[Melinda1958]

I couldn't agree more..

I am also thrilled my supplement contains this wonder element, and CoQ10 also.

[Melinda1958]

 According to a new study from Harvard, men who supplement with beta-carotene long-term may experience a slower rate of age- related cognitive decline.

Beta-carotene supplementation long-term may delay mental decline

In a newly published study, researchers tested the cognitive function of participants in the Physicians' Health Study II (PHSII), a continuation of the Physicians' Health Study (PHS) trial looking at the effects of beta-carotene and other vitamin supplements on chronic disease. The subjects included participants from the original PHS (started in 1982) and newer recruits from 1998.

The researchers tested the general cognition, verbal memory, and category fluency of 5,956 participants, including 4,052 participants from the PHS with a minimum supplementation period of 18 years.

Among the 1,904 newly recruited subjects (average supplementation of 1 year) no differences in cognition were evident whether they took beta-carotene or the placebo.

However, among the long-term supplement users from the PHS, the mean global score (average of all tests) was significantly higher in the beta carotene group than in the placebo. On verbal memory, men receiving long-term beta carotene supplementation also performed significantly better than the placebo group. The potential mechanism for the protective effects could be related to the role of vitamin A and beta-carotene on beta-amyloid protein production in the brain. The build-up of plaque from beta-amyloid deposits is associated with oxidative stress, cell death, and increased risk of Alzheimer's disease.

The study is the first to look at long-term antioxidant supplementation in relation to a decline in cognitive function that occurs naturally with age, and that precedes diseases such as Alzheimer's.

Arch Intern Med. 2007;167(20):2184-2190.

[iko]

...beta-carotene has no taste or flavour.
Go for smelly stuff to get major results!  []

Antisocial effects compensated by anti-Alzheimer properties?

Anti-amyloidogenic activity of S-allyl-l-cysteine and its activity to destabilize Alzheimer's beta-amyloid fibrils in vitro.

Gupta VB, Rao KS.
Department of Biochemistry and Nutrition, Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore 570020, India.

Alzheimer's disease involves Abeta accumulation, oxidative damage and inflammation and there is currently no clinically accepted treatment to stop its progression. Its risk is known to reduce with increased consumption of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents. Fibrillar aggregates of Abeta are major constituents of the senile plaques found in the brains of AD patients and have been related to AD neurotoxicity. It is reported that SAC (S-allyl-l-cysteine), a water-soluble organosulfur component present in garlic is known to prevent cognitive decline by protecting neurons from Abeta induced neuronal apoptosis. Hence, we investigated the effects of SAC on Abeta aggregation by employing Thioflavin-T, transmission electron microscopy, SDS-PAGE, size exclusion-HPLC. Under aggregating conditions in vitro, SAC dose-dependently inhibited Abeta fibrillation and also destabilized preformed Abeta fibrils. Further, Circular dichroism and fluorescence quenching studies supported the binding ability of SAC to Abeta and inducing a partially folded conformation in Abeta. The 3D structure of Abeta-SAC complex was also predicted employing automated docking studies.

Neurosci Lett. 2007 Sep 29 [Epub ahead of print]

Garlic Festival 2003.

http://karribellydancer.com/photoGallery/garlicFestival1.jpg
http://karribellydancer.com/Garlic%20Festival.html

[Melinda1958]

New research indicates that low serum vitamin D may be associated with an increased incidence of endometrial cancer.


Vitamin D and endometrial cancer

The November 16, 2007 issue of the journal Preventive Medicine reported an association between ultraviolet light exposure and a reduced risk of endometrial cancer. Two previous investigations have already linked a lower rate of kidney and ovarian cancer with greater UV exposure, which increases the formation of vitamin D3 in the body.

Researchers analyzed data made available through GLOBOCAN, a database of cancer incidence and mortality in 175 countries. In general, the incidence of endometrial cancer was highest at the highest latitudes in both hemispheres. The correlation between low UV exposure and low vitamin D levels and endometrial cancer incidence remained strong even after adjusting for variables such as fat intake, weight, cloud cover, skin pigmentation and others.

