Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Osteoporosis, the Disease That Isn't: A Sure Fire Reversal

Osteoporosis, a normal process of aging, has been twisted into a disease by the marketing departments of the giant pharmaceutical companies. In doing so, they've turned their impossibly toxic bisphosphonate drugs into one of the most vigorous money making machines they've ever had. And make no mistake about this: Bisphosphonates are dangerous, debilitating, harmful, and essentially worthless. That's in spite of the hype. The drug companies spend millions convincing doctors and the public that Fosomax, Boniva, Actonel, etc, are the silver bullet against the broken bones in the elderly, when in fact, these drugs merely exacerbate the problem. These drugs have been identified, time and again, as causing, not preventing, serious breaks and fractures. To make matters worse, these drugs are totally unnecessary in the prevention of thinning bones. Read this true story.

A TRUE STORY

In May of 2004, this 77 year old woman had a DEXA Scan. The results came back showing severe thinning of her bones, especially in the hips and thighs. She was termed as being at great risk for breaks and fractures. Any mainstream physician would have written her a script for Fosamax without a second thought.

Instead, her alternative provider started her on a regimen of improved nutrition and daily intake of the Bone Maker! In addition, she was instructed to take the supplements Total Balance for Women along with Bone-Protec daily as recommended on the labels. No prescriptions were required or issued.

She followed these instructions faithfully in the ensuing years. One evening in February 2010, at 83, on her way up to bed, she lost her footing at the top of their winding staircase. Head over heels she tumbled down the entire flight of hardwood steps, landing hard on the quarry tile floor below. She was dazed, bruised, cut , and disoriented, with a severe gash in her scalp. The family of course was horrified, expecting the worst. An ambulance was called and she was transported to the ER.

She required six stitches in her scalp. No broken bones were found! She was kept in the hospital under observation for three days. By then she was clamoring for release and no one could think of any more reasons for keeping her there. She's back home again in robust good health, and taking a little salt in her food now - this was the reason for her fall. She'd been a fanatic about avoiding all salt (we do all need a little) and she'd passed out momentarily at the head of the stairway. Well now, sorry about that, but to learn what the Bone Maker is, you'll have to go here and read this story again.












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Monday, April 12, 2010

The DEXA Scan: Is It Worth Having?


ANOTHER TEST THAT PREYS ON FEAR

Back in 1994, some very enterprising entrepreneurs found a new way to make a buck. They invented the DEXA SCAN. DEXA, which stands for Dual Energy X-Ray Absorpiometry, is designed to look into a person's bones and predict the risk of future fractures. And the marketing moguls came out full force on this, assuring everyone, especially women approaching, in, or past, menopause, that they were destined for a fatal hip fracture if they failed to undergo the test.

And then, embracing the best of both worlds, when the test indicated a thinning of bones, as it does with all of us as we age, the patient absolutely needed to be placed on one of the expensive and dangerous bisphosphonate drugs in a heroic effort to avoid the fracture that was certainly lurking in the patient's future. The marketing people even came up with a new disease to help enhance the profit picture. Osteopenia was invented as a forerunner to Osteoporosis and became the byword of the bisphosphonate manufacturers and vendors.

Today, thousands of women have availed themselves of the DEXA Scan and have been suitably frightened into taking the poisonous drugs that are supposed to protect them against fractures.

INDICATORS SEEM QUESTIONABLE

Well, just how accurate are the DEXA Scans in predicting fractures? Some people simply break bones very easily as they age. Others are sturdier and more resistant to fractures. And age, much more than DEXA Scans predicts these fractures. In a study conducted in Finland, it was found that annual fracture rates increase about one per 10,000 women in their early fifties up to about one in 100 women in their late eighties. So while DEXA scores decline (worsen) with age, fracture rates increase much faster than can be explained by the DEXA scores. A number on a test score is a very poor way of rating an illness.



This is simply a way of marketing with fear. The same forces that invented osteopenia also define an entirely natural process, menopause, as an illness! Any physician who follows the National Osteoporosis Foundation (NOF) guidelines and treats all patients with that organization's defined low DEXA score will find that he's failing to address the more than 95% of women who will have a fracture even though they score well on the test. So based on this, you may as well take a look at the birth date on your driver's license to predict your risk of a fracture.

BETTER OPTIONS

Shamefully, a therapy available worldwide with the exception of the U.S. has appeared which is astonishngly successful in treating osteoporosis without the very dangerous and negative side effects the routinely prescribed bisphosphonate drugs have for Americans. It's a simple, cheap, readily available mineral that was discovered by the Mayo Clinic in 1955, to be effective in the treatment of osteoporosis. As quickly as it was discovered, the Mayo Clinic discarded it.

Fortunately, our community of alternative physicians have not been sleeping. They know about it too, and have been quietly offering it to their patients for the past twenty years. This mineral, one of the most abundant elements on earth, is strontium. This is not to be confused with Strontium 90, the radioactive isotope! This element has been found to work as a "dual-acting bone agent." Not only does it reduce the rate of bone turnover, but it also helps build new bone of high quality. Studies conducted with more than 5,000 women over three years has revealed improvements in bone density of 8-14% And the beautiful thing about it is, you can get the stuff in your local health food store for about $150.00 a year!

