458 Vitamin D, Colds and Flu [12 Feb 2018]

This has been an unusually bad year for influenza and severe colds, collectively called upper respiratory infections or URIs. Many observational studies have found that low levels of vitamin D are associated with increased risk for URIs. But the few random controlled studies testing to see if supplementing with D could lower the risk had conflicting results.

A meta-analysis published in February 2017 in the British Medical Journal combined the data from 25 randomized controlled trials to look at the effect of vitamin D supplementation on incidence of acute respiratory tract infection. It concluded that vitamin D supplementation was safe and offered some protection against acute respiratory tract infections, but only with frequent dosing (daily or weekly – not monthly or longer).

A study in Toronto published in JAMA in 2017 compared 2000 IU and 400 IU vitamin D (daily as oral drops) in 700 children over one respiratory season. Infections averaged slightly more than 1 per child with no significant difference between the two groups. Incidence of influenza infections was reduced 50% in the high dose group but there were too few (10% of infections) to be conclusive.

Last month a recent study of infants from China reported that high dose vitamin D reduced the risk of URIs and also improved symptoms. A random controlled clinical trial published in January 2018 in Pediatr Infect Dis J studied 400 healthy infants between 3 and 12 months of age. Half were given 400 IU and half 1200 IU vitamin D daily as oral drops. The infants were monitored for symptoms of fever, cough and wheezing for four months.

Over the four months 121 cases of influenza A infection occurred – 78 in the low dose group and 43 in the high dose group. As well as having fewer occurrences, the duration of the symptoms (fever, coughing and wheezing) were all significantly shorter in the high dose group. The authors concluded “High-dose vitamin D (1200 IU) is suitable for the prevention of seasonal influenza as evidenced by rapid relief from symptoms, rapid decrease in viral loads, and disease recovery. In addition, high-dose vitamin D is probably safe for infants.”

The Vitamin D Council recommends vitamin D supplementation of 5,000-10,000 IU per day for adults and 1,000 – 2,000 for infants. Vitamin D supplementation is especially important during the winter season when URIs are most common and of course when we cannot obtain vitamin D from the sun.

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

436 Natural Treatments for Sepsis [4 Sept 2017]

Sepsis is a potentially fatal inflammatory immune reaction to a bacterial infection in the blood. It can lead to multiple organ damage, failure, and ultimately death.

In developing countries sepsis is the leading cause of infant mortality, killing one million infants worldwide each year. Even in the USA, sepsis occurs in 1 million people annually, commonly acquired in a hospital, and mortality is close to 50%. Sepsis kills more Americans than breast cancer, colon cancer and AIDS combined. Fortunately two effective natural treatments have been recently discovered.

Feeding probiotics to healthy babies was found to dramatically reduce the risk of developing sepsis. A randomized controlled trial in rural India, where infant mortality from sepsis is common, was carried out with a strain of Lactobacillus plantarum. Cases of sepsis dropped from 9% to 5.4%, a 40% reduction. Other infections were reduced as well. The treatment worked so well the researchers stopped the study early so that all the infants could benefit. The treatment costs about $1.00 per baby.

In contrast to the $1 treatment, hospital treatments for sepsis cost Americans over $24 billion annually. But that could soon change. Dr Paul Marik of the Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in East Virginia discovered an inexpensive and effective treatment for sepsis – intravenous vitamin C. In a clinical study the vitamin C, combined with a cortisone drug and thiamine (a B vitamin), reduced mortality from 40% to 8.5% (and the few that died did so of their original condition, not sepsis).

Malik’s hospital has already made this vitamin C protocol the standard treatment for sepsis and many hospitals are following. A large scale field trial is underway to validate the findings, opening the door for more widespread adoption of the treatment. Since there are no other effective treatments and no negative side effects from this inexpensive protocol, there is really no good reason not to.

It is my hope that the proven success of intravenous vitamin C for sepsis will encourage researchers to take another look at its use in treating other infectious diseases like influenza, encephalitis and polio, and certain cancers, where intravenous vitamin C has shown great promise but remains controversial.

