Tuesday April 28, 2009

Inflammation And You: How Foods From Plants Protect Us From Disease

Agricultural Research 04-27-09
Intriguing compounds found in familiar fruits, vegetables, and spices help fight harmful inflammation. And, in doing that, these phytochemicals-the resveratrol in red wine or the catechins in green, white, and black teas, for instance-may also reduce our risk of diseases associated with chronic inflammation, including cancer, atherosclerosis, and diabetes.
Inflammation is a double-edged sword. When you have a cut or other wound, it can be a strong defense. But chronic, so-called "dysregulated" inflammation can increase disease risk.
Researchers readily admit that they don't fully understand precisely how beneficial phytochemicals counteract inflammation. But studies led by ARS molecular biologist Daniel H. Hwang are yielding new clues to this complex puzzle. His investigations with cells cultured in his laboratory have uncovered probable modes of action used by phytochemicals from red wine, green tea, garlic, curcumin, and cinnamon.
Hwang's team, based at the ARS Western Human Nutrition Research Center in Davis, California, has found that phytochemicals can interfere with the normal flow of chemical signals or messages sent to and from cells. The cells of particular interest to Hwang are those that are involved in unhealthful inflammation. The messages they send are in the form of proteins.
The scientists are closely examining proteins known as TLRs (short for "toll-like receptors") and NODs (an abbreviation for the tongue-twisting "nucleotide binding oligomerization domain containing proteins").
Hwang's experiments show that certain phytochemicals can interfere with messages that could otherwise travel from NODs and TLRs. If unimpeded, such messages could easily reach and activate so-called "pro-inflammatory genes." As their name implies, these genes can trigger an inflammatory response.
Phytochemicals Block Messages
Hwang's studies indicate that some phytochemicals protect us by disrupting established pathways. When they do that, they block activation of pro-inflammatory genes.
The studies suggest that different phytochemicals have different ways of interfering with TLRs or NODs.
Take curcumin, for example. Found in turmeric-the main ingredient in curry-curcumin can undermine certain TLRs when a specific part of curcumin's chemical structure-known as a "beta unsaturated carboxyl group"-reacts with so-called "sulfhydryl groups" in TLRs.
But resveratrol, a phytochemical found in red grapes, has a different set of what Hwang refers to as "molecular targets." His experiments suggest that resveratrol interferes with molecules called "TBK1" and "RIP1." Normally, these molecules help convey signals to and from TLRs. When resveratrol interacts with TBK1 and RIP1, however, the effect is somewhat like that of a traffic light that slows or stops the flow of vehicles on a very busy street.
In other work, Hwang and colleagues have pinpointed likely modes of action of a catechin in green tea, a garlic compound, and a compound from cinnamon. In newer studies, the team is tracing the tactics of other phytochemicals, including those from cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and cauliflower.
From Fats to Phytochemicals
The work on TLRs and NODs builds on earlier, pioneering studies in which Hwang probed the interactions between NODs, TLRs, and fats-technically termed "dietary fatty acids"-in food. The researchers were the first to show that modest quantities of good-for-you polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially the omega-3s found in some marine fish, inhibit certain TLRs, whereas saturated fats, like those in red meat and butter, activate some TLRs.
The fatty acid experiments provide detailed information about the mechanisms by which omega-3s change the flow of messages from TLRs and NODs and thus help protect us from harmful inflammation. New studies from researchers elsewhere are starting to confirm Hwang's findings about this healthful effect of polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Hwang's research is documented in Biochemical Pharmacology, Journal of Immunology, Journal of Biological Chemistry, Molecular Pharmacology, and other scientific publications.
http://www.lef.org/news/LefDailyNews.htm?NewsID=8192&Section=Disease

Bone density linked to prostate cancer

United Press International 04-27-09
CHICAGO, Apr 27, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Men with denser bones may be more likely to develop prostate cancer, U.S. researchers suggest.
Johns Hopkins researchers said recent research suggests women with high bone mineral density are at an increased risk of aggressive breast cancer. The findings prompted Dr. Stacy Loeb of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and colleagues at the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging to question whether higher bone density was associated with an increased risk of developing prostate cancer.
The researchers collected data on the bone mineral density of 519 men, measured from 1973 to 1984. They then checked the data again to see which men were eventually diagnosed with prostate cancer.
Loeb and colleagues found that the 76 men who went on to develop prostate cancer had bone density that remained significantly higher as they aged, compared to those who remained cancer free.
Although the reasons are unclear, Loeb speculates that growth factors in bone may contribute to prostate cancer growth. Additionally, bone density may reflect sex hormone levels in men, which can also affect prostate cancer development.
The findings are being presented at the American Urological Association annual meeting, or the concurrent Engineering & Urology Society annual meeting in Chicago.
http://www.lef.org/news/LefDailyNews.htm?NewsID=8191&Section=Disease

