Vitamins
It’s Dangerous to Ignore Vitamin K2
Some vitamins don’t get the attention they deserve. Ask anyone about vitamin K2 and few people can give an answer. In Vitamin K2: The Missing Nutrient for Heart and Bone Health, Dr. Dennis Goodman says ignoring vitamin K2 can be dangerous. So here are some important points to help you understand why K2 needs more attention. In 1929, Dr. Hendrik Dam, a Danish scientist, discovered vitamin K. Now we know there are two types of K: K1 and K2. Most people get sufficient amounts of K1 by eating leafy green vegetables, rich in this vitamin. If you’re cut, K1 plays a role in blood clotting. K2 supports bone density. Bones, although solid structures, are not inert. Rather, they are constantly changing. Cells...Read More
Alternate Treatments, Nutrition, Sports, Vitamins
Can Athletes Escape Covid Virus?
Professional sporting events have never been entirely about the game. Team owners, player sponsorships, media contracts, ticket sales, and merchandising licenses are the playgrounds of big business. But the tiniest of offensive players, the novel coronavirus, has upended the sporting world. It has become a matter of great debate whether your grandmother or your favourite sports star should have priority for a vaccine. Take NHL hockey as an example. A delayed season has started. Only a handful of arenas are allowing limited spectators to attend the games. The league is working hard to keep players safe from COVID-19, but games have been delayed and postponed due to positive tests among players, coaches and staff. As one wise sage remarked, “It’s hard...Read More
Alternate Treatments, Vitamins
What’s the Best Approach to Natural Supplements?
Readers of this column know, the Gifford-Jones natural health philosophy is built on the premise that the medical establishment should not be your first stop for staying healthy. Doctors are best as a last resort. Tragic bad luck aside, your first defense should be Mother Nature in combination with good lifestyle choices. But what does this mean as you age? Natural supplements are low-cost and widely available, but they are not marketed with the same multimillion-dollar budgets as most pharmaceutical drugs. So a good starting point is to adopt common sense. Unless your doctor has a strong rationale for putting you on drugs, and a plan to get you off them, you should ask more questions and do more homework. Have you,...Read More
Vitamins
Vitamin D to Survive the Pandemic
An effective vaccine against the coronavirus may be the only way to end the pandemic. Wouldn’t we all love a return to social normalcy and easier sleep? But until scientists deliver a vaccine, or until the virus runs its course and goes away, we need to use other measures. Among them, medical authorities should be sharing more information with the public about natural ways to build up immunity against viral infections. Vitamin D is one of the crucial components of your immune system. Many people are deficient in it, but perhaps because there are no headlines about it, some people don’t seem to care. Now, a report in the Irish Medical Journal says it’s vital to have the right amount of...Read More
Infection, Vitamins
How Safe Is It To Send Your Child Back To School?
Parents are wondering if it’s safe to send children back to school when so many are still becoming infected with coronavirus. What are the factors to consider? And what can parents do to help ensure children are protected? The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reports the academic, physical, and mental benefits of in-person learning outweigh coronavirus risks. Negative impacts on children during school closures include social isolation, substance abuse, depression and suicidal ideation. In fact, the detrimental effects of children missing out on school are well known, even before COVID-19. Millions of youngsters around the world suffer lifelong social and economic consequences when lacking access to quality education. But when it’s our children, the list of negatives grows longer by the hour...Read More
Infection, Vitamins
Ten Cents a Dance: Or Twenty Cents to Fight the Virus
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGOc8f5kd6w[/embedyt] How many readers recall, during World War II, seeing military personnel dancing with women for “ten cents a dance”? Today, we face a different foe, coronavirus (COVID-19). But individuals can decrease the risk of infection and death from the virus. And companies, the loss of employees and the chaos that will create. The cost? Just twenty cents a day. So, why is it not being done? By now, you have heard over-and-over the many ways to practice sound hygiene. Like washing your hands frequently. Keeping distance from people. No more hugging and kissing. Coughing into your sleeve. Avoiding large public gatherings. But more, COVID-19 is changing our way of life. We will be quarantined if we travel, assuming we can even...Read More
Pain, Philosophy, Vitamins
Why Are Families So Polite When Loved Ones Are Suffering?
