Omega 3

I am a strong advocate of Omega 3 fats in addition to other supplementation. I was advised today of a concise refresher on Omega 3 fats on the South Beach Diet site the link is:

Omega-3s are essential fats that must be obtained through diet or supplementation. The human body does not have the ability to manufacture them. Two types are called EPA and DHA for short. and are found in cold water fish such as tuna and salmon. These fats are effective in reducing inflammation and preventing the formation of blood clots. There is a third type called ALA which is found in plant sources such as flaxseed, conola oil and dark leafy vegetables. ALA has been shown to lower the "bad" cholesterol and as such its thought that an ALA rich diet may lower the risk of heart attack.

The best way to increase your intake of omega 3s is by eating at least two servings of fish per week and to add leafy greens and flaxseed or canola oil to your diet. Dr Agatston also believes you should take fish oil supplementation daily. He recommends one to two grams of EPAnad DHA daily. People with high triglycerides may need more perhaps 4 grams daily.

Be aware though that some people with certain medical conditions such as those taking anticoagulants and those with bleeding disorders or uncontrolled hypertension should consult with their doctors before taking fish oil supplements. Also note certain fish , including swordfish, king mackerel, and tilefish contain high levels of mercury. Women who are pregnant or may become pregnant and nursing mothers and children should avoid fish with high mercury.

Study Shows Supplementation Lowers Health Costs

A recent comprehensive review of exisitng scientific research found positive health effects associated with both omega-3 fatty acids and the carotenoids, luten and zeaxanthin. Researchers crittically reviewed the scintific evidence of the two supplements ability to reduce the risk of disease and developed estimates of potential health savings. With health care costs skyrocketing and the age of the populations increasing, helping seniors live independently for longer is becoming increasingly important.

The study looked at several hundreds studies dating back over thirty years and arrived at a potential savings of some 3.1 Billion dollars over the next five years with the daily use of omega 3 fatty acids. They estimated that the reduction in coronary disease in the elderly population would result in 384,303 fewer hospitalizations and physicians fees.

for more info see: http://supplementinfo.org/anm/articlefiles/265-FINAL_DSEA_%20FACT_Sheet.pdf

If you are alone and having a heart attack Do this!

My brother Gary forwarded an interesting computer video to me via email. I'd attach it if I knew how. But the gist of it was this. Imagine you are driving home from work and realize that you are having a Heart attack. You're alone and while you know how to give CPR, you don't know how to give it to yourself. Your best bet is to begin to begin a very serious bout of coughing. Coughing about every two seconds while taking a deep breath between each cough. Cough hard, as if you were trying to cough up gunk from the deepest part of your lungs. The deep breath helps draw in oxygen, the hard cough serves to squeeze your heart. Keep it up until you can find help. Not easy to do, but much better than panic...and it may save your own life. Share this with everyone you know.

Many people, not just post menopausal women need to supplement their diets with calcium. I recommend a product with more than calcium in it though. I highly recommend people take USANA's Active Calcium product, which goes an important extra mile. Active Calcium was carefully formulated to enable its ingredients to work together to promote strong and healthy bones.

Twenty-five million Americans suffer from osteoporosis, which accounts for hundreds of thousands of broken bones annually. Although signs of osteoporosis usually don't occur until the later years of life, getting the proper amount of calcium in your diet now may prevent calcium deficiency later. Active Calcium was carefully formulated to enable its ingredients to work together to promote strong and healthy bones.* Supplementation of calcium is one of the keys to preventing osteoporosis and increasing quality of life. Active Calcium is ideal for all ages, from adolescents to seniors. It is formulated with a 2:1 calcium-to-magnesium ratio, and manufactured to U.S.P. guidelines for guaranteed purity and potency.

