Health Hunter Continued from Page 2 Associates at the Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Steps to Healing Hospital Showed a Relationship Be 1
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More support for antioxidants in Medical ignorance heart disease prevention The greatest single achievement of Richard Lewis science in this most scientifically productive of centuries is the wo articles in recent issues of from heart disease the help they discovery that we are profoundly T deserve-a proved, successful The Journal of the American ignorant; we know very little about MedicalAssociation (JAMA) gave a treatment." The information about nature and understand even less . .. big boost to the use of antioxidant vitamin E wasn't accepted by the I wish there were someformal course nutrients for controlling and pre mainstream physicians. in medical school on Medical venting coronary heart disease But times are changing and Ignorance; textbooks as well, (CHD). nutrition is finding its way into the although they would have to be very standard medical journals and even hgavy volumes. The antioxidani theory into the clinical offices of standard Lewis Thomas, President Emeritus, holds that antioxidant physicians. Sloan-Kettering, physiCian, nutrients protect the low In one such article appearing in philosopher, author density lipoproteins the July 12 issue of JAMA, the researchers concluded by writing, (WL) from oxidation. Ann Kerwin, Ph.D. and Marlys "It appears that reductions in serum Witte, M.D. are doing just what Dr. The antioxidant nutrients are total cholesterol levels are not likely Thomas wanted-teaching a course vitamins A, C, E, and beta carotene to bring cultures with a high CHD in medical ignorance at the Uni and the trace mineral selenium, along risk, such as the United States and versity of Arizona College of with magnesium and zinc. Northern Europe, back to a CHD Medicine. This support from the medical continued on page 2 As an introduction to the course, establishment hasn't always been so Dr. Kerwin constructs a map of enthusiastic. Back in the 1950's, ignorance for her students. First, Evan and Wilfrid Shute, both there is the Republic of Known medical doctors, were successfully Unknowns. It houses the things we treating heart patients with vitamin know ~e don't know. Next to it is E in Canada. They were labeled The SItoudedProvince ofUnknown frauds by the medical establishment Unknowns. It is home of those and the hospital returned their mail things ~e don't know that we don't unopened rather than deliver it. know. 1 Most dangerous is the land In the 1960's, Wilfrid Shute, of the I Emirate of False ''Truths.'' M.D., said about his book, Vitamin These are the things we think we Efor Ailing and Healthy Hearts, "I know but don't hope this book will be the means of We learn of the inhabitants of making available to all sufferers continued on page 5 Nutritional M by Ron Hunninghake, M.D. The team Did you realize that in addition Then the team blows it! You to all your other reSR~nsibilities as a find ~ourself right smack in the modem human being you also wear middle of a losing season. No ener- I the hat of "coach"? , gy, dpspair, injuries ... the team ap- Let's imagine the individual es pearsi washed up. sential nutrients you must consume So you call a team meeting. You each and every day for health main mustf'measure up" to your strengths tenance to be your "team"! AND weaknesses. You maintain Every time you decide to eat your Istrengths with good, "whole something, you are holding ''prac some~' practices. You supplement tice." You assemble your team to your weak areas. A few star players work on the "fundamentals" of good are not going to save the season. nutrition. You ,eed all your guys at full speed! Then, along comes the day of With time, patience, applied ''the big game." Life throws you knowledge, a strong spirit, and an that huge challenge called STRESS! evervigilanteye to the fundamentals Your individual players have to "dig ... you CAN coach your team out of deep" into themselves. Do you have the cellar of ill health. You take one adequate "reserves"? Can your team game at a time to build a winning perform up to its optimal potential? season. [!!!) Continued from page 1 mortality level characteristic for the and led by Howard Hodis, M.D., Mediterranean and Japanese cultures used angiograms, two years apart, unless other factors are also changed. to verify their results in 156 men The Mediterranean and Japanese who ,had coronary bypass surgery. diets, low in saturated fat and rich in Wltn these men, the research team antioxidants, may have beneficial wan~d to learn what effect supple effects both on the oxidizability of mentary and dietary vitamin C and LDL particles and on [the growth of E, in conjunction with