Health & WellnessS


Key

Beyond Gluten-Free: The Critical Role of Chitin-Binding Lectins in Human Disease

rose thorn lectin
© Unknown
In a previous article this author discussed the "invisible thorn" found within all wheat products - including sprouted wheat bread and wheat grass- known as wheat lectin (technical name: Wheat Germ Agglutinin (WGA)). This intrinsically inflammatory and endocrine disruptive substance was thoroughly reviewed (via MEDLINE) and identified to have a broad range of potentially disruptive effects:
1) WGA may be Pro-inflammatory

2) WGA may be Immunotoxic

3) WGA may be Neurotoxic

4) WGA may be Cytotoxic

5) WGA may interfere with Gene Expression

6) WGA may disrupt Endocrine Function

7) WGA may be Cardiotoxic

8) WGA may adversely effect Gastrointestinal Function

9) WAGpathogenic similarities with certain Viruses
(The above 9 problems are explained in much greater detail here.)

A major revelation in addition to wheat lectin's intrinsically harmful properties is that it does not require immune-mediation to exert its adverse effects. Unlike classically defined wheat/gluten allergies, intolerances and celiac disease, which require positive findings on blood, intestinal biopsy and genetic tests, wheat lectin operates beneath this level of surveillance on a more primary, subclinical level.

Health

Best of the Web: E.coli Survivor Describes Pain, Chaos at Hospital

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© APNicoletta Pabst smiles during an interview with the Associated Press in Hamburg, Germany, Saturday,
Berlin - Nicoletta Pabst could not believe what she saw twelve days ago when she rushed to a Hamburg hospital with stomach cramps, diarrhea and blood in her stool.

The emergency room at the University Medical Center in Hamburg-Eppendorf was engulfed by chaos, she said, overwhelmed as it tried to treat hordes of E. coli victims."

All patients suspected of E. coli were led to a separate location for examination," Pabst told The Associated Press in an interview Saturday. "When I arrived, there were at least 20 other people and more and more kept coming in, many of them by ambulance."

She said the emergency room's sanitary conditions were horrendous.

"All of us had diarrhea and there was only one bathroom each for men and women - it was a complete mess," she said. "If I hadn't been sick with E. coli by then, I probably would have picked it up over there."

Hamburg is at the epicenter of the deadliest E. coli outbreak in modern history.

Germany's national disease control center raised the death toll Sunday to 22 people - 21 in Germany and one in Sweden - and said another 2,153 people in Germany have been sickened since May 2. That figure included 627 people who have developed a rare, serious complication of the disease that can cause kidney failure. Ten other European nations and the U.S. have reported a total of 90 other victims.

"We'd all been reading the scary news about the E. coli outbreak in our region for days," said Pabst, a 41-year-old homemaker. "(My husband) took me to the university hospital right away."

Question

Mystery deepens over E. coli poisoning

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© Agence France-PresseCucumber crisis: Some 112,000 cases of vegetables, mostly tomatoes and cucumbers had to be destroyed after prices dropped dramatically at auctions in Germany.
An outbreak of killer E. coli that has spread to 12 countries and killed 19 people may be linked to a Hamburg festival in May.

As authorities continued to hunt the source of the outbreak, Germany's national disease center, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), is looking closely at a harbor festival that took place in Hamburg between May 6 and May 8.

The weekly newspaper Focus said Saturday the festival drew 1.5 million visitors from Germany and abroad and noted that the first reported case of E. coli infection followed just a week later in the city's university hospital.

German media also said Saturday that a man in his 50s who died in Brandenberg may be the 20th victim, but the cause of death was uncertain because he had several other infections as well as E. coli.

The latest confirmed death was of an 80-year-old woman in the northern German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on Friday.

Beaker

Features Of Bacteria That Caused Epidemic E. Coli In Europe Revealed By Genomics Analysis

E.coli
© unknownE.coli
An outbreak of E. coli infection was detected in Germany about two weeks ago. Health authorities say that over 1500 people have become infected and 17 have died so far. Cases of E. coli infection have been reported in several other European countries, including the UK, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, France, Norway, Spain and Switzerland.

Analysis results carried out by scientists at BGI (Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention), the Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, the Academy of Military Medical Sciences and the University Medical Centre, Hamburg, reveal that this infection is caused by a completely new E. coli strain.

The scientists report that they have just obtained the genome sequence of this new E. coli strain. Their findings show that it carries several genes making it resistant to antibiotic treatments - it is multi-resistant and hard to treat.

Smoking

Lung Cancer a Different Disease in Smokers and Nonsmokers

Philadelphia - Lung cancer that develops in smokers is not the same disease as lung cancer that develops in people who've never touched a cigarette, a new study finds.

