According to 2007 data from the National Institutes of Health, 25% of Americans 20 years and older had abnormally high levels of glucose in the blood—a pre-diabetic state. That number leapt to 35% in individuals 60 and older. Extrapolating from the total US population, nearly 60 million American adults may now be pre-diabetic. (reference available at http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/DM/PUBS/statistics/#youngpeople. Accessed November 30, 2009).

• Roughly 1 in 5 Americans are pre-diabetic, a result of excess carbohydrate consumption.
• The digestive enzymes sucrase, amylase, and glucosidase are primarily responsible for enabling carbohydrate absorption into the blood.
• L-arabinose—a natural but largely indigestible sugar—blocks sucrase activity, preventing the sugar sucrose from entering the bloodstream.
• Extracts of white bean, seaweed, and Irvingia block the breakdown of starch in the intestine, preventing their calories from being absorbed.
• Green tea extract helps your body burn additional calories at rest.
• Collectively, these natural compounds may dramatically inhibit total carbohydrate intake, limit postprandial blood sugar and insulin spikes, and generate weight loss.

Editor’s Note: For more information on nutrition, diabetes and disbetic retinopathy, Click Here

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Senator John McCain has introduced a bill that if passed will drive up the cost of dietary supplements and restrict your access to them. This bill seeks to give the FDA complete and arbitrary control over what supplements you are allowed to have.

This bill would be a terrible travesty against our rights to take charge of our health and healing, and an outrageous intrusion into our lives by the government, and by a medical community and big business that have little to no interest in nutrition as a way to help preserve health.

To make your views known, click on the “Take Action” link at www.lef.org/featured-articles/Dietary-Supplement-Safety-Act-of-2010.htm

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It was once thought that our our health and well-being was predetermined by the DNA we inherited from our parents and ancestors.  The new field of Epigenetics now defines our health in both nature and nurture.

Epigenetics is the study of changes in gene activity that do not involve alterations to the genetic code but still get passed down to at least one successive generation.

These patterns of gene expression are governed by the cellular material — the epigenome — that sits on top of the genome, just outside it.  It is these epigenetic “marks” that tell your genes to switch on or off. It is through epigenetic marks that environmental factors like diet, stress and prenatal nutrition can make an imprint on genes that is passed from one generation to the next, affecting both the current and future generations — meaning how well we are nourished both emotionally and dietwise when we are young genetically affects both our future state of health as well as that of our future generations.

This field of science may well be able to explain ultimately why only one of two people with the same genetic disposition for getting a particular disease actually end up having that disease expressed.

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Professor Declan Naughton, biomolecular scientist at the University of Kingston, Surrey and his team have created an ointment that tackles drugresistant infections by harnessing chemicals that are contained in pomegranate rind.

They found that by combining pomegranate rind with other natural products such as vitamin C and a metal salt gave a much more potent effect; killing off, or inhibiting, drug-resistant microbes from growing created a strong, infection-busting compound.

The need for finding new ways to tackle superbugs is growing more and more desperate as these superbugs continue to develop resistance to common antibiotics.

Editor’s Note: It is good that some scientists are open to seeking nature for help in solving our health problems with the understanding that there are secrets in whole foods that can help us. Reported from www.naturaleyecare.com

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To all our blog and website readers, have a wonderful Christmas and Happy Holidys filled with joy and hope.

The Natural Eye Care Staff at www.naturaleyecare.com

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A new study reinforces the role that Vitamin D plays in preventing colds and other respiratory tract infections. 

Researchers using data from 18,883 participants in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey found that Vitamin D could boost immunity to colds, even after adjusting for demographic and clinical factors such as season, body mass index, and smoking history.  The study, published in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine reinforces the importance of Vitamin D in avoiding upper respiratory tract infections. 

Vitamin D is produced by the body when exposed to direct sunlight.   It is crucial for people with limited sun exposure (such as during winter months) to include Vitamin D in their diet.  Good sources of Vitamin D include fatty fish, fish liver oils, and eggs.

