Neurogenesis: Change Your Destiny in Life

Posted on September 5, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

I just watched part of a TV program titled Brain Change on the local public TV station and while I only had the chance to watch 10 minutes, in that 10 minutes I learned 2 very important things that may be life savers for you:

Turn Off Your Chances for Switching on Undesired Genes

1) The doc explained how neurogenesis (new neuron growth) can totally modify your genetic predisposition and prevent the switches from turning on. We now know that we grow new neurons all through our lives so even at age 90 we still are able to grow new neurons! That means that any genetic condition that is in your family, you have the chance to modify as long as you know how to do it. Many of these genetic predispositions are highly possible to measurably change: diabetes 2, high BP, things like that. We are already able to reverse much of these kinds of conditions in the migraine group with the use of the Stanton Migraine Protocol so I suspect that if we get our children to eat/drink the “right way,” given that they have a 50% chance of inheriting genetic factors of predisposition from either parent, we may change their future “history” in terms of the diseases they will deal with if we give them what they need rather than what they want from an early life on.

Good Fats Are Really Good For You!

2) The second thing he mentioned was very interesting and true; I never thought about it in connection to anything: the brain is 70% fat. Thus low-fat foods are harmful for the brain. This is similar to the body, salt and water: over 70% of our body is salt water so not replenishing salt and water is harmful, as we found out in the migraine group. The replacement needs to be in the ratio that retains this brine at over 70% all the time. Brain fat is an interesting thought especially since we know that low-fat foods are higher in sugar as well, so while we already are avoiding sugar, we also really need to avoid low-fat.

We may find mental ability enhancement, and even dementia reduction, in those of us who move on to regular fat foods and even increase good fats–we are not talking about going out and eating pork and beef fat all day long but we are indeed talking about milk fat, butter, avocados, etc. Whether cholesterol is good or bad has already been debated for a few years since a longitudinal study (30 years and ongoing) of a senior center population showed that those who have higher than “normal” cholesterol and higher than “normal” BP in their senior years actually live longer and have healthier lives (According to AARP senior is at 50+). That study also disproved the theory of the white plaque connection to dementia… So far in the history of human science that particular study is the most valuable one since the same people who are being studied for life from the moment they enter the senior home, also volunteer their brain for research. They are examined twice a year so that the researchers and doctors can see what is what in life versus after death!

They found that some people who showed dementia in life had absolutely no white plaques (but they had thousands of mini strokes) and those who had a ton of white plaque actually had no dementia while alive at all–this shows that white plaque is not connected to dementia and all studies that base their research findings on that are wrong. They disproved a lot of scientifically mismanaged information so far and I am eagerly awaiting further results. The study is done by UCI if anyone is interested to follow.

For us it means that we need to work hard on changing our genetic predispositions that we can: stop eating sugar and sugar substitutes in every shape and form (discontinue the predisposition to metabolic syndrome of any kind) and start eating whole foods with fat and cholesterol (do not trash the egg yolk but eat the whole egg) as they naturally come. In other words, enjoy what your body can digest well without pain at full flavor!

Comments and questions are always welcome!

Angela

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How Pharmaceuticals Make Mountains of Money from Molehills of Illnesses!

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

Nothing new here; we have always known it. It did not even surprise me to read in the Scientific American MIND about it. What surprised me is how comfortable the world is with this picture. So let me present the picture so you can see what I mean.

The Molehill

You see an advertisement on TV for a backache medicine. You really do not have any backache but suddenly you become more conscious of your body and you feel you can associate with the actor or actress pointing out to you what is available to treat that condition that you do not actually have… but you will after the commercial. It is quite similar to watching a food commercial during dinner time before you ate; you are much more likely to head out or order out one of the food types advertised. It works the same way with medicines.

One would think that it only works with over the counter medicines but actually it also works with prescription medicines as well. This is well demonstrated with a few sample medicines by the MIND article “RAISING AWARENESS OR DRUMMING UP SALES?” (For subscription only so you may not be able to see it all unless you buy the issue).