Diabetes fundamentally a lifestyle disease: expert
Last Updated: 2009-04-27 16:00:52 -0400 (Reuters Health)
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Diet, activity level and other lifestyle factors play a pivotal role in a person's risk of developing diabetes -- even after age 65, according to a study released Monday.
"With aging, diabetes is common and it's almost entirely preventable," Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian of the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, told Reuters Health.
"Diabetes is fundamentally a lifestyle disease," he said.
Mozaffarian and colleagues tracked 4,883 men and women, aged 65 and older, over a period of 10 years. All were free of diabetes at the beginning of the study.
They collected data through annual questionnaires and physical exams and participants were grouped in low- and high-risk groups based on their physical activity level, diet, smoking habits, alcohol use, body weight and waist circumference.
During follow-up, 337 people developed diabetes, the researchers report in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
According to the researchers, a person's risk of diabetes fell by 35 percent for every low-risk lifestyle factor they had.
Compared with all other study participants, the risk of diabetes was 82 percent lower for people in the low-risk groups for activity level, diet, smoking and alcohol use.
In addition, among people with these four favorable factors who either had a low-risk BMI (below 25) or a low-risk waist circumference (88 centimeters or less for women, 92 centimeters or less for men), risk was 89 percent lower.
Based on the findings, Mozaffarian and his colleagues conclude that 9 out of 10 of the cases of diabetes that occurred among the study participants could be attributed to lifestyle factors.
"There's just continuing and growing enthusiasm for the next new drug on the block, the next new gene on the block," Mozaffarian said. "We forget the basic causes and treatments for chronic diseases, especially diabetes, are not drugs and genes, but behaviors."
SOURCE: Archives of Internal Medicine, April 27, 2009.
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2009/04/27/eline/links/20090427elin005.html

More countries confirm swine flu
New cases of the deadly swine flu virus have been confirmed as far afield as New Zealand and Israel, as the UN warns it cannot be contained.
The US, Canada, Spain and Britain confirmed cases earlier but no deaths have been reported outside Mexico, where the virus was first reported.
Mexico has raised the number of probable deaths to 152, with 1,614 suspected sufferers under observation.
UN inspectors are to examine reports that pig farms spread the virus.
The UN's health agency, the World Health Organization, said the flu was being spread by human-to-human transmission but did not recommend travel restrictions or border closures. EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou has said she does not see "any point of restricting travelling".
WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl confirmed that work was under way to produce a vaccine, adding that it would typically be five to six months before it became commercially available.
Health experts say the virus comes from the same strain that causes seasonal outbreaks in humans but also contains genetic material from versions of flu which usually affect pigs and birds.
In New Zealand, Health Minister Tony Ryall confirmed that at least three students who had travelled to Mexico were suffering from swine flu.
CONFIRMED & SUSPECTED CASES
  Mexico: 152 suspected deaths from swine flu - 20 confirmed cases
  US: 50 confirmed cases
  Canada: 6 confirmed cases
  New Zealand - 3 confirmed cases
  UK - 2 confirmed cases
  Spain: 2 confirmed cases
  Israel - 1 confirmed case
  Countries with suspected cases: Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, Australia, and South Korea, and seven EU states
Israel's first patient with confirmed swine flu, a 26-year-old man who recently returned from Mexico, is said to be making a good recovery.
Fifty cases have been confirmed in the US and six in Canada.
Two swine flu cases have been confirmed in the UK and two in Spain.
The EU health commissioner said on Tuesday that patients were also under observation in Denmark, Sweden, Greece, the Czech Republic, Germany, Italy and the Irish Republic.
Tests are being carried out on individuals or groups in Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, Australia and South Korea. A number of countries in Asia, Latin America and Europe have begun screening airport passengers for symptoms, while Germany's biggest tour operator has suspended trips to Mexico.
Pig farm theory
WHO PANDEMIC ALERT PHASES
  Phase 1: No viruses circulating among animals causing infections in humans
  Phase 2: Animal influenza virus causes infection in humans, and is considered potential pandemic threat
  Phase 3: Influenza causes sporadic cases in people, but no significant human-to-human transmission
  Phase 4: Verified human-to-human transmission able to cause community-level outbreaks. Significant increase in risk of a pandemic
  Phase 5: Human-to-human transmission in at least two countries. Strong signal pandemic imminent
  Phase 6: Virus spreads to another country in a different region. Global pandemic under way
A team from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation is due to leave Rome for Mexico on Tuesday.
Its chief veterinary officer, Joseph Domenech, told the BBC that rumours that people had been falling ill last month near some intensive pig farms meant the FAO had to act.
"[We had] no indication of human cases of direct contact with pigs but this can never be totally sure and the probability that this virus could come from pigs directly could not be anyway ruled out totally," he said.
The WHO has raised its alert level to four, or two steps short of a full pandemic. Alert level four means the virus is showing a sustained ability to pass from human to human and is able to cause community-level outbreaks.
WHO deputy chief Keiji Fukuda said this was a "significant step towards pandemic influenza" but a pandemic should not be considered inevitable.
"With the virus being widespread... closing borders or restricting travel really has very little effects in stopping the movement of this virus," he added.
Hugh Pennington, a leading bacteriologist in the UK, said on Tuesday that it was difficult to make any predictions about the outbreak because of its nature.
"It's a new virus - we've never before seen this combination of swine virus and human virus genes," he said.
In Mexico, swine flu has been confirmed in 20 of the 152 known deaths.
SWINE FLU
  Swine flu is a respiratory disease thought to spread through coughing and sneezing
  Symptoms mimic those of normal flu
  Good hygiene like using a tissue and washing hands thoroughly can help reduce transmission
Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova said all of those who had died were aged between 20 and 50. Infections among young healthy adults are a characteristic of past pandemics. He noted that the number of new cases reported by Mexico's largest government hospitals had declined during the past three days: from 141 on Saturday to 119 on Sunday and 110 on Monday.
In almost all swine flu cases outside Mexico, people have been only mildly ill and have made a full recovery.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8022437.stm

