All posts by Karen S. Vaughan

chinese-herbal-medicine, heart-disease, herbs, hypertension

Herbs and Hypertension

October 5, 2009 Karen S. Vaughan 2 Comments

Hypertension is a silent disease which can be lethal. An estimated 60 million Americans suffer from the disease. It causes strokes, heart attacks,heart failure, kidney disease, arterial aneurysm and varicosities, headaches, vision problems and has many secondary effects.

In 90-95% of high blood pressure, the American Heart Association says there is no one identifiable cause. This kind of high blood pressure is called primary hypertension or essential hypertension. It is usually a combination of factors, such as:

Weight. This can affect both high and excessively low blood pressure but is not simple. The greater your body mass, the more pressure there is theoretically on your artery walls. That’s because more blood is produced to supply oxygen and nutrients to tissues in your body. However in many sedentary heavy people, there is insufficient blood pressure to perfuse tissues, leading to brain fog and fatigue. Still there are many obese people who have strong artery walls and normal blood pressure.
Sleep. The average American in the 1920s slept 9 hours a night, and we have not evolved to need less. Lack of sleep raises cortisol, the stress hormone, which in turn raises blood pressure.
Diet. Hypertension is associated exclusively with western diet and lifestyle; it is virtually unknown in undeveloped areas of the world following traditional diets
Low Vitamin D levels. Serum 25 Hydroxy D3 levels should be around 50, but show some protection around 30.
Low fiber diet. Fiber helps carry out fats through the intestines so they are not reabsorbed in the gut and thus keeps them out of circulation where they can block arteries, allowing pressure to build up.
Activity level including weight training as well as aerobic activity. Lack of physical activity tends to increase heart rate, which forces your heart to work harder with each contraction. Interval training where aerobic and anaerobic activities such as weight training are interspersed is perhaps the best type of training to reduce hypertension.
Tobacco use. Chemicals in cigarettes and tobacco can damage artery walls.
Heavy metal toxicity reduces antioxidant availability and sets of free radicals which contribute to inflammation and hence cholesterol build up. Chelation can reduce heavy metals if properly done.
Sodium and Potassium intake. Excessive sodium in the diet can result in fluid retention and high blood pressure, especially in people sensitive to sodium. Low potassium can result in elevated sodium in cells, because the two balance one another.
Magnesium and Calcium Intake. Magnesium has dropped over a third in our soils since the mid 1970s as hypertension has risen. Magnesium also reduces hypertension in pregnancy. Calcium is less depleted but works in synergy with magnesium to reduce blood pressure.
Stress. Stress is well known to raise blood pressure, either temporarily (labile or white coat hypertension) or more permanently. Stress induces the adrenal glands to produce cortisol.
Alcohol consumption. Excessive alcohol intake can, over time, increase the risk of heart disease.
Age. The risk of high blood pressure increases as we get older.
Genetics. High blood pressure often runs in families and is more prominent in African Americans. This may be because melanin binds cadmium, lead and copper and heavy metals affect hypertension.

So what do we do? Weight loss, exercise, lower sodium to potassium ratios, and lower stress are all important. We can be tested for heavy metal toxicity and see if treatment is likely to be useful. But there are a number of herbs that are quite useful at rebalancing our bodies to lower blood pressure.

Garlic is well known to lower blood pressure, as well as blood sugar which may indirectly affect pressure by reducing inflammation and cholesterol deposit. (Cholesterol is the body’s bandage for inflamed tissue, but in excess can restrict the blood vessels.) Garlic increases antioxidant levels in the blood. A meta-analysis of garlic and hypertension studies found that it was superior to placebo in the treatment of hypertension.

The volatile oils that are found in fresh garlic are likely important for cardiovascular effects, although dry preparations do have some cardiac effect. My favorite way to take garlic is to mince a clove finely while holding it in place, coat it with honey on a spoon, and to place the spoon upside down in the mouth (which for some reason helps you swallow it) followed by a chaser of water or juice. Take with parsley to kill the odor.

Hawthorn berries and flowers help nourish the heart which is a category of treatment that no western cardiac medicine fulfills. Hawthorn is a trophorestorative to the heart, which means it tonifies the heart through deep nutrition that rebuilds the organ. Hawthorn can be used for functional or structural problems with the heart and there is a great deal of research to back up traditional uses.

