Alt/Trad Medical Review

No studies have ever proven that high cholesterol causes heart disease since this simply is not true. Inflammation, not high cholesterol, leads to arteriosclerosis. Yet the pharmaceutical companies keep pushing the cholesterol myth to promote drug sales, while ignoring the fact that they are endangering lives.

Statins are the most commonly prescribed form of medicine for the treatment of “high” cholesterol. The drug companies have failed though to inform the public about the dangers of not only these drugs, but also of the dangers of low cholesterol, which among other things can cause heart attack and stroke.

I find it rather ironic that the drug companies are pushing statins claiming they help prevent heart disease when these drugs are well known to increase the risk of heart failure, heart attacks, and strokes! There are several reasons for this.

Other than liver damage, the best known side effect of statins is a condition known as rhabdomyolosis. This is a condition in which muscle tissue deteriorates. The deterioration occurs from declining levels of CoQ10 in the tissues, which is required for the proper function of cells and their energy production. What people often do not stop and think about is that the heart is also a muscle, and is prone to the same damaging effects from the use of statins. If taking statins I highly recommend taking at least 200mg of CoQ10 daily to help reduce the risk of statin induced heart failure.

The increased risk of heart attack and stroke actually occur for a totally different reason. If you read my blog articles on the dangers of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), you will see that the risk of heart attack and stroke are related. Several NSAIDs, such as Vioxx and Celebrex, have been either pulled off the market, or have required stronger warning labels, warning of the increased risk of heart attack and stroke from these drugs. Even though the drug companies tried to make it sound like a new discovery, the risk had been known prior to the drugs ever reaching the market. The problem stems from the way these drugs work. NSAIDs interfere with inflammatory prostaglandins. Inflammatory prostaglandins are hormones that dilate blood vessels. For example during injuries these hormones open up blood vessels to increase oxygen and nutrient levels to the area to promote healing. By inhibiting these hormones, the NSAIDs decrease blood flow to the organs, including the heart and brain. If the blood supply is sufficiently reduced to the heart and brain, heart attack or stroke can occur.

So what does all this have to do with statins and cholesterol levels? Prostaglandins, as with other hormones, are formed from cholesterol. Therefore, reduced cholesterol levels lead to decreased prostaglandin formation, and thus decreased blood flow to the organs. This explains why studies have consistently shown increased mortality with decreased cholesterol levels!

One of the largest frauds perpetuated on the American public has been the false claim that high cholesterol causes heart disease. Even though this has been known for decades to be false, the myth keeps getting promoted by the drug companies to increase drug sales of drugs, such as statins. The whole idea of high cholesterol causing heart disease started with a faulty, outdated rabbit study from the 1920s. No solid evidence of high cholesterol causing heart disease in humans has ever been shown. In fact, evidence is to the contrary. Several studies have confirmed that as cholesterol levels go down that the mortality rate goes up, primarily from increased heart attacks and strokes.

What I really find interesting is how doctors, who should be reasonably intelligent, don’t seem to be questioning how it is that people can have low cholesterol and clogged arteries, or high cholesterol and clean arteries. In fact I just heard a commercial for Lipitor, where Dr. Jarvic is claiming that high cholesterol can lead to heart attack and stroke. I would love to ask him in person to explain this mechanism since there is absolutely no science whatsoever to back up his claim!

Cholesterol levels are actually totally irrelevant to the risk of arteriosclerosis. It is inflammation, not high cholesterol that leads to arteriosclerosis. Cholesterol is actually a healing agent for the body. Where there is an injury in the body, cholesterol will increase in that area to aid in the healing by acting as both a patchwork, and as a precursor for other substances, such as hormones that play a role in healing. Various things can cause trauma and inflammation to the arteries, and are well known for increasing the risk of heart disease. These include high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, and even bypass operations. Damage to the arterial lining leads to inflammation. In response, cholesterol floods the area and lays down as a “patchwork” over the injured area. The problem is that if the source of inflammation is not removed then the cholesterol will keep depositing in an attempt to heal the injured area.

As we can see, herbs are often claimed to have dangerous adverse effects that do not really exist. The FDA commonly does this in an attempt to gain more control over herbs, which helps them to protect their illegal investments in pharmaceutical companies, and to protect their cozy relationship. As with chaparral, kava was also given a false reputation of causing cases of hepatitis.