Vitamin E may reverse male pattern baldness: Study

Nutraingredients.com, 28-Apr-2009

Daily supplements of a patented tocotrienol (vitamin E) complex may increase hair growth in people with male pattern baldness by 42 per cent, suggests a new study from Carotech.
The eight month randomized, placebo-controlled trial involved 28 volunteers with androgenetic alopecia (male pattern baldness), and was performed at the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Science Malaysia.
“This is the first ever study to report such benefits for tocotrienols,” Dr Sharon Ling, regional sales manager for Carotech, told NutraIngredients.com. Dr Ling will present the findings at next week’s Vitafoods International Conference in Geneva.
The study findings have yet to be submitted for publication in a peer-review journal due to some of the finer points of patent law, said Dr Ling. NutraIngredients.com has not seen the full data.
Male pattern baldness
According to the American Medical Association, about 95 per cent of all cases of hair loss are due to male pattern baldness, a condition that affects about 40 million American men.
The balding is reported to start by the age of 30 in 25 per cent of men, and in two-thirds by the age of 60. According to the AMA, there is a 4 in 7 chance of inheriting the baldness gene.
New data
According to data provided by Dr Ling, the Malaysian researchers conducted a double blind placebo-controlled clinical trial on volunteers with androgenetic alopecia using Carotech’s Tocomin SupraBio, a patented tocotrienol complex reported to increase oral absorption of tocotrienols by 300 per cent.
The eight-month study included 28 volunteers aged between 18 and 59 with a hair loss problem for approximately two to five years. During the course of the study, instructions were given to not alter their hairstyle, hair care products (shampoo, conditioners, etc) or dye their hair.
Volunteers were randomly assigned to the palm tocotrienol complex (total tocotrienol intake of 100 mg) or the placebo (soft gelatin capsule containing 600 mg soy bean oil)
Hair counts, measured by the counting the number of hairs in a pre-selected 2x2 cm area, were found to significantly increase by an average of 41.8 per cent in the tocotrienol group, with eight volunteers experiencing greater than 50 per cent hair growth. In the placebo group, however, no statistically significant differences in the number of hairs were detected before or after the study period, and only one volunteer showed more than 20 per cent increase in hair count.
The vitamin E family
There are eight forms of vitamin E: four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta). Alpha-tocopherol is the main source found in supplements and in the European diet, while gamma-tocopherol is the most common form in the American diet.
Tocotrienols (TCT) are only minor components in plants, although several sources with relatively high levels include palm oil, cereal grains and rice bran.
While the majority of research on vitamin E has focused on alpha-Toc, studies into tocotrienols account for less than one per cent of all research into vitamin E.
http://www.nutraingredients.com/Research/Vitamin-E-may-reverse-male-pattern-baldness-Study

Even at-risk patients struggle with low-sodium diets

Foodnavigator-usa.com, 27-Apr-2009

New research from the American Heart Association has shown that heart failure patients who are actively trying to reduce sodium intake still consume more than is recommended even for healthy people.
Despite widespread industry efforts to cut sodium content in food products, it is estimated that Americans still get 70 to 80 percent of their sodium from packaged foods, rather than from salt added at the table.
At present, healthy US adults are advised to consume no more than 2,300mg of sodium each day, equivalent to about six grams or one teaspoon of salt. The effects of excessive salt consumption have been well-researched, including its contribution to heart disease, high blood pressure and stroke.
However, despite these health impacts, Americans currently consume an average of about ten grams of salt each day – or two-thirds more than the government-recommended maximum.
The American Heart Association’s research, presented at its 10th Scientific Forum on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke, examined the sodium intake of 161 heart failure patients over a three-day period, and found a range of 522mg to 9,251mg per day, with an average of 2,671mg. The recommended daily maximum intake for heart failure patients is 2,000mg.
The results are consistent with trends across the American population, showing that people are generally unaware of how much sodium they consume.
Abstract co-author and postdoctoral fellow at Atlanta’s Emory University Carolyn Reilly said that the patients exceeded the recommended amount despite the fact that most of them thought they had reduced their sodium intake.
She said: “There is so much salt hidden in foods that patients aren’t aware of…Everything processed has sodium in it to give it a longer shelf life. In addition to safety, sodium is also added to foods to enhance texture and mask bitterness. Some of the big culprits we have identified in this population are cured meats such as hot dogs and bacon, and other processed foods like canned soups, salad dressings and condiments.”
Dietary shortcomings
In addition, the patients’ dietary analysis showed that while they were eating more than enough protein, they were not getting enough whole grains, fruit, vegetables or low-fat dairy. Over the three days, more than 40 percent of patients ate at least one fast-food sandwich with 1,115 mg of sodium, and one in seven had pizza containing 1,461 mg of sodium.
Reilly added that simply giving patients a list of foods to eat and telling them to look at nutrition labels is not enough. Dietary guidelines need to be tailored to the individual, she said.
“The patients themselves were shocked to find out they were eating more than 2000 mg of sodium a day. Most of the patients thought they were taking steps to reduce their sodium, but focused on the wrong target.”
The study found that women and those earning over $35,000 a year were most likely to adhere to the low-sodium diet.
http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Science-Nutrition/Even-at-risk-patients-struggle-with-low-sodium-diets

