Legionnaires’ disease

Legionnaires' disease is a rare form of pneumonia, which is also called Legionellosis. It was named after the first outbreak, which occurred in an American hotel, which was hosting a convention of the Pennsylvania Department of the American Legion.
It is generally contracted by inhaling mists from water sources like showers, whirlpool baths and cooling towers which have become infected with the bacteria.
The most common cause of the disease is contaminated air conditioning systems; it cannot be passed from one person to another.

What are the symptoms?

Legionnaires' has an incubation period of between two to 10 days. The first symptoms are similar to flu - headaches, muscle pain and a general feeling of being unwell.
These progress to high fever, the chills, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.
On the second or third day the patient usually gets a dry cough and sometimes chest pains and they may have difficulty breathing.
Some patients also suffer from confusion; disorientation; hallucination and a loss of memory. Some also get pneumonia.

Will I die?

Legionnaires' disease does have a high fatality rate of about 5% to 15%. But if the disease is caught early enough the prognosis is better and patients are able to be treated with antibiotics. Those with chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancer or serious kidney problems are extremely vulnerable if they catch the disease. Smokers and alcoholics are also more vulnerable.

If you are concerned about making your hotel water supply as safe as possible, one way to do this is to run the taps in the bathroom for a few minutes with the bathroom door closed. When the steam has settled you can then use the bathroom taps. This gets rid of air bubbles in the pipes which may harbour the bug. Hotels should regularly check the systems themselves, but sometimes rooms can be left unoccupied for some time.

Firms and buildings should also ensure that they carry out good engineering practices and regularly check the operation and maintenance of air and water handling systems.

Swine Flu

SWINEFLU UPDATE

 

This article is intended only for informative & educational purposes. It is not intended to replace the advice of your G.P or a specialist.

On the 29th April 2009 we sent an email to some of our clients with email addresses. In that email, we discussed what the swine flu is all about and discouraged them to rush to have an anti-viral jab against the swine flu. Please read on to find out why we are not in favour of the anti-viral jabs. On the 27h May, we sent a mail shot to all our existing clients. This article is an update with certain modifications.

What is the Swine Flu?

It is a respiratory disease affecting pigs that is caused by Type A influenza.
Most outbreaks occur during late Fall and winter months similar to those influenza outbreaks in humans. The current strain A(H1N1) is a new variation of an H1N1 virus which causes seasonal flu outbreaks in humans. Swine flu viruses that cause diseases in pigs rarely affect humans. But sporadic human infections with swine flu have occurred and there are documented cases of human to human spread of swine flu. On Wednesday 29th April, 09, the World health organization raised its pandemic alert level to five on its six level threat scale. By raising the level to five, it means that there are reasons to believe that the virus is capable of human to human transmission. Not long after that, the level was raised to Level 6.

But Level six, will not necessarily mean that there is a World wide crisis with scores of people dying! All that a pandemic mean is that a new infectious disease spreading throughout the World. So far the Swine Flu has claimed the lives of 332 people (as of July 1st, 2009). Of these 116 were from Mexico. It is relevant and appropriate to note that the greater majority, if not all those who died already had major health complications! As a result of the increased alert level, a fast track swine flu vaccine was promptly ordered and will be ready as early as July 2009.

Many health Organisations are probably celebrating the arrival of the new vaccine. But there is no reason why you should join in the celebrations. As a matter of fact, you should have more reasons to fear the new vaccine than the actual swine flu itself.

With the fast track program, there is virtually no time to have sufficient clinical trials to ensure the safety of the new vaccine nor as we submit, sufficient time to properly identify what is the appropriate vaccine! In consequence, our children and those in the health service may be the first line of guinea pigs to receive the vaccine.

On 4th July, 2009, The Daily Mail in England reported that the Swine Flu can kill up to 40 people a day in the U.K and predicts that millions will be affected by the end of August.

