Jan
23
2021

Review about Human Oncolytic Virus Research in 2020

By | Cancer, immune system, Mortality

The British Medical Journal published a review about human oncolytic virus research in 2020. That is to say, the BMJ published this report in July 2020. On the negative side, the report is rather complex with many technical terms. With this in mind, I will keep it as simple as possible for this summary. Notably, oncolytic viruses are a new way of treating cancer. Adenovirus was the most common oncolytic virus in use by cancer research in the past 20 years. It must be remembered, researchers applied this to mainly melanoma and gastrointestinal cancers. In the past I discussed the use of oncolytic viruses in a related post.

History of licencing of oncolytic viruses

  1. The first oncolytic virus was licenced in 2004 in Latvia. This was an RNA virus derived from the native ECHO-7 strain of a picornavirus, called Rigvir. This oncolytic virus was approved for treating melanomas.
  2. Shortly after, in 2005, China approved a genetically modified adenovirus, H101 as an oncolytic virus. The approval was for the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma combined with chemotherapy.
  3. In 2015, the U.S. the FDA approved T-VEC (Talimogene laherparepvec), an attenuated herpes simplex virus, type 1. This new oncovirus encodes granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). This is effective for the local treatment of inoperable, recurrent melanoma. It works for cutaneous, subcutaneous and nodal lesions in patients with recurrent melanoma after initial surgery.

Review of 20 years of human oncolytic virus research

The investigators reported about 97 clinical trials with oncolytic viruses performed between 2000 and 2020. That is to say, this involved 3233 patients with cancer. Most of these trials were phase I (50.5%) trials. There were an additional 6.2% studies, which were phase I/II. 11.3% were phase II clinical trials and only 2.1% were phase III clinical trials. 29.9 % of the literature did not specify what type of trial the investigations were about. However, they likely belonged into the phase I category as they reported on first trials of a therapy on man.

Oncolytic viruses derive from various types of viruses 

The number of studies that used a certain virus-derivative are included in brackets. It must be remembered that most of the studies dealt with six viruses: adenoviruses (30), herpes simplex virus (HSV-1) (23), reovirus (19), poxvirus (12), Newcastle disease virus (NDV) (5) and measles virus (3).

Stimulation of the immune system through GM-CSF

In 24 studies the researchers introduced GM-CSF transgene into an oncolytic virus. GM-CSF is a glycoprotein that is normally produced by granulocytes, a type of white blood cell. In this case, it stimulates dendritic cells, the precursors of T cells to produce killer T cells. Notably, this stimulates the immune system to better fight cancer.

Types of cancer targeted with oncolytic viruses

It is important to realize that the majority of the studies treated melanoma cases and gastrointestinal cancers. Namely, gastrointestinal cancers included esophageal cancer, gastric (stomach) cancer, colorectal cancer and pancreatic cancer. There were 30 studies involving melanomas with 1000 patients. There were 76 clinical trials regarding gastrointestinal cancers with 577 patients.

Moreover, other cancers where oncolytic viruses were studied were head and neck cancer (15 studies) breast and gynecological cancers (31 studies), genitourinary cancers (26 studies), and sarcomas (16 studies).

Other drugs given along with oncolytic viruses

It must be remembered that of the 97 total studies 62.9% were clinical trials where oncolytic viruses were the only therapy. In 37.1% of the studies physicians gave the oncolytic viruses along with cytotoxic chemotherapy, immunotherapy or radiotherapy.

Side effects of treatment with oncolytic viruses

The safety profile for treatment with oncolytic viruses appears to be tolerable. Fever was common, as were chills. Some patients reported nausea and vomiting, flu-like symptoms, fatigue and pain. But these symptoms disappeared within a few days.

Suppression of the bone marrow for a period of time was common, but more so when there was a combination of  oncolytic viruses with chemotherapy. None of the patients transmitted viruses to household contacts or the healthcare team.

Antitumor activity in clinical trials with involvement of oncolytic viruses

An analysis of clinical responses to oncolytic virus therapy showed the following:

  • 1% had disease control, which broke down as follows (items 2,3 and 4)
  • 4% complete control (=cure)
  • 7% partial control
  • 12% stable disease
  • 9% No response to treatment with oncolytic viruses

HSV-1 derived oncolytic viruses had the best response. The responses were not as good with adenovirus, reoviruses and with vaccinia viruses.

