Turmeric As An Antiinflammatory

Turmeric is a perennial native to Asia that has been used in traditional medicine for the treatment of inflammatory disorders. This experiment studied its efficacy of curcuminoid-containing turmeric extracts in prevention/treatment of Rheumatoid arthritis. An essential oil-depleted turmeric fraction(41% of the three major curcuminoids) was effective in preventing joint inflammation in both the acute and chronic destructive phases of arthritis when treatment was started before the onset of inflammation. The problem was that it had no significant impact when started after the onset of inflammation. Another sample containing 94% of the curcuminoids was better in preventing arthritis. Daily low doses inhibited joint inflammation in both the acute and chronic phases. The arthritic inhibition was close to that caused by a six-fold higher dose of the turmeric fraction. The results suggest that the “extra” components of the turmeric fraction, other than the major curcuminoids, may work against the protective action of the curcuminoids. The curcuminoids appear to be responsible for the antiarthritic effect. Take home message=if you have arthritis, Asia is the place to be….just kidding. I made this short and sweet due to exhaustion but if you have any questions, feel free to post...Have a great summer! Happy Graduation to all who have completed!!!

Strawberry, bitter melon juices + anti-inflammatory

Since we're doing anti-inflammatory for the last weeks of the semester i thought id look up easily accessible foods that has anti-inflammatory effects. I found an article by J-Y. Lin and C-Y Tang who conducted an experiments on strawberries, loquat, mulberry and bitter melon juices to examine their anti-inflammatory effects on LPS-stimulated peritoneal macrophages cultures taken from mice. Lin and Tang chose these fruits/vegetable because of their properties that exhibit anti-inflammatory responses from previous experiments. It has been found that fruits such as strawberries contain compounds that inhibits COX activity and have demonstrated that it has an anticancer activity as well while mulberry fruit extracts inhibit atherosclerosis on rats in cholesterol-rich diets and bitter melon are used in traditional medicine by Asian countries as treatment for diabetes. What they found was that

The fruit juice extracts were taken from strawberry, loquat, mulberry and bitter melon bought from a supermarket in Taiwan. Peritoneal macrophages were taken from mice and divided into 3 different LPS-induced inflammation models. Model A was an inflammation-prophylactic cell culture (peritoneal macrophages were exposed to 0, 10 and 500 microgram/ml concentration of fruit juices before LPS stimulation), model B was designed where peritoneal macrophage cell cultures were first stimulated with LPS then administered 0, 10 and 500 microgram/ml concentration of fruit juices and model C was designed to examine the effects of fruit juice administration to cell upon cytokine production clearance with simultaneous acute LPS stimulation. What they found was that loquat, bitter melon and mulberry administration significantly decreased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines while strawberry (along with the other fruits/veg.) increased IL-10 production in dose-dependent experiment model A. Administration of bitter melon and loquat also significantly increased IL-10 production in model C, suggesting that strawberry, loquat, mulberry and bitter melon all have prophylactic anti-inflammatory properties by decreasing pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1beta, IL-6 and TNF-alpha) and increasing anti-inflammatory cytokine (IL-10) production in LPS-induced inflammation in mice peritoneal macrophages.

So, eat your fruits and vegetables :)!

http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy1.library.arizona.edu/ehost/detail?vid=2&hid=114&sid=194fc15b-49fb-421c-a4b9-411eb893a794%40sessionmgr107

Bee Venom; Antinociceptive and Anti-inflammatory?

I remember reading an article earlier in the semester that used Bee Venom as an alternative treatment for patients suffering with MS. Now it's potentially helpful in arthritis?
The paper "Bee Venom Pretreatment Has Both an Antinociceptive and Anti-inflammatory Effect of Carrageenan-Induced Inflammation", Lee et.al. provided some very interesting informmation that under normal conditions, bee venom is nociceptive. This statement seems very vague for reasons as follows. Does the bee venom have to bee administered directly to the site of inflammation or does it have peripheral effects as well? I was under the impression that there is most likely always inflammation occurring somewhere in every person at any given time so would this deter the bulk of individuals from being under normal conditions?
On another note, I would like to thank SarahD for better defining Fos and Carrageenan (CR); I wasn't too sure what they were, so thanks for clearing that up.
Researchers used CR to induce inflammation in rat models proceeding Bee Venom injection. To my surprise they acutally found that bee venom was successful in suppressing inflammation; aside from creating a small response of its own such as irriation at the injection site, etc.
It just tickles me to think that cures for some common diseases could be right under our noses or in our gardens.