Robert Burns, the Scottish poet, was right when he wrote, “The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” I recently planned to attend a recent health meeting in Vancouver, traveling there by train. But the trip ended abruptly when protesters blocked the rail lines. What is the relevance, you might ask? I’ve given considerable thought to what happened. To me, it is a matter of societal complacency – and it is affecting our health. So, here’s a question for readers. Why are family members so damn polite and so silent when they see loved ones suffering? Why do medical support organizations react the same way? And, why do civilians continue to be so passive when elected politicians delay and...Read More
Infection, Philosophy, Vitamins
More Research Is Killing COVID-19 Victims
Aristotle, the Greek philosopher, wrote “There is a stupid corner in the brain of every wise man.” The best current example is the appalling lack of action by the Chinese government to fight COVID-19 with high doses of vitamin c – both as a clinical treatment for those who are infected and as a preventative measure to help halt the virus. I applaud the doctor in a Wuhan hospital who announced the start of a randomized, triple-blind clinical trial to assess the effectiveness of 12-24 grams/day of intravenous vitamin C (IVC). But the results won’t be known for months. Meantime, people die needlessly. Why do Chinese health authorities not know that we’ve already got enough research? Why does the WHO, with its...Read More
Infection, Vitamins
A Planeload of Vitamin C to China?
One of my sons has been in the travel business for years. Today he said, “We’ve cancelled all of our tours to China due to the coronavirus scare.” I replied, “That’s unfortunate, but if we don’t send tourists just now, perhaps we should be sending vitamin C. I’ve been arguing for years that high doses of vitamin C is a lifesaver in boosting immune system performance.” The question arose, what would I do if a family member contracted the coronavirus? Last week, several university professors and international viral disease experts reported ways to treat coronavirus infection. Their unanimous opinion was that high doses of intravenous vitamin C would be effective in controlling infection. In China many people have decided to use Chinese...Read More
Cardiovascular, Cholesterol, Neurology, Vitamins
The Perfect Omega-3
It’s been aptly said, “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that ain’t so.” For instance, most North Americans believe that when they eat fish twice weekly as recommended, or take omega-3 fish-oil supplements, that they have sufficient omega-3 essential fatty acids. But a Canadian study using the Omega-3 Index shows that ain’t so. Essential fatty acids (EFAs) including omega-3 are needed for growth, healthy cellular membranes, many reactions in the body, and are crucial for brain, mood, joint, and cardiovascular health. So EFAs have been called, “nutritional missing links”. Two of these essential acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) are key to the reduction of cellular inflammation and they...Read More
Cancer, Vitamins
Is there such a thing as sensible sun exposure?
In their book, “Embrace the Sun”, Drs. William Grant and Marc Sorenson, experts on vitamin D, report that North Americans have been taught to believe excessive amounts of sun cause potentially fatal skin malignancies. The result? North Americans have developed sun phobia and spent billions of dollars on sunscreen protection. But does the sun trigger melanomas? Dr. Michael F. Holick, Professor of Molecular Medicine at Boston University, agrees that excessive sun exposure causes non-melanoma skin cancer, which diagnosed early is easy to treat. But he says there is compelling evidence that regular sun exposure helps to prevent the highly malignant melanoma, rather than causing it. There’s also general agreement to be cautious about melanoma if you have red hair, fair skin, a...Read More
Cardiovascular, Vitamins
Believing Myths is Bad for Your Heart
George Orwell, the English journalist, wrote, “Myths that are believed in tend to become true.” Today cardiovascular disease is still the number one killer. Yet there are still myths about this disease which can be dangerous to your health and longevity. I don’t have high blood pressure because it’s only high when it’s taken by my doctor. You may be right. Some people do have what’s called, “White Coat Hypertension” due to anxiety when a doctor takes the blood pressure. But you may also be wrong. Studies show that in your home you may still be having spikes of increased blood pressure, a prelude to hypertension. Having blood pressure taken by a nurse may show a lower reading. But if in...Read More
Vitamins
Preventing Deaths from Influenza
Death from influenza is always tragic. But it is particularly so when it occurs at a young age. This year an increasing number of influenza cases is being seen in emergency centers. And, as usual, thousands of North Americans will die from this seasonal disease. But are some dying needlessly? The Center for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S. reports that, for the first time in 13 years, every state reports an increase in influenza caused by an aggressive virus. Authorities stress that the best way to decrease the number of cases of influenza and deaths has always been to get a flu shot. As Dr. Shobhit Maruti, officer of Health in Edmonton, Alberta, where deaths have occurred, stresses, “It’s never...Read More
Vitamins
Dr. Sydney Bush: Why Not the Nobel Prize?