The common symptoms of the swine flu may include some or all of the following:

Fever
Coughing
Running nose and or sore throat
Joint aches
Severe ache
Vomiting and or diarrhoea
Lethargy
Lack of appetite.

As can be seen, the symptoms often resemble that of either a common cold or a flu.

The pandemic flu panic has a very strong impact on the people in Mexico, America and also part of Asia such as Hong Kong. In Hong Kong, people rush to their pharmacies to stock up tamiflu and other anti-viral drugs. The declarations of public emergency only go to help the pharmaceutical companies in the pandemic flu business.. Behind the scene, many governments and health officials are preparing the way for future quarantine and mass vaccinations that have been approved by the FDA regulations.
A public health emergency has become the pretext to rush to market experimental drugs and vaccines that are not subject to product liability in the American Civil courts!

The following is appropriate considerations:

There are more people dying from the regular flu than the swine flu. At least 13,000 people die each year from the regular flu in the U.S. alone. Those who died from the swine flu already have some sort of health complications.

The last swine flu threat happened in 1976; it resulted in massive swine flu vaccine. But within a few months there were claims totalling $1.3 billion from victims who had suffered with some form of paralysis from the flu vaccine. Several hundred people developed crippling the Guillian-Barre Syndrome after their injections.

The Swine Flu jabs when ready no will Tamiflu give a cure against the Swine Flu; it only shorten the recovery time by a day or so. If that is the case, why take the risk of having a jab when there are more appropriate alternatives that do not bring about unnecessarily risks?

For a very long time, I have become very sceptical of the media and also certain researches conducted by so called professors and so called scientists. Many of these researches are sponsored by the drug industry and are therefore very biased!

We urge you not to rush into having an anti-viral jab without being fully informed and after having completed your own research. The internet offers a wealth of information. Before you rush into having an anti-viral jab, consider that there are more natural ways to stay healthy. These include washing your hands frequently, drinking plenty of pure water, getting enough exercises, rest and sunshine, lowering stress and above all, consider the importance of certain supplements. We shall delve into this after we have finished with our discussion of the swine flu.

The anti-viral jab may or may not help!

So what if I am personally infected with the Swine flu? Will I rush to get an anti-viral jab? The answer is clearly No!. I will get plenty of rest, drink lots of pure water and most importantly ensure that I take all the supplements that I described in this article. The sauna and the steam room in a gym provide much relief than the anti-viral jab. Needless to say, if you catch the Swine Flu, it is our advice that unless you have a sauna at home you should stay at home and not pass it on.

You would remember the SARS outbreak 5 – 6 years ago. Because the illness was caused by a virus, there was no definitive treatment. Worldwide, there were more than 2700 cases but only about a hundred deaths. Those who died were already in poor health or had another unrelated serious illness of some sort!

Likewise, consider that this is the hay fever season. Many of the hay fever syndrome usually occurred during late Spring or early Summer. Many “cold” and “flu” cases are easily suspected to be Swine Flu; again the Media capitalises on it and had it blown out of proportion.

Most people will not know this! All H1N1 flu’s are descendants of the 1918 pandemic flu strain! The reason why the flu shot may or may not work from year to year is due to mutations. Mutations means changes over time. In view of mutations, there is no vaccine currently available for this current hydrid flu strain. Not too long ago, scientists found that the 1918 flu pandemic that killed more than 50 million people worldwide in a matter of 18 months was not due to the flu itself! Instead they discovered that the cause of the deaths was due to strep infections. People with influenza often get what is known as a “super infection” with an accompanying bacterial agent. In 1918, it appears to have been Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Even our own National Health Service (NHS) Website made only very modest claim about the efficacy for Tamiflu and Relenza saying that they can relieve some of the symptoms of the swine flu and reduce the time of your illness by about a day and reduce the potential for complications.

