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supplementation

HIGH DOSE OF VITAMIN MAY INCREASE AND CAUSE MORTALITY – (12-09-04)

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HIGH-DOSAGE VITAMIN E SUPPLEMENTATION MAY INCREASE ALL-CAUSE MORTALITY

My, wasn’t this one a hot one for a day or so? This always brings up the question about how some of these articles manage to make it to the mainstream media when other topics much more important (like Syndrome X) remain unheard of. A couple comments. First, the end results from the study were very weakly positive. 1.04 X risk. 1.00 risk means no effect, so a .04 increase in risk is very small.

Also, the “p” value is .035–this is an evaluation of how much the study results are a result of chance (p value of coin flip is 1). The lower the number the stronger the study. I prefer p values lower than .001. That being said, there’s still the possiblity of a risk, which is NOTHING NEW. I’ve included a strong article that reviews the pro-oxidant effects of Vit E. Vit E can act as a pro-oxidant but THIS IS ABOLISHED BY CO-ANTIOXIDANTS LIKE VIT C. From a natural perspective, we don’t treat supplements in a vacuum and lifestyle changes would ALWAYS be done in a package, not with just one supplement. I’m sure that taking Vit E along with Vit C and other compounds like green tea and red wine will show nothing but a strongly protective effect.

Meta-Analysis: High-Dosage Vitamin E Supplementation May Increase All-Cause Mortality — Miller et al., — Annals of Internal –

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HEALTH FOOD STORES NOT A GOOD PLACE FOR SUPPLEMENTATION – (03-15-04)

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Impact of Federal Safety Advisories on Health Food Store Advice

I’ll be a little careful with this one because it’s a sensitive subject. Basically, a scant few reports on potential damaging effects of kava kava have not changed the recommendations for its use in health food stores. Now, I definitely do not think that there should be governmental regulations on who can sell and recommend supplements.

In this scenario the MDs and DOs would be left with the prescribing ability and (I’m generalizing here) they are not the groups with the most knowledge. However, I do believe in market forces making decisions. Basically, health food stores are not a good place for advice on supplementation (with the exception of some mom and pop stores). A qualified physician with a strong background in physiology and functional medicine will always be your best choice.

Impact of Federal Safety Advisories on Health Food Store Advice – J Gen Intern Med, Vol 19, Issue 3, pp. 269-272 (Abstract) –

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SUPPLEMENTATION OF DIETS REDUCES SERUM CONCENTRATIONS OF TOCOPHEROLS – (10-15-03)

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Supplementation of Diets with alpha-Tocopherol Reduces Serum Concentrations of other Tocopherols

I have come across this concept several times in the past and find it interesting. Basically, there are several types of tocopherols (Vit E as alpha tocopherol being the most famous) and supplementation of one without the other results in deficiencies of the other tocopherals in the bloodstream.

Most high quality Vit E supplements and most multivitamins will have more than just alpha tocopherol to compensate for this phenomena. This is also another wonderful example of Mother Nature having a way of doing things that we take years to figure out why she did it that way…

nutrition.org — Abstracts: Huang and Appel 133 (10): 3137

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TWO STRONGEST MARKERS TO PREDICT RELAPSE – (03-06-05)

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Calprotectin is a stronger predictive marker of relapse in ulcerative colitis than in Crohn’s disease

It is strange that two of strongest markers to predict relapse are tests most GI docs have probably never heard of.  Altered GI permeability (“leaky gut”) as evidenced by a lactulose/mannitol challenge is another strong predictor of relapse.

The nice thing is that these markers can be easily checked and modified with natural approaches such as omega-3 fatty acids, non-processed diets and probiotic supplementation.

Read entire article here