Videos:

1. Tucker Carlson interviews Dr Aseem Malhotra on the corruption of medicine by Big Pharma (10:00)
2. Neil Oliver ‘…they are trying to alter the fabric of our reality’ (16:14)
3. European excess deaths, official data (5:00)

Vitamin D supplementation linked to fewer suicide attempts

Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention, February 1 2023. 

A study of U.S. veterans published in PLoS One found a lower risk of suicide and self-harm among those with who supplemented with vitamin D in comparison with unsupplemented veterans.

Jill E. Lavigne and Jason B. Gibbons of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention analyzed information from the VA’s Corporate Data Warehouse that included men and women treated with and without vitamin D2 or vitamin D3 from 2010 to 2018. They identified 169,241 veterans who were prescribed vitamin D2 and 490,885 veterans treated with vitamin D3. Members of both groups were matched to an equal number of control subjects who received neither vitamin. 

The researchers found a 45% lower risk of suicide attempt or self-harm among vitamin D2 users and a 48% lower risk among veterans who were prescribed vitamin D3 compared to those who used no vitamin D supplements. Higher dose vitamin D3 was associated with a greater benefit than lower doses. The effect of vitamin D supplementation was particularly beneficial among men and women who had deficient serum vitamin D levels of 0 to 19 nanograms per milliliter and among Black veterans.

The authors noted that areas of the brain involved in the development of depression contain vitamin D receptors and that “Adjuvant treatment of depression with vitamin D supplementation has been recommended.”

“Oral vitamin D is associated with a suicide attempt and intentional self-harm risk reduction of approximately 45%–48%,” they concluded. “As a relatively safe, easily accessible, and affordable medication, supplementation with vitamin D in the VA may hold promise if confirmed in clinical trials to prevent suicide attempts and suicide.”

Compelling research concludes sesame seed paste can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by 39% in only 6 weeks

Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences (Iran), January 16, 2023

Heart disease might sound like it’s practically inevitable, with 17.3 million people dying from it each year – a number that is projected to exceed 23.6 million by the year 2030. 

Research is now pointing to sesame seed paste as a potential preventive measure. A study published in the Archives of Iranian Medicine found that tahini can actually reduce the cardiovascular risk factors among type 2 diabetics. It’s an important finding when you consider that diabetics have a far higher risk of cardiac mortality on account of the unhealthy blood lipid ratios and quantities that are caused by chronically high blood sugar levels and insulin resistance.

In the study, scientists looked at 41 patients with type 2 diabetes, some of whom consumed two tablespoons of tahini with breakfast, while others ate their regular breakfast; both groups’ energy content was maintained within the same range, however.

All of the participants were tested at the beginning of the study and six weeks afterward to determine their triglycerides, cholesterol, blood pressure, and atherogenic index. After just six weeks, the researchers found significant improvements, with the group consuming the sesame seed paste noting a significant decrease in triglycerides. Their atherogenic index, which is an index of heart disease, went down by a remarkable 39 percent.

These participants also enjoyed slight declines in total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and other atherogenic lipid parameters, along with a slight rise in HDL, or good cholesterol. Their blood pressure, however, remained unchanged.

The findings prompted the researchers to conclude that sesame seed paste could be beneficial in lowering the risk factors for cardiovascular disease among those with type 2 diabetes. The tahini used in the study, Ardeh, had no oils or additives; it was composed solely of ground sesame seeds and is therefore easy to make on your own. 

Ultra-processed foods may be linked to increased risk of cancer

Imperial College London, January 31, 2023

Higher consumption of ultra-processed foods may be linked to an increased risk of developing and dying from cancer, an Imperial College London-led observational study suggests.

Researchers from Imperial’s School of Public Health have produced the most comprehensive assessment to date of the association between ultra-processed foods and the risk of developing cancers. Ultra-processed foods are food items which have been heavily processed during their production, such as fizzy drinks, mass-produced packaged breads, many ready meals and most breakfast cereals.

The first UK study of its kind used UK Biobank records to collect information on the diets of 200,000 middle-aged adult participants. Researchers monitored participants’ health over a 10-year period, looking at the risk of developing any cancer overall as well as the specific risk of developing 34 types of cancer. They also looked at the risk of people dying from cancer.

The study found that higher consumption of ultra-processed foods was associated with a greater risk of developing cancer overall, and specifically with ovarian and brain cancers. It was also associated with an increased risk of dying from cancer, most notably with ovarian and breast cancers.

For every 10 percent increase in ultra-processed food in a person’s diet, there was an increased incidence of 2 percent for cancer overall, and a 19 percent increase for ovarian cancer specifically.

Each 10 percent increase in ultra-processed food consumption was also associated with increased mortality for cancer overall by 6 percent, alongside a 16 percent increase for breast cancer and a 30 percent increase for ovarian cancer.

These links remained after adjusting for a range of socio-economic, behavioral and dietary factors, such as smoking status, physical activity and body mass index (BMI).research. More work is needed in this area to establish a causal link.

1 in 8 Americans over 50 show signs of food addiction, U-M poll finds

University of Michigan Medicine, January 30, 2023

Whether you call them comfort foods, highly processed foods, junk foods, empty calories or just some of Americans’ favorite foods and drinks, a sizable percentage of older Americans have an unhealthy relationship with them, according to a new poll.

In fact, about 13% of people aged 50 to 80 showed signs of addiction to such foods and beverages in the past year, the new data from the National Poll on Healthy Aging suggest.

