Two things happened - one was that my personal ilfe became hectic as my son finished high school. Then my digital passwords for my face book and other internet accounts were compromised. Those problems have me locked out of my email accounts, facebook and my financial institutions and more which is why I have not been posting to anything. I couldn't access most of my digital word - and still cannot. At this point my priority is resolving the havoc it's created. If I have to rebuild all of the digital content that will take many months - and I am much more interested in trying to move the pilot study forward and doing the classes to which I've already committed this summer and fall.
I apologize to those of you who were wondering what happened to me.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Iodine and MS
July 26, 2009
Update
Iodine
Over 70 percent of Americans do not take in a sufficient amount of iodine in their diet to meet the daily recommended dietary allowance for Iodine. This is because the North American soils are Iodine depleted and we physicians have advised our patients to not use table salt. Since most of us were getting our daily Iodine through the use of Iodized table salt instead of consuming sea weed, the majority of Americans now consume less than 1/3 of the recommended daily intake for Iodine.
That is important for those who suffer from MS because Iodine is an important nutrient for making myelin. It is also an important nutrient for removing toxins.
The best food sources for iodine include sea weed (especially kelp), iodized sea salt, sea salt and iodized salt. Also because kale and other cruciferous (cabbage family) vegetables compete with iodine receptors - those of us who eat a lot of cabbage family vegetables need to eat more iodine than those who do not. I can't find a specific dietary recommendation on how much much iodine we need however. My personal approach has been to add a teaspoon of powdered kelp to my kale salads.
Ideally to determine whether or not one has iodine deficiency would be to work with a physician who is expert in Iodine. More information about iodine can be found at http://iodine4health.com/
Update
Iodine
Over 70 percent of Americans do not take in a sufficient amount of iodine in their diet to meet the daily recommended dietary allowance for Iodine. This is because the North American soils are Iodine depleted and we physicians have advised our patients to not use table salt. Since most of us were getting our daily Iodine through the use of Iodized table salt instead of consuming sea weed, the majority of Americans now consume less than 1/3 of the recommended daily intake for Iodine.
That is important for those who suffer from MS because Iodine is an important nutrient for making myelin. It is also an important nutrient for removing toxins.
The best food sources for iodine include sea weed (especially kelp), iodized sea salt, sea salt and iodized salt. Also because kale and other cruciferous (cabbage family) vegetables compete with iodine receptors - those of us who eat a lot of cabbage family vegetables need to eat more iodine than those who do not. I can't find a specific dietary recommendation on how much much iodine we need however. My personal approach has been to add a teaspoon of powdered kelp to my kale salads.
Ideally to determine whether or not one has iodine deficiency would be to work with a physician who is expert in Iodine. More information about iodine can be found at http://iodine4health.com/
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Diet MS and Neurodegeneration
May 27, 2009
Research --
we are getting closer- one last committee has to give its approval - the VA research and development committee. If all goes well we will be able to begin recruitment this summer.
This is a from a physician colleague with MS who has noted the similarity between MS and other types of neuro-degenerative types of brain disorders. With his permission I've copied his correspondence below.
Re DIET and MS/ Other Neuro-degenerative Brain Diseases
Dear Dr. Wahls:
I was diagnosed with MS 14 years ago after having about 4 relapses over a 32 month period. These involved loss of sensation in my legs, forearms, hands, and the left side of my face. I also had patellar hyperreflexia, altered proprioception in my legs, and bladder spasticity. I was diagnosed by Dr. Doug Williams in Bristol, TN, after an MRI showed a lesion at T10 and an LP showed elevated monoclonal bands.
Doug told me about a friend’s father who had practiced OB/GYN until 65 years of age while having MS. Doug quoted him as saying “Stay away from doctors; they will kill you.” Doug said that he was very upset when his son became a neurologist. Doug told me that he was not very impressed with Beta-Seron and did not prescribe it for me. He said to stay away from steroids, since they seemed to worsen the long-term rate of relapses. He said to avoid getting overheated. Most important, he said to limit my total fat intake to 20 grams a day – he said that this treatment was recommended in England and France even though it was not recognized in the USA.