According to David Winston, hawthorn can be used for myocarditis, arrhythmias, palpitations, angina, other ischemic heart diseases, recovery from heart attacks, for congestive heart failure (Pittler, et al, 2008) when combined with Lily of the Valley, Selinocereus grandiflorus (one of the night blooming cereus cactuses- check the Latin name), for mitral valve prolapse with Night blooming cereus and Collinsonia, and with atrial fibrillation when combined with Scotch Broom and Night blooming cereus. Regular use helps prevent arteriosclerosis and peripheral insufficiencies and lowers blood pressure (Asgary, et al, 1998) as well as triglycerides and LDL and VLDL cholesterol levels. It is also useful for grief-related heart/shen issues when combined with rose petals and mimosa bark.

Not all hawthorns are the same. Chinese hawthorn, Cratageus pinnatifida is used for food stagnation, and may have some effect on the heart but is generally inferior to European hawthorn, C. monogyna in terms of cardiac effect. There are American hawthorns that are very good, while others are fairly inert, according to Winston.

Linden flower or Tilia is a mild hyptoensive herb, a nervine and an herb that loosens the pectoral area. The European linden flower is most effective. It is also good for headaches caused by “white coat” or labile hypertension.

European mistletoe, Viscum album can be used to treat mild hypertension with a red face, vascular headaches, fatigue, dizziness and irritability. Do NOT use American mistletoe which is highly erratic in its effects and can be dangerous. In fact this herb should be handled by an experienced practitioner. Mistletoe first elevates blood pressure then lowers it. For vascular headaches due to hypertension, it can be mixed withFeverfew, Corydalis and Peony root. For hypertension William Miller uses it with Rauwolfia and Linden. Mistletoe is a low dose herb.

The real Night blooming cereus, Selinicereus grandifolia, is an epiphyte with narrow cactus-like leaves that blossoms rarely, in the evenings. It is used for angina, a heartbeat with a feeble irregular presentation and the person usually has anxiety and depression. There are a lot of substituted species around which don’t do the same thing, so I usually use Herbalist and Alchemist or Herb Pharm Cactus Grandiflorus Extract“>HerbPharm which use the real thing. It combines well with hawthorn. Winston suggest it for mild to moderate congestive heart failure, precordial oppression, mitral valve prolapse as above, decompensation of the heart caused by nicotine toxicity and Klinefelter’s syndrome (athlete’s heart.) For hypertension I use it with Collinsonia and Hawthorn.

Collinsonia is used to strengthen blood vessels, so is useful when someone has hypertension, although it does not itself lower the blood pressure. Still it should be added to prevent blood vessel failure. It combines well with horsechestnut.

Dandelion leaf is a potasium-sparing diuretic useful for edema and can be used in lieu of Lasix or other diuretics for hypertension or mild congestive heart failure. The whole herb is used in Chinese medicine to reduce Liver heat or Liver yang rising, which is a source of hypertension. Dandelion leaf is also anti-inflammatory and anti-infective.

Cayenne is a blood mover, which helps explain why it can help reduce blood pressure. It is diaphoretic, which helps remove some of the extra fluid by increasing sweat, depressurizing the system, is anti-inflammatory (a cox 2 inhibitor), increases circulation, is antioxidant and enhances the vascular integrity of the blood vessels.

Rosemary is anti-inflammatory, diuretic, moves blood and is a nervine. As such it can reduce blood pressure mildly. It is a vasodilator, and is also useful for vasoconstrictive headaches. Its flavanoid diosmin is more helpful than rutin in protecting capillary integrity. It has a somewhat regulating effect on circulation and can be used for either hypertension or hypotension when properly combined with other herbs in formula.

Arjuna is an Ayurvedic cardiovascular herb that has shown some mild effect on hypertension, as well as reversing impaired endothelial function in smokers. It is more often used for mild congestive heart failure, stable angina and palpitations. It also lowers LDL and triglycerides which can block blood vessels and raises HDL.

Dan shen is a peripheral vasodilator and hypotensive herb, so can help lower blood pressure. This root of Salvia miltorrhiza is a premier cardiovascular herb which is used for angina pain, hypertension, palpitations, irritability and to lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Both Chinese Angelica (Dang gui, Dong quai) and Angelica archangelica can be used for hypertension. They move stagnant blood so can prevent thrombosis when blood is under pressure. They also help build the quality of blood. Dang gui is stereotyped as a woman’s tonic because it helps the blood in menstruation, but is a premier cardiovascular herb.

