Do You Have Leaky Gut Syndrome?

Do You Have Leaky Gut Syndrome?
by Dr. Leo Galland

Because it is something of a mystery disease that can show itself as a bewildering array of other conditions, you could have Leaky Gut Syndrome and not even realize it.

The reason is that Leaky Gut Syndrome is one of the many concepts in medicine that cuts across the boundary lines of specific diseases.

It is a major example of an important medical phenomenon: distress in one organ causes disease in another.

Conditions that Can Signal Leaky Gut Syndrome

Do you have:

Arthritis,

Allergies,

Depression,

Eczema,

Hives,

Psoriasis,

Chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia?

Then you may also have Leaky Gut Syndrome, because it causes or contributes to these conditions.

That’s why getting a better understanding of Leaky Gut Syndrome may help you find a more effective solution to your condition.

I am telling you about Leaky Gut Syndrome because it is a vitally important, but often undiagnosed, condition that is key to recovering from many illnesses and regaining robust good health.

An Integrated Approach to Leaky Gut Syndrome

I’ve been evaluating patients for Leaky Gut Syndrome for over twenty years, and have been writing about my integrated approach to this condition. My article “Leaky Gut Syndromes: Breaking the Vicious Cycles” is available at the Foundation for Integrated Medicine website. 

Through my clinical experience and further research I came to understand how gastrointestinal health in general, and Leaky Gut Syndrome in particular, contributes to many seemingly unrelated conditions.

To share my knowledge and help my colleagues learn more about this important topic I wrote a chapter titled “Integrative Approach to the Gastrointestinal System” for the textbook Integrative Medicine: Principles for Practice in 2004 and authored the book-length monograph Gastrointestinal Dysregulation: Connections to Chronic Disease, in 2008.

I have found Leaky Gut Syndrome especially relevant for many people with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Scientific Research Connects Leaky Gut with Chronic Fatigue and Depression

Recent research from Belgium confirms my observations about Leaky Gut Syndrome and chronic fatigue syndrome and suggests a treatment plan that can alleviate chronic fatigue and also major depression.

The Belgian researchers found that people in their study with either chronic fatigue syndrome or major depressive disorder showed laboratory evidence of Leaky Gut Syndrome, when compared to a healthy control group.

More importantly, they demonstrated that treatment with diet and specific nutrients not only reversed laboratory signs of the Leaky Gut Syndrome, but also improved symptoms of fatigue, malaise and depression.

I’ll describe my approach to this condition, and what lessons we can take away from the research from Belgium.

But first, I want to give you some background on Leaky Gut Syndrome and explain why the concept is still so controversial.

What is Leaky Gut Syndrome?

Because it connects apparently unrelated disorders, Leaky Gut Syndrome is one of the most misunderstood concepts in medicine today.

To begin with, Leaky Gut is not a single disease or syndrome; it’s a pathological condition that occurs as part of many different diseases and syndromes. The term refers to an abnormal increase in the permeability of the small intestine. Increased intestinal permeability is a component of many different disorders.

Leaky Gut Syndrome is associated with:

Inflammatory and infectious bowel diseases 

Several types of arthritis 

Acne 

Psoriasis

AIDS

Chronic liver disease

Pancreatic disease

as well as numerous conditions triggered by food allergy, including eczema, hives, and irritable bowel syndrome 

Why is increased small intestinal permeability such a problem?

The small intestine is the largest organ in your body and two-thirds of your immune system lies within its walls. The small intestine continuously activates itself by sampling the molecules that pass through the intestinal lining.

Leaky Gut Syndrome is increased permeability of this lining, and it alters the molecules which prime your immune system for action by allowing molecules that don’t ordinarily pass through the gut lining to get access to your immune system.

Sometimes, Leaky Gut Syndrome plays a primary role in the evolution of an illness.

Crohn’s disease is a serious chronic intestinal disorder that effects almost a million people in the United States. People who develop Crohn’s disease may have a genetically induced increase in intestinal permeability that creates the inflammation in the bowel. This predisposing leakiness can be found in close relatives of patients with Crohn’s diseases, suggesting that it precedes the development of inflammation.

