How the Zika Industry Was Born

May 31, 2016

By Dr. Mercola

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would provide $622 million to fight the Zika virus. Yet, by White House estimates, this is "woefully inadequate." They've recommended directing $1.9 billion to fight this latest declared public health emergency.¹

I use the term emergency loosely here, as we've seen these types of overzealous responses before. First, a new threat is revealed. Remember SARS, bird flu, swine flu and Ebola? Or even the measles "outbreak" in 2015?

There was widespread fear, outrage and panic that the disease would sweep across the U.S., affecting populations from border to border. Calls for experimental drugs and vaccines were made and millions, if not billions, of dollars were spent. And for what?

In most cases, the diseases fizzled out on their own, exacting a far less sensational health toll than the media and, often, the government had you believe. In the case of swine flu, for example, the U.S. government ordered 20 million doses of the drug Tamiflu — costing $2 billion — to fight the pandemic that never was.

That drug has a shelf life of three years. Money well spent? Now they're proposing another $1.9 billion to fight Zika — is this a case of history repeating itself?

Zika Virus: From Obscure Mild Illness to Booming Industry Virtually Overnight

Last year at this time, you probably had never heard of Zika virus. And if you had, you probably wouldn't have given it a second thought.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "Most people infected with Zika virus won't even know they have the disease because they won't have symptoms."²

Then the headlines started. Cases of microcephaly, in which babies are born with unusually small heads, in Brazil were said to have surged from an average of about 150 suspected cases of microcephaly annually to more than 4,780 suspected cases from October 2015 to February 2016.

Although there does not appear to be any evidence prior to 2016 suggesting Zika virus might cause birth defects, the rise in microcephaly was blamed on Zika-carrying mosquitoes.

The Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, presumably, have been in Brazil all along — so why is the sudden increase in suspected cases of microcephaly being blamed on that mosquito?

This is but one questionable factor in the Zika virus scare. At this point, Zika virus might be associated with birth defects, but causation has not been definitively proven.

In the U.S., for instance, there are about 25,000 infants born with microcephaly every year. The U.S. is not considered to be a region where Zika virus is endemic and, according to the journal Neurology:³

"Microcephaly may result from any insult that disturbs early brain growth and can be seen in association with hundreds of genetic syndromes."

It may be too soon to rule out Zika virus as a contributing cause, but it's also too soon to declare it a public health emergency and pull out all the stops to wage a very expensive war against it.

The Zika Industry Is Born

Whenever a new health emergency is announced, look to see who stands to profit from its creation. In this case, many players have come out of the woodwork, hoping to get a piece of the (potentially $1.9 billion!) Zika cash cow.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has pledged to gather another $56 million to combat Zika.
Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen also announced two Zika grants totaling more than $2 million, which are going to the American Red Cross to support mosquito-control efforts and education in Brazil and to Chembio Diagnostics Systems, Inc., which is planning to develop rapid tests to diagnose Zika.⁴ As reported by The Vaccine Reaction:⁵

"It seems everybody wants in on the action. It is exciting to be one of the early pioneers in a brand new industry with lots of growth potential, particularly when it has such strong government support and when the prospects for mandated use of the vaccines are so promising … for the industry, that is.

There is already talk about Zika being with us forever and becoming one of those things against which we will routinely vaccinate."

Race to Develop Zika Vaccine Prompts Guillain–Barré Syndrome Concerns

At least 18 companies are racing to develop a vaccine against Zika, but one expert on vaccines combating mosquito-borne diseases, Dr. Thomas Monath, has expressed major concerns.

Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is an autoimmune disease that can cause paralysis. Cases of GBS have been rising in areas reporting Zika outbreaks, and there is some evidence that Zika might be triggering GBS.

The concern is, then, that exposure to Zika virus in a vaccine could trigger GBS as well, even if it's a killed or inactivated form of virus. GBS is already a known vaccine reaction. It's in the process of being added to the official Vaccine Injury Table.
(In order to win uncontested federal compensation for a vaccine injury, a person must prove he or she developed certain clinical symptoms and medical conditions on the table within a certain time frame of receiving a certain vaccine and that there is no more biologically plausible explanation for the vaccine-related injury or death.)

Research published in The Lancet journal suggested exposure to Zika virus may exacerbate the threat of GBS by 20-fold.^6,7

The CDC Is No Longer Credible

" … Practically everyone in the world knows about Zika and believes that the primary cause of babies being born with shrunken heads (microcephaly) and brain damage in Brazil is that their mothers were bitten by the Zika-carrying mosquito while they were pregnant," The Vaccine Reaction reported. "Why does everyone believe that?" they continued.⁸

"Because public health officials at the U.S. Centers for the Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) say so.

Forget that these federal health agencies have provided no solid scientific evidence of a causal relationship. That's beside the point. It's the CDC and NIH."

Yet, time and time again we see evidence that what the CDC says isn't always accurate. In fact, sometimes it's blatantly wrong.

According to documents obtained by USA Today, one CDC-run laboratory had its permit suspended due to serious safety violations while working with viruses, bacteria and toxins (such as anthrax, plague and Ebola) that could be used as biological weapons.

CDC labs have been referred for "secret federal enforcement actions" six times because of serious or repeated violations. USA Today had to win access to the records via a Freedom of Information Act appeal. Prior to that, the CDC refused to answer questions about enforcement histories relating to its own labs.⁹
This isn't the first time the CDC has been involved in safety violations. In 2014, as many as 84 scientists and staff members at a CDC biolab were exposed to live anthrax.
The live pathogen had been sent from a higher-security facility. Biosafety protocols were apparently not followed at either of the facilities. This and subsequent errors, involving H5N1 influenza virus and Ebola mix-ups at CDC labs, led to the creation of an external lab safety advisory group.

A follow-up report released by the advisory group in March 2015 called the CDC's commitment to safety "inconsistent and insufficient" and also pointed out that "laboratory safety training is inadequate."¹⁰ The point is, this is who many Americans are trusting to provide accurate information about circulating viruses and other diseases.

Are There Other Potential Explanations for an Increase in Microcephaly?

It's possible Zika-carrying mosquitoes could be involved, but there are other factors that should be considered as well. For starters, the outbreak occurred in a largely poverty-stricken agricultural area of Brazil that uses large amounts of banned pesticides.

Between these factors and the lack of sanitation and widespread vitamin A and zinc deficiency, you already have the basic framework for an increase in poor health outcomes among newborn infants in that area. Environmental pollution and toxic pesticide exposure have been positively linked to a wide array of adverse health effects, including birth defects. For instance:

• Vitamin A deficiency has been linked to an increased risk of microcephaly¹¹
• The CDC lists malnutrition and exposure to toxic chemicals as known risk factors¹²
• The CDC also notes certain infections during pregnancy, including rubella, cytomegalovirus, toxoplasmosis, and others, are risk factors

Why Isn't the Government Targeting Opioid Addiction, Antibiotic-Resistant Disease and Other Proven Epidemics?

Microcephaly is a devastating birth defect and it's important to uncover its underlying cause. However, the U.S. government's plan to pour money into Zika virus research and vaccine development, i.e., to pour money into Big Pharma, for what is now a theoretical connection and certainly not an epidemic by any means, boggles the mind.

Meanwhile, there is no comparable uproar over existing (and pharmaceutical-caused) epidemics, like opioid addiction. The U.S. government seeks "treatment" for the opioid epidemic without addressing irresponsible prescribing and drug industry marketing or high-level financial conflicts of interest.

The government has also long allowed rampant overuse and inappropriate use of antibiotics, including in agriculture, which has led to rampant cases of antibiotic-resistant disease.

The government didn't "save us" from any of the other public health emergencies in recent years (swine flu, bird flu and Ebola among them), and it's not likely to change its spots anytime soon. What you can bet on, however, is that the government will continue to support the hand that feeds it. Only time will tell if that support will stop at the House bill's $622 million or keep going up to $1.9 billion.

Alberta es una perra espeluznante, pero es un gran cadáver

Alberta, un can sintético de SynDaver, es exhibida durante una conferencia de prensa el martes 31 de mayo de 2016 en Tampa, Florida. Chris O’Meara AP Foto

 

Por TAMARA LUSH Associated Press

TAMPA, Florida, EE.UU.

Alberta la perra no ladra ni muerde, no tiene piel ni pelo, pero sí sangra. Francamente, es desagradable a la vista.
Pero al parecer es un excelente cadáver.

Alberta es un can hecho por completo de material sintético, creado para ofrecer a estudiantes de veterinaria cuerpos anatómicamente correctos para prácticas quirúrgicas. Y aunque parece que salió de una pesadilla, con todo y sus ojos saltones y dientes a la vista, este producto está diseñado para reemplazar a los animales de albergue sacrificados en los cuales practican muchos veterinarios.