There are other herbs like foxglove and lily of the valley that have been used for cardiac conditions, but I would not be comfortable using them unless assayed as they were in the late 19th and early 20th century.

However adaptogens, like ginseng, reishi, ashwaganda, holy basil, astragalus and raphonticum are useful to reregulate the HPA axis and get the blood pressure back to normal, especially when in formula with blood pressure lowering herbs. Similarly anti-inflammatory herbs like turmeric and ginger can help reduce the heat and I use the proper individual herb in formula or New Chapter Zyflamend which contains both adaptogenic and anti-inflammatory herbs.

Diuretics like Fu Ling (poria), Ze Xie (alismatis), Bai zhu (atractylodes) or Zhu Ling (polyporus) make up formulas like Wu Ling San, or Zhu Ling San, formulas used in Chinese medicine used to drain dampness or damp heat. This can be quite useful in lowering blood pressure, provided that potassium is replenished and other parts of the disease are addressed.

Magnesium, selenium, coenzyme Q10, folic acid, fish oil supplying a gram of DHA daily and nattokinase are also helpful, but are fodder for an article on supplements and hypertension rather than herbs. Still hypertension is best addressed with lifestyle changes, rebalancing the diet and sensible weight loss as the core of treatment, with herbs and supplements being used to supply missing nutrients and to nudge the organ systems of the body towards a state of health.

Sources:

Asgary, S., Naderi, G., et al, Anti-Hypertension Effect of Iranian Crataegus curvisepala Lind: A Randomized Double-Blind Study, Isfahan Cardiovascular Research Center, 1998

Bharani, A., Ahirwar, L.K., et al, Terminalia arjuna Reverses Endothelial Function in Chronic Smokers, Indian Heart J,2004, Mar-Apr; 56(2): 123-8

Bharani, A., Ganguli, A. et al, Efﬁcacy of Terminalia arjuna in Chronic Stable Angina: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Crossover Study Comparing Terminalia arjuna with Isosorbide Mononitrate, Indian Heart Journal, 54(2):170-5, 2002
Mar-Apr.

Bergner, Paul. Cardiovascular Herbs. http://medherb.com/Therapeutics/Cardiovascular_Herbs_and_hypertension.htm

Pittler, M.H., Guo, R., et al, Hawthorn Extract for Treating Chronic Heart Failure, The Cochrane Library, 2008, Issue 1

Tankanow, R., Tamer, H.R., et al, Interaction Study Between Digoxin and A Preparation of Hawthorn (Crataegus oxyacantha), J Clin Pharmacol, 2003 Jun;43(6):637-43

Upton, R. [Ed.], American Herbal Pharmacopoeia and Therapeutic Compendium, Hawthorn Berry, Santa Cruz, CA, 1999

Upton, R. [Ed.], American Herbal Pharmacopoeia and Therapeutic Compendium, Hawthorn Leaf With Flower, Santa Cruz, CA, 1999

Winston, David. Materia Medica, unpublished ms. 2009

Winston, David and Merilly A Kuhn. Herbal Therapy and Supplements, A Scientific and Traditional Approach. Lippincott, 2007

http://altmedicine.about.com/cs/herbsvitaminsek/a/Hypertension.htm

Weiss, R., Herbal Medicine-Classic edition, 2001, Thieme, NY, pp. 158-160, 324-325

Witham MD, Nadir MA, Struthers AD Effect of vitamin D on blood pressure’ a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Hypertens. 2009 Jul 7.

immune-system, lifestyle, sleep

Sleep, Disease and Herbs for Insomnia

September 25, 2009 Karen S. Vaughan Leave a comment

In the 1920s, when electricity was not nearly as prevalent (but sources of artificial light were common), Americans were surveyed on sleep habits. The average American slept 9 hours a night, which meant that many slept more. Today the average American is believed to sleep 6 1/2 hours a night. We have not biologically evolved to need less sleep.

There are many types of insomnia: trouble falling asleep, trouble staying asleep, waking too early and sleeping at too superficial a level. People with sleep apnea may believe they sleep like a log, but they have hundreds of micro-awakenings from not being able to breathe, which send their adrenals into fight or flight mode and which leave them exhausted throughout the day. Sleep problems can be occasional, transitory (for short periods of time) or chronic. But the problem I see the most in practice is that people aren’t spending enough time in bed.