Discussion

Researchers of the BMJ publication analysed 97 clinical trials regarding oncolytic viruses over the past 20 years. This showed a number of points worth mentioning.

  1. The goal of oncolytic virus therapy is to induce tumor cell death. Physicians could achieve this indirectly by stimulating the immune system. Oncolytic viruses can stimulate both the innate immune system and the tumor-specific adaptive immune response.
  2. In the earlier years a lot of clinical trials investigated the safety of oncolytic viruses. But it became clear that oncolytic viruses were safe and fairly well tolerated.
  3. Many clinical trials involved oncogenic viruses with GM-CSF recombinant genes. This gene makes the oncolytic virus produce the GM-CSF protein, which stimulates dendritic cells. The end result is that the immune system produces more killer T cells that attack cancer cells, which results in higher cure rates.

More problems with oncolytic viruses

  1. There are still many questions about how oncolytic viruses stimulate the immune system. More basic research is necessary in this field. Despite 20 years of research the cure rate of 3.4% and achieving partial control and stable disease in another 17.7% is not acceptable. Perhaps combinations with other cancer treatment methods may improve the cancer cure rates. The reviewers suggested one such combination, namely immune checkpoint blockade with oncolytic virus therapy.
  2. There is no resolution about which route of administering oncolytic viruses is best. Intratumor application in melanoma cases seems the be optimal. But other solid tumors are difficult to reach. In these cases, intravenous applications were a choice. In this case oncolytic viruses experience dilution in the blood and do not have a high enough concentration when they arrive at the cancer.
Review about Human Oncolytic Virus Research in 2020

Review about Human Oncolytic Virus Research in 2020

Conclusion

In a review researchers discussed the use of oncolytic viruses in cancer therapy over 20 years . Oncolytic viruses are derivatives mostly from adenoviruses, herpes simplex virus (HSV-1), reovirus, poxvirus, Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and the measles virus. In various clinical trials researchers found that disease control was achieve in only 21.1% of treated cases. There was a cure rate of 3.4%, but another 17.7% had partial control of the cancer or stable disease. But 78.9% of treated patients showed no response to treatment with oncolytic viruses. Obviously more research is necessary to improve the cure rates in cancer patients treated with oncolytic viruses. Clinical trials with combinations of immune checkpoint blockade and oncolytic virus therapy would also be helpful. All in all, oncolytic therapy is at this point not yet an effective form of treatment for cancer.

Mar
23
2019

Immune System Can Trigger chronic fatigue syndrome

By | immune system, Infectious Disease

A study from February 2019 stated that the immune system can trigger chronic fatigue syndrome. Specifically, researchers observed that interferon treatment in hepatitis C patients could lead to chronic fatigue syndrome in 33% of patients.

Interferon treated hepatitis C patients can develop chronic fatigue syndrome

In this cased 54 patients with hepatitis C received treatment with Interferon. 18 of them (33%) developed chronic fatigue syndrome, which persisted. 57 control did not develop it. With this in mind, patients were examined at baseline, during the 6 months to 1-year Interferon treatment and 6 months following the end of the treatment.

It was noted that baseline interleukin levels (IL-6 and IL-10) were higher in the fatigued patients. Interferon treatment worsened the interleukin levels, and the interleukin levels stayed high from then on. Moreover, symptoms of pain from chronic fatigue syndrome also stayed with the patients after the treatment had ended.

Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome have a viral illness in the beginning

The lead researcher, Carmine Pariante, professor of biological psychiatry at King’s College London, noted the following. Before patients come down with chronic fatigue syndrome they frequently have a major infection or a flu virus. This certainly mobilizes an interferon response from their immune system. Professor Pariante said that it is the overstimulation of the immune system that leads to an overproduction of interferon, which likely causes chronic fatigue syndrome.

In the US an estimated 836,000 to 2.5 million Americans present with chronic fatigue syndrome according to the CDC.

The observation described above confirms the theory that a chronic stimulation of the immune system likely underlies the development of chronic fatigue syndrome. It was the patients undergoing treatment for hepatitis C with interferon, persistently high IL-6 and IL-10 levels together with pain symptoms that caused chronic fatigue syndrome.

Example of a patient with chronic fatigue syndrome

A 19-year old patient with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) explained that her CFS kept her hostage inside. When she gets dressed it feels like there is a blackness going over her eyes. She cannot lead a conversation or speak as she has absolutely no energy. So, the only thing she can do is to lie down and exist. Her pain and fatigue is  debilitating. She feels that her body and brain are unable to recover from even the smallest effort. About 25% of CFS cases are severe cases. This means that they are house bound, bedridden and wheelchair dependent.