Kava refers to the INNER ROOT of the kava plant. Kava has been used for centuries as both medicine and as a mind altering drug, when specially prepared. And for centuries it has had a reputation of being quite safe, except when abused. By this I mean extremely high doses over a period of time. Overuse by kava addicts can lead to thickening and peeling of the skin. This has never been seen in normal use of kava capsules. And no cases of hepatitis were ever reported from traditional preparation and use of kava.

A few years back though, there were actually cases of hepatitis appearing out of nowhere in people taking kava supplements. The medical journals, and news media jumped all over the story and reported repeatedly that kava was dangerous and caused hepatitis. Yet they never reported all the facts, or the truth, even when the problem was exposed. In fact, the problem stemmed from the greed of a pharmaceutical company looking to cash in on the herbal movement bandwagon. The company traveled to Fiji to obtain information on the use of the herb, and looking for kava sources.

During traditional preparation, the islanders would strip off the outer root bark and discard it. Only the inner root was being used for consumption. The pharmaceutical company decided that they could buy up all of the waste the islanders were discarding for next to nothing, dry it, grind it, capsule it and sell it. So this is exactly what they did. Though in the blinding glare of dollar signs, and in their rush to get in on the bandwagon, they overlooked an important rule of herbs. Not all parts of a plant have the same chemistry! Though a few plants will have basically the same alkaloids, glycosides, etc. throughout the plant in varying amounts, this is not common. It is more common to have totally different chemistries throughout the plant, including the same areas of the plant. For example, cocklebur root is a pain killer. The leaves are used to treat asthma, and the seeds used to stop diarrhea. And when using lapacho (pau d’ arco, taheebo, ipe roxo), the inner bark is used, not the outer bark, which does not have the medicinal properties. Kava is no different. The reason the islanders were discarding the outer bark of the kava was because they knew that the outer bark was toxic!

If the pharmaceutical company would have taken the time to ask questions on the preparation, and looked into the chemistry then the isolated cases of hepatitis could have been avoided, and kava would not have received an undeserved bad reputation. General use of the inner root of kava remains safe as it always has.

Chaparral is best known for its ability to treat cancer effectively. The antitumor effects of chaparral have been verified in studies conducted by the universities of both Nevada and Utah. One of the things that makes chaparral unique in its ability to treat cancer is the fact that it “attacks” the cancer through multiple mechanisms. Since the majority of cancers have a microbial origin, the first mechanism is through the destruction of viruses, bacteria and fungi. Chronic inflammation has also been linked to the formation of cancers, meaning that chaparral’s anti-inflammatory properties can inhibit some cancers. Chaparral can inhibit cancers triggered, or aggravated, by free radicals and toxins due to its antioxidant and cleansing properties. Chaparral’s liver cleansing properties makes it helpful for hormonal induced cancers since the liver is responsible for the breakdown of excess hormones. And finally, chaparral inhibits mitochondrial enzymes, which in turn inhibits the cellular division of cancer cells. In short, this means it inhibits cancer growth.

Chaparral’s ability to kill microbes makes it useful for a number of diseases linked to microbial infections. These include cancers (viral, bacterial, and fungal forms), heart disease (chlamydia bacteria), hepatitis (viral, bacterial, and fungal forms), rheumatoid (chlamydia bacteria) and other forms of infectious arthritis, multiple sclerosis (human herpes virus type 6), ulcerative colitis (mycoavian complex bacterium), Crohn’s disease (mycoavian complex bacterium), type 1 diabetes (viral), pneumonia (viral, bacterial, and fungal forms), bronchitis (viral, bacterial, and fungal forms), etc. One of the most interesting areas of study for the use of chaparral is in the treatment of herpes infections, where studies are looking very promising.

Chaparral is very resinous, and so is not easy to prepare as a tea. Resins and water do not mix, and the resin will separate out and stick to the pan wall when trying to make the tea. Therefore, I recommend not using this herb as a tea. I personally prefer the powder mixed with other herbs. By combining the powder with other powdered herbs, the other powdered herbs will help prevent the resins in the chaparral from clumping the powder in to a big “gumball” when it comes in to contact with water. This helps maintain a larger surface area, thereby increasing the absorption and effectiveness of the herb. In addition, the addition of other herbs can increase the effectiveness of each herb. For instance, chaparral combined with red clover blossom increases the antitumor activity of both herbs. Combining chaparral with pau d’ arco (lapacho, taheebo, ipe roxo) increases the antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal activities of both herbs.

