July 9, 2001 Research Update

James Bogash, D.C. Mesa, AZ
info@lifecarechiropractic.com
www.lifecarechiropractic.com

Cranberry-lingonberry juice and Lactobacillus for the prevention of UTI

Components of cranberry juice have been known for a long time to prevent or help get rid of urinary tract infections. It is believed to prevent the attachment of bacteria to the wall of the bladder. It does not surprise me that Lactobacillus orally did not show a positive response in this study. Personally, I strongly recommend using probiotics as a douche in distilled water or vinegar to maintain a healthy flora in the vaginal vault. If E. coli (the most common cause of UTIs) cannot establish a foothood near the opening of the urinary tract. bmj.com Abstracts: Kontiokari et al. 322 (7302): 1571 http://bmj.com/cgi/content/abstract/322/7302/1571

Antacids pro bacteria

I must admit, sometimes it is so hard not to run around the room jumping up and down saying "I told you so!!" when issues like this pop up. We are so quick in medicine to suppress acid production in patients without giving thought to the ramifications. Stomach acid is absolutely essential for healthy nutrient absorption (especially iron, B12 and calcium), healthy digestion (not only does it digest things...HCl is needed to activate many other digestive enzymes) and protection from orally ingested bacteria. Besides, the patient that produces TOO MUCH stomach acid is actually very rare; most patients do not produce enough and further supression is adding fuel to the (lack of..) fire... Antacids pro bacteria http://www.nature.com/nsu/010705/010705-3.html

Exercise, bone health and oral contraceptive use

This article finds that, although exercise is known to increase bone mass, this effect is not seen with women taking oral contraceptives. I know contraception is a tough issue from a health care practioner standpoint because the reasons why women choose the birth control pill, but the BCP does unquestionably have some adverse health effects. Increased risk of blood clots is still present even in the "new generation" BCP. The BCP increases insulin resistance which can have major health impacts on many women. And now we see that it interferes with a woman's ability to add bone mass through exercise. Remember this the next time you read an article or hear someone talking about eradicating women's periods. I almost get ill with the thought of the arrogance that doctors have in regards to what Mother Nature thought was needed... Lippincott Williams & Wilkins - Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise http://www.ms-se.com/

Limb-Length Discrepancy on Gait Economy in Older Adults

It is interesting to see an article on leg length insufficiency relating to fatigue and oxygen consumption. Chiropractors have been checking for this for ever. This article relates to after effects of surgical joint replacement, but the concepts and end results can be the same. Sometimes something as simple as fitting a patient for orthotics can fix many problems...I've seen many patients with genu valgus (knock-kneed) and much knee pain and degeneration that would be in my office know if someone had fitted them for orthotics ten years ago. JBJS -- Abstracts: Gurney et al. 83 (6): 907 http://www.ejbjs.org/cgi/content/abstract/83/6/907

Lack of Sleep May Increase Risk of Type 2 Diabetes

Two things that are absolutely essential for any other natural therapy to work for any condition is exercise and sleep. The results of this article should not be surprising. Poor sleep or lack of sleep is a stress on the body and the body responds by producing cortisol, the stress hormone. Cortisol is known to increase insulin resistance...thus predisposing to diabetes. There are many ways to get a better night's sleep...valerian root, hops, passionflower are just a few of the herbs known to have a sedative effect and help with sleep. Exercise, a mattress that's right for you and maintaining a healthy sleep schedule are also part of the program.