Consider that Mexico is heavily polluted at this time of year with heavy pollution and that its standard of hygiene is amongst some of the lowest in the World. What this mean is that in order for the bird flu or the swine flu to turn into a human pandemic, it has to find an environment similar to Mexico City that favours both deadly virulence and ease of transmission. Likewise, crowded chicken farms, slaughterhouse and congested markets of Eastern Asia similar to that of the GuangDong Province in Southern China 6 years ago provided the impetus for the SARS disease!

As such therefore, with an excellent health care system such as in the U.K, we doubt if this strain will kill 40 people a day in the U.K! You would remember the bird flu scare not too long ago. Despite warnings that it could kill millions of people, only 257 people died over a period of 5 years. Surely, in itself, this does not constitute an emergency deserving much attention, let alone fear.

Bear in mind that the greater majority of the reported have very mild symptoms. Those infected are usually those with other accompanying health issues. During late Spring and early Summer, the hay fever season is on and there are allergies of all sorts. There are many suspected cases with similar symptoms and can easily be passed off as the Swine Flu.

Worldwide, each dose of Tamiflu costs about £70. The profits can be astronomical if 100 million people world wide received the jab! No wonder the stock index shows the soaring price of the drug industry.

Very honestly, I will ask of you to be more concerned with irritable bowel syndrome, gastro-intestinal diseases, heart problems, cancer & diabetics than the swine flu pandemic. Gastro intestinal diseases such as crohn’s and ulcerative colitis can contribute to a much higher incidence of bowel cancer! Heart problems & cancer cause more deaths.

As stated in the New York Times, flu experts have no idea whether the present flu shot will offer much protection against this exotic mutant (swine flu) and it will take many months for the drug companies to develop a new drug that could be effective against this brand new mutant!

Therefore, to get a shot now would not only offer you no protection but could potentially lead to more harm. Most anti-viral drugs are likely to be loaded with mercury as a preservative in most flu vaccines!

Many of you have a regular flu shot for the seasonal flu just before the beginning of the Winter season. Here again, I will ask of you to do your research to find out how effective this may be.
To sum up, we have very strong reservation against most forms of anti-viral jabs.

USE OF CERTAIN SUPPLEMENTS TO ENHANCE YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM.

We may have the common cold but we have not caught the flu for many years now. This is because we are always on supplements and enzymes. We are also enjoying very good health! As such therefore, we are not afraid of the Swine Flu. We would not deliberately try to catch it and even if we did catch it, we know that there is nothing to fear. Below is a list of supplements that we would recommend that you take if you are to enhance your immune system. If you got the flu, it will definitely shorten the time of recovery and will definitely minimises the discomfort and pain with it.

1. Vitamin D3. This is a sunshine vitamin. Most people lack sunshine and do not have sufficient exposure to the sun. Optimising your Vitamin D levels is a very good strategy. But you cannot afford to over-dose on vitamin D. I would recommend that you start with a dosage of 4,000 IU to “jump start” your body for a week and then stick with 2,000 I.U daily. But if you are already down with a flu (not just the common cold), you can take at least 20,000 IU for about 4 days before gradually reducing the dosage to about 2,000 IU daily. Take those that are distributed either by Nutri or Lambert or if you need any, do not hesitate to give us a call.

2. A good Probiotic. This is absolutely essential as probiotic cleanses the gut and eliminates bad bacteria inside the gut. It can also help with irritable bowel syndrome. 80% of our immune system lies with our gastro-intestinal tract and it will help therefore to maintain a healthy gastro intestinal function. For therapeutic purpose, do not follow the instructions on the label but take a dosage that is at least 6 times above the recommend dosage.

3. Turmeric: Most flu patients have pain in the neck, shoulders and back. A high dosage of turmeric will help to reduce the inflammatory process and the pain.

4. Super Garlic: Take higher dosage for a therapeutic purpose. Garlic works like a broad spectrum antibiotic against bacteria, virus and protozoa in the body. But unlike antibiotic, no resistance can be built up so it is extremely safe to take.

5. A good brand of fish oil such as Eskimo 3. Fish oil balances the ratio between your saturated and unsaturated fat and lubricates your tissues and cells. It is to us, a multi-purpose type of supplement. Again, take a dosage that is at least 3 – 4 times above the prescribed dosage as recommended for therapeutic purpose.