Immune System Can Trigger chronic fatigue syndrome

Immune System Can Trigger chronic fatigue syndrome

Conclusion

The cause of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) has been a mystery for a long time. But a new UK research study has shed some light on a hyperactive immune system that may cause CFS. The research team found that 33% of patients with hepatitis C who received treatment with interferon developed CFS. When lab tests analyzed their blood values, they had developed high interleukin levels (IL-6 and IL-10). This was a sign for an overstimulation of the immune system. Other patients who did not develop CFS normalized their interleukin levels. The control patients had no changes in interleukins.

Overactive immune system can trigger chronic fatigue syndrome

The researchers are of the opinion that an overactive immune system is responsible for the development of CFS. Chronic fatigue syndrome is a devastating multi-system chronic disease with pain and weakness. A significant number of patients suffer from permanent disability. The researchers hope that with more research they may be able to find a solution and treatment protocol. Presently no form of treatment is available.

Dec
29
2018

Fasting Mimicking Diet Is Very Relevant For Health And Longevity

By | diet, Health, Nutrition, Prevention, stem cells, telomeres

Several speakers in Las Vegas said that the fasting mimicking diet is very relevant for health and longevity. This happened on day 1 of the 26th Annual A4M World Congress 2018 in Las Vegas.

What were the findings that are relevant?

Dr. Longo has done a lot of animal experiments with intermittent fasting and studying longevity. He repeated what he has learnt over the years from animal experiments and from research on humans. Here are the results that he shared already at last year’s Anti-aging Conference in Las Vegas.

Effects of fasting mimicking diet

  • Obesity diminishes, because of the weight loss effect due to missing calories.
  • Diabetes: insulin resistance becomes lower and blood sugar levels drop.
  • High blood pressure reduced: many patients were able to reduce their medications or discontinue them
  • Pain conditions improve as all kinds of pain disappears, an effect for which there is no explanation at this point
  • Autoimmune diseases like MS and rheumatoid arthritis improve, likely because of the effect of increased stem cell circulation
  • Prevention of heart attacks and strokes because of reduction of LDL, triglycerides and CRP
  • Cancer cure rates improve by protecting normal cells and the bone marrow
  • Longevity improved in mice with a 3-fold increase of their life span. Telomere length in humans was increased. Increased stem cells will find defective areas that need repair. This effect leads to less disease in older age.

Increased life span, less heart attack and cancer rates

We know from these animal experiments that mice have a threefold increase in life span. But when heart attack rates and stroke rates improve in humans, cancer cure rates improve and telomere length in humans increase, there is strong evidence that it increases human life expectancy as well. It may take another 10 to 20 years before we have better statistics about the real survival advantage on this diet versus the Standard American diet. But what we know now is a significant start.

Patients on chemotherapy and FMD have much better healing rates than controls

The lecture by Dr. Longo on Dec. 13, 2018 did provide more human data. Patients undergoing chemotherapy tolerate and survive chemotherapy much better when combined with the fasting mimicking diet (FMD). The human data is very similar to the previous mouse model data. This human research was done at the Charité Hospital in Berlin, Germany. Dr. Longo is starting to engage in clinical trials by partnering with physicians, but the publication of this will take several years. In the meantime the FMD is an effective way to rejuvenate on an ongoing basis. Since last year I underwent 12 courses of 5-day FMD every month. Dr. Longo says that even 3 to 4 courses of FMD per year would have a lasting rejuvenating effect.

About the right food intake and getting enough sleep

Dr. La Valle gave a talk in the afternoon of the first conference day where he pointed out several important things. He started his talk by saying that North Americans eat the wrong foods, they eat too much of it and they often eat it at the wrong time (in the middle of the night when the body wants to rest). This can interfere with our diurnal hormone rhythm, which in turn will eventually lead to inflammation in the body. Fasting overnight rests our hormone receptors so they are fully active the following day.

Preventing Alzheimer’s disease

Dr. La Valle praised the FMD as being able to elevate brain derived neurotropic factor. Newer research is pointing at the importance of this factor for preventing Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. He pointed out that the FMD is a good start to change other things in a patient’s life. Such things like exercise, bioidentical hormone replacement and taking vitamins and supplements. All of these all in combination will build up a patient’s health.

