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Glaxo's China scandal exposes big-pharma's ugly underworld

GSK
© Near Eastern Outlook

An immense scandal involving pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has been unfolding in China over the last year. It centers on a massive bribery operation uncovered by Chinese police that included nearly every aspect of GSK's business in China. Billions of yuan in bribes were channeled through an immense network to buy off doctors, hospitals, healthcare organizations, and even government officials to boost sales of GSK drugs.

The most recent headlines involve GSK's former head in China, Mark Reilly of the UK, who is accused of ordering staff to carry out the widespread campaign of bribery and subsequent cover-up. The Wall Street Journal's May 14, 2014 report, "Glaxo's Ex-China Chief Accused of Ordering Staff to Commit Bribery," would claim, "Gao Feng, a ministry official spearheading the probe of the U.K. pharmaceutical company, said revenue that came from alleged bribery amounted to several billion yuan since Mr. Reilly joined Glaxo's China operation in 2009. Glaxo pushed up the prices of drugs in China - in some instances as much as seven times the price compared with other countries - to fund its own bribery, Mr. Gao alleged."

The article would also claim (emphasis added), "Mr. Gao alleged that in previous years, Glaxo formed an emergency team to disrupt law-enforcement investigations into whether it engaged in bribery. "Glaxo's acts of bribery penetrated all aspects of the company's business operation," he said."

Magic Wand

The power of Vitamin C - It saves lives

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Heavy doses of vitamin C have helped countless individuals solve their health issues, and have even rescued many from the brink of death. The larger doses are usually injected as ascorbic acid or drip-delivered intravenously (IV). I'm not talking tablets for colds here. Mega-dosing vitamin C has treated terminal pneumonia, polio, and controversially, even cancer.

Prior to LET (liposomal encapsulation technology), mega-dosing vitamin C was not so accessible; most doctors don't believe in it. But LET allows six grams of orally ingested vitamin C to have the clinical results of 25 to 50 grams of mega-dose IV C.

Liposomal C lipid encapsulated ascorbic acid molecules penetrate cells much better than the aqueous vitamin C from IVs and injections. And liposomal vitamin C is much less expensive and more accessible, even online, than IV treatments. The 'curing' capacity may surprise you.

Chalkboard

Decoding how the brain miswires, possibly causing ADHD

Neuroscientists at Mayo Clinic in Florida and at Aarhus University in Denmark have shed light on why neurons in the brain's reward system can be miswired, potentially contributing to disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

They say findings from their study, published online today in Neuron, may increase the understanding of underlying causes of ADHD, potentially facilitating the development of more individualized treatment strategies.

The scientists looked at dopaminergic neurons, which regulate pleasure, motivation, reward, and cognition, and have been implicated in development of ADHD.

They uncovered a receptor system that is critical, during embryonic development, for correct wiring of the dopaminergic brain area. But they also discovered that after brain maturation, a cut in the same receptor, SorCS2, produces a two-chain receptor that induces cell death following damage to the peripheral nervous system.

The researchers report that the SorCS2 receptor functions as a molecular switch between apparently opposing effects in proBDNF. ProBDNF is a neuronal growth factor that helps select cells that are most beneficial to the nervous system, while eliminating those that are less favorable in order to create a finely tuned neuronal network.

Comment: Regarding ADHD the reader might be interested in knowing that there is enough evidence to conclude, that there is a direct link between the increased cases of ADHD and poor dietary habits, among other things. From Study: Cutting Out Suspect Foods Could Help Calm ADHD Children:
Kids with ADHD are excessively restless, impulsive, inattentive and difficult to handle. Such children often require special care at school and in home.

"Dietary intervention should be considered in all children with ADHD, provided parents are willing to follow a diagnostic restricted elimination diet for a five-week period, and provided expert supervision is available," according to study published in 'The Lancet' medical journal.

Previous studies have suggested that in some cases, ADHD may be an allergic or hypersensitive disorder that gets triggered due to use of artificial colors in food.
Read the following articles to learn more:
Food, toxics and ADHD: Old fears, ever stronger science
Lead poisoning: The hidden villain behind violent crime, lower IQs, and ADHD epidemic
Organic Foods Offer Alternative to Foods Containing Food Dyes & Pesticides Linked to Raising Children's Risk of ADHD
Intestinal protein may have role in ADHD, other neurological disorders

Also, apparently ADHD is Big Pharma's great invention. From Psychiatrist admitted on his death bed that ADHD was a fictitious disease:
As explained by The Sons of Liberty host Bradlee Dean, who also writes for The D.C. Clothesline, ADHD was merely a theory developed by Eisenberg. It was never actually proven to exist as a verifiable disease, despite the fact that Eisenberg and many others profited handsomely from its widespread diagnosis. And modern psychiatry continues to profit as well, helping also to fill the coffers of the pharmaceutical industry by getting children addicted early to dangerous psychostimulant drugs like Ritalin (methylphenidate) and Adderall (amphetamine, dextroamphetamine mixed salts).