Why is this a problem? In a nutshell, it makes you fat, stupid and sick. We know that driving with insufficient sleep makes you as prone to accidents as drunk driving. Almost 1/4 of 18 to 29-year olds report they have fallen asleep at the wheel at some point during the past year, according to the National Sleep Foundation. And half of U.S. adults admit to driving while they are tired. Their judgment is impaired, their reaction times are reduced and they can’t think straight.

We know that people without enough sleep not only eat more, to keep their blood sugar up, but use more cortisol which causes the dangerous belly fat.

Sleep is very important for your immune system, both in terms of disease resistance and even in terms of resistance to parasites.

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology have shown that species that sleep more have greater resistance against pathogens. They found evolutionary increases in mammalian sleep times to be strongly associated with a better immune defense as measured by the number of immune cells circulating in peripheral blood. This relationship was detected in 4 of the 5 immune cell types and in both main sleep phases.

Insomnia
How many of us awaken refreshed? Most stay up too late, exercise and eat late, watch television or use computers before bed (which activates parts of the brain that we need to turn off,) or we sleep with light in the room (even those LEDs can interfere with melatonin.) We don’t go to bed at a consistent time every night.

Aside from sleep hygiene, there are a number of conditions that can interfere with sleep. Restless leg syndrome, painful joints or nerves, hiatial hernia, or even getting up to urinate with prostatic enlargement can all interfere with sleep. Many medications disrupt sleep. Sleep apnea ensures that the sleep you have isn’t effective. Similar disruption can occur if you sleep in a room that is noisy or that has artificial light coming in through a window or from appliances including your alarm clock. It helps to sleep with blackout curtains or a blindfold.

In Chinese medicine, when your heart qi is upset, from emotional problems or liver yang rising, or if your blood is insufficient to cool the heart, you will get insomnia. People suffering from the condition Liver Yang Rising can also have insomnia, especially if the heart is disturbed. Treatments with acupuncture, including points on the toe or head, and herbs can be quite effective for this.

Chinese medicine has seven categories of insomnia with a dozen standard formulas, and of course a Chinese herbalist would individualize those formulas for any patient presenting with insomnia. The causes range from digestive disturbances which affect the Spleen and Stomach, Liver heat which rises to harass the heart, Phlegm heat, Heart yin, yang, blood or qi deficiency or disturbances of the Seven Emotions. Different formulas would be given for each and it is best to be diagnosed so that the proper formula can be adapted to your needs.

Herbs and Supplements

There are many herbs or combinations for insomnia, and most of them are better for one type than another. For instance, valerian helps many people to sleep, but keeps others wired up. The people who benefit the most are those who are pale and deficient, with a pale tongue and who tend to take their anxiety out on their digestive tract. People who show overt sleep signs are more likely to get heated from the valerian and it will make insomnia worse. This is especially true if the valerian product is made of dried root, since volatile compounds that help you sleep have evaporated. I prefer valerian in a formula with herbs chosen from passionflower, zizyphus, hops, chamomile or skullcap.

Passionflower is very good for insomnia that comes from mental chatter, where you cannot easily quiet your mind. Combine passionflower with a hypnosis tape or progressive relaxation, feeling the sun come in through the head and relax each part of your body down to your toes.

Hops is better for insomnia combined with a nervous stomach. It can be taken in tea, tincture, beer, infused into hot baths, or made into dream pillows. It combines well with passionflower and valerian.

Zizyphus, known as Suan Zao Ren, nourishes the heart and calms the mind. It is good for insomnia with irritability, insomnia, nightmares or stress induced hypertension. It is especially good for people with deficient heart blood, a Chinese term that includes anemia but is not identical to it. It is used in the form of Suan Zao Ren tang, a traditional Chinese sleep formula.

Chamomile is especially good for children, with insomnia due to growing pains, teething, irritability, nightmares and stomach problems. It works just as well for adults. Tea is probably the best way to take it, but chamomile baths are good for spasms, muscle pain and anxiety, so would also be good before bed.

California Poppy is a mild sedative and mild painkiller and does not have the addictive potential of opium poppy. It is especially good for Yang rising type insomnia, with anxiety and headaches. It mixes well with Corydalis for insomnia due to pain.