Most previous studies have focused on hormone levels and dietary fat intake and their role in the development of the disease. This is the first study linking low serum vitamin D levels to an increased risk of endometrial cancer. Along with other preventive measures, vitamin D adequacy should be considered as part of a comprehensive program for prevention of endometrial cancer.

Prev Med 2007 Nov;45(5):323-4.

[Melinda1958]

Iko,

The garlic thing sounds very promising.  Have there been clinic studies or just in vitro.  Beta- Carotene my not be smelly but it has shown evidence in human beings to work it's magic and how easy is it to find in easy to take, not to mention, dosage controlled form.  There are garlic supplements but according to the FDA the dosage is approximate unless you find a manufacturer that uses pharmaceutical standards.  I know there is at least one that has beta-carotene but I don't think I have seen one for garlic supplements.

[iko]

Hi Melinda1958,

evidence of beta-carotene benefits in humans seems
to be a matter of debate, still far away from a well
defined scientific demonstration:

Persistence of contradicted claims in the literature.

Tatsioni A, Bonitsis NG, Ioannidis JP.
Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, University of Ioannina School of Medicine, Ioannina, Greece.

CONTEXT: Some research findings based on observational epidemiology are contradicted by randomized trials, but may nevertheless still be supported in some scientific circles.
OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the change over time in the content of citations for 2 highly cited epidemiological studies that proposed major cardiovascular benefits associated with vitamin E in 1993; and to understand how these benefits continued being defended in the literature, despite strong contradicting evidence from large randomized clinical trials (RCTs). To examine the generalizability of these findings, we also examined the extent of persistence of supporting citations for the highly cited and contradicted protective effects of beta-carotene on cancer and of estrogen on Alzheimer disease.
DATA SOURCES: For vitamin E, we sampled articles published in 1997, 2001, and 2005 (before, early, and late after publication of refuting evidence) that referenced the highly cited epidemiological studies and separately sampled articles published in 2005 and referencing the major contradicting RCT (HOPE trial). We also sampled articles published in 2006 that referenced highly cited articles proposing benefits associated with beta-carotene for cancer (published in 1981 and contradicted long ago by RCTs in 1994-1996) and estrogen for Alzheimer disease (published in 1996 and contradicted recently by RCTs in 2004).
DATA EXTRACTION: The stance of the citing articles was rated as favorable, equivocal, and unfavorable to the intervention. We also recorded the range of counterarguments raised to defend effectiveness against contradicting evidence. RESULTS: For the 2 vitamin E epidemiological studies, even in 2005, 50% of citing articles remained favorable. A favorable stance was independently less likely in more recent articles, specifically in articles that also cited the HOPE trial (odds ratio for 2001, 0.05 [95% confidence interval, 0.01-0.19; P < .001] and the odds ratio for 2005, 0.06 [95% confidence interval, 0.02-0.24; P < .001], as compared with 1997), and in general/internal medicine vs specialty journals. Among articles citing the HOPE trial in 2005, 41.4% were unfavorable. In 2006, 62.5% of articles referencing the highly cited article that had proposed beta-carotene and 61.7% of those referencing the highly cited article on estrogen effectiveness were still favorable; 100% and 96%, respectively, of the citations appeared in specialty journals; and citations were significantly less favorable (P = .001 and P = .009, respectively) when the major contradicting trials were also mentioned. Counterarguments defending vitamin E or estrogen included diverse selection and information biases and genuine differences across studies in participants, interventions, cointerventions, and outcomes.
Favorable citations to beta-carotene, long after evidence contradicted its effectiveness, did not consider the contradicting evidence.
CONCLUSION: Claims from highly cited observational studies persist and continue to be supported in the medical literature despite strong contradictory evidence from randomized trials.

JAMA. 2007 Dec 5;298(21):2517-26.


When you rely mostly on epidemiological evidences,
I think there are good reasons to be skeptical in
considering selected, purified substances instead
of the natural nutrients containing them:

Speaking of why giving stinky "cod" instead of specific synthetic substances, let's borrow this note from the anti-oxidant topic of the Forum:

quote:
A quote from the article is "Just because a food with a certain compound in it is beneficial to health, it does not mean a pill with the same compound in is"

That's exactly right. A pill sometimes works better than the original food and viceversa.

