Sugar, The New Tobacco

Sunday, May 20, 2012

The year was 1944.  World War II was raging and Franklin D. Roosevelt was president.  The average price of a new automobile was $1200 and over 200,000 automobiles were registered in the United States.  An average family income was $2600 per year with a minimum wage of 30¢ per hour.  The price of a loaf of bread was 10¢ as was the cost of a package of cigarettes.  300 billion cigarettes were produced that year. 

If you were to ask the average American in 1944, if cigarette smoking caused lung cancer, the answer would have been a definitive no!  It wasn’t until 1952 that the American Cancer Society declared a link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer.  In 1965 Congress made it mandatory for cigarette manufacturers to include a warning label on every package of cigarettes sold in the United States.

I can still remember the disbelief, resistance and anger from both the general public and the scientific community in regard to this health hazard declaration.  In the end, the connection between cigarette smoking and lung cancer was undeniable and since that time, study after study has confirmed this.

I find it most interesting to remember that there has always been a connection between tobacco use and cancer.  Even in the absence of public acceptance and a lack of proof through scientific research, tobacco and cancer have always gone hand in hand.

Sugar Blues is a book by William Dufty that was released in 1975 declaring that sugar was an addictive substance that was harmful to the human body.  People scoffed, the author was called all sorts of names, industry rose up to laugh at the concept and people in the United States and around the world continued to consume refined sugar at alarming rates.  I, personally, have been on the anti-refined sugar bandwagon for over 30 years.  I too have been called everything from a quack to a fanatic as a result of my “radical” and unpopular position.  But if the truth be known, tobacco is to cancer as refined sugar is to ill health.  

More and more people are now beginning to believe that this deadly connection does indeed exist, especially in light of the current scientific research on the matter.  I have included information on one of the latest studies linking sugar consumption to low intelligence.  However, I would like to bring up the point that inquiring minds have always understood this connection.  And while it is comforting to have scientific evidence of these nutritional facts, refined sugar has always been harmful to the human body.

I hope you enjoy the following study and share it freely with your loved ones.  And remember, science is the observer of truth, not the determiner of it.

More information about refined sugar and similar non foods is available on my website www.AskDrRon.com  

Blessings,

Dr. Ron Cherubino

Can Sugar Make You Stupid? A new UCLA study is the first to show how a diet steadily high in fructose slows the brain, hampering memory and learning — and how omega-3 fatty acids can counteract the disruption. The peer-reviewed Journal of Physiology publishes the findings in its May 15 edition.

“Our findings illustrate that what you eat affects how you think,” said Fernando Gomez-Pinilla, a professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a professor of integrative biology and physiology in the UCLA College of Letters and Science. “Eating a high-fructose diet over the long term alters your brain’s ability to learn and remember information. But adding omega-3 fatty acids to your meals can help minimize the damage.”

While earlier research has revealed how fructose harms the body through its role in diabetes, obesity and fatty liver, this study is the first to uncover how the sweetener influences the brain.

The UCLA team zeroed in on high-fructose corn syrup, an inexpensive liquid six times sweeter than cane sugar, that is commonly added to processed foods, including soft drinks, condiments, applesauce and baby food. The average American consumes more than 40 pounds of high-fructose corn syrup per year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“We’re not talking about naturally occurring fructose in fruits, which also contain important antioxidants,” explained Gomez-Pinilla, who is also a member of UCLA’s Brain Research Institute and Brain Injury Research Center. “We’re concerned about high-fructose corn syrup that is added to manufactured food products as a sweetener and preservative.”

Gomez-Pinilla and study co-author Rahul Agrawal, a UCLA visiting postdoctoral fellow from India, studied two groups of rats that each consumed a fructose solution as drinking water for six weeks. The second group also received omega-3 fatty acids in the form of flaxseed oil and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which protects against damage to the synapses — the chemical connections between brain cells that enable memory and learning.

“DHA is essential for synaptic function — brain cells’ ability to transmit signals to one another,” Gomez-Pinilla said. “This is the mechanism that makes learning and memory possible. Our bodies can’t produce enough DHA, so it must be supplemented through our diet.”