More human data about anti-aging

The internist, Dr. Kurt Hong said that he is seeing 200 patients every week. He has done clinical studies on various forms of fasting. The FMD, he said he liked best as it is easy to do (5 days out of one month 500 calories on each of the FMD days). Dr. Hong has seen amazing improvements in patients with MS, Hashimoto’s disease and Crohn’s disease. His talk concentrated on how fasting improved the metabolic syndrome, improved inflammation in the body and improved immune diseases. The FOXO pathway involves transcription factors that are important to regulate cell death (apoptosis). A variant of FOXO3 is responsible for longevity in humans and has been found in centenarians.

Dr. Hong pointed out that self-cleaning (autophagy) is an important rejuvenation process in the body. The FMD stimulates this process. In a 2017 study Dr. Longo and Dr. Hong compared 100 regular patients with 100 patients on the FMD. Only the patients on the FMD showed that the body weight came down. In addition the blood pressure came down as well and the pluripotent stem cells in the blood were up. So, the FMD has a positive effect on various organ systems without any medication. The strongest effect of the FMD would be in the age group of 20 to 40 for anti-aging purposes as it stimulates stem cell production and elongates telomeres.

Fasting and women’s health

Dr. Felice Gersh gave a talk about the effects of fasting on women’s health. She pointed out how important estrogen is in a woman for every organ system. All of the major organ systems including the skin have estrogen receptors. Estrogen stimulates the metabolism. It stimulates the immune system by stimulating macrophages that also have estrogen receptors. In menopause less estrogen production leads to a lack of energy, because the mitochondria are no longer stimulated as they were before. Estrogen also stimulates sirtuins, which is important for anti-aging. Studies with the FMD have shown that estrogen production is re-stimulated in women.

Dr. Joel Kahn was another speaker in the afternoon. He talked about how important the FMD is for cardiovascular health. He does not think that coronary artery surgeries and stents will suddenly get abandoned, but he thinks that the FMD is a powerful tool to delay arteriosclerosis in the arteries. This will delay coronary artery lesions from developing and will add life. In his opinion 40 to 60 year old patients should start using the FMD to prevent cardiovascular disease.

Aging drives chronic disease

Sebastian Brandhorst, PhD pointed out that if we stay active and eat healthy, we will age well. The US is the only country on earth where the life expectancy goes down after there was an initial health gain in the past.

Yeast, worms, flies and mammals follow a nutrient-sensing pathway. That means when food is not around, starvation increases resistance to a variety of toxins. One important aspect of the FMD is the observation that it protects the body against the toxic effects from chemotherapy. FMD and chemotherapy combined almost completely blocked progression of breast cancer in mice. Further studies showed that cytotoxic T cells were responsible for stopping cancer growth. When antibodies against T cells were administered, the beneficial cytotoxic T cell effects against cancer were wiped out. In humans the same protective effect of the FMD was observed. The FMD combined with chemotherapy gave the best survival data in cancer patients.

Fasting Mimicking Diet Is Very Relevant For Health And Longevity

Fasting Mimicking Diet Is Very Relevant For Health And Longevity

Conclusion

The fasting mimicking diet (FMD) was ranking very prominently among last year’s anti-aging conference in Las Vegas. Several speakers of this year’s anti-aging conference pointed to the health supporting effect of the FMD. It is now evident that the previous findings in animal research are also true in humans. Missing at this time are prolonged clinical trials that analyze the mechanisms of why the FMD works so well. In the meantime everybody can safely use FMD 5 days out of every month, which will rejuvenate your system by gradually prolonging pluripotent stem cell activation and telomere lengthening. It is just a matter of time when the missing links will be filled in.

More info: intermittent fasting may benefit health.

Oct
12
2013

Music More Powerful Than Anti-Anxiety Drugs

By | Autism, Cancer, heart attack, Mental Health, Pain, Stress management, Substance abuse

When was the last time you saw your physicians for anxiety and you were given a prescription that said: “for anxiety listen to your favorite music!” instead of receiving a prescription for an anti-anxiety drug (anxiolytic). This is exactly what a recent study suggests that showed prior to surgery you can control your anxiety either with anti-anxiety drugs or by listening to your favorite music. Listening to your favorite music will do you no harm, while many drugs do have harmful side effects.

