assigned to receive, in double-blind fashion, 800 IU/day of vitamin E or placebo, in addition to their regular anti-allergy treatment, during the pollen...

Can eating tomatoes keep you young?(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2005... A water-soluble, low-molecular-weight fraction from tomato paste, when present at a concentration of 8% of the total incubation mixture, inhibited the formation of advanced glycation end products after incubating protein with either glucose or...

Lithium-induced psoriasis treated with inositol.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2005... Fifteen patients with psoriasis who were taking lithium were randomly assigned to receive, in double-blind fashion, 6 g/day of inositol or placebo for 10 weeks. After a 4-week washout period, each patient received the alternate treatment for an...

Saving time and money on colonoscopies.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2005... People over the age of 50 are advised to undergo periodic colonoscopy, as a screening test for colon cancer. Most people who have a colonoscopy in the United States are sedated for the procedure, whereas in most other countries it is done...

Red lenses relieve migraines.(Literature Review & Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Thirty-three patients with a history of migraines associated with photophobia were given specially made red-tinted contact lenses to insert during acute attacks. Thirty-one patients experienced rapid pain relief, of whom 26 had complete relief....

In god we trust, all others show data: a reply to the NCI director's "challenge vision"--Part 2.(The War on Cancer; National Cancer Institute )
April 1, 2005... Predictions of Cure [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In a 2004 article, Dr. Andrew C. von Eschenbach, the director of the US National Cancer Institute (NCI) boldly asserted that cancer would be vanquished by 2015. But where does he think the new...

IOM report on CAM highlights a decade of change.(Pathways to Healing; complementary and alternative medicine)(Institute of Medicine)
April 1, 2005... In mid-January the prestigious Institute of Medicine released a 330-page report called Complementary and Alternative Medicine in the United States. The work of a 17-member committee, based on five public hearings plus an extensive search of the...

Persistent organic pollutants.(Health Risks and Environmental Issues)
April 1, 2005... Why is cancer mortality increasing in the United States? Why is the incidence of diabetes, asthma, allergies, and arthritis climbing? Why are birth defects, learning disabilities, behavior problems, neurological and muscular disorders...

Post-menopausal osteoporosis & Chinese medicine.(Chinese Medicine Update)
April 1, 2005... Keywords: Chinese medicine, Chinese herbal medicine, gynecology, menopause, osteoporosis ********** Numerous clinical trials have been carried out over the last 20 years on the effects of Chinese medicine on osteoporosis. In general,...

Vitamin K and bone health.(Therapeutic Nutrition)
April 1, 2005... For many years after its discovery in 1935, vitamin K was recognized only as a necessary cofactor in the production of prothrombin, a precursor to thrombin, which is a necessary component of the coagulation cascade. A synthetic form of vitamin...

Depression and osteoporosis.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2005... Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology describes the unity of mental, neurological, hormonal and immunological functions, addressing the impact of cognitive images of the mind (whatever its elusive definition) on the central nervous, endocrine and...

Depression, osteoporosis and the HPA axis.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary; hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis)
April 1, 2005... The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis is a very complicated control system mediating stress reactions in which glucocorticoids suppress autonomic, endocrine, immunological and psychological responses to stressful stimuli. There are...

Depression, osteoporosis and inflammatory dysfunction.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Depression is a major health problem with 13-20% of the population having depressive symptoms at any given time and [congruent to]5% experiencing major depression. Related pathological processes include ischemia, neoplasia, necrosis, apoptosis,...

Major depression and osteoporosis.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Although pathogenesis of bone loss in major depressive disorder is still debated, studies of bone loss in nonpsychiatric medical disorders have found an association between the activation of osteoclastic (bone resorption) cells and elevation of...

Stress and osteoporosis.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Overproduction of the proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 is associated with age-related arthritis, osteoporosis, periodontal disease, cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, certain cancers, frailty, and functional decline. In 119 adult...

Sleep disorders and osteoporosis.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Questionnaire data from 1,506 community-dwelling men and women age 55-84 found 83% had [greater than or equal to]one of 11 medical conditions and nearly 1/4 elderly (age 65-84) had [greater than or equal to]four conditions. Depression, heart...

Depression and fractures.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2005... In 1,150 female and male distal forearm fracture cases and 2,331 controls age [greater than or equal to]45, previous fractures since age 45 were associated with a 5-year adjusted odds ratio of 1.48 per previous fracture (95% CI 1.20-1.84)....

Proinflammatory cytokines and negative emotions.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Negative affect and lack of supportive interpersonal relationships loom large in the picture of modulation of immune dysregulation. Immune dysregulation may be one core mechanism for a spectrum of conditions associated with aging, including...

Valerian: a safe and effective herb for sleep problems.(Phytotherapy Review & Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Recent publications appear to have answered several important questions for valerian root: [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * Does valerian impair cognitive function or cause excessive sedation? * How does its efficacy compare to...