Sources
Mercola newsletter: Probiotics Offer Powerful Protection Against Sepsis in Infants 28 Aug 2017
NPR Report: Probiotic Bacteria Could Protect Newborns from Deadly Infections 16 August 2017
Dr Paul Marik's study in CHEST June 2017
Dr Paul Marik lecture "CCR17 for Sepsis" (34 minutes) - fairly technical, aimed at medical scientist audience but contains useful info
NPR Report "Doctor Turns Up Possible Treatment for Deadly Sepsis" 23 March 2017

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner

397 Vitamin D Deficiency Pandemic? [28 Nov 2016]

With the evidence piling up that the RDA for vitamin D is too low and the concern about the increasing deficiencies of the world’s population (a 2010 article in International J of Health Sciences estimated 1 billion people worldwide), it was inevitable that there would be some pushback. It came earlier this month in a paper published in the NEJM “Vitamin D Deficiency – Is There Really a Pandemic?”

This paper argues that vitamin D deficiencies are overestimated because they are based on the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of 600iu per day for ages 1-70 and 800iu for 70+ which correspond to a blood status of 20ng/ml (75 nmol/L in Canada). Instead (the authors argue) they should use the Estimated Average Intake (EAR) of 400iu and 600iu respectively, which brings half the population to 16 ng/ml, the minimum level to maintain adequate bone health.

A critique of this paper was published on the Vitamin D Council’s website November 18 by A. Tovey and Dr. J.J. Cannell. They made the following points:
• Even for bone health, the RDA is based on faulty statistics and is set too low
• Studies have shown that vitamin D provides many other benefits at much higher levels, so the RDA should be increased significantly
• A March 2013 paper in the Eur J Nutr concluded that vitamin D levels should be over 30 ng/ml to achieve the beneficial effect on chronic diseases.
• People living outdoors near the equator produce levels of 40-80 ng/ml which appears to be the optimum level for good health
• Blood levels of >40 ng/ml are associated with a 65% lower cancer risk
• A 2016 study found that raising blood levels of MS patients from 28 to 84 ng/ml by taking 10,000 iu per day resulted in significant improvements in quality of life scores
• Vitamin D supplementation of 6,400 iu/day safely supplied breast milk with adequate D for the nursing infant
• Raising D levels from 16 to 36 ng/ml improved depression in Swedish adolescents
• The latest data from the US shows that 70% of the population fails to meet even the very conservative 16 mg/ml.

So rather than being overestimated, the rates of vitamin D deficiencies are likely still highly underestimated. Do you know what your blood vitamin D level is?

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

381 Protein Source – Plant or Animal? [8 Aug 2016]

An interesting study was published last week in JAMA Internal Medicine. The study examined data from two previous epidemiologic studies involving over 130,000 health professionals, average age 49, to see if source of protein – animal or plant – has an influence on health and longevity.

The study found that (after factoring out known risk factors) eating more animal protein (meat) was weakly associated with slightly higher mortality, particularly cardiovascular, while eating more plant protein was more strongly associated with a lower mortality.

Curiously these associations only occurred in people with at least one unhealthy lifestyle factor – smoking, heavy alcohol intake, overweight, or physically inactive. For those with a healthy lifestyle the source of protein did not affect mortality. The type of meat was also significant – replacing plant protein for processed meat had a greater reduction of mortality than replacing unprocessed red meat. And there was no association found with fish or poultry and mortality. Note that this is an observational study and does not necessarily show a causal relationship.

How to account for the lack of effect of protein source on the healthy lifestyle group? One possible explanation is that the healthy lifestyle people may have had more fibre and healthier plant foods in their diet, made healthier choices of animal protein (less processed meat, more poultry and fish), and cooked it in a healthier manner (not deep-fried or burned).

This study was limited to older adult health professionals and may not apply to other age or socio-economic groups. For example previous studies have shown that children and adolescents do better on animal protein from red meat (in moderation) as it provides significant and easily absorbed amounts of protein and micronutrients such as iron, zinc and Vitamin A which are crucial to growth and development, and may even help prevent chronic disease in adulthood.

