NEWS LETTER & TESTIMONIALS

NEWS LETTER & TESTIMONIALS

HEALTH MATTERS

March 2009

SCIENCE AND SUPPLEMENTS

MELATONIN, The Answer to Insomnia, Jet Lag and More: Melatonin is like the “miniskirt” of dietary supplements, coming in and out of fashion. Just in the last 10 years, melatonin has been venerated as an ideal natural remedy for sleep ailments and jet lag, only to later be denigrated as useless. Lately, however, the approval ratings are going back up as new research explores the important connections between light and melatonin levels.

Melatonin, which acts in the body as an antioxidant, is a hormone produced by the pineal gland in the brain from the amino acid tryptophan, which we metabolize from consuming foods such as turkey and dairy products. Melatonin blood levels rise and fall in tandem with exposure to light and darkness, as the body sails along in its ordinary day-night cycle or – technically speaking -- circadian rhythm. Darkness stimulates melatonin's production, while light – in particular, artificial "blue" light (as in fluorescent lighting, as well as natural daylight) -- suppresses it.

*Calming sleep disturbances. Studies suggest that melatonin increases sleepiness. It shortens the time it takes to fall asleep and increases sleep duration. This may prove especially helpful in older people, in whom insomnia is common.

*Outrunning jet lag. The scourge of travel across time zones, jet lag, can bring on daytime fatigue and interfere with your ability to concentrate and to stay asleep at night. Melatonin can help restore regular sleep patterns. A review of 10 trials, published by the Cochrane Collaboration, shows that in eight of them melatonin was "remarkably effective" in preventing or decreasing jet lag when taken close to bedtime (10 pm to midnight) at one's destination after crossing five or more time zones.

*Decreasing symptoms in those with dementia. A study in the June 11, 2008, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association reported that giving melatonin to people with dementia improved their sleep, especially in combination with exposure to bright lights all day. When light exposure was not used with melatonin, sleep onset and duration was improved, but people became more withdrawn. The combination treatment counteracted this adverse effect to some extent.

More potential benefits: Less well-documented, but nonetheless promising, are melatonin's abundant antioxidant properties, leading researchers to continue to explore melatonin's potential benefits for immune enhancement, cancer prevention or treatment, relief of irritable bowel syndrome and more. Scientists are also exploring the potential of melatonin as a possible treatment for anxiety, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, seasonal affective disorder (SAD), smoking cessation, etc.

The most natural way to stimulate your body's production of melatonin is by fine-tuning your exposure to light. Spend time outdoors in the sunlight. In the evening, keep the lighting soft. When it is time to go to sleep, make the room as dark as possible, filtering outdoor lighting and avoiding the use of nightlights. This promotes regular circadian rhythms. Daytime exercise also encourages normal melatonin production, while stress can get in its way.

Source: Christine Kontomerkos, ND, a naturopathic physician at Trumbull Naturopathic & Acupuncture in Trumbull, Connecticut. Visit her Web site at http://www.letnatureheal.com/. NSP has Melatonin Extra (3mg).

DIARRHEA: “Less than 2 weeks ago I met with the lady who had a diarrhea problem for 40 years. She was also on many drugs. I spoke to her last night and she was so excited. Since she went on the program for Irritable Bowel Syndrome, she has not had one day of diarrhea and is feeling so good. I put her on CLT-X, Bifidophilus Flora Force, Psyllium Seed, and Intestinal Soothe & Build. She said I was her “angel that came to help her.” I wanted to cry. Another success story!” ---Darlene Agle

STRESS RELIEF: “I know when my adrenals are out of whack, because I get a very dull but strong ache about 2" above my waistline in back. That's when I know I am really stressed out and need to do some work with my adrenals with the Licorice root or Adrenal/Support.” ---Nolee

FIBER FOR STOMACH ACHES: Children with recurrent, undiagnosed abdominal pain experience a 50% decrease in their attacks after their dietary intake of fiber was increased. Although the report was vague as to why, it is presumed that the shortening of transit time through the intestines did not allow food to create the indigestion that a longer time would have allowed. Fiber sources that would be appropriate for children include Everybody’s Fiber and Psyllium Seed capsules. Gentle Move can also be used with children by adjusting the dosage to one capsule a day.

ABSCESS TREATMENT: Arlene's kitty developed a big abscess. He was given Golden Seal/Parthenium Liquid Herb by mouth. The abscess grew bigger and popped. They packed it with Golden Salve and Oregon Grape Liquid Herb (to neutralize the toxic material in the abscess), and kitty was soon well with no vet bills!

VIRUS PROTECTION: Tired of catching everything that is going around the office or school? Nannette says that 1 capsule of Golden Seal and 2 capsules of Red Raspberry taken daily provide virus protection. At the first sign of illness, begin VS-C concentrated, 1 capsules 3-4 times a day while swallowing Silver Shield, also.

