Newer Antidepressants Not Always Better

New antidepressants might be no more effective than the best existing drugs, according to two new systematic reviews that compared 12 commonly used medications.

"Patients are usually encouraged to take the newest medication," said lead author Andrea Cipriani, M.D., of the University of Verona, in Italy. "But it's better to have an old treatment that has been proved with many patients and many years in the market."

The reviews suggest that sertraline sold under the brand name Zoloft since 1991 could be the best initial choice of antidepressant in people with acute major depression. The generic formulation produced the best balance of effectiveness, tolerability and purchase price, the authors say.

Patients also did well on one of the newest antidepressants, escitalopram (Lexapro), but it is not yet available in lower-cost generic form. The authors note that comprehensive economic studies are necessary to evaluate overall cost-effectiveness of various treatments.

Cipriani said that the review recommendations are for new episodes of depression. "If a patient is taking another drug and doing well, we are not saying he has to change."

The reviews appear in the most recent issue of The Cochrane Library, a publication of The Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research. Systematic reviews draw evidence-based conclusions about medical practice after considering both the content and quality of existing medical trials on a topic.

Depression is the fourth-leading cause of disease burden worldwide and antidepressant drugs are now the mainstay of treatment for moderate to severe cases. The aim of the two reviews was to compare the benefits and side effects of sertraline and escitalopram, respectively, with those of other antidepressants during the first six to 12 weeks of treatment.

Cipriani noted that all of the included studies compared one drug against another not to a placebo so the results reveal not the absolute effect, but rather the relative advantages and disadvantages of various medications.

In addition, these reviews rely on summary data from each study, rather than individual patient data. Future studies that go into greater detail can help identify the best medications for various subgroups of patients such as men vs. women, teens vs. adults and so on.

For sertraline, the reviewers included 59 randomized controlled trials totaling about 10,000 participants. Sertraline proved more effective than fluoxetine (Prozac), but less effective than mirtazapine (Remeron). In terms of side effects, bupropion (Wellbutrin) was easier to tolerate than sertraline, while the latter outscored amitriptyline (Elavil), imipramine (Tofranil), paroxetine (Paxil) and mirtazapine (Remeron).

For escitalopram, the reviewers included 22 randomized controlled trials totaling about 4,000 participants. Few statistically significant differences appeared in this review, although escitalopram was more effective than citalopram (Celexa) and fluoxetine (Prozac) and had fewer side effects than duloxetine (Cymbalta). The drug manufacturer sponsored most of the studies in this review, so there may be biases in favor of escitalopram.

Rather than seeking genuine advances in treatment, the review authors say, some pharmaceutical companies seem to be introducing close chemical cousins of generic medications. By gaining patent protection for the "new" drug, a company can market it as a higher-priced brand name product.

Sponsorship bias is a recurring concern in trials of virtually all new medications. In the Cochrane reviews themselves, one of the co-authors has received research funds and speaking fees from the companies Asahi Kasei, Astellas, Dai-Nippon Sumitomo, Eisai, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Kyowa Hakko, Meiji, Nikken Kagaku, Organon, Otsuka, Pfizer and Yoshitomi. The Japanese Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, and the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare have also funded some of his research.

However, the co-authors of these Cochrane reviews also published a recent study in The Lancet that was free of any potential funding bias. The study also used a more complex statistical method to analyze data from 117 randomized controlled trials involving 25,928 participants.

The findings support the Cochrane reviews, Cipriani said, with sertraline and escitalopram ranking as the best treatments.

"Such findings have enormous implications," said Sagar Parikh, M.D., of the University of Toronto, in a commentary published along with The Lancet study. "For the clinician, prudent engagement of the patient in treatment ideally involves giving the patient a choice.… A new gold standard of reliable information has been compiled for patients to review."

In early studies, new medical treatments are typically compared to sham treatments. Once the effectiveness of certain approaches is well established, new options must be judged against the best existing treatments.

Cipriani argued that this time has come for antidepressants, and that sertraline is the drug to beat. "We need new treatments in psychiatry, but they have to be proved better than other treatments," he said. "We should be comparing new drugs to the best available existing drugs."

The Cochrane Collaboration is an international nonprofit, independent organization that produces and disseminates systematic reviews of health care interventions and promotes the search for evidence in the form of clinical trials and other studies of interventions.

Cipriani A, La Ferla, et al. Setraline versus other antidepressive agents for depression. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2009, Issue 2.

Cipriani A, Santilli C, et al. Escitalopram versus other antidepressive agents for depression. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2009, Issue 2.