If there is a financial constraint, we would recommend that you just take Vitamin D3 and probiotic and fish oil.

Minimise the intake of sugar and processed food and drink lots of pure water. Have regular exercise, even just a brisk 20 minute walk. The above recommended supplements and avoiding sugar and anti-viral jabs will be your recipe not just to combat the swine flu but will help you to maintain good health all year round.

Your Appropriate Blood Pressure

The traditional reading for a “normal” blood pressure” is 120/80. Anything above it is considered high blood pressure. For example, if your reading is 140/90, your doctor would prescribe blood pressure tablets (or medication) in an effort to bring your blood pressure back down to 120/80. Many developed countries have since made an adjustment to the 120/80 criteria; unfortunately the U.K sticks to 120/80 as the criteria.

I disagree with 120/80 as the criteria. To put a patient on prescribed medication (blood pressure pills) simply because his blood pressure chart is 140/90 without investigating if it was his/her appropriate blood pressure is definitely wrong.

 Your blood pressure can be as high as 160/100 and if it is your appropriate blood pressure, do not do anything to disrupt it or try to bring it down with drugs (prescribed medication) What I am trying to say is this: If your chart reads 160/100 and you also have other complications, you should have it checked out by your doctor. True high blood pressure must be attended to by your G.P or specialist until such time you are able to adjust your life style with dietary adjustments and supplements.

 High blood pressure and if it is not your appropriate blood pressure can be extremely dangerous; it can cause stroke and other health complications. Bear in mind too that here is also such a thing as secondary high blood pressure. This usually happens when the kidneys are not well or that there is a general hardening of the renal artery. Also, if there is hypothyroidism, there is a tendency to have secondary high blood pressure. Therefore, it is wrong diagnosis to automatically put a patient on high blood pressure medication without first ascertaining if it was secondary high blood pressure to start with! Space & time does not allow us to write more on secondary high blood pressure.

To reinforce the point, let me cite an example. There is no such thing that if you are 5 feet 8”, you must be ten stone in weight. Our body density and bone mass varies from one individual to another; again it can vary from sex to race.

Your appropriate pulse pressure.
 We place more emphasis on pulse pressure than high blood pressure. Pulse pressure is the true measurement of how far gone your arteries are. The higher it is the stiffer your arteries are; the more strain on your heart, hence the higher likelihood of health problems.

Measurement of pulse pressure
Subtract your bottom blood pressure number (diastolic pressure) from the top number (systolic pressure).

"Say your blood pressure is 170/110 and Ray is 170/70. Ray is likely to have cardiac failure. (Heart failure, stroke or some other adverse event). In this example your pulse pressure would be 60 Ray would be an alarming 100."

What’s normal pulse pressure?
40 or lower is fine. Higher reading to that can be indicated as having stiff arteries. Conventional blood measurements are ideal for selling drugs. In order to reduce your pulse pressure meaningfully all you need is physical exercise, generous intake of fish oil alpha lipoic acid, folic acid, vitamin b3,   L-Arginine and intelectol. These supplements’ will only make your arteries softer and reduce the pulse pressure but will give you a general feeling of well being and good health. Intelectol is a powerful memory enhancer that will increase blood flow to your brain.

Cholesterol
Most people would hurry to take prescription drugs to lower their cholesterol upon learning that that they have high cholesterol. This is a gross mistake and a folly. Not all cholesterol is bad – unfortunately, space limit does not enable me to delve into details. Suffice to add, not all fats are bad. There are the saturated fats ( bad fats) and unsaturated fats (good fats) Most people and even doctors do not realize that cholesterol is essential to the body for many functions. It forms part of the cell membrane, the outer layer of every cell in your body. It helps transport and packs the major components of the cell membrane, called “phospholipids” that are made from essential fatty acids (EFAs). Without sufficient cholesterol, we would die because our tissues are constantly being repaired and replaced with new cells. Our body produces several thousand milligrams of cholesterol per day to carry out these essential functions, and each day the excess of cholesterol is supposed to be naturally recycled. If your body does not have sufficient new cholesterol each day, you cannot repair and replace your cell membrane and they will eventually degenerate.