Study Suggests Buddhist Deity Meditation Temporarily Augments Visuospatial Abilities
Psychological Science., April 27, 2009
Meditation has been practiced for centuries, as a way to calm the soul and bring about inner peace. According to a new study in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, there is now evidence that a specific method of meditation may temporarily boost our visuospatial abilities (for example, the ability to retain an image in visual memory for a long time). That is, the meditation allows practitioners to access a heightened state of visual-spatial awareness that lasts for a limited period of time.
Normally when we see something, it is kept in our visual short-term memory for only a brief amount of time (images will begin to fade in a matter of seconds). However, there have been reports of Buddhist monks who have exceptional imagery skills and are able to maintain complex images in their visual short-term memory for minutes, and sometimes even hours. Led by psychologist Maria Kozhevnikov of George Mason University, a team of researchers investigated the effects of different styles of Buddhist meditation on visuospatial skills.
The researchers focused on two styles of meditation: Deity Yoga (DY) and Open Presence (OP). During DY meditation, the practitioner focuses intently on an image of deity and his or her entourage. This requires coming up with an immensely detailed, three-dimensional image of the deity, and also focusing on the deity's emotions and environment. In contrast, practitioners of OP meditation believe that pure awareness cannot be achieved by focusing on a specific image and therefore, they attempt to evenly distribute their attention while meditating, without dwelling on or analyzing any experiences, images, or thoughts that may arise.
In these experiments, experienced DY or OP meditation practitioners along with nonmeditators participated in two types of visuospatial tasks, testing mental rotation abilities (e.g., being able to mentally rotate a 3-D structure) and visual memory (e.g., being shown an image, retaining it in memory and then having to identify it among a number of other, related images). All of the participants completed the tasks, meditators meditated for 20 minutes, while others rested or performed non-meditative acitivities, and then completed a second round of the tasks.
The results revealed that all of the participants performed similarly on the initial set of tests, suggesting that meditation does not result in an overall, long-lasting improvement of visuospatial abilities. However, following the meditation period, practitioners of the DY style of meditation showed a dramatic improvement on both the mental rotation task and the visual memory task compared to OP practitioners and controls. These results indicate that DY meditation allows practitioners to access greater levels of visuospatial memory resources, compared to when they are not meditating. The authors state that this finding "has many implications for therapy, treatment of memory loss, and mental training." Although, they conclude, future studies will need to examine if these results are specific to DY meditation, or if these effects can also occur using other visual meditation techniques.
Psychological Science is ranked among the top 10 general psychology journals for impact by the Institute for Scientific Information. For a copy of the article "The Enhancement of Visuospatial Processing Efficiency Through Buddhist Deity Meditation" and access to other Psychological Science research findings, please contact Barbara Isanski at 202-293-9300 or bisanski@psychologicalscience.org
http://www.psychologicalscience.org/media/releases/2009/kozhevnikov.cfm

Chlorella can Replace a Closet Full of Expensive Supplements
Barbara Minton, NaturalNews.com

(NaturalNews) If you could only have one supplement, which one would you choose? For its high nutrient content and potent defense against disease and the ravages of aging, many people have put chlorella at the top of their list. Now there are even more reasons to cheer for chlorella. Scientists are documenting its potent cancer fighting abilities including its ability to repair damage to DNA and influence gene expression.

Carotenoids from chlorella make cancer cells die

Scientists in South Korea recently found that carotenoids from chlorella may be effectively used to prevent cancer in humans. They discovered the primary carotenoid from C. ellipsoidea is violaxanthin, while the major carotenoid from C. vulgaris is lutein. They examined the activity of semi-purified extracts of these carotenoids against human cancer and found they inhibited cancer cell growth in a dose-dependent manner.

When both were used together, appropriate programmed cell death, known as apoptosis, was enhanced. The reason cancer cells are so problematic is that they refuse to die on cue. Chlorella made sure they followed through when it was their time to die. The researchers also discovered that C. ellipsoidea extract was 2.5 times more effective than C. vulgaris at inducing the apoptotic effect. (Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, November 26, 2008).

Chlorella influences how genes express themselves

Scientists in Malaysia backed up this study by finding that C. vulgaris kills cancer cells by decreasing expression of the Bcl-2 gene. When this gene is mutated, it prevents cells from dieing and allows cancers to develop. C. vulgaris also increased the expression of capsase 8, a gene that plays a central role in the execution phase of cell apoptosis (Journal of Zhejiang University, Science B, January).

