6 in 10 May ‘Look Around’ Rather Than Re-elect Incumbent

April 28, 2010

PoliticsDaily.com

by Bruce Drake

Nearly six in 10 Americans say they are inclined to “look around” for a new candidate to support rather than re-elect their current representative in this year’s midterm elections, according to a Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted April 22-25.

Reflecting an anti-incumbent mood found in many other national polls, 57 percent put themselves in the “look around” category, while 32 percent said they’d re-elect their sitting congressman. The other 10 percent were undecided, did not plan to vote or didn’t voice an opinion for other reasons.

The anti-incumbent margin was somewhat more negative than the results of a Post/ABC News poll in February, when 56 percent said they were inclined to look around and 37 percent said they’d re-elect their current representative.

But even though the Democrats are mostly the incumbent party, they fare better than the Republicans on other measures in the poll.

By a 46 percent to 32 percent margin, those surveyed say they trust Democrats more than Republicans to do a better job over the next few years in handling the main problems that face the country. Two percent said they trust both, 18 percent trust neither and 3 percent are undecided.

They also trust Obama over congressional Republicans on several major issues. On the economy, Obama is trusted more by 49 percent to 38 percent. Fifty-two percent trust Obama more when it comes to regulation of the financial industry, while 35 percent trust the Republicans. Forty-five percent trust Obama more on handling the federal deficit, while 41 percent trust the Republicans. Forty-nine percent trust Obama more on health care reform, while 39 percent trust the Republicans. (The balance in all cases are people who trust both or neither, or are undecided.)

Fifty-nine percent still put most of the blame on former President Bush for the current state of the economy, a sentiment little changed from last July. Twenty-five percent blame Obama, up from 16 percent last July. Sixty percent say Bush is more responsible for the current budget deficit, while 22 percent point to Obama.

Fifty-eight percent say Obama’s economic program has made the economy worse or has had no effect (26 percent say “worse,” 32 percent say “no effect”), while 39 percent say it has made things better.

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Peppers May Ignite Weight Loss

April 28, 2010

Telegraph.co.uk

by Richard Alleyne

Researchers have found that the heat generated by peppers can actually increase your consumption of calories and “oxidise” layers of fat.

And for those that don’t like the “burn”, they have discovered that an equivalent of the main ingredient “capsaicin” occurs in some non-hot varieties of the fruit.

The heat of pepper evolved to put animals off eating them, but humans have come to like them and they have been a staple of many diets around the world for thousands of years.

Scientists – intrigued by the ability of the fruit to make you sweat – now believe they can help as part of a diet.

There are plants that make a non-burning version of capsaicin called dihydrocapsiate (DCT) that could have the benefits of peppers without the pungency, it has been discovered.

Researchers at the University of California recruited 34 men and women who were willing to consume a very low-calorie liquid meal replacement product for 28 days.

The researchers, led by Dr David Heber, then randomly chose the subjects to take either placebo pills or supplements containing the non-burning DCT pepper.

Their data provided convincing evidence that, at least for several hours after the test meal was consumed, energy expenditure was significantly increased in the group consuming the highest amount of DCT.

In fact, it was almost double that of the placebo group.

They were also able to show that DCT significantly increased fat oxidation, pushing the body to use more fat as fuel. This may help people lose weight when they consume a low-calorie diet by increasing metabolism.

Dr Heber and his research team will present their results at the Experimental Biology annual conference.

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Processed Food Linked To Premature Aging

April 28, 2010

Telegraph.co.uk

by Richard Alleyne

Research shows that high levels of phosphate in sodas and processed foods accelerate the ageing process in mice and contribute to age-associated complications such as chronic kidney disease.

“Avoid phosphate toxicity and enjoy a healthy life,” one expert has advised.

The study published in the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Journal shows that high levels of phosphates may add more than just flavour to sodas and processed foods.

Phosphates are used in drinks to react with sodium bicarbonate and release carbon dioxide or fizz. They are used as a preservatives and flavour and appearance enhancers in processed meats, cheese and bread products.

That’s because researchers found that the high levels of phosphates accelerate signs of ageing. High phosphate levels may also increase the prevalence and severity of age-related complications, such as chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular calcification, and can also induce severe muscle and skin atrophy.

“Humans need a healthy diet and keeping the balance of phosphate in the diet may be important for a healthy life and longevity,” said Mohammed Razzaque, from the Department of Medicine, Infection and Immunity at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine.

“Avoid phosphate toxicity and enjoy a healthy life.”

To make this discovery, Mr Razzaque and colleagues examined the effects of high phosphate levels in three groups of mice. The first group of mice was missing a gene (klotho), which when absent, causes mice to have toxic levels of phosphate in their bodies. These mice lived 8 to 15 weeks.

The second group of mice was missing the klotho gene and a second gene (NaPi2a), which when absent at the same time, substantially lowered the amount of phosphate in their bodies. These mice lived to 20 weeks.

The third group of mice was like the second group (missing both the klotho and NaPi2a genes), except they were fed a high-phosphate diet. All of these mice died by 15 weeks, like those in the first group.

This suggests that phosphate has toxic effects in mice, and may have a similar effect in other mammals, including humans.

“Soda is the caffeine delivery vehicle of choice for millions of people worldwide, but comes with phosphorous as a passenger” said Gerald Weissmann, Editor-in-Chief of the FASEB Journal. “This research suggests that our phosphorous balance influences the ageing process, so don’t tip it (the balance).”

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California County Bans McDonald’s Happy Meal Toys

April 28, 2010

Telegraph.co.uk

Officials in the county of Santa Clara, in the heart of technology centre Silicon Valley south of San Francisco, have voted to enact the ban to fight an “obesity epidemic” sweeping California and the United States.

“This ordinance prevents restaurants from preying on children’s love of toys to peddle high-calorie, high-fat, high-sodium kids meals,” said Ken Yeager, the county supervisor behind the ban.

He said it “breaks the link between unhealthy food and prizes.”

County public health officials that spoke in support of the ban at a public meeting blamed fast-food for being a factor in soaring obesity rates threatening American children with diabetes and shortened lifespans.

“Obesity is literally an epidemic,” Dan Peddycord, the county public health director, said in remarks to the board of supervisors.

“If food meals sold in restaurants contain too many calories, high fats, high sugars, high sodium and are attached to an incentive item like a toy, that is part of the environment we make our decision in.”

The ban is to take effect in 90 days unless major fast-food chains and the state restaurateurs association successfully pitch a better solution.

It will bar toys from being offered with meals that don’t meet a set of basic nutrition standards.

Harlan Levy, of McDonald’s, was part of a fast-food restaurant contingent that turned out to oppose the ban.

“It substitutes the county’s judgment for the judgment of parents,” Levy told the board. “It does nothing to address a holistic response to the problem.”

For example, the ban doesn’t change sedentary lifestyles that have children sitting watching television or playing video games, Levy argued.

“It’s parents, schools, exercise, walkability but it is also the endless promotion of toys that are tied to unhealthy meals that is particularly to blame,” Mr Yeager said of growing obesity problems with children.

“It is unfair to parents and children to use toys to get them hooked on eating high-calorie, high-fat foods early in life.”

Fat, salt and sugar form an addictive combination in the brain and adding a toy reward to the formula makes the habit even harder to kick, according to county health officials.

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Chokeberry Extract Regulates Weight Gain

April 28, 2010

TimesofIndia.com

Native Americans have traditionally eaten dried chokeberries and prepared tea from parts of the plant.

However, the chokeberry is enjoying a new claim-to-fame as a potentially powerful antioxidant, and can now be found for sale in the dietary supplement and “health food” aisles of pharmacies and grocery stores.

What makes the humble chokeberry so healthful? Scientists think the answer lies in their unusually high levels of substances called anthocyanins (from the Greek anthos + kyanos meaning dark blue).

There are many different anthocyanins in these colourful berries, but they all function as antioxidants – originally protecting the chokeberry seed from sunshine-induced oxidative stress.

When we eat them, they also appear to protect our bodies from a variety of damaging situations, including exposure to pollution and metabolically-derived free radicals.

Indeed, a growing body of scientific literature has shown promising effects of chokeberry consumption on diseases ranging from cancer to obesity.

In addition, certain anthocyanins – including those found in chokeberry – have also been shown to improve blood sugar and the function of insulin.

To better understand how chokeberries influence health, Bolin Qin and Richard Anderson from the US Department of Agriculture in Beltsville studied what happens when prediabetic rats are fed chokeberry extracts for an extended period of time.

This presentation is part of the scientific programme of the American Society for Nutrition, home of the world’s leading nutrition researchers.

The researchers first made male rats ‘prediabetic’ or insulin insensitive by feeding them a fructose-rich diet for 6 weeks.