Source: Health Behavior News Service 

Related Rsources:  

• Sanoviv Medical Center
  
• Big Red Juice - FreeLife's Himalayan Goji Juice
  
• Goji Health Stories - Depression

Posted:  True Health Is True Wealth

Natural Remedies for Irritable Bowel Syndrome

There are simple, basic, natural strategies you can use as an alternative to the drugs that are usually prescribed for IBS. The drugs treat only the symptoms, and do nothing to address the underlying causes.

Related Resources:  

• Big Red Juice
  
• GojiHealthStories
• Sanoviv

The Legume That Lowers Cholesterol

There's a certain bean that may have cholesterol-lowering powers. Where can you get it? Try a creamy side of hummus. 

Research shows that chickpeas, the luscious legume that's pureed for hummus dips, could go a long way toward improving your cholesterol profile. 

Gaga for Garbanzos 
In a small study, people who ate roughly 25 ounces of chickpeas (also called garbanzo beans) per week for 12 weeks showed an improvement in their total cholesterol levels compared with when they ate a chickpea-free diet for 4 weeks. And that's not all: Their insulin levels also improved, and they lost a small amount of weight -- without dieting or exercising. All good reasons to fall in love with this legume! Start adding chickpeas to your diet and then track your weight loss with this too! 

Pass the Chickpeas, Please 
Researchers think the fiber, protein, and polyunsaturated fatty acids in chickpeas should probably get the credit for the cholesterol improvements. Chickpeas are also a great source of vitamins, minerals, and phytoestrogens. Have chickpeas for dinner tonight with this Fragrant Chickpea Stew recipe. 

Fragrant Chickpea Stew When time is of the essence, this hearty stew makes a quick meal. It has a complex, almost beefy flavor that develops when the onion and garlic are cooked until dark brown. Accompany with steamed rice or whole-wheat flatbreads (chapatis).

Ingredients 1 tablespoon canola oil 1 teaspoon cumin seeds 1 medium red onion, chopped (1 cup) 5 medium cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon coriander seeds, ground (see Ingredient Note) 1 cup water 1 red potato, scrubbed and cut into 1-inch cubes 1 19-ounce or 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro, divided 1 medium tomato, cut into 1-inch cubes Directions 1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat; cook cumin seeds for 10 seconds. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring, until dark brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Add coriander; cook, stirring, for 20 seconds. Stir in water, potato, chickpeas, salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon cilantro. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the potato is tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Some other cholesterol busting strategies, try these tips:

• Get seedy.  Add Sesame seeds to you diet. 
• Think soy. 
• Nibble dark chocolate.
• Add GoChi or Himalayan Goji Juice to your daily diet.
• Lose weight naturally with TaiSlim

Source:  RealAge

Johns Hopkins - The Latest Findings On Cancer

This makes a lot of sense !
JOHNS HOPKINS - The latest findings on Cancer

AFTER YEARS OF TELLING PEOPLE CHEMOTHERAPY IS THE ONLY WAY TO TRY AND ELIMINATE CANCER, JOHNS HOPKINS IS FINALLY STARTING TO TELL YOU THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE WAY.

1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable size.

2 Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a person's lifetime.

3. When the person's immune system is strong, the cancer cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and forming tumors.

4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has multiple nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic, environmental, food and lifestyle factors.

5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing diet and including supplements will strengthen the immune system.

6. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing cancer cells but it also destroys rapidly growing healthy cells in the bone marrow, gastrointestinal tract etc, and can cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs, etc.

7. Radiation, while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars and damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.

8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor destruction.

9. When the body has too much toxic burden from chemotherapy and radiation, the immune system is either compromised or destroyed. Then the person can succumb to various kinds of infections and complications.

10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to mutate and become resistant and difficult or impossible to destroy. Surgery can cause cancer cells to spread to other sites.

11. An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply.

 CANCER CELLS FEED ON:

A. Sugar. By cutting off sugar, you cut off one important food supply to the cancer cells. Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc. are made with Aspartame, and that is harmful. A better natural substitute would be Manuka honey or molasses, but only in very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in color. Better alternative is Bragg's aminos or sea salt.

B. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the gastrointestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and substituting with unsweetened soy milk, cancer cells are being starved.

C. Acid. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic; it is best to eat fish, and a little chicken, rather than beef or pork. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth hormones, and parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer.

D. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds, nuts, and a little fruit, helps put the body into an alkaline environment. About 20% can be from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells. To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells, drink fresh vegetable juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroye at temperatures of 104 degrees F. (40 degrees C.).

E. Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high caffeine. Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer-fighting properties. Drink purified water or filtered water to avoid known toxins
and heavy metals in tap water. Distilled water is acidic, so avoid it.

 12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remains in the intestines and becomes putrefied, leading to more toxic build-up.

13. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from meat, or eating less meat, more enzymes are available to attack the protein walls of cancer cells, allowing the body's killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.

14. Some supplements build up the immune system (IP6, Flor-ssence, Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, EFAs etc.) to enable the body's own killer cells to destroy cancer cells. Other supplements like vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body's normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted or unneeded cells.

15. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit. A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor. Anger, resentment, and bitterness put the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to have a loving and forgiving spirit. Try to relax and enjoy life, even if you've been victimized by cancer.

16. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercise daily, and do some deep breathing, which helps to get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer cells. CANCER UPDATE FROM JOHNS HOPKINS HOSPITAL, U S A

1. No plastic containers in micro. 

2. No water bottles in freezer.

3. No plastic wrap in microwave.

 4,  No plastic containers at all is even better!!

Johns Hopkins has recently sent this out in its newsletters, and this information is being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, as well.   Dioxins are highly poisonous to the cells of our bodies. Don't freeze your plastic bottles with water in them as this releases dioxins from the plastic.

Recently, Dr. Edward Fujimoto, Wellness Program Manager at Castle Hospital, was on a TV program to explain this health hazard. He talked about dioxins and how bad they are for us. He said that we should not be heating our food in the microwave using plastic containers.

 This especially applies to foods that contain fat. He said that the combination of fat, high heat, and plastics releases dioxin into the food and ultimately into the cells of the body. Instead, he recommends using glass, such as Corning Ware, Pyrex or ceramic containers for heating  food. You get the same results, only without the dioxin. So such things as TV dinners, instant ramen and soups, etc., should be removed from the container and heated in something else.

Paper isn't bad but you don't know what is in the paper. It's just safer to use tempered glass, Corning Ware, etc. He reminded us that a while ago some of the fast food restaurants moved away from the foam containers to paper. The dioxin problem is one of the reasons.

 Also, he pointed out that plastic wrap, such as Saran, is just as dangerous when placed over foods to be cooked in the microwave. As the food is nuked, the high heat causes poisonous toxins to actually melt out of the plastic wrap and drip into the food. Cover food with a paper towel instead.

 This is an article that should be shared with everyone important in your life!!

I agree with these findings 100%.  I saw firsthand what chemo did and didn’t do for my dad.  He died of Colon Cancer after a long regiment of torturous and dehumanizing treatments, including chemo-therapy, so when I received this article from my cousin, I just had to cheer and share.  It was horrible how sick the chemo made my dad, and how much worse it made him feel during his last months and weeks.  He got really bad at the end and came down with hiccups that wouldn’t stop, so we found an acupuncturist to help him with the hiccups… something that was very unusual to do in 1977.  I wish we would have taken him to him sooner.  I think he might even have been able to help him with the Cancer, and I know her could have eased his suffering.  At the time, the accuncturinst told us that Americans could cut the occurrences of Cancer in half if we stopped eating red meat and white sugar.  You’d think I’d be better at staying away from both, but my family and I do follow many of the findings listen in the Johns Hopkins study!  My dad being so sick is probably what got me so interested in alternative healthcare and natural products and cures! 

From personal experience and from the experiences friends and family, if I, my husband or the kids (or anyone I know) were diagnosed with Cancer, I’d immediately get them to (get on) or in our case double up on their USANA Nutritionals and Go-Chi and then do whatever I could to get the to Sanoviv .  We are finding out more and more, that there are alertinative and natural   

I’ve included some of the links to the alternative health products and sources that we use, support and believe in.

By Ask Marion~

Depression

Depression is often not simply an “emotional problem” that people can overcome on their own. Rather, depression is a real medical illness – one that needs to be diagnosed and properly treated. It is not a sign of weakness, nor is it something to be ashamed of, and it is not something to be ignored. The good news is that with proper diagnosis, often with natural remedies or medical attention, depression can be treated effectively.

Depression can be diveded into two categories, chronic and temporary caused by a crisis or temperary situation.  It is important to differentiate.

Although in some cases prescription meds may be necessary, they may only be necessary for a short time, or the strength of the prescription can often be reduced, but often isn't without the patient asking or taking the initiative or doing the research.

One great natural remedy to look at is FreeLife's Himalayan Goji Juice and Freelife's Go-Chi, whose only 'side affect' is that it makes people happy, and additional studies verifying the positives of Himalayan Goji Juice, under its scientific name, Lycieum Barbarum, increase constantly on Pub Med.