Sunlight Affects Medicine Absorption

A new study shows that your vitamin D level may affect what dosage your doctor will prescribe for certain medications. This study, published in Drug Metabolism & Disposition, was the first of its kind to show that the body’s vitamin D level can affect the liver’s ability to break down and metabolize medication. This may give physicians and researchers insight into a puzzling question: Why do patients with otherwise similar medical histories respond differently to the same dosage of medicines?

The study was conducted at the Karolinska Institutet, a medical university in Sweden. Researchers evaluated data on 70,000 patients who were taking immune-suppressant drugs, including tacrolimus and sirolimus, to prevent transplant rejection.

These patients had their blood monitored regularly, so it was easy for researchers to compare blood samples drawn in the winter (January – March) with those taken in late summer (July – September). The comparison showed that blood concentrations levels of tacrolimus and sirolimus were lower in the summer months and higher in the winter months. This means that these patients required more of the medicine in the summer to achieve the same amount of protection they could receive in the winter from a lower dosage.

Sweden has long winter nights and long summer days, so one’s exposure to sunlight—and its ability to produce vitamin D—is significantly different in winter and summer. Sunlight and vitamin D activate a liver enzyme called CYP3A4, which aids in the breaking down of certain medicines, including tacrolimus and sirolimus.

Researchers also took blood samples from patients taking cyclosporine, a drug used for the same purpose. No significant difference was seen in blood concentration levels between winter or summer, probably because the enzyme CYP3A4 is not required for metabolizing cyclosporine.

Although more research is necessary, this study suggests that the enzyme CYP3A4 may provide an important piece of information to doctors prescribing medications. Given that vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin, and vitamin D levels increase with sun exposure, it’s likely that researchers will discover additional medications that can be lowered in the summer while still conferring the needed benefits. 

This may call for closer monitoring of certain drug blood levels depending on the season. In the case of these immunosuppressant transplant drugs correct dosage is critical to prevent organ transplants from being rejected. As more and more people realize the benefits of taking Vitamin D this also will require doctors to monitor blood levels of drugs.

Although more research is required, it seems that Vitamin D dosages of patients will probably affect the metabolism of some drugs. Prospective studies need to be done to prove a causal relationship.

Lindh, J.D., Seasonal variation in blood drug concentrations and a potential relationship to vitamin D, Drug Metab Dispos, 2011 May;39(5):933-7. Epub 2011 Feb 24.

 

Dairy Aggravates Acne

John McDougall, M.D., wrote an article called “Acne Is Caused by Diet, Especially Dairy Products” in his March 2011 newsletter. Although it has long been debated whether or not diet plays a role in acne, Dr. McDougall wrote about two studies that clearly show the connection. The typical Western diet does aggravate acne.

A study published in November 2010 in the European Journal of Dermatology examined the diets of 783 Koreans with acne to see if their outbreaks were aggravated by certain foods. Researchers concluded “A high glycemic load diet, dairy food intake, high fat diet, and iodine in Korean foods appear to play a role in acne exacerbation.”

It seems that avoiding pizza and chocolate bars was sage advice after all.

Why is this? The answer may be in an article published by B.C. Melnik and G. Schmidt, which Dr. McDougall referenced in his e-letter. These researchers explained the systemic changes which result from eating high-glycemic foods as well as foods containing dairy.

When you eat a diet high in sugar, it causes your insulin levels to rise. These foods include highly processed foods, including junk food, which convert to sugar and cause surges of insulin in the blood stream. High levels of insulin create inflammation throughout the body. Since acne is an inflammatory disease of the skin, anything that increases inflammation should be avoided.

These same highly processed foods (sometimes called refined carbohydrates) cause an increase in the growth hormone “insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1).” An increase in IGF-1 has also been shown to encourage acne growth.

Dairy products affect hormones in two ways that contribute to skin problems. First, dairy contains a milk protein that causes IGF-1 to rise. Fat is not to blame, because studies show there are increases in insulin-like growth factor regardless of whether you drink whole milk or a low-fat version.

The same milk protein promotes a rise in androgen levels. Although a male hormone, androgens are present in women and men (girls and boys). Androgens cause an increase in oils and sebum (a greasy substance in the pores)—a perfect environment for bacteria growth, which often leads to breakouts and acne.

If you are concerned about your skin, particularly if you are plagued by teen or adult acne, consider removing dairy from your diet. Know that if you are eating a Western diet, which is high in fat, sugar, meat, dairy, and junk food, its inflammatory properties are likely affecting the condition of your skin.

References:

1. Jung JY, Yoon MY, Min SU, Hong JS, Choi YS, Suh DH. The influence of dietary patterns on acne vulgaris in Koreans. Eur J Dermatol. 2010 Nov-Dec;20(6):768-72.
2. Melnik BC, Schmitz G. Role of insulin, insulin-like growth factor-1, hyperglycaemic food and milk consumption in the pathogenesis of acne vulgaris. Exp Dermatol. 2009 Oct;18(10):833-41.