 

"Los cadáveres de animales son malos, no sólo porque alguna vez tuvieron vida, sino porque una vez que los tejidos se congelan o preservan, ya no son lo mismo, así que no se sienten igual y no se comportan igual", dijo el doctor Christopher Sakezles, fundador de SynDaver Labs.

"Este producto les dará una experiencia con el tejido más similar a la realidad", dijo.
SynDaver también produce cadáveres humanos sintéticos del mismo material al ajustar polímeros sintéticos hechos de agua, sal, fibra y otros compuestos para que simulen todo tipo de tejidos reales, desde grasa y músculo hasta órganos, venas, piel y hueso.

El martes, la compañía develó su producto más reciente: el can sintético. Y sus empleados ya trabajan para elaborar el primer pedido: 25 perros para la Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria de la Universidad de Florida.
El año pasado, Sakezles convenció a las estrellas del programa de televisión Shark Tank para que le dieran 3 millones de dólares a cambio de 25% de la compañía.

Ese acuerdo se vino abajo, pero los ejecutivos le dijeron a la revista Science que después recaudaron 10 millones de dólares y ahora la compañía busca 24 millones en una campaña de financiamiento en masa.

Los cadáveres de SynDaver, tanto humanos como caninos, son creados con sistemas corporales que funcionan con todo y ritmo cardiaco, sistema circulatorio, pulmones que se inflan y carne que sangra si se corta. La piel es escalofriantemente fría y los órganos de goma son pegajosos al tacto.

Read more here: http://www.elnuevoherald.com/noticias/curiosidades/article80997697.html#storylink=cpy

This new glass platform in China will terrify anyone afraid of heights

Hoverboard in Real Life!

Thailand has designed a plate that absorbs excess calories as you eat

Chopstick portrait

This artist made an elaborate portrait out of 64,000 chopsticks

Boulder above an abyss in Norway

This boulder hangs above a 3,200-foot abyss in Norway

Japanese log riding festival

These men risked their lives for an ancient Japanese log-riding festival

Man rescued after getting head stuck in washing machine.

A fire department in China had to had to cut apart a washing machine after a man got his head stuck in it

Meet the young ‘Spiderman’ from Gaza

Dubbed the Palestinian 'Spiderman', a 12-year-old boy eyes a spot in the Guinness World Records for his contortionist skills

“Sister Tomato”, la drag queen que ha paralizado a todos en China

Sister Tomato

Por Elena Cortés

Esta es “Sister Tomato” o “Shenzhen Superstar Tomato”, una peculiar drag queen, que está causando muchísima sensación en China. Trabaja como bailarina en bares y discotecas. Y sus piernas envidiables, han hecho a más de uno, pararse para tomarle alguna foto o simplemente mirarla y ella confiesa que no le molesta en lo más mínimo. Esta es su divertida historia:

Sister Tomato, vive en Shenzhen, una ciudad del sureste de China. Viste, siempre con ropa extravagante o con “poca ropa”. Y le encanta lucirse por todas las calles rodeadas de multitudes de gente. Confiesa que le gusta ser vista y que espera que su país “deje de ser tan conservador para ciertas cosas”.

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

Como la gran mayoría de artistas, Sister Tomato quiere llegar a ser mundialmente famosa. Y, ¿cómo es que empezó con esta loca misión? Le pidió a un amigo fotógrafo, que le tomará fotos haciendo compras en un supermercado, vestida de drag queen (algo que aún deja en shock a muchos en China).

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

Después, las emocionantes fotos fueron publicadas a través de la conocida red social china, Weibo … Instantáneamente se desató la locura. Le contó a Buzzfeed que hubo comentarios de todo tipo, tanto positivos como negativos.

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

Algunos se impresionaron con su habilidad de dominar tacos altos, y otros alabaron sus piernas largas.Algunos extranjeros la felicitaron. Pero otros cuestionaron su ropa y dijeron que “había cruzado la línea de la decencia social”.

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

Recordemos que China es un país bastante disciplinado y “chapado a la antigua”. Y es por eso que lo que hace Sister Tomato aún es de asombro máximo.

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

“Me siento genial cuando me visto así, a veces cuando escucho música en los centros comerciales me pongo a bailar y las personas se paran para verlo y hacerme fotos:es divertido para todos, luego digo adiós y me voy”

-Sister Tomato a Buzzfeed-

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

Definitivamente, es una drag queen con muchísimo estilo.

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

Sister Tomato / weibo.com

3 Surprising Things That Raise Your Dementia Risk

Recent studies show a link between certain everyday medications and dementia risk

Credit: Getty Images

May 25, 2016

By Beth Levine  Health Writer

From Grandparents.com

(This article previously appeared on Grandparents.com.)

“As many as five million Americans age 65 and older may have Alzheimer’s Disease, and that number is expected to double for every five-year interval beyond age 65.” That’s a statistic from the National Institute of Neurologic Disorders and Stroke.

While Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, it is not the only form. Risk factors for all kinds of dementia include, age, alcohol use, smoking, atherosclerosis, diabetes, hypertension and genetics. In addition, researchers have found some other surprising factors that can heighten your risk:

A recent study published in JAMA Neurology found a correlation between over-the-counter sleep aids and cognitive decline.

Risk Factor No. 1: Anticholinergic Drugs

A recent study published in JAMA Neurology found that a class of drugs called anticholinergics is associated with poorer cognition and changes in brain structure and function. Which drugs are we talking about here? Some you would never suspect: over-the-counter sleep aids, sedating allergy meds such as Benadryl, sedating pain meds like Tylenol PM and prescription meds such as some antidepressants and urinary incontinence treatments. You can find the complete list here.

“We didn’t look at the amount each study participant took; just that they took them. However, we did see the risk heighten in the person who took more than one kind of anticholinergic,” says lead author Shannon Risacher, assistant professor of radiology and imaging sciences at Indiana University School of Medicine.

The hypothesis is that these drugs block the ability of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine to act with the receptors. The study also showed that once people went off these meds, their risk fell to normal levels.

Before you panic, Risacher also points out for now, they have found a correlation between drugs and cognitive decline but have not found definitively that one causes the other. “Don’t go off any prescribed medications without checking with your physician first.

These drugs are used for important reasons, all of which need to be treated in order to have healthy lives. Ask about alternative therapies or have your physician monitor your cognitive function,” she says.

Risk Factor No. 2: Lack of Vitamin D

Researchers have found that, among study participants, older adults with starting blood levels of vitamin D that were below 20 ng/mL had an increased risk of cognitive decline in:

• Episodic memory: Memory of past autobiographical events
• Semantic memory: Memory of specific learned facts or general knowledge
• Visuospatial ability: The ability to orient objects in the space around you using visual cues (tthis involves depth perception, the ability to find one’s way home and reading, among other things)
• Executive function: Reasoning, problem solving, planning and following directions

“It is unknown if vitamin D supplements will slow or prevent cognitive decline — randomized control trials are needed to test this. In the meantime, older adults with low vitamin D status, in consultation with their doctor, should consider vitamin D supplements, which are relatively safe, presuming the upper tolerable limit of 4000 IU per day is not exceeded,” says study researcher Joshua W. Miller, professor and chair of the

Department of Nutritional Sciences at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey.
If you prefer natural sources, Vitamin D is found in:

• Fatty fish (tuna, mackerel, swordfish and salmon)
• Foods fortified with vitamin D, such as dairy products, orange juice, soy milk, yogurt and cereals
• Beef liver
• Cod liver oil
• Swiss cheese
• Egg yolks

Risk Factor No. 3: Heartburn Meds

Heartburn medications with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are among the most commonly used drugs worldwide, but a German study has found a possible link among older adults between dementia and PPIs such as Prilosec and Prevacid. (You can read the complete medication list here.) The study concluded that “the avoidance of PPI medication may prevent the development of dementia.”

Dr. Lewis Kuller, professor and past chair of the Department of Epidemiology at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, urges a measured response, explaining, “This is a good study, based on solid science. However, we don’t know yet if the relationship is because PPIs lead to dementia, or that that the people who take these meds may be at higher risk for dementia anyway — smokers, heavy drinkers, obesity.”

So what’s a person do after a night of too many tacos Guadalajara? “Be prudent,” says Kuller. “You shouldn’t stop taking these medications without speaking with your physician first, but you should be wary about taking them in the long term. If you need the drug, use it, but don’t take it just for mild symptoms.

The 'Garage Sale Millionaire' who made his fortune selling people's cast-offs says you can't skip this step before listing anything for sale

Courtesy of Aaron LaPedis

Kathleen Elkins

May 30, 2016,

When Aaron LaPedis was 10 years old, his mom made him a deal: If he helped his parents with a garage sale and sold his old toys, he could use whatever money he earned to buy new ones.

Around midafternoon, his parents went inside to make lunch, leaving LaPedis in charge of the garage sale.
"My parents came out literally 45 minutes later and my pockets were full of cash," he told Farnoosh Torabi on an episode of her "So Money" podcast. "And they were so proud of me ... until that night when they walked around the house and found half of their furniture gone."
Young LaPedis was hooked on buying and selling.