I have complied with his recommendation for a low-fat diet for the past 14 years. Initially I could find nothing in the adult neurology texts or the NMSS web site to support its use. I felt that this must be cutting edge research that had not had time to make it into the textbooks. I initially felt that it was unlikely that the diet would have much effect of the MS, but that at least it would be good for my heart, as shown by Dean Ornish, MD. After about 2 years without further relapses or progression I started searching for more information about dietary treatment of MS. I found a mention of using a low-fat diet in Menkes’ Textbook of Child Neurology, 2nd edition. It gave a reference for an article published in 1970 by Dr. Roy Swank “20 years on the low fat diet.”
This article reported on a group of patients who had been told to limit their saturated fat intake to less than 20 grams a day, starting in 1950. An initial attempt at having a control group failed because the patients would talk with each other about their results while in the waiting room waiting for appointments, and after less than a year all the patients had gone on the low-fat diet. Swank had to use historical controls – how the patients had been doing before starting the diet and how other MS patient typically progressed. He found that the relapse rate dropped from 1 a year to less than 0.1 yearly (a 90% reduction), and that the rate of progression slowed.
Swank continued his study until about 1984. Not all of his patients remained in compliance with the diet. Among those who had minimal disability at the start of the study, there was a 5% death rate from MS among those who remained compliant with the diet, while there was an 80% death rate among those who were noncompliant.
Studies that show a benefit from a low-fat diet include:
1. Swank, RL. Multiple Sclerosis: Fat-Oil Relationship. Nutrition 1991; 7:368-376
2. Nordvik, I, et al. Effect of dietary advice and n-3 supplementation in newly diagnosed MS patients. Acta Neurol Scand 2000; 102:143-149
3. Weinstock-Guttman, B, et al. Low fat dietary intervention with w-3 fatty acid supplementation in multiple sclerosis patients. J.plefa 2005; 73:397-404
Your results with diet and exercise are like those reported by Joan Seliger Sidney in J Clin Epidemiol 1994 47:953-954. She went from using a rolling walker to being able to cross country ski 15 km after strictly following the Kousmine Diet (virgin oils, organic wholegrains, fruit, vegetables, nuts).
Your diet is very similar to the one that I have been on for 14 years. Others who use a similar diet include Ann Romney and Montel Williams.
Other discussion of the diet for MS is given in The China Study by Colin Campbell, Diet for a New America by John Robbins, The McDougall Program by John McDougall MD, Taking Control of Multiple Sclerosis by George Jelinek MD, and The Multiple Sclerosis Diet Book by Roy Swank MD.
Web sites that include information about dietary therapy for MS include www.swankmsdiet.org, www.drmcdougall.com, and www.hacres.com.
Since starting a low fat diet for MS in 1995 I have had no further relapses or progression. I have not missed any work due to MS since I started the diet. I am a pediatrician in solo practice in Bristol, TN.
Good luck in getting your results publicized. The benefits of a low-fat diet have been hidden for way too long.
John Hovious, MD
John Hovious, MD
You are welcome to use this note on your blog.
Follow up message
I have included 3 articles from Swank; the 1991 article is the most complete report of his study, and the 2003 article gives a 50 year follow-up on several of his patients. The 2003 Weinstock-Guttman article is an early abstract of the article that came out in 2005; I think that it is easier to follow than the abstract in the 2005 article. The neuropsychology and the breakdown of the BBB articles both state that BBB breakdown occurs before demyelination, which goes against the autoimmune hypothesis. The adrenoleukodystrophy and the nervonic acid articles show some similarity between ALD and MS.
Research --
we are getting closer- one last committee has to give its approval - the VA research and development committee. If all goes well we will be able to begin recruitment this summer.
This is a from a physician colleague with MS who has noted the similarity between MS and other types of neuro-degenerative types of brain disorders. With his permission I've copied his correspondence below.
Re DIET and MS/ Other Neuro-degenerative Brain Diseases
Dear Dr. Wahls:
I was diagnosed with MS 14 years ago after having about 4 relapses over a 32 month period. These involved loss of sensation in my legs, forearms, hands, and the left side of my face. I also had patellar hyperreflexia, altered proprioception in my legs, and bladder spasticity. I was diagnosed by Dr. Doug Williams in Bristol, TN, after an MRI showed a lesion at T10 and an LP showed elevated monoclonal bands.