Leaky Gut Syndrome can occur as a result of another disease.

Celiac disease is an inherited intolerance to gluten, a group of proteins found in wheat, barley and rye. Celiac disease affects about one person in a hundred in North America and often goes undiagnosed, even when people have severe symptoms. The inflammation caused by active celiac disease causes the leaky gut, which in turn causes some of the complications associated with celiac disease.

Leaky Gut Syndrome can also be caused by the treatment for another disease.

In rheumatoid arthritis, for example, the drugs used to relieve pain and inflammation can damage the intestinal lining, leading to Leaky Gut Syndrome within two weeks. Leaky Gut Syndrome, in turn, is associated with aggravation of arthritis.

For most conditions, the precise role of Leaky Gut Syndrome remains unclear, but it seems to be part of a vicious cycle that makes the condition get worse over time. Allergic reactions to food, for example, cause a transient increase in intestinal permeability. If this happens frequently, it may increase the number or severity of food allergies.

In chronic fatigue syndrome and major depressive disorder, Leaky Gut Syndrome activates the intestinal immune system to produce chemicals called cytokines that spread inflammation through your body.

Inflammation is an important trigger for symptoms like fatigue, malaise, pain, and depression.

When should you suspect Leaky Gut Syndrome?

If you have:

pain in multiple joints

a chronic skin condition

chronic diarrhea or abdominal pain,

chronic fatigue,

chronic depression,

malaise,

a feeling of being infected but your doctor can’t find the infection…

or if you use aspirin or anti-inflammatory drugs on a regular basis, or if you’re a heavy drinker of alcohol.

Recent research in animals has indicated that Leaky Gut Syndrome may also be associated with difficulty losing or gaining weight, but its association with obesity is still under investigation.

How can the possibility of Leaky Gut Syndrome be evaluated?

There are only a few laboratories that test for Leaky Gut Syndrome and all require a doctor’s order. Talk to your doctor about what test might be appropriate. High levels of antibodies to common food proteins or to normal intestinal bacteria may indicate increased intestinal permeability. Many research studies have used a challenge test involving a special solution consisting of two sugars, and seeing how much of each appears in urine. A blood test for celiac disease is essential.

Five Steps to Help Heal Leaky Gut Syndrome

Get rid of anything that might be causing or contributing to increased intestinal permeability:

1) Stop drinking alcohol for at least a month.

2) Stop using aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS).

3) Have a stool test for intestinal parasites. There is extensive medical literature on intestinal parasites causing symptoms like fatigue, joint pain and skin disorders, without causing diarrhea. I discuss these in a chapter I wrote titled, “Intestinal Protozoan Infestation and Systemic Illness”, for the Textbook of Natural Medicine, 3rd Edition, in 2005.

4) Adopt an anti-inflammatory dietary pattern. I explain the benefits of eating to reduce inflammation, and provide a plan to achieve that, in my book, The Fat Resistance Diet. The principles are simple to understand: avoid foods with added sugar and refined starches, made from white flour. Decrease consumption of saturated fat and most vegetable oils, using extra virgin olive oil instead. Eat at least 9 servings of fruits and vegetables a day and at least 4 servings of fish per week.

5) There are dietary supplements that help the small intestine heal and restore its functional integrity. The most important of these are the amino acid L-glutamine and the amino sugar N-acetyl- glucosamine, which are readily available in health food stores.

These are but a few introductory steps toward an integrated approach to this condition. There is a vast amount of scientific literature on Leaky Gut Syndrome, a sample of which appear in the references below from journals such as The Lancet, The British Medical Journal and The Annals of Internal Medicine.

References:

1) Townsend Letter for Doctors, August/September 1995, p. 63. “Leaky Gut Syndromes: Breaking the Vicious Cycles.” Galland L. Online version available at http://www.mdheal.org/leakygut.htm
2) J Affect Disord. 2007 Apr;99(1-3):237-40.”Increased serum IgA and IgM against LPS of enterobacteria in chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS): indication for the involvement of gram-negative enterobacteria in the etiology of CFS and for the presence of an increased gut-intestinal permeability.” Maes M, Mihaylova I, Leunis JC.

