Kids Research Express

Macular Degeneration, leading cause of irreversible vision loss in the United States. This incurable condition attacks the central portion of the retina, the part of the eye that receives light patterns and transmits them to the brain. Macular degeneration progressively damages or destroys the part of vision used for reading and seeing fine details, while leaving the peripheral vision generally unaffected. People who have this disorder develop an area of vision loss that increases in diameter until they are unable to read or even see groups of two to three words at normal reading distance. Macular degeneration usually develops in both eyes, with one eye generally more affected than the other. Although children can develop forms of macular degeneration such as Stargardt's disease, 99 percent of the cases occur in older people. Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) may affect as many as 15 million Americans over the age of 50, and one-fifth of people over 75 show at least som...

Thalidomide, drug introduced in 1953, initially prescribed for its sedative properties and widely used by women to alleviate the nausea and vomiting common in the early stages of pregnancy. Thalidomide gained notoriety in 1961 when it was found to cause severe malformations in the growing fetus such as stunted development or the complete absence of limbs. More than 10,000 children were born with these disabling abnormalities before the drug was taken off the market. This disaster triggered more rigorous government regulations for drug testing. Today thalidomide is used in the treatment of leprosy, and experimentally in bone-marrow transplant patients and certain immune system disorders. HISTORY While its commercial distribution was halted, thalidomide continued to be used in experimental studies for a variety of diseases. A series of studies beginning in the mid-1960s showed that thalidomide was effective in treating a leprosy-related disorder, erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL)....

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, cond...

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 suf...

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 doct...

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 aga...

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 extern...