The article mentions medicines advertised by celebrities to bring more awareness. Big pharma does not sell to the public so they fund organizations that then push to doctors. So it is a below-the-belt sort of hit that is legal—for now. Let’s hope it will not be legal for long. I truly appreciate articles, such as the one in MIND, that bring serious issues to the surface for us all to see! Because we are blind! And blind we are.

We often laugh on a new drug being advertised and all the small prints and the legal disclaimers and make comments about when the next lawsuit is about to happen but… when it comes to us going to a doctor and if that doctors recommends that very same drug, will we refuse it? Nah… And that is the problem.

Here are some examples the article brings up about illnesses that are molehills often not even illnesses but are fake, as per the doctor who invented them, and yet they still sell drugs for those invented diseases and people are still taking them!

ADD/ADHD

One of these illnesses the article brings up is ADD/ADHD (now only called ADHD). Dr. Leon Eisenberg, the inventor of ADHD, admitted before his death that ADHD “is a prime example of a fictitious disease.” It is also interesting to note that

“ADHD was merely a theory developed by Eisenberg. It was never actually proven to exist as a verifiable disease, despite the fact that Eisenberg and many others profited handsomely from its widespread diagnosis. And modern psychiatry continues to profit as well, helping also to fill the coffers of the pharmaceutical industry by getting children addicted early to dangerous psychostimulant drugs like Ritalin (methylphenidate) and Adderall (amphetamine, dextroamphetamine mixed salts)” (found here)

In spite of the knowledge that it is a fake disease and Ritalin & Adderall are drugs that cause serious problems to the brain, particularly in the brains of children, this “disease” is listed in the MIND article as #1 of the most profitable fake diseases that people (and many doctors) buy into and believe. I run a migraine group on Facebook where my protocol is applied by over 1800 members at the moment; all learning how to prevent and get rid of their migraines without any medicines (yes you can!) and several members claim to have ADD/ADHD. I recall major arguments about the fact that this disease is an invented one and for my biggest amazement the people who take these unnecessary drugs are not possible to convince that they are not sick! In fact they all have high IQ and are likely having the problem of being different and smarter and unable to focus on boring tasks. That does not mean a drug is necessary! It means they need to do things that can elevate them to their level of abilities!

I may add that medicating ADHD falls under the discussion about “creativity.” Are we killing creativity in the name of bringing all people to average by these drugs so they fit into the society?

Social Anxiety

The second condition listed by MIND is Social Anxiety disorder. It is interesting to see how this condition was advertised to become an illness in people’s minds, one that needed medicinal help! Does it need help if people get anxious in crowds? Hell no! It is normal! Our hormonal makeups differ and some people do not enjoy the hormones released for self-preservation in larger crowds. It is a Darwinian evolutionary process to not trust strangers! Try trust in ape world! A stranger is a dead x-ape… Only humans adapted to trust large unrelated social groups of people but not everyone has an equal amount of trust! Does trust need to be medicated into people? Really? Trust is driven by the hormone oxytocin. Those with less oxytocin trust less. It is natural and there is nothing wrong with that.

Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS)

There are others illnesses discussed in MIND but there is one I specifically need to mention because it is part of the process that leads to migraine: restless legs syndrome (RLS). I know many people who have them—I was one of them. I never took medications for this since I understood it connected to something. I had other issues, which later I discovered all related to migraine. Collectively they are called prodromes.

