Saturday, April 26, 2014

Aluminum and Alzheimer’s disease


I will be adding to this post.

"Aluminum - is there a link to Alzheimer's disease?", 2016, color and bolding added by me

"Some studies show increased levels of aluminum in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease ... others do not. ... Research has not found an increased incidence of Alzheimer's disease in people with occupational exposure to aluminum. ...Tea is one of the few plants whose leaves accumulate large amounts of aluminum that can seep into the brewed beverage. ... no evidence that Alzheimer's disease is more prevalent in cultures that typically drink large amounts of tea. ... earlier animal studies focused on one animal that is particularly susceptible to aluminum poisoning, thus leading to incorrect conclusions about the general effects of aluminum on the body ... At this point, there is no convincing evidence that aluminum increases a person's risk of developing Alzheimer's disease."


"Does aluminum in pans and antiperspirants lead to Alzheimer’s disease?", 2013
http://wapo.st/10jtd6D
“If aluminum plays any role, it’s very small,” ... “And there are many other, much more important risk factors to study.”... You can try to limit your aluminum consumption by choosing aluminum-free products, Perl says, “but we don’t really understand enough about [aluminum’s possible association with Alzheimer’s disease] to make good recommendations.” For what it’s worth, Perl and Borenstein haven’t replaced their cookware, changed their antiperspirants or given up using aluminum foil. Savory hasn’t, either"

"Antiperspirants and Breast Cancer Risk", 2014
http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/othercarcinogens/athome/antiperspirants-and-breast-cancer-risk#.VfbzFej2pdQ.twitter

"no clear link has been made between antiperspirants containing aluminum and breast cancer"

This 2014 study is overhyped a number of places in media.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3923550/
"While it is impossible to know if high levels of brain aluminium instigated disease in either of these cases it is highly likely" 

"Highly likely" is not definitive, or proven. My mother and grandmother used aluminum cookware most of their lives. Neither developed Alzheimer's disease. Occupational exposure is significantly different to using cookware, aluminum foil and antiperspirants. More research is the key. Not scams! 

Detox Scams


I will be adding to this post.


"Patients, Patience, and Paces: Naturopathic Doctors vs. MDs", 2015, color and bolding added by me, @Marnimd 
"The test is worthlessThe pill was a chelating agent (a medication that binds to metals in the body). This makes them pee out metals, but the reference ranges for the results are based on what you should pee out when not given a chelator. ... It's a way to make patients think there's a problem and then they can be convinced to do all sorts of useless, expensive therapies to cure their 'toxicity.'"

Quackery in action! Fascinating, a pill to cause test results which are then misread to SCARE people, then CHEAT them, and called "health care". So THOSE are the mechanisms by which naturopaths cheat otherwise healthy people to undergo "toxin" detox.


"What’s the best detox or cleanse?", 2016, color and some bolding added by me, @PharmacistScott

https://sciencebasedpharmacy.wordpress.com/2016/01/01/whats-the-best-detox-or-cleanse/  
"“Detox” is a marketing term used to sell you products ... “Detox” is a legitimate medical term that has been co-opted to sell useless products and services. It is a fake treatment for a fake condition. ... Real detoxification is provided in hospitals under life-threatening circumstances — usually when there are dangerous levels of drugs, alcohol, or other poisons in the body. Drugs used for real detoxification are not ingredients in a smoothie. ... Detox kits and treatments never name the toxins that they remove, because they’ve never been shown to remove toxins. ... As you get into more unorthodox detox treatments ... there is the potential for harm. ..." = UNPROVEN with RISKS!

"You can’t detox your body.", 2014, @guardian
http://gu.com/p/43nhd/stw
"Anyone who says, ‘I have a detox treatment’.. is .. a crook." - Edzard Ernst @EdzardErnst

Related 
NOT medicine! - 0 PROOF!
"Herbal Energetics/In Joy Organics 2/25/16", @US_FDA
"Flower Essence .. not .. safe .. effective for .. uses"

Quack "Enzyme Deficiency", 2003 with FACTS! You will find the SAME bs CLAIMS on quack social media and or websites in 2015, bolding added by me
"Fact ... Food enzymes are not needed by the body, either for digestion or for any other purpose.

Email Reply: "toxins" 
I wondered why people still flocked to bogus "detox". They are accustomed to accept test results from REAL doctors.