In conclusion, it appears that increasing plant sourced protein may be especially helpful if you smoke, drink too much, are overweight or inactive, or if you have a chronic disease such as diabetes, coronary heart disease, or kidney disease.

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

344 Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals [9 Nov 2015]

Last week I mentioned a group of chemicals called endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) which mimic our hormones causing many different health problems. They are chemically similar and have some but not all of the physiological properties of our real hormones.

Here is how the Environmental Working Group (EWG) describes them:

“There is no end to the tricks that endocrine disruptors can play on our bodies: increasing production of certain hormones; decreasing production of others; imitating hormones; turning one hormone into another; interfering with hormone signaling; telling cells to die prematurely; competing with essential nutrients; binding to essential hormones; accumulating in organs that produce hormones.”

The EWG lists the 12 worst endocrine disruptors, the conditions they have been linked to, and how to avoid them, in a booklet called “Dirty Dozen”:
• Bisphenol-A (BPA) – mimics estrogen, linked to breast cancer, early puberty & other reproductive problems, and heart disease
• Dioxin – persistent, linked to lower sperm quality, carcinogenic
• Atrazine – breast & prostate cancer, delayed puberty
• Phthalates – male reproductive birth defects, testicular cell death
• Perchlorate – competes with iodine causing thyroid dysfunction
• Fire retardants – polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), imitate thyroid hormones, very persistent (found in polar bears and breast milk)
• Lead – deadly toxic, lowers sex hormones, reduces resistance to stress
• Mercury –interferes with women’s cycle, concentrates in fetal brain
• Arsenic – small amounts cause skin, bladder and lung cancer; trace amount interferes with sugar regulating hormones
• Perflourinated chemicals (PFCs) – affects thyroid and sex hormones
• Organophosphate pesticides – affects brain development, thyroid, fertility
• Glycol ethers (brake fluid, solvents) – shrinks testicles, fetal defects

“Dirty Dozen” is downloadable from their website ewg.org. For a more detailed technical discussion see the Endocrine Society’s EDC Statement.

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

343 Reducing Chemical Exposure [2 Nov 2015]

Last week I wrote about the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) report on the threat to human health from exposure to chemicals. One group of chemicals, called endocrine-disrupting chemicals, messes up our hormones causing all kinds of health problems. The best-known of these are BPA & BPS, phthalates, certain pesticides, and the anti-bacterial triclosan. I’ll write more on these next week.

Toxic chemicals are everywhere in our modern world – we can’t completely avoid them. Severely sensitive individuals must go to extreme lengths just to survive, but there are many simple things the rest of us can do to reduce our exposure and improve our health.

• Choose locally grown organically raised whole foods whenever possible
• Reduce processed and packaged foods
• Use ceramic or glass cookware rather than aluminum or non-stick
• Store food and beverages in glass rather than plastic
• Filter tap water for both drinking and bathing
• Use organic shampoo, toothpaste, deodorants and cosmetics
• Replace flame-retardant furniture, carpets, drapes, etc.
• Replace stain-resistant clothing and furniture
• Choose fragrance-free products when available
• Replace vinyl shower curtain with fabric or glass doors
• Use natural household cleaning products, or better yet make your own
• Use natural rather than chemical pesticides in your yard and garden
• Women – use organic cotton pads and tampons or a menstrual cup
• Read labels and choose BPA free plastic and canned goods
• Avoid handling thermal receipts which contain BPA (yikes! I handle dozens every day. If you see me wearing gloves at my desk you’ll know why)
• Check the Environmental Working Group website for the safest consumer products [ewg.org]. There is a wealth of up-to-date information on this site.

Making a few changes at a time will reduce your risk from toxic chemicals. If you are pregnant or have young children in your home, it’s even more critical.

Sources:
Mercola.com 13 Oct 2015 Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals
Endocrine Society Statement on Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

342 Toxic Chemicals and Reproductive Health [26 Oct 2015]

The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) released a report October 1, 2015, on the threat to human health posed by exposure to chemicals. Reproductive health professionals witness first-hand the increasing numbers of health problems facing their patients due to exposure to chemicals. Here are a few quotes from the report:

• Exposure to toxic environmental chemicals during pregnancy and breastfeeding is ubiquitous and is a threat to healthy human reproduction. …even small exposures to toxic chemicals during pregnancy can trigger adverse health consequences.