The Testing;

The animals were fed standard rat chow and trained on a maze twice daily for five days before starting the experimental diet. The UCLA team tested how well the rats were able to navigate the maze, which contained numerous holes but only one exit. The scientists placed visual landmarks in the maze to help the rats learn and remember the way.

Six weeks later, the researchers tested the rats’ ability to recall the route and escape the maze. What they saw surprised them.

“The second group of rats navigated the maze much faster than the rats that did not receive omega-3 fatty acids,” Gomez-Pinilla said. “The DHA-deprived animals were slower, and their brains showed a decline in synaptic activity. Their brain cells had trouble signaling each other, disrupting the rats’ ability to think clearly and recall the route they’d learned six weeks earlier.”

The DHA-deprived rats also developed signs of resistance to insulin, a hormone that controls blood sugar and regulates synaptic function in the brain. A closer look at the rats’ brain tissue suggested that insulin had lost much of its power to influence the brain cells.

“Because insulin can penetrate the blood–brain barrier, the hormone may signal neurons to trigger reactions that disrupt learning and cause memory loss,” Gomez-Pinilla said.

He suspects that fructose is the culprit behind the DHA-deficient rats’ brain dysfunction. Eating too much fructose could block insulin’s ability to regulate how cells use and store sugar for the energy required for processing thoughts and emotions.

“Insulin is important in the body for controlling blood sugar, but it may play a different role in the brain, where insulin appears to disturb memory and learning,” he said. “Our study shows that a high-fructose diet harms the brain as well as the body. This is something new.”

Still planning to throw caution to the wind and indulge in a hot-fudge sundae? Then also eat foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, like salmon, walnuts and flaxseeds, or take a daily DHA capsule. Gomez-Pinilla recommends one gram of DHA per day.

“Our findings suggest that consuming DHA regularly protects the brain against fructose’s harmful effects,” said Gomez-Pinilla. “It’s like saving money in the bank. You want to build a reserve for your brain to tap when it requires extra fuel to fight off future diseases.”

In Memory of Jack LaLanne

From the desk of Dr. Ron Cherubino


January 24, 2011

It's Monday morning and I've just gotten into the office. I was dealing with a virus over the weekend so I didn't actually watch any of the news reports. However, one of the first text messages that I received this morning contained the news that Jack LaLanne had passed on.

In my mind one of the last great naturalists, Jack Lalanne’s impact on health and fitness will live on far past his death. Through the wonder of television the Jack LaLanne Show touched the lives of millions of Americans. His message was a simple one involving exercise and proper nutrition. The "King of Fitness" showed us how we could live a healthier, happier and longer life through better living.

Although most people view Jack LaLanne's life's message more from an exercise and muscular fitness perspective, I see the underlying message as far more than that. Fitness, yes, but nutrition as well!

On the radio show section of the Ask Dr. Ron website there is a page dedicated to Jack LaLanne. I had the honor of interviewing him shortly after his 94th birthday, which for me was one of those life events that occur with distinct rarity.

Jack LaLanne was one of my boyhood heroes. Although I've struggled with my health from an early age, it never stopped me from putting my best into it and looking for the secrets to health and wellness. The exercise that Jack promoted was an obvious plus to a healthy life. Along with it though was also a tremendous amount of nutritional information. The nutrition that Jack talked about was something that he attributed to the man who inspired him, Dr. Paul Bragg.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Dr. Bragg he also was a proponent of exercise and good eating. Dr. Bragg is considered one of the first American naturalists and health enthusiasts and was part of the California health and nutrition movement of the early 1900s. Apparently the nutritional concepts that Paul Bragg and Jack recommended were radical for the time but have since started to move into the American mainstream.

Looking back, I am sure that many people simply ignored Jack's nutritional concepts but were very open to his exercise routines. Jack was one of the first people to talk about white sugar, raw foods, and the concept of vitality being the result of eating vital live foods. Indeed, one of the secrets to Jack's long and healthy life was raw, enzyme rich foods. Jack would say, "if God made - it eat it, if God didn't make it - leave it alone”!

