High Blood Pressure is a Neglected Disease in the US

February 23th , 2010

Reuters

The report by the Institute of Medicine, one of the National Academies of Sciences, urges the CDC to promote policies that make it easier for people to be more physically active, cut calories and reduce their salt intake.

High blood pressure or hypertension is easily preventable through diet, exercise and drugs, yet it is the second-leading cause of death in the United States, said committee chair David Fleming, who directs Public Health for Seattle and King County in Washington.

“Hypertension as a disease is relatively easy to diagnose and it’s inexpensive to treat,” Fleming said in a telephone interview.

“Yet despite that, one in six deaths in the United States is due to hypertension, and it costs our healthcare system $73 billion each year in expenses.

“In that context, hypertension is really a neglected disease in this country. There’s a huge gap between what we could do and what we are doing,” he said.

Fleming said the CDC spends less than $50 million a year for a wide array of heart disease prevention programs that includes hypertension.

Simple steps like consuming less salt and increasing the intake of vegetables, fruit and lean protein could cut rates of high blood pressure by as much as 22 percent, according to the report by the Institute, which advises policymakers.

They cited a recent study that found reducing salt intake to 2,300 milligrams per day — the current maximum recommended amount — from 3,400 milligrams a day could cut U.S. health costs by about $17.8 billion each year.

Helping overweight and obese Americans each lose 10 pounds could cut rates of high blood pressure in the overall population by 7 to 8 percent, the group said.

And a program that gets inactive people to exercise could decrease the rate of high blood pressure by 4 percent to 6 percent.

Doctors typically use generic drugs such as beta blockers and ACE inhibitors to control blood pressure. Lowering blood pressure can cut the risk of stroke, heart attack, heart failure and other conditions.

MANY INSURED PEOPLE NOT TREATED

According to the report, 86 percent of people with uncontrolled high blood pressure have insurance and see their doctors regularly. But Fleming said doctors often fail to follow guidelines, which is why many patients do not know they have the condition and are not taking steps to control it.

The group called for the CDC to research the reasons doctors fail to treat high blood pressure, and consider making blood pressure treatment a quality measure in any accreditation program.

The group also asked the CDC to urge the federal Medicare and Medicaid programs and private insurers to reduce out-of-pocket deductibles and co-payments for blood pressure drugs, and to work with the drug industry to simplify the process for patients to get reduced-cost or free drugs.

About half a billion people worldwide have hypertension.

Risk factors include obesity, a sedentary lifestyle and smoking. Chronic illnesses such as diabetes, kidney disease and high cholesterol also can raise one’s risk.

Click here for the full report

Group Urges Recall of Fibromyalgia Drug

January 20th, 2010

abcnews.go.com

By Matthew Perrone

A consumer advocacy group is asking government regulators to recall a drug they approved last year for a little-understood pain ailment, saying the pill can lead to dangerously high blood pressure.

A letter Wednesday from Public Citizen calls on the Food and Drug Administration to pull Savella off the market, almost exactly a year after it was cleared to treat fibromyalgia.

The drug is co-marketed by Forest Laboratories Inc. and Cypress Bioscience Inc.

Fibromyalgia is characterized by a wide range of pain-related symptoms, including muscle soreness, headache, fatigue and depression. Last summer European regulators rejected the drug due to lack of effectiveness data and side effects. Public Citizen argues the FDA should have reached the same conclusion.

“FDA should never have approved Savella for fibromyalgia, and should now immediately undo its error by removing it from the market,” states the petition from Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen’s Health Research Group.

Company studies of the drug showed 20 percent of patients taking Savella had hypertension, or high blood pressure, compared with 7 percent of those taking a dummy pill. Savella, known generically as milnacipran, is part of an antidepressant class of drugs that have been associated with increased blood pressure.

Public Citizen also points out that the original study of Savella failed to meet the companies’ own study goals for effectiveness. Company scientists reanalyzed the study, with a larger population and a shorter time span and recorded relatively meager benefit: 9 percent of patients on Savella significantly reduced their pain, compared with 7 percent of those taking placebo.

