Councilman Dan Johnson says he plans to file an ordinance to ban using trans fatty acids in 2,600 Louisville Kentucky eateries.

Food chains that have recently decided to ban trans fatty acids from their foods on their own include the following.

• Arby’s
• KFC
• Taco Bell

Lots of others are listed on other entires on this blog.

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A study in northern India shows that milk fortified with specific micronutrients lowers the risk of diarrhea and acute lower respiratory illness in children.

Here’s a list of what was added to the milk.

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Among Scottish general practices, 60% (that’s six oh!!) now prescribe homoeopathic or herbal remedies.

And the practice is increasing.

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Our very unscientific survey suggests so far that the second most commonly requested entry to this site is marijuana. Believe me, I’m looking.

In the mean time, here’s a “little known fact” about marijuana from Medical Marijuana ProCon.org.

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The Calcium Key is a weight loss book focusing on calcium via dairy foods that the author says, “increase fat burning and decrease fat making and fat storage by 50% or more than obtaining calcium from non-dietary sources.”

If you are interested, here is a scathing review.

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There’s one hospital in Sweden where anthroposophic medicine is practiced. Here is a study of its effect in 60 women who received conventional breast cancer treatment with and without anthroposophic care.

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This review concludes that spinal manipulation and acupuncture are not cost-effective for low-back pain.

Here are the “money” quotes from this UK study.

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An article in a recent issue of AARP The Magazine (and online) makes trivial and misleading recommendations for treating impotence (aka: erectile dysfunction [ED]).

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I hate these negative headlines, but there seems to be no upside to the latest survey results on obesity among Americans.

Want to know more?

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High blood levels of the amino acid called homocysteine are thought to increase the risk for heart disease by damaging the lining of blood vessels and increasing blood clotting.

Despite this, the American Heart Association doesn’t recommend widespread use of folic acid to lower homocysteine blood levels.

Does this make sense?

Here’s the latest information.

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“More than half of women who treat their symptoms of menopause take soy supplements or herbal products as part or all of their therapy.” states The New York Times, which reported on a recently published article in the journal Menopause.

However, the women in this online survey generally felt illinformed about proper doses and use of herbal products.

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The Cranberry Institute (Yes, there is such a thing.) lists the benefits of cranberries. And I admit it’s my favorite side dish at Thanksgiving.

But let’s take a look at what you get when you scoop up that mass of goo.

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Last July, charges were brought against alternative medicine practitioner Matthias Rath for allegedly breaking German law on advertising drugs. Dr. Rath advocates a vitamin treatment to cure cancer. Background on the case is summarized here.

Now the case has been dropped.

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Back in August this young man went to court to avoid a second round of conventional cancer treatment for Hodgkin’s disease in favor of CAM.

Here’s an update.

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People with the rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at increased risk for heart disease. Taking fish oil reduces this risk and improves rheumatoid arthritis symptoms.

Here are the reported benefits in 18 people who took fish oil compared to 13 who did not.

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Fibromyalgia (FM) is a “chronic pain illness characterized by widespread musculoskeletal aches, pain and stiffness, soft tissue tenderness, general fatigue and sleep disturbances.” Approximately 3% to 6% of the U.S. population have FM, with women at greatest risk.

Successful treatment often requires combined therapies, and the results of this study in the The Mayo Clinic Proceedings support acupuncture in this regard.

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Fall-related injuries are the leading cause of injury, deaths, and disabilities among adults older than 65 years. Minimizing the fall risk is a practical approach to reducing these serious injuries.

One strategy is balance training.

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It”s illegal for supplements to be promoted as a “treatment” for a disease. They can “support” health, or “boost” the immune system, or use other vague claims. But before any product can legally state that it can treat a specific disease it must pass US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations for drugs.

The dietary supplements listed below have crossed the line by claiming to treat cancer, arthritis, fibromyalgia, and seizures.

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The Centers for Disease Control has just published the latest data on the prevalence of diabetes in the US.

• 11% of adults aged 40 to 59 years
• 23% of those 60 and older have diabetes

Is it any wonder that so many CAM therapies are studied in people with diabetes?

A quick listing of CAM entries for diabetes on this blog is provided below. Or, click the button on the right sidebar to see all of the diabetes entries.

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In an earlier post, Director David Lynch’s plan to fund the inclusion of transcendental meditation TM in the classroom was discussed.

Here’s an update.

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