Washington D.C. — A U.S. Senate panel is investigating the diabetes drug,  Avandia believed the drug to have caused over 83,000 heart attacks from 1999 to 2007 alone.

A New England Journal of Medicine study found people who took the drug had a 64% increase in the risk of death from all cardiovascular causes.

Other Avandia Side Effects Include; Swollen legs or ankles; Rapid, unexplained weight gain; Tiredness; Changes in vision; Shortness of breath; Difficulty breathing; Chest pains; Dizziness and more.

The point is, this drug, once hailed as a miracle, is now revealed as a health-destroying drug, not a health-building one.  And this drug is just the latest in a LONG string of drugs that offer false hope, shatter dreams and take lives instead of saving them.

Drug Companies Not To Blame

These facts are NOT an indictment against drug companies, hundreds of thousands of people are alive today who would not be around if not for research and breakthroughs made by drug companies, and for that we all owe them a debt of gratitude.

The problem is not the drug companies, the problem is our childish, short-sighted attitude about our own health that results in millions upon millions of people developing serious diseases that could have easily been easily avoided. 

You Create Your Quality Of Health

You and with very few exceptions, you alone, determine your quality of health throughout your life.

Diabetes, heart disease and many forms of cancer are diseases of environment, and every day you exercise a great deal of control over your environment with your daily diet, nutrition and lifestyle choices.

Everyone wants to be healthy, but so many are fatigued, overweight and suffer with all manner of sniggling little health problems.  It doesn’t have to be that way… and if this describes you, I sincerely hope you decide to take responsibly and make some changes before something bad happens.  And besides that… NOTHING feels better than feeling great… and you can do just that.

More than everything else combined, your diet, nutrition and lifestyle choices determine your bodyweight, your blood pressure and cholesterol level, your energy level, immune system strength, bone density and so on. 

The $50 million secret to being healthy and strong for life is ADMIT that YOU and YOU ALONE are responsible for YOUR health and COMMIT to learning the best diet, nutrition and lifestyle choices and implementing them in your life. 

Do this and the odds are you will never be faced with a decision to take or not take the latest miracle drug, that will likely become the next big class-action law suit filed by the families of people who took the drug and died.

If you want to know more about a diet, nutrition and lifestyle approach to get in the best health of your life, check out my book 5 Steps To Optimal Health, or take a look at 5 hour download audio program… either way, follow the advice in the book and I promise you will soon feel healthier and more energetic than you’ve felt in years and will be on your way to getting in the best health of your life.

Lots more to come!

As science marches on, especially in the world of pharmaceuticals, everything new is hailed as tremendous stride forward.

But is it?

As reported in a March 30, 2009 Associated Press news story, the new “poly-pill” combines aspirin with four blood pressure and cholesterol lowering medications, resulting in a single, multi-purpose, one-size-fits-most pill that promises all sorts of benefits based on initial clinical trials. 

Proponents of the new poly-poll, now awaiting FDA approval, say it will lower costs, make heart disease preventative medication more widely available, and has psychological advantages, because four prescriptions bundled into one, relieve the “pill burden” of taking multiple medications.

This may sound reasonable, especially if you subscribe to the disease-model of health care, which boils down to; 1) diagnose the disease, and; 2) prescribe the drug, and; 3) let the drug take care of the problem. But it’s not that simple.

While some drugs save lives, the VAST MAJORITY of people taking cholesterol and blood pressure lowering drugs, could easily produce the same result for themselves with simple diet, nutrition, and lifestyle changes, without risking the inevitable side effects of the drugs, which may include impotence, heart arrhythmia, and muscle pain and weakness, just to name a few.

Furthermore, the one-pill-fits-most approach arbitrarily assumes everyone who takes aspirin, and/or blood pressure medication, and/or cholesterol-lowering medication, has the exact same medical condition, and should be prescribed the exact same four-drug mix. This, of course, is wildly absurd.

I do agree with the spokesman for the American College of Cardiology, who, commenting on the drug, said, "President Obama is trying to offer the greatest care to the greatest number. This very much fits in with that." And of course, he is right.

