356 Antioxidants & Cancer [8 Feb 2016]

Last week I mentioned biomedical scientist Dr. Rhonda Patrick who was interviewed by Dr. Mercola about mitochondria. One of the video lectures on her website (foundmyfitness.com) is titled “Do Antioxidants Cause Cancer?”

Since oxidative damage from free radicals is known to cause cancer, and antioxidants protect us from that damage, it was believed that supplementing with antioxidants should prevent cancer. Research results, however, have been rather disappointing and in some cases found that antioxidants can even increase cancer risk. What’s going on?

Dr. Patrick explains that it is important to understand how antioxidants work and the context of the studies. It is now understood that free radicals play a beneficial role in the cells at low levels and in certain circumstances. One of these is in the role of apoptosis (programmed cell death) of damaged cells to prevent their proliferation into cancer. One study found that supplementing mice with vitamin E prevented DNA damage in the control group (without cancer) but increased the rate of cancer growth in the mice with cancer. The vitamin E prevented the activation of the Tumor Suppressor Genes which would have otherwise killed the cancer cells, and allowed them to proliferate faster. Patrick advised that vitamin E in doses near the RDA (22 IU/day in Canada) is probably beneficial unless you already have cancer in which case it should be avoided.

The Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT) found a statistically increased risk of prostate cancer in men taking alpha tocopherol (400 IU) but not in those also taking selenium (200 mcg). Patrick explains that mega doses of alpha tocopherol depletes levels of another form of vitamin E, gamma tocopherol. Previous studies found the risk of prostate cancer was 5 times higher in men with the lowest gamma tocopherol levels compared with the highest. Gamma, but not alpha, tocopherol acts on a group of free radicals called Reactive Nitrogen Species (RNS) which are involved in prostate cancer. Selenium, as part of a compound called Selenoprotein P, also protects against the RNS free radicals. Patrick’s conclusion: if you supplement with vitamin E, choose one with both alpha and gamma tocopherols, and again stay close to the RDA.

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

224 Nutrients for Healthy Eyes [8 July 2013]

Most people would consider vision to be the most precious of their senses, so it makes sense to protect it. Certain nutrients prevent damage to the eyes and improve vision. A few of these nutrients can be obtained sufficiently in food; most only by supplementation.

• Beta-carotene occurs as retinal in the photoreceptor cells; protects the cornea; improves night vision
• Lutein, astaxanthin & zeaxanthin are fat-soluble antioxidants concentrated in the lens and macula; protect delicate photoreceptor cells from UV rays and free radicals; prevent cataracts and Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD)
• Astaxanthin is the most potent antioxidant for protecting the eyes; protects DHA oxidation in the eye; inhibits inflammation; reduces eyestrain fatigue from computer use; protects or treats AMD, Cataracts, Diplopia (double vision), Diabetic Retinopathy, and depth perception problems
• Anthocyanins, water-soluble antioxidants found in dark berry pigments (bilberries, blackberries, blueberries), protect the eyes and improve vision
• Cyanidin-3-glucoside (C3G) is the most important anthocyanin for the eyes; improves night vision, reduces eye fatigue from computers
• Vitamin E: gamma tocopherol (GT) and alpha tocopherol (AT) work more effectively together, with GT the most important; protect eyes from free radicals and inflammation; help prevent cataracts and AMD
• Benfotiamine is a special form of Thiamine (B1) for the eyes; helps prevent glaucoma, cataracts, AMD, Diabetic Retinopathy and eye inflammation
• Zinc and Selenium are mineral antioxidants; methionine form best for safety and bioavailability for the eyes; selenium reduces risk of AMD, cataracts and glaucoma; zinc is concentrated in choroid layer of the retina which provides oxygen and nutrients to the photoreceptor cells
• L-Taurine is a sulfur containing amino acid essential for healthy eyes; improves Diabetic Retinopathy; helps prevent AMD

Source: Vision Health Formulas - powerpoint by RoseMarie Pierce, B.Sc.Pharm. 2013

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

189 Antioxidants & Heart Disease [29 October 2012]

Antioxidants are certain vitamins, minerals and other molecules that protect the body from oxidative stress from highly charged molecules called free radicals, more technically called “reactive oxygen species”. Oxidative stress is believed to be a factor in the development of atherosclerosis – plaque formation in the arteries – and therefore heart disease, but is not generally accepted in North America. A recent study from Israel should increase the popularity of antioxidant therapy as an adjunct for the treatment of vascular heart disease.

The study, published in Nutrition & Metabolism in July 2010, followed 70 adults with at least two of these risk factors: smoking, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, low HDL cholesterol, or high triglycerides. They were examined after 3 and 6 months. Half of the participants received daily antioxidant supplements containing 1,000mg vitamin C, 400iu vitamin E, 120mg coenzyme Q10, and 200mcg selenium; the other half a placebo. Those taking the antioxidants, but not the control (placebo) group, had the following benefits:
• significant increase in elasticity of both large and small arteries
• significant increase in HDL-cholesterol (the good kind)
• a small decrease in triglycerides
• significant reduction in HbA1C (a measure of long term blood sugar levels)
• reduced blood pressure

Although the study was too small in number of participants and too short in duration to measure risk of heart disease, all of these improvements would be expected to prevent heart attacks and deaths. The authors conclude that the findings of the study “justify investigating the overall clinical impact of antioxidant treatment in [patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors]”. But if you have some of these risks, you don’t have to wait for more studies before using antioxidants to improve your own health. Ask your doctor or pharmacist if you can add these antioxidants to your current medications.