Here is the link to the Jack LaLanne page on the Ask Dr. Ron website containing video clips as well as the interview that I did with Jack back in 2008. http://cherubhealth.com/jack_lalanne

In closing, my heartfelt sympathies go out to Jack's wife Elaine who has also been a tireless worker for the cause of health and fitness as well as a dynamic life partner to The King of Fitness, Mr. Jack LaLanne.

Jack LaLanne: 1914 – 2011

Organizing Your Health Priorities with The Seven Essentials by Dr. Ron Cherubino

    

     Here we are at the end of the first week of the New Year and many of us have already broken our resolutions. Statistically the most common resolution is to improve one's health by losing weight and exercising. I can't tell you how many times I've broken that one over the years. This year I've made a personal commitment to do the best job that I can with what I like to call the "Seven Essentials".


     Many of you may already be familiar with the seven essentials from some of the shows that I've done on the subject or the information that is available online at AskDrRon.com. For those of you who are not familiar with the Seven Essentials or would like a quick recap here it is. (Audio recordings entitled the Seven Essentials for Natural Holistic Healthcare are available online on the bottom of the left-hand column of every page. Here is a link that will get you there: http://cherubhealth.com/health_center )

Step Number One: Air

     This may seem like an overly simple first step since it is quite obvious that everyone needs to breathe in order to survive. However, I'm not just talking about breathing, but rather the quality of the air that you are taking into your lungs.

     A certain amount of air pollution is unavoidable but there are ways to improve the quality of the air you breathe especially in your home and workplace. In my last blog I talked about indoor air pollution and the need for a house to "breathe". Proper ventilation and air purification can make a huge change in the quality of the air in your home.

     Also, once you're sure that you are breathing a high quality of clean air the next step is to engage in deep breathing exercises.

Deep Breathing Exercises:

1. While sitting on the side of the bed, hands resting on your thighs, breathe in through your mouth comfortably filling your lungs.
2. Next, let the air out comfortably through your nose.
Repeat this 6 times



Step Number Two: Water

     Pure clean water in the amount of 6 to 8, 8 ounce glasses, minimum each and every day that you breathe is vital for your health. I don't know how much more adamantly I can state this fact but it cannot be overstated.

     Now I know that there aren't conflicting points of view about taking in water, but if you look at the source of the "anti-drinking water people" you'll find them to be fairly retrogressive allopathic types that have an extremely poor understanding of the intelligent nature of the human body. Even if you look at the body from a strictly chemical standpoint and forget all of the wonderful discoveries we've made about energy, it takes water to carry out the hundreds of thousands of chemical reactions that we conduct every hour of every day.

     In the nearly 3 decades that I have been in private practice I have seen remarkable health improvements with the simple addition of pure water each and every day. Here is a wonderful book that I highly recommend on the subject: Your Body's Many Cries for Water by F. Batmanghelidj, M.D.


Step Number Three: Sleep

     Eight or more hours of sleep each and every night is important in order for your body to repair and replenish itself. Your body does a tremendous amount of work while you sleep. The average human body contains 50 trillion cells, each of which requires adequate sleep every 24 hour's.

     Sleeping is even important when a person is trying to lose weight. I like to say that sleep is the secret weight loss weapon. It can also help with chronic anxiety and depression and provides support for the other six essentials.


Step Number Four: Nutrients

     The body requires nearly 100 different types of vitamins, minerals and enzymes. Make sure that you are getting them in your diet and supplementation. 50 trillion cells need a lot of nutrition and it's your job to supply it.

     It's been my contention for years that it is simply not possible to get proper nutrition with food alone. Unless you somehow have access to a rich organic food supply that has been grown on soil containing high levels vital nutrients, you'll need to take quality supplements. Here is a link to the five essential nutrients we recommend to our patients here at the Cherubino Health Center. http://www.cherubhealth.com/essential_nutrients

     If you're already taking supplements other than the Five Essential Nutrients then by all means take Dr. Ron's Vitamin Challenge. http://www.cherubhealth.com/vitamin_challenge


Step Number Five: Holistic Treatment

     Holistic medicine can be divided into two categories, self-help and professional help. Growing numbers of people in America and even greater numbers of people around the world are starting to catch on to the value living your life from a holistic perspective. When it comes to their health millions upon millions of people are now taking supplements, eating better food and looking for nonchemical ways of treating their conditions and diseases. This all fits into the self-help category and it's a great step forward in world history.