Doug told me about a friend’s father who had practiced OB/GYN until 65 years of age while having MS. Doug quoted him as saying “Stay away from doctors; they will kill you.” Doug said that he was very upset when his son became a neurologist. Doug told me that he was not very impressed with Beta-Seron and did not prescribe it for me. He said to stay away from steroids, since they seemed to worsen the long-term rate of relapses. He said to avoid getting overheated. Most important, he said to limit my total fat intake to 20 grams a day – he said that this treatment was recommended in England and France even though it was not recognized in the USA.
I have complied with his recommendation for a low-fat diet for the past 14 years. Initially I could find nothing in the adult neurology texts or the NMSS web site to support its use. I felt that this must be cutting edge research that had not had time to make it into the textbooks. I initially felt that it was unlikely that the diet would have much effect of the MS, but that at least it would be good for my heart, as shown by Dean Ornish, MD. After about 2 years without further relapses or progression I started searching for more information about dietary treatment of MS. I found a mention of using a low-fat diet in Menkes’ Textbook of Child Neurology, 2nd edition. It gave a reference for an article published in 1970 by Dr. Roy Swank “20 years on the low fat diet.”
This article reported on a group of patients who had been told to limit their saturated fat intake to less than 20 grams a day, starting in 1950. An initial attempt at having a control group failed because the patients would talk with each other about their results while in the waiting room waiting for appointments, and after less than a year all the patients had gone on the low-fat diet. Swank had to use historical controls – how the patients had been doing before starting the diet and how other MS patient typically progressed. He found that the relapse rate dropped from 1 a year to less than 0.1 yearly (a 90% reduction), and that the rate of progression slowed.
Swank continued his study until about 1984. Not all of his patients remained in compliance with the diet. Among those who had minimal disability at the start of the study, there was a 5% death rate from MS among those who remained compliant with the diet, while there was an 80% death rate among those who were noncompliant.
Studies that show a benefit from a low-fat diet include:
1. Swank, RL. Multiple Sclerosis: Fat-Oil Relationship. Nutrition 1991; 7:368-376
2. Nordvik, I, et al. Effect of dietary advice and n-3 supplementation in newly diagnosed MS patients. Acta Neurol Scand 2000; 102:143-149
3. Weinstock-Guttman, B, et al. Low fat dietary intervention with w-3 fatty acid supplementation in multiple sclerosis patients. J.plefa 2005; 73:397-404
Your results with diet and exercise are like those reported by Joan Seliger Sidney in J Clin Epidemiol 1994 47:953-954. She went from using a rolling walker to being able to cross country ski 15 km after strictly following the Kousmine Diet (virgin oils, organic wholegrains, fruit, vegetables, nuts).
Your diet is very similar to the one that I have been on for 14 years. Others who use a similar diet include Ann Romney and Montel Williams.
Other discussion of the diet for MS is given in The China Study by Colin Campbell, Diet for a New America by John Robbins, The McDougall Program by John McDougall MD, Taking Control of Multiple Sclerosis by George Jelinek MD, and The Multiple Sclerosis Diet Book by Roy Swank MD.
Web sites that include information about dietary therapy for MS include www.swankmsdiet.org, www.drmcdougall.com, and www.hacres.com.
Since starting a low fat diet for MS in 1995 I have had no further relapses or progression. I have not missed any work due to MS since I started the diet. I am a pediatrician in solo practice in Bristol, TN.
Good luck in getting your results publicized. The benefits of a low-fat diet have been hidden for way too long.
John Hovious, MD
John Hovious, MD
You are welcome to use this note on your blog.
Follow up message
I have included 3 articles from Swank; the 1991 article is the most complete report of his study, and the 2003 article gives a 50 year follow-up on several of his patients. The 2003 Weinstock-Guttman article is an early abstract of the article that came out in 2005; I think that it is easier to follow than the abstract in the 2005 article. The neuropsychology and the breakdown of the BBB articles both state that BBB breakdown occurs before demyelination, which goes against the autoimmune hypothesis. The adrenoleukodystrophy and the nervonic acid articles show some similarity between ALD and MS.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Research opportunity.