 

Vitamin D on ABC Good Morning America with Dr Oz

I found this video from some time ago from Good Morning America with Dianne Sawyer and Dr Oz.

He does a good job of summarizing the important points about Vitamin D.

Remember take pills for your D and check your blood levels twice a year …November and March. My store sells a pharmaceutical quality Vitamin D which guarantees you get what is on the label !

Whole Food Plant Based Diet for a Healthy World

I am delighted to let all my patients, readers and friends know that I have completed the eCornell online six week intensive training program in Whole Food Plant Based Nutrition.

The course was fantastic! It was led by Dr. T. Colin Campbell and it was based on his tremendous research from his book The China Study. I learned in the course that a whole food plant based diet is able to  prevent as well as to treat the two most common diseases in America, heart disease and cancer.

Aside from Dr. Campbell's excellent lectures, there were many other speakers as well. One of my favorite lectures was by Douglas Lisle Ph.D. who spoke on "The Pleasure Trap". This lecture was about how our own biochemistry and neurochemistry get stimulated by street drugs and junk foods into a persistent cycle that keeps us trapped in our addictive drug or food behavior. Of course he talked about how to get out of this painful cycle that SO many Americans are stuck in. I recommend his book The Pleasure Trap to you. Or you can get the DVD.

My other favorite lecture was by Caldwell Esselstyn, M.D. His lecture was on how to prevent and reverse heart disease using the Whole Food Plant Based Diet. He is a prominent surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic and after many years of working as a breast cancer surgeon he wanted to look into how to prevent the chronic diseases of America. He focused on heart disease and in his amazing lecture in the course he showed us before and after photographs of coronary angiograms showing how advanced heart disease had completely reversed when people followed a Whole Food Plant Based diet for a few years.

I was truly impressed, and I am already speaking with my patients who have coronary artery disease about using this diet as a treatment. In recent days the most prominent individual to adopt this diet is President Bill Clinton. President Clinton was interviewed about this diet by Wolf Blitzer of CNN and you can watch his interview at this site:

President Clinton lost weight back to his High School weight and looks forward to seeing the diet bring him benefit for his heart disease. He had to have coronary by-pass surgery and some years later the newly implanted arteries clogged again and he need a stent put in to keep the new artery open. That was the stimulus for him to go on this diet.

If you or your family has heart disease, please do consider reading Dr Esselstyn’s  book and trying the diet !

To learn more about this course go to this site for the course.

and you can watch the intro video here

Also a wonderful new movie about the Whole Food Plant Based Diet just came out starting Dr Campbell and Esselstyn and others. I highly recommend it ! It is called Forks over Knives.

I look forward to writing more articles on my blog about the benefits of a Whole Food Plant Based Diet.
Please let me know your thoughts!

 

Environmental Pollutants Linked to Insulin Resistance

Imagine. You add more fish in your diet, because you want to eat more healthfully, and after a month you notice you have gained belly fat. You go to your doctor, and after having some tests done, he or she tells you that you are now having trouble regulating your blood sugar. After asking you a few questions, your doctor discovers the culprit—you have been exposed to too many environmental toxins. 

This is exactly what happened to rats who ate fish oil contaminated with high levels of chemical pollutants. Although we look nothing alike, our makeup (as humans) has a lot in common with rats, which is why rats are studied so often. There have been numerous studies linking environmental toxins to weight gain in humans (and rats). However, the study I’m about to tell you about is the first to associate high levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) with the onset of insulin resistance.
Read more

Pesticides Linked to ADHD

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has grown in prevalence in the last twenty years, leaving many wondering why. One answer was determined in a study done on a group children aged eight to fifteen years of age. These children were significantly more likely to have ADHD if their urine had high levels of organophosphate pesticide metabolites.

Organophosphate pesticide metabolites is a fancy phrase for an organic compound containing phosphorous. Organophosphates are used in insecticides and pesticides. 

Researchers started with data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 2002-2004) on a cross-section of children. At the time, this group was thought to be representative of all children in the United States. Parents of these 1,193 children were interviewed, and based on their input 119 met the criteria for ADHD. An additional 29 were being medicated for ADHD, bringing the total studied to 148—roughly 10 percent of the original cohort. 
Read more

My Health Advice on the Tragedy in Japan

I have gotten many calls from patients concerned about the tragedy in Japan, and of course concerned how it could affect their own health.

I am sending out this blanket e-mail to tell everyone to RELAX.  The radiation that is coming from the nuclear power plants in Japan is thousands of miles away from the United States.

Before sending you this e-mail, I have spoken with Donna Earley, the Radiation Safety Director at Cedars Sinai Hospital, and I have spoken with a radiologist.  They have both reiterated to me what I already know, which is there is no risk to us in this country.