Why Medication Can Be Dangerous to Your Health

Why Medication Can Be Dangerous to Your Health

by Dr. Leo Galland

Did you know that the majority of FDA approved drugs have serious potential side effects that were not detected before marketing approval? (1)

That about three quarters of a million people a year are rushed to emergency rooms in the U.S. because of adverse drug reactions, according to the CDC? (2)

That the number of medication-related deaths in the U.S. is estimated at over 200,000 a year, making medications the third or fourth leading cause of death in this country? (3)

That even common pain relievers called NSAIDs, examples of which include Advil, Motrin, Aleve and aspirin, account for an estimated 7,600 deaths and 76,000 hospitalizations in the U.S. every year? (4)

It sounds like the cure could be worse than the disease in far too many cases.

Thankfully, there is an option, an innovative approach to healing that seeks to restore balance and healthy function, instead of simply treating symptoms with drugs and suffering the side effects. I call it integrated medicine, and it is a powerful and effective way to address chronic illness…more on that in a moment.

But first, let me explain in brief why the everyday medications Americans rely upon are so dangerous.

The reason is simple and based upon the basic nature of modern drug therapy.

Most drugs used today are intended to act like biochemical strait jackets. They suppress cellular functions that appear to be overactive.

You can see this by looking at the names given to categories or classes of drugs. Almost all include “blocker,” “inhibitor” “anti-“ in the description: beta-blockers, calcium blockers, ACE inhibitors, proton pump inhibitors, anti-histamines, and anti-inflammatories. These drugs are developed to treat disease by interfering with the biochemical processes involved in illness.

But they also interfere with the natural and healthy functions of the body.

It’s like throwing a wrench into a sophisticated machine in an effort to fix it.

Furthermore, the biochemical processes they inhibit are rarely the cause of the illness. They are just part of the many changes in the body that accompany disease. Outside the setting of disease these biochemical processes all play important roles in normal cellular function.

It’s no wonder that many of these drugs have side effects that are a direct extension of their therapeutic ac­tions. (5) They are not restoring normal cellular function; they are merely inhibiting cellular hyperac­tivity.

NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) are an excellent example and include common over the counter drugs such as aspirin (Bayer, Bufferin and Excedrin), ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin and Nuprin), and naproxen (Aleve). They relieve pain and inflammation by blocking an enzyme called cyclo-oxygenase (COX).

Although COX activity contrib­utes to pain and inflamma­tion, this enzyme also performs important functions such as:

Protecting the stomach from the corrosive effects of its own acid,

Regulating circulation of blood to the kidneys,

Modulating the activity of the immune system.

NSAID use can have severe side effects, which are a direct result of COX inhibition.

The documented side effects of chronic NSAID use include:

Stomach ul­cers

Intestinal bleed­ing

Kidney fail­­­­­­­ure

High blood pressure

Aggravation of immune system disorders like asthma, Psoria­sis and Colitis. 

When you took an NSAID, let’s say for a headache, were you aware that you could just be trading one problem for another?

The search for a safer type of NSAID led to the development of drugs called selective COX inhibitors. As their name suggests, they’re selective in their effect, designed to inhibit only the so-called “bad” COX enzyme, without inhibiting the so-called “good” COX enzyme.

This approach created one of the most highly anticipated drug releases in the history of medicine: Vioxx.

Vioxx was a disaster; it increased the death rate from heart attacks and strokes and was withdrawn from the market.

What the scientists behind Vioxx failed to recognize is that all forms of the COX enzyme are important for health. (13)

So instead of giving us a safer drug therapy, it was like tossing a different type of wrench into the machine.

The idea that there are “bad” enzymes and “good” enzymes or “bad” hormones and “good” hormones is a total misrepresentation of how the body works. But the pharmacology underlying conventional medical treatments is based upon that misrepresentation.

Fortunately there is another way of looking at health and healthcare that addresses the underlying causes of illness: integrated medicine.

The great value of integrated medicine is that it provides alternative strategies for healing, based upon enhancing normal physiological balance instead of merely attempting to suppress the hyperactive biochemistry involved in disease.