Today, the self-made millionaire and author of the best-seller "The Garage Sale Millionaire" has accumulated a small fortune finding interesting stuff and reselling it on eBay or Craigslist or directly to individuals. He once bought a tin toy from the early 20th century for $12 and flipped it on eBay for nearly $1,000.
If you want to list something for sale, there's one step you can't skip before doing so, the expert told Torabi:  

Know exactly what you have and what it's worth.
"Every day, people mislist what they have, because they're such in a rush to put stuff on eBay," he said. "They don't take their time. If you don't know what you have, don't sell it until you do."

He gives the example of animation art. Back in the day, thousands of drawings — called sericels — went into one hour of cartoons or an animated flick, and afterward animation studios would sell one-off drawings as art to eager fans.

A sericel today isn't worth much. They'll go for about $150, LaPedis says. But sometimes what people assume is a sericel is worth much more, he says: "I've seen lots of cels that weren't sericels — they were actually hand-painted, limited-edition cels ... so instead of being worth $150, they're worth $1,500 or $3,000. It's just that minor nuance that people wouldn't even think to look for."

Bottom line: Don't jump the gun. Before listing anything for sale, know exactly what you have.

A disease that causes debilitating exhaustion affects more than a million Americans, and no one's addressing it

vicariousdancin/Flickr Creative Commons

• Rivka Solomon, STAT

• May 27, 2016,

It started with a bout of mononucleosis. Two college roommates and I got it at the same time. They felt better after a month. I didn’t.

Decades later, I’m still living with bone-penetrating exhaustion and brain fog as thick as pea soup. I spent much of my 30s and 40s tethered to my bed, too weak to function. I’ve had to abandon both my career in international relations and my social life.

My mono had morphed into something more permanent, a neuroimmune disease the World Health Organization calls myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME). It affects between 1 million and 2.5 million Americans and 17 million people worldwide.

It’s a disease that can force you to put your life on hold. According to the Institute of Medicine, it can reduce an individual’s ability to function more than heart failure, multiple sclerosis, or end-stage kidney disease. There’s no generally accepted diagnosis for ME. It can take up to five years to be accurately diagnosed, and up to 90 percent of people with it are never accurately diagnosed. Worse still, the FDA hasn’t given the green light to any treatments for it.

Those of us with ME have long hoped the government would come to our aid. Instead, in 1988 it gave the disease a new name, chronic fatigue syndrome, that stigmatizes people with this condition. And the National Institutes of Health has generally looked the other way. Year after year, the NIH has set aside a paltry $5 million to $7 million of its $30 billion annual budget for ME research. Compare that with the $100 million set aside for research on multiple sclerosis, which affects about 400,000 Americans.

Labelling ME as chronic fatigue syndrome gives doctors, the media, the public, and even family members permission to assume individuals are exaggerating, that we’re simply refusing to pull it together. With such a name, who could fault folks for thinking we just need to take a nap, some fish oil, and a vigorous walk? This type of thinking has led to individuals with ME, some too sick to care for themselves, being abandoned by both disbelieving families and physicians.

Last October, two things seemed poised to break the logjam of government neglect and stigmatizing research. First, investigative journalist and public health expert David Tuller successfully debunked the PACE study, a randomized trial that had cemented the widely held but erroneous belief that ME is a psychological disorder rather than a physical illness. Tuller’s work showed that the many flaws in the trial’s methodology seriously undermined the credibility of the treatments it supported — cognitive behavior therapy and graded exercise therapy.

The investigation prompted 42 scientists and experts from Columbia, Harvard, Stanford, Berkeley, and elsewhere to release an open letter to the Lancet supporting Tuller’s analysis and demanding an independent analysis of the trial.

As any ME patient can tell you, behavior or talk therapy and pushing yourself physically won’t make you well. In fact, exercise often causes me to relapse, requiring weeks or months of home-bound bedrest. Telling an ME patient to exercise is dangerous, tantamount to prescribing sugar to a diabetic.

Also last October, the federal government promised to bolster research on what it now calls ME/CFS. Many of us thought this condition would finally get the type of government attention and funding offered to multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease, two other neurological diseases also without a known cause or cure.

Unfortunately, half a year later, the government falls short in making a serious commitment to ME. The NIH’s offering in the last six months includes one study of just 40 ME/CFS patients that will take at least two years to complete and some supplemental research money to expand grants already awarded.

In an effort to get on the US Department of Health and Human Services’s radar, ME patients and their caregivers will stage a protest, #MillionsMissing, at various cities around the country on May 25. What’s missing are millions of dollars of federal research funds into ME and millions of patients missing out on their own lives, from attending school to climbing the career ladder to simply spending time with family and friends.

Of course, many of us are too sick to attend the protests in person. We’ll be there in spirit — with empty pairs of our shoes symbolically standing in for us — as we advocate for our lives from our beds.

Rivka Solomon is a Massachusetts advocate for myalgic encephalomyelitis who is helping coordinate the #MillionsMissing protest. She is working on a book about her quarter century with the disease.

Se somete a aumento de busto sin imaginar el martirio que le esperaba…

Tres años después de la intervención, Linda Pérez (21) continúa sufriendo los estragos de la operación


Foto: (Facebook y WSVN)

La vida de Linda Pérez cambió en cuestión de minutos

Han pasado casi tres años del día en que Linda Pérez (21) se sometió a una cirugía de aumento de busto en Coral Glabes Cosmetic Center, en Miami, Florida. Pero, los terribles efectos de la operación de áquel 12 de agosto de 2013 persisten.

Cinco minutos luego de iniciado el procedimiento, la chica –con 18 años en ese momento – comenzó a sentir los cambios: su presión arterial y sanguínea bajó repentinamente. En cuestión de segundos, no podía respirar y quedó inconsciente. Los intentos por 30 minutos de reanimarla no fueron efectivos y  tuvo que ser  transportada en ambulancia al Mercy Hospital. Allí estuvo en estado comatoso por semanas.
Perez sufrió daño cerebral severo, por lo que no podía moverse ni hablar cuando la dieron de alta de la institución.

Actualmente, la mujer – madre de un niño de 6 años – continúa sufriendo las secuelas de la mala práctica.
Ha aumentado un poco de peso, pronuncia algunas palabras y se mantiene de pie  por segundos. Pero la realidad es que la chica nunca se va a recuperar por completo, según anticiparon los médicos.

En una entrevista esta semana con el Miami Herald, su madre, Mariela Díaz, exhortó a las mujeres a no someterse a este tipo de procedimientos.
“Nadie quisiera vivir ni una pequeña parte de lo que yo he vivido”, indicó Díaz al rotativo. “Yo le digo a las hijas y a las madres que lo piensen antes de ir a estas clínicas, porque nunca se sabe cómo van a terminar. Deben aceptar lo que tienen naturalmente”, argumentó.

Dr. Mario Albert Díaz fue el médico que atendió a Pérez. La madre dijo que el nombre del doctor no aparecía en la lista que suministra la clínica en su página web.

No fue hasta después de la intervención, que la familia supo que el hombre cumplió 30 años en prisión federal por tráfico de drogas.

Tras una queja administrativa del Departamento de Salud del estado, a principios de año, el cirujano pagó $10,000 en multas y otros $11,288 por los costos investigativos en los que incurrió la agencia.

Sin embargo, su licencia, actualmente, se mantiene activa, ya que cumplió el requerimiento de  completar un curso de la Asociación Médica de Florida antes de 15 de diciembre de 2016.

La familia inició una campaña en GoFundMe para costear el tratamiento de la joven.

Linda Pérez antes de la operación. (GoFundMe)

La joven después de la operación, junto a su madre Mariela Díaz. (GoFundMe)

Fue al hospital a tener a su octavo hijo. Luego de un coma de 5 días despertó sin ambas piernas

 

Por Ignacio Mardones

Ella Clarke tiene 31 años, es madre de 8 niños y está pasando por un momento realmente trágico en su vida. La felicidad de traer al mundo a su octavo bebé, se vio empañada al darse cuenta de que había perdido sus piernas en la operación.

Ahora ella está demandando al hospital y espera que le dan una buena respuesta. El caso se ha difundido en las redes sociales, esta es su dramática historia:

Clarke tenía 36 semanas de embarazo, de pronto comenzó a sangrar y tuvo que ser internada de inmediato en el hospital. Los médicos le dijeron que el bebé estaba bien, pero que debía ser ingresada al área de cesárea.

 SWNS

Su hija, Winter Rose, nació bien y sin complicaciones. Sin embargo, Ella tuvo problemas, ya que anteriormente había tenido otros partos por cesárea. La mujer perdió 6 litros de sangre, recibió 5 transfusiones y los doctores la indujeron a un coma de 5 días. Al despertar pensaba que recién había salido del pabellón, entonces los doctores le dieron la noticia: había perdido sus piernas.