If Poly-Pill wins FDA approval, this four-drug cocktail will no doubt become the poster-child drug-of-choice that will, in the name of prevention, be indiscriminately recommended, and widely prescribed to anyone with even the slightest elevation in blood pressure or cholesterol.

I won’t even mention the fact that research proves cholesterol medication does not stop the advance of arterial plaque build up, and blood pressure medication does not help the body function better on it’s own; it just artificially lowers blood pressure, right along with libido, I might add.

The point is, because the drugs do nothing to improve natural function, people taking these medications are dependent on them, and usually stay on them for life. And eventually are prescribed more drugs to deal with the unavoidable side effects.

There is no solution here other than knowledge. And to assist you with that knowledge, you may find these items of particular interest.

First: This link takes you to an article I wrote about prescription drugs and your health.

http://www.drrussellshealthandweightlossblog.com/prescription-drugs-are-you-gambling-with-your-health/

If you, or anyone you care about, take prescription drugs, you may appreciate this information.

Second: In my book, 5 Steps To Optimal Health you learn how to reach a lean, healthy body weight, and improve your health in every way measurable, relying entirely on a natural approach to diet, nutrition and lifestyle. 

Click Here To See The Order Page

Warning: Known side effects of applying the information in 5 Steps To Optimal Health may include; safe-lasting weight loss, higher energy, naturally lower blood pressure, naturally lower cholesterol; higher energy; fewer aches and pains; better sleep; and more.

Topics covered include . . . 

Understanding Metabolism
How food affects hormones & how hormones affect your health
All about protein, carbohydrates and fat
Understanding cholesterol – You’ll be surprised!
Human Growth Hormone & Aging;
How To Stimulate Human Growth Hormone Naturally
Essential Nutrition – Which supplements are important and why
How to beat stress and overcome fatigue
What your body SHAPE tells you about your health
Secrets of safe-permanent weight loss
How to Eat For Optimal Health
Detoxification and Health
Discover the only REAL Fountain of Youth
Delicious Meals That Build Health & Vitality
Attitude Belief & Weight Loss
Much, Much, Much more.
In case you are interested…
Click Here To See The Order Page

The REAL Story Behind Health News Headlines
by Russell J. Martino, Ph.D.  The Voice Of Health
www.Dr.RussellsHealthAndWeightLossBlog.com

NSAIDs, non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, hypertension, prostoglandins, inflammation, blood pressure, high stress,  and how it all relates to hypertension.    

The REAL Story Behind the Health News Headlines gives you a practical insight on important medical studies and health-related news stories.  This Is Health News You Can Use

Popular Over The Counter Pain Relievers Linked To Increased Risk of Hypertension

THE VOICE OF HEALTH SPEAKS

This story behind this headline comes from a study reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

The study involved just over 80,000 women age 31 to 50.  The purpose of the study was to determine if there is a link between increased risk of hypertension, (high blood pressure), and the regular use of NonSteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs, (NSAIDs), and acetaminophen, which is the active ingredient in Tylenol. 

In addition to nearly 70 million prescriptions written each year for products containing NSAIDs and acetaminophen, there are numerous over the counter products containing these substances, including Motrin, Advil, any product containing ibuprofen, Tylenol, Aleve, and many, many others.

The authors’ conclusions are startling!

“The use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and acetaminophen are significantly associated with increased risk of hypertension.” 

They went on to say,

“A substantial proportion of hypertension in the United States, and the associated morbidity and mortality, may be due to the use of these medications.”

Discussion

NSAIDs work by interfering with your body’s ability to make prostaglandins, which are an important class of bio-chemical that regulates hundreds of things throughout your body. 

Your body has two primary types of prostaglandins, ones that produce an INFLAMMATORY response and ones that produce an ANTI-INFLAMMATORY response.  Both are extremely important and a shortage or imbalance in either leads to problems.

Unfortunately, most people are way out of balance with their prostaglandins.  

Most have way too much of the inflammatory prostaglandins and way to few of the anti-inflammatory ones.  As a result, they are forced to live with a great deal of pain and inflammation and frequently take pain relievers to help them feel better. 