One of the powerful strategies of integrated medicine is the therapeutic use of nutrition. Nutritional therapy, when properly used, can achieve results that drugs cannot, because nutrients are essential components of the cellular information network. An excellent example is omega-3 fatty acids.

Thirty years ago I pioneered the therapeutic uses of omega-3 fatty acids in my research, scholarly writing and teaching of medical faculty. Seeking to educate the wider public about the importance of omega-3’s and other dietary fats I made them a cornerstone of my books Superimmunity for Kids and Power Healing.

Omega-3 fatty acids are found in fish, flax seed, walnuts, sea vegetables and leafy greens. The most potent omega-3’s, EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) are used by the cells of your body to make powerful chemicals that help to maintain normal cell function under conditions of stress. (14) The so-called “bad” COX, in fact, converts DHA to substances called resolvins and neuroprotectins, which play a vital role in controlling inflammation (15) and helping brain cells survive injury. (16) This is one reason the inhibition of any of the COX enzymes can be bad for your health.

Knowledge of the benefits of omega-3 fats provides an alternative strategy for controlling inflammation that is both natural and potent. The basic idea is to increase your body’s levels of DHA, the omega-3 fatty acid your body uses to make these beneficial chemicals.

Remarkable results in reducing inflammation can be accomplished by dietary changes and nutritional supplementation. Increase consumption of foods that contain omega-3 fats (mentioned above) and decrease consumption of foods that interfere with the anti-inflammatory effects of omega-3 fats, such meat, and oils, spreads and dressings made from corn, sunflower, soybean, safflower or cottonseed oil, substituting olive oil and flax oil instead. This simple approach had allowed people in research studies with severe rheumatoid arthritis to decrease their use of anti-inflammatory drugs. (17,18)

Putting these principles together, I created an anti-inflammatory dietary program called The Fat Resistance Diet. For free recipes and a one-day meal plan visit www.fatresistancediet.com

A vast amount of scientific research has been published in prestigious medical journals on the therapeutic use of nutrition. Now it is time to put all of that essential knowledge to work.

Making nutrition a cornerstone of everyone’s healthcare has been my longstanding goal and is the first step in real healthcare reform. Moving from a system based on treating symptoms to a system for achieving optimal health will enable healthcare to achieve its true potential.

References:


1) Manag Care Interface. 2005 Oct;18(10):49-52 “Preventing adverse drug reactions in the general population” Pezalla E.


2) JAMA. 2006 Oct 18;296(15):1858-66. “National surveillance of emergency department visits for outpatient adverse drug events.” Budnitz DS, Pollock DA, Weidenbach KN, Mendelsohn AB, Schroeder TJ, Annest JL


3) Pezzalla E., Manag Care Interface. 2005 Oct;18(10):49-52


4) Annals of Internal Medicine, 1997, 127:429-438. “Unnecessary Prescribing of NSAIDs and the Management of NSAID-Related Gastropathy in Medical Practice.” R Tamblyn, L Berkson, WD Jauphinee, D Gayton, R Grad, A Huang, L Isaac, P McLeod, L Snell


5) JAMA 1991; volume 266: pp 2847-2851 “Computerized surveillance of adverse drug events in hospitalized patients.” Lassen DC, Pestotnick SL, Evans RS, Burke JP.


6) Annals of Internal Medicine. 1988; pp 359-363.. “Nonsteroidal anti-inflammato­ry drug use and death from peptic ulcer in elderly persons.” Griffin MR, Ray WA, Schaffner W


7) Gastroenterology. 1987; 93: 480-489. “NSAID induced intestinal inflammation in humans.” Bjarnasson I, Zanelli G, Smith T, et al.


Archives of Internal Medicine. 1992; 986-990. “Acute renal failure and glomerulopathy caused by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.” Shankel SW, Johnson DC, Clark PS, Shankel TL, O’Neill WM.


9) Archives of Internal Medicine. 1993; 153: 477-484. “A meta-analysis of the effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on blood pressure.” Pope JE, Anderson JJ, Felson DT


10) Clin Chest Med. 1990; 11:163-175. “Drug-induced bronchospasm.” Meeker DP, Wiedemann HP.