• Miscarriage and still birth, impaired fetal growth, congenital malformations, impaired or reduced neurodevelopment and cognitive function, and an increase in cancer, attention problems, ADHD behaviors, and hyperactivity are among the list of poor health outcomes linked to chemicals such as pesticides, air pollutants, plastics, solvents and more…

• In the US alone more than 30,000 pounds of chemicals per person are manufactured or imported and yet the vast majority of these chemicals have not been tested.

• …international trade agreements weaken controls and regulations designed to protect communities from toxic chemicals.

• Exposure to toxic environmental chemicals is linked to millions of deaths and costs billions of dollars every year.

• The cost of childhood diseases related to environmental toxins and pollutants in air, food, water, soil, and in homes and neighborhoods was calculated to be $76.6 billion in 2008 in the United States.

• We are drowning our world in untested and unsafe chemicals and the price we are paying in terms of our reproductive health is of serious concern.

The FIGO report was authored by a group of physicians and scientists from the U.S., U.K., and Canada. Read the press release and full report at www.figo.org. Next week – tips on how to reduce your exposure to toxic chemicals.

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

341 Vitamin D for Breastfeeding [19 Oct 2015]

Human breastmilk is known to be extremely low in vitamin D, so supplementation of 400 IU vitamin D is recommended for exclusively breastfed babies in Canada and the USA. But is this an inherent flaw in mother’s milk or an inadequate dietary recommendation of the vitamin for the mother? A randomized controlled trial recently published in the prestigious journal Pediatrics set out to answer that question.

The study started with 334 mother-infant pairs who were exclusively breastfeeding. In Group 1 both mother and infant were given 400 IU of vitamin D; in Groups 2 and 3 the mother was given 2,400 or 6,400 IU respectively and the infants none. Blood levels were tested at baseline, 4 months and 7 months. Interestingly the 2,400 IU group was stopped by the ethics committee after 4 months because too many of the infants were still D deficient. At the end of the study the infants from Group 3 had D levels equal to those in Group 1 who were supplemented with 400 IU.

The study concludes:

“Maternal vitamin D supplementation with 6400 IU/day safely supplies breast milk with adequate vitamin D to satisfy her nursing infant’s requirement and offers an alternate strategy to direct infant supplementation.”

Maternal supplementation has the added benefit of ensuring the mother has adequate D levels too.

I previously wrote about vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy [#160], referring to a study that found that its highest dosage (4,000 IU) was still insufficient to prevent the baby from being born with a D deficiency. I earlier wrote [#117] about cases of infantile rickets misdiagnosed as child abuse where babies with broken bones are taken into custody and the parents charged with abuse.

This study shows that the Canadian RDA for vitamin D at 600 IU for both pregnancy and lactation is an order of magnitude (10X) too small. The upper limit is set at 4,000 IU, and warns of possible adverse effects beyond that. Is there really evidence for this concern? In the Discussion section of this study the authors state:

“...during the past decade [in] several studies…involving several thousand patients… not a single adverse event has been attributed to vitamin D supplementation at the doses ranging from 2000 to 6400 IU/day".

Government organizations like Health Canada have been slowly raising the recommended levels of vitamin D as evidence mounts. This well-designed study should nudge this movement along another notch.

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

332 Children & Nature [17 August 2015]

We’re getting real summer weather this week, with highs around 30C – perfect for spending time at the lake. Many Canadians enjoy spending part of their summer holidays at the lake, either in the family cabin or camping. We find it relaxing to get away from the “rat race” and “back to nature”, and return to work or school feeling refreshed and invigorated.

