WDDTY e-News Broadcast - 22 July 2004

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WHAT DOCTORS DON’T TELL YOU - E-NEWS BROADCAST No. 92

- 22 July 2004

Please feel free to email this broadcast to any

friends you feel would appreciate receiving it.

 

 

ANTIDEPRESSANTS: The suicide watch

 

With the weekend looming and thoughts turning to a

leisurely barbeque or Sunday lunch, here's a quiz with

which you can enthrall the whole family over the

dining table. Hours of family fun guaranteed! It's

called 'Guess How Long It Takes', and the family has

to estimate the time before a drug company responds to

concerns about one of its products.

 

The clock starts ticking in 1988 (probably before

that, but let's make that the start year) when the

medical authorities first realized that children as

young as two years were being prescribed

antidepressants. These powerful drugs have never been

licensed for use in children, let alone toddlers.

 

By 1994 this unauthorized usage had increased by 400

per cent, and by which time a worrying pattern of

suicides among children was being established. This

was quickly picked up by researchers, and 20 studies

all confirmed everyone's worst fears that eight

popular antidepressants were indeed being prescribed

to kids, and that an alarming number of children were

committing suicide or were developing suicidal

thoughts while taking one of the drugs.

 

The American drug 'watchdog', the Food and Drug

Administration (FDA), finally woke up to the problem

about a year ago, and agreed to 'review the practice'.

 

Finally, in June this year, Wyeth, the manufacturer of

one of the eight antidepressants, issued a warning

note about the suicide risk. It also mentions, en

passant, that children should not be prescribed the

drug.

 

So the answer is 16 years, but extra points can be

awarded to the family member who responds with '16

years and counting'. The other manufacturers have yet

to issue a warning, after all, and those readers in

the UK will be gladdened to hear that, as ever, our

own drugs vigilante has yet to notice that there's a

problem.

 

(Source: FDA website)

 

 

 

THALIDOMIDE: The Alien of the drug world

 

Most industries accept their failures, throw them on

the scrap heap of broken dreams and move on. Not so

the drugs industry, which is constantly looking at

ways to use old drugs in novel ways, even discredited

ones.

 

Arguably the most discredited drug of all time is

thalidomide, the morning sickness pill that left the

newborn terribly deformed. It spawned a drug

regulation industry (for what it's worth) to ensure

such a drug would never again be allowed on the market

- except thalidomide never went away.

 

It started to reappear in the early 1990s in

developing countries where there was little control of

pharmaceutical drugs, and was finally granted a

licence in 1998 as a treatment for leprosy.

 

Now, like Alien, it is mutating itself yet again, this

time as a cancer drug. Two studies are finding that

it's helping patients with multiple myeloma, a blood

cancer, and melanoma, the skin cancer. When mixed

with two other cancer drugs, thalidomide was more

effective than standard chemotherapy, but at a

considerable price. Twenty-six per cent of the 42

participants got infections, 19 per cent were treated

for deadly blood clots, 14 per cent saw their white

blood cells fall to an alarmingly low level, and 28

per cent were constipated. Two patients died, and 36

per cent had to stop thalidomide treatment because of

the side effects. After that it takes a doctor to

conclude that the drug is 'useful', as one said at the

end of the trial.

 

Elsewhere, thalidomide is being mixed with other

cancer drugs, but one trial in New York has just

started, so it's too early to say what the effects

might be.

 

Celgene Corp., thalidomide's manufacturer, is kindly

funding both trials.

 

(Source: Journal of Clinical Oncology, July 1, 2004).

 

* The world of the pharmaceuticals is explored and

exposed in the WDDTY book Secrets of the Drugs

Industry. It's more of an eye opener than

matchsticks! To order your copy, :

http://www.wddty.co.uk/shop/details.asp?product=341

 

 

 

TOO MANY DOCTORS miss the point

 

We all know variations of the joke 'How many

lawyers/accountants etc does it take to change a light

bulb?' Well, here's a real life example from the

world of medicine. It concerns a little boy whose

neck problems began when he swallowed a fish bone.

 

The little chap's medical odyssey lasted two years and

involved: one emergency room doctor, two

pediatricians, five otolaryngologists, two allergists,

one family doctor, one physician's assistant, one

ophthalmologist, one pediatric oncologist, one

pediatric gastroenterologist, one pediatric

neurologist, one chiropractor, one osteopath, and one

physical therapist (that's 19 medical practitioners in

all). He also went through two CT scans, one thyroid

ultrasound, two allergy tests and four blood tests.

 

Finally, an alternative practitioner discovered the

boy's problems were caused by enlarged lymph nodes in

his neck and by a build-up of lymphatic fluid.

