We all know that celiac disease is a problem of the small intestine, but most of us are probably unaware that it could actually be the root cause of a whole host of neurological problems from brain fog, to tingling and numbness sensations in your extremities, to developmental delays and learning disorders, autoimmune disorders like multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis, movement disorders like ataxia, and even psychological issues from irritability or depression to schizophrenia. You may think these claims sound like nothing more than a bunch of smoke and screens coming from greedy alternative medicine self-help sites designed to sell you the latest vitamin and mineral supplements and get you on their own personal and highly costly gluten-free product bandwagon, but there are real scientific studies supporting these claims. In addition, there are a whole host of forums filled with people that have made recoveries from a variety of diseases and disorders by avoiding gluten.


I hesitated to write this article. I sat on it actually for quite some time. The claims sound so incredulous, how could anyone actually believe this stuff? I tried to put myself back into my own shoes a little over a year ago - back before things got so crazy around our house, back before we ever stepped foot into a Whole Foods store, or went to Trader Joes for anything other than gourmet cheese or those awesome appetizers in the freezer section. That me would have read the title of this article and thought, "What an extremist nutzo." Then I would have picked up the phone and speed dialed the local pizza joint for dinner, too.

So what has happened to me since then?

In late September of last year my son received his preschool vaccinations. Within three weeks he became a real behavioral problem at school, and by six weeks we saw his first tic. By the time the Christmas holidays rolled around he was nearly impossible to take anywhere as he was an emotional time-bomb in the making and so ticcy that it was hindering his daily activities. We kept him home from preschool for a couple weeks to limit his stress, but it didn't work. Then came the insomnia. He would just lie awake blinking for hours. I used to sit in his room and choke back the tears. To comfort him I fed him more of his favorite foods: pizza, mac and cheese, Christmas cookies, etc.... How did I know that the very things I was doing were actually making his condition worse?

I visited his pediatrician, the pediatric neurologist, a naturopath, a general practitioner, an ophthalmologist. We had a CBC, titer test, EEG, eye exam, acupuncture, you name it. I even went as far as giving him a pyramid-scheme all natural remedy with no scientific basis for cure other than the sales pitch I got from the supplier. Crazy, I know. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

This is an overview of the main usefulness of magnesium in medicine and above you can see the cover of the second edition to the Transdermal Magnesium Therapy book, which is now finally in production and will be available in a few weeks.

Magnesium & Cancer

One would not normally think that magnesium (Mg) deficiency could increase the risk of cancer while simply maintaining ideal levels can protect against cancer. Yet we will find that just as severe dehydration or asphyxiation can cause death, magnesium deficiency can directly lead to cancer. Consider, please, that over 300 enzymes and ion transports require magnesium and that its role in fatty acid and phospholipid acid metabolism affects permeability and stability of cell walls. We can readily see that magnesium deficiency would lead to physiological decline in cells, setting the stage for cancer.

Magnesium & the Heart

Magnesium is nutritional oil to the heart; it lubricates and facilitates the heart's function. Correct administration of magnesium can eliminate angina pain, muscle spasms, keep blood flowing smoothly, and prevent platelet stickiness. Magnesium also produces vasodilation by a direct action as well as indirectly by sympathetic blockade and inhibition of catecholamine release. Magnesium dilates both the epicardial and resistance coronary arteries. Magnesium also balances cholesterol and is essential for endocrine stability and function. Most importantly, magnesium prevents calcification of the heart tissues.

A sharp rise in whooping cough infections in Bendigo is nearing epidemic levels, Bendigo Hospital chief medical officer Dr Andre Nel says.

But Dr Nel says his patients, staff and visitors were adequately protected from the raging whooping cough infection that killed 14-day-old Bendigo tot Kristian James Reade.

Kristian was born at Bendigo Hospital on February 1 but returned to the hospital at 10 days old with the infection.

He spent more than two days there before he was transferred to the Royal Children's Hospital, where he died on Monday.

"It's getting to epidemic proportions. It's certainly a much higher incidence than one would normally expect," he said.

"This is an issue across Victoria. This is not just a Bendigo issue but we are aware of a high incidence in Bendigo, but it's around Victoria."

Dr Nel offered no explanation for the rise in cases.

After reading this new book by celiac nurse specialist Shelly Stuart, RN, what shines through above all is her true understanding of the complex nature of gluten-related illnesses, and her heartfelt compassion for patients who suffer from them. Her book is extremely well researched and documented. As a registered nurse and celiac herself, Ms. Stuart is able to use her strong patient teaching experience to clearly educate the reader about even very complicated subjects. She provides excellent explanations of leaky gut and the pathophysiology of celiac disease, and she is one of the first clinicians to write in-depth about non-celiac gluten intolerance. Importantly, she makes the point that immune mediated reactions can and do occur in non-celiac gluten intolerance, and backs this up by citing clinical evidence. Another important point made concerns pancreatic insufficiency, which can accompany celiac disease, but few know that this condition can persist even after diagnosis and transition to a gluten-free diet. Her discussion of the many, varied health disorders associated with celiac disease is very comprehensive.