How singing can change the brain chemistry

Other studies have investigated how singing can change your brain functioning in terms of brain chemistry. The researchers found that singing will release dopamine in your brain, which is responsible for feeling pleasure; it will stimulate your immune system by elevating immunoglobulin A and decreasing cortisol (the stress hormone). This in turn will preserve your immune cells (lymphocytes). Oxytocin levels of your brain are increased, which promotes social affiliation. It also calms down the autonomic nervous system resulting in a better airway opening, calming of your heart rate and soothing the wave-like muscle contractions in your gut, medically called peristalsis. You would refer to that as “butterflies in your stomach”. Music therapy reduces pain and anxiety by 50% and is important for children and adults alike.

Pain and anxiety reduced

A study in Germany showed that pain and anxiety were significantly reduced with music therapy. A Taiwanese study of women in labor found that music therapy significantly reduced pain and anxiety of women during labor. Ref. 1 explains that music therapy is useful as an adjunct to treating cancer pain, and reducing anxiety associated with colposcopy procedures. It also can help when treating patients who had heart attacks in the setting of a cardiac care unit.

Music More Powerful Than Anti-Anxiety Drugs

Music More Powerful Than Anti-Anxiety Drugs

Hypnosis and guided imagery

Music has been successfully combined with clinical hypnosis and guided imagery where words are carefully chosen to help the patient experience pleasant feelings, which counteract the experience of pain, anxiety or fear of dying. A simple relaxation CD or tape with soothing background music will facilitate this type of therapy. This is useful for patients in a palliative care unit where they prepare themselves to accepting the inevitable death from an incurable disease. But chemotherapy patients undergoing these procedures for cancer treatments also have benefitted from a significant reduction in nausea, vomiting (side effects of chemotherapy) and pain.

Autism and music therapy

A Cochrane study showed that autistic children did better in terms of communication skills when music therapy was incorporated into the treatment protocol. One of the core deficits in autistic children is in the area of communication and social skills. This is where music therapy was most effective. Behavioral problems (stereotypic behavior) in autistic children did not respond to music therapy. A comprehensive treatment program for autistic children should therefore incorporate music therapy. Here is a blog that describes what difference music therapy can make in the lives of autistic children written by a member of the American Music Therapy Association.

Substance abuse and music therapy

An area where you may not expect music therapy to have a role is in the area of drug and substance abuse rehabilitation , which is discussed in more detail in this site. The beauty about music therapy is that it is not a drug, yet the natural endorphins that are released by the brain help the affected person getting through withdrawal easier. Music therapy helps building up self-esteem, participating in group activities, promoting self awareness and expressing feelings.

Mood disorders in adolescents

One important area where music therapy has been employed is with anxiety and depression in adolescents. Adolescents spend an average of 4 hours per day listening to music. So they are already programmed to listen to music. With the help of a music therapist they can be directed to listening to the type of music that will help them get motivated, relax more, make them feel accepted and be part of their peer groups. In this study the authors suggested to combine music therapy with dance and art therapy. In this way the whole person gets involved in the treatment and this can be integrated with conventional antidepressant treatments at reduced doses (with less side-effects) or with cognitive therapy.

General objectives of music therapy

Music therapy is best incorporated into a treatment protocol as an adjunct. It can help reduce the use of drugs for psychiatric patients, for people with anxiety and for patients with pain conditions. The Cleveland clinic has a useful summary about music therapy, which describes the uses of it for reducing anxiety, for helping with coping skills, mood improvement and distraction from pain. There are registered music therapists you can ask for help. The website of the American Music Therapy Association may have other useful links for you.

Conclusion

Music therapy is a treatment modality with no side effects, but providing effective treatment for quite an impressive range of clinical conditions as discussed. Music therapists are widely available in the US and many other countries. This treatment can be integrated with conventional or complementary treatments. It helps people to heal the body as a whole unit (mind and body).

More information on anxiety disorders: http://nethealthbook.com/mental-illness-mental-disorders/anxiety-disorders-panic-disorders-phobias-ocd-ptsd-anxiety-others/

References

1. Rakel: Integrative Medicine, 3rd ed.© 2012 Saunders. Chapter on Integrative Therapy; subchapter of Mind-Body Therapy.

Last edited Nov. 7, 2014

Sep
07
2013

Preserve Your Muscles And Joints

By | Anti-aging medicine, Arthritis, Diabetes, Fitness, Health, Heart Disease, Men's Health, Nutrition, Obesity, Prevention, Vitamins and supplements, Women’s Diseases

Our ancestors were hunters and gatherers, constantly on the go. They did not have to think too much about their muscle and joint health, they simply moved them. In our society this has changed a lot. At work we spend hours sitting at a desk, and then we use computers and watch television at home. Instead of walking to the neighborhood store, we use our car.