 

Scientists versus Mother Nature and her tricks

In the late '70s researchers opened their enormous freezers where thousands of serum samples from blood donors had been stocked since over 10yrs before. They wanted to test vitamin A concentration (knowing that it is well preserved in frozen samples) and look for a correlation with cancer incidence in those individuals. Experimental data in animals had demonstrated a positive effect of retinoic acid on precancerous lesions.
They found a strong inverse relation between vitamin A concentration and risk of tumor. All the media started recommending vitamin A to prevent or even fight cancer.
Few years later a proper RCT (randomized clinical trial) was started: a group of nurses and doctors took either a certain dose of vitamin A or a placebo every day for years. The conclusion of the study was disappointing: no difference in cancer incidence with or without vitamin A.

Some clever mind offered an explanation for this: vitamin A had been found increased in blood donors who had lower risk of cancer because it had been eaten together with some other more effective anticancer compounds.
Here we go with all the broccoli, cabbage, cauliflowers and so on...they are rich of vitamin A and probably have other mysterious anticancer factors.

iko


Addendum:
Vitamin A instead of cod liver oil would play the same trick...if you gave vit.A to patients because the ones taking 'cod' had higher levels of retinoic acid in their blood and were doing better (hypothesis!), you could get poor results because you are not giving together Vit.D and a bit of omega-3 fatty acids, the original recipe.

:mudneddA
Vitamin D instead of cod liver oil would play the same trick...if you gave vit.D to patients because the ones taking 'cod' had higher levels of vitamin D3 in their blood and were doing better (hypothesis!), you could get poor results because you are not giving together Vit.A and a bit of omega-3 fatty acids, the original recipe.


Conclusions:

The reason why only CLO should be recommended in childhood leukemia as a nutritional support is that we have unconfirmed, neglected, and perhaps weak evidence of its efficacy thanks to a study published in 1988.

But we do have it and we should use it for our patients' sake.

The alternative use of one or more components of CLO separately, suggested by anyone's deductions or thoughts, should be considered unsubstantiated and empirical.

This level of evidence is obviously useless in the case of toxic and expensive drugs that require properly arranged experimental tests before being approved and used in patients.

On the contrary, weak evidence should be quite enough in the case of nontoxic and inexpensive nutritional supplements (especially those historically-safe like cod liver oil).


Parents do not need to ask a doctor or get a recipe
before giving a glass of orange juice and/or
cod liver oil caps to their children,
either they are healthy or sick.

iko   

http://d2993411.u58.surftown.nu/images/Aalesund2.jpg

[iko]

http://www.lastampa.it/cmstp/rubriche/admin/immagine.asp?ID_blog=26&ID_file=155

Vitamin suppliments...or supplements, if you prefer.
Talking about nutrients or nutrigenomics, as they call
it these days.
Curcumin research is giving promising results indeed:

A Broadly Neuroprotective Derivative of Curcumin.

Liu Y, Dargusch R, Maher P, Schubert D.
The Salk Institute, Laboratories for Cellular Neurobiology, 10010 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA 92037-1099, USA.

The plant polyphenolic curcumin alters the response of nerve cells to some forms of toxic stress. The steroid-like compound, cyclohexyl-bisphenol A, has broad neuroprotective properties that are very distinct from those of curcumin. To incorporate both families of biological activities into a single molecule, a pyrazole derivative of curcumin, called CNB-001, was synthesized. CNB-001 acquires a new activity and is far superior in neuroprotection assays to either parental molecule, but retains some of the properties of both. It is neuroprotective in cell culture assays for trophic factor withdrawal, oxidative stress, excitotoxicity and glucose starvation, as well as toxicity from both intracellular and extracellular amyloid. While the creation of CNB-001 was based upon an uncommon approach to drug design, it has the potential of a lead drug candidate for treating multiple conditions involving nerve cell death.

Neurochem. 2008 Jan 18 [Epub ahead of print]

[Melinda1958]

A recent study has generated negative headlines worldwide and caused consumers to question the efficacy and safety of antioxidant supplements. Many health professionals and nutrition experts have been highly critical of this study, and they have been quick to respond with refuting analyses and firm rebuttals.