What a sad day for me! I should also add, for the world. I have just learned that Dr. Sydney Bush has died. During my 43 years of writing this column, I have never devoted a memoriam to a colleague. But one is needed for Dr. Sydney Bush. In part, I’ll miss his presence. But more important, his scientific discovery should have been awarded the Nobel Prize. And it could yet save millions of lives from cardiovascular disease. Ten years ago I learned that Dr. Sydney Bush, an English researcher, claimed he had made a huge scientific discovery. But I questioned its validity. So I travelled to England to interview him and spent several days at his laboratory. Bush, an optometrist, knew...Read More
Vitamins
How To Decrease the Risk of an Aortic Aneurysm
Ask anyone about AAA and they will immediately think of the American Automobile Association. But in this case it stands for abdominal aortic aneurysm. Sir William Osler once remarked, “There is no disease more conducive to clinical humility than aneurysm of the aorta.” He could have added that it’s a lethal disease, so prevention is better than cure. Every year over 20,000 North Americans die from a ruptured aorta. Albert Einstein, the physicist who expounded the Theory of Relativity, and Lucille Ball, the TV star that made us laugh, both died of AAA. So, what causes the aorta, about the size of a garden hose, the largest artery in the body, to rupture? Getting a little stiff in various parts of our body...Read More
Vitamins
What Can a Psychiatrist Tell Us about Vitamin D?
Winter’s coming, so how much vitamin D do we need? How much time do you have to spend in the sunlight to obtain adequate amounts? How does obesity affect the dosage? How many diseases can be prevented by adequate amounts of this vitamin? And what can a psychiatrist tell us about this vital vitamin? Years ago I reported that Dr. Catherine Gordon, a professor of pediatrics at the Harvard Medical School, tested the vitamin D levels of teenagers 11 to 18 years of age. She found that 14% of these adolescents were deficient in vitamin D. Today about 30% of adults are low in D. Dr. Glenn Braunstein, professor of medicine at the University of California, said her research was a wake-up call....Read More
Gastroenterology, Vitamins
Constipation: There’s a Sucker Born Every Minute
Why must humans be so foolish and reach for laxatives when there’s a natural, safe, and inexpensive way to treat constipation and stop grunting? Barnum and Bailey, the circus promoters, were right when they said, “There’s a sucker born every minute.” In this case, it’s the suckers who fall easy prey to T.V ads that preach health benefits of laxatives. I realize that at a dinner party one is more inclined to talk about cholesterol numbers than frequency of bowel movements. But chronic grunting with BMs is not just an annoyance. It’s also associated with increased risk of hemorrhoids and may be related to diverticulosis, small hernias of the large bowel which lead to inflammation. It’s also a sign of faulty...Read More
Genitourinary, Vitamins
Why Humans Get Kidney Stones and Gorillas Rarely
Do large doses of vitamin C increase the risk of kidney stones? It’s a question I’m often asked, having reported the medical value of vitamin C in decreasing the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). So is this concern fact or fiction? Or does vitamin C, by making acid urine, combine with calcium and oxalate to form stones? I asked Dr. Linus Pauling this question. Pauling, a two-time Nobel Prize winner, had for years taken 20,000 milligrams (mgs) of vitamin C daily. He said, “Not a single case had been reported in medical literature. But some people who had a tendency to form oxalate stones might do so while taking large amounts of vitamin C, or those with a rare genetic problem.” Dr....Read More
Lifestyle, Nutrition, Vitamins
Mediterranean Diet for a Long Life
Leonardo da Vinci once remarked, “Trifles make perfection and perfection is no trifle.” Trifles can make a huge difference in surgery, when building rockets, in nutrition, or in life generally. For instance, a report in the publication LifeExtension shows that a Mediterranean Diet prolongs life. As we all age, this is no trifle. For years doctors and nutritionists have known the Mediterranean Diet is a “Five Star” one. But no one knew why this diet had such remarkable benefits. Now, researchers have discovered its success is due to polyphenols (a plant based compound). They lower the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) by an amazing 60 percent! This means fewer heart attacks, strokes, hypertension and less inflammation. The author of the report, Michael...Read More
Cardiovascular, Vitamins
How “GAADD” Is Slowly Killing North Americans
A wise sage once remarked, “It’s not things you don’t know that gets you into trouble, it’s the things you know for sure that ain’t so!” Most doctors and patients are convinced cholesterol-lowering drugs (CLDs) prevent heart attack. I say, it ain’t so. So what may prove me right? And why is GAADD so important? Fact # One Years ago I interviewed Dr. Linus Pauling, a two-time Nobel Prize winner. He explained that animals make their own vitamin C and rarely suffer a heart attack. For example, guinea pigs manufacture 13,000 milligrams of C daily, but if infection occurs these animals increase the amount to 100,000 mg daily! It indicates that nature provides vitamin C for health. Unfortunately, humans, due to a...Read More
Cancer, Cardiovascular, Eyes, Ears, Nose & Throat, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Neurology, Pain, Vitamins
What Did You Learn From Me in 2017?