In Europe and other countries, a patented product, developed in France, has recently made its appearance. Strontium Ranelate, marketed under the name Protelos, has recently appeared. This is not available in the U.S. However, strontium carbonate is readily available here. This is every bit as effective as the patented product. Since it's a naturally compounded substance and there is no potential for patentability, the pharmaceutical giants have no interest in it as they continue unabashedly promoting their faulty and destructive products.

WHY BOTHER WITH A DEXA SCAN?
When all is said and done, the DEXA scan is hardly ever a necessary expense and always an undesirable exposure to radiation. We all lose bone mass as we age. Thinning bones are a consequence of living longer and we can reduce this bone loss, and rebuild our bones in a way that is so simple, it is almost too good to be true And in a rare instance, the old axiom "when it's too good to be true, it probably is," has encountered an exception.

Anyone who has ever questioned a recommendation, statement, or affirmation offered by a mainstream medical provider may find a justification for suspicion at LeQuadrillage.com. Visit us for unbiased, accurate, and authoritative health & wellness information with links to providers and manufacturers who have no need to ever apologize for their products and services. No deceptive hype here. Just honest communication. Join our community!

Saturday, April 3, 2010

The Growing Interest In Raw Milk: Some Attribute Raw Milk With Medicinal Properties

Hannah Springer, a Brooklyn mother, had a chronic thyroid disorder for which, her doctors told her, she would need to be on medication for the rest of her life. Mainly for the benefit of her toddler, she sought out, and found, an underground source for raw milk, and started drinking it herself. To her absolute delight, her hypothyroidism disappeared and she was able to abandon her medication. While no one is ready to declare raw milk a medicine, there is a decidedly growing movement in the U.S. toward preference for it over the processed stuff in the supermarket coolers.

A recent article in the New York Times, describes the food movement's accelerating progress toward local, organic, vegetarian and vegan, foods. And the demand for raw milk seems to be in the vanguard of this evolution. In feeding raw milk to her toddler, Hannah Springer was flouting the law in New York and about half of the States that have banned raw milk.

And the national institutions charged with our food safety are 100% against it. That is, The Food & Drug Administration, The Centers for Dieseas Control, The American Medical Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics, all strongly advise against drinking raw milk. They argue that raw milk could contain harmful pathogens, and that's why milk is pasteurized. Well none of these organizations has an exactly sterling track record of dispensing unbiased, useful, and accurate information. And milk is pasteurized primarily to satisfy the big dairy industry who lobbied aggressively for it.

Pasteurization and homogenization allow for sloppy production methods and increase the shelf life of the product. There are other negatives associated with processed milk that reduces its worth as a food we generally accept as wholesome. Pasteurization, contrary to popular belief, does not kill all pathogens in the milk. Its value is limited in this regard, and any benefits are achieved at the expense of losing all the enzymes which are so beneficial to our health.


Add to that the abomination of homogenization, which adds nothing besides increasing shelf life. This process breaks the fat globules into such tiny, submicroscopic particles, that they bypass the digestive system and migrate directly into the bloodstream, causing arterial plaque buildup. The hazards associated with drinking raw milk are largely overstated. There hasn't been a death associated with drinking raw milk in the past 25 years, while pasteurized milk continues to sicken people on a regular basis. The argument that raw milk can be contaminated doesn't hold water. Any food can be contaminated. And the protection given by the lactic acid producing bacteria in raw milk is undeniable, even though raw milk opponents struggle mightily to do so. These friendly bacteria kill bad bugs for hundreds of illnesses.

Another upside to the consumption of raw milk is that its production and distribution, where it is allowed, is heavily regulated. Even the feed given the cows is scrutinized. This is not the case with pasteurized milk production, where the standards are lax to non existent. The quality of raw milk varies widely. Where the production of raw milk is allowed, the consumer can find an incredible variation in the product. Raw milk, ideally, is cow's milk taken straight from animals fed only fresh, organic green grass, rapidly cooled to 36 - 38 degrees, filtered, and bottled.


Raw milk from the big factory farms does not meet these standards. It would be a serious mistake to drink raw milk from these producers. Anyone drinking this stuff is courting a serious illness The potential for toxic drug residues,antibiotics, larvicides, pesticides, fertilizers, and heavy metals in milk from factory farms is high, and this witches brew should certainly not be consumed raw. Even after processing, it's really not worth drinking. And if they have to boil it before they can let you drink it, why would you want to?

While those in authority, and supposedly in the know, continue to rail against the consumption of responsibly produced, clean and wholesome raw milk, a growing movement is sweeping the nation. A very American battle is taking place,, pitting disgruntled consumers against what they perceive as an array of greedy, self serving, and arrogant interests. More and more people are searching for sources of responsibly produced, raw milk, and finding them.


Access to raw milk today is still spotty across the nation. Many raw milk merchants and consumers are placed in the same basket with drug dealers and tax evaders as far as the local laws are concerned. Finding raw milk can be problematical, depending on where you live. But take heart. Change is on the way.

Those looking to find a source for raw milk may receive a push in the right direction by visiting LeQuadrillage Alternative Health & Wellness Center. We have a limited listing of reliable producers across the nation. Register to join our community Then submit your request via our CONTACTS page, with your location and zip code and we'll give you what we have. Your information is never shared with anyone and you are under no obligation of any kind when you join our community - it's totally free. .