May 6, 2009
If you are considering adopting any of the nutritional and or electrical therapy which I used so successfully I encourage you to visit my research opportunity page and participate in the on-line survey. Visit my webpage www.terrywahls.com and visit the research opportunity page. There you will find more information about the survey and a link to the survey itself.
Also my eBook and Food as Medicine lecture are one step closer to being available.
Watch my website fore details.
t
If you are considering adopting any of the nutritional and or electrical therapy which I used so successfully I encourage you to visit my research opportunity page and participate in the on-line survey. Visit my webpage www.terrywahls.com and visit the research opportunity page. There you will find more information about the survey and a link to the survey itself.
Also my eBook and Food as Medicine lecture are one step closer to being available.
Watch my website fore details.
t
Fixing Health Care the Right Way
h care the right way
Terry L. Wahls
Guest Opinion
As an internal medicine physician, I see it every day. Americans have serious chronic diseases and younger and younger ages. In our schools, we have ever higher rates of autism, severe behavior problems, obesity and pre-diabetes. The productivity of the American worker is falling because of declining worker health. Despite all the money spent on health care, we, and our children, are progressively less well. How did we get this way?
I think the explanation can be found in the corn fields of Iowa.
When you buy seed corn, all the kernels have essentially the same DNA -- this is the way farmers know what kind of crop to expect in the fall. Plant half of the bag of seed corn in black Iowa soil and the other half in a trash heap of clay, plastic debris and rock. Return in the fall. The black dirt corn will have a bumper crop. But the trash heap corn will be yellowed and sickly with no ears of corn at all. The same DNA was in both fields, but the black Iowa dirt was filled with the nutrients the corn's DNA needed. The trash heap lacked nutrients, and you can see the results.
All moving things, including our bodies, break down with time. Fortunately, our bodies have tiny little maintenance workers who are busy repairing all the little wear-and-tear damage that occurs each day. Our DNA provides the blueprint for all the proteins and other stuff that needs to be replaced. But if those little maintenance workers don't have all the building blocks, that is, the correct minerals, amino acids and omega 3 fatty acids, trouble happens. They can't make things according to the DNA blueprints. Those replacement molecules and structures get made not at all, or incorrectly, and we begin to deteriorate, developing chronic diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, arthritis, mood disorders and many others.
Thousands of years ago, our ancestors ate what they could find or catch -- mostly green leaves, fruit and some fish or meat. It was packed with the vitamins, minerals and omega 3 fatty acids that cells need to follow the DNA blueprint instructions. Each day, they easily ate nine cups of vegetables and fruit.
The standard American diet is very poor by comparison. Our children drink sugared beverages throughout the day. Rarely do they eat even one cup of vegetables or fruit with a meal. The adults do no better. Most Americans do not have the necessary building blocks to make the structures outlined by their DNA. Molecules don't get made, or they get made incorrectly. As a result our society gradually becomes stunted and sickly, filled with chronic diseases, just like the corn planted in the trash heap.
It will not matter how many trillions of dollars we spend on health care. The solution to our crushing health care costs is not free medicines or universal health care. It is better health and greater vitality. Unless we teach our nation, especially our children, the critical importance of vegetables and fruit to health and vitality, we as a nation are doomed to become more and more sickly and diseased.
Having America's athletic heroes, pop stars and politicians all proclaiming that eating six to nine cups of non-starchy vegetables and fruit each day is necessary to be cool, sexy, healthy and fully alive would be a powerful beginning to restoring America's health. If we don't collectively begin eating our spinach and kale, no matter how many trillions we spend, we as a nation will continue to be ever more sickly and diseased.
t
Terry L. Wahls
Guest Opinion
As an internal medicine physician, I see it every day. Americans have serious chronic diseases and younger and younger ages. In our schools, we have ever higher rates of autism, severe behavior problems, obesity and pre-diabetes. The productivity of the American worker is falling because of declining worker health. Despite all the money spent on health care, we, and our children, are progressively less well. How did we get this way?
I think the explanation can be found in the corn fields of Iowa.