I hope my columns during 2017 have helped readers live longer and healthier. So which of the following are true or false? There’s evidence that regular activity lowers the risk of dementia. Also a suggestion that high daily doses of vitamin C can decrease the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers at The Harvard Medical School report the magical ingredient in fish to decrease the risk of heart disease is omega-3 fatty acids, which like Aspirin, add oil to the blood making it less likely to clot. The survival rate of cancer of the prostate has little to do with the type of treatment. Rather, it’s related to the biological nature of the malignancy. Some cancers are pussy cats, others raging...Read More
Lifestyle, Nutrition, Vitamins
10 Facts You Should Know About Coenzyme Q10
Mark Twain once remarked, “Get your facts first, then distort them as you please!” Facts are easy to distort in medicine, particularly when talking about coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). So here are 10 vital things to know about this important enzyme. And what unintended consequences occur when humans start playing God. One- What is CoQ10? It’s often referred to as the “sparkplug of our motors.” Cars run on gas. Our 37 trillion cells get their energy from ATP (adenosine triphosphate), but we cannot make ATP without CoQ10. Two- Studies show that our body has the highest amount of CoQ10 during our 20s. But then it starts to decrease. Several medical problems may result, such as fatigue, muscle cramps, weakness, emotional troubles and hypertension....Read More
Alternate Treatments, Vitamins
Gifford-Jones, “I wish Dr. Saul had taught me at the Harvard Medical School”
This week I interviewed Dr. Andrew Saul, an international authority on nutrition and vitamin therapy, and Editor of The Orthomolecular Medical News Service. Saul believes the greatest medical dangers today are the epidemic of obesity, Type 2 diabetes, overuse of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, and neglect of natural remedies. These, he says, will be the medical tsunami for our Health Care System. So I asked Dr. Saul to elaborate some of these pitfalls. Saul immediately defended natural vitamin E. He claimed that in the early 1960s the U.S. postal service prosecuted people for mailing this vitamin! But now we know it’s essential for fighting cardiovascular disease. Doctors, he says, forget their physiology lessons, that vitamin E increases the amount of work...Read More
Lifestyle, Nutrition, Vitamins
Is It Prudent To Increase The Dose of Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs?
Do you remember the story about the straw that broke the camel’s back? How the camel’s owner kept loading more and more straw on the animal’s back. Eventually one more straw broke the poor creature’s back. Pushing your luck too far is a poor idea. Now, a report in the British Medical Journal shows that doctors, like camel owners, should heed this advice. Colin Dormut, Assistant Professor at the University of British Columbia, participated in a study of excessive medication. He reports that during an 11 year period over two million patients’ charts were examined to see if kidneys were affected by the long-term use of cholesterol-lowering drugs (CLDs). The researchers focused on high potency CLDs such as Lipitor, Crestor and Zocor....Read More
Medicine, Vitamins
What Are You Doing To Grandma?
Is Grandma’s doctor slowly harming her by over-medication? I’m being facetious here, as no doctor wants to injure patients. But remember, today is not the horse-and-buggy era of medical practice. Today, rushed doctor visits and potent drugs can be a hazardous combination. So can you protect a beloved grandparent? First, keep an eye on what grandparents are consuming. Studies show that 60 percent of those over 65 are taking five or more prescription drugs. This includes one in five who are taking 10 or more drugs and one in 20 using 15 or more. “Pillitis” has reached staggering levels in 2017 and it’s potentially harmful. Especially when natural remedies may treat Grandma better. Today there’s a 30 percent chance she’s taking a...Read More