On the surface, inhibiting the ability to make inflammation-producing prostaglandins sounds like a good way to stop the pain, and it works.  These drugs are very effective pain relievers.  But there’s a problem and it’s a BIG one.

No doubt you have heard at least some of the hoopla in the news about how important the Omega 3 essential fatty acids are.  Every week there is a new story on the news wire explaining how these essential fatty acids prevent heart disease, lower blood pressure, protect you against cancer and so on.

Omega 3 essential fatty acids are so powerful is because . . .

OMEGA 3 ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS FACILITATE THE PRODUCTION OF THE ANTI-INFLAMMATORY CLASS OF PROSTAGLANDINS RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL THE EXCELLENT RESULTS.  
 
Since the drugs INTENTIONALLY INHIBIT your ability to produce ALL prostaglandins, inflammatory and anti-inflammatory alike, maybe taking them is not such a good idea after all, ESPECIALLY if you take them more than just occasionally.

Anything that interferes with your ability to make prostaglandins seriously interferes with your body’s ability to naturally regulate blood pressure; heart, liver and kidney function; proper immune function and everything else. 

Given this it’s no surprise to discover that the regular use of prostaglandin inhibiting NSAIDs and acetaminophen is now “officially” thought to be responsible for a great deal pain and suffering. 

The Story BEHIND The Story

Because this study focused specifically on the relation between NSAIDs and acetaminophen and high blood pressure, what the study did not mention was another study published in the July 1998 Issue of The Journal of The American Medical Association that stated the following.  

“Conservative calculations estimate that approximately 107,000 patients are hospitalized annually for nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug related gastrointestinal complications and at least 16,500 NSAID-related deaths occur each year among arthritis patients alone.”

Blood pressure concerns aside, it’s well known and well reported in medical literature that these kinds of drugs, prescription or not, can and frequently do cause serious gastrointestinal problems.

Anti Acids To The Rescue!

People who regularly take NSAIDs or acetaminophen frequently develop all sorts of gastrointestinal problems.  To ease their NEW pain, they take anti acids and regularly consuming anti acids creates a whole new set of problems. 

First, anti acids effectively MASK THE SYMPTOMS of the developing gastrointestinal problem, but in no way stops the damage from occurring.   In other words, your GI track is being slowly destroyed and you never feel a thing!

By effectively masking the symptoms, but in no way stopping the damage, people who take pain medication AND anti acids are actually at HIGHER RISK for developing serious gastrointestinal problems.  And many do.

There’s another problem with the regular consumption of anti acids. 

Anti acids are usually high in calcium.  Consuming lots of extra calcium WITHOUT balancing it with magnesium causes a serious mineral imbalance.  To correct that imbalance, your body grabs minerals out of your muscles and bones, which predictably leads to weakness and may lead to heart problems and osteoporosis.  

As you can see, taking drugs to solve problems frequently complicates matters beyond comprehension and can lead to much bigger problems.

Here’s my opinion.  What do you think?

The solution is KNOWLEDGE and ACTION. 

The drug approach to dealing with pain is to reduce your body’s ability to make prostaglandins that regulate inflammation, but that compromises your ability to make ALL prostaglandins and interferes with your natural ability to be healthy.

Just taking the drugs and forgetting everything else amounts to nothing more than a death sentence that’s carried out slowly over the years.  

The solution is not to INHIBIT your body’s ability to function so you don’t feel the pain.  The solution is to ENHANCE your body’s ability to function PROPERLY so there is NO PAIN TO FEEL. 

How do you do that?  An excellent first step is to follow the advice in5 Steps To Optimal Health.  If you take NSAIDs or acetaminophen for pain, pay extra attention to the discussion of Essential Fatty Acids and essential minerals.  Thousands have benefited from the 5 Steps Program.

More Health News You Can Use is on the way… so be sure and subscribe to the Blog so you get Health News You Can Use hot off the press.  www.DrRussellsHealthAndWeightLossBlog.com

Health is a choice only you can make and if you want excellent health you have to make that choice every day. 