 
  SWNS

“Recuerdo el momento. Pensé que estaba saliendo del área de cesárea. Esperaba que alguien me pasara a mi hermoso bebé. No tenía idea que había estado en coma. En vez de eso, los doctores me dijeron que me habían amputado las piernas”. 

-Ella Clarke (a Mirror)-

Ahora Ella y su pareja están tomando acciones legales contra el hospital. Dicen que la amputación podría haberse evitado, ya que cuando se le indujo al coma debía ser vigilada constantemente para evitar señales de coagulación. Los doctores se olvidaron del asunto y el personal no la asistió como debía, fue así como se llegó a un momento crítico.

 
 SWNS

Transcurrido un tiempo, Ella tenía coágulos en las piernas y sus tejidos estaban liberando toxinas que podrían haber hecho que su corazón se detuviera. Entonces, los médicos tomaron la decisión de cortarle las extremidades.

 

 
  SWNS

“Cuando los doctores me dijeron lo que iban a hacer, mi corazón se detuvo, pero estoy feliz de que haya sobrevivido. Ahora tengo que estar más presente en el hogar. Lo haré todo para recuperar nuestra alegría”.

-Ian Clarke, el esposo (a Mirror)-

“Mi hijo de 5 años no me podía mirar cuando estaba sin la sábana de lo asustado que estaba, y mi hija mayor comenzó a empeorar en la escuela. Mi familia se desmoronaba y no había nada que yo pudiera hacer”.

-Ella Clarke (a Mirror)-

El hospital ha revelado que es cierto que el equipo olvidó chequear sus piernas por 6 horas. Todavía no se sabe cómo terminará el caso.
Esperemos que la familia pueda reconstruirse…

1 in 5 People Unknowingly Have Fatty Liver Disease, Here are the 10 natural remedies you Need to Know

People who have consumed alcohol heavily in their life are at an increased risk of suffering from liver problems, such as alcoholic liver disease.

Yet, those who do not drink alcohol excessively may also experience a liver disease, known as a non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

It may range in severity, and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is the condition when there is an inflammation of the liver, which is really serious and might lead to cirrhosis and end-stage liver disease.
Statistics suggests that more than twenty percent of the population in the United States is affected by NAFLD, and 2-3% by NASH. In the case of NAFLD, patients do not have any symptoms or very little, such as weight loss, malaise, fatigue, and pain in the upper right abdomen
.
NAFLD occurs in the case of fat accumulation in the liver, which is not a result of alcohol, but the reason may be malnutrition, insulin resistance, rapid weight loss, diabetes, high cholesterol, viral hepatitis, and some medications like aspirin, diltiazem, corticosteroids, amiodarone, tetracycline, or antiviral drugs.
The treatment of NASH and NAFLD tends to remove the potential causes, or risk factors, like weight loss, stopping the use of drugs, or diabetes control.

Drug treatments have been shown to fail to treat the issue but include ursodeoxycholic acid, glucagon, metformin, glutamine infusion, and metronidazole.
Moreover, there are natural treatments for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which have provided excellent effects, such as:

1. Low-glycemic diet

In order to treat and prevent this disease, it is of great help to avoid high-glycemic-index (GI) foods, as they raise blood sugar levels, like brown rice, potatoes, watermelon, and processed foods such as beer,  chocolate bars, and sweetened cereals.

A 2008 study published in the Canadian Journal of Gastroenterology showed that sugar leads to NAFLD, and 80% of NAFLD patients consumed sufficient amounts of juices and soft drinks that equaled 12 teaspoons of sugar.

Therefore, you should consume low GI foods, like onions, apples, garlic, eggs, legumes, pears, artichokes, broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, carrots, and green leafy vegetables.

2. Exercise

One of the most effective treatments for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is weight loss. According to a systematic review published in the Journal of Hepatology in 2012, exercise is an inexpensive and effective therapy for NAFLD.

Namely, this review involved 12 studies that examined the effects of aerobic exercise and progressive resistance training in the case of a non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in adults.
40 minutes of moderate to intense aerobic exercise for 5 days in a week effectively helps in the treatment of this disease, as it will enhance the liver quality and balance enzyme values.

3. Flaxseed

Flaxseed contains phytoconstituents which effectively prevent harmful hormones straining the liver.
The journal Lipids in Health and Disease published a 2013 study which indicated that the mixture of flaxseed oil and alpha-lipoic acid improve the function of the liver and prevent fat accumulation and oxidative stress, so it protects from this disease.

For best effects, in order to preserve the freshness of flaxseed oil, and avoid rancidity, you should ground it using a coffee grinder. Then, you can add it to your salads.

4. Dandelion

Dandelion leaf or root (Taraxacum officinale) is an extremely beneficial as it enhances liver functions and cleanses it in the cleanses it in the case of NAFLD. It purifies and metabolizes the fat deposited in the liver.
The journal Food and Chemical Toxicology published a study which discovered that the extract of dandelion leaf prevent and treat obesity-related NAFLD, and efficiently reduces the accumulation of fat in the liver and lowers insulin resistance.

The tea of dandelion root is of great help in this case. You should add a teaspoon in a cup of boiling hot water, cover and steep for 10 minutes. Then, strain and drink a cup of it 3 times a day for 3 weeks.

5. Cilantro

Cilantro or coriander (Coriandrum sativum) is an effective herbal treatment, which is high in antioxidants and has powerful antihyperglycemic effects. It provides great effects in the case of liver issues, and conditions linked to NAFLD, especially diabetes.

6. Amla or Indian gooseberry

Indian gooseberry (Emblica Officinalis), or amla, Amalaki fruit, is a popular herb in the Ayurvedic medicine, that has powerful rejuvenating properties and is extremely useful in treating fatty liver disease and diabetes.

It is rich in antioxidants which support the function of the liver, such as ellagic acid, vitamin C, corilagin, gallic acid, and gallotannin. It has also been found to help in the case of hepatotoxin-induced liver inflammation, which is a common symptom of NASH.

7. Milk thistle

Milk thistle (Silybum marianum) is believed to be one of the most beneficial herbal remedies to prevent NAFLD and improve the function of the liver. Its flavonoids prevent liver damage, detox the body, and raise the levels of glutathione in the liver.

Glutathione is an essential component for a low function of the liver in the case of NAFLD.
Research has also shown that it is also beneficial for various other liver ailments, like cirrhosis, alcoholic hepatitis, viral hepatitis, and chemical toxicity. Experts recommend drinking of 900 milligrams twice daily with meals.

8. Licorice root

Licorice root (Glycyrrhiza glabra) is very useful in the treatment of NAFLD. It is also commonly used in the Ayurvedic medicine. The journal Phytotherapy Research published a double-blind, randomized study in 2012, who found that the extract of licorice root greatly reduced liver enzymes in 66 patients with NAFLD.
You should pour boiling water over a teaspoon of licorice root powder, let it steep for 10 minutes, strain and enjoy your licorice root tea 1-2 a day.

9. Cinnamon

Cinnamon (Cinnamomum seylanicum) is a warming herb which aids digestion and supports liver health. Nutrition Research published a double-blind, placebo-controlled study in 2014, which involved 50 NAFLD patients who randomly took either two capsules of cinnamon or two placebo capsules daily, for 3 months. Researchers found that the consumption of 1,500 milligrams of cinnamon on a daily basis improves NAFLD.

10. Turmeric

Turmeric (Curcuma longa) has an extremely beneficial active component, curcumin, which effectively treats liver diseases and jaundice. This amazing spice also lowers the inflammation, oxidative stress, changes fat metabolism, and improves insulin sensitivity, so it reduces liver injury and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Moreover, it efficiently treats liver cancer, known as hepatocarcinoma, and liver fibrosis. You can prepare a turmeric tea, or simply add it to your meals, and enjoy its health benefits.

Here we will suggest some effective ways to prevent liver disease in a completely natural, and safe way. Moreover, these tips will also be of great help in the case of a liver transplant:

Limit the intake of saturated fat: You should focus on a diet high in whole foods and nutrients, in order to strengthen the immune system and prevent liver disease.

Avoid alcohol: You should avoid alcohol consumption even if you suffer from the non-alcoholic variety of the disease. Note that some drugs and cough syrups also contain alcohol.

Avoid processed foods:  Processed foods and ingredients like corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are extremely harmful. HFCS creates uric acid that leads to high blood pressure, liver damage, and gout.

Furthermore, GMO foods like corn damage the good gut bacteria and impede digestion, which destroys the proper function of the liver.
Avoid harmful drugs: Your liver may also be damaged by the use of excessive amounts of acetaminophen (Tylenol).

