Top ten clinical research studies with natural products in 2004

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Tue, 1 Mar 2005 11:54:38 +0100

 

" Sepp Hasslberger " <sepp

 

 

 

 

Top ten clinical research studies with natural products in 2004

 

 

 

 

On the positive side of things - natural products

DO work ... better than pharmaceuticals.

 

Kind regards

Sepp

 

(Use this link to see the original article):

 

http://www.vitaminexpress.com/drmurray/drmurraynewsletter2004_02_16.htm

 

Top ten clinical research studies with natural products in 2004

 

Introduction

 

Science reflects the desire for humans to

understand the manner in which nature functions.

In medicine, through science there is emerging a

greater appreciation for the role that vitamins,

minerals, herbal products, and other natural

compounds in promoting health and healing. While

2004 produced many noteworthy clinical studies

with natural products, the following reflect the

most significant.

 

The Top Ten Studies in 2004

 

Echinacea does work if you use an effective product

U.S. Government study acknowledges health benefits of omega-3 fatty

acids

Omega-3 index emerges as the most significant marker for heart disease

Black cohosh extract exerts anticancer effects against breast cancer

cell

Combination of Glucosamine and MSM superior to

either alone in treating osteoarthritis

Antioxidant supplementation reduces risk for Alzheimer's disease

Long-term study shows CLA effective as weight loss aid

Even brief exposure to statin drugs lower CoQ10 levels

Lutein improves vision in patients with age-related macular

degeneration

Ginkgo biloba extract continues to show benefits in elderly subjects

 

Echinacea does work if you use an effective product

 

There were four double-blind studies in 2004 that

evaluated echinacea preparations in the treatment

of the common cold. In three of these studies,

the echinacea products used were shown to be no

more effective than a placebo. However, one study

demonstrated quite clearly that echinacea can be

of significant value in reducing the severity and

duration of a cold. The difference in results

from these clinical studies with echinacea is

most likely due to lack of or insufficient

quantity of active compounds in the negative

studies.

 

The single most important aspect in getting

results from an echinacea product is to make sure

that it is guaranteed to provide sufficient

levels of all three classes of all three key

categories of active compounds in their proper

ratio. For example, in the study demonstrating

positive results the commercially available

echinacea product used contained standardized

levels of alkamides, cichoric acid, and

polysaccharides prepared from freshly harvested

Echinacea purpurea plants showed just how

impressive results can be when a high quality

product is used. In the double-blind study, the

echinacea preparation or a placebo was given to

282 subjects aged 18-65 years with a history of

two or more colds in the previous year. Subjects

were instructed to start the echinacea or placebo

at the onset of the first symptom related to a

cold, consuming 10 doses the first day and four

doses per day on subsequent days for 7 days. The

total daily symptom scores were found to be 23·1%

lower in the

echinacea group than in placebo. The researcher

concluded that early intervention with this

standardized echinacea product results in reduced

symptom severity in subjects with upper

respiratory tract infection. Some people cleared

their cold symptoms up to three times faster than

the placebo group.

 

Reference: Goel V, Lovlin R, Barton R, et al.

Efficacy of a standardized echinacea preparation

(Echinilin) for the treatment of the common cold:

a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled

trial. J Clin Pharm Ther. 2004 Feb;29(1):75-83

 

U.S. Government study acknowledges health benefits of omega-3 fatty

acids

 

According to a detailed evaluation of the

scientific evidence, the United States Agency for

Healthcare Research and Quality concluded that

the long chain omega-3 fatty acids, either from

fish consumption or supplementation,

significantly reduce the risk of heart attacks

and strokes. The review also found other evidence

indicating that fish oil supplementation can help

lower high blood pressure slightly, reduce risk

of coronary artery re-blockage after angioplasty,

increase exercise capability among patients with

clogged arteries, and reduce the risk of

irregular heart beats—particularly in individuals

with a recent heart attack.

 

Reference: Wang C, Chung M, Lichtenstein A, Balk

E, Kupelnick B, DeVine D, Lawrence A, Lau J.

Effects of omega-3 fatty acids on cardiovascular

disease. Agency for Healthcare Research and

Quality Pub. No. 04-E009-2, March 2004.

 

Omega-3 index emerges as the most significant marker for heart disease

 

When researchers measure the level of the long

chain omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA within red

blood cells they found that they had discovered

one of the most significant predictor of heart

disease. This laboratory value was termed the

Omega-3 Index. An Omega-3 Index of =8% was

associated with the greatest protection, whereas

an index of =4% was associated with the least.

The Omega-3 Index was shown to be the most

significant predictor of coronary artery disease

compared to C-reactive protein; total, LDL, or

HDL cholesterol; and homocysteine. Researchers

subsequently determined that a total of a

combined 1,000 mg of EPA and DHA daily is

required to achieve or surpass the =8% Omega-3

Index target.

 

Reference: Harris WS, Von Schacky C. The Omega-3

Index: a new risk factor for death from coronary

heart disease? Prev Med. 2004 Jul;39(1):212-20.

 

Black cohosh extract exerts anticancer effects against breast cancer

cells

 

Black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa) is without

question the most popular natural approach to

menopausal symptoms. Its popularity has been

increasing in part because of all of the negative

press on Hormone Replacement Therapy.

Specifically, last year the National Institutes

of Health (NIH) halted a major clinical trial

designed to help settle the debate over whether

HRT benefits postmenopausal women because the

results clearly concluded that the risks of

taking combined estrogen and progestin outweighed

the benefits and considerably increased the risk

of stroke, coronary heart disease, and breast

cancer.