Until Next Post… All The Best To You And Yours!
Russell J. Martino, Ph.D
Bringing You Health… At The Speed Of Life!

This is a small sample of the practical, usable information in 5 Steps To Optimal Health, a program I wrote in 1999 and have updated continuously every since.  It’s fun, easy to listen to and completely downloadable.  Learn more here:  www.5StepsToOptimalHealth.com 

The REAL Story Behind Health News Headlines by Russell J. Martino, Ph.D. The Voice Of Health 

Stress, perceived stress, actual stress, emotions, antibodies, neurotransmitters and how it all relates to your immune system response.

A study published in The Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine reports that “perceived stress” is more destructive to your immune system response than “actual stress”.

Using blood samples taken over a 16-month period from study participants who had been vaccinated against meningitis C, researchers determined that people with high levels of PERCEIVED STRESS consistently measured fewer protective antibodies than all other groups.

Participants were divided into 3 groups;

1) Group 1 had Low ACTUAL Stress – No stress conditions beyond the ordinary.

2) Group 2 had High ACTUAL Stress – Unusual, highly stressful circumstances.

3) Group 3 had High PERCEIVED Stress – Most in this group had low to normal stress levels, however, they perceived their lives as being highly stressful. 

The group with high-perceived stress frequently had very low actual stress.

The group with HIGH PERCEIVED STRESS tested 80% fewer protective antibodies in their blood than either of the other two groups.

Discussion: The message is clear; there’s a DIRECT and MEASURABLE connection between your immune system strength and the way your react to the world around you.

The most notable thing about this study is the clear distinction made between ACTUAL STRESS and PERCEIVED STRESS.

Several of the study participants experienced the loss of a parent during the 16-month study period. By any standard, the death of a loved one is a highly stressful event, yet even those in this highest stress group had perfectly normal levels of protective antibodies.

Twenty seven percent of the participants reported high levels of perceived stress during the study and, to a person, this 27% had up to 80% fewer antibodies, even though in most cases, their ACTUAL stress was far less than other participants. 
The message is clear. If you think you are stressed you get the negative health consequences whether or not the stress is real.

How does perceived stress weaken your immune system?

When you feel stressed your brain produces a cascade of powerful bio-chemicals called neurotransmitters. There are many different kinds of neurotransmitters, but the long and short of it is that stress related neurotransmitters can be HIGHLY DESTRUCTIVE to your health.

Constantly feeling stressed means you are constantly flooding your body with powerful chemicals that weaken your immune system and leave you more vulnerable to illness and disease.

Practical Application: Take control of your emotions and don’t let little things, (or big things), get you down.

Stressful situations occur, but ACTUAL STRESS, stress that you recognize, deal with and move on, will not harm your health.

Monitor your feelings and emotions. If something is bothering you, DEAL WITH IT. Your health is too important to let things bother you for very long, and besides that, (to quote my dad), “what difference will it make in a hundred years”? And to quote my wife, “what difference will it make in an hour”?

Remember This . . .

Stress-related bio-chemicals damage your health and those chemicals are made IN DIRECT RESPONSE TO YOUR PERCEPTIONS, not in response to the actual situation.

More Health News You Can Use on the way… so be sure and subscribe to the Blog so you get Health News You Can Use hot off the press.

If you enjoyed this post… please add some value and make it even more interesting for everyone by leaving your comments because I care about you think.

Until Next Time… All The Best To You And Yours!
Russell J. Martino, Ph.D Bringing You Health… At The Speed Of Life!

ONE MORE THING: If you’re ready to lose weight, keep it off for life and start feeling healthier and stronger than ever, you may be interested in the soon-to-be-released, fully revised and updated 2008 version of 5 Steps To Optimal Health. Find out more here : htttp://www.5StepsToOptimalHealth.com

Inflammation Triggers Heart Attacks What You Should Know And Why You Should Care

 by Russell J. Martino, Ph.D. The Voice Of Healthwww.Dr.RussellsHealthAndWeightLossBlog.com

Discover the facts behind the research, the causes of inflammation, why interleuken-6 is like a pack of microscopic attack dogs that claw and bite your arteries, all about c-reactive protein and how a healthy diet is your hearts best friend. Even though research never supported such recognition, for over 30 years cholesterol has been considered public enemy number one when it comes to heart disease.  Now we know better!  This Is Health News You Can Use Inflammation Triggers Heart Attacks Doctors and researchers have recently made great new strides in our quest to understand, protect against and eventually eliminate heart disease.