 

The Dangers of Cholesterol lowering drugs.
Serious side effects have been reported for most cholesterol lowering drugs – the so called STATINS. The prescription of these drugs is based on the discredited hypothesis that high cholesterol can cause heart attacks.

This is false and misleading! Read on! The cholesterol myth has been one of the most long lived falsehood around – probably it has been excellent business for the big pharma - drug industry (“Big Pharma” for short)

Side Effects
In an article that appeared in “Life After Lipitor” in the newspaper “Tahoe World” on January 27th, 2004, Tahoe City (California) resident Doug Peterson began having serious neuromuscular problems after taking Statins for two years. He began losing muscular co-ordination and slurring words when he spoke. Then he lost balance, followed by loss of fine motor skills – he also had difficulty writing! These adverse side effects have begun appearing in peer-reviewed medical journals and numerous people have reported similar symptoms at public adverse websites such as medications.com. People have reported trouble at swallowing, trouble talking, feeling fatigued all the time, motor neuropathy which mimics ALS, nausea, vertigo, disorientation, memory loss, extremely dry eyes, muscle pain and so on.

How could Statins and the other cholesterol lowering drugs have so much of side effects? Statin drugs inhibit the production of cholesterol in order to lower LDL cholesterol counts. By limiting the production of cholesterol, statins may be directly causing membrane degeneration in neural and muscle tissues. Plus, statins may also inhibit of the liver to produce good cholesterol.
There are twenty million people in the U.S alone on all types of statin drugs. Statin drugs can actually increase heart disease and can cause extensive damage to one’s liver!

Your doctor could have advised you that, 2000 – 3000 milligrams of good vitamin C plus Fish oil in higher dosage could be the answer to lowering bad cholesterol without the side effects. L-Arginine besides helping to boost sex drive would complement Vitamin C to help reduce bad cholesterol.

Recommended Nutritional Therapy:  Depending on your weight,  We recommend Esterol, Ester C or a good brand of Vitamin C with bioflavonoid. Supplemented this with Eskimo 3(a good fish oil), Niacin (Vitamin B3) and also L’Arginine.  Alpha Lipoic acid will also help.

Anti-depressant drugs: On December 13th, 2006, the FDA announced that anti-depressant drugs prescribed to young adults are risky. Besides the enormous side effects, they cause suicidal thoughts in young adults. The Agency proposed a change to include a new label warning with a suggestion that patients of all age groups be carefully monitored, particularly when starting antidepressant treatment.


Urinary Incontinence: Cymbalta and some types of anti depressant drugs have been used by doctors for chronic liver diseases and urinary incontinence.  On October 17th 2005, Eli Lilly expanded its warning about liver related problems with the use of its drug, Cymbalta and cautioned doctors about using it for chronic liver disease. The warning came after a review of cymbalta found that 11 of nearly 9000 women taking it for urinary incontinence tried to commit suicide. But the lists of side effects are too many to mention.
The FDA approved of cymbalta in August of 2004 as an anti-depressant but it is not approved in the United States to treat urinary incontinence.

If your prescribed medication for depression and urinary incontinence is not mentioned in the list here, you can take it from me that they still carry an enormous amount of side effects. Please refer to the internet; all you need to do is to click onto the name of the drug. Google is a better search engine. Also all prescribed drugs for urinary incontinence carries with it an enormous amount of side effects.

It is my view that all anti depressant drugs can be habit forming. In addition, they blur the brain. For those taking statin drugs, proper blood testing is of paramount importance because an excessive dose and abusive use can cause permanent muscle and liver damage

In general, most forms of prescribed medication can deplete nutrients in the body. Classic example of this are diuretic drugs used to treat hypertension (blood pressure) whilst diuretic drugs are cost effective in reducing blood pressure, they deplete the body of essential minerals like magnesium and potassium.