Pregnancy precaution: It is recommended that women who had a liver transplant should avoid pregnancy for at least 1 year after it, and should avoid breastfeeding due to possible risks of the baby to be exposed to immunosuppressive medicines through the milk.

Undergo liver enzyme tests: It is advisable that you do liver enzyme tests if you have fatty liver disease.
Avoid receiving live virus vaccines: Note that people who have undergone a liver transplantation ought not to receive live virus vaccines.

Moreover, there are also some natural remedies which have proved to be extremely helpful in the case of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, including carnitine, green tea, folic acid, betaine, bile salts, choline, vitamin E, papaya, vitamin B6, grape seed extract, vitamin B12, barberry, vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol), ginger, pine bark extract, S-Adenosyl methionine (SAM-e), cascara sagrada, southern ginseng, and goldenseal.

Source: www.healthyadviceteam.com

Cuando las ganas de aprender lo pueden todo

¿Cómo era tu camino hacia la escuela?

China’s new giant of science - the world’s largest radio telescope

China unveils 'Transit Elevated Bus' concept.

America's Contaminated Water

Flint Michigan is not the only city in America to have contaminated water

Do Not Spend Money on Medication For High Blood Pressure And Cholesterol, Try This Old Recipe

The Amish people are well known for their strict way of life. Modern technology and medicine aren’t included. They live in harmony with the nature and they only prepare natural remedies to treat many diseases.

Among many, one of the most powerful traditional preparations is the famous Amish recipe that can cure many diseases and it can strengthen your immune system at the same time!

It’s a recipe which will help you reduce high blood pressure and high cholesterol. It is easy to make, and it is made from ingredients available in your own home. You only need to use it for 7 days!

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon of honey
• 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
• 1 clove of garlic (grated)
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
• Grated ginger (1 piece)

Method of preparation:
Mix all ingredients in a blender for half a minute at high speed. Next, strain, and store the remedy in the fridge for 5 days.

Use:
Take a tablespoon of this miraculous remedy in the morning, before you have your breakfast, and another tablespoon in the evening, before your dinner.

Note that you should not consume it more than three times during the day.
This remedy will strengthen and energize your body, and will successfully solve your hypertension and high cholesterol issues.

7 Factores Que Debe Considerar Si le Dicen Que Su Colesterol Está Muy Alto

Por el Dr. Mercola

Cuando inicié mi práctica médica a mediados de los ochentas, muy rara vez se hablaba sobre el miedo sobre tener niveles elevados de colesterol al menos que su nivel de colesterol sobrepasara los 330.

Sin embargo, después de algunos años, el colesterol ha llegado a ser conocido como algo que debe mantener lo más bajo posible, o si no, sabemos que sufriremos las consecuencias. Hoy en día, la grasa alimentaria y el colesterol aún son normalmente considerados como los peores alimentos que podría consumir.

Esto es una desgracia, ya que estos mitos realmente dañan nuestra salud.¹ El colesterol es una de las moléculas más importantes en nuestro cuerpo; es indispensable para la construcción de células y producción de estrés y de hormonas sexuales, así como de la vitamina D.

Debido a que la hipótesis sobre el colesterol es falsa, las terapias recomendadas, como una dieta baja en grasa y en colesterol, y medicamentos para bajar el nivel del colesterol, hacen más daño que bien.

Por ejemplo, el tratamiento con estatinas,  es altamente dañino, costoso, y ha convertido a millones de personas en pacientes cuya salud es impactada de manera adversa por el medicamento. Como dice el Dr. Frank Lipman en su destacado artículo:²

“La profesión médica está obsesionada con la disminución del colesterol debido a teorías erróneas acerca de éste y sobre las enfermedades cardiacas.

¿Por qué querríamos disminuirlo si las investigaciones,³ de hecho, muestran que tres cuartos de las personas que padecen un primer ataque al corazón, tienen niveles normales de colesterol, y cuando la información de más de 30 años del famoso estudio Framingham Heart⁴ mostró que en la mayoría de los grupos de distintas edades, el colesterol alto no estuvo relacionado con más muertes?

De hecho, en las personas mayores, la muerte es más común con un nivel de colesterol bajo. Las investigaciones son claras, la estatina se prescribe basándose en una hipótesis incorrecta, y no es inofensiva."

En este artículo, el Dr. Lipman habla sobre siete cosas que necesita saber al tener una conversación con su doctor acerca de sus niveles de colesterol. Para los principiantes, es importante entender que la idea convencional de que el colesterol causa enfermedad cardiaca está basada en investigaciones seriamente defectuosas.

#1: Investigaciones Defectuosas Sobre el Colesterol Han Hecho un Daño Incalculable…

Por ejemplo, tenemos el estudio,⁵ de Siete Países en 1953 del Dr. Ancel Keys en el que se relaciona el consumo de grasa alimentaria con las enfermedades coronarias. Cuando Keys publicó el análisis en el que aseguraba probar esta relación, utilizó selectivamente información de sólo siete países, a pesar de tener datos disponibles de 22.

Los estudios que excluyó eran aquellos que no concordaban con su hipótesis preconcebida. Una vez que se analiza la información de los 22 países, la correlación desaparece. Además, según afirma el Dr. Lipman:

“Las actuales ideas convencionales sobre el colesterol se basan en gran parte en un estudio influyente pero erróneo de los años sesentas, que concluía que los hombres que consumían mucha carne y lácteos tenían niveles altos de colesterol y enfermedad cardiaca.

Esta interpretación echó raíz, lo que origino el conocimiento prevaleciente de los últimos 40 años más o menos: evite las grasas saturadas y sus niveles de colesterol y riesgo de enfermedad cardiaca disminuirán.

Esto ayudó a disparar la avalancha de pseudo alimentos bajos en grasa o sin grasa en el laboratorio y lanzo el negocio multimillonario de los medicamentos para bajar el colesterol con la esperanza de reducir el riesgo a las enfermedades cardiacas. ¿Funcionó? No.

En vez de hacer a las personas más saludables, hemos terminado con una epidemia de obesidad y diabetes que concluirá incrementando los índices de enfermedades cardiacas, lo que está muy lejos del resultado que buscamos."

#2: El Colesterol Es Importante para la Salud

El colesterol, una sustancia suave y cerosa. No solo se encuentra en nuestro torrente sanguíneo sino también en cada una de las células de nuestro cuerpo, donde ayuda a producir membranas celulares, hormonas (como las hormonas sexuales, testosterona, progesterona y estrógenos), y ácidos biliares que nos ayudan a digerir la grasa.

También es importante para la producción de vitamina D, la cual es vital para la salud óptima. Cuando la luz del sol cae directamente sobre la piel, el colesterol se convierte en vitamina D. También actúa como aislante para las neuronas.

El colesterol también es importante para la salud cerebral, y ayuda en la formación de los recuerdos. Se han relacionado los niveles bajos de colesterol HDL con la pérdida de memoria, enfermedad de Alzheimer, y puede también incrementar el riesgo de depresión, derrame cerebral, conducta violenta, y suicidio.

#3: El Colesterol Total No Nos Dice Prácticamente Nada Sobre los Riesgos a la Salud

El hígado crea cerca de tres cuartos o más del colesterol del cuerpo, el cual puede dividirse en dos tipos:

1. Lipoproteína de alta densidad o HDL: se conoce como el colesterol "bueno," que, de hecho, puede ayudar a prevenir la enfermedad cardiaca.
2. Lipoproteína de baja densidad o LDL: Este es el colesterol “malo” que circula en la sangre y que, de acuerdo con las ideas convencionales, puede acumularse en las arterias, lo que forma una placa que las hace estrechas y menos flexibles (aterosclerosis). Si se forma un coágulo en una de estas arterias estrechas que van al corazón o al cerebro, se puede producir un ataque al corazón o un derrame cerebral.

Una vez definidos estos dos tipos de colesterol, es importante decir que en realidad hay un sólo tipo de colesterol.

La división entre el HDL y el LDL se basa en cómo se combina el colesterol con las partículas de proteína. El LDL y el HDL son lipoproteínas, grasas combinadas con proteínas.
El colesterol es soluble en grasa, y la sangre es mayormente agua. Para que pueda ser transportado en la sangre, el colesterol necesita que una lipoproteína lo lleve, las cuales se clasifican según su densidad.

Las partículas grandes de LDL no son dañinas. Sólo las partículas pequeñas y densas de LDL pueden ser potencialmente un problema, ya que se pueden colar a través del revestimiento de las arterias. Si se oxidan, pueden causar daño e inflamación.

Por consiguiente, sería más acertado decir que hay lipoproteínas “buenas” y “malas” (en lugar de colesterol bueno y malo). El Dr. Stephen Sinatra, cardiólogo con certificación del consejo, y Chris Kresser, acupunturista con licencia y médico clínico de medicina integrativa, han abordado este tema en entrevistas anteriores.