American Diabetes Association's annual meeting A chronic lack of sleep may cause far more serious problems than a tendency to nod off the next day, researchers warn. Their study results, presented here Monday at the American Diabetes Association's annual meeting, show that people who do not get enough sleep on a regular basis may become less sensitive to insulin. In fact, chronic sleep deprivation — 6.5 hours or less of sleep a night — had the same effect on insulin resistance as aging, says co-investigator Bryce A. Mander, a research assistant at the University of Chicago in Illinois. "Just like poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, chronic stress and aging, sleep loss is a...risk factor" for type 2 diabetes, Mander said. In the study, led by Dr. Eve Van Cauter of the University of Chicago, healthy adults who averaged 316 minutes of sleep a night — about 5.2 hours — over 8 consecutive nights secreted 50% more insulin than those who averaged 477 minutes of sleep a night, or about 8 hours. As a result, "short sleepers" were 40% less sensitive to insulin. The researchers suggest that sleep deprivation, which is becoming commonplace in industrialized countries, may play a role in the current epidemic of type 2 diabetes. Mander cited a poll by the National (US) Sleep Foundation documenting a steady decline in the number of hours Americans sleep each night. In 1975, the average American slept 7.5 hours, down from 9 hours in 1910. Today, adults sleep about 7 hours a night, he said.

Low Animal Protein Improves Blood Glucose in Type 2 Diabetics

This title should not really surprise anyone, but the results of this study, although small, were quite amazing. Thirty percent reduction in HbA1C levels (a marker of long term glucose control) as well as a marked reduction in the amount of pharmaceutical drugs needed. I still find it very hard to understand why any physician would recommend the high protein/Atkin's type diet as an across-the-board approach to weight control. The evidence in support of a plant based diet vs animal based for health is voluminous. And this study just evaluates dietary changes--add exercise, avoidance of refined carbs and specific nutrients (chromium, vanadium, alpha lipoic acid, CLA...) and I'm sure the results of this study would've been staggering.

83rd annual meeting of the Endocrine Society Type 2 diabetics who limit their intake of animal protein and sugar may significantly improve their lipid profile and lower their hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels. Dr. Greg Arsenis, from the University of South Florida, Tampa, and colleagues reported the findings here Wednesday at the 83rd annual meeting of the Endocrine Society. The researchers studied 51 patients with type 2 diabetes who had not benefited from large doses of oral hypoglycemics and/or insulin. They were assigned to reduce their dietary animal protein intake from 2 to 3 times a day to once every other day for 6 months, replacing it with equal amounts of vegetable protein. Sugars were eliminated, but caloric content remained the same to prevent weight loss. Among the 31 patients who stayed on the diet, the HbA1c value was decreased by a significant 30%, from an average of about 10 to about 7. Other significant improvements were that total cholesterol decreased by 32%, triglycerides by 60%, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol by 35%, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol increased by 10%. "Patients liked the new diet and the fact that they did not have to fast, adhere to low-calorie diets or take appetite suppressants," the researchers commented in a meeting abstract. They noted that of the 20 patients who did not follow the diet, 6 followed a low-calorie diet and lost weight, and 14 switched from red meat to fish and poultry, but their metabolic profile did not improve. Three of the patients who did follow the prescribed diet reduced their insulin dose by 50%, two patients discontinued insulin, four patients stopped taking oral hypoglycemics and six discontinued one or two of their hypolipemics. "We were not really surprised by these findings," Dr. Arsenis told Reuters Health. "We know that animal protein contains essential amino acids which stimulate pancreatic insulin secretion." The increased insulin increases adrenaline levels, which is thought to induce insulin resistance, he explained. Dr. Arsenis suggested that this type of diet might even help prevent the development of type 2 diabetes.

Active Transport of Nitrofurantoin into Human Milk

Nitrofurantoin is an antibiotic that is commonly used in the United States. This study demonstrates that breastfeeding mothers on nitrofurantoin do have levels found in breast milk that is much higher than found in their bloodstreams. So now you have a newborn infant, desperately trying to establish a healthy flora for proper development of their immune system--being sterilized through nursing. Not a good situation. The bottom line is that, although many pharmaceutical drugs are accepted as "safe" during nursing, I firmly believe that a lactating woman should avoid all drugs unless life threatening.

Pharmacotherapy 21(6):669-675, 2001 To determine the extent to which nitrofurantoin is transferred into human milk. Four healthy lactating women 8-26 weeks postpartum. Conclusions. Nitrofurantoin is actively transported into human milk, achieving concentrations in milk greatly exceeding those in serum. Concern is warranted for suckling infants younger than 1 month old, or for infants with a high frequency of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency or sensitivity to nitrofurantoin.