Numerous studies reported in prestigious medical journals now identify INFLAMMATION, (not cholesterol), as the major culprit in causing heart disease. As it turns out, inflammation can be accurately measured by a simple test that costs under $50. Research studies that number in the thousands and continue to this day show that INFLAMMATION plays a much bigger role in triggering heart attacks and heart disease than cholesterol. These studies show that people with normal cholesterol AND high levels of a substance called C-reactive protein, which measures inflammation, are at greater risk of heart attack than people with high cholesterol and normal levels of CRP.

What is C-reactive protein? C-reactive protein, (CRP) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-reactive_protein , is one of a number of molecules produced by the immune system for the specific purpose of containing or repairing artery damage that occurs for a variety of different reasons. Discovering the connection between inflammation and heart disease is a MAJOR ADVANCE in understanding the disease.

The ease with which C-reactive protein can be measured gives doctors a powerful new tool to identify high-risk individuals who, other than elevated CRP, have no other heart disease risk factors.

Cholesterol has always had much more press than it deserves. While it’s true that about half of the people with heart disease have high cholesterol, it’s also true about half the people with heart disease have NORMAL cholesterol, which means cholesterol may NOT be a significant causal factor.

The new research on inflammation and the role of C-reactive protein is so compelling that many doctors now believe the evidence is overwhelming and that inflammation is, with total certainty, the central factor in cardiovascular disease.

The bottom line is this; the next time you have a check up be sure and have your C-reactive protein tested because this test, exclusive of all others, provides objective information about your risk of heart disease that is far more important than any other factor capable of being tested at this time, including cholesterol.

Causes Of Inflammation And Increased C-Reactive Protein Here’s what we know. When cells that line the inside of the arteries are injured or become dysfunctional they send out a signal, kind of like an SOS, a cry for help. The cellular distress signals are heard by the immune system and the immune system answers the distress call by sending in specialized cells and molecules, including C-reactive protein, to contain the injury, repair the damage and fight off the offender.

If you take a beautiful landscape, like the inside of a healthy artery, and turn it into a war zone where damage and injury is occurring and special troops are being poured in by the thousands to attack the enemy and contain the damage, it does not take long before the landscape is not so pretty anymore.

We know inflammation causes big problems, but what causes inflammation? What damages the inside of the artery in the first place? What causes the cells to cry for help and get the immune system, to send in the shock troops in the form of C-reactive protein and other substances?

We do not know everything that causes damage inside the artery walls, but here are a few things we do know. Basically ANYTHING that causes injury or inflammation signals the release of powerful immune system substances for the purpose of containing and repairing the damage and attacking the problem.

So what causes inflammation?

1. Tobacco is a brutal toxin. Smoking litters the blood with powerful chemicals that damage artery walls and stimulate an immune system response, which, if maintained over time, causes the build up of inflammatory chemicals and greatly increases the risk of heart attack and heart disease.

2. Both high blood pressure and diabetes put constant stress on the inside of the artery walls. Elevated levels of C-reactive protein are common in people with either of these problems.

3. Although researchers are not certain as to why, we know that certain medicines cause an elevation of C-reactive protein, which is another good reason to get healthy, stay healthy and not depend on medicines of any sort.

4. Infections signal the immune system to release C-reactive protein. Many people suffer with low-grade infections that constantly sap their energy. Often, these people have no idea they are suffering with infections; they just think they’re tired.

5. Inflammation causes inflammation. You read it right, there’s no misprint. The inflammatory chemicals produced by the immune system and sent into the blood to contain damage, repair damage and fight invaders actually become part of the problem IF the cellular call for help never stops.