* More Calcium, Magnesium and Vit D per tablet
* Only 4 tablets per day
* Contains a balanced formula of calcium, magnesium, vitamin K, boron, silicon, and vitamin D
* Provides complete nutritional support for optimal bone development and maintenance throughout all stages of life.*

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

If you are interested in obtaining Active Calcium, email me, and I can make arrangements. Earl

Calcium Supplements Reduce Bone Fractures,
but ONLY if You Take Them

You've heard it before. Brittle bones lead to more fractures, especially in post-menopausal women who are susceptible to osteoporosis. Studies show that calcium can help maintain bone health. But, supplementation has to be daily - not once in a while or once a week or whenever you happen to remember!


The majority of post-menopausal women are susceptible to osteoporosis as their estrogen levels decline. This leads to greater excretion of calcium and results in more brittle bones prone to fracture. In this study, the women who took calcium supplements twice a day reduced their risk of breaking a bone, but getting them to consistently take the supplements was a problem.

The study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, lead researchers to state that they believed calcium supplementation may not be a good public health approach to fracture prevention, not because they don't work, but because of the lack of long-term compliance. Nearly half the 1,460 healthy women who participated in the study did not consistently take the twice-daily 600 mg supplements.

However, among the women in the study who took at least 80 percent of their assigned calcium, only 10 percent suffered a fracture within one year compared to 15 percent of the women who regularly took a placebo. Therefore, taking extra calcium in supplement form did significantly help those women who took them regularly.

The results of this study illustrate two important points: negative conclusions reported in some supplement studies may be a result of poor compliance, not the failure of the supplement itself, and supplements won't likely be effective if they are not taken consistently.

Arch Intern Med. 2006;166:869-875

Becoming A Healthy Eater

Being a healthy eater requires you to become both
educated and smart about what healthy eating
actually is. Being food smart isn't about
learning to calculate grams or fat, or is it
about studying labels and counting calories.

Healthy eating is all about balanced and moderate
eating, consisting of healthy meals at least
three times per day. Healthy eaters eat many
different types of foods, not limiting themselves
to one specific food type or food group.

Eating healthy requires quite a bit of leeway. You
might eat too much or not enough, consume
foods that are sometimes more or less nutritious.
However, you should always fuel your body and
your brain regularly with enough food to keep
both your mind and body strong and alert.

A healthy eater is a good problem solver. Healthy
eaters have learned to take care of themselves
and their eating with sound judgement and making
wise decisions. Healthy eaters are always aware
of what they eat, and know the effect that it
will have on their bodies.

When someone is unable to take control of their
eating, they are also likely to get out of control
with other aspects of life as well. They could
end up spending too much, talking too much, even
going to bed later and later.

You should always remember that restricting food
in any way is always a bad thing. Healthy eating
is a way of life, something that you can do to
enhance your body or your lifestyle. If you've
thought about making your life better, healthy
eating is just the place to start. You'll make
life easier for yourself, those around you, and
even your family.

Canadian Study: Suplement Quality Still a Concern

In a new study, researchers discovered that more than half of the nutritional supplements tested did not disintegrate properly. Included in the tests were 39 tablets and 10 capsules containing minerals and vitamins commercially available on the Canadian Market. The first disinteration test used simulated intestinal fluid (sif) at a pH of 6.8 for 20 minutes. Products which did not disintegrate were further analyzed using USP disintegration condition for dietary supplements.

Of the 39 tablets tested only 18 products (which included USANA's Multi-Mineral which I highly recommend) disintegrated fully at the first stage. The 21 tablets that failed the first stage were then tested using USP conditions. Nine tablets still failed to disintegrate, including all three time release products tested.

Forty percent of the capsules failed to pass the first test, but all ten eventually passed when subjected to the USP testing conditions.

J Pharm Pharmaceut Sci (www.cspsCanda.org) 9(1):40-49, 2006 http://www.ualberta.ca/~csps/JPPS9(1)/Loebenberg.R/tablets.pdf

For more information on USANA please visit my webpage at www.etn.usana.com