The symptoms of prodrome vary but it usually includes the following: anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), RLS. There are hundreds of others but these are the most important. Migraine is a symptom of a brain in energy crisis (read Fighting the Migraine Epidemic to understand why). The energy crisis is the result of the hyper sensory organs migraineurs have [1, 2], the multiple sensory receptor connections in the brain [3], the constant state of alertness [4] and a variety of other factors that imply the following: migraine-brain is a unique brain equipped with an evolutionary advantage of more sensitive sensory organs. Thus when this brain picks up any signs of danger, the biological process of fight-or-flight kicks in. This brings with it anxiety (adrenaline to make the heart beat faster, more oxygen for muscles and lung), causes vomit and bowel emptiness (IBS) because non-essential body functions shut down. The extra energy helps the body run faster but we do not run in our office chairs (so we run in our sleep hence RLS). And so on, there are many additional symptoms all swept under “prodrome” or labeled as separate illnesses. They are not illnesses! They are essential survival skills that were extremely beneficial at one time. Migraine brain needs extra energy and not drugs.

Will any medicines ever help a migraine brain? Not a chance! All medicines today prescribed will join the “Wall of Shame” series I will start soon. For now understand one important thing: Medicines can only make money to pharmaceuticals if people buy them! Educate yourself! Stop buying them and understand your condition first!

As MIND said: ask your doctor about the outcome if you do not take the medicine! How many of you asked that questions before?

Additional Sources

  1. Schwedt, T.J., Multisensory Integration in Migraine. Curr Opin Neurol, 2013: p. 248-253.
  2. Strassman, A., S. Raymond, and R. Burstein, Sensitization of meningeal sensory neurons and the origin of headaches. Nature, 1996. 384: p. 560 – 564.
  3. Tso, A.R., et al., The anterior insula shows heightened interictal intrinsic connectivity in migraine without aura. Neurology, 2015: p. 1043-50.
  4. Liu, H., et al., Resting state brain activity in patients with migraine: a magnetoencephalography study, in The Journal of headache and Pain. 2015. p. 16-42.

Comments are welcome as always!

Angela

Posted in Big Pharma, Drugs of Shame, Healthcare, Interesting reading, Must Read, This & That, Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Levaquin, Cipro, & Avelox Lawsuit!

Posted on August 13, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

Anyone ever got hurt (floxed) by Levaquin, Cipro, or Avelox, here is a lawsuit you can join.

How do you know if you were floxed?

Not everyone has the same symptoms but what these drugs share in common is that they destroy bacterial DNA. Great for the bacteria you want to get rid of but not so good for the bacteria that actually keeps you alive. One particular bacteria that we cannot survive without is the mitochondria in our cells. Every human cell has mitochondria. Their job is to convert whatever comes into the body to energy so we can function. Without mitochondria we are not alive.

These antibiotics, collectively fluoroquinolones or quinolones, all destroy bacterial DNA and they have caused damage to human mitochondrial DNA. Since mitochondria reproduces on its own in each cell, repair of the DNA is only possible by accidental mutation in synchronous mode in all damaged cells. Not likely… Not everyone got hurt from these drugs equally. The differences are not understood. But the primary adverse reactions of these antibiotics are:

  1. Torn Achilles tendon — these can also become what I call “jumping tendons” that is tendons that are looser than should be and pop left or right on your joints (painful!)
  2. Damage to the nerves of the eye that can cause blindness — partial or full
  3. Peripheral neuropathy — most common and most devastating. This is the case when your mitochondrial DNA is so damaged that the damage is irreversible. People with this version of the damage have committed suicide, here is one example for you but of course there are thousands more. We now also know that the Gulf War Syndrome is also peripheral neuropathy. This is nothing new by the way.
  4. There may even be a connection to these antibiotics causing type 2 diabetes.

I am one of the floxed ones with the torn Achilles and the jumping tendons so far but who knows, I may later come down with other problems. One of the biggest problems with taking these medicines is that any or all of the problems can hit you months after you stopped taking the medicine because the damage has to reach a threshold before it shows up.

At the same time, these medicines are held in high esteem by many doctors because as broad spectrum antibiotics, they can treat some illnesses that others cannot–I should say could, because bacterial resistance now made them quite useless in most cases!