Think about it, if storm troopers constantly trample through your garden, how will it ever grow back and be nice again? The answer is, it won’t! These are a few of the OBVIOUS causes of inflammation.

Now lets examine sources of inflammation that are not so obvious and potentially even more dangerous because they are likely to go unrecognized.

Does being overweight CAUSE inflammation?

Until recently researchers believed that fat cells were passive, but new research has proven differently. It turns out that fat cells are not at all passive. Fat cells constantly produce a substance called interleukin-6.

Interleukin-6 is a highly specialized, extremely powerful, pro- inflammatory bio-chemical that can cause great damage if it shows up in the body at the wrong place and for the wrong reasons. AND FAT CELLS MAKE IT ALL THE TIME.

Interleukin-6 is like a pack of vicious attack dogs your immune system can set lose against viruses, tumors, or anything that may seriously threaten your health. But if there are no bad guys to attack, the last thing a peaceful neighborhood needs is a band of killer dogs roaming the streets ready to pounce on anything that moves. When interleukin-6 enters the blood it does exactly what it’s meant to do. It attacks.

Interleukin-6 causes an immediate inflammatory response, damaging cells and creating problems that didn’t exist before. The injured cells send out a distress signal and the liver responds by making C-reactive protein and sending it streaming into the blood to solve a problem that never ends as long as interleukin-6 is present. Because of the never ending supply of interleukin-6 that fat cells so graciously provide, overweight individuals live in a state of constant low-grade inflammation, which keeps C-reactive protein high and, according to the research, dramatically raises the risk of heart disease.

Now you understand exactly why losing weight slows the inflammation process, lowers C-reactive protein in the body and reduces the risk of heart disease. And you understand even better why losing weight and firming up is one of the healthiest things you can possibly do for yourself. See you at the gym!

Do Sugar And Carbohydrates CAUSE Artery Damage & Inflammation?

Make no mistake about it. Over consumption of foods high in sugar and carbohydrates is one of the primary initiating causes of hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, kidney failure, gall bladder disease and about half of all cancers. Besides causing metabolic imbalances that can destroy your health in a variety of different and creative ways, sugar and carbohydrates turn into glucose and glucose auto-oxidizes in your blood, spinning off free radicals that damage the artery, cause inflammation and send your cells screaming for help.

The ramifications of this are staggering, especially in light of the new research that shows INFLAMMATION to be the primary underlying cause of heart disease. The health destructive effects of oxidation and free radicals are well documented in medical literature. In fact, research on free radicals is one of the main reasons supplements known as ANTI OXIDANTS are so popular.

Nutrients like vitamin c, selenium and zinc are important because they are powerful anti-oxidants that help protect against oxidative stress and free radical damage. Here are the facts about sugar, carbohydrates and inflammation.

Decide for yourself.

FACT: Sugar and carbohydrates are converted into glucose and glucose quickly enters your blood and raises your blood sugar.

FACT: Glucose auto oxidizes in the blood causing significant free radical production.

FACT: Free radicals rip and slice the arteries, causing damage, producing inflammation and causing the cells to cry for help. C- reactive protein is made in the liver and sent charging into the blood to answer the call.

The bottom line . . . Eating a diet high in sugar or carbohydrates keeps blood glucose levels high resulting in oxidative stress, free radical production, arterial damage, a cellular cry for help and an accommodating liver that makes C-reactive protein to answer the call. If you believe the latest research about inflammation and heart disease, and most cardiologist in America do, then you have to agree that eating a diet high in sugar and carbohydrates is a PERFECT PERSCRIPTION for developing heart disease. By the way, what’s for dessert? There is more Health News You Can Use on the way so be sure and subscribe to the Blog so you get Health News You Can Use hot off the press.

www.DrRussellsHealthAndWeightLossBlog.com  Health is a choice you can make and if you want excellent health you have to make that choice over and over, day after day. Until Next Post All The Best To You And Yours! Russell J. Martino, Ph.D Bringing You Health At The Speed Of Life! This information is a small sample of the practical, usable information in 5 Steps To Optimal Health, a program I wrote in 1999 and have updated continuously every since.