Carrageenan and Fos

While reading the article outlining the antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects of bee venom, I realized I had no idea what carrageenan or Fos were. These were both key components of the paper and so I decided to define both terms as best I could in order to clarify for any other uniformed people like myself. :)

Carrageenans are a group of substances composed of linear sulphated polysaccharides extracted from red seaweed. This group of items is utilized in many varying fields. One use of carrageenan is as a thickening, gelatin like substance in many foods. There are three main commercial classes of carrageen, which include the lota gels, kappa gels, and lambda gels. This latter type of carrageen forms a gel when mixed with proteins, and is also the type of carrageen used in the experiments regarding the anti-inflammatory properties of bee venom. Lambda carrageenan solution of 1-2% causes inflammation, swelling, and pain in when injected into animal experimental models.

I had a hard time finding a definition for Fos. What I did find is that Fos is a protein found within the body that is usually at a low concentrations until a neuron is activated by an external stimulus, such as pain. I also found that Fos expression can increase with other factors as well, such as metabolic changes. I am actually wondering if anyone can give me a clearer definition on what Fos actually is.

Popularity of Bee Venom Treatment

I find it very interesting that so many people are willing to be treated with bee venom to cure their ailments. Many people even prefer it to western medicine, or at least many people, especially in Asia find it an affordable alternative to mainstream health care. I'd like to encourage everyone to read the information on the alternative medicine of bee sting venom and its popular use at the following website: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16751949/

I find the topic of alternative medications quite interesting, because I really believe that at least some of what people have found over time to work against disease must have a foundation. I am definitely not stating that every all natural cure out there is THE cure to all diseases, but I like that the papers this week look into spices and bee venom as possible means to curing or preventing disease.

Oil Pulling Therapy: Effective Natural Detoxification, Stimulation of Elimination, Self-Help Cure and Prevention of Many Diseases Including Cancer?

Over the weekend I was talking to a friend that told me about an oil detox treatment. I was curious about it and decided to investigate more on this treatment. The name of the treatment is Oil Pulling Therapy.

Oil Pulling Therapy consists of thoroughly sloshing certain types of common oils (sunflower or sesame) in the mouth for approximately 20 minutes. Swishing is believed to activate the enzymes that draw toxins from the blood. This practice is believed to remove toxins and destroy natural mouth germs while stimulating the body's eliminatory system and increasing metabolism which leads to improved health. According to Dr Karach, a naturopath, the therapy has both preventative and curative effects.
Lothar Hirneise’s, a new cancer treatment center in Germany, prescribes oil pulling as part of the daily morning routine in conventional and alternative cancer treatment

Dr. Karach claims that oil pulling has healed illnesses such as bronchitis, tooth pain, diseased teeth, headaches and migraines, eczema, thrombosis, chronic sleeplessness, arthritis & related illnesses, diseases of stomach and intestines (ulcers, peritonitis), kidney, liver, and heart disease, blood disorders (chronic blood disease like leukemia), woman’s diseases and hormonal disorders, and disease affecting the nervous system (such as encephalitis, meningitis, neuro-physiological paralysis). It has been also claimed to prevent the growth of malignant tumors, to be a heart attack preventative, to cure disease brought about toxic drugs, and it is also thought to cure diabetes. Dr. Karach claims to have cured a patient with chronic blood disease of 15 years using this oil therapy. He also claims it increases human lifespan. And, in terminal diseases such as cancer, Aids and chronic infections, this therapy has helped symptoms disappear without side effects.

Patients with more than one disease tend to experience a worsening of the symptoms initially which is a sign (according to naturopaths) that the disease is disappearing.

Oilpulling.com claims that the therapy can cure acute diseases in two to four days, while chronic disease will take more time. Some times even more than a year.