I have a citizen petition against these drugs for almost a year now that the FDA responded to saying they cannot make a decision! Well lets help the FDA make a decision! Either post a comment on my petition (click on “comment now“) and/or apply to be part of the lawsuit. In either case the goal is the same: get these drugs off the market for common everyday prescription possibility! They can keep them for emergency use of life and death but for heaven’s sake, do not prescribe it for a urinary tract infection or a sinus infection! There are safer antibiotics for that!

Act now!!!

Comments are welcomed, as always!

Angela

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Let’s Get Active Against Sugar!

Posted on August 4, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

Since I talk so much about the negative effects of sugar, I would like to share an article with you that I received by email. The article has a “take action” button at the end, which is something I also just filled out so I copy-paste my quickly written letter here as well in case any of you are willing or able to send your message to the government on the decision of added sugar into our foods. Here is the letter I wrote on the form that you reach once you click the “Take Action” button (the Dear… and the Sincerely.. are automatically included so this is just the body):

Please note that the world brought people to be survivors of this planet without any added sugar. We understand that the sugar lobby pays for a lot of government expenditures and thus you are deeply loyal to them but should your loyalty go to the one who pays you in order to sell (sugar lobby) or the one who pays you to survive (we the people)!

I think you should know that while you certainly keep the sugar lobby happy, you are killing the very people who otherwise make it possible for you to stay in office.

I suppose the problem will eventually be solved since either we all get too sick to pay you as a result of our metabolic syndrome, in which case you will not have any pay from us only from the sugar lobby, or you will get too sick as a result of the same disease in which case we will have to discuss the matter with whoever replaced you.

In either case, if you have not noticed, the US population is suffering from your decision of the benefits of added sugar in our diets: diabetes 2, obesity, and fatty liver disease plus of course heart disease that salt is named responsible for but is in fact sugar. I am a scientist so I know!

Your decisions make sure that all who do not read labels with a magnifying glass get sick and cost trillions in healthcare, which of course you as the government will have to pay out of your other pocket. I wonder which pocket has more money in it: the one filled on one side with the money from the sugar lobbies or the other that you are spending for the medical coverage for those who are eligible for that payment via Medicare or other governmental aid for healthcare. Eventually this second pocket will empty faster than the first one can be filled and you will end up with a bunch of very sick people as a result of your decision today!

Please change your decision and for once consider the good of the people and not politics!”

I hope some of you will take the time and rebel against the sugar labeling guideline that is going to mislead everyone!

Your questions are always welcome!

Angela

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The FDA: Approving Treatments of Unfamiliarity

Posted on July 29, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

I subscribe to the FDA updates by email on many subjects. Here is an email I received today:

FDA email on obesity device

FDA email on obesity device

It is hard to read since it is long but note the first paragraph last sentence: ” The device likely works by occupying space in the stomach, which may trigger feelings of fullness, or by other mechanisms that are not yet understood.”

Should the FDA approve a medical treatment it does not understand?

Should we not know how a device works before we are told it is safe to use? Is it safe? I have heard of other procedures where the lack of understanding made them fail–slipping of the band away from the place it originally was placed, for example, and several other types of injuries. Should these not be tested for some time in a proper laboratory setting as well as in life on volunteers before it is approved as a procedure? I can hardly wait to see the first lawsuits pop up!

But more importantly: should we not prevent obesity the first place?

Instead of preventing obesity, the FDA apparently supports its development and encourages even more people to become obese!  We know what causes obesity: added sugar into every single food items we eat proved and encouraged by the amazing number of enticing advertisements on TV, billboard, newspapers, junk mail, Internet, EVERYWHERE.

Have more sugar!