As the side effects of urinary incontinence drugs are enormous and the list too many to mention, I would encourage you to research the internet for further information.

A further Word of caution:  Coumadin is a drug prescribed by cardiologists to prevent blood clots. Prednisone one of the NSAID (Non Steroid Anti-Inflammatory drug) is prescribed by doctors to relieve an inflammatory process for example, asthma and other flu like conditions.  Lupron is prescribed for prostate problems. Abusive use of each of these drugs can deplete bone mineral density but when all three are taken together, rapid osteoporosis can be induced.

The harsh reality today is that today’s large pharmacies sell anything that is legal. They are in the business to make money – they are not in the business to better humankind.

If you are observant, just pay attention to those who frequent the pharmacies. They look sickly; on the other hand if you pay close attention to those who frequents a health food shop, they look better and healthier. Do not trust your doctor to know everything about nutrition, nutritional therapy is usually not within the scope of their training. If you pay close attention to many of our obese doctors and nurses with a pot belly and who light up in the hospital’s corridors or car parks, you would know what I mean. This comment is not intended to discourage you from staying away from your doctor.

Recommended Supplements for a depressive disorder:  Before I start talking about heart problems and cancer, I want to let you know that 5 HTP which improves the serotonin level in your blood can be very effective in mood balancing. It may also help you to sleep better. It has virtually no side effects. When I lost my mother almost four years ago, I was on 5HTP nightly @ 50 mg per capsule x 4 (200 mg) for almost a year to help me get over with the extremely difficult period of my life. Another most advanced mood elevating therapy available today is SAMe (S-Adenosylmethionine).

We carry 5HTP but not SAMe but we can order it for you. SAMe has shown efficacy to relieving depressive symptoms but can also help in fighting liver’s disease, relieving arthritis pain and even supporting healthy endothelial functions. Never take sleeping pills or anti-histamine to help you sleep. If you wish, you may try 5HTP and melatonin together. It will help you sleep very soundly.

          


Heart Problems: When we hear about a sudden cardiac (heart) death in an adult, it is generally linked to atherosclerosis or clogging of the arteries. During vigorous exercises, if the blood flow to the heart muscle becomes blocked, the heart can stop working resulting in death. In children, however, the problem is usually due to a congenital abnormality of the heart muscle. A child may play sports for many years without any apparent problem. But these defects which often involve abnormal rhythm can cause the heart to stop pumping at anytime – particularly during heavy exercises. I would recommend that all young children be given an EKG (electro cardiogram) – the typical examination by your doctor using a mere stethoscope won’t be able to detect most congenital heart defects. Here at our Clinic, we use both the stethoscope and The Chinese pulse diagnosis. If we are uncertain, we would refer the client back to his G.P with an explanation that he/she should be referred to a cardiologist.

Having said that, we have seen many patients who are needlessly prescribed heart tablets. When we examine the patient, we often find that the patient has heart burn, acid reflux or aortic aneurysm and these conditions often transmit a false signal that there is a heart problem. These may include distant murmurs, irregular heartbeats and angina. Before we forget, oral chelation is extremely effective in removing a blockage in a heart artery or any arteries. We do not stock chelation tablets but we shall be happy to order it for you.

Recommended Nutritional Therapy for the heart:  Again, it’s good fish oil (Eskimo 3), Co-Enzyme Q 10, at least 100 mg per day, alpha lipoic acid, Vitamin E & L’Arginine, folic acid, niacin. Oral Chelation is a very effective therapy.

On the co-relationship between cholesterol and heart problems, do bear in mind that the majority of people who have heart attacks have normal cholesterol levels. Cholesterol in itself doesn’t cause heart disease and it won’t stop a heart attack.  It has never been conclusively shown that lowering of cholesterol saves lives. In fact, several studies have shown that that lowering cholesterol into the range currently recommended is co-related with an increased risk of dying, especially of cancer.