Here I will review what we can do to keep our joints and muscles in top shape until a ripe old age.

Brief intro regarding the anatomy of joints and muscles

Our joints are designed to give us full mobility. But the joints cannot do it alone. The muscles are designed to allow the joints to move in a full range. Without exercise the muscles will shrivel up (medical term “atrophy”) within only 2 to 3 weeks. So without regular exercise your joints won’t do you any good. Besides the joint capsules need regular stretching in full range exercises to produce the lubricating fluid (synovial fluid) that nourishes the joint surfaces and the menisci of the knees. Think of muscles and joints as being a functional unit designed to move you about.

Our joints have aerodynamic designs to do the most optimal job for our body. For instance the knees have more of a hinge design that includes menisci for shock absorption while the shoulders and hips have more of a ball and socket type construction.

Wear and tear with aging

It is usually thought that injuries and aging wear down the joints. But there are other factors such as the wide spread use of statins that can contribute to muscles weakness. Ironically statins are taken to protect the heart, but side effects can interfere with the ability to exercise your heart because of aching muscles and joints.

With optimal nutrition and avoidance of wheat and wheat products to prevent autoimmune arthritis (lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, dermatomyositis) your joints can stay young for much longer (explained further below). But your joints and muscles need to move through a full range of motion regularly to keep the blood circulation and nutrition of their tissues in top shape.

What causes joint deterioration?

Aging, weight gain, diabetes, smoking and lack of exercise all are known to cause a worsening of arthritis, particularly osteoarthritis, but also rheumatoid arthritis. The wrong diet with lots of sugar and starch and trans fats (hamburgers, pasta, sugar soda drinks) causes hyperinsulinemia (insulin overproduction, like in type 2 diabetes) and is almost guaranteed to make you sick with arthritis, obesity and diabetes.

There is also evidence that wheat causes inflammation and arthritis by stimulating your pancreas to produce too much insulin. This has been proven for dogs and for humans. A good diet book to follow is Dr. William Davis “Wheat Belly Cookbook” (Ref. 1) with 150 recipes. If you are overweight, these recipes will also help you to lose some weight effortlessly.

A caution to marathon runners: the constant pounding of prolonged jogging can cause osteoarthritis of hips and knees decades down the road. You may want to switch to different exercises before this happens.

Preserve Your Muscles And Joints

Preserve Your Muscles And Joints

What helps joints?

Molecularly distilled omega-3 fatty acid helps to prevent inflammation of your joints. Vitamin D3 will help your bones to be strong to support the tendons and ligaments. Chicken cartilage can build up joint cartilage within a few weeks! So, if you feel pain in your joints use 3 capsules of omega-3 (the strong, molecularly distilled ones) twice per day. This will help your joint inflammation within 3 to 4 weeks. If this alone is not enough add chicken cartilage from the health food store, which will help to build up the hyaline cartilage within your joints. For those who are questioning the effect of chicken cartilage, here is a 1993 chicken cartilage Harvard study proving it.

Below are more general steps that will help your joints, ligaments and muscles.

Maintaining health of joints and muscles

a)    It starts with good nutrition.

Hamburgers and deep fried French fries will not do the trick. Muscles require protein from meat, fish, poultry and dairy products. If you are a vegetarian you need to become knowledgeable on what essential amino acids are and what combination of vegetables will give you the amino acid composition to build up a full protein.

Joints need ingredients from cartilage, which you find in chicken cartilage (available in health food stores as fikzol (type II cartilage). I you prefer, chicken soup would also give you the ingredients to build up cartilage, but it would require a lot of regular chicken soup consumption to achieve this.