When you buy seed corn, all the kernels have essentially the same DNA -- this is the way farmers know what kind of crop to expect in the fall. Plant half of the bag of seed corn in black Iowa soil and the other half in a trash heap of clay, plastic debris and rock. Return in the fall. The black dirt corn will have a bumper crop. But the trash heap corn will be yellowed and sickly with no ears of corn at all. The same DNA was in both fields, but the black Iowa dirt was filled with the nutrients the corn's DNA needed. The trash heap lacked nutrients, and you can see the results.
All moving things, including our bodies, break down with time. Fortunately, our bodies have tiny little maintenance workers who are busy repairing all the little wear-and-tear damage that occurs each day. Our DNA provides the blueprint for all the proteins and other stuff that needs to be replaced. But if those little maintenance workers don't have all the building blocks, that is, the correct minerals, amino acids and omega 3 fatty acids, trouble happens. They can't make things according to the DNA blueprints. Those replacement molecules and structures get made not at all, or incorrectly, and we begin to deteriorate, developing chronic diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, arthritis, mood disorders and many others.
Thousands of years ago, our ancestors ate what they could find or catch -- mostly green leaves, fruit and some fish or meat. It was packed with the vitamins, minerals and omega 3 fatty acids that cells need to follow the DNA blueprint instructions. Each day, they easily ate nine cups of vegetables and fruit.
The standard American diet is very poor by comparison. Our children drink sugared beverages throughout the day. Rarely do they eat even one cup of vegetables or fruit with a meal. The adults do no better. Most Americans do not have the necessary building blocks to make the structures outlined by their DNA. Molecules don't get made, or they get made incorrectly. As a result our society gradually becomes stunted and sickly, filled with chronic diseases, just like the corn planted in the trash heap.
It will not matter how many trillions of dollars we spend on health care. The solution to our crushing health care costs is not free medicines or universal health care. It is better health and greater vitality. Unless we teach our nation, especially our children, the critical importance of vegetables and fruit to health and vitality, we as a nation are doomed to become more and more sickly and diseased.
Having America's athletic heroes, pop stars and politicians all proclaiming that eating six to nine cups of non-starchy vegetables and fruit each day is necessary to be cool, sexy, healthy and fully alive would be a powerful beginning to restoring America's health. If we don't collectively begin eating our spinach and kale, no matter how many trillions we spend, we as a nation will continue to be ever more sickly and diseased.
t
Book Update - the steps I took....
April 26, 2009
Book Update
I am working with my sound engineer to create a DVD which captures the audio and handouts for the food as medicine course which I've been teaching this winter and spring. Hopefully I'll be able to get that finished and available by the end of May. I am also working with my editor to have an electronic copy of my book which talks in more detail about my interventions, and the theories I have about why they have been so successful for me. The target is to have the ebook with the DVD available yet this spring, but of course things never go quite as smoothly we expect.
Book Update
I am working with my sound engineer to create a DVD which captures the audio and handouts for the food as medicine course which I've been teaching this winter and spring. Hopefully I'll be able to get that finished and available by the end of May. I am also working with my editor to have an electronic copy of my book which talks in more detail about my interventions, and the theories I have about why they have been so successful for me. The target is to have the ebook with the DVD available yet this spring, but of course things never go quite as smoothly we expect.
Vitamin B12
The B12 article below was taken from Dr. Nancy Lonsdorf's web page. She practices integrative medicine in Fairfield, Iowa. B12 is an essential nutrient for making cell membranes and myelin. It is often low in those who have MS.
by Dr. Nancy Lonsdorf
Forgetting names lately? Battling brain fog? Lost your "edge?" Don't write it off to just "getting older." It could be something as simple—and curable—as vitamin B12 deficiency.
Once thought to occur only in vegetarians or the elderly, suboptimal B12 levels are found in nearly 40 percent of Americans of all ages, according to the recent Framingham Offspring Study. That puts virtually everyone at risk.
What Does B12 Do?
Known as the "energy vitamin," vitamin B12 is essential for many critical functions in the body, including energy production, DNA synthesis, and blood formation. However, B12 is most critically needed to form myelin, the protective "insulation" that surrounds nerve endings and helps nerves "talk" to each other efficiently.
