Natural Standard Blog

Webinar Forum: Traditional Chinese Medicine

Natural Standard is offering a series of upcoming complimentary webinars on integrative medicine. Natural Standard offers these impartial webinars as an informational public service. All webinars are recorded and archived at www.naturalstandard.com/webinars.

Evidence from the Cochrane Collaboration for Traditional Chinese Medicine

This month, Eric Manheimer, M.S., discusses evidence from the Cochrane Collaboration for traditional Chinese medicine. Manheimer is a research associate at the University of Maryland School of Medicine Center for Integrative Medicine. He has been working on behalf of the Cochrane Collaboration since 1997 and currently serves as the administrator of the Cochrane Collaboration Complementary Medicine Field. He has published many systematic reviews of acupuncture and other complementary therapies, both in The Cochrane Library and in peer-reviewed journals. These include meta-analyses of acupuncture for back pain, osteoarthritis and as an adjunct to in vitro fertilization.

To listen to the webinar, please click here. Complimentary access to the webinar is available September 1-30, 2010.

To comment on a recent webinar or to suggest future webinar topics, please click here to enter Natural Standard's blog.

Alcohol and Rheumatoid Arthritis

A recent study suggests that rheumatoid arthritis symptoms may be less severe in people who consume alcohol compared to non-drinkers.

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder that occurs when the body's immune system attacks itself. Unlike other forms of arthritis, which mainly affect the bones and cartilage, rheumatoid arthritis may also cause swelling in other areas of the body.

The study, published in the journal Rheumatology, included 873 people with rheumatoid arthritis and 1,004 people without the disease. The participants answered questions about their alcohol consumption during the previous month. The researchers also assessed their symptoms with X-rays, blood tests and pain questionnaires.

According to the findings, non-drinkers were about four times more likely to have rheumatoid arthritis than people who drank alcohol at least 10 days per month. Alcohol consumption was also inversely linked to fewer and milder symptoms.

However, this study does not prove that alcohol has a protective effective against rheumatoid arthritis. The details of this potential relationship are unclear, and other factors may be involved.

This study is also limited because it relied on the participants’ memory of their alcohol consumption. Additional research that closely monitors blood alcohol levels is needed to confirm these early findings.

Alcohol may interact with some drugs, herbs and supplements that are used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. For instance, alcohol may increase the risk of liver damage when taken with methotrexate or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

For more information about integrative therapies for rheumatoid arthritis, please visit Natural Standard's Comparative Effectiveness database.

Whole Grains for Heart Health

Eating three servings of whole-grain foods daily may help reduce the risk of heart disease, researchers report.

In a study published in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 233 middle-aged healthy adults first followed a four-week control diet. Then, they were randomly assigned to one of three groups: a control group, a wheat group or a wheat plus oats group for 12 weeks. The researchers assessed heart disease risk factors, including inflammatory markers, insulin sensitivity, cholesterol levels and blood pressure.

A total of 205 participants completed the study. The researchers found that systolic blood pressure and pulse pressure were significantly reduced by 6 and 3mmHg, respectively in the whole-grain groups compared to the control group. Overall, systemic markers of heart disease risk were similar between the two groups.

The researchers concluded that whole-grain foods may significantly lower the risk of heart disease, mainly due to blood pressure-lowering effects. The results support earlier evidence that a low-calorie diet rich in whole grains may help prevent heart disease.

For more information about integrative therapies for heart disease, please visit Natural Standard's Comparative Effectiveness database.

Mediterranean Diet Linked to Lower Breast Cancer Risk

The Mediterranean diet may be linked to a lower risk of breast cancer in post-menopausal women, researchers report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

The Mediterranean diet is rich in heart-healthy fiber, fish, fruits, vegetables and unsaturated fats like olive oil. It includes moderate amounts of alcohol and is low in meats, dairy products and saturated fats.

Several cancers, including colon cancer and breast cancer, are less common in Mediterranean countries compared to northern Europe. It has been suggested that certain elements of the diet, such as eating low amounts of saturated fats and high amounts of unrefined carbohydrates, may offer protective effects against cancer.