 

(Source: Washington Post, July 20, 2004).

 

 

 

MELANOMA: It's down to omega-6, not the sun

 

The sun has got his hat on, and many of you are

packing your buckets and spades for the annual summer

holiday. So it's a good time to draw your attention

to two reports that are about holidays and sun

worship.

 

The first questions the link between sunbathing and

melanoma, the skin cancer. It's passed into medical

lore that exposure to the ultraviolet rays of the sun

can cause melanoma, and it's been observed that people

who live in parts of the world that are invariably

sunny are more inclined to develop melanoma than those

living in cloudier northern climes.

 

But one recent report suggests that the story is more

complicated. Some studies have shown a link while

others have failed to do so, for instance, while a

recent Australian study that was conducted over 10

years found that there was a 40 per cent reduction in

melanoma among sun worshippers who regularly ate fish.

Fish are rich in omega-3 oils, and so a diet that

includes the oils may play a key role in determining

who gets melanoma. Interestingly, the National

Academy of Sciences came to a similar conclusion back

in 2001 after they reviewed all the available studies,

but they saw it as a balance or ratio between the

omega-3s and the omega-6 fats. The ideal ratio is 2:1

(twice as much omega-3 for each portion of omega-6),

but that's been changed in recent years to 10:20. In

short, we're consuming too much omega-6 fats, which

are extracted from plants or found in cooking oils

derived from vegetables, such as corn oil, safflower

oil, peanut oil, and so on. The Omega-3s are found

not just in seafood but also in whole grains, beans

and other seeds.

 

The second study looks at mosquito repellents that

contain DEET. DEET (or N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide,

if you want to be formal) is a powerful pesticide that

certainly works if you're off to the Far East or other

tropical regions where the mosquitoes mean business.

 

Trouble is it could affect the health of your

children. One study has found that it can cause brain

cell death and behavioural changes, and the risk is

greater among children aged below six. The American

Academy of Pediatrics has advised parents not to use

any repellent that contains more than 10 per cent DEET

on young children.

 

The effects of DEET seem to get magnified when it's

mixed with oxybenzone, a common ingredient in

sunscreens. When the two are combined, absorption of

the DEET increases to 30 per cent compared with the

usual 9 per cent. Together, there could be an

increased risk of stroke, headache and high blood

pressure, say researchers.

 

(Sources: Melanoma - New York Times, July 20, 2004;

DEET - Duke University Medical Center press release,

June 2004).

 

 

 

READERS' CORNER

 

Psoriasis: A reader last time wanted your advice

about treating this nasty skin condition. Again, many

of you have come to her aid. One reader says it's

vital to feed the immune system with a daily regimen

that includes 500iu of oil-based natural vitamin E,

1000mg vitamin C (ideally calcium ascorbate) and 1000

mg evening primrose oil. It's important to buy

quality supplies. Whenever her mother buys lower

grade brands, her psoriasis returns. It's also

important to avoid pesticides, solvents and other

poisons. Hemp oil is another suggestion. Its blend

of omegas 3, 6 and 9, and GLAs can have a potent

effect. If omega-3 can help, the best way of taking

it is as shark liver oil. Try aloe vera as a drink,

suggests one reader, or Mercy Cream, says another.

Then there's a range of products called m-folia, which

contains an extract of Mahania Aquifolium.

 

 

Fungal toe infection: One reader developed a fungal

toe infection after contracting athlete's foot, and

wondered if you had any ideas of help. One simple

solution, suggested by several readers, was Vicks

VapoRub, while another mentioned Citricidal by Higher

Nature. It's made from grapefruit seed, and one drop

on the nail twice a day for several weeks should do

the trick. It could be a symptom of candida, so it's

worth getting it checked out. Calendula ointment was

another suggestion, while another thinks it should

grow out by itself provided you keep socks and shoes

treated with fungal powder. One reader treated his

fungal infection successfully with glyconutrients,

although it took five months before it had any effect.

Tea tree oil was mentioned by several readers, or you

could also try lemon essential oil, or castor oil,

which should be applied topically. Cider vingera may

also help. Best of all, go on holiday to somewhere

warm and put your feet in the salty ocean water.

 

 

Urge incontinence: One reader suffers from sudden

urges to empty the bladder. What can she do to stop

this? Drink lots of distilled water every day,

suggests one reader, or visit a health kinesiologist

(says a health kinesiologist). Low dose magnesium

might help, but just for a few weeks, before switching

to a multivitamin. A cranial osteopath could be

tried, as it could be associated to emotional upset or

stress, or try a reflexologist. Another culprit could

be candida, so get that checked out, or it could be

caused by interstitial cystitis. Again leaving the

best to last, one reader suggests taking up belly

dancing. It's good for pelvic floor exercises, and

you get to meet a great bunch of people.