These findings offer a graphic example of how what we chose to put into our bodies governs the way our genes express themselves. The more we are able to regulate gene expression, the greater the control we have over our physiological destiny.

More recent research has shown other anti-cancer bioactivity of chlorella, including its ability to inhibit the COX-2 enzyme that leads to cancer-causing inflammation and the pain that accompanies it. Chlorella was shown to have anti-thrombotic effects that can lead to increased blood flow and reduce the possibility of platelet aggregation that might induce blood clots. It reduces PLA2, an important marker of heart disease, and encourages the production of proteins that regulate cell function, and enzymes that regulate calcium in the body. Formation and production of tumors, and viral replication were inhibited by chlorella, and the anti-tumor response of the immune system was strengthened. (International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition), December 23, 2008.

Chlorella fights cancer by boosting the immune system

Cancer cells develop in everyone's body. People who have never been diagnosed with cancer have hundreds or thousands of cancerous cells in their bodies on a daily basis. It is the job of the immune system to make sure these dangerous cells are found and destroyed before they can develop into full blown cancers. When a person is diagnosed as having cancer, it means that something has gone seriously wrong with their immune system. Many health gurus have declared that cancer is a result of immune system failure.

This means that one of the best ways to prevent cancer is to strengthen the immune system. For people who have had cancer and want to prevent recurrence, this is critical. The need for a strong immune system to destroy cancerous cells is why health advocates are so strongly against chemotherapy, which destroys the body's immune system and leaves the person wide open for more cancer.

Chlorella stimulates the immune system and the production of interferon, one of the body's greatest natural defenses against cancer. Increased production of interferon stimulates macrophages, T-cells and tumor necrosis factor, the battery of armed soldiers the body uses to fight off cancer. When the immune system is strengthened, the body becomes again able to fight off cancer as well as defend itself against viruses, bacteria, chemicals, and foreign proteins.

Chlorella has a distinguished history as a cancer fighter

Although Western medicine has generally ignored chlorella, scientists in the East have widely researched and documented its cancer fighting abilities. One such study involved mice given chlorella prior to being transplanted with breast tumors. The results indicated a 70 percent survival rate in the chlorella fed group, and a control group survival rate of zero.

In another study, fifteen patients with extremely deadly glioblastoma were treated with high levels of chlorella, in some cases combined with chemotherapy and radiation. There was an immediate increase in their health and immune status, and they experienced a 40 percent two-year survival rate, compared to the normal two year survival rate of 10 percent for this type of cancer.

Chlorella is a treasure chest of life enhancing properties

Chlorella is a tiny, single-celled water-grown green algae with a nucleus. It is chocked of nutrients including an immense amount of readily available chlorophyll, the life blood of plants. Chlorophyll absorbs energy from the sun to facilitate photosynthesis. It is central to plant metabolism and critical to plant functions such as growth and respiration. Without this green blood of plants, life as we know it would not exist. Chlorophyll is chemically similar in composition to human blood, except that the central atom in chlorophyll is magnesium, while iron is the central component in human blood.

Chlorophyll neutralizes environmental toxins and pollutants. It helps the blood carry oxygen to all cells and tissues. Cancer cannot thrive in cells that are fully oxygenated. Chlorophyll plays a part in chlorella's ability to detoxify heavy metals, and is a natural wound healer. There is evidence that chlorophyll reduces the ability of carcinogens to bind with DNA in major organs. Its anti-mutagenic properties make it protective against toxins such as pharmaceutical drugs.

The vitamins and minerals in chlorella are plentiful. It is rich in vitamins A, C, E, and K, and is one of the few whole food sources of vitamin D. Chlorella has the complete vitamin B complex with more B-12 than liver by weight. Beta carotene and lutein, two carotenoids with a wealth of disease fighting benefits, are found in abundance.

Chlorella contains 58% highly digestible complete vegetarian protein. Zinc, iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, rare trace minerals, essential fatty acids including gamma linolenic acid (GLA), and polysaccharides are found in chlorella. One of the ways chlorella eases digestion is through its broad spectrum of enzymes that includes pepsin.

These nutrients were combined by nature, not a corporation. As such, they exist in natural harmony and synergy and are highly bioavailable for use in the body. This makes chlorella a better choice than isolated compounds taken individually, or combination compounds like multi-vitamin capsules. Chlorella can replace many expensive individual supplements and drastically lower the cost of supplementing while increasing its quality.

Just over 18% of chlorella is growth factor produced in its nuclei. Chlorella growth factor offers many of the benefits found in human growth hormone. Chlorella is up to 10% RNA, and up to 3% DNA.

There is plenty of fiber too. The fibrous outer cell wall of chlorella provides material to enhance digestion and keep the digestive tract healthy.

Chlorella provides natural detoxification, inflammation control, cholesterol regulation, immune system strength, estrogen balance, blood sugar stabilization, and digestive bliss. It is loaded with antioxidants to keep you looking and feeling young, and even reduces the percentage of body fat.