There are nearly twice as many DNA changes in the tumors of people who have never smoked than in the tumors of people who smoke, which suggests the cancer of "never-smokers" is different from smokers' cancer, said Kelsie Thu, a Ph.D. candidate at the BC Cancer Research Center in Canada.

"We think this finding provides evidence that never-smoker and smoker lung cancers are different, and suggests they arise through different molecular pathways," Thu told MyHealthNewsDaily. "Never-smokers might be exposed to a carcinogen, not from cigarettes, that causes their tumors to have more DNA alterations and promotes lung cancer development."

Evil Rays

European Leaders Call for Ban of Cell Phones and WiFi in Schools

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A Council of Europe committee examined evidence that the cell phones and wireless internet connections have "potentially harmful" effects on humans, and decided that immediate action was required to protect children. They ruled that the technologies pose a health risk and should be banned from schools.

The committee report argued that it was crucial to avoid repeating the mistakes made when public health officials failed to recognize the dangers of asbestos, tobacco smoking and lead.

According to the Telegraph:
"The report also highlighted the potential health risks of cordless telephones and baby monitors, which rely on similar technology ... The Council of Europe ... is highly influential in policy-making and has often seen its decisions enacted through conventions and treaties."
Sources

The Telegraph May 14, 2011

Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly May 6, 2011

Sherlock

A Q&A on Genetically-Modified Foods

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© gezellig-girl.com
In Wednesday's Tribune, we look at genetically modified foods and those trying to get them labeled as such or pulled from stores like Trader Joe's and Whole Foods.

The subject of genetically modified crops is full of passionate voices on both sides. We covered the issue in Wednesday's story. Even so, some readers may still walk away with questions about whether to avoid them or how to do so if they wish.

These extra morsels may help make this huge subject more digestible.

Alarm Clock

E coli infections spread around world as Germany reports 200 new cases

E coli bacterium
© Erbe/Pooley/Rex FeaturesThe e coli bacterium has spread from Germany, with a total of over 1,600 people infected worldwide.

Experts claim disease is on the wane as Merkel and Zapatero attempt to limit diplomatic row over infection's source

Cases of infection by the deadly E coli bacterium have continued to spread around the world from its source in northern Germany, reaching a dozen countries by Friday evening as the German chancellor and Spanish prime minister moved to calm a diplomatic row over the source of the infection.

The Czech Republic and the US have joined the list of those dealing with cases amid concern that some of those infected had not visited Germany and so must have been infected elsewhere.

Angela Merkel has said she would push for EU help for farmers in Spain - whose cucumbers were wrongly blamed by German authorities for the outbreak.

Health

Germany Steps up Hunt for Deadly E.coli Source

e coli graphic
© n/a
Racing to curb the spread of a killer food bug, Germany set up a task force on Friday to hunt down the source of a highly toxic strain of E.coli that has killed 19 people and sounded alarms around the world.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, locked in a trade row with the European Union after banning imports of its raw fruit and vegetables, struck a dramatic note by saying he would not "poison" Russians by lifting the embargo.

Health authorities repeated warnings to avoid some raw vegetables in northern Germany -- rattling farmers and stores in the high season for salad -- and said 199 new cases of the rare strain of the bacteria had been reported in the past two days.

The total of those infected in Germany since the outbreak was detected in early May rose to 1,733 and Germany's death toll rose by two on Friday to 18, added to one death reported in Sweden, in possibly the deadliest ever such outbreak recorded.

Pills

Best of the Web: America's Most Dangerous Pill?

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© thefix.comKlonopin earns Big Pharma over $1 Billion a year.
It's not Adderall or Oxy. It's Klonopin. And doctors are doling it out like candy, causing a surge of hellish withdrawals, overdoses and deaths.

You could argue that the deadliest "drug" in the world is the venom from a jellyfish known as the Sea Wasp, whose sting can kill a human being in four minutes - up to 100 humans at a time. Potassium chloride, which is used to trigger cardiac arrest and death in the 38 states of the U.S. that enforce the death penalty is also pretty deadly. But when it comes to prescription drugs that are not only able to kill you but can drag out the final reckoning for years on end, with worsening misery at every step of the way, it is hard to top the benzodiazepines. And no "benzo" has been more lethal to millions of Americans than a popular prescription drug called Klonopin.

Klonopin is the brand name for the pill known as clonazepam, which was originally brought to market in 1975 as a medication for epileptic seizures. Since then, Klonopin, along with the other drugs in this class, has become a prescription of choice for drug abusers from Hollywood to Wall Street. In the process, these Schedule III and IV substances have also earned the dubious distinction of being second only to opioid painkillers like OxyContin as our nation's most widely abused class of drug.