According to the article, in 1996 the Indian Daily Newspaper, conducted a survey among its reader regarding the effect of oil pulling. 1041 readers responded, 927 of them reported healing effects (one of more diseases), 114 did not report any disappearance of disease. Some of the chronic diseases reported cured were:

-Diseases like polio, cancer, leprosy, polycystic kidney, neural fibroma, paralysis: 72 cases.
-Female reproductive diseases: 21 cases
-Diabetes: 56 cases
-Heart Disease and blood pressure: 74 cases
-Arthritis and joint pains: 91 cases
-Digestive system: 155 cases
-Allergy and respiratory diseases: 191 cases, and more.

According to the article, no one has done any placebo-controlled double-blind studies on the benefits of oil pulling so any published material on this topic can easily be dismissed a as simple anecdotes based on the powerful placebo effect.

There is a lot of information regarding OP but non of the articles that I found explained the physiological effect of this therapy.

Here are some of the articles I found related to this topic (and there is a lot more):
http://www.healingcancernaturally.com/detoxification-oil-pulling.html
http://www.earthclinic.com/Remedies/oil_pulling.html
http://www.oilpulling.com/
http://www.thecolonet.com/colonet_newsletter.pdf
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/24247

Green Tea, Does it increase efficacy of antibiotics???

To add to the previous post of natural alternatives as anti-inflammatory, here is an article discussing a natural healthy approach to increasing the efficacy of antibiotics. I happened to come across this article from discoveryhealth.com and thought it might be of some interest since there have been many encouraging words from multiple sources about the benefits of green tea in ones daily diet.

Green Tea Boosts Antibiotics for Superbugs (3-21-2008)

Green tea can help antibiotics be three times more effective in fighting drug-resistant bacteria, even superbugs, according to a study by researchers at Alexandria University in Egypt.

Green tea is common in Egypt, and it's likely that many people there drink it while taking antibiotics.Therefore, the researchers wanted to determine if green tea would decrease or increase the effectiveness of antibiotics or have no effect.

"We tested green tea in combination with antibiotics against 28 disease-causing microorganisms belonging to two different classes," Dr Mervat Kaseem, of the university's pharmacy faculty, said in a prepared statement. "In every single case, green tea enhanced the bacteria-killing activity of the antibiotics. For example, the killing effect of chloramphenicol was 99.99 percent better when taken with green tea than when taken on its own in some circumstances."

Kaseem and colleagues also found that green team made 20 percent of drug-resistant bacteria susceptible to cephalosporin antibiotics, an important type of antibiotics to which new drug-resistant strains of bacteria have evolved resistance.

In almost every case and for all types of antibiotics they tested, the researchers found that drinking green tea at the same time as taking the antibiotics appeared to increase the action of the antibiotics and reduce drug resistance in bacteria. In certain cases, even low concentrations of green tea were effective.

The study was to be presented Monday at a meeting of the Society for General Microbiology in Edinburgh, Scotland.

"Our results show that we should consider more seriously the natural products we consume in our everyday life," Kaseem said. "In the future, we will be looking at other natural herb products such as majoram and thyme to see whether they also contain active compounds which can help in the battle against drug resistant bacteria."

article taken from: http://health.discovery.com/news/healthscout/article.html?article=614042&category=3&year=2008

8 Natural Alternatives for anti inflammatories

I was interested in seeing what other alternatives there are out there as far as ant inflammatories go so I googled it. I came upon an interesting article. The article had the following suggestions:

1. Omega-3 Fatty Acids From Fish Oils: The omega-3 fats EPA and DHA found in fish oil have been found by many animal and clinical studies to possess anti-inflammatory properties that promote joint lubrication and decrease joint inflammation. Animal based omega-3 fats form the precursors to the molecules that actually produce or inhibit inflammation in your body (prostaglandins). That is why it is essential to make sure you are getting enough. It is also vital to understand that you need to reduce omega-6 fats like vegetable oils seeds and nuts, as it is actually the ratio of omega 6:3 fats that determines how much inflammation is present. You could theoretically consume enough omega-3 fish oils to work but then ruin the effect by consuming too many omega-6 fats.

2. Ginger: This herb is anti-inflammatory and offers pain relief and stomach-settling properties. Fresh ginger works well steeped in boiling water as a tea or grated into vegetable juice.

3. Bromelain Enzymes: This enzyme, found in pineapples, is a natural anti-inflammatory. It can be taken in supplement form, but eating fresh pineapple may also be helpful.

