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April 28, 2011  In This Issue... - Shocking #2 Cause of Cancer
- Protect Your Liver! -- (No, It's Not What You Think)
- New INSTANT Cure for Extra High Cholesterol -- Cholesterol Drops 100 Points or More
- Making Injections Less Painful
- Drug-Free Treatment Reverses Even Bone-on-Bone Arthritis...
Shocking #2 Cause of Cancer An official at the American Cancer Society said that it's easy to avoid half of all cancers. However, an adviser to the American Institute for Cancer Research was even more optimistic when he said that nine out of 10 cancers are related to factors we control. Of course, their #1 piece of advice is "stop smoking." We all know that. But I bet you don't know the #2 cause of cancer. It's something totally under your control -- it's much easier than quitting cigarettes -- and it's the last thing you'd ever expect. I'll tell you about it in a moment. Keep reading...
Protect Your Liver! I’ve mentioned the danger that sugary drinks can pose to your liver previously in Daily Health News. And I’m here today to mention it again. We’re all so aware of the damage that alcohol poses, it’s easy to overlook the threat from all those innocent-looking soft drinks and sweetened fruit juices that line the grocery store shelves. With the summer season coming on and shopping carts piled high with soda bottles and cans of every color and size, I wanted to be sure that each reader understands the dangers in that colorful array. A study reported last March from Duke University Medical Center found that daily consumption of fructose, the main kind of sugar added to soft drinks and sweetened juice drinks, increases liver fibrosis, which leads to scarring and progressive loss of liver function. The increased consumption of fructose, as well as the increase in fibrosis, are both alarming new trends. I’d spoken previously with Brent Tetri, MD, a professor of internal medicine at Saint Louis University School of Medicine and an authority on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and I decided to check in again for an update. No, he said -- there’s no exaggeration here. Fructose and high fructose corn syrup are among the worst offenders in our diet and can definitely threaten the health of the liver. Fructose is not metabolized well by other cells in the body, he explained, so the liver absorbs it and turns it into fat, some of which is stored in -- and has the potential to damage -- this organ, whose function is so important to every aspect of our health. NAFLD is a condition that’s showing up with increasing frequency in the US, Dr. Tetri noted. In fact, about 30% of adults have fat accumulation in the liver that is not related to alcohol. If there’s good news here, it’s that if damage to your liver hasn’t progressed far, the amount of fructose you consume is a factor that you can easily control. If you lower your caloric intake, causing less inflammation and potential for scarring, the problem will reverse to a variable degree. The liver has an amazing ability to regenerate, Dr. Tetri emphasized. Once it’s scarred, however, the scars hang around, and the liver has to regrow around the scars. That’s why you don’t get your completely undamaged liver back once scarring has begun. So, don’t let that happen! LIVER CARE The liver doesn’t really ask too much of us in return. If we eat right, exercise and avoid excessive alcohol use and -- now we know -- excessive sugar and fructose, and manage to maintain a healthy weight, Dr. Tetri assured me, very little happens to the liver as we age. The liver at 90 years can look and work much like the liver at nine. It is when you stray from this simple, straightforward formula and challenge your liver with poor diet and a lack of exercise that it runs into trouble. Here’s what to do... - Make vegetables, whole grains, fish, fruit and olive oil the centerpieces of your diet. A recent Middle Eastern study found that extra virgin olive oil in particular offers potent antioxidant protection against toxins that harm the liver.
Your liver-healthy hint: If you have diagnosed liver damage, avoid alcohol altogether. If not, you can enjoy red wine in moderation, due to the partially protective effect of the polyphenols. - Limit unhealthy fats. Despite all their well-deserved bad press, trans fats still are added to many processed foods -- and when Dr. Tetri fed mice a hefty dose of these fats, they quickly developed liver inflammation that can lead to cirrohsis.
Your liver-healthy hint: Don’t rely on any claims of "zero trans fats" on food packaging, even on a product’s nutrient label, because the law allows food manufacturers to round trans fat content down to zero as long as there is less than one-half gram per serving. Instead, read the ingredient list, which must still include such trans fats as partially hydrogenated oils if they are added during manufacture. - Don’t take unnecessary medication. For instance, acetaminophen, the active ingredient in many pain pills such as Tylenol, can damage the liver if it is taken in excessive doses.
- Keep moving. Exercise adjusts the body’s metabolism and will help you burn fat that might otherwise end up in your liver.
Your liver-healthy hint: If you’re overweight, losing just 10% of your body weight -- whatever you weigh -- has enormous liver benefits and quickly improves NAFLD. If you are sedentary, Dr. Tetri says that walking is a good place to start working out... but the reality is that you need to step up your activity level enough to get sweaty and out of breath at least four times a week to see real benefits. We’re lucky that our livers are so forgiving, lets give them a break, too. Source(s):
Brent A. Tetri, MD, professor of internal medicine, director, division of gastroenterology and hepatology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis.