Chlorella reduces body fat

Researchers in Kyoto, Japan fed chlorella for a 16 week period to 17 people with high-risk factors for lifestyle-related diseases, and 17 healthy subjects. They found that in both groups, chlorella intake resulted in noticeable reductions in body fat percentages, total serum cholesterol levels, and fasting blood glucose levels. They found that many genes influencing metabolism and insulin signaling pathways were influenced in their expression by chlorella. When chlorella was no longer ingested, the genes returned to their pre-ingestion state (Journal of Medicinal Food, September, 2008).

Chlorella is powerful detoxifier

The tough outer fiber rich cell wall of chlorella binds with toxins, pesticides, and heavy metals making chlorella an excellent choice for detoxification. It is useful in the breakdown of persistent hydrocarbon and metallic toxins such as DDT, PCBs, mercury, cadmium, and lead. These toxins remain in the environment for long periods of time and degrade very slowly. Many actually become more toxic as they degrade, such as PCBs' formation of dioxins.

These fat soluble toxins have accumulated in the food chain and permeated the food supply. Virtually all Americans have been shown to have excessive amounts of these chemicals stored in their body fat. Anyone who is trying to lose weight should be aware that environmental toxins are released from fat storage and dumped into the blood stream as fats cells are broken down. They need to be cleared from the body by a natural detoxification system such as that offered by chlorella. Such toxins are also harmful to thyroid function and one of the reasons so many Americans suffer from thyroid insufficiency. When the body is detoxified, many people find their thyroid condition improves.

One of the reasons new mothers are given for why they should not breast feed is the accumulation of dangerous levels of dioxin in breast milk. Scientists in Japan analyzed dioxin levels in breast milk and maternal blood samples from 35 pregnant women. They measured immunoglogulin A (IgA) concentrations in the milk and investigated correlations with dioxin concentrations. In addition, 18 of the 25 women took chlorella supplements during their pregnancies.

The scientists found that toxic equivalents were significantly lower in the breast milk of the women taking chlorella tablets than in the control group. The results suggested that supplementing with chlorella reduces transfer of dioxins to the child through breast milk, although the lowered levels seen may have been the result of more toxins being cleared from the bodies of the mothers taking chlorella. IgA levels were significantly higher in the chlorella group. Increased IgA levels in breast milk are considered a sign of reduced risk of infection in nursing infants (Journal of Medicinal Food, March, 2007).

Chlorella is a potent chelator, binding heavy metals and escorting them out

A group of 40 rats was divided into one control group and three groups that were treated with cadmium. One cadmium group received no chlorella, one received 5% chlorella, and one received 10% chlorella. After 8 weeks, the relative liver weight was significantly lower in the group receiving no chlorella compared with both groups receiving chlorella, indicating severe liver damage in the no-chlorella group. The group displayed significantly higher concentrations of cadmium in their livers than did the groups receiving chlorella. Liver RNA was high in the chlorella treated groups (Journal of Medicinal Food, September, 2008).

In another study assessing the chelating abilities of chlorella, levels of interleukine-6, a stimulator of red blood cell production, were investigated along with the number of adherent and non-adherent cells. Mice that had been drinking water containing 1300 ppm of lead acetate were treated with chlorella for 10 days. The researchers found that chlorella improved cellular function, increased the ability of cells to produce interleukin-6, and restored the reduced number of non-adherent cells. Monitoring of lead poisoning demonstrated that chlorella treatment significantly reduced lead levels in blood and tissues, completely restoring the normal levels of healthy fats in the liver, and decreasing abnormally high plasma levels of fats (Food Chemistry Toxicology, July, 2008.

These findings make chlorella a highly desirable addition to any meal containing foods in which the presence of heavy metals is suspected, such as fish. Taking chlorella while undergoing removal of dental fillings containing mercury will allow the chlorella to bind with the mercury and escort it out of the body.
http://www.naturalnews.com/026147.html

Toxic Waste Causes Thalidomide-like Birth Defects
David Gutierrez, NaturalNews.com

(NaturalNews) A ten-week lawsuit is underway to determine whether a town in England led to a wave of birth deformities through negligence in handling a number of toxic dumps.

The plaintiffs in the case allege that the Corby Borough Council failed to properly handle toxic waste from eight to 16 dumps left over from when British Steel operated a plant in the area from the 1930s to the late 1980s. Eighteen families are claiming that prenatal exposure to lead and zinc byproducts and perhaps other toxic compounds led women to give birth to children with abnormalities of the limbs, including the absence of fingers or webbed hands and feet.

The rate of upper and lower limb deformities is 10 times higher in Corby than the rate for the United Kingdom in general.

"We have now got medical reports that rule out alternative explanations for what caused the limb deformities in these children," said Des Collins, lawyer for the plaintiffs.

The case has stirred up memories of the thalidomide scandal of the 1960s, in which women who were prescribed the anti-morning-sickness drug thalidomide gave birth to babies without arms and legs.

According to Joy Shatford, one of the plaintiffs, the air in Corby became noticeably more pungent when the Borough Council began reopening the British Steel Dumps in order to move the waste.

"You could taste it in the air; it was sour, gassy and acidic," she said. "Then it was common knowledge that this was because they were digging up the pits."

Shatford, pregnant at the time, eventually gave birth to a boy with only five fingers -- he had none upon his left hand.