     On the other hand, professional help is sorely underutilized. Whenever I am out and about in my community, I never fail to notice people that are obviously suffering from a variety of conditions and diseases. In the vast majority of cases these people have not sought the help of a holistic practitioner. There are many reasons why this is the case including ignorance and prejudice. It's a sad fact that I am convinced will change in time but one that doesn't have to be for those people that are willing to take the time and energy to get connected with a holistic practitioner in their area.


Step Number Six: A Peaceful Mind

     Many people are living lives that are far too stressful. In some cases it's unnecessary but in many instances it's unavoidable to some degree. Stress management, relaxation therapy, down time and times of prayer and meditation are all very effective antidotes to the negative effects of life's stresses.

     Online at www.AskDrRon.com you will find a free audio file called Body Awareness Technique (BAT) which is a great introduction to relaxation therapy for those that are interested. Here's a link: http://www.cherubhealth.com/rmf_bat


Step Number Seven: Helping Others

     I once heard it said that everybody needs to be needed. I firmly believe that in the body, mind and spirit of each individual there is a need to help others. I believe it to be the defining step on the road to health and I encourage everyone to get involved and help where ever and whenever you can. If this is not currently a part of your life then I am positive that you will find it beyond rewarding.

     Online we have a web page of charities that we have found to be worthwhile places to support with your resources and your time. Here is the link: http://www.cherubhealth.com/chp_non_profit

     Following these seven steps will provide people with a rock-solid base on which to construct any further changes they may want to make. Often times many of the things that we want to achieve in our lives are directly dependent on the state of our overall health. I am always bothered when I see how many people are trying to achieve great things without paying attention to the basics first.

Inch by inch health is a cinch – yard by yard health just doesn't happen!

Blessings,

Dr. Ron Cherubino

Indoor Air Pollution and Over Insulated Houses by Dr. Ron Cherubino

Is it possible for a home to be over insulated? Isn't it a good thing to have super insulated windows, doors and walls?


I just got done listening to a commercial on the radio about how important it is to replace drafty inefficient windows with ones that can completely seal out the weather. The announcer was warning people that they were throwing money out the window, literally, if there was any hint of air leakage around their current windows and doors.

I was reminded of an experience that I had when I bought my first home. It was in the 1980s during the time of increased heating costs. My wife and I had interviewed several builders before making our final decision. One of the major deciding factors in selecting the house that we did was the fact that our new home was to be super insulated. This included highly inflated 6 inch walls instead of the usual 4 inch, an immense amount of insulation in the attic along with double hung double insulated windows. That's the house that we went with and boy were we sorry. The house was so well insulated that the air inside of the house had no way to escape. The siding on the sunny side of the house began to buckle and crack. Moisture also began to build up within the walls to the point where they began to rot. We were told that the reason this happened was that the house was so insulated that it couldn't breathe. Before that time I was completely unaware that a house needed to "breathe".

However, now that I've done my research I can tell you that this is absolutely true. The high amount of heat that is generated during the winter months along with moisture from bathing, breathing, humidifying and other activities of daily living, all need a place to go. It may be cost effective to seal up a house as if you were trying to preserve a valuable piece of art, but in reality it's an invitation to extremely high levels of toxic and harmful chemicals. In other words, air pollution.

Indoor air pollution is a major problem in the United States and around the world. Statistically indoor air pollution can be up to 100 times higher than outdoor air pollution. This is true even in cities that are highly polluted to begin with. People who live in super insulated spaces that have been newly constructed, redecorated or remodeled are at the most risk of exposure to high levels of indoor pollutants.

Heating bills can be outrageously high, especially in these times of increased fuel costs. However, it is vital to have clean fresh air on a constant basis in order to maintain a high level of health.

