wellness tips

Share

Are cell phones safe enough to be used by children? Should governments warn parents about potential hazards even if the jury is still out?

Whether or not the radiation from cell phones is safe is an ongoing controversy that is dividing the scientific community. Much research suggests that cell phones are perfectly safe, and that we have nothing to be worried about, but some of the longer studies are beginning to tell a different story. The big concern is that the radiation emitted from cell phones may cause brain cancer on the side of the head that the cell phone is used. We may not know for sure whether or not this is true for many years to come, as there is a latency period from the beginning of exposure to the time cancer may develop, and that latency period is most likely greater than ten years.

The radiation the cell phones emit is between 1 and 3 Watts, in the microwave range, and that radiation DOES get absorbed by the head, or whatever body part is nearest the phone. Initially the concern was that this radiation heated the cells causing damage, but from the resources I’ve looked at, it looks like the body is able to dispel the heat quite easily.

However, the radiation emitted from the phone is pulsed, and apparently very similar to the electrical oscillations sent within the brain (alpha and delta brain waves). Our body is a very sensitive electrochemical system, so it seems reasonable that radio waves from external sources at similar frequencies to our internal frequencies may interfere with our bioelectrical systems, in much the same way that cell phones interfere with airplane controls and hospital equipment. So it is the similarity to the frequencies commonly used within the body, confusing the body which may be problematic. One of the frequencies used by cell phones seems to be similar to one that induces cell division in the body, perhaps explaining the links between cell-phone use and brain cancer.

Children have thinner skulls, and their brain tissue is less dense, which allows the radiation to penetrate much further into the brain, potentially increasing their risk. Dr. Devra Davis, a professor of epidemiology and the director of the Centre for Environmental Oncology at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute suggests that phone radiation can penetrate more than half way through the brain of a 5 year old. Because children are still growing and their brains are still developing, genetic damage to cells in the brain may cause functional damage. The blood brain barrier may be compromised making the child more susceptible to toxins. A Spanish study showed that a two minute cell phone conversation altered electrical activity in the brain for up to an hour, compromising the ability to learn. Furthermore, if first exposure to cell phone radiation is while in childhood or as a teen, it is likely that that child or teen will be using the technology for many decades to come, increasing the potential risk even further.

Many countries, like Britain, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Israel, India and Russia are putting out warnings suggesting that children should either not use cell phones at all, or only very minimally, because they feel there is enough research suggesting that there may be a problem to warn the public of the potential danger. France is making it illegal for cell phone manufactures to market cell phones to kids under the age of 12. In Canada, that certainly is not the case – special cell phones specifically designed for kids are actively marketed to kids and their parents. Should this be happening at all, if other countries are putting out warnings?

Even though the City of Toronto's department of public health did put out an advisory in the summer of 2008 that children under 8 should only use cell phones for emergencies, and teens should limit calls to under 10 minutes, Health Canada does not feel there is any need to warn parents about the potential dangers to children, and I don't think US government agencies are putting out warnings either. Kind of reminds one of the smoking issue of yesteryear. So, as a parent would you prefer to be told of a potential problem so you can make up your own mind on how to deal with the issue, or do you trust that government agencies are doing enough to protect you and your children? I think transparency is important. I want to be in control of my health and the health of my family, and I want to know if something might be problematic, so I can do my research and make a choice. If my choice is taken away from me because I am not told, then I have no way of controlling my health. My philosophy has always been to apply the precautionary principle. It may take 30 years before we really know the truth about safety of cell phones, so in the mean time it makes sense to me to keep cell phones out of the hands of kids as long as possible, and if they have one, allow them to use it only for emergencies, text messaging, or with a headset (not bluetooth as that kind magnifies the radiation). These suggestions obviously apply to the rest of us too!

To check the the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) (the quantity of radiofrequency energy that is absorbed by your body) of your cell phone, click here.

For more on the topic of cell phones and kids, watch this CBC production of
Marketplace.

If you want to search for other posts by title or by topic, go to www.wellnesstips.ca.

Related tips
Cell phones and our health
Microwave ovens: convenience vs health and nutrition

To subscribe go to www.wellnesstips.ca

Share

Ever since Dr. Cannell of the Vitamin D Council put out notice that he thinks cod liver oil should not be consumed, scientists and doctors are duking it out on both sides of the issue.

Who would have thought that cod liver oil could be controversial? After all, our grandparents were raised on cod liver oil, and it was given to all children like a religion prior to the 1950s with no apparent ill effects, and lots of good effects …

But when Dr. Mercola, who has a readership of over a million people, sided with Dr. Cannell, and told his subscribers he was no longer recommending cod liver oil, a few readers asked me what I thought of the whole controversy.