11) J Dermatol. 1981; 8: 323-337. “Exacerbation of psoriasis induced by indomethacin.” Katayama H, Kawada A.


12) Annals of Internal Medicine. 1987; 107: 513-516. “Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs activate quiescent inflammatory bowel disease.” Kaufmann HJ, Taubin HL.


13) Cardiovascular & Haematological Disorders-Drug Targets, 2006, 6, 83-98. “Cyclooxygenase-2 Inhibitors: A Painful Lesson.” S Sanghi, EJ MacLaughlin, CW Jewell, S Chaffer, PJ Naus, LE Watson, DE Dosta.


14) Curr Mol Med. 2009;9:565-79. “Role of lipoxins and resolvins as anti-inflammatory and proresolving mediators in colon cancer.” Janakiram NB, Rao CV.


15) Proc Nutr Soc. 2010, 28:1-8 “Fish oil and rheumatoid arthritis: past, present and future.” James M, Proudman S, Cleland L.


16) J Lipid Res. 2009: 50 Suppl:S400-405. “Neuroprotectin D1-mediated anti-inflammatory and survival signaling in stroke, retinal degenerations, and Alzheimer’s disease. Bazan NG.


17) Drugs 2003; 63: 845-53. “The role of fish oils in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.” Cleland et al.


18) Rheumatol Int. 2003; 23: 27-36. “Anti-inflammatory effects of a low arachidonic acid diet and fish oil in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.” Adam et al,

Aspirin and Vitamin C

Aspirin and Vitamin C
by Dr. Leo Galland

Aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) has been around for over a hundred years and can be a useful drug for treating pain. Millions of people take low dose aspirin every day in an effort to prevent heart attacks or strokes. But aspirin can erode the lining of the stomach or intestines, causing internal bleeding, even at low doses.

Research on Aspirin and Vitamin C

Research studies done in Germany demonstrate that aspirin interferes with absorption of vitamin C and regular use of aspirin can deplete the gastrointestinal lining of vitamin C.

German researchers have shown that taking vitamin C along with aspirin can decrease the amount of stomach damage that aspirin produces in healthy humans and in patients with inflammation of the stomach caused by infection with Helicobacter pylori, a bacterium that causes ulcers.

No dietary supplement is guaranteed to prevent aspirin-induced gastrointestinal damage.

If you are taking aspirin, ask your doctor whether vitamin C might be good to take along with it.

REFERENCES AND ABSTRACTS

Eur J Pharmacol. 2004 Dec 15;506(2):169-77.Effect of vitamin C-releasing acetylsalicylic acid on gastric mucosal damage before and after Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy. Konturek PC, Kania J, Gessner U, Konturek SJ, Hahn EG, Konturek JW. First Department of Medicine, University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany.

Natural Anti- Inflammatory Foods and Supplements That Help Arthritis

Natural Anti- Inflammatory Foods and Supplements That Help Arthritis
by Dr. Leo Galland

Here’s a look at some alternative natural remedies for inflammatory arthritis. There are natural anti-inflammatory foods that can help with arthritis, as well as supplements.

Arthritis—inflammation of the joints—is the most common cause of disability in the U.S., affecting 43 million people and limiting physical activity in almost 19 million every year. (1).

Arthritis medications are among the most highly prescribed drugs in the world. The most commonly used over the counter drugs for arthritis, called NSAIDs, examples of which include Advil, Motrin, Aleve and aspirin, also have serious side effects. For more on this, see my article Why Medication Can Be Dangerous to Your Health "According to the CDC, NSAID’s account for an estimated 7,600 deaths and 76,000 hospitalizations in the U.S. every year. (2)

Foods that help arthritis and supplements are under-utilized weapons in the battle against this painful inflammatory condition.

First, there are anti-inflammatory supplements like fish oil and borage oil that have been shown to allow reduction of NSAID use in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, one of the most crippling types of arthritis. Fish oil works even better in combination with extra-virgin olive oil to reduce inflammation, as I explain below.