"It was such a shock. I just felt numb," she said. "I was left thinking I must have done something wrong during my pregnancy. But I didn't smoke or drink; I didn't even take an aspirin."

It would be years before Shatford discovered that other mothers in the town were giving birth to children with similar deformities.

"It took me a long time to come to terms with what happened," she said.
http://www.naturalnews.com/026144.html

BPA Chemicals Found in Soda Cans
David Gutierrez, NaturalNews.com

(NaturalNews) A test performed by Canada's national health regulatory agency, Health Canada, has turned up detectable levels of the hormone-disrupting compound bisphenol A (BPA) in 96 percent of canned soft drinks.

BPA is an industrial chemical used to make plastics hard and transparent, as in water or baby bottles, or to make resins for lining cans of food, beverages or baby formula. It has been shown to mimic the effects of estrogen in the body, and has been linked to a variety of reproductive and developmental defects. In October, Canada banned the substance from baby bottles.

The agency tested 72 different undisclosed brands of energy drinks, diet and non-diet soda, fruit-flavored beverages and other soft drinks and found that all but three tested positive for BPA. Two bottles of tonic water tested negative, the researchers noted, perhaps because the bittering agent interfered with the ability to detect BPA in the sample. One energy drink had no detectable levels, which the researchers could not explain.

In general, energy drinks had the highest levels of the chemical.

The 72 beverage brands tested represent 84 percent of all soft drinks sold in Canada, the researchers said. All cans were purchased from Ottawa stores in April 2007.

The average soft drink contained BPA levels of approximately 0.5 parts per billion. Health Canada has declared that because these levels are so low -- 500 times below the nationally set "safe exposure" threshold -- there is no cause for consumer concern. Yet estrogen, which BPA mimics, is known to be biologically active at concentrations like those found in the drinks.

"The chemical is known to cause significant biological effects at incredibly low levels," said Rick Smith of Environmental Defense. "And this is not the only source of this chemical in our daily lives. If it was the only source, Health Canada might have a leg to stand on."
http://www.naturalnews.com/026143.html

Natural Compound Restores Normal Function to Mutant Gene, Fights Cancer
Sherry Baker, NaturalNews.com

(NaturalNews) A gene called p53 that is known to be important in controlling cell growth and death has the ability to suppress tumors. It works as a kind of checkpoint to keep abnormal cells from growing and dividing unheeded and causing malignancies. But something --an environmental toxin, chemicals, radiation, no one knows for sure -- can mutate the gene. The result? It no longer protects the body against pre-cancerous cells, allowing them to progress into cancer. In fact, researchers have learned mutations in the p53 tumor suppressor gene play a role in about half of all human tumors.

The p53 mutation was just in the news when researchers from the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) presented results of what is believed to be the largest p53 and breast cancer study in the US. At the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) in Denver, Colorado, the scientists said they've found that almost 26 percent of women studied who have breast cancer were found to have mutations in this gene. What's more, the women with the gene mutation had poorer outcomes and significantly higher risk of dying from their cancer.

"The p53 gene is the guardian of the genome because it signals the cell to repair DNA damage when that occurs. If we can find genetic or environmental risk factors that lead to damage of p53 or stress on the gene, we may be able to help prevent development of breast cancer as well as other cancers," the study's lead investigator, Catalin Marian, MD, PhD, a research instructor of cancer genetics and epidemiology at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at GUMC, said in a media statement.

Meanwhile, another research team at Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at GUMC presented a remarkable discovery about how a mutant p53 gene might be "fixed". They've observed that a natural substance can restore the cancer-stopping function to p53 in a variety of human tumor cells.

Specifically, the scientists have demonstrated that phenethyl isothiocyante (PEITC), a natural compound found in cruciferous vegetables such as watercress, broccoli and cabbage, can selectively deplete mutant p53. And when this happens in human cancer cells, the researchers said there's a restoration of what they call the "wild type", i.e. normal, function of p53.

This research strongly suggests that PEITC restores the normal p53 checkpoint control pathways in mutant p53-expressing tumor cells. Bottom line: this novel finding could well mean PEITC and other natural compounds in the isothiocyante family could play important roles in both cancer prevention and the treatment of human cancers linked to mutant p53 genes.
http://www.naturalnews.com/026138.html