Lavender is best known as a sedative when used as an essential oil. A few drops on a pillow or inhaled will help you sleep. In a peer-reviewed British study, when the sleeping room was perfumed with lavender, elderly nursing home residents with insomnia slept as well as they did when they took sleeping pills and better than they did when they were given neither sleeping pills nor exposed to lavender fragrance. Similar results were found with Korean college students, and depression was reduced as well. In fact lavender is very good for people with black moods who suffer from insomnia, although it is not restricted to them. Infants given lavender baths cried less and slept more in a University of Miami study. Lavender pillow inserts and lavender tea or tincture will address insomnia as well.

Kava has been found to reduce stress-induced insomnia. Kava seems to be more safely ingested in traditional water based and fermented forms than from standardized capsules. I suggest that people take a tea, tincture or glycerite form. Kava is especially helpful to women who are experiencing sleeplessness due to hormonal fluctuations or to people suffering from insomnia due to spasms. It can enhance dreaming.

Chinese polygala, Yuan zhi, is quite useful for insomnia with anxiety, bad dreams and stress-induced palpitations. It mixes well with zizyphus seed and gambir spines (Gou teng). It works well as a decoction.

Melissa, or Lemon Balm, is a mild sedative but does not have significant study. It makes a delightful tea or tincture. It is a mild antidepressant as well. Taken with St. John’s wort, lemon balm is useful for those who can’t sleep due to seasonal depression.

The dietary supplement tryptophan can be useful to induce sleep. Serotonin, a neurotranmitter which helps the sleep/wake cycle is manufactured by the body from the amino acid tryptophan. Herbs and foods high in tryptophan that help restore proper serotonin levels in the brain are St. John’s wort, quinoa, spirulina, and soy products.

Melatonin sold as a dietary supplement in the US, is a naturally occurring hormone that regulates the circadian cycle of several body processes. There are no foods known to raise melatonin levels significantly. In humans, melatonin is produced by the pea-sized pineal gland located in the center of the brain but outside of the blood-brain barrier. The melatonin signal forms part of the system that regulates the sleep-wake cycle by chemically causing drowsiness and lowering the body temperature. Light stimulates the gland, inhibiting melatonin, which is why it is better to sleep in the dark. Some people wear blue-blocker eyeglasses which prevents the light from strongly inhibiting this important sleep hormone. As a supplement, melatonin works to induce sleep, but I question whether it is a good idea to rely upon taking hormones instead of producing them.

Magnesium has declined precipitously in our diet. Between 1975 and the early 1990s, the USDA nutrient analyses of food showed an approximate 30% decline in magnesium levels, most likely due to industrial farming methods that have depleted topsoil. Magnesium is one of the most abundant elements in the human body. Its ions are essential to all living cells, where they play a major role in manipulating important biological polyphosphate compounds like ATP, DNA, and RNA. Hundreds of enzymes thus require magnesium ions in order to function. Spasms, constipation, depression and insomnia are four important problems caused by a lack of magnesium in the diet. Since dry forms are not easily absorbed, colloidal magnesium can most rapidly help many sleep disorders.

Foods and Insomnia

It is a good idea to avoid stimulating foods if you suffer from insomnia. Coffee, black tea, and chocolate have caffeine or caffeine-like compounds that can reduce sleep in many people. (Others of us have been known to drop our coffee cup as we nod off.)

Foods high in protein provide necessary amino acids. There is no evidence that eating turkey actually increases tryptophan, although a heavy Thanksgiving meal may induce sleep by causing a spike and drop in blood sugar. Generally amino acids need to be given alone to have specific attributes like inducing sleep.

Sea vegetables, herbs like nettles made into an overnight infusion and dark greens like kale can provide some of the missing minerals that will enhance rest. Alcohol can induce sleep, but it does not allow for the proper types of sleep so can make problems worse, and will generally not permit restful sleep.

Sleep deprivation is a major problem in contemporary America and contributes to chronic and acute diseases. We tend to underestimate what sleep deprivation can do. Unless sleep problems are resolved, it is unlikely that chronic disease can be successfully addressed.

pregnancy, vitamin-d

Vitamin D During Pregnancy Reduces Pre-Eclampsia

September 17, 2009 Karen S. Vaughan 6 Comments

Several studies in different parts of the world have shown that there is a benefit to a baby when the mother takes Vitamin D in excess of the amount in prenatal vitamins. This shows that there is a benefit to pregnant mothers in reducing the complications of pregnancy. While the study only looked at a fairly low dose of Vitamin D, probably from cod liver oil and diet, it indicates that supplementation reduced pre-eclampsia by 25%. Based upon Finish studies, I wonder how much less pre-eclampsia would be found if blood levels were raised to 50.