Sugar and starchy foods, which are broken down within half an hour after a meal into sugar in your blood, cause an insulin response from your pancreas. This in turn can cause inflammation in your joints and tendons. It is interesting to note that type 2 diabetes and arthritis are associated. A ketogenic, low sugar/starch diet will prevent arthritis and diabetes as it reduces the insulin level in the blood, which in turn turns off inflammation in the joints.

b)   Supplements:

Omega-3 fatty acids will help control any inflammation including the inflammation from arthritis (you need 3 capsules of the concentrated, molecularly distilled fish oil twice per day to achieve this).  DMSO gel, available in health food stores in the US, can also be used to rub onto inflamed joints. It will penetrate tissues rapidly, is nontoxic and helps control inflammation along with the omega-3 fatty acids. Regular anti-inflammatory pain relievers (NSAIDs) are harsh on your kidneys and can irritate the gastric lining causing bleeding gastric erosions, so definitely not recommendable.

Glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, or a combination of both is available in the health food store and has been shown to help with osteoarthritis. I contributes to building up hyaline cartilage.

c)   Watch your weight:

It has been shown that the rate of degenerative arthritis (=osteoarthritis) in obese people is much higher when compared to slim people.

d)   Exercise:

You need to move your joints, ligaments and muscles every day to maintain their strength and range of motion. A daily workout at home or in a gym is best. I recommend 30 minutes of a treadmill or equivalent (jogging, Stairmaster etc.) as aerobic exercises. Then you need 30 minutes of isometric exercises like a circuit on exercise machines in the gym or dumbbells and expanders (resistance bands) at home. I consider this as the basic fitness routine every day.

Ballroom dancing and Latin dancing or Zumba is also a good combination exercise, which I would recommend on top of the basic exercise. Dancing helps to maintain your balance as well, which is something the older population tends to lose. In addition dancing stimulates your brain cells and makes you less vulnerable to develop dementia in old age.

Other aerobic exercises that can be recommended are walking (brisk walk) and/or intermittent jogging. Swimming has the advantage particularly for arthritis sufferers that you are floating. It allows you to exercise your leg and arm muscles, even if you have some arthritis pains.

e)  Pain relief: What could you do for pain relief? I do not like NSAIDs as this will damage your kidneys on the long-term and cause gastric erosions that can bleed massively. Electro acupuncture is very useful for muscle and joint pains and has no side effects. Physiotherapy treatments are useful to recondition your muscles and build up the range of motion of your joints. Chiropractic treatments for back and neck pain will also help. Instead of narcotics, why not try low dose Naltrexone (LDN). It has been shown to help with the pain of fibromyalgia.

Conclusion

In this brief review I have attempted to show you that your body is not on a one-way street in the direction of disability and death. There is a lot we can actively do to prevent this from happening prematurely. Just eat right, supplement (if you have symptoms), exercise and be active. Soon you will no longer be aware of your previously achy joints or muscles, as the pain tends to melt away when you are reconditioned.

More information on fitness: http://nethealthbook.com/health-nutrition-and-fitness/fitness/

References:

1. William Davis, MD: “Wheat Belly Cookbook. 150 Recipes to Help You Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back to Health”. HarperCollins Publishers LTD., Toronto, Canada, 2012.

Last edited Nov. 7, 2014

Jun
01
2008

Puzzling New Neurological Syndrome Investigated

By | Other neurological conditions, Pain

A new neurological syndrome has been described in early December 2007 and is presenting a challenge not only to the affected patients but also to the health professionals. The illness is characterized by pain, sensory symptoms, weakness and fatigue. Abnormal lab tests and MRI scan results were also present. The syndrome has affected at east two dozen workers who are working in pig slaughterhouses in three states of the U.S. Researchers have now a somewhat clearer picture of the mysterious illness, but Dr. Daniel Lachance, assistant professor of neurology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, describes the illness as one of the kind that has “defied explanation and a name”. At this point investigators have called it “progressive inflammatory neuropathy” (PIN), but the term is merely descriptive but not accurate enough. Dr. Lachance described the clinical picture based on findings on 18 patients from Minnesota who have been investigated in the most comprehensive manner.

The course of their illness was marked by pain, decreased sensation and tingling along with weakness and fatigue which far exceeded the findings of physical examinations. All of the affected individuals had abnormal MRI’s and abnormal results of the labs of their cerebrospinal fluid. Various tests of reflexes or quantitative sensory testing also showed abnormalities, and nerve conduction studies were abnormal in most of the patients. All of them had a new IgG auto-antibody biomarker. The findings point to an immune-mediated phenomenon which translates into a neurological illness. The workers affected all were exposed to aerosolized brain particles from slaughtered pigs.