The FDA is now about to take this obesity encouragement a step further! We now have new FDA label proposal that will change labels to reflect the serving size of what people eat as opposed to what they should eat! Here is what the new label is recommending:

proposed serving size labeling

proposed serving size labeling

So if you now find 2 sizes of soft drinks, say a can of 12 oz and a bottle of 2 liters of the same thing side by side, both will say one serving! I think the FDA confuses selling size with serving size. As will the people who buy them! Today it is still clear that a serving size of sot drink is 8 oz or less but with the new label the serving size will reflect whatever is in the bottle. This provides encouragement and reinforcement to those who buy the larger serving size that it is approved to drink that much by the FDA so it is OK!

I think that we are heading into a very dangerous era where the FDA is beginning to look more and more like an agency serving those industries that lobby more feverishly at Congress. The FDA does not represent the people at all! It represents a disease industry whose business is to cause disease! It is to manage how sick you should get! Quite a turnaround from its original purpose to its final function!

I think the FDA needs a big overhaul! I also think that Congress should eat up their recommended serving sizes of an entire bucket of ice cream several times a day each day so each member gets a good chance to look from the inside what it is like to be obese and have diabetes! Perhaps then the serving sizes will reflect healthy reality–if there is in fact any health associated with eating sugar

Those of us outside are left for our own common sense–or educated guesses–to decide what is right or wrong for us to eat or drink and in what quantity!

Added sugar should be 0 (as in ZERO) grams for all. We do not need to eat sugar. Our bodies need to re-learn how to make blood-sugar by using insulin for conversion from complex carbs like fruits and vegetables. Learn how and what to eat from understanding food and not what the FDA recommends since clearly they are not serving our interests!

Comments are welcome as always!

Angela

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And the Fight Goes On!

Posted on July 24, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

An Eulogy and a Warning!

This was meant to be an eulogy for Dr. Gonzales but I decided to make it more than that. You may not be familiar with his name albeit thousands are. He was a doctor that pharmaceutical companies hated! Hated just like the other doctors, similar to him, who also mysteriously died. I have now been warned by my friends (and by Dr. Gonzalez as you will read) to watch what I am doing because I may be next so I decided to write-up the truth boldly and straight forward not leaving a stone unturned!

I very seriously believe that if I get hurt after this, the industry will indeed be in trouble! So let’s see that truth!

The last time I talked to Dr. Gonzalez was about two weeks ago when he called me. He had a policy of “no emails” so I sent him a letter describing that I found the cause for migraines.  Thousands are treated by me in my group and by my Stanton Migraine ProtocolTM without the use of any medicines. I explained to him that I discovered that migraine is not a disease; it is a mistreated brain that needs more electricity.

I explained that migraineurs have different brains: they have more sensory organ neuron receptor connection so their sensory organs are on alert; these organs are more hyperactive1. I also explained that migraine brains function at a different voltage frequency and without break; the resting potential in the brain of a migraineur is not much different from its action potential2 so migraineurs use more voltage. This extra voltage needs to be created by sodium chloride (salt). Migraineurs excrete about 50% more sodium in their urine3 as well. It is also known that there is some connection to metabolic syndrome but no study has yet been able to identify why4-9.

I have understood all that and found the missing link. I discovered the connection of all separate findings by others. I explained to Dr. Gonzalez that I am facing a world where one cannot take a breath of fresh air with certainty until a clinical trial was conducted by the funds or supervision of the pharmaceutical industry so I am at a dead-end as far as academia goes. So I left academia but I now find that no journal is willing to publish a paper—no matter how much sense it makes—unless a clinical trial is conducted. I received such comment from JAMA for instant. They said it was a very interesting finding and they would be interested but I need clinical trials.

Clinical trial for what? The Stanton Migraine ProtocolTM uses no medicines, no herbs or supplements. So what exactly is there to be tried in a clinical setting? Electrolytes? (already used by all hospitals) Salt? (we eat it every day) Water? (we drink it all the time) These are things we eat and drink every day! Why a trial? What trial?

