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July 21, 2003 Research Update |
James Bogash, D.C. Mesa, AZ
info@lifecarechiro.com
www.lifecarechiro.com
Nausea and Vomiting of Pregnancy
Since morning sickness is such a common occurence with pregnancy, this article should provide some useful info. Of particular importance is the mention of ginger and B6 to reduce nausea and vomiting. One thing that is not covered but I see frequently in my office is that many cases of morning sickness are actually a result of poor quality (read: prescription/pharmaceutical) prenatal vitamins. The OB/GYN answer--take your multi just before bed so you sleep through the nausea. Forget the fact that it is the poor quality of the vitamin causing the sensations and furthermore, taking it at night is probably the worst time for absorption (which is ALREADY reduced due to the poor quality...). It always amazes me that a pharmaceutical brand prenatal usually runs about $30 to $45, but most patients have their insurance cover it. This cost would be fine for a high quality vitamin, but for the incredibly low quality of these the cost is ridiculous.
Nausea and Vomiting of Pregnancy - July 1, 2003 - American Family Physician
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The metabolic syndrome
Okay. Insulin resistance finally makes it to the editorial section of the British Medical Journal. This physiological abnormality has been linked to increased rates of diabetes, obesity, certain types of cancer, hypertension and a horde of other chronic diseases. So why is something that is literally the scourge of Western civilization; something that is readily amenable with lifestyle changes--still virtually unknown in clinical practice???? This is one answer that I do not have the answer for. And quite frankly, even if there were an answer, there is no excuse that would suffice.
bmj.com Meigs 327 (7406): 61
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Causes of Death in Patients With Celiac Disease
Just another reminder of how devasting the condition can be. Essentially, celiac disease is an allergy to the gluten protein in grains, most noteably wheat. The levels of gluten is further elevated in "technology" grown grains where fertilizers high in nitrogen are used. I know I have mentioned this patient before, but it warrants bringing him up again. I had a patient awhile back that was diagnosed 10 yrs prior with dermatatis herpatiformis--a skin condition closely linked to wheat allergy. His doctor at that time told him he did not need to avoid wheat--just stay on this drug indefinately (the drug was commonly used for leprosy). Knowing what we know about celiac disease and its long term effects--that borders on malpractice.
Arch Intern Med -- Abstracts: Peters et al. 163 (13): 1566
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Effect of Glucosamine-Chondroitin on Glycosylated Hemoglobin in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
This issue of whether or not glucosamine would effect glucose levels (since it is a 6-carbon glucose ring) has always been hanging out there. Personally, I have always told patients that the levels of sugar contributed by glucosamine is negligable. And I always used this as a plug for more exercise--it the patients were that concerned about blood glucose going up but still wanted to use the glucosamine--the added exercise should counteract any potential rise in glucose...
Arch Intern Med -- Abstracts: Scroggie et al. 163 (13): 1587
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L gasseri as a probiotic in clarithromycin-resistant H pylori infection
Regular readers of the Updates know how I feel about H. pylori so you can probably guess where this is going...Is it not possible that the increased use of antibiotics have killed off normal flora that have always protected us against pathogenic bacteria such as H pylori?? So, instead of using antibiotics in the first place, how about probiotic supplementation? This is not the first article that address this issue that I have come accross.
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Immunonutrition
This editorial address the use of nutriceuticals in parental nutrition (given through IV) for patients undergoing surgery. Considering that hospitals are a very dangerous place to be (poor quality food, lots of antibiotic resistance floating around, patients with very depressed immune systems...) anything we can do to raise the immune competency of these patients is a good thing. Unfortunately, we always get lost in the political debate over whether there is enough evidence to use nutriceuticals at this point in time. Geez!! If it was me or someone I cared about there would be NO question that I would demand it.
bmj.com Calder 327 (7407): 117
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Vitamin C and risk of coronary heart disease in women
Vitamin C is one of those supplements that has had an incredibly amount of research behind it. Although its benefits in cardiovascular disease has not been fully established (with several recent studies showing no benefit), this article does demonstrate a benefit. Keep in mind that I usually recommend 2 grams/day of Vitamin C as a base, so many of these studies are done at dosages that I consider very low.
Cardiosource
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Analgesic use: Predictor of chronic pain, medication overuse headache
The results of this study find that in patients with heavy analgesic use, they were more likely to experience chronic pain 11 years later. This is not really a big surprise since it is well known that NSAIDs inhibit proper healing of connective tissue. Consider a patient on long term NSAIDs that sustains an injury. The injury never properly heals because of the block to normal healing. We know have a tissue that is prone to injury, setting up the cycle for further injury and NSAID use.
Neurology -- Abstracts: Zwart et al. 61 (2): 160
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