 

 

Benign cyst: One reader has a benign cyst on her

genitals 'the size of the plumb'. By the by, we

apologise as we thought she was a man (only because

she didn't sign her e-mail!) So what can we do to

help her? Try the homeopathic remedy Silicea,

suggests one reader, but it could also indicate blood

toxicity, so clean the gut first and see a naturopath.

 

 

Tinnitus: See a Bowen therapist to treat this, says

one reader, or go and see a reiki practitioner. Quite

a few of you recommend Gingko biloba tincture,

although you may have to be patient before you see any

positive results. Apparently it increases the

peripheral circulation in the smallest blood vessels

in and around the inner ear. It's important to cut

down on coffee, which seems to exacerbate the

condition, certainly for one reader. Try a high dose

of vitamin B complex, increase whole foods, and learn

to relax.

 

 

Leaking blood vessels: What can be done to seal

leaking blood vessels in the eye? Try shark liver oil

(mentioned by the same person who recommended it for

psoriasis). Antioxidants such as leutin, bilberry,

and vitamins A and C, and grapeseed extract can all

help. Pycnogenal is a strengthener of blood vessels.

It's mainly an extract of maritime pine bark.

 

 

Gilberts syndrome: How to treat this condition, asked

a reader last week? Keep alcohol to a minimum, eat a

healthy diet, and take milk thistle, says one. Why

bother, says another? It's a benign condition that

just means we have more bile pigment in the blood than

usual. Without all the high-tech tests, we wouldn't

even know we had it.

 

 

AOB: In these tense and difficult times, it's no

great surprise that our tirade against President Bush

inherited a whirlwind of complaints. Supporters see

him as a defender of the Christian faith, and most

accused us of spinning half-truths and lies. While we

don't want to go too much further into the political

minefield, it's worth noting that the New Freedom

initiative (which will see every American screened for

mental health) had $20 million funding approved this

week. Mental disorders under the initiative include

'caffeine-related disorder', 'mathematics disorder',

'disorder of written expression' and 'phase of life

problem', all of which qualify the sufferer for a

powerful drug. So perhaps we weren't lying after all.

.. .one reader's enlarged thyroid disappeared after she

started taking selenium before breakfast. .

..Alzheimer's could be associated with organophosphates

in the diet. These chemicals can cause neurological

disorders. . .one reader last time suggested

'unscrewing' ticks that were attached to the skin. Do

we turn clockwise or anti, asks one waggish reader. .

..try the Bowen technique for every problem voiced in

your columns, urges one Bowen practitioner. . .MRSA in

our hospitals was mentioned in our news section last

time. Perhaps it could be stopped with tea tree oil

or grapefruit seed extract, but then there isn't much

profit in it for anyone, says one reader, far too

cynical for her doubtless youth.

 

 

 

Readers' queries

 

Pilonidal sinus: One reader's 19-year-old son has

been diagnosed with this condition. Are there any

alternatives to an operation, she wonders?

 

 

Breast enlargement: One reader has been sent a

brochure for 'breast success formula', which is

supposed to enlarge the breasts without surgery. Is

it safe, and does it work, she wonders?

 

 

Itchy vulva: One woman suffers from an extremely

itchy vulva. It's not thrush and it's not sexually

related as she's a virgin. It's been going on for

years, and she uses a steroid cream once a week to

keep it in check. When it flares up, the skin becomes

bright red. Doctors think it's lichen simplex but

she's not so sure. Any suggestions?

 

 

Itchy scalp: The itch moves to the scalp for this

reader, whose scalp is full of scabs. She's had it

for years and it's getting worse. Suggestions,

please.

 

 

Arrythmia: One reader's 50-year-old husband has had

arrythmia for four years. What causes it? Is it a

progressive problem? Any alternative remedies that

work?

 

 

Arthritis in Italian: One gentleman reader knows an

Italian lady who suffers from arthritis. He would

like to give her a good book on arthritis, but

preferably one in Italian. Can readers make any

suggestions?

 

 

Arachnoiditis: Anybody have any up-to-date treatments

for this condition? It seems similar to MS, and so

bioflavonoids seem to help. But other ideas on

slowing, or even curing, this condition would be

welcome.

 

 

 

 

* To search the WDDTY database - where every word from

the last 14 years of research can be found – click on

http://www.wddty.co.uk/search/infodatabase.asp