a cholesterol blood clots that cause heart attacks], lowering diet and either colestipol apart from an effect on LDL levels niacin (a cholesterol lowering drug) per see This stresses the importance or a placebo, would have on CAD. of factors other than serum cho The ''men who had a supple lesterol, blood pressure, and smoking mentary vitamin E intake of 100 IU status; such as diet, in CHD pre per 'day or more demonstrated vention." (Emphasis added) significantly less coronary artery This alone is a major step for lesion progression than did men with ward. The real leap came the month a supplementary vitamin E intake of before in a lAMA article looking at less than 100 IU," wrote Hodis and the effects of vitamins C and E on his associates. the progression of coronary artery Earlier epidemiological studies disease (CAD). showed much the same results with This study, completed at the vitamin E. Eric Rimm, ScD, and University of Southern California continued on page 3 Page 2 • September 1995/ Health Hunter Continued from page 2 associates at the Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Steps to healing Hospital showed a relationship be 1. Get your history straight I can remember more than fif tween a higher intake of supple 2. Sort through your beliefs teen years ago when I had my angina mentary vitamin E and a reduction 3. Respect and release your pain while running. I walked home in the risk of heart disease in men. emotions convincing myself it was something Meir Stampfer, M.D., found similar 4. Learn to listen to your body I ate. It happened worse the next results in women. Both studies were 5. Learn to respect your body night so I thought I would just not published in The New England 6. Acknowledge a Higher Power run for a while until it went away. Journal ofMedicine in 1993. or Inner Wisdom I violated all twelve of Dr. ''The consistency between vita 7. Reclaim the fullness of your Northrup's rules. I was a standard min.E intake and reduced coronary mind male who could tough it through lesion progression in [this study] 8. Gethelp just like I had been trained. That is, and reduced incidence of CHD with 9. Work with your body I know now, the heart of male-myth higher vitamin E intake reported in 10. Gather information denial. epidemiological studies is addition 11. Forgive I didn't tell my wife, my doctor, ally strengthened by the fmding that 12. Actively participate in your or anyone else till a couple of weekS atherosclerosis progression in [this health afterwards. I finally told my wife. study's] cohort is predictive of Christiane Northrup, M.D. offers When she was through with me (my subsequent CHD events," Hodis' these twelve steps in her book, male ego took quite a beating), I team added. Women'sBodies, Women's Wisdom, called my doctor. She sent me to a The antioxidant theory holds published in 1994 by Bantam Books. cardiologist who found one of the that antioxidant nutrients protect Dr. Northrup's wonderful book arteries in my heart completely the low-density lipoproteins (LDL) addresses problems that are uniquely blocked and another 50% blocked. from oxidation. When LDL be female in a clear, easily understood He started on a conservative pro comes oxidized, it forms a foam cell style. gram of watchful waiting and active that promotes the beginning and But her (Ules ring true for me, a medical control. progression of artery clogging white male, and could apply to other Then about 10 1/2 years ago I lesions. By preventing the oxidation, males for their healing process. came to work at The Center and antioxidants prevent the start and According to Dr. Northrup, "the started putting some of Dr. North the progression of coronary artery first step is to admit that healing is rup's wisdom to work more intelli disease (CAD). "Several lines of necessary, and the second is opening gently. Having those rules before evidence support this proposition," yourself to the information that you me when I started would have Hodis adds. begin to attract following the com speeded my journey considerably. The researchers said that their mitment." Dr. Northrup will be coming to "data indicate a connection between She points out that Goethe said Wichita as a member of the faculty increased antioxidant vitamin E in it best: for The Center's 14th International take and angiographically demon Until one is committed, there is Conference on Human Functioning, strated reduction in progression of hesitancy, the chance to draw back, September 8, 9, and 10. If you can't CAD." They add that, "these data always ineffectiveness. Concern catch her lecture and workshop, indicate a promising role for anti ing all acts of initiative [and come to the Friday evening public oxidant vitamins in primary pre creation], there is one elementary lecture, September 8 at 8:00 p.m.