All workers worked in the “warm room” where pigs were slaughtered and the brain extracted in a technique in which compressed air is shot into a dead pig’s foramen magnum. This blast of compressed air not only emulsifies the brain, but some of it becomes aerosolized and airborne. Symptoms seem to start within days or weeks of exposure, after which the course of the disease is chronic.

Puzzling New Neurological Syndrome InvestigatedProgressive inflammatory neuropathy caused by aerosolized brain particles from slaughtered pigs

Treatment has been symptomatic in those most severely affected with the medications of choice being methylprednisolone and/or intravenous treatment with immune globulin. Researchers have tested early on for human and porcine pathogens, but no infectious agent has been found. The precise mechanism by which the illness is occurring is not fully understood, but the syndrome does not seem to be food borne or transmissible from person to person.

Reference: The Medical Post, May 13, 2008, page 14, 15.

Last edited December 4, 2012

Sep
01
2006

Cartoons Help Kids Deal With Pain

By | Cancer, Pain

Shots in early childhood are often approached with a sense of trepidation by parents. It means almost without fail, that there is crying and resistance. All the well meaning comments, that it is “only like a little mosquito bite” to get a shot at the clinic are of not much use.
Italian researchers were able to confirm that children feel significantly less pain from blood draws when their mother was at their side. But this study from Siena, Italy also suggests that there are additional ways to distract children from pain. Sixty-nine children aged 7-12 were observed, and the study suggests that TV cartoons have an even greater power to distract youngsters from pain. Researchers took note that children whose attention was focused on a cartoon reported only one-third of the pain reported by controls of those who did not watch a cartoon.
The practical application could be useful in labs or clinics, where children are receiving injections or may experience pain and discomfort. A funny cartoon may take some of the sting out of the dreaded shots!

Cartoons Help Kids Deal With Pain

Cartoons Help Kids Deal With Pain

The study originally appeared in the August 17 online edition of Archives of Diseases in Childhood.

More information about pain: http://nethealthbook.com/neurology-neurological-disease/pain/

Reference: National Review of Medicine, August 30,2006, page 11

Last edited November 1, 2014

Jul
01
2006

Benefits Of Arthritis Drug Outweigh Cancer Risk

By | Arthritis

Any medication that is very effective in one area may also have side effects.
An analysis of randomized trial has confirmed, that rheumatoid arthritis patients who are treated with anti- tumor necrosis (TNF) antibodies, are at an increased risk for cancer. A study from the Mayo Clinic and other studies from institutions in the U.K. showed that patients who are treated with the monoclonal antibodies infliximab (Remicade) and adalimumab (Humira) are at a higher risk for serious infections.
This may sound like a blow to any patient with rheumatoid arthritis. Treatment with Monoclonal antibodies and anti-Tumor necrosis antibodies has revolutionized the care of these patients. The medications are highly effective and have made a difference for many affected with rheumatoid arthritis.
Dr. Eric Matteson, a study co-author and professor of medicine in the division of rheumatology at the Mayo Clinic points out, that the concerns about infection and malignancy are not new. They are already mentioned in the drug labeling. The risk for cancer was statistically significant only in the high-dose groups. It was also impossible to draw any conclusions about whether any type of malignancy occurred more often than another. He also emphasized, that doctors and patients have to be alert to signs of infection, and age-appropriate cancer screening is of great importance for the patient who takes these particular medications.
Dr. John Esdaile from the University of British Columbia mentions some additional points. These medications are not handed out freely to any patient with R.A. The treatment cost of about $18,000 per year does not make this a standard medication for anybody with R.A. Patients with severe disease who have failed to get relief from any conventional medications would be the ones who are considered for this treatment. Most patients would likely be receiving doses in the lower range of the spectrum, and patients usually know within 3 months, whether the medication is helping them. The medications do not work in everyone, but for 50% of the patients the effect is dramatically positive. The patient, whose joints were being destroyed by rheumatoid arthritis, can go from a state of terrible pain and disability to being able to return to a good quality of life.

Benefits Of Arthritis Drug Outweigh Cancer Risk

Benefits Of Arthritis Drug Outweigh Cancer Risk

The key is close screening of patients regarding the suitability of the therapy. The possible increased risk for malignancies and infection must be discussed with candidates for anti-TNF therapy. Finally close monitoring for infection and cancer screening is necessary.

More information about rheumatoid arthritis: http://nethealthbook.com/arthritis/rheumatoid-arthritis/

Reference: The Medical Post, June 2, 2006, page 1 and 7.

Last edited Nov. 1, 2014