Statins for Kids??

The AMA released a notice today stating that they now recommend low fat milk for all children over the age of 12 months, and cholesterol lowering medications to children as young as eight-years-old, inspite of a recent study suggesting that cholesterol lowering meds can alter genetic structure and deteriorate muscles, including the heart muscle.

The pharmaceutical industry line is that a very small percentage of people actually suffer horrific, painful side effects from cholesterol lowering (statin) drugs. If these side effects happen to my child or grandchild, that would make it a 100% reaction for an innocent child and that is not reasonable in this writer's opinion.

There are a number of other ways to lower the childhood factors associated with increased risk of developing heart problems in adult years, including healthy dietary changes that include eliminating all junk foods (specifically all corn-based oil and high-sugar syrup foods) portion control (supersize nothing) and a moderate amount of daily exercise, all of which include positive side effects.

It seems almost criminal to subject any young child to the potential painful side effect risks associated with statin drugs, particularly if this AMA recommendation is in any way being made to increase profits for BigPharma.

Research Misconduct

A survey of more than 2,000 scientists reveals that misconduct in research may be far more prevalent than suspected. The results are published in a Commentary in Nature this week.

The authors, based at the US Department of Health and Human Services’s Office of Research Integrity (ORI), surveyed 2,212 scientists at 605 institutions and found that nearly 9% believed they had witnessed potential research misconduct in the preceding three years. Extrapolating to the larger research community supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), this suggests that as many as 2,300 observations of misconduct occur each year with roughly 1,000 going unreported.

Do we really think this behavior is confined to the United States?

Polar Express

There is a new sense of scientific urgency around the accelerating pace of climate warming in the earth's polar regions. A NASA satellite camera on the Aqua caught a Manhattan-size floating piece of ice shelf in the act of disintegrating on Feb 28, 2008.

By March 8, the Wilkins ice shelf, comprising some 5,000 miles of floating ice off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula had lost 160 square miles of ice to the Pacific Ocean.

The July 2008 edition of Scientific American reports that this ice breakup is the latest of seven major Antarctic ice-shelf collapses in the past 30 years, after some 400 years of relative stability.

Once again, before casting our votes, we need to know where Barack Obama and John McCaine stand on the issue of global warming, and we need to know who they intend to use as their advisors on the vitally important issue.

Our health and the health of our offspring could depend on the quality of science-based decisions made in the next few years.

Obesity & Heart Failure

A study in the recent Journal of the American College of Cardiology reported that obesity is associated with prolonged inflammation of the heart, which can lead to congestive heart failure.

The 79 male study participants out of the 6,914 men who developed congestive heart failure had far higher levels of inflammatory proteins interleukin-6, fibrinogen and C-reactive protein compared with the nonobese participants. Near doubling of interleukin-6 levels was associated with an 84 percent greater risk of developing heart failure, and near tripling of c-reactive protein with a 36 percent greater risk than those with lower levels.

More and more evidence is building a case that suggests weight-related inflammation to be the chemical route obesity uses to target the heart and other organs, and that inflammation may play an important role in the increased risk of heart failure in overweight and obese people.

Recent government data suggests that 65 percent of the US population is now overweight and 33 percent of the US population is now clinically obese. These alarming numbers can change with lifestyle modification that includes consumption of calorie-restricted, nutrient-dense diets, portion control, full-spectrum supplementation and exercise.

The Power of Mothers

We set aside the second Sunday in the month of May to honor all mothers, including Mother Earth. This year, she is particularly unhappy because her honey bee children are dying by the millions, which will lead to a reduction in the country's nutrient-necessary fruit and vegetable crops. Many studies now suggest that almost 90% of the feral bee population could already be dead due to a condition called Colony Collapse Disorder.

An amazing documentary called Vanishing of the Bees is in the works. Please, please check out the trailer http://www.vanishingbees.com/

Let's honor Mother Earth and Mother's Day 2008 by making a commitment to use our voices, our votes, and our purchasing power to address global warming, the amount of environmental toxins we are willing to tolerate, inaccessible health care for too many Mother's children, and the personal and corporate greed responsible for so much of earth's destruction.

Albert Einstein supposedly once remarked, "If honey bees become extinct, human society will follow in four years." I can't verify that quote, but the honey bee may very well be the canary in the mine.

The hillside color pallet below is Mother Nature's "Ode to Spring." We can collectively honor her on this day by vowing to protect her art and her honey bees for future generations. Simply click on the photo to view an enlargement.

$445M on Federal Lobbying in 2007

Health care interests spent $445 million on federal lobbying in 2007--more than any other sector of the economy--to finish as the top spender for the second consecutive year, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, HealthBeat reports.

In 2007 pharmaceutical and medical products companies rank first with $227 million in spending, while health insurance companies spent the second-most at $138 million. Hospitals and nursing homes spent $91 million, ranking fifth; while health professionals spent $70 million, ranking 15th; and HMOs/health services spent $52 million, ranking 19th.

Among specific organizations or companies, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America spent the third-most at $22.1 million, the American Medical Association spent the fourth-most at $22.1 million and the American Hospital Association was fifth, spending $19.7 million.

According to the CRP, the pharmaceutical industry has spent $1.3 billion on federal lobbying in the last decade, more than any other industry. In addition, the drug industry's reported lobbying increased by 25% from 2006 to 2007.

Lobbying firm, Patton Boggs, whose clients include Bristol-Myers Squibb and Hoffman-La Roche, reported $41.9 million in 2007 revenue—an increase of 20% over 2006--and the most among Washington, D.C.-area firms.

What can we say, except that hopefully a new administration will take some power away from those who blatently put obscene profits before the health care needs of the public.

Chocolate & Pregnancy

The May 2008 issue of Epidemiology published a Yale study that suggests women who eat dark chocolate are at decreased risk of developing preeclampsia, a potentially dangerous complication of pregnancy.

The study looked at self-reported chocolate consumption and also at levels of a byproduct of chocolate consumption, called theobromine, in the cord blood of pregnant women.

Those who reported chocolate consumption of more than five servings a week had a 70% lower risk of developing preeclampsia.

The researchers have speculated that the presence of anti-oxidants called flavonoids in dark chocolate may confer cardiovascular benefits.

This does not mean pregnant women should eat all the chocolate they want, as tempting as this information may be. Excess consumption of all sweets can lead to weight gain and other health problems during pregnancy, just as it does in a non-pregnant state.