4. Cetyl Myristoleate (CMO): This oil, found in fish and dairy butter, acts as a "joint lubricant" and an anti-inflammatory. In one study of 106 people with various types of arthritis who did not respond to NSAIDs, 63.5 percent of those who took CMO orally and applied the cream topically (it's available both in oral supplement and cream forms) improved, compared to only 14.5 percent of those taking a placebo.

5. Boswellia: aka “boswellin” or "Indian frankincense," this herb contains specific active anti-inflammatory ingredients, referred to as boswellic acids that animal studies have shown significantly reduce inflammation. In a study of 175 patients with rheumatic disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis, 122 participants had reduced stiffness and inflammation just two to four weeks after starting on boswellia.

6. Evening Primrose Oil (or borage oil or black current oil): These contain the essential fatty acid gamma linolenic acid (GLA), which is useful for treating arthritic pain. In one study of 37 rheumatoid arthritis patients, those who received 1.4 grams of GLA per day reduced the number of tender joints by 36 percent, the tenderness of the joints by 45 percent, the number of swollen joints by 28 percent, and the degree of joint swelling by 41 percent. The placebo group showed no significant improvements.

7. Cayenne Pepper: (capsaicin) in the form of cayenne cream: Also called capsaicin cream, this spice comes from dried hot peppers. It alleviates pain by depleting the body's supply of substance P, a chemical component of nerve cells that transmits pain signals to the brain.

8. White Willow Bark: Aspirin is made from the bark of the white willow. People have been using white willow bark for centuries as a mild pain reliever. White willow bark does not destroy the stomach lining on contact the way aspirin does, however, it does have the same blood thinning effect as aspirin and caution is indicated.

here's the link to the article if anyone wants to check it out
http://ezinearticles.com/?Eight-Natural-Alternatives-to-Anti-Inflammatory-Medication&id=131679

BOTOX to treat arthritis??

New studies show that maybe Botulinium type A (Botox) may help pain and function of arthritic patients. There was a study conducted in 2006 published in Neurotoxicity Research that tested Botox injection efficacy among 11 patients with different forms of arthritis. The subject group was given one or more Botox injections within the afflicted joint, and then followed for a year post-treatment. 

All 11 participants reported improvements of pain and function, these results differing among patients, with different degree of improvements anywhere from three to twelve months afterward. However, there was no placebo test group, and the amount of injection was not standardized, leading to more studies to further investigate. The treatment seems promising, as no patient trial was complicated with adverse effects. 

Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota is beginning a trial to test the results of Botox injections of arthritic knees. Because Botox has been proven to paralyze muscle and nerve endings, there is a great chance that it may help subside severe pain in patients who no longer respond to cortisone treatments. Actually, several Botox trials are being looked into for pain and inflammation relief, so who knows what will happen! 

South Beach Diet

After reading the Great Debate, I wanted to find out more about the south beach diet.
I read that it is a three phase plan and that its claim to fame is that you will loose the weight you need to loose and that it will improve your cardiovascular system. I really liked that the system was a life long program however; I thought that some things needed to be changed.
It states that phase 1 is two weeks in which you eat as much as you normally would however you eat three well balanced or healthy meals in order to subdue cravings. My problem is that it takes more than two weeks to learn how to eat healthy and maintain regularity in the process. Think of it in terms of a New Year’s resolution when you have to take baby steps and perform regularly for the new habit to stick. Two weeks has never made anyone’s New Years resolution stick.
Phase 2 is about loosing weight by continuing to eat healthy and with portion control in order to achieve your goal weight. This phase can go on as long as one pleases. Last is phase 3 were you are at your goal weight and you maintain it however the foods that you are allowed to eat are less restricted. The synopsis of phase three goes on to say that at this point in time you will improve your cardiovascular system. Any one who is clearly overweight and looses a significant amount of weight will improve, but the way it is described might have your average person thinking that it pertains specifically to this diet and not dieting in general. I personally think that they should elaborate on the idea so that people understand that that is common to weight loss.
Finally I see no mention about exercise, a crucial player in weight loss and improving health. Does anyone else have issues with that?

This is the website I got my info from
http://www.southbeach-diet-plan.com/index.html