Public Citizen cites complaints from FDA’s own statistical reviewer, who wrote: “there is no evidence … that milnacipran is associated with improvements in pain or improvements in function at three months of therapy.”

Since the FDA approved Savella last January, doctors have written more than 250,000 prescriptions for the drug, according to data from IMS Health.

 Click here for the full report

Control Body Fat and Diabetes with Chlorella

January 25, 2010

Natural News

By David Gutierrez

A superfood known as chlorella has caught on like wildfire in the United Kingdom, and studies continue to emerge linking the algae to improvement in symptoms of people with everything from diabetes and high blood pressure to digestive or immune problems.

Chlorella is a single-celled algae that naturally occurs in freshwater rivers and ponds in East Asia, tinting those bodies of water green. It is gathered from these natural sources, dried, crushed into a powder, and then packed into tablet form for sale as a dietary supplement. It has twice the protein density of spinach, 38 times that of soy beans and 55 times that of rice, providing nine essential amino acids along with a number of vitamins and minerals.

The algae has shown effectiveness at improving the symptoms of metabolic syndrome — a collection of symptoms linked with cardiovascular disease and diabetes, including high fasting blood sugar, high blood pressure and cholesterol, and central obesity. Studies have found chlorella supplements to reduce blood pressure in 50 percent of hypertension patients, as well as significantly reduce body fat, blood cholesterol and blood sugar levels.

“It seems that chlorella turns on the genes that control the way insulin is normally used by the cells in the body,” said researcher Randall Merchant of Virginia Commonwealth University. “This research shows that chlorella could in theory help correct the problems of metabolic syndrome. It is not a magic bullet, but taking it is one other preventive thing you can do, like exercise or watching your diet.”

Other studies have shown that chlorella encourages the growth of “good bacteria,” absorbs toxins from the intestines, improves digestion, and eases the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis and fibromyalgia. Chlorella supporters claim that it also increases energy levels and fights depression.

After studies showed that chlorella boosts the immune system, preventing secondary infections in people with brain tumors, some British doctors have started using it to complement cancer treatments.

Because chlorella is high in vitamin K1, it can interfere with the effects of blood thinning medications.

Click here for the full report

School Cafeterias in San Francisco Removing Corn Syrup From Choc. Milk

January 15, 2010

San Fransisco Chronicle

The cartons of chocolate milk served in San Francisco Unified School District cafeterias will no longer contain the highly debated sweetener high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). A product containing sucrose will be offered to students beginning the first week in February.

Berkeley Farms, the dairy that supplies milk to SFUSD, decided to reformulate the chocolate milk due to multiple requests from the district’s Student Nutrition Director Ed Wilkins.

“Indeed there is a great deal of controversy regarding HFCS and its potential contributions to Type 2 Diabetes and childhood obesity,” Wilkins says. “The parents in this district have had major concerns about the additive for several years. I began working with our primary food and beverage suppliers a couple of years ago to eliminate or at least substantially limit HFCS in any products used in the SFUSD school meal program. I am grateful to Berkeley Farms for their proactive response to this important issue.”

Both plain and chocolate milk are available to kids who get lunch in the cafeteria in San Francisco public schools. As part of the National School Lunch Program, the district is required to provide two milk options, according to Wilkins. The district’s Student Nutrition & Physical Activity Committee has said that chocolate milk could be one of the two options, and the district made the choice to offer it.

While Student Nutrition Committee member Dana Woldow has concerns about the chocolate milk with sucrose still having too much added sweetener, she was happy to learn the news. “At least the concerns related specifically to HFCS have been eliminated,” Woldow says. “Just this week a study was released linking Monsanto’s genetically modified corn with organ damage in small mammals. Since most high fructose corn syrup is made from genetically modified corn, this is just another example of why parents are so opposed to this substance being added to their children’s food.”

HFCS is cheaper than sucrose, and so it has replaced sugar as the sweetener in many beverages and foods, from breads and cereals to yogurts and condiments. On average, Americans consume about 12 teaspoons per day of HFCS, but teens and other high consumers can take in 80 percent more HFCS than average, according to USA Today.