Clinical trials also mean placebo treatment for half the trial patients. Shall I keep half the patients in horrible migraine pain? And they will not know they are on placebo? Really? What human ethical committee would ever approve a trial that causes pain on purpose? None I hope! Not to mention what exactly does it mean placebo when it comes to elements that combined make up 70% of our body and our diet every day? Should my placebo group be getting no food? No water? No salt? No electrolytes? What does placebo mean in terms of natural versus medicines?

His words to me were as follows and though I use a quote, it is not exact since it was a telephone conversation. He said to me this:

“Dr. Stanton. Do not ever run a clinical trial because the pharmaceutical companies will make your work impossible! They will undermine every effort you take to prove you are wrong and that medicine is needed for migraines! Do not try to publish in academic papers! No one will accept it but they may steal your ideas! Continue publishing your work in books and continue your work in your migraine group! Heck, over 1700 people getting well from your treatment and are migraine free most of the time; this sings songs to my ears and shows more value than any clinical trial! So keep on doing what you are doing.”

He also explained to me that he is using some of my protocol with his cancer patients but not all and has not gone as far as I have in sodium but he said he will try with his cancer patients because they seem to benefit from the extra volume enhanced hydration as well. His last words were “watch your back.”

And on 7/23/2015 he is dead.

He is one of several nature doctors who suddenly died out of the blue in a very short time. I am told there is no foul play, all are coincidental. I do not believe in 7 coincidental events one after the other, all equally unlikely and the same fate, the same way. In light of what he told me on the phone, I do not believe that there is no foul play!

So my dear readers and followers, I wrote this article to let you know that I belong to the same group of healers as Dr. Gonzalez belonged to and his wise words will resonate with me for the rest of my career. I will not pursue academic work anymore. I already have several pharmaceutical company supporters trying to blast my work into “quackery” even if it treats thousands of people, because treating people without medicines means longer unemployment lines for the pharmaceutical industry!

I welcome all attacks with open arms since attacks mean my protocol is successful and worthy to attack! Bring it on!

I have proof that the protocol works, thousands stopped all medications and have recovery: migraine free life without medicines. They changed their lives and are pain free as long as they observe and support the kind of brain they have. This will cost money to the pharmaceutical industry and yes, I will win and they will lose! Yes, all doctors who avoid prescribing medicines when they are not needed will win! At the end, the customers decide! Doctors supporting big pharma will be fired and replaced! We already have an open database where you can check if your doctor is getting paid off by big pharma. YOU can chose! Chose wisely!

Please watch out for big pharma! They cause harm to you and to those trying to protect you!

Sources (there are hundreds more, I just wanted to give here some start to those interested)

  1. Schwedt TJ. Multisensory Integration in Migraine. Curr Opin Neurol. 2013:248-253.
  2. Liu H, Huaiting G, Xiang J, et al. Resting state brain activity in patients with migraine: a magnetoencephalography study. The Journal of headache and Pain2015:16-42.
  3. Campbell DA, Tonks EM, Hay KM. An Investigation of the Salt and Water Balance in Migraine. British Medical Journal. 1951:1424-1429.
  4. Bhoi SK, Kalita J, Misra UK. Metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance in migraine. The Journal of Headache and Pain. 2012;13(4):321-326.
  5. Casucci G, Villani V, Cologno D, D’Onofrio F. Migraine and metabolism. Neurological Sciences. 2012;33(1):81-85.
  6. Guldiken B, Guldiken S, Taskiran B, et al. Migraine in metabolic syndrome. The neurologist. 2009;15(2):55-58.
  7. Sachdev A, Marmura MJ. Metabolic Syndrome and Migraine. Frontiers in Neurology. 2012;3:161.
  8. Salmasi M, Amini L, Javanmard SH, Saadatnia M. Metabolic syndrome in migraine headache: A case-control study. Journal of Research in Medical Sciences : The Official Journal of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. 2014;19(1):13-17.
  9. Sinclair AJ, Matharu M. Migraine, cerebrovascular disease and the metabolic syndrome. Annals of Indian Academy of Neurology. 2012;15(Suppl 1):S72-S77.