Vitamin D may reduce pre-eclampsia risk: Study

By Stephen Daniells, 20-Aug-2009

Increased intakes of vitamin D during pregnancy may reduce the development by about 25 per cent, suggests a study with over 20,000 Norwegian women.

The risk of pre-eclampsia was 27 per cent lower in women who consumed vitamin D supplements with daily doses of 10 to 15 micrograms, compared to women who did not take supplements, according to researchers from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.

However, a correlation between vitamin D intake and omega-3 fatty acid intake was observed, and the researchers noted that “further research is needed to disentangle the separate effects of these nutrients”.

Pre-eclampsia, affecting two to three per cent of all pregnancies, occurs when a mother’s blood pressure rises to the hypertensive range, and excretion of protein in the urine becomes too high. It is estimated to be responsible for about 60,000 deaths worldwide.

It is not known why some expectant mothers develop pre-eclampsia, although oxidative stress has been proposed to play a part. The role of antioxidants to reduce oxidative stress had been supported by a small clinical trial that linked vitamin C and E intake to fewer biomarkers for pre-eclampsia for predominantly low-risk participants.

However, subsequent studies, including a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine (Vol. 354, pp. 1796-1806) and a Cochrane Systematic Review (2007, Issue 4), found that vitamins C and E had no effects on the risk of pre-eclampsia.

The new study, published in Epidemiology suggests that vitamin D supplementation may reduce the risk of developing the potentially fatal condition.

Led by Helle Margrete Meltzer, the researchers examined the relationship between vitamin D intakes during pregnancy and the risk of pre-eclampsia in 23,423 would-be first time mothers participating in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study.

The women answered a general health questionnaire at the fifteenth week of pregnancy and again at the thirtieth week, while a food frequency questionnaire was administered at week 22.

According to the Norwegian findings, women with a daily intake of between 15 and 20 micrograms of vitamin D from diet and supplements had a 24 per cent lower risk of developing pre-eclampsia compared to women who consumed less than 5 micrograms per day.

The overriding benefits were observed for vitamin D from supplements, with a daily dose of 10 to 15 micrograms linked to a 27 per cent reduction, compared to women who did not take supplements.

“These findings are consistent with other reports of a protective effect of vitamin D on pre-eclampsia development,” wrote Meltzer and her co-workers.

“However, because vitamin D intake is highly correlated with the intake of long chain omega-3 fatty acids in the Norwegian diet, further research is needed to disentangle the separate effects of these nutrients,” they concluded.

Source: Epidemiology
September 2009, Volume 20, Issue 5, Pages 720-726, doi: 10.1097/EDE.0b013e3181a70f08
“Vitamin D Supplementation and Reduced Risk of Preeclampsia in Nulliparous Women”
Authors: M. Haugen, A.L. Brantsaeter, L. Trogstad, J. Alexander, C. Roth, P. Magnus, H.M. Meltzer

http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/Research/Vitamin-D-may-reduce-pre-eclampsia-risk-Study

See Related Posts:

Vitamin D Regulates the Immune System

Nursing Mothers, Infants and Vitamin D

How to Get Vitamin D from the Sun

And More On Vitamin D

Vitamin D Prevents Cancer, Type 1 Diabetes, MS, Heart Attack and Pain

cholesterol, diet, heart-disease, herbs, sunlight, Uncategorized, vitamin-d, western-medicine

Vitamin D, Statins and Red Yeast Rice

September 11, 2009 Karen S. Vaughan Leave a comment

As those of you who read my blog are aware, I am not a big fan of statins. The first reason is that cholesterol is not really the problem. The second is that statins depress the body’s own anti-inflammatory compound CoQ10. But recent research shows that, against our logical assumptions, Vitamin D levels may rise when statins are taken.

Cholesterol is good? Yes. Cholesterol is the building block of hormones, and it is the body’s own bandage for inflamed arteries. When the inflammation is high, cholesterol rises and if it isn’t enough to lower you get cardiovascular disease. It doesn’t get rid of the inflammation to remove the body’s bandage, you need to look at diet and stress and other causes of inflammation. Besides if you block cholesterol with statins, you block the body’s formation of CoQ10 which is our natural antioxidant. And that can cause a painful disease called rhabdomyolysis where the muscles ache and cramp.