 

The mechanism of action for black cohosh is

thought to be via action on control centers in

the brain and vascular system rather than through

any estrogenic effect. According to detailed

review of clinical and pre-clinical data black

cohosh appears to be safe even in women at risk

for breast cancer as well as breast cancer

survivors. This position was bolstered even

further in 2004 as a study in human breast cancer

cell lines showed black cohosh extract exerts no

proliferative activity on these cells, but

actually promotes both estrogen receptor positive

and estrogen receptor negative breast cancer

cells to commit cellular suicide (apoptosis).

 

Reference: Hostanska K, Nisslein T, Freudenstein

J, Reichling J, Saller R. Cimicifuga racemosa

extract inhibits proliferation of estrogen

receptor-positive and negative human breast

carcinoma cell lines by induction of apoptosis.

Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2004 Mar;84(2):151-60.

 

Combination of glucosamine and MSM superior to

either alone in treating osteoarthritis

 

In a double-blind clinical trial, 118 patients

with mild to moderate osteoarthritis were treated

three times daily with either 500 milligrams of

glucosamine, 500 milligrams of MSM, a combination

of both, or an inactive placebo. After 12 weeks

of treatment, the average pain score had fallen

from 1.74 to 0.65 in the glucosamine-only group;

1.53 to 0.74 in the MSM-only group, and 1.7 to

0.36 in the combination group. The researchers

also found that the combination treatment had a

faster effect on pain and inflammation compared

to glucosamine alone.

 

Reference: Usha PR, Naudu MUR. Randomised,

double-blind, parallel, placebo-controlled study

of oral glucosamine, methylsulfonylmethane and

their combination in osteoarthritis. Clin Drug

Invest 2004;24:353-63.

 

Antioxidant supplementation reduces risk for Alzheimer's disease

 

Combined use of both vitamin C and vitamin E was

associated with a dramatic 78% reduced prevalence

of Alzheimer's disease in a population based

study. This finding is not unexpected as the

damage to the brain in Alzheimer's disease is

believed to be the result of significant

oxidative damage. The finding that there was no

protection associated with use of either vitamin

E or C alone is not surprising and once again

highlights the importance of using a combination

of antioxidant nutrients versus any single

antioxidant.

 

Reference: Zandi PP, Anthony JC, Khachaturian AS,

et al. Reduced risk of Alzheimer disease in users

of antioxidant vitamin supplements. Arch Neurol

2004;61:82–8.

 

Long-term study shows CLA effective as weight loss aid

 

Supplementation with conjugated linoleic acid

(CLA) at a dosage of 4.5 grams per day was shown

in a 12-month double-blind study to help

overweight adults decrease body fat mass and

increase lean body mass by as much as 9 percent.

This 2004 study, is the first to clearly

establish the efficacy of CLA supplementation in

over an extended time period without changes in

exercise or diet.

 

Reference: Gaullier JM, Halse J, Hoye K,

Kristiansen K, et al. Conjugated linoleic acid

supplementation for 1 y reduces body fat mass in

healthy overweight humans. Am J Clin Nutr. 2004

Jun;79(6):1118-25.

 

Even brief exposure to statin drugs lower CoQ10 levels

 

The fact that cholesterol-lowering drugs in the

statin family like Lipitor and Pravachol reduce

coenzyme Q10 levels is well-established. In 2004,

a study better quantified this effect. Dosages of

the drug atorvastatin (Lipitor) could cut CoQ10

levels in the blood to well below normal levels.

Researchers also concluded that inhibition of

CoQ10 synthesis by these drugs could explain the

most commonly reported adverse effects,

especially fatigue and muscle pain.

 

Reference: Rundek T, Naini A, Sacco R, Coates K,

DiMauro S. Atorvastatin decreases the coenzyme

Q10 level in the blood of patients at risk for

cardiovascular disease and stroke. Arch Neurol.

2004 Jun;61(6):889-92.

 

Lutein improves vision in patients with age-related macular

degeneration

 

Lutein is the yellow-orange carotene that has

been shown to offer significant protection

against macular degeneration – the leading cause

of vision loss in the elderly in the United

States and Canada. In 2004, a double-blind study

indicated that 10 mg per day of lutein could

actually significantly improve visual function in

people with existing macular degeneration.

 

Reference: Richer S, Stiles W, Statkute L, et al.

Double-masked, placebo-controlled, randomized

trial of lutein and antioxidant supplementation

in the intervention of atrophic age-related

macular degeneration: the Veterans LAST study

(Lutein Antioxidant Supplementation Trial).

Optometry. 2004 Apr;75(4):216-30.

 

Ginkgo biloba extract continues to show benefits in elderly subjects.

 

Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE) continues to show

impressive clinical usefulness in elderly

subjects. In the most significant study with GBE,

a dosage of only 120 mg per day was shown to

produce a clear demonstrable effect in improving

mood and tasks of everyday living in elderly

subjects.

 

Reference: Trick L, Boyle J, Hindmarch I. The

effects of Ginkgo biloba extract (LI 1370)

supplementation and discontinuation on activities

of daily living and mood in free living older

volunteers. Phytother Res. 2004 Jul;18(7):531-7.

 

**************

 

Michael T. Murray, N.D., is a graduate of Bastyr

University in Seattle, Washington, and the author

of over 20 books including his latest How to

Prevent and Treat Diabetes with Natural Medicine.

Dr. Murray is Director of Product Development for

Natural Factors Nutritional Products.

 

 

--

 

 

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