SOURCE;  Association Between Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Level and Upper Respiratory Tract Infection in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Ginde, et al, Arch Intern Med. 2009;169(4):384-390.

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In a study of more than 1,200 people undergoing cardiac imaging at Emory because of suspected heart disease, people with high levels of cysteine in the blood were twice as likely to have a heart attack or die over the next few years.

Cysteine could be a valuable marker of cardiovascular risk, but it also has a direct harmful effect on cells, so reducing it may be a valuable treatment strategy, according to researchers.

Cysteine is itself a short-lived precursor to glutathione, one of the main antioxidants found inside cells. We need to have a continuous supply of cysteine, but it is too reactive for us to have very much at any one time.

Smoking and alcohol consumption are also linked with higher levels of oxidized cysteine.

Editor’s Notes: Current research is showing other indicators to be much more accurate in predicting future heart disease than cholesterol levels including C-Reactive Protein levels, Homocysteine levels and possibly now oxidized cysteine levels.

For more information on nutrition and heart disease, Click Here

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In an article appearing in the December 1, 2009 issue of Circulation: Journal of
the American Heart Association, Ulrich Laufs, MD of Saarland University in Homburg,
Germany and his colleagues report an association between long-term intense exercise
and a reduction in the shortening of telomeres that occurs with aging. Telomeres
are protective segments of DNA at the ends of chromosomes that shorten with cell
division. Shorter telomeres limit the number of cell divisions, and have been
linked with conditions associated with aging of the whole human organism, such
as high blood pressure and dementia.

Ref: http://circ.ahajournals.org

Editor’s Note: A recent study published February 10, 2009 in Health & Medicine showed that vigorous exercise may help prevent vision loss. For more related information, go to www.naturaleyecare.com

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Approximately 100,500 cancers occurring in the US every year can be attributed to excess body fat, according to estimates from the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR).

According to AICR, the estimated number of cancers linked to excess body fat include:

49% of endometrial cancers    = 20,700 cases/year
35% of esophageal cancers       = 5,800 cases/year
28% of pancreatic cancers        = 11,900 cases/year
24% of kidney cancers             = 13, 900 cases/year
21% of gallbladder cancers       = 2,000 cases/year
17 % of breast cancers             = 33,000 cases/year
9% of colorectal cancers          = 13,200 cases/year
___________________________________________
TOTAL: 100,500 cases/year

Researchers note that carrying excess body fat increases cancer risk, makes treatment more difficult and shortens survival.  Excess body fat increases the body’s level of sex steroids and other hormones that are linked to cancer growth. For example, fat tissue produces estrogen; studies have shown that estrogen promotes cell proliferation in breast tumors that contain receptors for the hormone, known as ER positive tumors.  Recent studies show that excess body fat lowers immune function and increases oxidative stress, which can lead to DNA damage.

This new research also shows that obesity continue to play a negative role after cancer has been successfully treated.  The good news is that an increasing number of studies suggest that regular physical activity improves cancer survival, even among survivors who are overweight or obese.

SOURCE:  New Estimate: Excess Body Fat Alone Causes Over 100,000 Cancers in US Each Year, American Institute for Cancer Research, Nov. 5, 2009, http://www.aicr.org/site/News2/1699885429?abbr=pr_&page=NewsArticle&id=17333&news_iv_ctrl=1102

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Avocados contain a wide range of phytonutrients, which are thought to help prevent many chronic diseases, and are excellent for the eye health. Nutrients include trans neoxanthin, neochrome, lutein-5, 6-epoxide and chrysanthemaxanthin. The scientists also confirmed the presence of lutein, zeaxanthin, b-cryptoxanthin, a-carotene and b-carotene (all nutrients that support retinal health).

Since most of the nutrients are located near the skin of the fruit, you get most nutrients out of an avocado by peeling the fruit before slicing it.
See more information on foods for the eyes.

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