Your comments are welcomed, as always!

Angela

Posted in Big Pharma, Drugs of Shame, Healthcare, Interesting reading, Migraine-Blog, Must Read, This & That | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Sugar!!! Finally! Trash it!

Posted on July 17, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

Press Release

Something of interest especially in light of my fight against sugar in everything I talk and write about:   Scientific experts: Sugar intake ‘should be halved

The article actually recommends this (by BBC) to reduce tooth decay… I think there is much more to this than rotten teeth! Like a rotten body health! So let’s see a bigger picture please and not only half that sugar but trash it completely!

The article recommends sugar substitutes.. nah.. that causes diabetes.. they are trading for one form of diabetes 2 (with tooth decay) to another form of diabetes 2 (no tooth decay)… Guess which is better? Neither.. let’s get rid of all sweets please!

So trash your sugars and trash your sugar substitutes. They kill you in either case!

Comments are welcome, as always!

Angela

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Vegetarian, Vegan Diets, & Antioxidant Supplements: Are They Good for You?

Posted on July 11, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

Ironically the answers is no!

I bet you have not thought about this or heard of that but recent research shows that eating too much vegetables and antioxidant supplements is actually harmful. There are several reasons for this. I want to keep this article easy to read and short. For more information please visit the article “Toxic Chemical in Fruits and Vegetables Are What Give Them Their Health Benefits” in ScientificAmerican. It is a subscription only magazine so in case you have no subscription I summarize the main points for you.

Let’s start with the title, which is misleading.

The title lets you see half the truth! Indeed, eating fruits and vegetables is good for you because they contain toxic chemicals that change your cells by creating antioxidants in response. All true! BUT and this is a big “but” coming later in the article: eating fruits and vegetables without any break actually reduces your body’s ability to create antioxidants. Instead free radical elements start running free, causing damage: “free radicals disrupt and sometimes kill neurons… the antioxidants story is not quite so simple” says Mark P. Mattson, chief of the Laboratory of Neurosciences at the National Institute on Aging and professor of neuroscience at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

So what is the problem?

Plants and fruits create toxins (pesticides actually) to protect themselves from predators. “The plants produce chemicals that act on neurons called sensilla in the bugs’ mouthparts, which are similar to the taste bud cells in the human tongue. Signals from those cells are transmitted to the brain, which then decides whether or not to eat the plant.” When we eat these fruits and vegetables, the same toxins enter our bodies causing a reaction even if we cannot taste them. Because vegetarians or vegans eat so much fruit and vegetables, the toxins keep on coming. Eating some of these chemicals stress cells mildly and this stress causes them to go through complex metabolic changes with the outcome of releasing antioxidants to clear the toxins (free radicals) from the body. But cells can only do so much! This cell reaction to toxins in fruits and vegetables is called the hormesis (not homeopathy!). A little stress is good. Too much or for prolonged periods stress is bad.

In particular they studied the effect of fruit and vegetable toxins on neurons (brain cells). “Too much stimulation of the receptors can damage or destroy neurons” so being a vegetarian or vegan causes nerve damage in the brain.  “More moderate activation of these receptors, however, turns on a chemical pathway in neurons that plays a critical role in learning and memory and in protecting neurons” meaning that if we incorporate fruits and vegetables into our diet but not always and mix in other foods we benefit! “Such discoveries began to raise the question of whether low levels of plant neurotoxins in fruits and vegetables might yield beneficial health effects by inducing similar mild stresses in brain cells.” So too much of a good thing may not be good but little is definitely good!

The bitter taste of many plants tells us not to eat too much of the bad-tasting leaves, roots and fruits or to simply avoid them entirely. There seems to be some innate justification for children not wanting to eat their broccoli after all. For insects, the noxious chemicals help to drive them off, but for us they serve as a warning to limit our intake.