Then they randomised the animals to continue drinking either pure water or water spiked with low or high levels of chokeberry extract.

After drinking this water for six weeks, the groups were compared in terms of body weight, body fat, blood glucose regulation, and molecular markers for inflammation.

Qin and Anderson found that at the end of the study the rats consuming the chokeberry-spiked water weighed less than the controls; both levels of chokeberry had the same effect in this regard.

Similar beneficial effects of chokeberry consumption were found for body fat (specifically, that of the lower abdominal region).

They also discovered that animals that had been drinking chokeberry extract had lower blood glucose and reduced levels of plasma triglycerides, cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol when compared to the control animals, says a US Department of Agriculture release.

These alterations would theoretically lead to lower risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease in humans.

The results were presented at the Experimental Biology 2010 meeting in Anaheim, CA.

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Watchdog Group Calls Out Companies Over Organic Labeling

April 28, 2010

wCBStv.com

by Dana Tyler

Is it or isn’t it? How do you know when organic packaged food really is organic?

A watchdog group filed several complaints Tuesday saying what you see is not necessarily what you get.

You buy organic, thinking it has to be healthier for you because you believe it’s grown or processed without chemicals that will hurt you and the environment.

“I believe what I see, but I also think you have to be an educated consumer and you have to take responsibility to look at what you eat. It goes both ways,” organic food shopper Stacey Lender said.

Organic food shoppers, read labels closely.

“It says USDA organic. Who’s checking that? Is everything kosher, so to speak?” shopper David Altman said.

The Cornucopia Institute, a Wisconsin-based farm policy research group, is checking things out and Tuesday filed a legal complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, saying three food companies — Oskri Organics, Organic Bistro and Newman’s Own Organics — are deceiving consumers by misrepresenting the words “organic” or “organics.”

“Organic Bistro, for instance, uses organic vegetables and grains, but does not use organic chicken, organic turkey,” Cornucopia’s Charlotte Vallaeys said.

On Tuesday night Organic Bistro said its labeling clearly informs consumers about what they’re purchasing.

So what’s in a name? The Cornucopia Institute says everything when it comes to calling something organic. The organization says process foods labeled as organic must contain 95-100 percent organically produced raw or process agriculture products.

Ed Burke stocks Newman’s Own Organics at Fairway Market and stands by the tough scrutiny organic food products undergo.

“The report is suspect in my mind,” Burke said. “I don’t buy it.”

“We certainly respect Newman’s Own for generous donations to charity, but when it comes to labeling of organics we believe that they can certainly do better,” Vallaeys said.

She said the Newman’s Own cookies use conventional sugar, canola oil, and cocoa. The company founded by the late actor and his daughter responded Tuesday saying “For seventeen years Newman’s Own Organics has been certified by Oregon Tilth, an independent third party certifier accredited by the USDA’s National Organic Program.”

On Tuesday night the USDA said it’s committed to the integrity of the organic seals and continues to place greater emphasis on compliance.

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Americans Losing Confidence in Healthcare

April 27, 2010

News.Yahoo.com

by Maggie Fox

Americans are steadily losing confidence in their ability to get healthcare and pay for it, despite the passage of healthcare reform legislation, according to a survey published on Wednesday.

The Thomson Reuters Consumer Healthcare Sentiment Index found that confidence lost three percentage points from a baseline of 100 in December to 97 in March.

“Strikingly, Americans expect the situation to worsen significantly in the next three months,” said Gary Pickens, chief research officer at Thomson Reuters.

“The thing I thought was interesting was … the level of sentiment about future expectations worsened more. The future outlook seems to be causing the people we interviewed angst.”

Thomson Reuters interviews more than 100,000 U.S. households annually via telephone surveys about healthcare behaviors, attitudes and utilization. This particular index is based in a subset of 3,000 people, representative of the nation as a whole, interviewed every month.

The survey, published at http://healthcarescience.thomsonreuters.com/indexes/, finds a steady erosion in confidence.

“I think it may have something to do with the reform legislation,” Pickens said in a telephone interview. “Getting legislation through hasn’t reassured Americans,” he added. “People are being unclear about what it means for them.”

Pickens said his team is now breaking down the survey by age, political affiliation and other factors to try to get more detail on who, precisely, is losing confidence the most.

“What we saw last summer was a big difference by political party,” he said. Republicans strongly opposed healthcare reform.

Pickens predicts older Americans may be among the most worried. “I think I would have angst because of the prospect of significant cost cuts, cutbacks in federal programs including Medicare,” he said.