Second, there are supplements like colostrum and glutamine (an amino acid) that have been shown in research studies to help decrease the risk of stomach damage in people taking NSAIDs. Detailed research on how these supplements may help protect against NSAID side effects can be found at Pill Advised, a free web application that I’ve created to bring important research findings to a wider audience.

Nutrition is another vital tool in fighting inflammatory arthritis. Unfortunately, there are a lot of myths about what to eat, and what to not eat, to help arthritis. I’ll try to dispel some of these and present the science.

On November 5, 2010 I presented a review of the scientific data on the relationship between diet and inflammation at Morristown Memorial Hospital’s Fourth Annual Symposium on Nutrition and Supplements in Clinical Practice.

Because I’ve found these natural anti-inflammatory principles extremely beneficial for my patients with arthritis, I’m providing a summary here.

Natural Anti-Inflammatory Foods That Help Arthritis

1. Eat at least 8 servings of fruits and vegetables every day.

Choose those with bright or deep colors like cherries and berries and sweet potatoes that contain natural anti-inflammatory nutrition. Don’t believe the old saw that citrus fruits and “nightshade” vegetables like tomatoes and peppers cause arthritis. Oranges and tomatoes have been shown to have significant anti-inflammatory effects in some people. NOTE: Food allergies can trigger arthritis for some people, and if there is a food that makes your joints hurt or swell, you should avoid it, no matter how healthy it would be for someone who’s not sensitive to it. Most of the patients I’ve seen do better eating lots of vegetables and fruits. Tomatoes, incidentally, seem to have more of anti-inflammatory effect when they’re cooked or juiced, but most other vegetables and fruits are better if they’re fresh.

2. Choose your oils wisely.

Extra-virgin olive oil has natural anti-inflammatory benefits, whether raw or cooked. Recent research has identified the antioxidant called oleocanthal, which is only found in extra-virgin olive oil. Oleocanthal is a natural anti-inflammatory with potency strikingly similar to that of the drug ibuprofen in inhibiting an enzyme that causes pain and inflammation. Studies have shown that people with inflammatory arthritis experience a decrease in pain and stiffness of their joints when treated with fish oil. Even better pain management results have been observed when, in addition to fish oil, extra-virgin olive oil is part of the natural anti-inflammatory diet.

Flaxseed oil and flaxseed meal (ground flaxseed), also have significant anti-inflammatory effects, but should not be cooked, because cooking destroys some of the beneficial omega-3 fats. Other vegetable oils, like corn, safflower or sunflower oils, can increase inflammation and counteract the benefits of anti-inflammatory nutrients in your diet.

3. Eat fish 3 times a week.

Especially wild salmon, if it’s available and affordable, but don’t fry your fish; frying interferes with the benefits. Supplement your diet with the natural anti-inflammatory, fish oil. The amount of fish oil you need is not fixed; it varies from about a teaspoon (4000 milligrams) to a tablespoon (12,000 milligrams) each day, depending upon what else is in your diet. The more meat, poultry, egg yolk or dairy fat you eat, the greater your need for fish oil, because these foods contain arachidonic acid, a pro-inflammatory omega 6 fatty acid. The more you use vegetable oils other than extra virgin olive oil, the more fish oil you need.

4. Avoid sugar and foods with added sugar and refined carbohydrates

Reduce inflammation by cutting out white flour products, white rice and white potatoes. Several studies have shown that consuming foods of this type aggravates inflammation. Instead eat high fiber foods like whole grains and legumes. Studies have shown that high fiber diets are anti-inflammatory. Don’t worry about carrots. All the publicity given to the Glycemic Index of foods (the tendency for a food to raise blood sugar) has given carrots a bad rep. The carotenoids in carrots, anti-oxidants that create the orange color, and the fiber, make carrots an anti-inflammatory food. Carrots, like tomatoes, are also more nutritious cooked than raw.

5. Drink tea, black or green.

The notion that green tea is healthier than black tea has not been borne out by clinical trials in humans. Green tea may have anti-cancer effects, but black tea has a better track record in fighting inflammation. You need at least 3 cups a day, unless you’re a smoker, in which case no amount of tea will work for you.