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

187 Vitamin E & Liver Cancer [15 October 2012]

Finally some good news about Vitamin E! It has been getting a lot of bad press lately, most of it undeservedly – like the study I wrote about a few months ago in column #176 which found that synthetic E raised the risk of prostate cancer.

Part of the Shanghai Men’s and Women’s Health Studies, run from 1997 to 2006 and published in July 2012 in J. National Cancer Inst., looked at liver cancer risk in middle-aged and older adults with differing vitamin intakes. They found that both dietary and supplementary vitamin E intake was inversely associated with liver cancer risk. This held true for participants both with, and without, existing liver disease or family history of liver cancer. And the results were dose dependent, meaning the more E ingested, the lower the risk. This finding agrees with previous studies which showed vitamin E is protective of the liver; it is even used as a treatment for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Disturbingly though, it also found that for those with an existing liver disease or family history of liver cancer, high intake of vitamin C from supplements (but not from food) increased the risk of liver cancer. This is a surprise because Vitamin C has long been thought to be protective from cancer. A 1991 review published in the Am. Soc. Clinical Nutrition found that in 33 of 46 studies examined, vitamin C provided a significant protection from various cancers. But a 10 year clinical trial – the Physicians Health Study II – published in 2008 found that 400iu of E or 500mg of C did not reduce the risk of cancers, but also did not cause any harm. I would consider both doses to be low, and the E was undoubtedly pure alpha-tocopherol with no gamma-tocopherol, known from another study to significantly reduce the risk of prostate cancer.

Because of inconsistent study results like these medical scientists are reluctant to make dietary recommendations based on one or two studies.

Back to vitamin E. There are two families of E – four tocopherols and four tocotrienols – each with their own physiological functions. The best E supplement has all 8 vitamin Es, and uses the natural d not the synthetic dl forms. For more detail on this interesting vitamin family, see my December 2011 column #143.

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

176 Nutrition in the News [30 July 2012]

When it comes to nutritional advice, don’t believe everything you read in the mainstream news. News reporters are seldom knowledgeable enough about nutrition to report results accurately (and have been known to jump to conclusions not intended by the studies’ authors) and reporters are certainly not competent enough to spot and question flaws in the studies. Also while medical experts are often interviewed to add caution to studies which show nutrient supplementation in a positive light, rarely are nutritional experts interviewed in a negative story. Here are two recent news stories that demonstrate these biases.

In December 2011 a study was published in JAMA that showed that vitamin E increases the risk of prostate cancer. A CBC report on the study quoted the chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society (who was not involved in the study) advising men to avoid high doses of vitamin E, but then extended his warning to all vitamins: “…excessive use of vitamins has not been proven to be beneficial and may be the opposite”. A representative of the Council for Responsible Nutrition (a supplement manufacturers’ association) was generously given the last word, reassuring the readers of the benefits of vitamin E as an essential nutrient and suggested that many Americans don’t get enough. But even he missed the biggest flaw in the study, pointed out in a critique by Health Sciences Institute, that the vitamin E used in the study was the poorly utilized synthetic dl-alpha tocopherol acetate form instead of the natural d-alpha tocopherol form. Had they used natural vitamin E, I believe the results would have been much different. The only conclusion that can be made from this study is that synthetic vitamin E should be avoided.

Then in June 2012 the United States Preventive Services Task Force published a statement that low doses of calcium (1000mg) and vitamin D (400iu) do not prevent fractures in healthy postmenopausal women and are better avoided. The result is, I’m sure, quite accurate but the recommendation to avoid them is misguided at best. I’ll explain more about the flaws in this study in next week’s column.

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

143 The Vitamin E Families [5 December 2011]

Did you see the recent news story that 400 IU of Vitamin E raises prostate cancer risk 17%? It’s typical of a number of recent news items in the popular media written by journalists who don’t dig deep enough to learn the whole truth. What the vitamin E stories didn’t say is that the supplement used was synthetic alpha tocopherol which has known toxic effects. Synthetic vitamin E (dl-alpha tocopherol or all-rac-alpha-tocopherol acetate) is best avoided – use only the biological form d-alpha tocopherol.

There are two families of vitamin E, each with four “siblings” – the better known tocopherols and their cousins the tocotrienols, each with alpha, beta, gamma and delta forms. Alpha tocopherol is the most biologically active form and is often the only E in cheaper supplements. The problem with taking only alpha tocopherol is that it displaces gamma tocopherol which is known to prevent cancer (a large study from Johns Hopkins showed a 5 fold reduction in prostate cancer risk in men who had the highest gamma tocopherol levels). A mixed E with all four forms of tocopherols is better, and those including the tocotrienol family are best.