Again, the FDA tried to claim that chaparral was linked to 13 cases of hepatitis, though medical reviews subsequently found no evidence that the chaparral was linked to the cases. In fact, it was shown that many of the patients were found to have pre-existing liver failure, or were taking pharmaceutical drugs well known for causing liver damage. On the other hand, fresh chaparral does contain unstable alkaloids that may damage the liver if ingested for a length of time. Therefore, chaparral should be dried and aged for at least a month before use to destroy these alkaloids.

If I made a list of my top 10 favorite herbs, chaparral (Larrea tridentata) would definitely be on that list. This hardy plant, comprising over 20 species, cannot only survive the extremes of desert life, but can also live to be well over 10,000 years old. In fact, I have read that one of the oldest living plants on earth is a massive chaparral plant in California believed to be over 25,000 years old. Natural habitats for chaparral include the Southwestern US, Mexico, South America, South Africa, Australia, and the Mediterranean.

Medicinally, chaparral is hard to beat. The plant has strong antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-tumor properties. Chaparral is also a great anti-inflammatory, and raises vitamin C levels in the adrenal glands. By strengthening the adrenals, inflammatory conditions are reduced in the body, stress responses are improved, immune function is strengthened, depression can be alleviated, blood sugar can be stabilized, allergies/asthma reduced, etc. Chaparral is an extremely strong blood purifier, which is probably in part due to its high sulfur content. Its sulfur content could also help explain its historical use as a hair growth agent.

In addition, chaparral is the strongest antioxidant I have seen. Many antioxidant manufacturers claim that their antioxidant is the strongest known, but they are misleading. For example, manufacturers of Pycnogenol claimed that they had the strongest antioxidant known. They even went as far to compare the strength of their product to vitamin E. The problem is that Pycnogenols, or PCOs, are water soluble. Natural vitamin E on the other hand is lipid (fat) soluble. This is like comparing a car to a bicycle. They are both a source of transportation, but with big differences. And if I were to compare Pycnogenols with vitamin E, I would say the vitamin E is the car, which is more powerful, and the Pycnogenols are the bicycle. This is because I feel the cell membrane, which is composed of lipids, is more prone to free radical damage than the components within the water portion of the cell. Chaparral is different because it is not limited to the water or lipid portions of the cell. The antioxidants in chaparral work in both parts of the cell.

The antioxidants in chaparral include flavonoids, and a very powerful antioxidant known as nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA). NDGA is such a strong and effective antioxidant that it was actually used for decades as an antioxidant preserservative for oils and foods, with full approval of the USDA.

Medical journals have reported that the use of the herb chaparral has been linked to cases of hepatitis. The chaparral issue started a while back when out of the clear blue there were 13 cases of hepatitis reported in a two year period, in people taking chaparral supplements. Though there are several unanswered questions. For instance, chaparral has been in use for thousands of years, and is still widely used from Mexico, to South America to cure various diseases, such as cancer. Yet there have only been 13 isolated cases of hepatitis reported in a two year period.

Furthermore, up to recently the chaparral extract nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA) was widely used in the food industry for its powerful antioxidant properties. It was added to foods to prevent oils in the foods from becoming rancid. This is also the active component that inhibits the cellular division of cancer cells, and kills pathogens, such as many viruses. Despite decades of use as a food ingredient, again there were never any cases of hepatitis reported. The FDA never explained why there were only 13 isolated cases supposedly from chaparral in this two year period, with no cases reported before, nor since. By the way, contrary to popular belief, chaparral was never banned from the market. The FDA called for a voluntary moratorium since they could not legally ban the herb. The FDA can only ban an herb if they can prove that the herb shows an unreasonable risk to safety, something they were never able to do with chaparral. Nor with ephedra, which is why the FDA was ordered to lift their ban by a court of law. Though, when stores did not comply with their “voluntary moratorium”, the FDA would harass stores that they found openly selling chaparral, again in violation of the law. The reason that the FDA was never able to prove an unreasonable danger was because the FDA left out some very important facts about these 13 patients. These included the facts that many of these patients were taking pharmaceutical drugs well known for causing liver damage, and some of the patients were reported to have preexisting liver failure, BEFORE they started taking the chaparral.

