Alternative Doctor

Surprise, surprise: a scientific study of scientific studies finds that most are crap! But what if the study that found that most studies are shabby is also shabby and unreliable? (just kidding…) Thing is, we already knew this, didn’t we? I’ve ben saying for nearly forty years that so-called clinical trials are just marketing in disguise. Still, it’s nice to find the industry is trying to do some of its own dirty washing. What got me going? A new analysis of registered clinical trials finds that many are small and of poor quality. Studies of cancer treatments, in particular, often fail to follow the highest standards of medical research, the analysis found, and a full 7% of studies didn’t even bother to mention what their purpose was (required by law), while others failed to provide many important details. “We can see that we can do better,” said report author Dr. Robert Califf, in something of an understatement!

200 blondes, according to the joke. While the blonde bimbo remains a cultural icon, many women subscribe to the idea that blondes have more fun and go so far as to bleach their hair. But what about true blondes? Flaxen hair is a genetic thing, of course. But apparently, not all “blonde genes” are the same. It depends where you are born. The genetic variant that causes many dark-skinned people from the Solomon Islands to have blonde hair is different from the gene possessed by blonde Europeans, the study found. Researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine found that this particular variant is absent in the genomes of Europeans. This proved a bit surprising, because most studies in human genetics only include participants of European descent. That’s pretty lame, scientifically, but we’ll let it pass. The frequency of blonde hair in the Solomon Islands is between 5 percent and 10 percent (those sailors, they get everywhere!)

200 blondes, according to the joke. While the blonde bimbo remains a cultural icon, many women subscribe to the idea that blondes have more fun and go so far as to bleach their hair. But what about true blondes? Flaxen hair is a genetic thing, of course. But apparently, not all “blonde genes” are the same. It depends where you are born. The genetic variant that causes many dark-skinned people from the Solomon Islands to have blonde hair is different from the gene possessed by blonde Europeans, the study found. Researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine found that this particular variant is absent in the genomes of Europeans. This proved a bit surprising, because most studies in human genetics only include participants of European descent. That’s pretty lame, scientifically, but we’ll let it pass. The frequency of blonde hair in the Solomon Islands is between 5 percent and 10 percent (those sailors, they get everywhere!)

Recent research has shed light on the crucial “conversation” between gut microbes and infant genes that appear to help the breast-fed infant make a safe transition from life in the womb to life outside. The study was published April 29, 2012, in the open-access journal Genome Biology reports. This confirms earlier findings that show breast-feeding gooses the developing immune system. It elucidated the chemical chatter between genes in the developing infants and their gut bacteria by comparing the bacterial communities and genes found in the guts of breast-fed vs. formula-fed (cow’s milk) 3-month-olds. The researchers studied the gut microbiome information and gene expression levels in the infant gut; they identified genes involved in immunity and defense with altered expression levels in relation to the gut bacteria in breast-fed infants. Breast-fed babies, it emerged, had more diverse gut biota, but their immune systems were ready primed for it. This was almost paradoxical. The babies’ fecal matter had more of the obnoxious, virulent organisms (including resistance to antibiotics and toxic compounds), yet the infant immune system was well primed and ready to shoot! What seems to happen is that killer defence genes are activated in the young immune system by the challenge of meeting hostile pathogens.

Recent research has shed light on the crucial “conversation” between gut microbes and infant genes that appear to help the breast-fed infant make a safe transition from life in the womb to life outside. The study was published April 29, 2012, in the open-access journal Genome Biology reports. This confirms earlier findings that show breast-feeding gooses the developing immune system. It elucidated the chemical chatter between genes in the developing infants and their gut bacteria by comparing the bacterial communities and genes found in the guts of breast-fed vs. formula-fed (cow’s milk) 3-month-olds. The researchers studied the gut microbiome information and gene expression levels in the infant gut; they identified genes involved in immunity and defense with altered expression levels in relation to the gut bacteria in breast-fed infants. Breast-fed babies, it emerged, had more diverse gut biota, but their immune systems were ready primed for it. This was almost paradoxical. The babies’ fecal matter had more of the obnoxious, virulent organisms (including resistance to antibiotics and toxic compounds), yet the infant immune system was well primed and ready to shoot! What seems to happen is that killer defence genes are activated in the young immune system by the challenge of meeting hostile pathogens.