Without adequate B12, myelin can break down and cause symptoms that mimic multiple sclerosis, depression, or dementia. Other common symptoms include poor memory and mental fogginess, loss of motivation, apathy, mood swings, low energy, fatigue, muscle weakness, soreness or redness of the tongue, tingling, numbness or crawling sensations in the arms, legs, or feet, lack of coordination, and hair loss.
Here are several real-life cases of B12 deficiency—out of several dozen—that I have treated in the past few years:
• Suzanne is a 57-year-old teacher who came to me worried that she was developing multiple sclerosis like her brother. She was experiencing "cramps" in her legs, along with numbness in her hands and feet while walking. Fortunately, low B12 was the cause and her symptoms disappeared within three months of starting B12 supplements.
• Bruce, a 52-year-old broker, had tried "everything" for his recalcitrant depression. His B12 tested low, and within days of beginning B12 supplements, his mood improved dramatically.
• Rob, a usually tireless globe-trotting reporter, felt unusually fatigued after completing a big project. He also felt uncharacteristically lacking in motivation. A B12 test showed a level of nearly zero. Within a few weeks of supplementation, his usual drive and energy returned.
Are You B12 Deficient?
Anyone can have B12 deficiency. The Framingham study found that taking supplements, eating fortified cereal, or drinking milk helps protect against deficiency, but interestingly, meat consumption does not. In my clinical practice, I find that many vegetarians who get plenty of milk and dairy still have low B12, so lacto-vegetarians should not feel they are protected.
If you are over 50, mainly vegetarian, have digestive problems, do not take vitamin supplements or eat fortified cereal containing B12 regularly, or you take 500 mg or more of vitamin C with your food daily (which blocks B12 absorption), you are at increased risk of B12 deficiency.
The best way to find out is to ask your doctor for a B12 blood test. Experts give various opinions on the "gold standard" test, but a simple B12 blood level will do.
Do keep in mind (and challenge your doctor if needed) that the low "normal" limit of about 200 pg/ml is not enough. Levels below 300 double your risk of Alzheimer's disease and increase your risk of hearing loss with age. Children and teenagers with low B12 are at risk for reduced learning ability and intelligence. Your B12 level should be above 350 or 400 to be safe.
If you can't afford a test, and do not have symptoms, you may simply take a supplement of 100 to 500 mcg per day, but do it regularly for effective prevention.
How to Replenish Your B12
Vitamin B12 is found naturally only in animal products, including dairy, and in certain seaweeds, tempeh, and nutritional yeasts. However, B12 in non-animal products may not be active in the human body and may even block the effects of active vitamin B12, so it's safest not to rely on non-animal sources. Keep in mind that if you are deficient, it is not possible to correct it with food alone.
Fortunately, oral supplements are as effective for most people as getting shots. Methylcobalamin, the form naturally in your body, is preferable to the more prevalent cyanocobalamin tablets (which contain toxic cyanide, albeit in trace amounts). Over-the-counter B12 patches, sublingual tablets, and nasal sprays are available and may enhance absorption.
B12 deficiency is common today in all age groups, whether you are vegetarian or not. If you are at increased risk, take supplements regularly to prevent future health problems. If you have symptoms now, see your doctor for a check-up and blood test. B12 deficiency is preventable and treatable, and correcting a deficiency may be just what you need to perk up your memory, mood, and overall well-being.
Nancy Lonsdorf, M.D., practices Maharishi Ayurveda and integrative medicine for women in Maharishi Vedic City, IA. Call (641) 469-3174.
http://gesundheitsvorsorge.blog.de/2009/04/08/vitamin-b12-deficiency-5908794/
April 6, 2009
Research survey about nutrition and electrical stimulation
The survey is being modified based on your feedback. It is being split into two brief (10 to 15 minute) surveys. Once it is approved the new shorter survey will be available online. Typically such approvals may take a month to happen.
by Dr. Nancy Lonsdorf
Forgetting names lately? Battling brain fog? Lost your "edge?" Don't write it off to just "getting older." It could be something as simple—and curable—as vitamin B12 deficiency.
Once thought to occur only in vegetarians or the elderly, suboptimal B12 levels are found in nearly 40 percent of Americans of all ages, according to the recent Framingham Offspring Study. That puts virtually everyone at risk.