In the recently published study, 14,807 women from Greece answered questions about their diets, lifestyles and demographics. The researchers calculated the participants' diet scores on a scale of zero to nine. Higher scores indicated a stricter adherence to the Mediterranean diet.

After an average follow-up period of 10 years, 240 women were diagnosed with breast cancer. The researchers adjusted for several known breast cancer risk factors, such as age, weight and smoking history, and found that post-menopausal women who scored 6-9 on the diet scale were 22 percent less likely to develop breast cancer than women who scored 0-3. However, this association was not observed in pre-menopausal women.

Although these findings are promising, the study does not prove a cause-and-effect relationship. Additional research is needed.

For more information about the Mediterranean diet and other special diets, please visit Natural Standard's Health & Wellness database.

Calcium Supplements May Increase Heart Attack Risk

A recent analysis of scientific data suggests that calcium supplements may increase the risk of heart attacks.

Calcium supplements are widely used to reduce bone resorption in osteoporosis, and many studies support this use. Calcium supplementation is also used for colorectal neoplasia and during pregnancy.

The researchers analyzed data from 11 randomized, placebo-controlled trials. Each study involved at least 500 milligrams of calcium supplements daily and included at least 100 participants.

After analyzing the data from more than 12,000 total study participants, the researchers found that calcium supplementation was associated with a 30 percent increased risk of heart attack. These negative effects were linked to calcium supplementation, not dietary calcium.

"Although the magnitude of the increase in risk is modest, the widespread use of calcium supplements means that even a small increase in incidence of cardiovascular disease could translate into a large burden of disease in the population," the authors reported in the British Medical Journal. The researchers call for more research on the safety and effectiveness of calcium supplementation for osteoporosis.

For more information about calcium, please visit Natural Standard's Foods, Herbs & Supplements database.

Deep Brain Stimulation for Alzheimer's

Deep brain stimulation may be safe and beneficial for patients with early Alzheimer’s disease, according to a small study.

Deep brain stimulation has been used to treat neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor. Treatment involves surgically implanting a neurostimulator into the brain. This battery-operated medical device delivers electrical stimulation to specific areas of the brain that may be associated with a person’s neurological symptoms. Treatment is limited to patients who are not responsive to medications.

In the recent phase I safety trial, six patients with early signs of Alzheimer’s disease underwent deep brain stimulation. All patients were released from the hospital 2-3 days after surgery and received continuous brain stimulation for 12 months. The participants continued taking their prescribed anti-Alzheimer’s medications during the study.

No serious adverse effects were reported. The researchers also found that half of the patients experienced possible improvements and/or decreases in the rate of cognitive decline after six and 12 months of stimulation.

While the study results are promising, additional research is needed.

For more information about Alzheimer's disease, please visit Natural Standard's Medical Conditions database.

Natural Standard Training Sessions

Natural Standard subscribers are invited to attend online training sessions to learn more about the resources available to them.

The summer training sessions are designed to help clients understand Natural Standard's mission, methodology and Evidence-based Validated Grading Rationale™. These guided tours will also demonstrate how to navigate the various databases and cross reference medical conditions and therapies.

The manufacturing/regulatory training sessions are specifically tailored for branded ingredient manufacturers, brand owners, pharmaceutical companies and law firms. Natural Standard provides custom research reports, white papers, clinical trial protocol design and grant writing services. Featured topics will include: GRAS certification, cGMP compliance initiatives, product compliance and submission, litigation, advertising claims, efficacy claims, health maintenance and structure function claims, functional ingredient claims, FDA/FTC warning letters and ingredient identification supporting health maintenance claims.

To sign up for a complimentary session, please click the links below.

Natural Standard Summer Training Sessions:

• Tue, Aug 17, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Aug 19, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:40 PM EDT
• Tue, Aug 24, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Aug 26, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:40 PM EDT
• Tue, Aug 31, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:40 PM EDT

Manufacturing/Regulatory Training Sessions:

• Thu, Aug 19, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Aug 26, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Sept 2, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Sept 9, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Sept 16, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Sept 23, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Sept 30, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Oct 7, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Oct 14, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Oct 21, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT
• Thu, Oct 28, 2010 1:00 PM - 1:40 PM EDT

For more information, please e-mail questions@naturalstandard.com.