"The Detox Scam: How to spot it, and how to avoid it", 2014, @ScienceBasedMed
https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/the-detox-scam-how-to-spot-it-and-how-to-avoid-it/

"Milk thistle", 2014, with cautions, @UMMC https://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/milk-thistle


"Milk thistle (Silybum marianum)" 2013, @MayoClinic

http://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/milk-thistle/evidence/hrb-20059806
Bottom line: Unproven! More and better research is needed.   

"Silymarin in non alcoholic liver disease", 2013

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3612568/ 
"The effects of silybum marianum and vitamin E on some biochemical indices of atherosclerotic progression must be confirmed by other experiences performed on a wide range, even though these metabolic data may be reported" 
In other words, more research is needed!

Email Reply: Detox cosmetics?

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa), 2014


2013 "Should Kratom Use Be Legal?"


Kratom, TOXNET, 2014


Kratom, FDA, 2016

"Import Alert 54-15"

"Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) dependence, withdrawal symptoms and craving in regular users.", 2014
"This study is the first to measure systematically Kratom dependence, withdrawal symptoms, and drug craving in regular Kratom users in Malaysia. ... regular Kratom use is associated with drug dependency, development of withdrawal symptoms, and craving. ... symptoms become more severe with prolonged use"

To say there are no human toxicity or severe adverse effects, or that such events are not on record about kratom is FALSE! Caution is advised. Just because something is natural does NOT repeat NOT mean it is safe, regardless of its historical use. Any company, anyone promoting and or selling a product that can have side effects, especially serious ones should make ALL details available. 

Follow the evidence-based science which is on record and has been for YEARS on kratom (PubMed), then follow the money now! Only those who profit from kratom in some manner (advertising revenue included), defend it incorrectly as "harmless" in marketing and or promotion.

Email reply: Kratom I am against misinformation about any drug, natural or synthetic!

Many of the synthetic drugs on the market now originally came from nature! You need a list of all possible side effects for those too. Know exactly what you are taking, or prescribed, and buying.

Saturday, April 19, 2014

Cosmetics and Preservatives


I will be adding to this post.


Added March 19, 2015
"Close Scrutiny Of Cosmetic Preservatives Continues", 2014 (David C. Steinberg is a cosmetic preservatives consultant), @cenmag 
http://cen.acs.org/articles/92/i23/Close-Scrutiny-Cosmetic-Preservatives-Continues.html  
"In Steinberg’s opinion, FDA should have done much more than tell consumers about Badger’s recall." (of its baby and kids sunscreens) "FDA should have said to Badger, ‘You have a noncompliant drug manufacturing facility,’ and then shut them down. Marketers, rather than scientists, seem to be in charge of formulating products these days, Steinberg observes, by insisting on so-called natural ingredients." ... We’re highly subjected to social media,” complains Michael Mack, ... a maker of both synthetic and plant-based preservatives. “Information gets out without scientific backing, and people assume certain chemicals are bad.”

Email Reply: Tree sap as a cosmetics preservative?

1. It is processed, and not "all natural". 2. Research its history of working well, and safety.

Companies selling botanical-based cosmetics often tell you what they do not contain, often inaccurately, leaving out what is in them. Of course if you do not have the correct INCI cosmetics preservative name(s), you cannot do research on safety and history. That is the idea - if the preservative(s) are not on the label, you are not able do so. And the company has violated the cosmetics labeling transparency regulations that now exist in most countries. Water-based, and other cosmetics need broad spectrum preservatives for safety. Natural-based ones are blends and NOT "all natural".


2010

"Preservatives Under Fire", @cenmag
"Preservatives consultant Steinberg warns that if formulators avoid the tried and true preservatives, they do so at their own peril. ... he contends, they have done a good job of preventing bacterial contamination of personal care products. If formulators aren’t careful about cosmetics preservation, “people may get injured,” he warns."

2013

"The preservative wars", @aocs
https://www.aocs.org/stay-informed/read-inform/featured-articles/the-preservative-wars-february-2013
"Preservatives are necessary to curb microbial growth in lotions, creams, makeup, and other personal care products."

All you have to do is read government Recalls on a number of natural cosmetics products to see they have been recalled because of bacterial contamination. That is becoming an unfortunate trend. It means consumers have paid a premium price to be put at a health risk. The Recalls are fact. The advertising and or marketing of such products is often pure, unadulterated, misleading, inaccurate hype.