One of the most compelling aspects to Gluten Toxicity is the many important questions asked regarding the future of clinical research. Ms. Stuart makes it crystal clear that we need to know much more about the physical and mental health effects of gluten-related illness. This can only come about by increasing awareness both within the medical and research communities, and throughout each of our communities. We must all become advocates for greater testing and more accurate diagnosis.

NCSU economics professor Dr. Melinda Morrill has some bad news for working moms. In her study comparing health statistics of school-aged children with working mothers to those with mothers who stay at home, Morrill found that the children of mothers who worked were 200% more likely to be hospitalized overnight, to suffer an injury or poisoning, or to have a asthma attack.

Morrill's study looked at 20 years of health statistics involving approximately 89,000 children aged 7-17. Her results differ from previous studies that indicated children of working mothers were healthier, presumably because of higher income, greater access to health insurance, and increased maternal self-esteem. Those studies were flawed, according to Morrill, because they had reversed cause and effect. That is, the stay-at-home mother group had numbers of moms of children with such severe medical problems that they required full-time care or supervision, effectively eliminating the option of the mother to work outside the home. But these children weren't getting sick because their moms were home; their moms were home because the children were so sick.

Researchers from the University of Coimbra in Portugal recently revealed that lavender essential oil, widely known as a natural beauty ingredient, could prove helpful in the treatment of fungal diseases which develop resistance to medication over period of time.

As per study researchers, lavender oil possess anti-fungal properties that can be used against dermatophytes, a fungus known to cause nail infections, ring worm, and athletes foot.

While commenting on the new study findings, researchers' Professor Lígia Salgueiro and Professor Eugénia Pinto, who jointly led the study, explained in their press release,

"In the last few years there has been an increase in the incidence of fungal diseases, particularly among immune-compromised patients. Unfortunately there is also increasing resistance to antifungal drugs. Research by our group and others has shown that essential oils may be cheap, efficient alternatives that have minimal side effects."

We have long reported on various substances being linked to Parkinson's disease. Now, WTMA reports that the progressive, degenerative central nervous system disorder that affects motor skills and speech has been linked to certain amphetamines.

A study conducted by Kaiser Permanente Northern California, found that some medications - notably the amphetamines Benzedrine or Dexedrine - used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) that are meant to help ADHD patients achieve more defined focus and increase clarity and awareness, could also place those patients at risk for Parkinson's disease, said WTMA. Findings on the potential defective drug issue were presented this weekend at a meeting of the American Academy of Neurology.

After my post Monday on aspartame's wild and wacky path from pharmaceutical-company lab to beverage sweetener for millions of people, I got into a back-and-forth on Twitter with star progressive bloggers Matt Yglesias and Adam Ozimek.

They seemed shocked (and a little angry) by my suggestion that something approved both by the FDA and its European counterparts might actually menace the public health. Well, I, in turn, am shocked by the credibility they lavish on these institutions. When you study the politics of food, stories of the "FDA [or USDA or EPA or some European agency] approves [insert dodgy, lucrative practice or substance]" nature are hardly earth-shaking.

Indeed, industry influence over the food-related regulatory institutions seems pretty widespread, as I tried to show in the aspartame post. On Tuesday, an all-too-apt example crossed my desk. It involves the practice of routine use of antibiotics on factory farms - which almost certainly contributes to the surge in antibiotic-resistant infections among people. MRSA - an antibiotic-resistant staph infection - now kills more Americans than AIDS.

Britons will be warned that they must cut their consumption of red meat to reduce the risk of cancer, following official advice from the Government scientists.

Consumers will be told to eat no more than 500g (1.1lb) of red or processed meat each week, or 70g (2.5oz) a day, under recommendations to be issued by the Coalition this week.

The daily total is the equivalent of three rashers of bacon - while the weekly amount would be reached by eating one large steak, a pork chop, two sausages and a small portion of beef bolognese sauce.

A Coalition source said: "It is important that people are not put off eating red meat entirely - but it would be irresponsible to ignore the potential health risks. The advice is very clear."

The recommendations will follow the publication of a full report by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, which is due within days. The findings are expected to echo the committee's draft report, which found that lower consumption of both red and processed meat would probably reduce the risk of bowel cancer, the second most common cause of cancer death in Britain.

Pain really is all in the mind, according to scientists who have discovered that positive thoughts can double a painkiller's effect while negative thoughts can cancel them out.

Researchers from Oxford, Cambridge and two German universities made their conclusions after a novel experiment examining the role of conscious thought in pain perception.

First, 22 volunteers had a pain device put on their skin that was too hot for comfort.

Each then had an intravenous line attached to deliver a powerful opiate-based painkiller.

The volunteers were asked to rate the pain before any painkiller was introduced. The average score, from 0 to 100, was 66.

Then the researchers started providing the painkiller, without telling the volunteers they had done so. The average score dropped to 55.

But when the scientists told them they had started administering the painkiller the score dropped again to 39.

When they said they had stopped providing the painkiller, the score rose to 64 - even though the opiate was still flowing.