CDC to mix avian, human flu viruses in pandemic study
Robert Roos,  News Editor  CIDRAP
Jan 14, 2004 (CIDRAP News) – One of the worst fears of infectious disease experts is that the H5N1 avian influenza virus now circulating in parts of Asia will combine with a human-adapted flu virus to create a deadly new flu virus that could spread around the world.
That could happen, scientists predict, if someone who is already infected with an ordinary flu virus contracts the avian virus at the same time. The avian virus has already caused at least 48 confirmed human illness cases in Asia, of which 35 have been fatal. The virus has shown little ability to spread from person to person, but the fear is that a hybrid could combine the killing power of the avian virus with the transmissibility of human flu viruses.
Now, rather than waiting to see if nature spawns such a hybrid, US scientists are planning to try to breed one themselves—in the name of preparedness.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will soon launch experiments designed to combine the H5N1 virus and human flu viruses and then see how the resulting hybrids affect animals. The goal is to assess the chances that such a "reassortant" virus will emerge and how dangerous it might be.
CDC officials confirmed the plans for the research as described recently in media reports, particularly in a Canadian Press (CP) story.
Two ways to make hybrids
The plans call for trying two methods to create hybrid viruses, CDC spokesman David Daigle told CIDRAP News via e-mail. One is to infect cells in a laboratory tissue culture with H5N1 and human flu viruses at the same time and then watch to see if they mix. For the human virus, investigators will use A (H3N2), the strain that has caused most human flu cases in recent years, according to the CP report.
The other method is reverse genetics—assembling a new virus with sets of genes from the H5N1 and H3N2 viruses. Reverse genetics has already been used to create H5N1 candidate vaccines in several laboratories, according to Daigle. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) said recently it would soon launch a clinical trial of one of those vaccines.
Of the two methods, the co-infection approach was described as slower and more laborious, though closer to what happens in nature.
Any viable viruses that emerge from these processes will be seeded into animals that are considered good models for testing how flu viruses behave in humans, according to Daigle. The aim will be to observe whether the animals get sick and whether infected animals can infect others.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has been "pleading" for laboratories to do this research, because it could provide some evidence to back up the agency's warnings about the risk of a flu pandemic, according to the CP report.
Klaus Stohr, head of the WHO's global influenza program, was quoted as saying that if none of the hybrids caused disease, the agency might be inclined to dial down its level of concern. But if the experiments produce highly transmissible and pathogenic viruses, the agency will be more worried, he said.
Safety precautions
Because of the obvious risks in creating viruses with the potential to spark a pandemic, the work will be done in a biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) laboratory at the CDC in Atlanta, Daigle told CIDRAP News.
"We recognize that there is concern by some over this type of work. This concern may be heightened by reports of recent lab exposures in other lab facilities," he said. "But CDC has an incredible record in lab safety and is taking very strict precautions."
Daigle said the US Department of Agriculture requires that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses be treated as "Select Agents" and that research on them must be done in BSL-3 labs with "enhancements." These include "special provisions to protect both laboratory workers and the environment."
BSL-3 is the second highest level of laboratory biosecurity. It is used for work with pathogens that may cause serious or potentially lethal disease if inhaled, such as tuberculosis or St. Louis encephalitis, according to the CDC.
CDC experiments with HPAI viruses have to pass reviews by the agency's Institutional Biosafety Committee and Animal Care and Use Committee, Daigle said. The facilities involved are inspected by the USDA and the CDC's Office of Safety and Health, and staff members who work with Select Agents require special clearance.
It's been done before
The upcoming experiments will not break entirely new ground for the CDC, the CP story revealed. The agency already has made hybrid viruses with H5N1 samples isolated from patients in Hong Kong in 1997, when the virus first caused human disease.
The results of that research have not yet been published, and the CDC has said little about them. In the CP report, Dr. Nancy Cox, head of the CDC's influenza branch, commented only, "Some gene combinations could be produced and others could not."
Daigle added little to that. He said, "The reassortment work with the 1997 isolate was intermittently interrupted with SARS [severe acute respiratory syndrome] and then the 2004 H5N1 outbreak. We are currently concentrating our efforts on understanding the pathogenicity of the 2004 strains (non-reassortants) in mammalian models."
He said the CDC hopes to prepare a report on that research "in the near future."
http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/influenza/panflu/news/jan1404hybrids.html

How Plants Protect Us From Disease
ScienceDaily (Apr. 27, 2009) — Everyday foods, beverages, and spices contain healthful compounds that help us fight harmful inflammation. And, in doing that, these phytochemicals—the resveratrol in red wine or the catechins in green, white and black teas, for instance—may also reduce our risk of diseases associated with chronic inflammation, including cancer and diabetes.
At the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Western Human Nutrition Research Center in Davis, Calif., research molecular biologist Daniel H. Hwang conducts studies to solve the complex puzzle of precisely how phytochemicals fight inflammation. His investigations with cells cultured in his laboratory have uncovered probable modes of action used by phytochemicals from red wine, green tea, garlic, curcumin and cinnamon.
Hwang's team has found, for example, that phytochemicals can interfere with the normal flow of certain chemical signals or messages sent to and from cells involved in chronic inflammation. The messages these cells send are in the form of proteins. In particular, his group is closely examining proteins known as TLRs (short for "Toll-Like Receptors") and NODs (an abbreviation for the tongue-twisting "nucleotide binding oligomerization domain containing proteins").
Their experiments show that certain phytochemicals can interfere with messages that, if unimpeded, could travel from TLRs and NODs, reaching and activating genes that can trigger an inflammatory response.
The studies suggest that different phytochemicals have different ways of interfering with these messages. For example, curcumin can undermine certain TLRs when a specific part of curcumin's chemical structure reacts with what are known as "sulfhydryl groups" in TLRs.
But resveratrol, found in red grapes, has a different set of targets. Hwang's experiments suggest that resveratrol interferes with molecules called "TBK1" and "RIP1." If unimpeded, these molecules would help convey signals to and from TLRs.