The percentage is much higher among women than men – especially women in their 50s and early 60s. It was also higher in older adults who say they are overweight, lonely, or in fair or poor physical or mental health.

The poll is based at the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation and supported by AARP and Michigan Medicine, U-M’s academic medical center.

By these criteria, addiction to highly processed foods was seen in:

• 17% of adults age 50 to 64, and 8% of adults age 65-80
• 22% of women age 50 to 64 and 18% of women age 50 to 80,
• 32% of women who say their physical health is fair or poor, and 14% of men who say the same – more than twice as high as the percentages among those who say their physical health is excellent, very good or good
• 45% of women who say their mental health is fair or poor, and 23% of men who say the same – three times as high as the percentages among those who say their mental health is excellent, very good or good
• 17% of men who self-report they are overweight, compared with 1% of men who indicate they’re around the right weight
• 34% of women who self-report they are overweight, compared with 4% who indicate  they’re around the right weight
• 51% of women who say they often feel isolated from others, and 26% of men who say the same – compared with 8% of women and 4% of men who say they rarely feel isolated

The most commonly reported symptom of an addiction to highly processed foods in older adults was intense cravings. Almost 1 in 4 (24%) said that at least once a week they had such a strong urge to eat a highly processed food that they couldn’t think of anything else. And 19% said that at least 2 to 3 times a week they had tried and failed to cut down on, or stop eating, these kinds of foods.

Twelve percent said that their eating behavior caused them a lot of distress 2 to 3 times a week or more.

“Clinicians need a better understanding of how food addiction and problematic eating intertwines with their patients’ physical and mental health, including chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and certain types of cancer,” says poll director Jeffrey Kullgren, M.D an associate professor of internal medicine at Michigan Medicine and physician and researcher at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System. “We need to understand that cravings and behaviors around food are rooted in brain chemistry and heredity, and that some people may need additional help just as they would to quit smoking or drinking.”

New study shows aged garlic extract can reduce dangerous plaque buildup in arteries

UCLA Medical Center, January 21, 2023

The supplement Aged Garlic Extract can reverse the buildup of deadly plaque in arteries and help prevent the progression of heart disease, according to a study  in the Journal of Nutrition.

The research, conducted at LA BioMed, found a reduction in the amount of low-attenuation plaque, or “soft plaque,” in the arteries of patients with metabolic syndrome who took Aged Garlic Extract. Metabolic syndrome is characterized by obesity, hypertension and other cardiac risk factors.

“This study is another demonstration of the benefits of this supplement in reducing the accumulation of soft plaque and preventing the formation of new plaque in the arteries, which can cause heart disease,” said Matthew J. Budoff, MD, an LA BioMed lead researcher. “We have completed four randomized studies, and they have led us to conclude that Aged Garlic Extract can help slow the progression of atherosclerosis and reverse the early stages of heart disease.”

The study involved 55 patients, aged 40 to 75 years, who had been diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. All the participants underwent screening at the beginning of the study to measure the total coronary plaque volume as well as dense calcium, non-calcified plaque and low-attenuation plaque. The screening was conducted using Cardiac Computed Tomography Angiography (CCTA), a noninvasive imaging technology that accurately measures calcium deposits and plaque buildup in the arteries.

Following evaluation, the participants were given either a placebo or a dose of 2,400 milligrams of Aged Garlic Extract every day. A follow-up screening conducted a year after the initial screening found those who had taken Aged Garlic Extract had slowed total plaque accumulation by 80%, reduced soft plaque and demonstrated regression (less plaque on follow-up) for low-attenuation plaque.

Study examines association between sleep medication use and risk of dementia

University of California, San Francisco, February 1, 2023

A new study shows that sleep medications increase the risk of dementia for people who are white. But the type and quantity of the medication may be factors in explaining the higher risk.

It follows previous work that shows people who are Black have a higher likelihood than people who are white of developing Alzheimer’s, the most common type of dementia, and that they have different risk factors and disease manifestations.

Approximately 3,000 older adults without dementia, who lived outside of nursing homes, were enrolled in the Health, Aging and Body Composition study and followed over an average duration of nine years. Their average age was 74; 58% were white and 42% were Black.

During the study, 20% developed dementia. White participants who “often” or “almost always” took sleep medications had a 79% higher chance of developing dementia compared to those who “never” or “rarely” used them. Among Black participants—whose consumption of sleep aids was markedly lower—frequent users had a likelihood of developing dementia similar to those who abstained or rarely used the medications.

The researchers found that people who are white, at 7.7%, were three times as likely as people who are Black, at 2.7%, to take sleep medications “often” (five to 15 times a month), or “almost always” (16 times a month to daily). Whites were almost twice as likely to use benzodiazepines, like Halcion, Dalmane and Restoril, prescribed for chronic insomnia.

People who are white were also 10 times as likely to take trazodone, an antidepressant known by the trade names of Desyrel and Oleptro, which may also be prescribed as a sleep aid. And they were more than seven times as likely to take “Z-drugs,” such as Ambien, a so-called sedative-hypnotic.

“The first step is to determine what kind of sleep issues patients are dealing with. A sleep test may be required if sleep apnea is a possibility,” she said. “If insomnia is diagnosed, cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-i) is the first-line treatment. If medication is to be used, melatonin might be a safer option, but we need more evidence to understand its long-term impact on health.”