Cancer

CANCER AND WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT

Diagnosis of cancer can be shattering leaving the victim with the feeling that the end is near. It is like having a time bomb in the body not knowing when it will explode. But cancer does not always necessarily have to be fatal; so much depends on the grade (type of cancer and how dangerous it is) and stage (meaning whether it’s the beginning stage, intermediate or final) Even when your doctor advises that it is terminal, does not always necessarily mean that death is imminent. It does not always have to be hopeless.

In this article, we will discuss about what cancer really is and what causes cancer and more importantly what can you do about it.

No doubt, the initial shock of the diagnosis can be nerve shattering. But try to overcome it. After the initial shock, try to be calm because a confused mind will not help. The internet offers a wealth of information on the more appropriate and more effective type of conventional treatment and or alternative therapies for your condition. Creating a strong positive mental attitude can help a lot. Never, out of fear; rush into any treatment suggested by your doctors or specialist. They only know one type of treatment and that is invariably chemotherapy, radiation and surgery.

Most importantly, follow a structured holistic health programme with the right type of nutritional supplements to improve your health and well being on the healing journey.

You have to take control:
In another word, you have to take charge and although you cannot dispense with hospital’s treatments, you would also have to do your own research and understand the real meaning of cancer.

WHAT IS CANCER?
Cancer is a process within the body and it normally takes years for a tumour to develop. Cancer is therefore not a lump or a simple tumour! It is that process which was started by a weakening of the body and or the immune system to start with that can affect or infect the adjacent part of the body and unless properly addressed will eventually overtake or overcome one’s body.

The fundamental difference between a healthy tissue and a cancerous tissue is that healthy tissues respond well to adjacent or neighbouring tissues and undergoes apoptosis. When a cell does not respond to apoptosis meaning that it is not “obedient”, or does not comply with the rules of the programmed cellular system, other functioning of the cells become defective.

Understand the immune system

The cells are regulated by a system located in the pancreas. The pancreas excretes proteolytic enzymes which are the backbone of the immune system and the rest of the body. But our bodies also produce defective cells daily. Fortunately, such cells are destroyed by the pancreatic enzymes which in addition to killing off the defective cells are also used to digest foods. Simply put, cancer is therefore the failure of one’s pancreas to produce adequate enzymes and the failure of one’s body to deliver

Natural Fear of Cancer? The word cancer strikes fear in the heart of everybody. Having it is like having a time bomb in the human body. Even animals have it. It has been around for centuries but only during the second half of the 20th Century did we witness an explosion. But it is definitely on the rampage over the last few years of the 21st century. At least one out of every three persons in developed countries is a potential candidate for cancer. Contributing to this explosion are the enormous amount of stress, toxins, pollutants, processed foods that robbed them of their enzymes, electromagnetic stress, junk foods and prolonged use of certain types of prescribed medication that was not around a decade ago.

Cancer is not a mysterious disease that suddenly appears; it is a process (emphasis added) that takes many years to happen. It has definite causes and one can correct it if one has enough time and if one takes positive action to change the internal environment to one that creates health and not cancer while at the same time attacking cancerous cells by capitalising on their weaknesses.

Cancer starts when more cancerous cells are created than an overworked, depleted immune system can destroy.

Has anyone stricken with cancer ever wondered or enquired why their oncologists never or hardly ever bothered to recommend a range of supplements to help them improve their chances of recovery whilst on cancer treatment such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy?

The scope of this chapter does not enable or entitle us to go into the actual reasons but suffice to add, nutritional supplements especially those that increase the strength of the immune system and those with cancer destroying abilities would double your chances of a successful recovery. Having said that, it is not the simple taking of supplements; it matters how to take them in their appropriate dosage coupled with the right quality combined with the appropriate treatment that one's chances can be assured!

Please ensure that the supplements and enzymes that you take are of pharmaceutical quality.