Another fact they left out is the stability of the alkaloids in the plant. Chaparral does contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) when fresh. Some PAs are harmful to the liver, though they are also relatively unstable. As an example, both fresh comfrey and dried comfrey have been tested on rats to test for liver toxicity. What was determined was that only the fresh comfrey caused hepatitis in the rats, but not the dried comfrey since the PAs are readily destroyed by oxidation when dried. The same was found in cattle feeds that contained plants with PAs. If I recall right the PAs were destroyed in about 20 to 30 days of curing the hay rendering the hay safe. Though, this brings up another point. Some herbs have to be processed in a certain way to make them safe and useful. For instance rhemannia is Chinese foxglove root that is boiled in 9 changes of water to render it safe. Jack in the Pulpit root has to be aged for two years to prevent caustic burns. Some anthraquinone laxative herbs must be aged for several years before they can be used. The point here is that an herb should not be considered dangerous just because it is not prepared right, since the herb can be safe if properly prepared. Even though the PAs in chaparral have never been proven to cause liver damage as some PAs can, it is best to error on the side of caution and only use chaparral that has been thoroughly dried and aged for at least a month.

With all the talk about the benefits of calcium, manufacturers are adding calcium to numerous products. Sometimes these combinations leave the calcium unavailable to the body, and in other cases it can create serious problems.

Recently I have seen commercials for a new sports water with added calcium. At first this may sound like a great idea. After all calcium does play a role in bone strength, and exercise is needed to get the calcium in to the bone. Although, the addition of calcium to sports waters actually pose an unintended problem for athletes. Calcium contracts muscles, which can lead to muscle cramping. In fact, the most common reason for muscle cramping in most people is excess calcium levels, not potassium deficiency as is often believed. In order to prevent muscle contraction, and potential muscle cramping, the calcium must be balanced out with sufficient levels of magnesium, which relaxes muscles.

A new trend is the addition of calcium with chocolate for calcium supplements, such as chewable calcium supplements. From a marketing standpoint this may sound like a great idea. From a practical standpoint though, it is real stupidity. Cocoa, used to make chocolate, is a rich source of oxalic acid. Oxalic acid has a high affinity for calcium, binding with it, and rendering it unusable by the body. In addition, the formation of calcium oxalate crystals may increase the risk of kidney stones in some individuals.

Coffee and teas (black, oolong, and green), are also sources of oxalic acid. For this reason calcium supplements should not be taken with these beverages. Nor should green tea be added to supplements with calcium, or be taken with calcium supplements.

Medical journals have reported that the use of the herb chaparral has been linked to cases of hepatitis. The chaparral issue started a while back when out of the clear blue there were 13 cases of hepatitis reported in a two year period, in people taking chaparral supplements. Though there are several unanswered questions. For instance, chaparral has been in use for thousands of years, and is still widely used from Mexico, to South America to cure various diseases, such as cancer. Yet there have only been 13 isolated cases of hepatitis reported in a two year period. Furthermore, up to recently the chaparral extract nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA) was widely used in the food industry for its powerful antioxidant properties. It was added to foods to prevent oils in the foods from becoming rancid. This is also the active component that inhibits the cellular division of cancer cells, and kills pathogens, such as many viruses. Despite decades of use as a food ingredient, again there were never any cases of hepatitis reported. The FDA never explained why there were only 13 isolated cases supposedly from chaparral in this two year period, with no cases reported before, nor since. By the way, contrary to popular belief, chaparral was never banned from the market. The FDA called for a voluntary moratorium since they could not legally ban the herb. The FDA can only ban an herb if they can prove that the herb shows an unreasonable risk to safety, something they were never able to do with chaparral. Nor with ephedra, which is why the FDA was ordered to lift their ban by a court of law. Though, when stores did not comply with their “voluntary moratorium”, the FDA would harass stores that they found openly selling chaparral, again in violation of the law. The reason that the FDA was never able to prove an unreasonable danger was because the FDA left out some very important facts about these 13 patients. These included the facts that many of these patients were taking pharmaceutical drugs well known for causing liver damage, and some of the patients were reported to have preexisting liver failure, BEFORE they started taking the chaparral.
Another fact they left out is the stability of the alkaloids in the plant. Chaparral does contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) when fresh. Some PAs are harmful to the liver, though they are also relatively unstable. As an example, both fresh comfrey and dried comfrey have been tested on rats to test for liver toxicity. What was determined was that only the fresh comfrey caused hepatitis in the rats, but not the dried comfrey since the PAs are readily destroyed by oxidation when dried. The same was found in cattle feeds that contained plants with PAs. If I recall right the PAs were destroyed in about 20 to 30 days of curing the hay rendering the hay safe. Though, this brings up another point. Some herbs have to be processed in a certain way to make them safe and useful. For instance rhemannia is Chinese foxglove root that is boiled in 9 changes of water to render it safe. Jack in the Pulpit root has to be aged for two years to prevent caustic burns. Some anthraquinone laxative herbs must be aged for several years before they can be used. The point here is that an herb should not be considered dangerous just because it is not prepared right, since the herb can be safe if properly prepared. Even though the PAs in chaparral have never been proven to cause liver damage as some PAs can, it is best to error on the side of caution and only use chaparral that has been thoroughly dried and aged for at least a month.