Algunos grupos, como la Asociación Nacional de Lípidos, han comenzado a mover su atención del colesterol total LDL al número de partículas de colesterol LDL, para evaluar mejor el riesgo de enfermedad cardiaca. Pero esto aún no ha llegado a los medios de comunicación. Como afirma este destacado artículo:

“Consecuentemente, su sangre puede tener abundantes partículas grandes de colesterol LDL, que son menos alarmantes, y aun así se le prescribirá la estatina. Y con las nuevas y controversiales, y según mi libro dangerous, directrices “amplias” propuestas por el Colegio Americano de Cardiología y la Asociación Cardiaca Americana, esperan que esto suceda aún más.

Las nuevas directrices⁶ harán que alrededor de 15 millones de adultos sean más "elegibles” a tomar estatinas en un intento de bajar sus números con medicamentos, sin importar qué tipo de LDL tengan."

#4: Investigue Más Sobre Sus Factores de Riesgo...

Afortunadamente, una vez que usted conoce los tamaños de las partículas, puede tomar el control de su salud y pedirle a su doctor que le haga el examen, o puede ordenarlo usted mismo. Kresser recomienda utilizar el Lipoperfil NMR. Todos los laboratorios grandes, como LabCorp y Quest, lo ofrecen.

Como los afirma el Dr. Lipman, si su doctor le dice que su colesterol está muy alto basado en el perfil lipídico estandar, es importante obtener una evaluación más completa, especialmente si en su familia hay un historial de enfermedad cardiaca u otros factores de riesgo. El Dr. Lipman escribe:

“Presione a su doctor para que revise y evalúe los otros factores comúnmente omitidos pero que posiblemente son más importantes ya que pueden aclarar más su situación particular, específicamente los exámenes que observan la proteína C reactiva de alta sensibilidad, el tamaño de las partículas de colesterol LDL (a veces llamado Lipoperfil NMR), la lipoproteína y el fibrinógeno sérico.

Estas pistas físicas medibles ayudarán a poner más piezas en el rompecabezas y le permitirán a usted y a su doctor desarrollar un programa personalizado para controlar los riesgos, con o sin medicamento para el colesterol.

Si su doctor no está interesado en investigar debajo del velo médico, entonces puede que sea tiempo de buscar un nuevo doctor."

#5: Sea Muy Precavido con los Estudios a Favor de las Estatinas

La mayoría de los estudios a favor de las estatinas son patrocinados por un fabricante de medicamentos, lo que comúnmente cambiará los resultados a su favor. Y peor aún, los conflictos de intereses se han convertido en la norma, más que en la excepción en la creación de directrices.

Por ejemplo, las normas revisadas y altamente controversiales sobre el tratamiento del colesterol publicadas por la Asociación Cardiaca Americana (AHA, por sus siglas en inglés) y el Colegio Americano de Cardiología (ACC, por sus siglas en inglés) en el 2013 fueron creadas por un número de personas que tenían conflictos de intereses como los siguientes:

• El autor principal, el Dr. Neil J. Stone, es un fuerte partidario del uso de las estatinas y ha recibido honorarios por conferencias de Abbott, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Kos, Merck, Merck/Schering-Plough, Novartis, Pfizer, Reliant y Sankyo. También ha fungido como asesor para Abbott, Merck, Merck/Schering-Plough, Pfizer y Reliant.
• La segunda autora en la lista, Jennifer Robinson, admitió en el 2011 en el New York Times haber recibido dinero de siete compañías para su investigación, entre las cuales se encuentran algunas de las pastillas para el colesterol con mayor venta.
• Otra autora, C. Noel Bairey Merz, recibió honorarios por conferencias de Pfizer, Merck, & Kos, y ha fungido como asesora para Pfizer, Bayer, y EHC (Merck). También ha recibido becas ilimitadas para la continuación de sus estudios médicos de Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, Novartis, Wyeth, AstraZeneca, y Bristol-Myers Squibb Medical Imaging, así como una beca de investigación de Merck. También tiene acciones en Boston Scientific, IVAX, Eli Lilly, Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson, SCIPIE Insurance, ATS Medical y Biosite.

#6: Evalúe su Necesidad Real de un Medicamento para Disminuir el Colesterol

Como lo menciona el Dr. Lipman, los medicamentos para disminuir el nivel de colesterol no son necesarios ni adecuados para la mayoría de las personas, especialmente si el colesterol alto y la longevidad son un rasgo de su familia.

“En cualquier caso, no tema responderle a su doctor y decirle que prefiere evitar las terapias con medicamentos,” escribe. “Asumiendo que no se encuentra en una situación crítica, hable de la posibilidad de un acercamiento más holístico para disminuir sus números a lo que se considera una zona normal o saludable, en base a sus factores de riesgo específicos, no solo por sus niveles de colesterol."

Además de los exámenes mencionados anteriormente, como el lipoperfil NMR, los siguientes pueden hacerle una evaluación mucho mejor de su riesgo a una enfermedad cardiaca que su sólo colesterol total:

• Relación de Colesterol/HDL: el porcentaje de HDL es un factor muy importante en el riesgo de enfermedad cardiaca. Sólo divida su nivel de HDL entre su colesterol total. El porcentaje debe ser idealmente mayor a 24 por ciento.
• Relación de Triglicéridos/HDL: Puede hacer lo mismo con su índice de triglicéridos y HDL. Ese porcentaje debe ser menor a 2.
• Su nivel de insulina en ayunas: Cualquier alimento alto en carbohidratos, como la fructuosa y los granos refinados, generan un incremento rápido de glucosa en la sangre y la insulina debe compensarlo. La insulina liberada por consumir demasiados carbohidratos promueve la acumulación de grasa y hace que sea más difícil para el cuerpo eliminar el sobrepeso. El exceso de grasa, en especial la que se encuentra alrededor de la cintura, es uno de los mayores contribuidores a la enfermedad cardiaca.
• Su nivel de azúcar en la sangre en ayunas: los estudios han mostrado que las personas con niveles de 100-125 mg/dl de azúcar en la sangre en ayunas tienen un riesgo cerca de 300 por ciento más alto de desarrollar una enfermedad coronaria que las personas con un nivel menor a 79 mg/dl.
• Su nivel de hierro: el hierro puede ser un estrés oxidativo muy potente, así que si usted tiene un exceso en su nivel de hierro puede dañar sus vasos sanguíneos e incrementar su riesgo de enfermedades cardiacas. Idealmente, debe monitorear sus niveles de ferritina y asegurarse de que no estén muy por encima de los 80 ng/ml. La forma más fácil de disminuir sus niveles es donando sangre. Si eso no es posible, puede practicarse una flebotomía lo que eliminará efectivamente el exceso de hierro de su cuerpo.

Una nota importante: si usted decide tomar un medicamento de estatina, también debe asegurarse de tomar CoQ10 o Ubiquinol. Una de cada cuatro personas en Estados Unidos mayores a 45 años toman actualmente un medicamento de estatina, y a la mayoría de ellos no se les informa que deben tomar una coenzima Q10 para amortiguar algunos de los efectos secundarios más devastadores del medicamento.

Como lo explicó anteriormente el Dr. Sinatra, las estatinas no solo bloquean las vías de producción de colesterol, sino también varias otras vías bioquímicas, como la de CoQ10 y la de escualeno, la cual según el Dr. Sinatra es esencial para prevenir el cáncer de seno.

La reducción de escualeno causada por la estatina también puede aumentar el riesgo de disfunción del sistema inmune. La reducción de CoQ10 causada por el medicamento es la razón por la cual las estatinas pueden incrementar el riesgo de insuficiencia cardiaca aguda. Así que si usted está tomando un medicamento de estatina, DEBE tomar coenzima Q10 como suplemento. No puede obtener suficiente de ésta a través de su alimentación. El Dr. Sinatra recomienda tomar al menos 100 miligramos (mg), aunque 200 mg de CoQ10 de alta calidad o ubiquinol diarios es preferible.

#7: Concéntrese en Estimular Su HDL

La ciencia sobre las enfermedades cardiacas todavía es muy imprecisa. Como lo dijo el Dr. Lipman: “En última instancia, entre más medidas tome para mejorar su HDL mayores probabilidades tendrá y si pudiera hacerlo sin la necesidad de medicamentos lo resultados serán incluso mejor.”

¿Cuáles son estos pasos exactamente? No hace falta decir que su alimentación tiene mucho que ver y el paso número uno es ignorar el consejo convencional de llevar una alimentación baja en grasas y baja en carbohidratos…

El Dr. Lipman incluye una lista de 10 estrategias que le ayudaran a reducir su riesgo de enfermedad cardiaca, que se adhiere a la perfección a mis recomendaciones. Que incluye:

Reemplace los alimentos procesados (que están cargados con azucares refinados y carbohidratos, fructosa procesada y grasa trans—todo los productos que promueven la enfermedad cardiaca) con alimentos naturales sin procesar o mínimamente procesados, de preferencia orgánicos y cultivados localmente.