Here are a number of things that will put you at high risk for indoor air pollution excess.

1. Have you replaced carpets or flooring?

2. Have you freshly painted, varnished or urethaned anywhere in the home?

3. Have you installed new laminate or synthetic countertops?

4. Have you purchase new furniture?

5. Have you installed new insulation, windows or doors?

6. Have you put anything into the house containing fiberboard, particleboard or composition board?

7. Have you removed or added walls or plastered anywhere in the home?

Any of these seven areas will increase the amount of pollution in your indoor air by a process known as outgassing. Outgassing is when poisons are released as a part of the natural aging process of the substances used to paint, seal or construct. When a house is super insulated the air inside is trapped and becomes stagnant and saturated with the chemicals being released by the objects in the home. Even if you haven't done anything to your house in years, poisons and other pollutants are still being released and trapped within your home. This means that you are breathing these toxic substances every time you inhale and adding more poisons to your homes environment every time you exhale.

Here are some important ways to reduce indoor air pollution.

1. Do not overheat your house. The higher the temperature the more outgassing you'll have. The more outgassing you have the more poisons will be in the air that you are breathing.

2. Properly humidify your home. 40 to 50% humidity is necessary for a healthy living environment. Air that's too dry will actually cause your body to become dehydrated. When dry air is inhaled into the lungs it pulls out valuable moisture from your body. Even a person who is well hydrated to begin with (8 to 10, 8 ounce glasses of pure water each day) is at risk of dehydration if they are breathing under humidified air.

3. Air out your house on a daily basis. Growing up in the 1950s I suspect it was more common for people to have common sense than it is now and it was common practice to "air out" your house. Even a minimally insulated house will pick up considerable amounts of poisons, toxins and other unwanted chemical substances as a matter of course. Exchanging the outside air with the inside air simply makes good sense. My father always insisted on airing out the house several times a day, every day. Even though I thought this was unnecessary and rather "stupid" as a child, I now can see the wisdom in this ritual. Air out, and air out often, it makes sense!

4. If you do have super insulated doors and windows then you might consider keeping them open a crack during the day or perhaps while you are sleeping. Fresh air exchange is vital for your ultimate health and wellness.

In the final analysis if your house isn't breathing well you won't breathe well!

New Year's Blessings To All,

Dr. Ron Cherubino

http://www.askdrron.com/

Calcium Supplementation and Heart Attacks - by Dr. Ron Cherubino

This research is a wonderful example of faulty science in motion. It is based on a distinct lack of understanding and knowledge and blatantly disregards basic human physiology and the interactive nature of the human organism.

August 7, 2010 - I encourage anyone that has a sincere interest in learning about a possible link between calcium supplementation and increased heart attack to read this article in its entirety before passing judgment. There are two concerns that the reader will need to keep in mind. First, science as practiced in its current form is quite linear. Reality, especially when it comes to the human body, is anything but linear. Also, hundreds of thousands of electrochemical events occur from moment to moment in the human organism. To isolate one individual component, i.e. a response to a drug or mineral compound, is at best questionable and at worst foolhardy.

After a careful review of the published research study, Effect of Calcium Supplements on Risk of Myocardial Infarction and Cardiovascular Events: Meta-Analysis, I offer the following analysis.

1. The type of calcium supplement used with the study participants is of an inorganic nature and while it may be easily absorbed into the bloodstream, it is poorly used at the cellular level. This may account for some of the findings of the study as it may well produce an undue burden on the cardiovascular system. Unlike calcium rich foods, which contain a high percentage of covalently bound calcium, the ingestion of calcium isolated into ionically bound mineral salts can easily offset the bodies natural mineral balance.

2. When it comes to osteoporosis (technically defined as loss of bony tissue) there is a lot more to the picture than calcium alone. Bones are a living tissue comprised of living cells with needs that far exceed calcium alone. A host of minerals both macro and trace are necessary for proper cellular metabolism whether we are talking about bone or any of the other trillions of cells in the body. To attempt to isolate one mineral and judge its effect on the body without regard to the dozens of other minerals that are needed for proper cellular function is absurd.