But isn’t it helpful to prevent heart disease? Sort of. You are less likely to get a second heart attack, but not a first one. You may be less likely to die from a heart attack but no less likely to die from other causes within a normal study period. And it probably isn’t because it reduces cholesterol, but because it is anti-inflammatory (replacing your body’s own anti-inflammatory coenzyme with its own effect).

How about Red Yeast Rice? Red Yeast Rice is a kind of statin, and is the source for lovastatin which it contains. Red Yeast Rice is somewhat less dangerous- it spreads itself out among liver detoxification pathways without clogging a few important pathways. And the dosage is lower, which is common in a whole herb and does not impair its action. But it still reduces CoQ10, and adds some liver taxation I use it rarely.

The information about Vitamin D and statins is a surprise. Vitamin D and cholesterol have the same precursor, and those of us in the natural medicine field assumed that statins would reduce absorption of Vitamin D if you took a medication that reduced the precursor. In a Turkish cardiology study, 91 patients with high blood lipids were tested before and after an eight week course of Rosuvastatin (Crestor). Their blood levels of Vitamin D (25 hydroxy D) went from 14 to 36 on average, and a number of other measures of Vitamin D improved. Why? Well we don’t know, but it could have to do with the breakdown products of the drug and the precursor fitting into the receptors.

Do I recommend asking your doctor for Crestor to build Vitamin D? No. There are several formulations of high value D3 on the market, from drops to fast-dissolving dry pills. They go from a tiny pill with 5000 iu to capsules of 50,000 iu. If one doesn’t work well to increase your serum (25 Hydroxy D) Vitamin D levels to a level of 50, look at others. You may build up your dose to a higher level. And you should consider supplementing your D3 vitamins with even a little midday sun exposure without sunscreen because sunlight energy can’t be reduced to one isolated vitamin. (Your body will not make too much.)

If all else fails, then I would try taking the Vitamin D with some Red Yeast Rice for a period of up to two months while you load Vitamin D. Red Yeast Rice has not been studied like the Rosuvastatin so you are experimenting on yourself but chances are good that it will work. Add extra Co-enzyme Q10 to protect your liver and your muscles. And when you get your levels up, stop the Red Yeast Rice.

flu, Uncategorized, vitamin-d

Vitamin D Regulates the Immune System

September 2, 2009 Karen S. Vaughan Leave a comment

I am an herbalist, and that is where I turn first, in most cases. But Vitamin D is an exception. It is a hormone used by most of our cells in over 2000 functions,. As humans ranged north of the African savannah where we evolved and started wearing more clothing, we started lowering our D levels.

Vitamin D has the ability to kill off bacteria and that property has been so important that we have retained that property as primates for over 60 million years

Vitamin D also prevents the over stimulation of our immune system which could cause it to attack ourselves. This is important for the Swine Flu which can be dangerous if there is an excessive inflammatory response, called a cytokine storm.

Most deaths in the 1918 flu pandemic and more recently from SARS, happened when young healthy people who had a strong immune response provoked a cytokine storm which allowed an excessive response that quickly killed them off. We speculate that with higher levels of Vitamin D, the regulatory function that caused the excessive inflammation might not have occurred.

This article tells how the process works, but the takeaway is to keep your Vitamin D levels high (blood level around 60) which may require 10,000 iu or more daily and if you get the flu increase it.

Aug 19 2009, 10:20 AM EST

Regulation of Antimicrobial Peptide by Vitamin D Found to Have Been

Conserved for 60M Years Continue reading Vitamin D Regulates the Immune System →

breast-feeding, pregnancy, vitamin-d

Nursing Mothers, Infants and Vitamin D

August 26, 2009 Karen S. Vaughan 5 Comments

While I used to think otherwise, I firmly believe that nursing mothers should supplement both themselves and their babies with Vitamin D. The exceptions to this are mothers who live south of Atlanta, who together with their babies are out of doors without sunscreen between 11:00 am and 1:00pm and who don’t use soap when they wash (because it washes away the D2 oil involved in the process of making D3.) We used to have government programs to encourage parents to take children out into the sun. See this informative and entertaining video from UCSD.

