FEBRUARY 14, 2019 THE ROSE

There is no better flower to discuss on Valentine’s Day than the Rose. In Shakespeare’s Henry VI there is a piece of text between Plantagenet and Somerset that the Rose is mentioned.

Plantagenet: Let him that is a true born gentleman

From off this brier pluck a white rose with me

Somerset: Let him that is no coward nor no flatterer…

Puck a red rose from off his thorn with me.

The rose is a type of flowering shrub. Its name comes from the Latin word Rosa. The flowers of the rose grow in many different colors. Red for true love, yellow for friends and so on.

The rose was designated the official flower and floral emblem of the United States of America in 1986.

The Rose is a symbol of love on any day but especially on Valentine’s Day. It can also be said a symbol of war and peace all over the world. Each state adopts a State flower—5 states have the Rose as its state flower- New York, Oklahoma, Georgia, Iowa and North Dakota.

Interesting that the Rose has been around for 35 million years. There have been many medicinal or health benefits of the Rose Some Some of these are 1. soothe skin irritation. 2. reduces skin redness, 3. helkps and treats infections, 4. heals cuts, scars and burns, 5. enhances moods and 6. Relieves headache

Did you give someone a Rose today ?

Until tomorrow…

FEBRUARY 13, 2019 HONEYBERRY

I think as a beekeeper and Vice President of the American Apitherapy Society it is appropriate for me to discuss Honeyberry also known as Lonicera caerulea. It is also known the haskap berry, blue-berried honeysuckle, or sweetberry honeysuckle It is a honeysuckle native throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere in countries such as Canada, Japan, Russia, and Poland. Haskap is a deciduous shrub growing to 1.5–2 m tall.

I think we do not hear about Honeyberry as its season coincides with the strawberry season in June. The fruit morphology of this plant is so diverse than fewer than nine species are recognized. Most of the berries are indigo and elongated.

It is s a blue pigmented fruit. Lonicera caerulea contains polyphenol compounds. Other phytochemicals present are proanthocyanides and organic acids These phytochemicals are excellent anti oxidants and have anti tumor or anti cancer properties.

I highly recommend reading The Edible Series: Berries A Global History by Heather Arndt Anderson.

Until tomorrow…

FEBRUARY 12, 2019 NATURAL CANCER CURES

In the last few years there have been more books written on Natural cancer Cures. Recently I purchased and starting reading : Winning the War on Cancer: The Epic Journey Towards a Natural Cure by Slvie Beljanski. Ms Beljanski is not an oncologist, but she doesn’t need to be. She is Vice President of the Beljanski Founation. Her father is the infamous Dr Mirko Beljanski, PhD biologist-biochemist who studied, research and wrote for many years on natural cures for Cancer. He trained at the famous Pasteur Institute. He was a pioneer who was unjustly ostracized by the conventional medical community for his different approaches. He journey was not unlike that of my former medical mentor and partner, the late Robert Atkins when we worked together at his Complimentary Center in NYC.

Her book is a MUST to read. It is an eye opening experience to hear the real truth about the war of cancer. I am proud of her accomplishment in this book. The Beljanski’s herbs, Pao Pereira and Rauwolfa vomitoria which many of my patients have used are regulated by the FDA.

I can relate to her own struggle of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune condition which natural treatment and dietary changes has done more for me than any conventional medicine.

All the information presented in her book shows how the medical and scientific establishments go to all lengths to stop this information from being distributed. Why ? The cancer industry is a money wheel where many profit except the patient most of the time.

Buy this book - contact www.beljanski.org 100 % of the author’s proceeds will be donated to the Beljanski Founation (501 (c)(3) which continues its search for a natural cure to cancer

Until tomorrow…

FEBRUARY 11, 2019 BORON

Boron is a trace mineral that in found in most plants. Specifically not many individuals take separate boron. I have used it to prevent bone loss in post menopausal females and to decrease sex hormone binding protein which will thus then increase testosterone

Boron is found in most fruits and vegetables . It does not appear in meat or meat products. There is no required RDA amount I suggest 3- 6 mg

The root vegetables are rich in boron. I ask patients to eat more cauliflower

Until tomorrow…

FEBRUARY 9-10, 2019 PERSPIRATION

Perspiration is a common body’s response to regulating temperature. If it exceeds the normal there must be other causes which need to be studied. The most common example would be an overactive thyroid , menopausal symptoms, a prolonged fever or some kind of stress or psychological factor.

In Chinese medicine, sweating is caused by a deficiency of qi or yin There are different remedies used for each deficiency. For example peony for yin deficiency and astragalus for qi deficiency

In homeopathy lycopodium is used for excess perspiration as well as calcareous, mercurius ands sulfur. A constitution should be done with these patients

I have seen cypress oil and lavender used for excess sweating.

Until tomorrow…

FEBRUIARY 7, 2019 BENEFITS OF WALNUTS

Walnuts are part of the tree nut family. This food family includes Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts (filberts), macadamia nuts, pecans, pine nuts, and pistachios. They are delicious snacks which can be eaten throughout the day. There are many medicinal benefits to eating walnuts.