3. Human physiology is multifactorial. There are far too many factors at play with one person let alone thousands of individuals. Therefore, each person is truly unique. It isn't possible to adequately fashion a legitimate scientific study to "test" the efficacy of adding one mineral to the mix and then judge its effect for one particular outcome. While these kinds of studies, if properly set up and conducted, are interesting -- they are far from profound. And, unfortunately, the opportunity for misunderstanding their outcome is far too great to justify this exercise in futility.

4. The conclusions of the study are slanted towards the status quo. The recommendation to prescribe osteoporosis medications based on this low-level study disregards the harmful effects of the currently prescribed pharmaceuticals. This is especially significant since an inferior grade of calcium was used without a proper array of other necessary and co-operative minerals. It is clear from even the limited studies that have been conducted concerning osteoporosis medications that the harmful toxic effects on the liver, kidneys and central nervous system are far more of a concern to a person's overall health than the addition of calcium to their diet.

5. The study fails to take into account the number of study participants suffering from pre-existing conditions that would leave them vulnerable to the negative effects of Ionic calcium on the cardiovascular system and the heart muscle in particular. It is a well-known fact that commonly used medications for conditions such as high blood pressure have the unfortunate and sometimes even deadly side effect of interfering with nerve conduction to and from the heart.

6. Finally, calcium is important for basic cellular function in the body. Calcium is considered the guardian of the cell and acts to facilitate good chemicals into our cells while keeping unwanted substances out. The proper form of calcium with its proper mineral, vitamin and enzyme complements should be prescribed, with people being encouraged to seek out a more holistic approach to the health of their cells, tissues, organs, structures and bodies as a whole.


For more information on proper supplementation from a holistic health perspective, visit: www.AskDrRon.com

Current Scientific Research On Energy

Since the time of the Greeks, two schools of thought have coexisted. Indeed, the debate has raged, at times explosively, between men and women of learning as to whether the truth of existence is based in the School of Atomism or the School of Vitalism.

Since the discovery of quantum physics and its development in the early 1920’s, scientists have struggled with these same concepts of matter versus energy.

Current scientific research is shedding some much-needed light on this age-old debate.

Research conducted by scientists such as Dr. Bruce Lipton is not only uncovering the mysteries of the human cell, but the essence of matter itself. Consequently, we now have a much better understanding of the role that energy plays in the function and creation of the human body.

Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, "what we have heretofore referred to as matter is in reality energy."

The verdict is in. Vitalism has clearly won the debate and science itself has been the judge and jury. We encourage everyone with a thirst for truth and knowledge to further investigate this current research concerning energy and matter.

We recommend that you start by listening to an interview with Dr. Bruce Lipton and Dr. Ron Cherubino by clicking on the microphone icon below.  http://www.cherubhealth.com/dr_bruce_lipton_

Morning Adrenal Pick Me Up

Here's a great way to start your day that your adrenal glands will thank you for. Healthy adrenal glands are vital for the proper function of your nervous system. This is a great morning pick me up for anyone who is interested in maintaining healthy adrenal glands, but it is especially important for those people recovering from or wanting to ward off chronic fatigue syndrome.

Adrenal glands require sodium in order to function properly. A common misconception is that the sodium chloride used for table salt is the kind of sodium that the adrenal glands require. Nothing could be further from the truth. Table salt in the form of sodium chloride is inorganic in it’s chemical makeup. The organic sodium that is found in the following recipe is the kind that your adrenal glands require for proper function.

The morning pick me up consists of one 6 - 8 ounce glass, of raw cucumber celery juice and one 8 ounce glass of pure water.

Juice 2 - 3 large peeled cucumbers and 2 - 3 stalks of celery to make 8 ounces of raw juice.

(a stalk of celery is an individual piece not a bunch)

Adrenal glands also require a full complement of vitamins and minerals in order to stay healthy. Besides the five essential Dr Ron Approved nutrient supplements and extra vitamin C (ascorbyl palmitate), we also recommend the supplements listed under body systems -- adrenals. These specialized formulas should also be considered when trying to build up weakened adrenals.

Click here for Adrenal Support Recommendations