"ADHD is fraud intended to justify starting children on a life of drug addiction," said Dr. Edward C. Hamlyn, a founding member of the Royal College of General Practitioners, back in 1998 about the phony condition. Adding to this sentiment, psychiatrists Peter Breggin and Sami Timimi, both of whom oppose pathologizing the symptoms of ADHD, say that ADHD is more of a social construct than it is an objective "disorder."

Psychiatric profession all about generating obscene profits for Big Pharma.



Shoe

91-year-old woman has record finish in San Diego marathon

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© Brenny Thompson91-year-old marathon runner Harriette Thompson
A 91-year-old woman ran a San Diego marathon on the weekend in record time for her age group, also becoming the oldest person ever to finish the race, despite lamenting she was unable to train properly because of cancer treatments.

Harriette Thompson, who ran her first marathon at age 76, set a U.S. record on Sunday for the fastest finish in her 90-and-over age group, finishing the 26.2-mile Rock'n'Roll San Diego Marathon in seven hours, seven minutes and 42 seconds, according to race organizer Dan Cruz.

"I'm elated," the North Carolina resident told Reuters on Monday. "I'm pretty active but I didn't really train for this one because I was treating for skin cancer."

Thompson also became the second oldest person to complete a U.S. marathon and the oldest to finish the San Diego race.

Question

Mysterious virus outbreak worries Australian doctors

Parechovirus
© American Society for MicrobiologyThree-dimensional structure of human parechovirus 1 interacting with integrin αVβ6 receptor molecules. The structure, obtained by electron cryomicroscopy and image reconstruction, reveals the interaction of integrins (shown in red) via the RGD sequence in viral protein 1. The sequences in the background are a portion of the amino acid sequence alignment of the viral coat protein VP1 from different picornaviruses.
Professor Theo Sloots says 46 babies are infected with parechovirus, which has spread to Queensland. At least 11 cases have been confirmed in the state since December.

"The outbreak is Australia-wide now and we believe there are at least four types of the virus," the Queensland Paediatric Infectious Diseases (QPID) laboratory director told reporters in Brisbane.

"We don't know what type is in Queensland compared to other states."

Parechovirus is a respiratory and intestinal disease that causes fever, irritability, rash and diarrhoea, but severe cases can develop into hepatitis or encephalitis.

QPID Associate Professor Michael Nissen said the virus infected mainly infants, but no one was sure where it came from, how often it occurred or how to fight it.

"This virus does not respond to common antibiotics," he said.

Pirates

Risks of wheat: Depression & psychological symptoms

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It seems like every few years, we pick a new food (or "food group") to villainize. While these trends are sometimes exaggerated for the benefits of a certain diet plan or book, they are most often based in some truths. The latest food to face the fire is wheat, and with mounting evidence showing its potentially toxic effects, there is a good chance that the anti-wheat crusade is mostly fact and very little hype.

GreenMedInfo's founder Sayer Ji offers perhaps one of the most extensive lists of studies on the dangerous effects of wheat. Citing 205 diseases and thousands of related studies, he suggests the grain we all grew up on could be having horrific effects on our collective health. And he's not alone.

Last month, I reported on a study that found wheat gluten could be to blame for neurological disorders most commonly considered age-related disorders like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. In the research, an elderly man with signs of Parkinson's was put on a strict gluten-free diet and had remarkable results.

Comment: Additional information on WHY it is a good idea to quit wheat and grains altogether:
Most people freak out without their morning wheat toast. However, more and more people are beginning to turn to the wheat-free diet, experiencing liberation from chronic health ailments, weight and blood sugar spikes. In the book, Wheat Belly, preventative cardiologist William Davis explains how eliminating wheat from our diets is the key to achieving permanent weight loss and relief from a range of health issues.

After witnessing over 2,000 patients regain their health after giving up wheat, Davis reached the disturbing conclusion that wheat is the single largest contributor to the nationwide obesity epidemic - and its elimination is key to dramatic weight loss and optimal health.