Secret to Strong Bones -- Potassium Is Often an Overlooked Element that's Critical to Healthy Bones

SECRET TO STRONG BONES

Practically everyone knows how important calcium is to bone health, but there's another mineral that is equally critical, albeit in lesser amounts -- potassium. In fact, I've heard about a number of research studies recently focused on the connection between potassium and bone health, so the word is getting out. The most recent study, from the University of Basel, Switzerland, showed that a group of postmenopausal women with low bone density had, on average, a 1% increase in density after a year of taking a potassium supplement.

BALANCING THE EQUATION

For details of what potassium contributes to bone health, I called Susan E. Brown, PhD, director of the Osteoporosis Education Project in Syracuse, New York (http://www.betterbones.com/). She told me that "without question potassium is one of the most important bone nutrients." Exactly how potassium relates to bone health turned out to be fairly complicated.

Potassium is important in helping the body achieve a proper pH balance. In fact, when out of balance, you can die -- really fast -- so our bodies make this process a high priority. How does it work? As part of its normal metabolic processing, the body creates acids, which exit our systems via the lungs and kidneys. To buffer the harshness of these acids and protect delicate kidney tissue, the body neutralizes them with diet-derived alkali (base) compounds derived from fruits and vegetables. These are stored in our blood, other fluids, in muscle tissue and above all in bones. Our skeleton, in fact, is our largest storehouse of alkali mineral reserves. Just in case we run short, we keep extra alkali stores in our bones.

The severe lack of fruits and vegetables in the modern American diet creates an acidic environment in many people. To neutralize excess acid, we need alkali compounds, which the body obtains first from easily available blood reserves, then from muscles, leading to muscle loss, and then by reaching into the bones. When and if that happens, we're left with bone breakdown and mineral loss -- in other words, weakened bones.

NATURAL POTASSIUM CITRATE SOURCES

Now, back to potassium. The particular form of potassium that serves to buffer the acids is potassium citrate, generally found in fruits, vegetables and legumes. People who regularly consume enough potassium citrate through a diet rich in those foods assure their body sufficient alkaline compounds to avoid any need to call on emergency supplies for homeostasis. As Dr. Brown notes, "If you eat enough potassium-containing foods, which should not be a problem, you have the proper pH balance." However, people today load their diet with meat, poultry, dairy, soda, sugar, and grains, which are metabolized as acids, creating a greater need for offsetting alkaloids. If the body can't find these in foods, it turns to body tissue, including bones.

Though the US "Adequate Intake" (AI) potassium recommendation for adults is 4,700 mg per day, average consumption by adults in this country is around 2,200 mg for women and 3,200 mg for men.

Our lack of dietary potassium consumption looks to be a health crisis in the making, putting our bodies at risk for "consuming themselves," says Dr. Brown. In addition, potassium serves many other essential functions in the body. It contributes to nerve impulse transmission, muscle contraction and heart function, and also helps protect against stroke, kidney stones and high blood pressure.

GETTING IT RIGHT

Getting the right amount is trickier, however, than just swallowing a potassium citrate supplement each day. Though we know too little potassium is a problem, too much can also be an issue. For example, a heart problem can arise if the kidney is weak and the potassium load is too great for the weakened kidneys to eliminate excesses. In fact, by law potassium supplements do not exceed 99 mg units to discourage people from taking too much. Because excess potassium can accumulate in the blood in the face of kidney weakness, potassium supplements should only be taken with care under proper supervision.

The 1% increase in bone density achieved by the women in the Swiss study is considered significant, especially because it affected the hips and spine -- two areas especially vulnerable to fracture. Though the study used potassium citrate supplements, it is possible, as Dr. Brown points out, to get what you need from dietary sources. You can achieve the AI of 4,700 mg per day by including 13 one-half cup servings of fruits, vegetables and legumes in your daily food intake. Admittedly, 13 sounds like a lot, but a large salad, for example, is four to six servings, a large apple is two. Those, plus a banana (440 mg, about one-and-a-half fruit servings) for an afternoon snack, and a baked potato at dinner along with a green vegetable and other vegetables, bring you easily to the goal of 4,700 mg.

Nature's Sunshine has a potassium supplement that contains potassium-containing herbs in addition to 40 mg. of di-potassium phosphate which increases the bioavailability of the natural, food source potassium contained in the herbs.

Combination Potassium and Vitamin D3

Go to my personal NATURE'S SUNSHINE site for your Personal "Health Analysis".

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Contact: Karen Olerich, Herb Specialist and Natural Health Consultant

Phone: (719) 495-4930

E-mail: Karen