6. Use anti-inflammatory spices in preparing your food.

Ginger and turmeric have excellent anti-inflammatory effects, although human clinical trials with these spices are much more limited than for the other principles listed.

References:

The information here is based upon principles in my upcoming article being published in print in the scientific journal, Nutrition in Clinical Practice, (http://ncp.sagepub.com/ ) December issue, where a list of scientific references supporting the principles listed above can be found.

1) US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/aag/arthritis.htm)

2) Robyn Tamblyn, PhD; Laeora Berkson, MD, MHPE, FRCPC; W. Dale Jauphinee, MD, FRCPC; David Gayton, MD, PhD, FRCPC; Roland Grad, MD, MSc; Allen Huang, MD, FRCPC; Lisa Isaac, PhD; Peter McLeod, MD, FRCPC; and Linda Snell, MD, MHPE, FRCPC, "Unnecessary Prescribing of NSAIDs and the Management of NSAID-Related Gastropathy in Medical Practice," Annals of Internal Medicine (Washington, DC: American College of Physicians, 1997), September 15, 1997, 127:429-438.

Why antioxidants are good for us

We all know that oxygen is essential for our bodies to function. But scientific studies have shown that oxygen can produce toxic substances as well. Some examples of these toxins are peroxide, superoxide, hydroxyl radicals, and something called “excited stage oxygen.”

When these substances combine with other molecules in the body, “free-radicals” are formed. These are high-energy chemical substances that can damage our healthy cells and cause diseases like inflammation and infections, degenerative arthritis, diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease. This free-radical damage is also known as oxidization.

Antioxidants work by preventing excessive oxidization and repairing the damage to the cells. Normally, our bodies can supply its own antioxidants. But when there is rapid production of free-radicals (from exercise, smoking, exposure to radiation or other metabolic processes like the breaking down of food), our bodies will need an additional supply of antioxidants from external sources.

Here’s an experiment you can do right in your kitchen. Cut an apple until it begins to turn brown. This discoloration is due to oxygen reacting with the apple, creating free-radicals. This is oxidization at work. Then, dip the apple in some lemon juice or orange juice, which contains vitamin C (an antioxidant), and watch the discoloration slow down. The vitamin C in the juice decreases the rate of free-radical activity taking place in the apple.

A recent study conducted by researchers from London found that 5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily can reduce the risk of stroke by 25 percent. Antioxidants may also enhance immune defense and therefore lower the risk of cancer and infection.

Boost your body’s antioxidant level by consuming these foods:

Examples of Antioxidants	Food Sources
Carotenoids	broccoli, spinach, squash, melon, sweet potato, carrots
Vitamin C	citrus fruits, green peppers, broccoli, green leafy vegetables, strawberries, tomatoes
Vitamin E	nuts and seeds, whole grains, green leafy vegetables, vegetable oil and liver oil
Vitamin A	carrots, broccoli, tomatoes, peaches, sweet potato, melon, squash, cabbage, pechay, watermelon
Selenium	fish and shellfish, red meat, grains, eggs, chicken, garlic
Lycopene	tomatoes, watermelon, guava
Lutein	corn, mango, broccoli, kiwi, spinach, melon, cabbage, egg yolks, peas
Lignan	oatmeal, sesame seeds, cashew, broccoli
Flavonoids/Polyphenols	coffee, tea, soy, red wine, purple grapes, onions, apples

Coffee, in particular, is an important and common source of antioxidants in many people’s diet throughout the world. Unlike food types that we can sometimes tire of, coffee remains a constant in our daily routine, ensuring that we receive antioxidants on a daily basis. So go ahead and enjoy a cup of antioxidants with NESCAFÉ and make it part of your daily habit!

Sources:
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/antioxidants.htmlhttp://www.healthcastle.com/antioxidant.shtml
www.eatright.org/cps/rde/xchg/ada/hs.xsl/home_9660_ENU_HTML.htm
www.eatright.org/cps/rde/xchg/ada/hs.xsl/home_4634_ENU_HTML.htm
www.nestle.com.ph/nescafe/positivecoffeenews/topics_wellness_howantioxidants.htm