It would be a bad doctor who said, “So what?” we shouldn’t vaccinate. It needs thinking about carefully in context It appears that deaths from measles are falling rapidly. That’s cause for celebration. Measles is pretty deadly, never forget that. For sure, part of this decline is misdiagnosing the real cause of death. But I accept a genuine decline. The researchers found measles deaths worldwide fell from more than 535,000 in 2000 to around 139,000 in 2010. That’s a pretty big fall off (75% drop). We can’t put everything down to faking results. The big question is: how much of the fall is due to the measles vaccination program? How much of it would happen anyway? It is idle (and stupid) to simply dismiss any benefits, just because the measles vaccine seems very likely implicated in toxic nerve inflammations afterwards. If there is good and there is harm, the question is: do they balance? No deaths is good. Would you rather have no deaths and autism? Or would you rather have the deaths than risk that any medical interference might trigger autism? If you think the answer is easy, you either don’t understand the question, or you are ignorant and prejudiced, in my view. It’s a very difficult epidemiological question and it polarizes even holistic doctors.

It would be a bad doctor who said, “So what?” we shouldn’t vaccinate. It needs thinking about carefully in context It appears that deaths from measles are falling rapidly. That’s cause for celebration. Measles is pretty deadly, never forget that. For sure, part of this decline is misdiagnosing the real cause of death. But I accept a genuine decline. The researchers found measles deaths worldwide fell from more than 535,000 in 2000 to around 139,000 in 2010. That’s a pretty big fall off (75% drop). We can’t put everything down to faking results. The big question is: how much of the fall is due to the measles vaccination program? How much of it would happen anyway? It is idle (and stupid) to simply dismiss any benefits, just because the measles vaccine seems very likely implicated in toxic nerve inflammations afterwards. If there is good and there is harm, the question is: do they balance? No deaths is good. Would you rather have no deaths and autism? Or would you rather have the deaths than risk that any medical interference might trigger autism? If you think the answer is easy, you either don’t understand the question, or you are ignorant and prejudiced, in my view. It’s a very difficult epidemiological question and it polarizes even holistic doctors.

I’ve been telling you this for years. The heavy metal toxicity page is always among the top 2 -3 entry pages for www.alternative-doctor.com Heavy metals cause cancer. There are a number of culprits: arsenic and arsenic compounds, beryllium and beryllium compounds, cadmium and cadmium compounds, nickel compounds and hexavalent chromium (remember the movie “Erin Brockovich”?) A recent study has focused, yet again, on the effects of cadmium and the way it may fuel the growth of some breast cancer cells and encourage them to spread.

I’ve been telling you this for years. The heavy metal toxicity page is always among the top 2 -3 entry pages for www.alternative-doctor.com Heavy metals cause cancer. There are a number of culprits: arsenic and arsenic compounds, beryllium and beryllium compounds, cadmium and cadmium compounds, nickel compounds and hexavalent chromium (remember the movie “Erin Brockovich”?) A recent study has focused, yet again, on the effects of cadmium and the way it may fuel the growth of some breast cancer cells and encourage them to spread.

Kidneys passed around, like cookies on a plate? This grim specter is one step closer. In a rather sensational news story, it was revealed that U.S. doctors were involved in a case where a kidney transplanted into one patient had to be removed but was then successfully transplanted into another patient. Well, “Waste not, want […]

Kidneys passed around, like cookies on a plate? This grim specter is one step closer. In a rather sensational news story, it was revealed that U.S. doctors were involved in a case where a kidney transplanted into one patient had to be removed but was then successfully transplanted into another patient. Well, “Waste not, want […] The post Pass The Kidneys Please! appeared first on Dr. Keith Scott-Mumby.

I’ve never taken any kind of recreational drugs. I was too scared! I regret missing out on the fun but not missing out on the hazards. I’ve had a few friends I knew took cocaine from time to time. I have noticed that cocaine users will sometimes go down suddenly with a cerebral hemorrhage. A friend in […]