What Does B12 Do?
Known as the "energy vitamin," vitamin B12 is essential for many critical functions in the body, including energy production, DNA synthesis, and blood formation. However, B12 is most critically needed to form myelin, the protective "insulation" that surrounds nerve endings and helps nerves "talk" to each other efficiently.
Without adequate B12, myelin can break down and cause symptoms that mimic multiple sclerosis, depression, or dementia. Other common symptoms include poor memory and mental fogginess, loss of motivation, apathy, mood swings, low energy, fatigue, muscle weakness, soreness or redness of the tongue, tingling, numbness or crawling sensations in the arms, legs, or feet, lack of coordination, and hair loss.
Here are several real-life cases of B12 deficiency—out of several dozen—that I have treated in the past few years:
• Suzanne is a 57-year-old teacher who came to me worried that she was developing multiple sclerosis like her brother. She was experiencing "cramps" in her legs, along with numbness in her hands and feet while walking. Fortunately, low B12 was the cause and her symptoms disappeared within three months of starting B12 supplements.
• Bruce, a 52-year-old broker, had tried "everything" for his recalcitrant depression. His B12 tested low, and within days of beginning B12 supplements, his mood improved dramatically.
• Rob, a usually tireless globe-trotting reporter, felt unusually fatigued after completing a big project. He also felt uncharacteristically lacking in motivation. A B12 test showed a level of nearly zero. Within a few weeks of supplementation, his usual drive and energy returned.
Are You B12 Deficient?
Anyone can have B12 deficiency. The Framingham study found that taking supplements, eating fortified cereal, or drinking milk helps protect against deficiency, but interestingly, meat consumption does not. In my clinical practice, I find that many vegetarians who get plenty of milk and dairy still have low B12, so lacto-vegetarians should not feel they are protected.
If you are over 50, mainly vegetarian, have digestive problems, do not take vitamin supplements or eat fortified cereal containing B12 regularly, or you take 500 mg or more of vitamin C with your food daily (which blocks B12 absorption), you are at increased risk of B12 deficiency.
The best way to find out is to ask your doctor for a B12 blood test. Experts give various opinions on the "gold standard" test, but a simple B12 blood level will do.
Do keep in mind (and challenge your doctor if needed) that the low "normal" limit of about 200 pg/ml is not enough. Levels below 300 double your risk of Alzheimer's disease and increase your risk of hearing loss with age. Children and teenagers with low B12 are at risk for reduced learning ability and intelligence. Your B12 level should be above 350 or 400 to be safe.
If you can't afford a test, and do not have symptoms, you may simply take a supplement of 100 to 500 mcg per day, but do it regularly for effective prevention.
How to Replenish Your B12
Vitamin B12 is found naturally only in animal products, including dairy, and in certain seaweeds, tempeh, and nutritional yeasts. However, B12 in non-animal products may not be active in the human body and may even block the effects of active vitamin B12, so it's safest not to rely on non-animal sources. Keep in mind that if you are deficient, it is not possible to correct it with food alone.
Fortunately, oral supplements are as effective for most people as getting shots. Methylcobalamin, the form naturally in your body, is preferable to the more prevalent cyanocobalamin tablets (which contain toxic cyanide, albeit in trace amounts). Over-the-counter B12 patches, sublingual tablets, and nasal sprays are available and may enhance absorption.
B12 deficiency is common today in all age groups, whether you are vegetarian or not. If you are at increased risk, take supplements regularly to prevent future health problems. If you have symptoms now, see your doctor for a check-up and blood test. B12 deficiency is preventable and treatable, and correcting a deficiency may be just what you need to perk up your memory, mood, and overall well-being.
Nancy Lonsdorf, M.D., practices Maharishi Ayurveda and integrative medicine for women in Maharishi Vedic City, IA. Call (641) 469-3174.
http://gesundheitsvorsorge.blog.de/2009/04/08/vitamin-b12-deficiency-5908794/
April 6, 2009
Research survey about nutrition and electrical stimulation
The survey is being modified based on your feedback. It is being split into two brief (10 to 15 minute) surveys. Once it is approved the new shorter survey will be available online. Typically such approvals may take a month to happen.
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