So, here is my two cents worth. Please remember that I am neither a doctor, nor a scientist – just a health geek that reads a lot and comes to my own conclusions, so take what I say with a good dose of skepticism, just as I think one should of what anyone tells you, including your doctor and your government. Do your own research and make up your own mind about what feels right for you.

Cod liver oil is not only a fabulous source of omega 3 fatty acids, important for brain function and cardiovascular health, but also a good source of vitamin D and A, especially important in the winter months in parts of the world where there is little sun, and vitamin D deficiency is common.

If your shadow is longer than you are when you are in the sun, your body can't make vitamin D. Because there are not many foods that contain much vitamin D, and people have been frightened away from precisely those foods like lard, liver, eggs etc. due to the mistaken belief that cholesterol and saturated fat are unhealthy, cod liver oil would seem to be an excellent choice in the winter, especially since synthetic vitamin D supplements are less reliable than a food for obtaining health benefits.

It should also be noted that the Inuit live in darkness for many months of the year – no sun available at all – and they traditionally relied on food sources for their vitamin D – seal blubber and lots of fatty fish. They did not appear to have any signs of vitamin D deficiency.

I would imagine that because we are all biochemically different, we would all require different amounts of vitamin D and A to be healthy. There is certainly some indication of that concept based on this study of calcium absorption in Inuit children.

So, what's the problem?

In a nutshell, some cod liver oils are very high in vitamin A in relation to vitamin D, and vitamin A in high doses is not only toxic , but according to Dr. Cannell can actually interfere with the utilization of vitamin D. So by taking in too much vitamin A, according to Dr. Cannell, it can inhibit the binding of Vitamin D to your DNA, thereby affecting the expression of those genes that are regulated by Vitamin D.

The argument is that in the western world, we get a lot of vitamin A in our diet, and there is no reason to risk supplementation with extra vitamin A, especially at the high levels often found in cod liver oil.

Because both vitamin A and D are fat soluble rather than water soluble, we do not excrete the excess vitamin A and D that we consume, and hence the toxicity danger. Both vitamin A and D are both tightly controlled by the body, and converted to the active form only as needed in order to reduce the chance of toxicity.

But because the vitamin A in cod liver oil comes in its active form, retinol, it bypasses the body's control mechanism, increasing the chance of toxicity.

In the developing world, vitamin A toxicity is unlikely to be an issue, but in the developed world, some argue that vitamin A toxicity is more common than one would think.

However, according the research of Weston A Price, vitamin A is NOT toxic except in the case of vitamin D deficiency. In nature, foods that contain vitamin D also contain vitamin A, because they work synergistically.

Seal oil, a staple of the Inuit diet has far higher levels of vitamin A than cod liver oil. In fact, Dr. Price found that many traditional cultures consumed vitamin A in far greater amounts than we do in current times.

The Weston A Price Foundation does not agree at all that there is rampant vitamin A toxicity in the western world, due not only to the general population's fear of saturated fat, but also due to the fact that many (those with thyroid, liver problems, diabetes, children and babies) have trouble converting carotenoids in vegetables into vitamin A.

Until there is a similar medical test for vitamin A levels as is available for vitamin D, I guess we won't know who is right. The Weston A Price Foundation also disagrees with Cannell's statement that high levels of vitamin A will interfere with vitamin D regulated gene transcription, stating that "researchers from Spain recently showed that vitamin D can only effectively activate target genes when its partner receptor is activated by vitamin A".

To understand the biochemistry of the interaction between vitamin A and D in more detail, click here, or here for the Spanish study.

The key, according to the Weston A Price Foundation, is that the body can use natural food sources of vitamin A and D, as they are packaged in appropriate ratios.

Supplementation is problematic, because frequently not only are those ratios are out of whack, but also synthetic vitamin A and D are toxic. Once again, rely on food for nutrition, not supplements.

So, what does this all mean for cod liver oil? The problem is that in the modern cleaning processing of cod liver oil, the vitamins are frequently removed, and then synthetic vitamins are added back in, and not in the same ratios that were naturally in the oil to begin with.

Cod liver oil is frequently being turned into a supplement rather than the food it originally was. So often one sees ratios of vitamin A to D of 100:1, which is crazy high in vitamin A with respect to D. Ratios should be in the range of 10:1 or less, and thankfully there are many natural cod liver oils on the market that meet that requirement.

So rather than throwing the baby out with the bathwater and missing out on the omega 3s and vitamins in cod liver oil, I think we simply need to be very picky about what cod liver oil we choose to use. Look for naturally occurring vitamin A and D, and make sure the ratio is 10:1 or less.

Fermented cod liver oil is probably the best, but is hard to get in Canada at least. Carlson's is readily available in my neck of the woods, and has 700 to 1200IU vitamin A to 400IU vitamin D in the liquid, a good ratio, and well below the recommended daily allowance of 10,000IU vitamin A a day.