I am sure children will love to hear this. It is also important to mention that those of you who are super-taster–like me–taste bitter taste in more foods than those without such super-tasting ability. After reading this article I now understand that being a super-taster and not being able to stomach Brussels Sprouts and beer among other things may be a good thing!

The effect of these plants on our nervous system can be graphed by an up-side-down U shaped graph (called the biphasic response curve) that shows the threshold at which point the benefit of consuming such toxins in fruits and vegetables turns from good to bad. An example is brought up in the paper that I find very intriguing.

Eating too many Brazil nuts can poison the liver and lungs because of the presence of the trace element selenium. Yet eating just a few supplies an essential nutrient that is incorporated into an enzyme that may help protect against heart disease and cancer.

Because of this “limit” in the particular toxin level’s benefit, the brain’s biochemical processes by hormetic stress dictates when antioxidants are available for brain cells to help and when they are not. Too much stress and antioxidants are no longer made. Some well-known antioxidant vegetables—such as garlic—also increase electrical activity in the brain by leading calcium into the cells. This is further proof that food is medicine. But garlic or any other fruits and vegetables do not visit our brain to open cells or kill free radicals. They merely call on enzymes to work for us. Because our bodies have these natural processes, two important functions may not work for us if we eat too much of these toxins.

Eating too much vegetables and fruits, and eating them all the time, means the cells do not have enough break to recoup their reserve to release enzymes and the toxins negatively affect neurons, often destroying them. Furthermore, taking antioxidant supplements work against the natural system our bodies have evolved to protect us and they prevent the natural process of antioxidant release. Taking antioxidants weakens our immune system.

What does this mean to you? 

  • if you are a vegetarian but are able to take a day off from your vegetables every now and then and switch to other acceptable non-vegetable food, please do! It will strengthen your immune system and improve your health!
  • if you are a vegan, you have some serious thinking to do. I truly honor all faith and support the goal of saving animals by eating only vegetable matter. I can relate to that. But this puts your health at risk. At least give this a thorough thought and make an informed decision that knowingly  you are sacrificing your health for the sake of animals. If that is your decision, at least you made that decision with full knowledge!
  • Should you continue to take your antioxidant supplements? Absolutely not! They clearly interfere with your body’s natural system for protection; let your body do the work for you!

Your comments are welcomed as always!

Angela

Source:

Mark P. Mattson Toxic Chemicals in Fruits and Vegetables Are What Give Them Their Health Benefits ScientificAmerican | Jun 16, 2015

Posted in Drugs of Shame, Healthcare, Interesting reading, Must Read, This & That, Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Diabetes 2 and Migraines? Read Why!

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

Press Release

The article “Migraines, Serotonin, & Carbohydrates: the Connection” describes the intricate connection between migraines, electrolyte disturbance, serotonin medications, and metabolic disorders including diabetes mellitus 2. Please educate yourself on what the connection is and protect yourself from lifelong diabetes 2 damage and pain!

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Clueless Doctors Reporting Service!

Posted on June 14, 2015 by Angela A Stanton, Ph.D.

Press Release:

I just wrote a post on a letter that I emailed to the National Pain Report that I KNOW will never be seeing daylight because.. well.. what would there be to report if say migraines no longer hurt?

Well you see migraines need not hurt if doctors were not getting tricked by (or paid by) pharmaceuticals and if only they listened to what the patients are telling them. They not only aren’t listening, they are not even asking questions! And forget about reading up on recent science!

So here is the link to my article that contains my letter! Enjoy reading because this is the only person you will hear the truth: from me, whichever of my 3 blogs I write on and you read!

Enjoy the letter and enjoy being pain-free if you are a migraineur by following the links in that article to my book and to my migraine group where thousands are already pain-free and stopped all their medications! Yep! Migraine AND drug free! Nope, no supplements or herbs either!!! Nothing! Your knowing what migraine is can change your life! Enjoy!

Comments are welcome as always!

Angela

Posted in Healthcare, Migraine-Blog, Must Read, Press Release | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments