Author: Claus Hancke

American Authorities Wish for Better Information and Reporting about Dietary Supplements

Claus Hancke

April 12, 2004

Since 1994 liberal legislation in the United States has secured the American population full access to safe dietary supplements. 2½ year ago FDA asked the Institute of Medicine (IoM) to investigate the extent of harmful effects of supplements. The FDA received this report from IoM last week.

The conclusion is, among other things, that there are very few safety data for the 29,000 different dietary supplements sold in the United States, and the concern seems to be that this market grows by 25% a year, and today amounts to about 18 billion. dollars annually.

When the IoM was asked to do a safety assessment of the market, it was because there was growing concern about one supplement in particular, namely “Ephedra”, which was sold as a popular slimming and energy aid. The effect is somewhat reminiscent of the Danish, now banned drug, Letigen.

Ephedra does not exist in Denmark, and if it did, it would have to be registered as medicine, just as Letigen was in its time.

The FDA has now banned Ephedra as a dietary supplement after it caused 155 deaths and 16,000 cases of side effects. By comparison, over-the-counter arthritis medications (NSAIDs) cause 16,000 deaths in the United States each year.

The IoM also found products with wide variation in content, and products, particularly Chinese herbal preparations, which were contaminated with heavy metals and medicines. In some of the Chinese supplements, the medicine was actually added to promote the effect.

The IoM therefore proposes a “whistleblower” system with a central registration of side effects, similar to the Danish Side Effects Board, which is a fine idea. However, the IoM also writes that many side effects could be avoided if the consumer was sufficiently well informed.

This is a memento to the Danish system, where the Danish Food and Drug Administration prohibits information to both consumers and retailers of dietary supplements. Yes, not even doctors and pharmacists must be taught even the most factual information regarding dietary supplements.

This should be changed so that we increase security for the Danish consumer.

By: Vitality Council

Reference:
Special report: A health fad that’s hard to swallow, New Scientist Special Report, 12. April 2004.

Dietary Supplements Reduce the Need for Medicine

Claus Hancke

March 1, 2004

Like nutrition, many supplements have a positive effect on the physiological processes of the body. A new scientific study has shown that Pycnogenol, a substance extracted from pine bark, can lower the blood pressure to such an extent that the need for hypotensive medicine is reduced by 50%.

As is the case with food, a lot of dietary supplements have a positive effect on the body’s physiological processes.

For instance, new scientific research has shown that Pycnogenol can lower the blood pressure to such an extent that the need for hypotensive medicine can be reduced by 50%.

Pycnogenol is an extract of a particular type of pine bark that is found along the French southwest coast. Pycnogenol has the effect of an antioxidant, i.e. it inhibits the damaging processes that contribute to making us ill and grow old before our time.

In recent years, studies have shown that hypertension is responsible for more than 50% of all strokes and heart attacks.

Previous studies have also shown that Pycnogenol has a long line of positive effects on the body’s functions, but the news is that it is capable of lowering the blood pressure as well.

According to a scientific article in Life Sciences (no 74;7:855-862), Professor Rohdewald from Hamburg has made a so-called double-blind, placebo-controlled trial along with colleagues from Beijing in which the trial subjects were given either 100 mg. Pycnogenol or placebo during a period of 12 weeks.

It turned out that Pycnogenol was capable of lowering the blood pressure to such an extent that the amount of hypotensive medicine (Nifedipine) could be reduced by 50% after the 12 weeks.

Socioeconomically, it might open up to interesting perspectives as almost 17 million people in the UK suffer from hypertension which increases the risk of coronary thrombosis, cardiac failure, and stroke.

The hospital expenses for cardiovascular diseases are several billion pounds a year and so are the expenses to heart medicine.

If a dietary supplement like Pycnogenol can reduce this consumption of medicine by 50%, it can turn out to be just as interesting as when Glucosamine was able to reduce the consumption of antirheumatic medicine and the number of operations for arthrosis.

By: Vitality Council

Reference:
Life Sciences 74;7:855-862.

www.els.net/els/public/whatsnew/whatsnew_aboutels.asp
www.iom.dk

The Role of Antioxidants May Have To Be Reassessed

Claus Hancke

February 27, 2004

British scientists have discovered that it is enzymes and not antioxidants that are the active factor, when white blood cells attack bacteria.

Free radicals are aggressive molecules that are capable of destroying the structure of other molecules. For example, the body uses free radicals to cut large molecules into pieces and build complex protein structures. So far so good.

But an abundance of free radicals has been shown to be able to damage the body due to the deterioration (oxidation) of certain molecules, such as LDL cholesterol, which then becomes dangerous because it causes arteriosclerosis in its rancid (oxidized) form.

In order to slow down this harmful oxidation, we form the so-called antioxidants. These are also found in our diet and in several dietary supplements. For example, vitamins C and E are such antioxidants.

However, a British research team has investigated the reactions that occur in the white blood cells when these attack bacteria. And they found that free radicals did not play a role, but rather that it was enzymes that the white blood cells use to attack and destroy bacteria.

Until now, it has been believed that the white blood cells used free radicals, and therefore people have been reluctant to use excessive doses of antioxidants, because it was believed that this would neutralize the white blood cells’ free radicals, so that they could not fight bacteria.

The new theory may explain why even large doses of antioxidants have not shown an inhibitory effect on the antibacterial effect of the white blood cells.

A large number of questions now remain, including the scientifically documented inhibitory effect on the occurrence of cancer and cardiovascular diseases.

There is no doubt that there will be renewed debate about this every time we see new research in this very exciting area. – Also because opinions are divided. But one thing is theory, another is practice.

We must remember that the knowledge of medical science today is wrong. All the history of science has taught us that. In 100 years, our current theories will be replaced by new ones, and people will smile at the official knowledge of today.

We must therefore be careful, and above all let ourselves be guided by the large clinical studies. The theories must then try to explain these results.

By: Vitality Council

Reference:
Nature, vol 427;6977:853.

www.nature.com/index.html
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Multivitamins May Reduce HIV Death Rate

Claus Hancke

December 12, 2003

A placebo controlled study made by scientists at the The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine shows that a daily supplement of vitamins and minerals can reduce the HIV death rate. According to the scientists this may have great relevance for the treatment of HIV patients in countries which do not have access to optimal medical therapy.

The number of HIV infected persons continues to rise at a lightning speed. Worldwide, there are almost 5 million that are infected with HIV every year. In Denmark, 250-300 people are diagnosed with HIV every year, and the number is increasing. According to the AIDS Fund, there are approximately 4,500 HIV infected in Denmark, of which only 1,500 are in medical treatment.

In the latest issue of the journal AIDS, the results of a new startling study are published. 481 HIV-infected men and women participated in the study. All participants were from Thailand and none were receiving medical treatment for HIV.

The participants were divided into two groups, one of which received a placebo (cheat pill) and the other a special supplement of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. The participants were followed for a total of 48 weeks, with follow-up every 12 weeks.

After 48 weeks of treatment, the results showed a significantly lower mortality in the group that received the active treatment.

“This is the first time that reduced mortality has been demonstrated by giving something as simple and cheap as multivitamins/minerals to HIV patients. It is a very strong and thought-provoking result”, says the chairman of the Vitality Council, medical specialist Dr. Claus Hancke.

Traditional medical treatment costs approx. 100,000 DK kr. per year for each patient. The treatment extends the HIV-infected person’s life on average by 6-7 years.

“Other studies have shown that multivitamins/minerals can increase the body’s resistance, and now it turns out that it also provides better survival. Further documentation needs to be on the table, but already now patient associations such as HIV-Danmark should inform their members about the result“, says Claus Hancke.

By: Vitality Council

Reference:
AIDS (17 (17):2461-2469).

www.hivinfo.dk
www.iom.dk

Alcohol Counteracts the Effect of Folic Acid in Women

Claus Hancke

October 29, 2003

Epidemiologic study shows folic acid deficiency in women with a daily alcohol consumption of 2-3 drinks and thereby increased risk of chronic joint disease, coronary disease (blood clots) and breast cancer.

Women who drink 2-3 glasses of red wine or more daily have an increased risk of developing chronic joint disorders, cardiovascular disease and breast cancer due to lack of folic acid.

A study by researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston shows that daily alcohol consumption not only reduces the effects of folic acid, but also significantly increases the risk of disease.

The researchers, who have just published the study in an article in the American Journal of Epidemiology, have followed approx. 83,000 women aged between 34 and 59 over a period of 16 years.

The researchers found the highest risk of getting cardiovascular disease and breast cancer in women who received only a small amount of folic acid – 180 micrograms – daily, and who also had a high alcohol consumption of 30 grams of alcohol a day or 2.5  Danish unit of alcohol. The greatest risk was found in women under 60 years of age.

Conversely, women who did not drink alcohol and received a lot of folic acid – 400-599 micrograms daily – had the lowest risk of developing the same diseases.

Against this background the Vitality Council comes with a call for women who drink more than 2-3 units of alcohol a day or 17-18 units of alcohol a week. Partly to reduce the intake of alcohol in accordance with the Danish Health and Medicines Authority’s recommendations and partly to take an extra supplement of folic acid:

“To prevent the increased risk of cardiovascular disease and breast cancer, women with a daily alcohol consumption should consider taking a folic acid supplement,” says Vitality Council Chairman, Specialist in general medicine, Claus Hancke.

“Thus, we do not want to encourage women to continue drinking. As the risk is significantly increased and the statistics show that about 15 percent or every sixth woman in the age group drinks more than the National Board of Health’s recommended maximum of 14 units of alcohol per week, one should take this seriously” the chairman of the Vitality Council points out.

As it is difficult to get enough folic acid through the diet, it is recommended to take a vitamin pill or a multivitamin tablet with folic acid. In the diet, especially vegetables like broccoli and kale are rich in folic acid.

The Danish National Board of Health already recommends pregnant women take approx. 400 micrograms of folic acid daily to prevent spina bifida in children.

By. Vitality Council

Reference:
American Journal of Epedemiology 2003;158:760-771.

aje.oupjournals.org
www.iom.dk

Hesitation in the Health Sector costs lives!

Claus Hancke

June 2, 2003

According to the British Medical Journal thousands of deaths in Denmark are due to the authorities not  being willing to take the available documentation on folic acid  into account.

350,000 deaths due to cardiovascular disease could have been avoided the last ten years if the British authorities had used the available knowledge about the effect of folic acid, according to the British Medical Journal who refers from a London conference (BMJ 2003; 326: 1054).

Here, Professor Godfrey Oakley said, among other things:
“By not requiring mandatory addition of folic acid to the flour, the authorities have committed a fatal health policy error.” Oakley has the support of a number of colleagues, and cardiologist David Wald recommends, for example, that you take a dietary supplement of 800 µg of folic acid a day until the authorities do something about it.

_____________________________________

By: Vitality Council.

 

References:
BMJ 2003;326:1054.
Canadian Medical Association Journal 2002;167:241-5.

bmj.bmjjournals.com
www.cmaj.ca
www.iom.dk

Fish Oil for the Heart

Claus Hancke

March 7, 2003

Essential oils in fish oil can prevent heart disease in elderly people. Quite many consumers and doctors have good experiences with this, but now it has also been confirmed by a study, recently published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

The trial included 360 persons at the age of 65, and the researchers found that a high concentration of the fatty acids DHA and EPA is associated with a lower risk of dying of blood clots in the heart.

– “Again, this is a good example of a preventive measure with natural substances such as fish oil, pays off” says Claus Hancke, chairman of the Vitality Council.

–  Fish oil reduces the risk of both blood clots and atherosclerosis, so there is common sense in taking fish oil, especially if you do not eat as much fish.

– Research results of this type unfortunately receive far too little attention in Denmark, on the contrary, we have often been told that dietary supplements are not useful at all. As a consumer, therefore, it can be difficult to know what to believe.

– Therefore, I believe that a sober-minded information about dietary supplements such as fish oil should be one of the obvious tasks for a future Council for Exercise and Nutrition, says Hancke, who is a specialist in general medicine and General Manager of the Department of Orthomolecular Medicine in Lyngby.

Science today knows very little about the link between heart disease in the elderly and the body’s content of these fatty acids, and therefore studies like this are welcomed by the doctors who work with orthomolecular medicine on a daily basis, popularly speaking: Biological medicine.

By Vitality Council

Reference:
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 77, No. 2, 319-325, February 2003.

www.ajcn.org
www.iom.dk

Nutritional Council’s Negative Statements Against Dietary Supplements

Claus HanckeLeave a Comment on Nutritional Council’s Negative Statements Against Dietary Supplements

12 November 2002

One again the media have been misled by the Nutritional Council’s warnings against dietary supplements.

In the news channel TV2, they stated: “Knockout for Q10 and Selenium”. This is severe disinformation of the population.

The Nutrition Council has via Steen Stender MD, reintroduced an article in The Lancet from July 6, 2002, which among others found that small doses of vitamin E, C and beta carotene had neither a beneficial or harmful effect on a risk group of cardiac patients. Q10 and Selenium are not mentioned at all in this study.

The media have uncritically settled with only listening to one party in this controversial field. -and they have not even discovered that this is a purely Danish news story. They have not wondered why this English study is not mentioned in foreign media at all.

By Vitality Council.

(No references)

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