Other good online sources include Garden of Life regular dose, Nordic Naturals High Vitamin D cod liver oil, Radiant Life High Vitamin Cod Liver Oil, Wolf River Naturals, and Dr. Ron's High Vitamin Blue Ice.

Remember that fish oils as well as fish liver oils, like vegetable oils, are mostly polyunsaturated fatty acids and therefore very prone to oxidation, and need to be kept in the fridge in order to prevent rancidity (vegetable oil exceptions are olive and coconut oils which are mostly monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids respectively).

Pay attention to expiry dates. Furthermore, this vitamin controversy does not apply to regular fish or krill oils that are used for omega 3 supplementation, as these oils do not have vitamin A nor D in them.

If you want to search for other posts by title or by topic, go to www.wellnesstips.ca.

Related tips
The sunshine vitamin and cancer
In praise of omega 3 fats
Essential fats: omega 3 to omega 6 ratio
HDL and LDL – good and bad "cholesterol"?
Saturated fat – the misunderstood nutrient

To subscribe go to www.wellnesstips.ca

Share

Our skin is our largest organ, an important detoxifier and immune barrier. Poor skin reflects an unhealthy internal environment, so the most effective way to clear up one’s skin is from the inside out.

Acne, eczema, and psoriasis are relatively common skin conditions that affect many kids and adults, and can potentially effect a large emotional toll. Many feel self conscious and embarrassed in social situations due to poor skin, and some may actually withdraw because of it. Ironically the stress caused by the skin condition can often make the skin condition worse. Topical ointments don’t usually work very well, and corticosteroid-type creams may create further imbalances in the hormone system, resulting in trading a skin condition for something more serious like osteoporosis. Although acne, eczema and psoriasis are different conditions, they all involve skin inflammation, so here are some things one can do that are very effective in helping all three.

1. Most important and most effective – decrease or eliminate flour, sugar, alcohol and processed food as these foods are highly inflammatory to the body.
2. Optimize omega 3 / omega 6 ratio by reducing intake of vegetable oils and eating more fatty fish or taking a good quality omega 3 fish oil. Too much omega 6 is inflammatory to the body.
3. Eat lots of leafy green and orange vegetables, organic if possible, only lightly cooked so as to preserve the nutrition.
4. Take probiotics daily to improve the balance of good bacteria in the gut. Research has shown that this is helpful.
5. Work on decreasing stress levels – get adequate sleep, reduce toxic relationships, do relaxation exercises, breathing exercises, meditation, more fun time, do what you love.
6. Avoid scratching to avoid infections (Yup, way easier said than done!)
7. Don't wash with extremely hot water, or use an abrasive cloth. Instead just soap up with your hands to wash your body, so as not to break the lesions, and also to avoid washing off too many of the skin's natural oils. Pat yourself dry.
8. Spend about an hour each day in the sun without allowing yourself to burn (I know – tough if it is cold and cloudy). UV rays actually help clear up skin.

Acne, often the bane of teenagers and young adults, seems to be related to insulin insensitivity, so once again, eliminating grains or at least flour products and sugar can help a lot. Sugar and flour products raise insulin levels, which in turn raises insulin-growth factor (IGF-1), which raises testosterone, which increases sebum production in the skin, which attracts acne-causing bacteria, which worsens acne. IGF-1 also increases keratinocytes, a type of skin cell associated with acne. It is interesting to note that acne is virtually non-existent in parts of the world where refined, and processed flour and sugar are rarely consumed. Another major problem with the refined grains in the western diet is those grains are not soaked first, before being turned into baked goods, pasta, crackers or whatever. Grains can be a good source of zinc, but if the grains are not soaked for at least 12 hours before using, the zinc is bound up and can’t be accessed. Zinc deficiency is also linked to acne.

Acne is commonly treated with antibiotics, but I’m not convinced antibiotics get at the cause of the problem, and although this band-aid solution may mask the symptoms by killing the surface bacteria which aggravates the skin, it will further disrupt good health by killing all the good bacteria in the gut, which then compromises gut and immune function, creating a whole host of other problems, such as chronic yeast infections, leaky gut, etc. Often antibiotic treatment goes on for months, so taking probiotics to repopulate the gut with good bacteria doesn't work very well, as they are promptly killed with the next antibiotic dose. Not only that, but antibiotic use increases antibiotic resistance, which is becoming a huge problem. Accutane, the other popular medication for acne is linked to depression and suicide in some. So, to eliminate acne safely, religiously follow the list above, and:

1. If you must eat grain, make sure it is whole (looks like a seed and is not ground into flour), and soak it for 12 hours first before cooking in order to make the zinc bio-available.  Eat with a protein and a good-quality fat like organic butter to slow the sugar into the bloodstream.
2. Eat free-range meats, poultry, seafood or egg yolks – good sources of zinc.  Best flesh source is oysters, best plant source is pumpkin seeds, but soak them first.  (All grains, nuts and seeds should be soaked before eating.  Just put them in a jar of water for 12 hours, drain off the water, rinse, and dry by laying them on a cookie sheet in the oven under the pilot light. Refrigerate). Don't take zinc supplements as it is easy to overdose, and zinc in isolation messes up absorption of other trace minerals, especially copper.
3. Avoid processed soy isolate products, like soy milk, soy cheese, soy burgers etc., as processed soy reduces zinc absorption.
4. Avoid chlorinated and fluoridated products.  Halogens seem to make some acne worse.
5. Don't pop or squeeze the pimples.