What scientific evidence backs our belief that nature improves our mental and emotional health? Here are what some studies have found about the benefits of nature for both children and adults:

• The physical activity of 11-13 year old Canadian children increased with the amount of tree-filled space in their neighborhoods.
• Children in Maryland and Colorado who played in green schoolyards reported less stress and showed increased feeling of competence than those whose schools had no grass or trees.
• A study in Illinois found a 20 minute walk in the park boosted the focus and attention of 17 children diagnosed with ADHD.
• Greater amount of greenness at home and especially at school increased cognitive improvements in schoolchildren in Barcelona, Spain.
• Children in nature-based playgrounds engage in more creative play and use their imaginations more to create their own games.
• Camping together improved family relationships for 86% of respondents in a survey of 60 American families.
• Childhood experience with wild nature is positively associated with their appreciation of nature as adults.
• Japanese “forest bathing” (basking in a natural treed environment) lowers blood pressure and reduces stress hormones.
• A 2009 study from the Netherlands found that green space in people’s living environment significantly reduced anxiety disorder and depression.
• A 2012 study found walking in nature improved mood and short-term memory in 20 adults with major depression.

With the increasing time children (and adults) spend on their phones and playing video games (one estimate was that children play outside less than half the time their parents did), it would seem to be even more important for parents and teachers to provide opportunities for them to spend time in nature.

Sources for further reading:
Centre for Confidence and Well-Being
The Center for Parenting Education: Nature and children - a natural fit
MindBodyGreen 5 Really Good Reasons Why Kids Ned Time in Nature
MBG 10 Great Reasons to Get Outside More Often
MBG 7 Science Backed Reasons to get Your Kids Outside
MBG Why You Need to Try Japanese Forest Bathing
J. Mercola Green Spaces Make Kids Smarter

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

283 EFAs & Learning Disabilities [1 Sept 2014]

A previous column (#194 Dec 2012) discussed the importance of essential fatty acids (EFAs), and DHA in particular, in brain development during pregnancy and the first 5 years. An earlier column (#28 Sept 2009) discussed EFAs as one of many nutrients important in treating children (and adults) with ADHD.

Efalex ® is an EFA formula containing evening primrose oil and tuna oil which provides 12 mg GLA and 60mg DHA (and several other EFAs). In the following eight studies, children with ADHD or other learning disabilities who took 8 capsules of this formula (or equivalent DHA) daily, compared with placebo, had:

• significant reductions in hyperactivity, improvement in attention and conduct, and reduction in oppositional defiance disorder, all in addition to improvements from standard medications (The Purdue Study, 2003)

• significant reduction in ADHD related symptoms including anxiousness/shyness, hyperactivity and reading problems in children with learning difficulties (The Beechlawn Study, 2002)

• significantly greater improvements in reading speed (70%), visual-motor speed (hand-eye coordination) (81%) and social interaction, in children with difficulties in reading and concentration or a diagnosis of ADHD (The Borlange Study, 2002)

• significantly better progress in reading in dyslexic children, especially for those who also had ADHD or visual symptoms when reading (The Royal Berkshire Hospital, 2002)

• improved motor skills (manual dexterity) and balance, and improved ability to throw and catch a ball, in children with dyspraxia (The Dyspraxia Study, 2000)

• significant improvements in reading speed (60%) and motor perceptual speed (23%) in children with dyslexia (The Falsterbo Study)

• significant reduction in number and severity of incidents and need for restraints, and significant improvements in nearly all Conner’s rating scales (a measure of ADHD), in boys aged 8-16 with severe behavior and emotional problems (The Cotswold Community Study)

• significant improvement of concentration, eye contact, language development and motor skills in children with autism.(The Autistic Open Pilot Study, 2008)

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

213 Iron – the Energy Mineral [22 April 2013]

Iron is one mineral that is important to keep at the optimum level. On one hand iron is often described as the most common nutritional deficiency; on the other, excess iron can be a serious problem for many people.

Iron’s main function in the body is as a component of the oxygen-carrying protein hemoglobin found in red blood cells. Severe iron deficiency results in anemia which impairs the blood’s ability to carry oxygen to the cells of the body. Symptoms include: fatigue, pale skin, poor appetite and low resistance to infection. Three groups most affected by iron deficiency are: growing children, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and pre-menopausal and elderly women. Anemia can also be caused by hidden internal bleeding so should be investigated.