In February, when the index fell to 98, a statistically significant number of people said they had delayed filling or did not fill a prescription in the past three months and expected to delay or cancel a diagnostic test in the next three months.

In March, more people said they had lost or reduced their health insurance coverage in the past three months or that they expected to delay or cancel an elective surgical procedure.

Click here to read the full article

Proof that Vitamin B3 Outperforms Zetia

Headline, “Vitamin B3 Beats Big pharma’s Zetia Cholesterol Drug”.

A study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which showed that Niacin, not Niacinamide, but real Niacin, which is Vitamin B3, outperforms the drug Zetia for preventing the build up of arterial plaque, a symptom of cardiovascular disease.

Patients taking Niacin showed a significant shrinkage in artery wall thickness, while those on the prescription drug Zetia, showed no improvement. The bottom line is this, folks. You don’t need drugs to stay healthy. If you have all the vitamins and minerals you need in your diet or in food supplements, you never need a drug, because the natural substances work better.

Where do you get the best food supplements? Right here.

That is the highest quality supplements out there.

If you’re not taking supplements on a regular basis to supplement your diet to handle any nutritional deficiencies, you’re missing the boat.

Yours in Health,
KT

The Kevin Trudeau Show: 4-27-10

Today, Kevin explains why Americans are mad as hell and aren’t going to take it anymore! And political guru, Dick Morris, stops by to discuss the scam Barack Obama is calling health care reform.

Self Help:
Essential Vitamin E Supplements
KT’s Favorite Cleanses
For Superior Health Results
Weight Loss Cure

NWO:
Federal Brown Shirt Thugs Threaten Citizens
CIA Can Threaten You with Secret Information
U.S. Army Seeking Experts for Concentration Camps

Government:
Dirty Secret #1
Ronald Reagan Speaks Out Against Socialized Medicine

Wealth:
Exposing The Credit Card Scam

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Laughter May Be As Effective As Exercise For Health

April 27, 2010

Telegraph

By Richard Alleyne

Doctors describe “mirthful laughter” as the equivalent of “internal jogging” because it can lower blood pressure, stress and boost the immune system much like moderate exercise.

A number of volunteers asked to watch just 20 minutes of comedies and stand up routines saw a dramatic drop in stress hormones, blood pressure and cholesterol.

Like exercise, they also had their appetite stimulated.

That means that the “laughercise” could be a way to reduce heart disease and diabetes. It is especially important to the elderly who may find it hard to perform more physical activities.

Dr Lee Berk, from Loma Linda University, California, who led the study, said that emotions and behaviour had a physical impact on the body.

He concluded “that the body’s response to repetitive laughter is similar to the effect of repetitive exercise”.

“As the old biblical wisdom states, it may indeed be true that laughter is a good medicine,” he said.

Dr Berk, who has been studying the effects of laughter for more than two decades, said that the high you get from a giggling fit was similar to the endorphin rush from exercise.

He has shown how it can reduce your risk of a heart attack and diabetes and generally regulate the body’s vital functions.

It is also an important way to de-stress after a day’s work, he believes.

In the mid-1990s, Dr Berk found that laughter increases the number of natural killer cells in cancer patients. Natural killer cells are the body’s way of fighting tumours.

For the latest study he had 14 volunteers watch either a stressful 20 minute clip of the war film Saving Private Ryan or an extract from a comedy or stand up routine.

Blood samples taken afterwards showed the reduction in stress hormones and increase in immune T cells for those who watched the comedy. Blood pressure testing showed it was down too with this group.

In 1997, Dr Berk performed experiments with diabetic heart patients. One group watched a television comedy each day for one year, another did not.

The difference in outcomes was stunning. At the end of the year, the comedy-viewing group required less blood-pressure medication.

Eight per cent of the comedy viewers had another heart attack, compared with 42 per cent of those who did not regularly view it.

An earlier study also showed that watching just half an hour of comedy a day slashes levels of stress hormones and compounds linked to heart disease.

Levels of compounds linked to hardening of the arteries and other cardiac problems had also dropped, while levels of ‘good’ cholesterol – thought to protect against heart disease – rose.

An earlier study by Dr Berk also showed that the mere anticipation of a good laugh can benefit health.

The expectation of watching a comedy video was enough to raise levels of feel-good endorphins and boost amounts of a hormone that helps our immune system fight infection.

The findings were presented at the Experimental Biology conference.

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