Evite las carnes y productos cárnicos como los productos lácteos y las fuentes de huevos provenientes de animales criados en concentraciones de alimentación de animales (CAFO). En cambio, opte por carnes de animales alimentados con pastura y criados de acuerdo con las normas orgánicas.

Elimine los alimentos sin grasa y bajos en grasa y aumente su consumo de grasas saludables. La mitad la población sufre de resistencia a la insulina y se beneficiarían al consumir del 50 al 85 por ciento de sus calorías diarias de grasas saturadas saludables como los aguacates, mantequilla hecha de leche de vacas alimentadas con pastura, coco y aceite de coco, aceites de frutos secos sin calentar, frutos secos sin procesar y carnes de animales alimentados con pastura. Los alimentos sin grasa o bajos en grasa normalmente son alimentos procesados con un alto contenido de azucares, los cuales aumentan sus partículas pequeñas y densas de LDL. Equilibrar su relación de grasas de omega-3 y grasas de omega-6 también es la clave para un corazón saludable, ya que estos ácidos grasos ayudan a construir las células en sus arterias que hacen las prostaciclina que hace que su sangre se mantenga fluyendo sin ningún problema. La deficiencia de omega-3 puede causar o contribuir a muchos problemas de salud, tanto mentales como físicos y podrían ser un factor subyacente de hasta 96,000 muertes cada año.

También necesita una relación idónea de calcio, magnesio, sodio y potasio y todos estos por lo general se encuentran en cantidades abundantes en una alimentación a base de alimentos enteros. Para obtener una buena cantidad de vegetales en su alimentación, considere el jugo de vegetales.

Optimice sus niveles de vitamina D. Algunos investigadores como la Dra. Stephanie Seneff cree que la optimización de la vitamina D a través de la exposición solar adecuada a diferencia de tomar un suplemento oral, podría ser la clave para optimizar su salud. En caso de que opte por un suplemento, también es necesario tomar vitamina K2.

Optimice la salud de sus bacterias intestinales. El consumo regular de alimentos fermentados, como vegetales fermentados, ayudara a resembrar su intestino con bacterias benéficas que podrían desempeñar un papel fundamental en la prevención de enfermedades y un sin número de otros problemas de salud.

Deje de fumar y reduzca su consumo de alcohol.

Haga ejercicio con regularidad. El ejercicio en realidad es una las maneras más seguras y efectivas para prevenir y tratar la enfermedad cardiaca. En el 2013, investigadores de Harvard y Standford revisaron 305 ensayos controlados aleatoriamente y concluyeron que no hubo diferencias estadísticamente detectables entre la actividad física y los medicamentos para la enfermedad cardiaca. El entrenamiento en intervalos de alta intensidad, que requiere de una fracción del tiempo en comparación el cardio convencional, ha mostrado ser especialmente efectivo.

Póngale mucha atención a su salud oral. Hay evidencia convincente que vincula el estado de sus dientes y encías a una variedad de problemas de salud, incluyendo enfermedad cardiaca. En un estudio hecho en el 2010,7 las personas con la peor salud oral aumentaron si riesgo de desarrollar enfermedad cardiaca en un 70 por ciento, en comparación con las personas que se cepillaron los dientes dos veces al día.

Evite los medicamentos de estatinas, ya que los efectos secundarios de estos medicamentos son muchos, mientras que los beneficios son debatibles. En mi punto de vista, el único grupo de personas que se podría beneficia por los medicamentos que bajan el colesterol son las personas con una hipercolesterolemia familiar genética. Esta es una condición caracterizada por el colesterol anormalmente alto, que tiende a ser resistente a disminuir con estrategias en su estilo de vida como la alimentación y el ejercicio.

7 Factors to Consider if You’re Told Your Cholesterol Is Too High

By Dr. Mercola
When I first opened my medical practice in the mid-80s, cholesterol, and the fear of having too high a level was rarely discussed unless your cholesterol level was over 330 or so.

Over the years, however, cholesterol became a household word for something you must keep as low as possible, or suffer the consequences. Today, dietary fat and cholesterol are typically still portrayed as the worst foods you can consume.

This is unfortunate, as these myths are actually harming your health.¹ Cholesterol is one of the most important molecules in your body; indispensable for the building of cells and for producing stress and sex hormones, as well as vitamin D.

Since the cholesterol hypothesis is false, this also means that the recommended therapies—low-fat, low-cholesterol diet, and cholesterol lowering medications—are doing more harm than good.

Statin treatment, for example, is largely harmful, costly, and has transformed millions of people into patients whose health is being adversely impacted by the drug. As noted by Dr. Frank Lipman in the featured article:²

“[T]he medical profession is obsessed with lowering your cholesterol because of misguided theories about cholesterol and heart disease.

Why would we want to lower it when the research³ actually shows that three-quarters of people having a first heart attack have normal cholesterol levels, and when data over 30 years from the well-known Framingham Heart Study⁴ showed that in most age groups, high cholesterol wasn’t associated with more deaths?

In fact, for older people, deaths were more common with low cholesterol. The research is clear – statins are being prescribed based on an incorrect hypothesis, and they are not harmless.”

In his article, Dr. Lipman discusses seven things you need to know when you have a talk with your doctor about your cholesterol level. For starters, it’s important to realize that the conventional view that cholesterol causes heart disease was based on seriously flawed research right from the start.

#1: Flawed Cholesterol Science Has Done Untold Harm...

This includes Dr. Ancel Keys’ 1953 Seven Countries Study,⁵ which linked the consumption of dietary fat to coronary heart disease. When Keys published his analysis that claimed to prove this link, he selectively included information from only seven countries, despite having data from 22 countries at his disposal.

The studies he excluded were those that did not fit with his preconceived hypothesis. Once the data from all 22 countries is analyzed, the correlation vanishes. Moreover, as noted by Dr. Lipman:

“[T]oday’s mainstream thinking on cholesterol is largely based on an influential but flawed 1960s study which concluded that men who ate a lot of meat and dairy had high levels of cholesterol and of heart disease.

This interpretation took root, giving rise to what became the prevailing wisdom of the last 40+ years: lay off saturated fats and your cholesterol levels and heart disease risk will drop.

This helped set off the stampede to create low-fat/no-fat Frankenfoods in the lab and launch the multibillion-dollar cholesterol-lowering drug business in hopes of reducing heart disease risk. Did it work? No.

Instead of making people healthier, we’ve wound up with an obesity and diabetes epidemic that will wind up driving up rates of heart disease – hardly the result we were hoping for.”

#2: Cholesterol Is Important for Health

Cholesterol, a soft, waxy substance, is found not only in your bloodstream but also in every cell in your body, where it helps to produce cell membranes, hormones (including the sex hormones testosterone, progesterone, and estrogen), and bile acids that help you digest fat.

It’s also important for the production of vitamin D, which is vital for optimal health. When sunlight strikes your bare skin, the cholesterol in your skin is converted into vitamin D. It also serves as insulation for your nerve cells.

Cholesterol is also important for brain health, and helps with the formation of your memories. Low levels of HDL cholesterol has been linked to memory loss and Alzheimer's disease, and may also increase your risk of depression, stroke, violent behavior, and suicide.

#3: Total Cholesterol Tells You Virtually Nothing About Your Health Risk

Your liver makes about three-quarters or more of your body's cholesterol, which can be divided into two types:

• High-density lipoprotein or HDL: This is known as the "good" cholesterol, which may actually help prevent heart disease.
• Low-density lipoprotein or LDL: This "bad" cholesterol circulates in your blood and, according to conventional thinking, may build up in your arteries, forming plaque that makes your arteries narrow and less flexible (atherosclerosis). If a clot forms in one of these narrowed arteries leading to your heart or brain, a heart attack or stroke may result.

Having defined those two types of cholesterol, it’s worth noting that there’s really only one kind of cholesterol, as previously explained by Dr. Ron Rosedale below.

The division into HDL and LDL is based on how the cholesterol combines with protein particles. LDL and HDL are lipoproteins -- fats combined with proteins.

Cholesterol is fat-soluble, and blood is mostly water. For it to be transported in your blood, cholesterol needs to be carried by a lipoprotein, which are classified by density.

Large LDL particles are not harmful. Only small dense LDL particles can potentially be a problem, as they can squeeze through the lining of your arteries. If they oxidize, they can cause damage and inflammation.

Thus, it would be more accurate to say that there are “good” and “bad” lipoproteins (as opposed to good and bad cholesterol). Dr. Stephen Sinatra, a board-certified cardiologist, and Chris Kresser, L.Ac, a licensed integrative medicine clinician, have both addressed this issue in previous interviews.