HFCS is highly controversial. Some people view it as a nutritional villain along the lines of trans-fat. Others argue that it’s no better or worse than sugar.

The actual research on high fructose corn syrup is fuzzy and insufficient, and a huge chunk of the money spent on researching HFCS has come from companies who make products with the ingredient. “But there’s more science coming out to say it’s an unhealthy ingredient,” says David Wallinga, a director at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. “The American Society of Nephrology recently came out with a study indicating that HFCS consumption increases the risk of developing hypertension.”

But while there’s a trickle of studies indicating that HFCS could be harmful, some experts are saying that the sweetener is no different from sucrose. They argue that HFCS is not poison and that it’s simply sugar in a liquid form. The body metabolizes HFCS and sucrose in the same way, some experts say.

While the debate over HFCS is sorted out and new studies get underway, the American Medical Association has decided that “because the composition of HFCS and sucrose are so similar, particularly on absorption by the body, it appears unlikely that HFCS contributes more to obesity or other conditions than sucrose. Nevertheless, few studies have evaluated the potentially differential effect of various sweeteners, particularly as they relate to health conditions as obesity…”

No matter, many San Francisco parents are happy about the removal of HFCS from their children’s milk. “I do see it as a slight victory,” says Maren Nymo, who sends her child to a public school in San Francisco. “I think its a great chance to reinforce the belief that foods ‘closest to the source, or earth’ are a better option than those that are made in labs. Its definitely a step in the right direction.”

While the HFCS-free milk is a step in the right direction, some would like to see an even bigger step taken and chocolate milk removed all together. “The quick response to SFUSD’s request from Berkeley Farms indicates that our District has significant leverage in the marketplace in terms of buying power, which can hopefully continue to be used to our advantage,” says Lena Brook, founder of the SF Food Coalition. “I commend Ed Wilkins for his responsiveness on this issue and his dedication to creating a healthy food program for SFUSD students. But I continue to have concerns about SFUSD students having daily access to beverages with added sugar. There is a significant body of research demonstrating the negative impact of various forms of sugar on health.”

Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University, encourages San Francisco parents to continue to fight for better food in their children’s schools. “It’s great that the public schools want to do something about the healthfulness of the school lunches and I know that many people believe that high fructose corn syrup is the worst thing ever,” says Nestle, “but it’s really just sugar and the switch to sucrose is about marketing, not health. If parents really want the lunches to be healthier, they need to work on cutting down on all kinds of sugars and start serving kids real food.”

Because SFUSD is required to serve two milk choices, you might think the district could simply offer 1-percent white milk and skim or 2-percent white milk. But getting rid of chocolate milk isn’t that easy. In fact, it’s rather complicated.

SFUSD is restricted by countless regulations that dictate what goes into public school children’s mouths. USDA sets minimum calorie levels for school meals, and limits on the amounts of fat and saturated fat. Because SFUSD has focused on reducing fat and empty calories in cafeteria items, the meals are now very close to the USDA minimums, and are based on a meal which includes either 1-percent white milk or skim chocolate milk. “Replacing skim chocolate milk with skim white milk would cause the calorie count of the meal to drop below the USDA-mandated minimum,” says Woldow, “while offering 2-percent white milk as the required second choice would exceed the fat content limits.” Again, it’s complicated.

Click here for the full report

Traffic Noise Increases Blood Pressure

December 28, 2009

Natural News

By David Gutierrez

Living in areas with high traffic noise may lead to higher blood pressure and a concurrently higher risk of heart attack or stroke, according to a study conducted by researchers from Lund University Hospital in Sweden and published in the journal Environmental Health.

“Road traffic is the most important source of community noise,” said lead author Theo Bodin. “We found that exposure above 60 decibels was associated with high blood pressure among the relatively young and middle-aged, an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack and stroke.”

Previous studies have found connections between living near airports and higher blood pressure. Scientists believe that constant noise may place the body in a state of chronic stress, leading to higher heart rate and blood pressure. It may also harm health by disturbing sleep patterns.