Eczema, a very itchy skin condition that causes red, swollen, sometimes scale-like splotches, particularly on the flexor side of joints, is very common in infants and children seems to be a skin expression of food sensitivities. If you or your child has eczema, you may find it worthwhile to see an allergist for a skin prick allergy test, and possibly for a check for celiac sprue (allergy to gluten). In addition to the very important suggestions in list 1 above, here are some ideas to eliminate eczema. (If your baby has eczema and is being breastfed, Mom can reduce the baby's eczema by doing the following):

1. If you can't get to an allergist to discover what you or your child is sensitive to, use an elimination diet. Eliminate wheat, or better yet, all gluten grains (all grains except for rice, millet, buckwheat and corn). Eliminate all pasteurized dairy. Within 3 weeks you will most likely notice a reduction in eczema. If not, eliminate other common allergens like soy, eggs, nuts, shellfish etc. After 3 weeks you can introduce the foods one at a time, and look for a worsening in the skin condition in order to figure out what the sensitivities are.
2. Many skin creams contain gluten-grain (like oats) or other food allergen ingredients – read labels and don't use them if you know you are sensitive to the allergen. What you put on your skin gets into your blood.
3. Look for ways to reduce exposure to toxic chemical compounds at home and at work by using natural laundry detergents, cleaners etc., eliminating the use of perfumed products, avoiding jewelry containing nickel etc.
4. Take a GLA supplement like Evening Primrose Oil. This in combination with the other ideas may help.
5. Some people are so sensitive to grains, they react to the grains fed to cattle. Eat grass-fed meats.

Psoriasis is also an auto-immune problem, but may be more a result of poor detoxification capabilities , and although food can sometimes be a trigger, it is frequently caused by external or chemical allergens (like aspartame or certain drug classes like beta blockers, ACE inhibitors, or lithium). Once again, eliminating the offending product(s) is key to the solution, as well as doing all one can to reduce the load on our detoxification system. Psoriasis is often much worse in cold weather, or when progesterone is high in the female cycle. Skin rashes usually occur on the extensor side of joints. To help resolve psoriasis, in addition to the critically important first list above, try:

1. Stop smoking if you smoke. Stop drinking alcohol, if you drink.
2. Encourage detoxification by sweating – do some exercise or take a sauna (infrared saunas are very effective).
3. Drink half your bodyweight in pounds, in ounces ofwater each day to dilute the toxins and help the kidneys with elimination. (If you weigh 150lbs, drink 75oz of pure water each day.)
4. Zinc deficiency is common in psoriasis. Eat free-range meats, poultry, seafood or egg yolks – good sources of zinc. Best flesh source is oysters, best plant source is pumpkin seeds, but soak them first (Don't take zinc supplements as it is easy to overdose, and zinc in isolation messes up absorption of other trace
   minerals, especially copper.)
5. Try eating an apple (organic) before bed to encourage a bowel movement in the morning if you are constipated.
6. Speak to a functional-medicine physician regarding testing liver and kidney function, and get treated if needed.
7. Avoid pesticide residues and food additives by eating organic, unprocessed food only.
8. Look for ways to reduce exposure to toxic chemical compounds at home and at work by using natural laundry detergents, cleaners etc., eliminating the use of perfumed products, avoiding jewelry containing nickel etc.
9. Consider having mercury amalgam fillings removed.
10. Taking a greens superfood like chlorella (a fresh-water seaweed) may help take heavy metals out of the body.

Just like bad teeth reflect a poor diet, bad skin reflects a struggling internal environment. You can be sure that once your skin clears up using the above techniques, you will be far healthier on so many levels than you were when your skin was not clear. You may have also just cleared up the beginnings of disease processes like diabetes and heart disease too, so congratulations!

If you want to search for other posts by title or by topic, go to www.wellnesstips.ca. Happy New Year, everyone!

Related tips
Food sensitivities, digestive problems and joint pain
Maintaining bone mass by preparing grains, nuts and seeds properly
It’s not what you eat but what you digest that counts
Our toxic body burden
Dealing with inflammation and inflammatory conditions
Stress and digestive issues

To subscribe go to www.wellnesstips.ca