The information that no injuries have been reported can also mean 3 things: reluctance to report, ignorance of the Recall, and not connecting a problem to the product. Cosmetics manufacturers are supposed to do their own testing for product safety of the finished product BEFORE it goes to market and needs to be recalled.


Am I against botanical "all natural" products? No. Most are NOT "all natural" though. That said to me, it is about their safety. Safety is vital. I read ingredients lists for food and cosmetics. A lot of cosmetics labels are scary if you see no broad spectrum preservatives and do the research, and I do the research.


A number of consumers complain about certain chemicals in mainstream products. The fact is they are often hidden in many "all natural" products, NOT on the labels. And they are not declared in marketing and advertising either.


2013

"The Current State of Preservatives" "Alternative preservatives that offer a similar level of broad-spectrum protection have yet to be found."

You do not have to do extensive math. Alternative preservatives often, and increasingly = Recalls.


"Kiss My Face, LLC recalls Foaming Soaps", 2014


"Abundance Naturally Ltd. recall Thursday Plantation Tea Tree Mouthwash", 2014

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Cosmetics And Food Safety Regulations


I will be adding to this post.


"Death of British journalist after eating organic peanuts highlights absurdity of GMO safety scare", 2015, @onguisaac

geneticliteracyproject.org/2015/03/18/dea
"The legal and consumer issue should be whether a food is safe or not safe rather than whether it is or is not GM. By focusing so much on GMOs, advocacy groups manipulate consumers to think that everything non GM is safe and anything with GMs is not."

"Genetic Literacy Project", 2015, @GeneticLiteracy
geneticliteracyproject.org/mission/
"The Genetic Literacy Project is an independent non-profit organization funded by grants from non-partisan foundations."

"As success grows for Bangladesh’s Bt brinjal (eggplant), Mae-Wan Ho renews GMO disinformation campaign", 2015, @JonEntine 

"Why ‘Natural’ Doesn’t Mean Anything Anymore", 2015, @JonEntine"Very thoughtful Pollan piece except silly GMO v heirloom seed framing.
nyti.ms/1HSWNds

"10 studies proving GMOs are harmful? Not if science matters", 2015, @BioChicaGMO
"The current scientific consensus regarding GMOs remains unchanged: they are safe and do not pose a health risk to humans."

"Are GMOs increasing profits of farmers and biotech companies at environment’s expense?", 2015, @Thoughtscapism
owl.li/MhZxw
"there is actually no scientific evidence of harm from GMOs – but it doesn’t stop there. Conversely ... there are several environmental benefits of biotechnology."

"Organic board busts ‘no synthetic pesticides’ myth, okays new herbicides and fungicides", 2015, @washingtonpost 
owl.li/MoQLC 

Email Reply: non GMO cosmetics
"no scientific evidence of harm from GMOs" from links above (different wording in one)
Non GMO cosmetics = scare tactic bs marketing. And who loves scare tactic bs marketing the most? Quacks - who have 0 reputable evidence for everything else they shill for profit and their egos, too. Quackery no matter the form can and does kill - it is reprehensible in all forms. And too often, young children are the ones suffering, dying. 


"Cops bust largest fake beauty supplies ring in US", 2014

"FBI - Counterfeit Cosmetics, Fragrances Hazardous to Your Health", 2014


"Laws & Regulations FDA Authority Over Cosmetics", 2014


"Providing better information and protection for consumers" UK, 2014

"Enforcing the EC Regulation on Cosmetic Products", in effect 2013

Do government cosmetics safety regulations exist? YES

Are they being improved? YES
Can you do anything to improve enforcement? YES 
You can report adverse cosmetics reactions AND advertising and marketing violations, to stop the violators.

Be informed! Be aware! Take action! Don't be scammed! 


"Compliance Resources Inspection of Cosmetics", FDA, 2014


Those who say consumers have NO safety protection under laws are selling and or promoting products with A LOT of misinformation regarding cosmetics, food, and any other product.


"FDA Basics Who makes sure the food I buy at the grocery store is safe to eat?", 2014


"Organic Products" Health Canada, 2014 


"Pesticide residue found on nearly half of organic produce", 2014 


I buy organic and regular produce. I wash (rinse) all.


Do some farmers violate government pesticide use regulations? YES - both organic AND regular food producers, and all need to be stopped. That does not mean most food purchased is unsafe. It does mean governments are monitoring, testing and enforcing regulations.