Donna Earley specifically gave me an example of the amount of radiation that we could expect to receive in the United States from the disaster in Japan.  She said it is analogous to a multi-millionaire finding a penny on the street and picking it up. The amount that penny would add to his fortune is analogous to the amount of extra radiation that we will be getting compared to the background radiation that we get every day from just being alive. She also reminded me that this was NOT a nuclear bomb that would have a large amount of scatter.

There is ABSOLUTELY NO NEED to take potassium iodide.  As I have already said, there is no risk from this radiation, and in fact, taking potassium iodide unnecessarily could actually be harmful to your thyroid, or activate a thyroid problem.

In further conversations with the Radiation Safety Director, she told me that really we should use this shocking awakening of our realization of just how small our planet is, and how a disaster could strike, to prepare ourselves, our homes, our family for a possible REAL disaster in the United States and especially for the West coast of our country. Use your energy to get a stockpile of supplies and equipment for the possibility of needing them for a REAL disaster in our country.

Also please note that even with immediate exposure to radiation, potassium iodide ONLY protects against thyroid cancer.  It does not protect against any of the many other cancers that radiation would induce.

In summary, there is no need to worry about the radiation from Japan affecting you or your family in the United States.  The best thing we can do now is to support the people that are directly involved with this tragedy with our money, love, and prayers.

 

My New Video on Vitamin D -Watch it in a minute!

I am delighted to present this quick tips video about Vitamin D to my readers!

Get the essence of treating yourself and family with vitamin D in a little over 1 minute!

Let me know what you think!

 

 

 

 

 

For more information on Vitamin D
Click here to BUY MY BOOK

or  learn about it on DVD

Soy is Safe for Women to Take Long-Term

There has been a lot of controversy about whether soy is safe. I believe that soy is very safe, especially when used in moderation. There have been many, high-quality studies showing soy’s safety for short-term use. Now there is a reliable study showing that soy is safe for postmenopausal woman when taken long-term. 

Many midlife women take soy supplements and eat foods containing soy to alleviate menopausal symptoms. They prefer this to taking traditional hormone therapy.

Soy contains phytoestrogens, which are plant compounds that have structural similarity with estrogen. Soy contains an active substance called soy isoflavones, which is very unique because it adapts to the body’s needs for estrogen.

People who worry about soy’s safety are concerned about its estrogenic activity. Certain tissues, like breast and uterine, have estrogen receptors.  If these receptors are over-stimulated, it may increase your risk of cancer.

Read more

Low Vitamin D Levels in Pregnant Women Affect Future Generations

In the last few years, vitamin D deficiency has reached epidemic proportions. Because every cell’s health is impacted by vitamin D, having insufficient levels has been linked to an increased risk all kinds of health conditions, including osteoporosis, certain 17 types of cancers, heart disease, autoimmune diseases, and even diabetes along with of course osteoporosis. Now, research shows that a vitamin D deficiency in pregnant women and their babies is quite prevalent. This insufficiency is impacting these children’s health.

A healthy diet and the proper supplementation before and during pregnancy can positively affect a pregnant woman’s health and the health of her baby. For decades, studies have shown the benefits of folic acid for preventing birth defects; omega-3 fats, especially DHA, for brain health; and calcium for bone health. Many pregnant women take prenatal vitamins for this reason.

You may recall a study conducted by Lisa Bodnar, Ph.D., at the University of Pittsburg in 2007. Eighty percent of African American women and roughly half of Caucasian women were found to be vitamin D deficient, even though 90 percent were taking prenatal vitamins! (The typical prenatal vitamin containsed only 400 IUs of vitamin D at this time). This study also showed that low maternal levels of vitamin D increase a baby’s risk of skeletal problems, particularly rickets.

In January 2011, a large study done on mothers and children in Mysore, India gave us more proof that vitamin D deficiency is truly a worldwide epidemic. About 67 percent of the 568 women whose children were studied were vitamin D deficient.

In one of the first studies of its kind, researchers assessed children’s lean muscle mass, cardiovascular markers, and sensitivity to insulin. Children were studied twice; at 5 years old and 9.5 years old.

At ages 5 and 9.5, those children born to mothers with low vitamin D levels had smaller arm muscles (less lean muscle) than children whose mothers had healthy levels. Even more concerning, at 9.5 years of age those children whose mothers were deficient in vitamin D had higher insulin resistance. This is an indicator that one may will develop diabetes.

There were not differences in cardiovascular markers, including blood pressure and cholesterol levels, between the two groups.

These results were the same for boys and girls.

Maintaining adequate—or better yet, optimal—levels of vitamin D is one of the best preventative measures one can take. Now there is evidence that protecting our own health, by having optimal levels of vitamin D, provides an additional benefit to future generations.

I recommend if you plan to get pregnant, make sure to check your vitamin D levels before you conceive. During your pregnancy, monitor these levels every trimester so you’re sure to give your baby the best start he or she can have.

Am J Clin Nutr. 2011 Jan 12

 

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