Every day, over 200 million Americans (and millions more elsewhere in the world) consume food products made of wheat. As a result, over 100 million of them experience some form of adverse health effect, ranging from minor rashes and high blood sugar to the unattractive stomach bulges that preventive cardiologist William Davis calls "wheat bellies." Davis says that excess fat is not related to inactivity or high fat diets but is due to our love of foods like bread, pasts, muffins and cakes. None of these foods were consumed by our Paleolithic ancestors. It doesn't matter if you eat whole wheat, multi-grain, unsprouted, germ, organic or gluten free because wheat is wheat. In Wheat Belly, Davis exposes the harmful effects of what is actually a product of genetic tinkering and agribusiness being sold to the public as "wheat" informed by cutting-edge science and nutrition, along with case studies from men and women who have experienced life-changing transformations in their health after waving goodbye to wheat.



Info

Don't label GMOs: New study shows why Roundup herbicide (Glyphosate) should be banned

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A growing body of research indicates that Roundup herbicide and its metabolite, AMPA, are vastly more toxic than the public is being told. Activist sentiment aside, the scientific research itself increasingly points to banning this herbicide as the only logical solution.

A concerning new study published in Chemosphere shows that the classical toxicology model, based on the testing of individual molecules, is incapable of accurately estimating the global environmental and health risks of mixtures of agrochemicals like glyphosate (aka Roundup) and its degradation byproduct AMPA, which are now ubiquitous environmental and food contaminants and much more harmful than previously believed.

Following closely on the heels of a study showing that Roundup herbicide is 125 times more toxic than its active ingredient glyphosate studied in isolation, the new study adds to an increasingly damning body of evidence that reveals agrochemicals used in GMO food production are vastly more harmful than their manufacturers, regulators and proponents will admit.

Footprints

Walk to age well

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© Rob C. Witzel for The New York TimesMildred Johnston walking along a path in Kanapaha Veterans Memorial Park in Gainesville, Fla. Ms. Johnston participated in a large study that showed the benefits of walking for older people.
Regular exercise, including walking, significantly reduces the chance that a frail older person will become physically disabled, according to one of the largest and longest-running studies of its kind to date.

The results, published on Tuesday in the journal JAMA, reinforce the necessity of frequent physical activity for our aging parents, grandparents and, of course, ourselves.

While everyone knows that exercise is a good idea, whatever your age, the hard, scientific evidence about its benefits in the old and infirm has been surprisingly limited.

Attention

Worker fatalities linked to used fracking fluid exposure

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© dgdimension / Shutterstock
Waste water associated with fracking is also polluting the sources from which millions get their water.

Field studies conducted by the U.S. Government have revealed that hydrofracking fluids are responsible for the deaths of four field workers since 2010.

The report, recently released by the National Institute for Occupational Safety, suggests that workers could be exposed to hazardous levels of toxic volatile hydrocarbons found in waste fracking fluids.

"According to our information, at least four workers have died since 2010 from what appears to be acute chemical exposures during flow back operations at well sites in the Williston Basin (North Dakota and Montana)," government researchers wrote. "While not all of these investigations are complete, available information suggests that these cases involved workers who were gauging flow back or production tanks or involved in transferring flow back fluids at the well site."

Phoenix

Jimmy Moore shares how he lost 180 pounds with high fat low carb ketogenic diet

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Jimmy Moore
In the world of low carb weight loss, Jimmy Moore has become both a role model and an inspiration. We interviewed him to get his insights on how he used a high fat low carb ketogenic diet to lose 180 pounds - and keep them off. His books include "LIVIN' LA VIDA LOW-CARB: My Journey From Flabby Fat to Sensationally Skinny in One Year," "21 Life Lessons From Livin' La Vida Low-Carb: How The Healthy Low-Carb Lifestyle Changed Everything I Thought I Knew," and "Cholesterol Clarity: What The HDL Is Wrong With My Numbers?"

Jimmy points out that evaluating success on a diet goes beyond a number on a scale.

"I know people are enamored by weight loss, but that's perhaps the least interesting way to measure how well you are doing in your nutritional plan," he says. "Yes, I lost 180 pounds in 2004 on the Atkins diet, saving me from being a 400+ pound man on three prescription medications for high cholesterol, high blood pressure and breathing problems."

However, Jimmy notes, "coming off of all those drugs and permanently shifting my thinking on food forever has been the lasting impact of that experience. Nevermore will I look at sugar, grains, starch or fat in the same way ever again."

As a result of his weight loss, Jimmy feels empowered. "I know what those foods do to me when I eat them and that knowledge is incredible power that far too many people have lost control of in this day and age."

Comment: For a summary of Jimmy Moore's experiences, watch Jimmy Moore - Nutritional Ketosis. See also The Ketogenic Diet - An Overview