Anxiety: new options for herbal treatment.(Phytotherapy Review & Commentary)
April 1, 2005... A clinical trial was recently conducted in France to assess the benefits of a combination of extracts of hawthorn (Crataegus oxyacantha) and Californian poppy (Eschscholtzia californica) together with magnesium versus placebo in the treatment...

Blue cohosh and perinatal stroke.(Phytotherapy Review & Commentary)
April 1, 2005... A recent edition of the New England Journal of Medicine contained a case report of a baby who had a stroke, possibly because its mother drank blue cohosh tea to induce labor. (1) A female infant weighing 3860g was born at just over 40 weeks'...

Artemisia annua: herbal use vs isolated active.(Phytotherapy Review & Commentary)
April 1, 2005... The species of wormwood known as Artemisia annua has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for the treatment of fevers and malaria for many centuries. The active antimalarial compound known as artemisinin was isolated by Chinese researchers...

Promising insights into cystic fibrosis.(Phytotherapy Review & Commentary)
April 1, 2005... Cystic fibrosis is a serious genetic disease (autosomal recessive) frequently seen in Caucasian people. It is caused by mutations in the CFTR gene (cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene). (1) The CFTR protein programmed by...

Food may not provide sufficient micronutrients to avoid deficiency.
April 1, 2005... Reference Daily Intakes (RDIs) is a new term that replaces the familiar US Recommended Daily Allowances (US RDAs). RDIs are based on a population-weighted average of the latest RDAs for vitamins and minerals for healthy Americans over 4 years...

Geopathic stress and crib death (SIDS).(Excerpt)
April 1, 2005... (Adapted in part from The Infant Survival Guide: Protecting Your Baby from the Dangers of Crib Death, Vaccines, And Other Environmental Hazards, by the late Lendon H. Smith, MD, with Joseph Hattersley, MA, Petaluma, California, Smart...

Stop fluoridation now: new research on fluoride's brain and thyroid toxicity.
April 1, 2005... Several years have passed since we published a three-part article on water fluoridation entitled "The Fluoride Controversy Continues: An Update" in the Townsend Letter (see the December 2002, January 2003 and February/March 2003 issues). Since...

Correction notice.(Correction Notice)
April 1, 2005... In the Feb/March, 2005 "Best of Naturopathy" issue, we did not acknowledge Allison Siebecker's student affiliation with the National College of Naturopathic Medicine (NCNM). Allison Siebecker authored the winning essay, "Traditional Bone Broth...

Injectable therapies for pain management.(Letters to the Editor)
April 1, 2005... Editor: A cover to cover search of the January 2005 issue, which, as stated on the front cover, is supposed to focus on Chronic Pain Management, failed to find any mention of probably the most successful modalities for treating acute and...

Evening primrose oil and borage oil.(Letters to the Editor)
April 1, 2005... Editor: I was a good friend of Dr. David Horrobin from 1971 until his death from cancer early last year. He was an MD and PhD from Magdalen College, Oxford and he was a Fellow of Magdalen College. He formed the medical publication Medical...

An in-office evaluation of four dietary supplements on natural killer cell activity.(Letters to the Editor)
April 1, 2005... Editor: Dr. Belanger's article in the Feb/March 2005 issue of the Townsend Letter on testing immune boosting supplements for NK cell activity is to be applauded. He accurately points out the significant differences that can exist between...

Food and chemical allergies.(Letters to the Editor)
April 1, 2005... Editor: Like Alan Hunter, I too have seen a relationship between food allergy, the circulatory system, and body temperature. After eating an allergy-causing food my pulse rate at the wrist will increase by 10 to 20 beats [Coca pulse test]....

Preventing and treating osteoporosis with natural medicine.(Editorial)
April 1, 2005... Osteoporosis affects as many as 30% of post-menopausal women and about 5% of older men in the United States. More than 1.2 million fractures (primarily of the hip, spine or wrist) occur each year as a direct result of osteoporosis. As recently...

A six-point plan for healthy bones.(BookCorners; Perfect Bones)(Book Review)
April 1, 2005... Perfect Bones by Pamela Levin, RN Celestial Arts, P.O. Box 7123, Berkeley, California 94707 USA; www.tenspeed.com Softcover, 2002, $16.95, 321 pp. The recent negative reports on estrogen replacement has further confused women...

New Guidelines for Fibromyalgia.(BookCorners)(Book Review)
April 1, 2005... The Fibromyalgia Syndrome: A Clinical Case Definition for Practitioners I. Jon Russell, MD, PhD, Editor The Haworth Medical Press[R], 10 Alice Street, Binghamton, New York 13904-1580 USA Softcover, 122 pp., $24.95 Few...

How natural can you get?(BookCorners; Rawsome!)(Book Review)
April 1, 2005... Rawsome! by Brigitte Mars Basic Health Publications, Inc. 8200 Boulevard East, North Bergen, New Jersey 07047 USA; 201-868-8336 Softcover, 2004, $17.95 US/$28.95 CAN, 355 pp. A raw foods diet is not for everyone, but it does...