Some groups, such as the National Lipid Association (NLA), are now starting to shift the focus toward LDL particle number instead of total and LDL cholesterol, in order to better assess your heart disease risk. But it still has not hit mainstream. As noted in the featured article:

“Consequently, you may have blood teeming with the less alarming large particle LDL, and still get signed up for a statin. And with the new controversial – and in my book dangerous – ‘wider net’ guidelines proposed by American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association, expect that to happen a lot more. The new guidelines⁶ will make an estimated additional 15 million more adults (plus a few kids as well) ‘eligible’ to take statins in an effort to drug down their numbers, regardless of what type of LDL they have.”

#4: Dig Deeper into Your Risk Factors...

Fortunately, once you know about particle size numbers, you can take control of your health and either ask your doctor for this test, or order it yourself. Kresser recommends using the NMR LipoProfile. All major labs offer it, including LabCorp and Quest.
As noted by Dr. Lipman, if your doctor tells you your cholesterol is too high based on the standard lipid profile, getting a more complete picture is important—especially if you have a family history of heart disease or other risk factors. He writes:

“Press your doctor to review and assess the other often overlooked but possibly more important factors that can shed a brighter light on your unique situation – namely tests which look at hs-C-reactive protein, particle sizes of the LDL cholesterol (sometimes called NMR Lipoprofile), Lipoprotein (a) and serum fibrinogen. These measurable physical clues will help fill in a few more pieces of the puzzle, and enable you and your doctor to develop a more customized program to help manage your risk, with or without cholesterol drugs. If your doc’s not interested in looking under the medical hood, then it may be time to switch to a new mechanic.”

#5: Be Very Wary of Pro-Statin Studies

Most pro-statin studies are sponsored by the drug manufacturers, which will typically skew results in their favor. Worse yet, conflicts of interest have become more of the norm than the exception when guidelines are created. For example, the revised and highly controversial cholesterol-treatment guidelines issued by the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC) in 2013 were created by a number of individuals who had conflicting interests. This includes:

• The lead author, Dr. Neil J. Stone, who is a strong proponent of statin usage and has received honoraria for educational lectures from Abbott, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Kos, Merck, Merck/Schering-Plough, Novartis, Pfizer, Reliant, and Sankyo. He's also served as a consultant for Abbott, Merck, Merck/Schering-Plough, Pfizer, and Reliant.
• The second author listed, Jennifer Robinson, admitted to the New York Times in 2011 that she was taking research money from seven companies, including some top sellers of cholesterol pills.
• Another author, C. Noel Bairey Merz, received lecture honoraria from Pfizer, Merck, & Kos, and has served as a consultant for Pfizer, Bayer, and EHC (Merck). She's also received unrestricted institutional grants for Continuing Medical Education from Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, Novartis, Wyeth, AstraZeneca, and Bristol-Myers Squibb Medical Imaging, as well as a research grant from Merck. She also has stocks in Boston Scientific, IVAX, Eli Lilly, Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson, SCIPIE Insurance, ATS Medical, and Biosite.

#6: Assess Your Actual Need for a Cholesterol-Lowering Drug

As noted by Dr. Lipman, cholesterol-lowering drugs are not required or prudent for the majority of people—especially if high cholesterol and longevity run in your family. “Regardless, don’t be afraid to push back and tell your doc you’d prefer to avoid drug therapies,” he writes. “Assuming you’re not in a mission critical situation, discuss the possibility of trying a more holistic approach to get your numbers down to what is considered a normal or healthy zone based on all of your specific risk factors, not just your cholesterol numbers.”

In addition to the tests mentioned earlier, including the NMR Lipoprofile, the following tests can give you a far better assessment of your heart disease risk than your total cholesterol alone:

• HDL/Cholesterol ratio: HDL percentage is a very potent heart disease risk factor. Just divide your HDL level by your total cholesterol. That percentage should ideally be above 24 percent.
• Triglyceride/HDL ratios: You can also do the same thing with your triglycerides and HDL ratio. That percentage should be below 2.
• Your fasting insulin level: Any meal or snack high in carbohydrates like fructose and refined grains generates a rapid rise in blood glucose and then insulin to compensate for the rise in blood sugar. The insulin released from eating too many carbs promotes fat accumulation and makes it more difficult for your body to shed excess weight. Excess fat, particularly around your belly, is one of the major contributors to heart disease
• Your fasting blood sugar level: Studies have shown that people with a fasting blood sugar level of 100-125 mg/dl had a nearly 300 percent increase higher risk of having coronary heart disease than people with a level below 79 mg/dl.
• Your iron level: Iron can be a very potent oxidative stress, so if you have excess iron levels you can damage your blood vessels and increase your risk of heart disease. Ideally, you should monitor your ferritin levels and make sure they are not much above 80 ng/ml. The simplest way to lower them if they are elevated is to donate your blood. If that is not possible you can have a therapeutic phlebotomy and that will effectively eliminate the excess iron from your body.

An important side note: if you do decide to take a statin drug, you need to make sure you take CoQ10 or Ubiquinol with it. One in four Americans over the age of 45 currently take a statin drug, and most are not told they need to take coenzyme Q10 to buffer against some of the most devastating side effects of the drug.

As previously explained by Dr. Sinatra, statins block not just cholesterol production pathways, but several other biochemical pathways as well, including CoQ10 and squalene—the latter of which Dr. Sinatra believes is essential in preventing breast cancer.

Squalene reduction caused by the statin can also raise your risk of immune system dysfunction. The depletion of CoQ10 caused by the drug is why statins can increase your risk of acute heart failure. So if you're taking a statin drug, you MUST take Coenzyme Q10 as a supplement. You cannot get enough of it through your diet. Dr. Sinatra recommends taking at least 100 milligrams (mg), but preferably 200 mg of high-quality CoQ10 or Ubiquinol daily.

#7: Focus on Boosting Your HDL

The science of heart disease is still imprecise. As noted by Dr. Lipman: “Ultimately, the more HDL-boosting steps you take, the better the odds, and if you’re able to do it without medicating the numbers, so much the better.” What exactly are these steps?

Needless to say, your diet has a lot to do with it, and step number one is to ignore conventional advice to eat a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet. Dr. Lipman includes a list of 10 strategies that will help reduce your risk of heart disease, which dovetail rather precisely with my own recommendations.

This includes the following:

Replace processed foods (which are loaded with refined sugar and carbs, processed fructose, and trans fat—all of which promote heart disease) with whole, unprocessed or minimally processed foods, ideally organic and/or locally grown.

Avoid meats and other animal products such as dairy and eggs sourced from animals raised in confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs). Instead, opt for grass-fed, pastured varieties, raised according to organic standards.

Eliminate no-fat and low-fat foods, and increase consumption of healthy fats. Half of the population suffers with insulin resistance and would benefit from consuming 50-85 percent of their daily calories from healthy saturated fats, such as avocados, butter made from raw grass-fed organic milk, raw dairy, organic pastured egg yolks, coconuts and coconut oil, unheated organic nut oils, raw nuts, and grass-fed meats. No- or low-fat foods are usually processed foods that are high in sugar, which raises your small, dense LDL particles. Balancing your omega-3 to omega-6 ratio is also key for heart health, as these fatty acids help build the cells in your arteries that make the prostacyclin that keeps your blood flowing smoothly. Omega-3 deficiency can cause or contribute to very serious health problems, both mental and physical, and may be a significant underlying factor of up to 96,000 premature deaths each year. For more information about omega-3s and the best sources of this fat, please review this previous article.

You also need the appropriate ratios of calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium, and all of these are generally abundant in a whole food diet. To get more fresh vegetables into your diet, consider juicing.

Optimize your vitamin D level. Some researchers, like Dr. Stephanie Seneff, believe that optimizing your vitamin D level through regular sun exposure, as opposed to taking an oral supplement, may be key to optimizing your heart health. If you do opt for a supplement, you also increase your need for vitamin K2.

Optimize your gut health. Regularly eating fermented foods, such as fermented vegetables, will help reseed your gut with beneficial bacteria that may play an important role in preventing heart disease and countless other health problems.

Quit smoking and reduce your alcohol consumption.

Exercise regularly. Exercise is actually one of the safest, most effective ways to prevent and treat heart disease. In 2013, researchers at Harvard and Stanford reviewed 305 randomized controlled trials, concluding there were "no statistically detectable differences" between physical activity and medications for heart disease. High-intensity interval training, which requires but a fraction of the time compared to conventional cardio, has been shown to be especially effective.

Pay attention to your oral health. There's convincing evidence linking the state of your teeth and gums to a variety of health issues, including heart disease. In one 2010 study,7 those with the worst oral hygiene increased their risk of developing heart disease by 70 percent, compared to those who brush their teeth twice a day.

Avoid statins, as the side effects of these drugs are numerous, while the benefits are debatable. In my view, the only group of people who may benefit from a cholesterol-lowering medication are those with genetic familial hypercholesterolemia. This is a condition characterized by abnormally high cholesterol, which tends to be resistant to lowering with lifestyle strategies like diet and exercise.