Safety of breast implants has been debated for decades. This debate has brought to public attention to dangers of silicone breast implants. Unfortunately, not as much attention has been focused on the safety of saline implants.

The FDA has left the public with the impression that saline implants are safe since the FDA has not targeted them as well. Although, saline implants are safer than silicone implants, they still pose dangers to the body.

One problem with saline implants is that the bag that holds the saline is made of silicone. As explained in my blog on silicone implants, the immune system reacts to solid silicone in the same manner it reacts to liquid silicone. If the antibodies to the silicone are of the low affinity type, these antibodies could tag healthy connective tissue for destruction by the immune system.

Another problem is the often erroneous belief that the saline inside the implants is sterile. This is not necessarily true. If the implant bags are filled and sterilized prior to implantation, then the saline would be sterile. The majority of saline implants though are inserted empty, then filled once they are inserted. It is true that the bag is sterile before implantation, and the saline is sterile before being injected into the bag. The problem arises when the saline is injected into the bag. This is done by drawing the saline into a syringe, then injecting the saline into the bag. Once the tip of the syringe is uncapped, and exposed to air, it becomes contaminated. This is true of any injection. Although, during general injections the amount of contamination is minimal, in the immune system can deal with it. A different scenario occurs when saline implants are filled. Instead of the contamination being injected into the bloodstream where the immune system can deal with it, the contamination becomes safely contained within the silicone bag filled with saline. Since the immune system cannot detect, or destroy, the pathogens within the saline, the pathogens are free to grow in safety. Over time the level of pathogens reaches a dangerous level. If the implants begin to leak, or worse rupture, a highly pathogenic saline can overwhelm the immune system causing dangerous or deadly diseases.

I mentioned an example in my blog about silicone implants. My friend developed breast cancer in her right breast after her right silicone implant ruptured. She successfully fought her cancer with herbs and ozone therapy. When her saline implants, that she replaced the silicone implants with, started to leak, she developed malignant tumors from head to toe. She sold for ozone unit to help pay medical bills, and she died from cancer, which I truly believe developed from her saline implants.

Another friend had her implants removed, and gave them to me. I like to show them to people as an example of what I am referring to. Her implants were double lumen, silicone in a bag surrounded by a bag of saline. The saline is brown and black instead of clear. The color comes from the pathogens growing in the saline.

Human blood actually has a very similar chemistry to seawater. This makes saline an excellent medium for the growth pathogens. Add the warmth of the body, and you have a perfect breeding environment for pathogens.

This problem is well-known, though not often discussed. One possible solution being considered is the use of peanut oil as a substitute for saline. The advantage is that without the moisture microbial growth is limited or eliminated. And researchers say that if the implants rupture, that the oil will be safely eliminated from the body. Peanut oil may not be the best choice though considering the number of people with severe peanut allergies.

As a final note about saline implants, has been reported that women with saline implants often experience a sloshing sound when flying. This problem occurs from the small air pocket formed when the implants are filled. The lower atmospheric pressure, when flying, causes the air bubble to expand. With the larger airspace, the saline can easily slosh around inside the implant. The problem disappears as the plane lands, and air bubble is compressed back down to normal size.