New encyclopedia for CAM practitioners.(BookCorners)(Book Review)
April 1, 2005... The Encyclopedia of Medical Breakthroughs and Forbidden Treatments Shoreline, Washington. Medical Research Associates, 2005 $24.95, order at www.medical-breakthroughs.com or 1-800-247-6553 This 8.5 X 11 soft-cover-bound volume is...

New York bills to limit due process abuse by the OPMC vetoed by Governor Pataki.(Townsend's New York Observer)
April 1, 2005... Last December, George E. Pataki, Governor of New York, vetoed bills passed by the Legislature during the 2004 session that would have safeguarded the due process rights of physicians investigated and charged with misconduct by the Office of...

The stories bones tell.(Medical Anthropology)
April 1, 2005... Bones, like most other parts of the body, are as much a product of our culture and evolution as a biochemical accessory. Our bones tell stories about the past and predict the future. And anthropology is the language of this story. In this...

Liver support: an evidence-based review & call for research.(Naturopathic Perspectives)
April 1, 2005... In Complementary and Alternative medicine (CAM), practitioners often speak of and employ "liver support." Liver supportive therapies are widely used and incorporate the use of several different forms of natural medicines including herbs,...

The homeopathic treatment of fractures.(Healing with Homeopathy)
April 1, 2005... Fractures often respond extremely favorably to homeopathy, in the form of acute self-care or treatment by a homeopathic practitioner. We have had dozens of patients over the years report that their physicians are impressed at how rapidly...

Osteoporosis and dairy, protein, prescriptions and exercise.(Web Page Potpourri)
April 1, 2005... Healthy People 2010 -- http://www.healthypeople.gov Healthypeople.gov > Search > Healthy People 2010 Publications > Healthy People 2010, Volumes I and II > "osteoporosis" An average of 24% of hip fracture patients aged 50 years and...

Osteoporosis and bone pain.(Highly Effective Treatments for Pain and Fatigue)
April 1, 2005... Osteoporosis, or decreased bone density/strength, can worsen with age, inactivity, and hormonal deficiencies (estrogen, testosterone, and DHEA). Currently, the rate of osteoporosis among older women is estimated to be about 29%. Yet only 13% of...

Acupuncture & osteoporosis.(Acupuncture and Moxibustion)
April 1, 2005... With recent revelations in the news about the possible dangers of long-term Hormone Replacement Therapy, many women are searching for other possible methods of preventing osteoporosis and other degenerative diseases related to hormonal decline...

The oxygen view of osteoporosis: bone homeostasis is but one face of oxygen homeostasis.(Oxygen Homeostasis)
April 1, 2005... The human anatomy and physiology evolved under the organizing influence of oxygen. (1-4) Accordingly, oxygen not only provides signaling for all developmental, differentiative, and dying processes, it also serves as the principal nutrient for...

Calendar.(Calendar)
April 1, 2005... MARCH 31-APRIL 3: THE HEART OF MEDICINE--Achieving New Levels of Meaning, Fulfillment, and Effective Healing in Your Practice @ Upaya Conference Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Features Larry Dossey, MD; Marty Sullivan, MD; Jeff Brantley, MD...

Soy and endometrial effects.(Research Update)
April 1, 2005... Two recent studies leave us with the need for more information on the effects of soy isoflavones on the endometrium. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 1. Vittorio U, Casini M, Costabile L, et al. Endometrial effects of long-term treatment with...

Lactobacilllus does not prevent post-antibiotic yeast vaginitis.(Research Update)
April 1, 2005... Pirotta M, et al. Effect of lactobacillus in preventing post-antibiotic vulvovaginal candidiasis: A randomized controlled trial. BMJ 2004;Sep 4;329-548-51. Many women and their practitioners think to use lactobacillus in oral and/or...

Calcium-vitamin D supplements effective in preventing bone loss in perimenopausal women.(Research Update)
April 1, 2005... Daniele N, Carbonelli M, Candeloro N, et al. Effect of supplementation on calcium and vitamin D on bone mineral density and bone mineral content in peri- and post-menopausal women: a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial. Pharmacol Res...

Calendula ointment and radiation dermatitis during breast cancer treatment.(Research Update)
April 1, 2005... Pommier P, Gomez F, Sunyach M, et al. J of Clinical Oncology 2004;22(8):1447-1453 The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of calendula ointment (Boiron Ltd.) with that of trolamine, a topical nonsteroidal agent for the...

Dietary influences on osteoporosis.(Nutritional Influences on Illness)
April 1, 2005... Osteoporosis has been called one of the most important disorders associated with aging. (1) Far from being an inevitable affliction of the elderly, it is the result of a slow process that is strongly influenced by several dietary factors. ...