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The pollution of our air, water, and food supply with mercury is a recognized health hazard, and the US and other governments have set guidelines to reduce its impact on the environment. Up until several years ago mercury in the form of thimerosal was used as a preservative in vaccines. It has been removed from childhood vaccines but still remains in some adult vaccines such as the flu vaccine. Our attention in this paper is on “internal pollution” of our bodies with mercury.
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Simon Weiss was my father-in-law. He was a butcher and had a saying “the meat makes the meal.” Of course, he would eat meat more than once a day. He died of a stroke at age 92 several years ago, but lived a relatively disease-free life. As I grew up and even in medical school we were taught meat and dairy were great sources of protein, but plants were not. In my medical practice, patients frequently ask me what I think of a vegan or vegetarian diet. Up until 2005, when a book called The China Study was published, physicians didn’t have a lot of scientific data to go by. The China study is a 20 year observational study involving 6,500 individuals living in 130 villages in China. Colin Campbell, PhD and Thomas Campbell, M.D., his son, are the authors. Dr. Campbell is a Professor Emeritus of Nutritional Biochemistry at Cornell University. The study concluded that people with a high consumption of animal-based foods (meat, eggs, dairy products) were more likely to suffer chronic disease (such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer), while those who ate a plant-based diet were the least likely. A closer look at the study reveals important limitations that impact the reliability, usefulness, and interpretation of the study results. There are technical issues with the limited number of data points. And the study jumps to conclusions and doesn’t differentiate between causation and association.
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Soybeans are marketed as a “health food.” I used to eat a lot of soy products, but as I became more educated I discovered soy has a number of dangerous components. The first is phytic acid. All seeds and legumes have this, but not to the extent soybeans contain. Phytic acid binds to needed minerals such as calcium, zinc and magnesium. Even slow cooking does not always adequately break down phytic acid, but long fermentation (6 months to several years) does. So eating natto, miso or tempeh, which are fermented foods, is okay. Soy also contains enzyme inhibitors that reduce protein absorption and processed soy contains nitrates and other chemicals that are carcinogenic (cause cancer).
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Magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the body and is essential to good health. Approximately 50% of total body magnesium is found in bone. The other half is found predominantly inside cells of body tissues and organs. Only 1% of magnesium is found in blood, but the body works very hard to keep blood levels of magnesium constant. Magnesium is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. It helps maintain normal muscle and nerve function, keeps heart rhythm steady, supports a healthy immune system, and keeps bones strong. Magnesium also helps regulate blood sugar levels, promotes normal blood pressure, and is known to be involved in energy metabolism and protein synthesis. Dietary magnesium is absorbed in the small intestines. Magnesium is excreted through the kidneys.
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The most misunderstood aspect of nutrition is fat metabolism. The following article is an update from my previous articles on cholesterol and fats. I would like to give credit to the publications of Stephen Sinatra, M.D. for much of the technical parts of this information. Dr. Sinatra is one of a growing number of cardiologists who are pioneering nutritionally based cardiology.
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