Researchers examined health and residence data on more than 24,000 adult residents of Sweden, using their home addresses to determine the average level of ambient traffic noise in their neighborhoods. Young and middle-aged adults being regularly exposed to average noise levels between 45 and 65 decibels were significantly more likely to have high blood pressure than those in quieter neighborhoods, with risk increasing proportionally to noise level.

Among the middle-aged, 28 percent of those living in areas with noise averaging above 64 decibels reported high blood pressure. Only 17 percent of adults in the same age group and quieter neighborhoods suffered from hypertension. The numbers in younger adults were similar.

The researchers did not know why there appeared to be no link between noise and blood pressure in the elderly.

“The effect of noise may become less important, or harder to detect, relative to other risk factors with increasing age,” Bodin said. “Alternatively, it could be that noise annoyance varies with age.”

Sixty-five decibels is a little louder than a normal conversation. Recent data suggest that 30 percent of the European Union’s population is exposed to average traffic noise of 55 decibels or higher continually.

Click here for the full report

Side Effects from Antipsychotics Include Heart Disease

December 14, 2009

Natural News

By Mike Adams

Popular antipsychotic drugs are under fire for causing severe side effects such as hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia, and weight gain. Researchers discussed the issue in Biological Psychiatry, noting that the mentally ill who take such drugs are already at an increased risk for developing heart disease problems including diabetes and hypertension.

Jonathan Meyer and his study team took data from the Clinical Antipsychotic Trials of Intervention Effectiveness (CATIE) and used it to evaluate the effect of antipsychotic drugs on systemic inflammation. Every drug tested, particularly Zyprexa and Seroquel, markedly increased inflammation levels which are implicated in causing all sorts of other disorders.

Elevated levels of C-reactive proteins in particular were noted as a common side effect of taking antipsychotic drugs. High levels of these proteins are implicated in bringing about illnesses like heart disease and stroke.

Cardiovascular problems have long plagued the mentally ill. There is a much higher death rate from cardiovascular disease among the mentally ill population than there is among the general population. With current research indicating that serious inflammation also occurs from the same drugs, all indications seem to point directly to antipsychotic drugs as the culprit in unleashing a myriad of health problems.

Study doctors believe that the findings will encourage medical professionals to more closely examine the effects of these drugs in their patients. They also hope that as new information comes to light about the consequences of commonly-prescribed medications such as antipsychotic drugs, doctors will be more cautious in evaluating when and if to prescribe them.

Comments by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
According to the pharmaceutical companies, there’s no need to be concerned about the side effects caused by psychiatric drugs. Why? Because they have other drugs to treat all those side effects, too!

In fact, there’s nothing wrong with one drug that can’t be treated with another drug.

Seriously: This is the mindset of modern medicine: Pump people full of drugs, chasing side effects with one chemical after another until people either die or run out of insurance coverage, at which point none of it really matters anymore.

From a Big Pharma marketing perspective, the best thing about pharmaceuticals is precisely the fact that they have side effects that create long-term repeat business. And psychiatric drugs, it turns out, are particularly good at bringing patients back to the hospital with yet more serious health problems.

Click here for the full report.

Prevent Heart Disease with Vitamin D

December 7, 2009

Natural News

By Mike Adams

Vitamin D is best known for its anti-cancer effects, but suddenly, following a flurry of recent research, it’s becoming increasingly recognized for its ability to prevent diseases like diabetes and depression. Now heart disease is also emerging as a chronic health condition that vitamin D can help prevent.

Here, we’ve assembled a collection of relevant research quotations on vitamin D and heart disease from authors like Phyllis Balch, Dr. James Dowd, Dr. Joel Fuhrman and many more. Enjoy this unique collection!