The operation is a success! Time and again, we hear surgeons announcing that the operation is a "success". What is really meant is that the surgeon has "successfully" removed the tumour. Much of the time, the operation is always a "success" but the successful removal of a tumour or any tumour is no indication that the patient who is already weakened by the cancer and who will undergo weeks or months of either chemotherapy or radiation will survive or have a speedy recovery. The body continues to weaken by the onslaught of chemotherapy and the already battered immune system give way to more cancers that quickly spread to the other parts of the body. Second time around, the cancer usually bounce back with a vengeance, that is to say, it has already developed some sort of an immunity against the chemo drugs that was used in the first place. As a result stronger chemo- drugs have to be used and as a further consequence the human body cannot stand the further onslaught and finally give way. Most cancer patients die this way! Let’s ask if the "successful" removal of a tumour will in itself cure the cancer? To reiterate, cancer is a process and it is not confined to a tumour alone. The "successful" removal of a tumour therefore will not in itself solve the problem; on the other hand all forms of operations carry with it a certain degree of risks. In the first place, it involves cutting into deep tissues and is therefore invasive but what is important and pertinent to note that is surgery in itself could promote or increase the chance of further metastasis (spreading) and that is because there is no way the surgeon can prevent the cancerous cells within the tumour to spread into the blood stream once it is surgically cut.

Unless the tumour obstructs or impedes the body's vital functions or disrupt the organ's functions, we would prefer to leave it alone. That remains our philosophy! We are not saying that surgery is not necessary. We are saying that until and unless absolutely necessary, we would prefer to leave it alone and that is also because after a major surgery, the body will be weakened further by the onslaught of a major operation. Consider this further. Conventional wisdom regards cancer as a tumour and continues to attack it with chemotherapy or radiation. When a tumour is reduced by 10%, conventional wisdom would regard it as a failure and continues to attack it with more chemotherapy. When the tumour is finally reduced by 50% in size and the patient dying, conventional wisdom would consider it a "success". On the other hand, if there is a reduction in size no matter how slight and there is a response, say 10% and so long as the patient remains generally healthy without any metastasis (spreading) and the size of the tumour contained, we would regard the treatment as a success. This accounts for the difference in approach and thinking.

Similarly, let’s ask if total removal of a breast in breast cancer is the answer? To do so, we would have to go back to the root cause of the cancer. What causes the breast cancer in the first place? There are no hard and fast rules because many a times, it is necessary to have a mastectomy (total removal of the breast) and in certain cases a lumpectomy, a partial removal. We have our reservations about a total mastectomy or even a lumpectomy when the tumour is at zero stage or even Stage One, that is to say at its very earliest stage and that is because surgery at this earliest stage without addressing the root cause of the problem is not addressing the problem! Hyperthermia or some other less invasive therapies coupled with nutritional therapy may be the best solution at this very stage. On the other hand, surgery with follow up of chemotherapy and radiation will simply postpone the inevitable!

We are not saying that conventional methods such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy are useless when it comes to fighting cancer. On the contrary, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are often necessary to weaken the tumour or the cancer to enable the immune system to take over. Insofar as this is concerned, there is no hard and fast rule.

Is There A Cure for Cancer?

The ideal situation is to have a good hospital that practise the best in conventional and Chinese medicine and Nutritional Therapy. We know of many such good hospitals in China that would allow or encourage a patient to be on nutritional therapy in addition to conventional treatments.

Some recommended therapies include:

•  immunotherapy and interventional therapy
•  cryosurgery
•  iodine seeds implantation
•  gene therapy
•  hyperthermia (sending deep heat into the tumour)

 The above routinely practiced in most cancer hospitals in China. These modalities are not unknown in the developed countries but they are not routinely practised because of political reasons. We also have to ask ourselves why they are not routinely practised or administered. Combined with the nutritional therapy that we practise on a regular basis and our extensive and practical knowledge, the patient's chance of a survival can be doubled if not trebled.