In Finland, babies were routinely given cod liver oil providing 4500 iu of D (and modern cod liver oil is NOT recommended for it due to lower D/A ratios). Then, since research showed that rickets could be prevented at 400 iu, the recommended daily amount was lowered. As a result, Type 1 Diabetes skyrocketed. We have very good data showing that 90% of Type 1 Childhood Diabetes can be eliminated by Vitamin D supplementation.

The link between Vitamin D and Type 2 diabetes in children is less supported but there is good evidence that it may also play a role.

Vitamin D deficiency may also play a role in some autism. The blood levels of Vitamin D in autistics is generally low.

Vitamin D Council’s John Cannell, MD, (http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/health/autism/ is convinced that vitamin D deficiency is linked to autism and that the autism “epidemic” started at the exact same time that the vitamin D deficiency epidemic started. As soon as we started limiting sun exposure and using sunscreens, the number of autism cases shot up. Science Magazine published a similar article. There are groups of Somali children in Sweden and Minnesota who are hugely overrepresented among autistics, with the only real difference between their lighter skinned peers is that their skin color prevents Vitamin D absorption. It is correlation, but is compelling.

I have here a number of articles on Vitamin D and its health benefits. While theoretical toxicity is a potential problem, it is hard to get high enough to be toxic. And since 13,000 Finnish babies managed on 4500 iu, then we have good evidence that isn’t so high.

While it is very important that a pregnant or nursing mother have high D levels, it isn’t easy to do that from diet alone. Most of us drink less milk, eat less liver or organ meat, don’t go out into the sun around noon without sunscreen and we wash the oils off of our skin that might be turned into the vitamin. We are also heavier, which reduces Vitamin D. Our foods used to have a lot more D: cattle grazed in the sunlight foraging for wild plants, wild fish ate plankton instead of Purina fish meal, and pigs and chickens weren’t penned indoors. The supplementation of Vitamin D from irradiated milk is insufficient to make up for the loss. And your prenatal vitamins won’t have enough because the RDA is too low.

If your skin is dark, chances are that your D levels are low. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) found African Americans were low: just 3 percent of blacks sampled in 2004 were found to have the recommended levels compared with 12 percent two decades ago. If you don’t have it, you can’t pass it through your milk. Breastfed infants have been taken away from nursing African American mothers on suspicion of abuse because they had hidden fractures from rickets and were not tested for them. Since we are out of our ecological niche, we no longer have the natural sources of Vitamin D at our disposal and we probably need to supplement.

I would personally take 10,000 iu during pregnancy and lactation, more if I had conditions that reduce Vitamin D like dark skin, autoimmune disease, diabetes or obesity. I would personally give my baby 2000 iu, and would massage in a D-supplemented skin oil (even if I had to add it in myself.) We would both spend time in the noonday sun without sunscreen. And just to be safe, I would ask for 25-hydroxy-D blood tests to make sure I was getting it high enough.

Research on D in Pregnancy and Lactation from the Vitamin D Council.

alternative-health, cancer, sunlight, vitamin-d

How To Get Vitamin D from the Sun

August 23, 2009 Karen S. Vaughan Leave a comment

How do you get enough Vitamin D from the sun? If you can fulfill the following, you might get enough: vitamin-d

You live south of Atlanta in the winter.
You are in the sun from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm.
Your body is mostly uncovered.
You go without sunscreen for at least 15-20 minutes.
You don’t use soap for 48 hours.
You repeat the process in 72 hours.
Your skin is not dark, either from genetics or suntanning. (You may need six times as much exposure if your skin is dark.)

Unless you fit all of these conditions, you need to supplement. And a multi-vitamin or calcium plus D supplement will NOT have enough Vitamin D, nor will your milk. You need to supplement with high iu Vitamin D3, preferably above 4000 iu. If your blood 25 hydroxy D test is below 70 (ignore “high”, “medium” and “low” because that is based on the averages of a D-deficient population,) then supplement it. The exception is if you have scleroderma or similar abnormal calcium metabolism.

Other ways to supplement: frequent consumption of liver, preferably from organic animals. Shitake or other mushrooms dried gill side up in the sun on a daily dose of about one ounce dry weight, cooked long and low.

Calculations from studies on Vitamin D show that, for every person who dies of skin cancer from UV overexposure, more than two hundred will die from other cancers, like lung, breast, prostate and colon, as a result of low vitamin D levels.