Vitamin D in the prevention of heart disease
Diabetes, both type-1 and type-2, are profoundly linked to low vitamin D levels. Obesity, heart disease, hypertension and stroke are inversely related to sunlight exposure and vitamin D levels. Psoriasis, eczema, and periodontal disease are lessened by sunlight exposure and high serum vitamin D. Fertility is positively influenced by sunlight exposure and high vitamin D levels. Sunlight enhances immune system function by producing vitamin D. Dozens of disorders other than those mentioned in this summary are related to vitamin D deficiency.
- Solar Power For Optimal Health by Marc Sorenson

Vitamin D supplements are likely to be useful in preventing diabetes in areas where vitamin D deficiency is common. In a 1997 study looking at the links between environmental factors and Type II diabetes, vitamin D levels were assessed in 142 Dutch men aged from 70 to 88 years of age. Thirty-nine per cent were found to have low vitamin D levels and tests showed that low vitamin D levels increased the risk of glucose intolerance. Heart disease: Low vitamin D levels may also increase the risk of atherosclerosis.
- The New Encyclopedia of Vitamins, Minerals, Supplements and Herbs by Nicola Reavley

Osteoporosis is closely correlated to heart disease. Vitamin D deficiency could certainly be a factor in both, because there is a strong inverse relationship between vitamin D levels and artery calcification; the more D in the blood, the less the calcification. Artery cells have vitamin D receptors (VDR), which when stimulated by vitamin D, inhibit the incursion of calcium.
- Solar Power For Optimal Health by Marc Sorenson

“I think vitamin D is an important ingredient in the longevity recipe,” he said enthusiastically, as if just struck by an epiphany. “Your skin manufactures vitamin D when it comes into contact with the sun. Without that vitamin D, we increase our risk for nearly all age-related diseases including many types of cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes and even autoimmune diseases like MS (multiple sclerosis).” Insufficient vitamin D markedly accelerates heart disease in kidney patients.

Click here for the full report

How I Stay Warm During the Cold Season…

If you’re wearing a hat and gloves 24/7, there are things you can do to keep warm besides blasting the heater or wearing wool from head to toe.

How to Stay Warm During the Cold Season

Poor circulation may be one reason why hands and feet get cold, however, it could also be caused by thyroid activity level, kidney and heart disease, anemia, hypertension, high cholesterol, smoking, and poor diet. See your doctor to be sure you do not have a medical condition. Then, try some of these ways to increase your circulation and to stay warm:

• Eat warming foods such as miso soup, red meat, whole grains, root vegetables, cayenne pepper and ginger; not ice cream or soft drinks.
• Indulge in heavier foods. Use more oils when sautéing, or dribble some ghee onto your rice or vegetables. Eat cooked rather than raw vegetables and fruit.
• Drink hot teas containing spices such as cinnamon, ginger, pepper and cardamom.
• Take hot baths, which are soothing and warm the body through and through.
• Try acupuncture, which increases circulation by stimulating nerves that relay information to the brain.
• Practice your favorite stress-reduction technique – meditation, yoga, therapy, laughter, and sex….
• Keep moving; your body generates heat as a byproduct when it moves. Get your heart rate up with brisk walks, bicycling or other forms of exercise.
• Use a rebounder or inversion machine to get the blood moving throughout your body. Much of your body heat is circulated via the blood stream, so wiggle those toes and fingers.
• Open blinds on south-facing windows during the day to let in the sun. Bask in it.
• Remember the old water bottle? Pour some boiling water into it, wrap it, and sleep with it at night to stay cozy. For extra warmth, try placing the bottle under your armpits or on the inside of your upper thighs. Your arteries are close to the surface of your skin there, and your blood can gain a little extra heat to circulate. 
• Surprise, surprise – drink plenty of water to keep your machine “well-oiled.” It’s important to keep hydrated, and to use good moisturizing skin products during the cold season as well as the heat of summer. 
• Mix raw, organic honey with some soothing cardamom pods into a cup of hot, boiled milk; light some lovely, natural scented candles; relax and enjoy the warmth.
• Flannel sheets and a thick down comforter make night time extra warm and inviting to snuggle into on even the coldest of nights!

If your house is just too cold, there are new space heating technologies such as convection heat and radiant heat that are worth looking into. A portable radiator-type oil heater uses a lot of power, but not nearly as much as a furnace. Tightening up the house by stopping air leaks, having insulated interior coverings on all windows, putting plastic up on the outside of windows, and putting a “jacket” on the hot water heater, all help. Close the heater vents and shut the doors to unused rooms in your home. Warning: electrical emissions from electric blankets and similar warming devices may be hazardous to your health.