New INSTANT Cure for Extra High Cholesterol -- Cholesterol Drops 100 Points or More Do you have stubborn high cholesterol? Would you love to get your count under control without having to depend on expensive prescription drugs? Changing your diet can help, of course. But here’s something better. This breakthrough new therapy instantly filters excess cholesterol from your body. And it’s completely safe. This new therapy takes only a matter of minutes and lowers unhealthy cholesterol like no drug known to science. At the same time, it triggers a reduction in C-reactive protein and fibrinogen, substances that can increase the risk for blood clots. Patients who receive the therapy report a rapid reduction in cardiovascular symptoms such as angina. Read more...
Making Injections Less Painful I know a woman who bravely withstood surgery and radiation for breast cancer, who is fearless in the face of life’s many challenges... but she was horrified when I suggested acupuncture to her. "Needles... no way!" Fear of needles is not unique to childhood -- it’s estimated that 21% of Americans are, like my friend, terrified of them. For many people, needle fear leads to health problems as they avoid routine blood tests and vaccinations, and for those with diabetes or another chronic condition requiring regular injections, needle anxiety can turn into a nightmare. I don’t know why this problem isn’t more widely discussed in health-care settings, because there are some remarkably simple strategies that can stop or reduce almost anyone’s fear of needles... so let’s explore them now. The Worst Three Things You Can Say Lindsay Uman, PhD, is a clinical psychologist at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, which is an international leader in research concerning needle fear and distress. Although the Centre focuses on children, Dr. Uman says techniques to ease needle fear are similar to those for adults. Here’s the funny thing: The studies Dr. Uman reviewed show that most well-meaning nurses, doctors and phlebotomists actually have a habit of saying just the wrong thing to nervous patients. Their intentions are the best, but the results are not. - Their first mistake? The very human impulse to be reassuring. "If someone keeps saying there is nothing to worry about, the message generally received is that there is something you really do need to worry about," said Dr. Uman.
- The second worst mistake? Criticizing patients’ fear by telling them to "Get a grip," "Get over it" or "Don’t be a baby" -- belittling messages that would make anyone feel worse.
- The third kind of phrase often heard but best not uttered? A "pre-apology," such as saying "Sorry about this," as the elastic strap is wound tightly around the arm. This, Dr. Uman said, only brings more fear and distress.
What Does Help If you have ever felt weak or silly because you couldn’t talk yourself out of the fear of needles, give yourself a break -- as with most fears, this one isn’t rational, so you can’t expect rational talk (from yourself or anyone else) to help. Instead, you can try the following... Distraction. This is number one in effectiveness and can include anything from blowing bubbles for young children to putting on headphones and playing music for adults. Watching TV, reading, chatting about the weather or the latest news... even making up stories about people around you and saying them aloud if you enjoy being creative... talking about anything but the needle will be helpful. I had a doctor who always pointed to something fascinating outside the window -- a cardinal on the branch... tiger lilies starting to bloom. By the time I’d focused my eyes out the window, the shot was over. Relaxation techniques. These can help, especially when practiced shortly before the procedure -- calm breathing, positive imagery, a few minutes of meditation, whatever relaxes a nervous patient is the way to go. Not only do techniques for relaxing the mind ease fear -- they also reduce muscle tension that could otherwise make shots more painful. Skin-numbing creams. A product called EMLA, available by prescription, combines the anesthetics lidocaine and prilocaine and will numb the area, but for best results, you need to apply the cream 30 to 60 minutes in advance. Dr. Uman said that for some people, using the cream provides a calming psychological effect that comes just from knowing that the physical pain will be reduced. If your fear of needles continues to be a problem, consider talking with a cognitive behavioral therapist or any psychologist trained in anxiety-reducing techniques -- these professionals likely can help you. Ask your doctor or local hospital for a referral. For some people, Dr. Uman said, it takes only a few sessions for a patient to put needle fear into the past. Source(s):
Lindsay Uman, PhD, a clinical psychologist at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Drug-Free Treatment Reverses Even Bone-on-Bone Arthritis... "Bone-on-bone" is the term doctors use for the last agonizing stage of arthritis. Your cartilage is totally ground away. Steroids and supplements are pointless. Alice was told her only hope was total knee replacement. Yet thanks to a brilliant physician, she skipped the surgery and feels like new. That's right. Alice licked "bone-on-bone" arthritis without surgery or drugs. And she did so with astonishing speed. In fact, not long after seeing this doctor, she left on a three-week shopping vacation -- then returned to the doctor's office with gifts for the entire staff and pronounced herself pain-free! What's the secret? Learn more...
Be well, 
Carole Jackson
Bottom Line's Daily Health News
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