When "recent studies" contradict conventional wisdom

Earlier this month, an updated meta-analysis was published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews entitled Antioxidant supplements for prevention of mortality in healthy participants and patients with various diseases. Almost immediately, scores of headlines and articles appeared stating that antioxidant vitamins were not only useless, but that they also shorten life span.

The Cochrane study is not new research. Rather, it is a slightly adjusted version of a meta-analysis published in 2007 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. That JAMA study received very stern criticism at the time of its publishing for many of its methods and conclusions, and this newer version of the study hasn't been any better received.

But unfortunately, with the onslaught of sensationalist headlines and scare tactics it is often difficult for the average person to know what to believe, and even harder to know how to defend those beliefs. To make matters worse, health professionals and physicians are often just as susceptible to these scare tactics, and many seldom get past the headlines, making it even more difficult to discuss nutrition, diet, and preventive health in a reasonable manner.

What follows are links to analyses and rebuttals of the most recent Cochrane study. A greater understanding of this and similar studies should assist you in future discussions with your contacts and health professionals.

Council For Responsible Nutrition (CRN) comments and analysis.

http://www.crnusa.org/CRNPR_08_AntioxidantStudy041608.html [nofollow]

http://www.crnusa.org/pdfs/CRN_Analysis_AntioxidantStudy_041608.pdf [nofollow]

Stephen Daniells, PhD, the science editor for NutraIngredients.com and FoodNavigator.com. Dr. Daniells received a PhD in chemistry from Queen's University of Belfast.

http://www.foodnavigator.com/news/ng.asp?n=84792-meta-analysis-antioxidants-randomised-clinical-trials [nofollow]

[iko]

better and better news from 'curcuminized' scientists:

Curcumin inhibits proliferation, invasion, angiogenesis and metastasis of different cancers through interaction with multiple cell signaling proteins.

Kunnumakkara AB, Anand P, Aggarwal BB.
Cytokine Research Laboratory, Department of Experimental Therapeutics, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA.

Because most cancers are caused by dysregulation of as many as 500 different genes, agents that target multiple gene products are needed for prevention and treatment of cancer. Curcumin, a yellow coloring agent in turmeric, has been shown to interact with a wide variety of proteins and modify their expression and activity.
These include inflammatory cytokines and enzymes, transcription factors, and gene products linked with cell survival, proliferation, invasion, and angiogenesis.
Curcumin has been found to inhibit the proliferation of various tumor cells in culture, prevents carcinogen-induced cancers in rodents, and inhibits the growth of human tumors in xenotransplant or orthotransplant animal models either alone or in combination with chemotherapeutic agents or radiation. Several phase I and phase II clinical trials indicate that curcumin is quite safe and may exhibit therapeutic efficacy. These aspects of curcumin are discussed further in detail in this review.

Cancer Lett. 2008 May 12. [Epub ahead of print]

http://alzheimer.neurology.ucla.edu/CurcuminPanelSite.jpg

[iko]

Potential therapeutic effects of curcumin, the anti-inflammatory agent, against neurodegenerative,
cardiovascular, pulmonary, metabolic, autoimmune and neoplastic diseases.

Aggarwal BB, Harikumar KB.
Cytokine Research Laboratory, Department of Experimental Therapeutics, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States.

Although safe in most cases, ancient treatments are ignored because neither their active component nor their molecular targets are well defined. This is not the case, however, with curcumin, a yellow-pigment substance and component of turmeric (Curcuma longa), which was identified more than a century ago. For centuries it has been known that turmeric exhibits anti-inflammatory activity, but extensive research performed within the past two decades has shown that the this activity of turmeric is due to curcumin, a diferuloylmethane. This agent has been shown to regulate numerous transcription factors, cytokines, protein kinases, adhesion molecules, redox status and enzymes that have been linked to inflammation. The process of inflammation has been shown to play a major role in most chronic illnesses, including neurodegenerative, cardiovascular, pulmonary, metabolic, autoimmune and neoplastic diseases. In the current review, we provide evidence for the potential role of curcumin in the prevention and treatment of various proinflammatory chronic diseases.
These features, combined with the pharmacological safety and negligible cost, render curcumin an attractive agent to explore further.

Int J Biochem Cell Biol. 2008 Jul 9.