Have a great week,
KT

Detecting a Stroke With Your Eyes?

October 16, 2009

Natural News

By S. L. Baker

If you have severe dizziness and especially if you have hypertension or high cholesterol, it’s important to be checked out to see if you are having a stroke. A trip to the emergency room for those kinds of symptoms usually involves a costly, high tech MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging). But a new study from stroke researchers at Johns Hopkins and the University of Illinois concludes there may be a better, simpler — and far cheaper and quicker — way to distinguish a stroke from other problems that aren’t so serious but can also cause dizziness, vertigo and nausea. What’s more, the test is all natural. It consists simply of a one-minute eye movement exam performed at the bedside.

The study of 101 patients, all of whom had risk factors for stroke, was just published in the online edition of the journal Stroke. Working in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Illinois in Peoria, Illinois, Johns Hopkins neurologist David E. Newman-Toker, M.D., Ph.D., found that a quick, super cheap exam of patients seen at OSF St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria for dizziness actually caught more strokes than MRIs.

“The idea that a bedside exam could outperform a modern neuroimaging test such as MRI is something that most people had given up for dead, but we’ve shown it’s possible,” Dr. Newman-Toker, who is assistant professor of neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, said in a statement to the media.

Dizziness is a common problem and sends about 2.6 million Americans to the ER each year, according to Dr. Newman-Toker. The vast majority of these cases are the result of benign inner ear balance problems. However, for about four percent, dizziness is a sign of a stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA, or “mini-stroke”). Over 50 percent of people who experience dizziness and who are having strokes don’t have other classic stroke symptoms such as one-sided weakness, numbness, or speech problems. That’s one reason ER doctors misdiagnose at least a third of stroke cases, according to Dr. Newman-Toker.

“We know that time is brain, so when patients having a stroke are sent home erroneously, the consequences can be really serious, including death or permanent disability,” Jorge C. Kattah, M.D., chairman of neurology at OSF St. Francis Medical Center and co-leader of the study, said in the press release.

Previous research has shown that people having a stroke have eye movement alterations that correlate with brain areas where stroke damage is occurring — and these eye movements are distinctly different from alterations seen with benign ear diseases. So Dr. Newman-Toker and his colleagues decided to test eye movements in dizzy patients to document whether they could distinguish which people were having strokes from those with other problems.

Click here for full report

State Health Care Scorecard

October 8, 2009

ABC News

By Susan Donaldson James

Vermont leads the nation in the delivery of its health care, while Mississippi is rated the worst, according to a non-partisan study that compares all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Vermont, Hawaii, Iowa, Minnesota, Maine and New Hampshire ranked 1 to 5 in 38 indicators of health care.

At the bottom were Mississippi, along with Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas, Nevada and Texas.

The Commonwealth Fund Commission’s “Scorecard on Health System Performance,” which was released today, rated the states on access, quality, costs and health outcomes in a follow up to their 2007 report.

Overall, the states which did best on the Commonwealth scorecard were in New England and the upper Midwest, and the worst states were in the South.

Vermont, with only 640,000 residents, has nearly universal health care coverage with 93 percent insured. Its innovative “Blue Print for Health” focuses on prevention of chronic diseases.

Click Here to Compare Health Care Quality State By State

“We’re small. There are 19 cities larger than the state of Vermont,” said Susan Besio, director for health care reform and Medicaid for Vermont.

“But I believe there is something unique about Vermont in terms of its culture,” she told ABCNews.com. “We want to take care of each other and we are a healthy state.”

In Mississippi, however, about 20 percent are uninsured despite having some of the highest rates of hypertension, diabetes and asthma.

According to the report, only 35.7 percent of adults 50 or over in Mississippi receive recommended screening and preventive care.

“When you compare Mississippi on almost any socio-economic profile, we are a struggling population that has a large percentage of low-income individuals, high unemployment rates, low rate of education,” said Robert Pugh, director of the Mississippi Primary Health Care Association.

Click here for full report

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