Webinar Forum: Altitude Sickness

Natural Standard is offering a series of upcoming complimentary webinars on integrative medicine. Natural Standard offers these impartial webinars as an informational public service. All webinars are recorded and archived at www.naturalstandard.com/webinars.

This month, Laurie Peery, PharmDc, discusses the pathophysiology of altitude sickness and reviews the available conventional and integrative therapies. The presentation was presented by Kristina Rodriguez, PharmDc.

To listen to the webinar, please click here. Complimentary access to the webinar is available August 1-31, 2010.

Glucosamine May Be Ineffective for Back Pain

Glucosamine sulfate may not help alleviate chronic lower back pain, a new study suggests.

Glucosamine is a natural compound that is part of healthy cartilage. Glucosamine sulfate is one of the most commonly used supplements, and it has shown consistent benefit in relieving pain associated with knee osteoarthritis. It has been proposed that glucosamine sulfate may improve other types of osteoarthritis and that it may have anti-inflammatory properties, which could be useful in treating patients with inflammatory bowel disease and rheumatoid arthritis.

Researchers at Oslo University Hospital in Norway recruited 250 adults who had chronic lower back pain and degenerative osteoarthritis of the lower back. Half of the patients were randomly assigned to take 1500 milligrams of glucosamine sulfate, while the other half took a placebo for six months.

After the six-month treatment and again at a one-year follow up, the participants filled out questionnaires about their pain, pain-related disabilities and quality of life. No statistically significant differences were found between the two groups.

Additional research is necessary to fully assess the effect of glucosamine in adults with chronic lower back pain before conclusions can be made.

Conventional treatment options for patients with lower back pain caused by osteoarthritis include physical therapy and exercise, surgery and medications. Commonly used medications include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen (Motrin®) and celecoxib (Celebrex®), narcotic or opiate pain relievers such as hydrocodone/acetaminophen (Lortab®) and oxycodone extended release (OxyContin®), corticosteroids (such as prednisone) and muscle relaxants.

Some other integrative therapy options with strong supportive evidence for treating osteoarthritis include acupuncture, chondroitin sulfate and willow bark. Therapies with good evidence for back pain include cayenne, chiropractic therapy, devil's claw, hydrotherapy, physical therapy and willow bark.

For more information about integrative therapies for joint pain, please visit Natural Standard's Comparative Effectiveness database.

Vitamin D Deficiency and Diabetes

Researchers in Maryland have found that vitamin D deficiency may be linked to poor diabetes control.

Vitamin D is found in foods, such as eggs, fish and fortified milk. It is also produced in the body after sun exposure. Adequate vitamin D levels are necessary for the body to absorb the essential minerals calcium and phosphorus. It is also important for immune system function and healthy bones.

The researchers analyzed data from 124 adults with type 2 diabetes from 2003 to 2008 and looked specifically at their average glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and vitamin D levels. HbA1c levels are used to measure how well diabetes is being controlled. The American Diabetes Association recommends that patients with diabetes keep their HbA1c levels below seven percent.

The researchers found that more than 91 percent of the participants were vitamin D deficient, and only eight subjects reported taking vitamin D supplements. Individuals with the lowest vitamin D levels had the highest HbA1c levels, which indicated poor diabetes control.

The researchers also noted that this association was even more pronounced among African Americans compared to Caucasians

This recent study was presented at the annual meeting of The Endocrine Society. It supports earlier findings that vitamin D may be needed for proper pancreatic beta-cell function and insulin secretion.

However, this study does not prove a cause-and-effect relationship between vitamin D deficiency and diabetes. Additional research is needed to fully understand the potential correlation between the two conditions.

For more information about vitamin D, please visit Natural Standard's Foods, Herbs & Supplements database.