[iko]

Vitamins 'could shorten lifespan'...
...may be they don't!
I'll try to read the complete report, then
I might be able to comment on this.
For now I just note that vitamin C didn't
do bad things and vitamin D is not mentioned.

ikod

...I'm not sure, really, that vitamin supplements could 'shorten' lifespan...
at least at the very beginning of life!
Canada rules.

Prenatal multivitamin supplementation and rates of pediatric cancers: a meta-analysis.

Goh YI, Bollano E, Einarson TR, Koren G.
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toronto, and The Motherisk Program, Division of Clinical Pharmacology/Toxicology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Prenatal supplementation of folic acid has been shown to decrease the risk of several congenital malformations. Several studies have recently suggested a potential protective effect of folic acid on certain pediatric cancers. The protective role of prenatal multivitamins has not been elucidated. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the potential protective effect of prenatal multivitamins on several pediatric cancers. Medline, PubMed, EMBASE, Toxline, Healthstar, and Cochrane databases were searched for studies published in all languages from 1960 to July 2005 on multivitamin supplementation and pediatric cancers. References from all articles collected were reviewed for additional articles. Two blinded independent reviewers assessed the articles for inclusion and exclusion. Rates of cancers in women supplemented with multivitamins were compared with unsupplemented women using a random effects model. Sixty-one articles were identified in the initial search, of which, seven articles met the inclusion criteria. There was an apparent protective effect for leukemia (odds ratio (OR)=0.61, 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.50-0.74), pediatric brain tumors (OR=0.73, 95% CI=0.60-0.88) and neuroblastoma (OR=0.53, 95% CI=0.42-0.68).
In conclusion, maternal ingestion of prenatal multivitamins is associated with a decreased risk for pediatric brain tumors, neuroblastoma, and leukemia. Presently, it is not known which constituent(s) among the multivitamins confer this protective effect.
Clin Pharmacol Ther. 2007 May;81(5):685-91.

[Mackay]

So what about Vitamin D3? The scientific evidence is stacking up that it can prevent cancer and a multitude of diseases and that middle aged and older folks just can't make enough from sun exposure.

[iko]

So what about Vitamin D3? The scientific evidence is stacking up that it can prevent cancer and a multitude of diseases and that middle aged and older folks just can't make enough from sun exposure.

You name it!   [] [] []

A little help from the sun, probably working in the long run, in a limited number of patients...why not?
It certainly wouldn't be such a "New!!!" discovery.

http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/index.php?topic=4987.0

[Engave]

That was a good article from LEF. I make my own vitamin C serum as well. Can you list the ingredients and amounts for your serum?

[iko]

That was a good article from LEF. I make my own vitamin C serum as well. Can you list the ingredients and amounts for your serum?

Uh?   []

[AGN]

Now, for the good news about TURMERIC EXTRACT:

This week, I am going to suggest that you look to obtain at least 60 mg per day of turmeric extract, but may I suggest, that the benefits I am suggesting in this e-newsletter are going to be realized in the neighborhood of 600 to 1000 mg per day.

Hello,

I have just discovered about the beneficial effect of curcumin in the prevention and treatment of several phatologies and I have every intention to add this substance as a supplement to my diet. I understand that this extract has low bioavailability, so to avoid having to ingest massive amounts of the turmeric spice, I was thinking that maybe it would be preferable to opt for curcumin-based supplements with high bioavailability? On the Internet I found suggestions about some capsules called "Curcu-Gel", but I am not sure if this product is safe or is the best available option.

Could anyone please advise about the efficacy of the curcumin-based supplements commercially available and maybe suggest some product names, to avoid ending up purchasing any unsafe products from scam online shops?

Thanks a lot in advance for your help.

[iko]

Hi AGN,

welcome to this forum: you may search for discussions about curcumin even here...
I am not an expert, but I read periodically clinical reports about curcumin in any sort of disease.
My personal opinion is that we can rely on curcumin powder only, this is what has been used in clinical research so far.
Curcumin is poorly absorbed, but 2-4gr/day is the dosage frequently reported...and it's NOT toxic.
It seems a bit too early to test on ourselves new "manipulations" of the old natural spice.
Take care

ikod

[AGN]

Hi Ikod!

Time to start looking for curcumin-based recepies on the Internet then!

Thanks a lot!
AGN