Most U.S. adults have yet to discover the benefits of walnuts. A recent study has determined that only 5.5% of all adults (ages 19-50) consume tree nuts of any kind! This small percentage of people actually do a pretty good job of integrating tree nuts (including walnuts) into their diet, and average about 1.25 ounces of tree nuts per day. But the other 94.5% of us report no consumption of tree nuts whatsoever. In a recent look at the nutritional differences between tree nut eaters and non-eaters, researchers have reported some pretty notable findings: on a daily average, tree nut eaters take in 5 grams more fiber, 260 milligrams more potassium, 73 more milligrams of calcium, 95 more milligrams of magnesium, 3.7 milligrams more vitamin E, and 157 milligrams less sodium.

Besides the above, - walnuts provide healthy fats and fiber One cup of walnuts provides 12 grams of protein. This could be your source for omega 3 if you do not eat fish. There are many health benefits:

Eating walnuts may help control type 2 diabetes and reduce your risk of the disease, as the nut may help control your weight. Walnuts might have more direct effects on blood sugar control as well.

Walnuts are an excellent source of antioxidants that can help fight oxidative damage in your body, including damage due to “bad” LDL cholesterol, which promotes atherosclerosis.

In addition to grabbing those almonds, grab some WALNUTS

Until tomorrow…

FEBRUARY 6, 2019 HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE AND ZINC DEFICIENCY

A new study published has linked high blood pressure and zinc deficiency. When I think of a zinc deficiency I usually think of a thyroid condition. For instance, individuals with certain conditions, such as type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease commonly have a zinc deficiency and high blood pressure. Scientists are still unclear whether zinc levels are a cause or an effect of elevated blood pressure

Zinc use in the body was carefully studied in this paper.

Understanding the mechanisms of ZnD-induced BP dysregulation may have important therapeutic impact on hypertension.

The study was published in the American Journal of Physiology December 2018

Until tomorrow…

FEBRUARY 5, 2019 TREPONEMA

Christopher's Columbus crew from 1451-1506 contracted a disease... The French call it "The disease of Naples"

John Gunbeck wrote, "...a disease so cruel, so distressing, so appalling that until now nothing so horrifying, nothing more terrible or disgusting has ever been known to earth."

In 1503, Girolamo Fracastro named the disease after a fictitious shepherd who cursed the God Apollo and was afflicted with a new disease by the angered god ...

Al Capone died of this disease...

Leo Tolstoy had this disease as a teenager, but treated it with arsenic...

There are rumors that Henry VIII, Vincent Van Gogh and Adolf Hitler suffered from this disease...

New York City has reported an increase in the number of cases of this disease... is this due to the use of PREP or Truvada with many not using condoms

THE DISEASE IS CALLED SYPHILIS.

Syphilis has been called the "Great Imitator" or the " Great Masquerader". There is enormous variation in the symptoms giving rise to the two names above. There are three distinct stages of the disease. The first stage, the chancre stage is the earliest clinical sign of the disease. This is a painless lesion usually on the shaft of the penis, but it doesn't have to be on the shaft. After initial contact, the responsible "bug" Treponema pallidum penetrates the mucous membranes. Within hours the Treponema enters the lymph and blood system to cause a systemic reaction. This is long before any other signs appear. In anywhere from 3 - 90 days, the chancre- the painless ulcer appears. I have seen the chancre occur on the lips and the fingers in addition to the penis shaft. If untreated the chancre will disappear in 4 - 8 weeks leaving a scar. Syphilis can be spread by touching or kissing or having oral, anal or vaginal intercourse a person with an active sore.

The second stage develops in 2 - 12 weeks. I have seen 2 cases where the secondary stage appeared 12 months later. Although this is rare it can occur. Patients will present with headache, sore throat, and mild muscle aches. There is an increase in cases of syphilis

I have three theories. One theory is that gay men have stopped using condoms since they feel that HIV can be treated or 'cured' with the use of PREP or TRUVADA. This medication is only for transmission of HIV. Condoms should always be worn Second theory is that a sector of gay men indulge in promiscuous sexual behavior. Third is that many addictions are more common among homosexual versus heterosexual individuals.

I saw an individual with a trunk body rash. He denied any high risk sexual activity. He actually claimed to not have had sex for one year. I gave him antibiotics. I saw the patient four weeks later. He claimed that I had missed the diagnosis of syphilis. How can I even assume he had syphilis if he had been celibate for one year?

After the secondary stage there is a latent or silent period. There are no symptoms of any infection during this phase. In this early latent stage the individual can transmit the disease to others. In the third stage of syphilis the patient is no longer able to transmit the disease to others (4 years after initial contact). Tertiary syphilis afflicts the cardiovascular and nervous systems (especially the brain).

So where are we today? Is syphilis eliminated? The answer is NO. The incidence of syphilis fell from 72 per 100,000 in 1940 to 20 per 100,000 in 1990. In 2004 the incidence was 2.7 per 100,000 . In the last 3 years there has been an increase in the number of reported cases of syphilis. The best way to prevent infection is to advocate sex education and the use of condoms. The history of syphilis (like HIV) indicates discrimination against those with a differing lifestyle. There is a bias that syphilis only occurs in the urban poor, the uneducated, those with little medical care and those with alternate lifestyles. As a society WE NEED TO MOVE ON from such misconceptions.

Education is the key to understanding.... Condom use needs to be discussed

Until tomorrow...