Tocopherols are best known for their antioxidant properties – protecting our cells from damage by free radicals and other carcinogens (cancer causing chemicals). Tocopherols also promote heart and circulation health, enhance the immune system, protect the brain, help with PMS and menopausal symptoms, improve fertility, prevent cataracts, and slow the aging process.

Recent studies of tocotrienols are very promising, especially in cancer prevention. Studies are showing that delta tocotrienol induces aptosis (cell death) in cancer cells. Tocotrienols may also slow angiogenesis – the development of new blood vessels to feed growing tumours. Tocotrienols are also many times more efficient at finding and neutralizing free radicals than the tocopherols.

I would like to see the study referred to in my introduction repeated using a natural complete vitamin E. The results would likely be quite different.

Main sources: mercola.com and Cancer Defeated Newsletter #138, November 27, 2011

This article is intended for educational purposes only; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

102 Heart Health #2 [22 February 2011]

Last week we looked at some ways to improve our heart health: eating more fruits and vegetables, managing our blood lipids & insulin levels, avoiding excess weight, and managing stress.

Here are a few more ideas to keep our hearts in good health.
• Exercise – I mentioned exercise last week as a way to improve blood lipids, but its benefits go far beyond that. Most studies show that inactive people are generally twice as likely to develop heart disease as active people.
• Vitamin D – a study of women over age 65 found a 31% reduction in heart disease for those taking vitamin D. One possible mechanism for this is that vitamin D reduces insulin resistance.
• Vitamin E – two 2002 studies in the New Engl J Med showed reductions in heart disease with vitamin E supplementation (of at least 100 IU per day for 2 or more years) of 41% for women and 37% for men
• Magnesium – many studies have shown that low magnesium levels increase the risk of death from heart disease.
• Homocysteine – high blood levels of this amino acid is an indication for high risk of heart disease, possibly by promoting blood clots. Homocysteine levels are reduced by the vitamins folic acid, B6 and B12.
• Lutein – best known for its role in preventing age related vision loss, has also been found to prevent hardening of the arteries.
• Nattokinase – an enzyme derived from fermenting soybeans, has proven to be more effective than aspirin in dissolving blood clots and “thinning the blood” and has great potential for prevention of heart disease.
• L-Arginine – an amino acid required for your blood vessel lining to produce nitric oxide which improves blood flow and reduces blood pressure.
• Fructose – lowers your ability to produce nitric oxide, another reason to avoid sugar, especially high fructose corn syrup.

This article is intended for educational purposes only; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.

027 Chlorine and Heart Disease [1 September 2009]

Many possible causes of arterial plaque – and therefore most heart attacks – have been theorized. These include high cholesterol, saturated and trans fats, processed foods like refined sugar and flour, homogenized milk, stress, and (facetiously) speaking English.

The first recorded heart attack occurred in England in 1912. Shortly after that, medical students performing autopsies started finding arteries lined with a strange thick white coating they had never seen before. By the 1930s this finding became common in many countries around the world (with the highest rates in English speaking countries, hence the joke). What had changed to affect so many people over so short a span?

One suspected culprit, trans fats found in shortening and margarine, wasn’t commonly used until later. Same for homogenized milk which first appeared in 1932. There is no research to back up the case for processed foods. Our grandparents in the 1800’s ate diets high in saturated animal fats, and who are we to say they had no stress! And there is little research to back up the case for processed foods.

A credible case has been put forth for chlorine in our water supply. The timing fits. Water chlorination was developed in England during a cholera outbreak in the 1850s and its use spread quickly. By the 1920s it was widespread in municipal water systems across North America. Curiously Roseto, a small town in Pennsylvania which used a mountain spring for water so didn’t chlorinate, has an exceptionally low heart attack rate; when people moved away their heart attack rates became “normal”. More convincing are controlled studies with chickens and pigeons showing that birds given chlorinated water developed elevated cholesterol, atherosclerosis and heart disease; the other groups given unchlorinated water were disease free. Poultry producers have learned to feed their chickens unchlorinated water; the lesson has yet to be applied to humans.

In our bodies, chlorine creates free radicals, and destroys vitamin E and essential fatty acids. Chlorine reacts with cholesterol in the blood to form yellow fatty deposits. Chlorine also attaches to arteries where it is attacked by white blood cells which then attract calcium and fat to form plaque.

Unquestionably chlorine is effective as a bacterial control in the water supply, so what can we do? One strategy is to replae it with a system using hydrogen peroxide, ozone or ultraviolet. Another strategy is to filter it out prior to use. Unfortunately chlorine is absorbed as much by showering and bathing as by drinking, so the entire water supply must be filtered. Either way adds to the expense of water treatment, but what hs been the cost of a century of chlorination?

For more details, see http://watercarenaturally.co.nz/chlorinateed-water and www.purewatergazette.net/chlorinationfox.htm

This article is intended for educational purposes only; for medical advice consult your licensed health practitioner.