A common genetic condition called hemochromatosis increases absorption of iron which then builds up in the body affecting the liver, pancreas and heart. Men aged 50 or more are most commonly affected. The best treatment is frequent blood donation (although the donated blood cannot be used). A simple blood test can tell you if you have enough, too much, or insufficient iron.

If you are deficient, you can increase consumption of iron rich foods like liver, red meat, egg yolk, legumes and leafy green vegetables like spinach. Spinach by the way is not the iron super power that Popeye thought – a transcribing error in 1870 showed it having 35mg/100g instead of 3.5, an error that wasn’t caught until 1937. Cooking in a cast iron pan is another easy way to add iron to your diet.

There is a variety of iron supplements available, should they be necessary. Inorganic iron salts are not recommended as they are poorly absorbed and tend to be constipating. Ferrous fumarate is a better, organic form. For people with a sensitive digestive system, ferrous bisglycinate chelate is a form that doesn’t cause constipation or diarrhea. The best iron supplements, in my opinion, are the organic herbal iron tonics with a small amount of a highly bio-available form of iron.

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

194 Fish Oil & Your Brain [3 December 2012]

The essential fatty acids (EFAs) found in fish oil are essential for brain development and function. Our brains are composed of 65% fat, mostly omega 3 EFAs. DHA, the most important of these for brain structure, makes up 40% of the EFAs in the brain and 60% in the retina of the eye. The ability to convert ALA (an omega 3 EFA from flax oil) to DHA and EPA (abundant in fish oil), is limited in infants and children, so supplementation is essential for optimal brain development.

Pregnancy and early childhood are critical for brain formation as 70% of the brain by weight is developed by birth and the remainder by age 5 or 6. Dr. Maharban Singh in a 2005 article published in the Indian Journal of Pediatrics recommends that pregnant and nursing mothers supplement with at least 2.6g of omega-3 fatty acids and 100-300 mg DHA daily. Infants of mothers supplemented with EFAs and DHA scored higher in mental and visual tests at age 4, had a lower incidence of ADHD, and had enhanced learning capability and academic performance. There are benefits for the mother too – depletion of DHA during pregnancy increases incidence of postpartum depression.

Two recent cases suggest another situation for significant potential benefit from fish oil supplementation – healing from traumatic brain injury. In 2006 Randal McLoy was the sole survivor from a coal mine disaster in W. Virginia. He was in a coma and barely alive, his brain injured from CO and methane poisoning. His medical team used hyperbaric oxygen and high doses of fish oil in their treatment. Randal’s recovery was dramatic and unexpected. In March of 2010 a Virginia high school student, Bobby Ghassemi, was in an auto accident that left him in a coma with little chance for survival. His parents persuaded his doctors to give him high doses of fish oil and he recovered sufficiently in time to attend his high school graduation. These two cases don’t provide conclusive proof, but at this time there is nothing else western medicine can offer to assist recovery from brain injury.

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

193 Baby’s Best Friend [26 November 2012]

Dogs may not be just man’s best friend – they could be baby’s best friend too. In addition to the emotional benefits of having a pet, there appears to be physical health benefits too. A recent study from Finland adds to the evidence that pets, particularly dogs, improve children’s health.

The study, published earlier this year in Pediatrics, followed 397 children from rural and suburban settings through their first year. Indoor contact with dogs and cats was correlated with frequency of childhood infections. The analyses took into account other factors: breastfeeding, birth weight, number of siblings, and parental health. The researchers found that children with indoor contact with dogs:
• had fewer incidents of fever, infections and colds
• were less likely to be given antibiotics
• had half as many inner ear infections, and
• were just generally more healthy.

The study also found that the more contact the children had with the dog and the more time the dog spent outside the house, the greater the benefits. Curiously cats didn't provide the same benefits, but did not cause any health problems either. This and other similar studies support the “hygiene hypothesis” – that increased exposure to microbes (germs) early in life boosts the infants’ immune systems, not only increasing resistance to respiratory infection but also reducing the risk of allergic conditions such as asthma and eczema.

There are many factors to consider by a family with young children in the decision to have an indoor pet. But fear of the children getting sick from the pet need not be one of them.

For more information on this or other natural health topics, stop in and talk to Stan; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.