Here’s a LINK to a good article on this research into Saw Palmetto.

Here are some beneficial herbs that are said to benefit hair growth:

Ginkyo biloba – this popular herb is thought to improve blood circulation to the brain and skin. Herbalists believe that the increased flow of blood to the brain area delivers more nutrients to the hair follicle thus promoting hair re-growth. The recommended dose is 120-160mg of dry extract each day spread over three doses.

Green tea (Camellia sinesis) – it is thought that catechins found in green tea may inhibit the enzyme 5-alpha-reductase that converts testosterone into hair-unfriendly DHT. It is therefore believed to be effective in preventing and treating male pattern type baldness. You should drink several cups of green tea each day or take it in capsule form as instructed by the manufacturer.

He Shou Wu (Polygonum multiflorum) – also known as Fo-Ti, this Chinese herb has traditionally been used to reduce hair loss. It is found in many commercial preparations, or in tea and capsule form.

Pygeum (Pygeum africanum) – derived from the bark of an evergreen, it works in a similar way to green tea. It is widely used to treat prostate problems and male pattern baldness. Users should take 60-500mg per day in pill or capsule form.

Saw palmetto (Seranoa repens) – this is the current treatment of choice for many men due to its ability to protect the prostate, slow hair loss and encourage hair re-growth. It forms the core element of many commercially prepared hair loss treatments but can easily be obtained in its pure form. The recommended dose is a 160mg capsule twice each day, but make sure the ingredients are made from the berry extract not the dried berries themselves.

Stinging Nettle (Urtica diocia) – this has long been favored as a means of preventing hair loss due to its ability to block the conversion of testosterone into DHT. It can be taken in pill or capsule form with an optimum dose of 50-100mg per day. It is particularly effective when combined with pygeum and saw palmetto.

And, in his book, “The Green Pharmacy,” James A. Duke, Ph.D., a leading authority on healing herbs, lists several other herbs that might help prevent hair loss:

Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra), which also prevents conversion of testosterone to DHT. Dr. Duke suggests adding licorice to your shampoo.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), which may encourage hair growth by stimulating circulation when mixed with an oil and rubbed into the scalp. Dr. Duke noted that naturopaths often suggest nightly scalp massage with one part rosemary oil and two parts almond oil.

Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) and sage (Salvia officinalis), which Dr. Duke says have the reputation of preventing hair loss and retaining hair color. He suggests adding a few teaspoons of sage tincture to your shampoo.

Cholesterol Pill Taken by Thousands Causes Cancer

Dr. Mercola writes: “A pill intended to lower cholesterol levels has been linked to an increased risk of cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is reviewing data from a trial which found a ‘larger percentage’ of patients treated with the drug Inegy died of cancer. The FDA is expected to issue its conclusions within six months. Inegy combines the widely-used statin drug simvastatin with a new medication called ezetimibe. Ezetimibe works in a different way from statins. Statins block cholesterol made in the liver, while ezetimibe blocks the absorption of cholesterol in the gut. Back in 2004, the U.S. Government’s National Cholesterol Education Program panel advised those at risk for heart disease to attempt to reduce their LDL (bad) cholesterol to very low levels. It’s been a health disaster ever since. Before 2004, a 130-milligram LDL cholesterol level was considered healthy. The updated guidelines, however, recommended levels of less than 100, or even less than 70 for patients at very high risk. These updated guidelines instantly increased the market for cholesterol-lowering drugs. Not surprisingly, eight of the nine doctors who were on the approval panel for these absurdly low guidelines had been making money from the companies of the cholesterol-lowering drugs they were suddenly pushing onto a much larger (oftentimes healthy) segment of the population. Now, in order to get to these outrageous and dangerous low levels usually requires multiple cholesterol-lowering drugs, such as Inegy, which combines two cholesterol-lowering drugs into one. Folks, it is VERY rare for anyone to need a cholesterol-lowering drug, let alone multiples. Among the more than 20,000 patients who have come to my clinic, only four or five of them truly needed these drugs, as they had genetic challenges that required it. But if you or someone you know is taking them, odds are very high — greater than 100 to 1 — that you or they don’t need them, and they may even create more health challenges than what you started out with. Inegy combines two different medications — simvastatin and ezetimibe — into one pill. Although the Daily Mail article above claims statins ‘should lead to a drop in heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems,’ that is not necessarily the case. Statin drugs can actually increase your risk of heart disease because they deplete your body of Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), which can lead to heart failure. They have also been linked to:

* Weakness
* Muscle aches
* An increase in cancer risk
* Immune system suppression
* Serious degenerative muscle tissue condition (rhabdomyolysis)
* Potential increase in liver enzymes so patients must be monitored for normal liver function

Is ‘Bad” Cholesterol Really ‘Bad?’

It’s important to remember that you actually NEED cholesterol in your body – including LDL, or so-called ‘bad’ cholesterol — in order to maintain your health. There is actually no such thing as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ cholesterol. Both HDL and LDL cholesterol perform vital functions in your body, which is why it’s actually dangerous to bring your LDL levels down too low. HDL (high density lipoprotein) and LDL (low density lipoprotein) are actually proteins that transport the cholesterol to and from your tissues. Cholesterol in turn is a precursor to steroid hormones. For example, you can’t make testosterone or estrogen, cortisol, DHEA or pregnenolone, or a multitude of other steroid hormones that are necessary for health, without cholesterol. Even more importantly, you can’t make new cell membranes without cholesterol. So, the major reasons your body makes cholesterol in the first place, and why you have LDL, is to take the cholesterol to the tissue so you can make new cells or repair old damaged ones.”

This information from Dr. Mercola’s article is stunning, and I suggest that you do more personal research into the issue… check out this book:

The Cholesterol Myths: Exposing the Fallacy that Saturated Fat and Cholesterol Cause Heart Disease

The truth is amazing!

“God’s Pharmacy!!! Amazing!

A sliced carrot looks like the human eye, the pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye…and YES science now shows that carrots greatly enhance blood flow to and function of the eyes.

A tomato has four chambers and is red. The heart is red and has four chambers. All of the research shows tomatoes are indeed pure heart and blood food.

Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart. Each grape looks like a blood cell and all of the research today shows that grapes are also profound heart and blood vitalizing food.

A walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds are on the nut just like the neo-cortex. We now know that walnuts help develop over 3 dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function.

Kidney beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function, and yes, they look exactly like the human kidneys.

Celery, bok choy, rhubarb and more look just like bones. These foods specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23% sodium and these foods are 23% sodium. (NOTE: This is natural sodium… not just “salt”… my addition. – Dr. Bill) If you don’t have enough sodium in your diet the body pulls it from the bones, making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body.

Eggplant, avocados and pears target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female – they look just like these organs. Today’s research shows that when a woman eats 1 avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight and prevents cervical cancers. And how profound is this? …. It takes exactly 9 months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit. There are over 14,000 photolytic chemical constituents of nutrition in each one of these foods (modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them).

Figs are full of seeds and hang in twos when they grow. Figs increase the motility of male sperm and increase the numbers of sperm cells to overcome male sterility.

Sweet potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics.

Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries.

Grapefruits, oranges, and other citrus fruits look just like the mammary glands of the female and actually assist the health of the breasts and the movement of lymph in and out of the breasts.

Onions look like body cells. Today’s research shows that onions help clear waste materials from all of the body cells. They even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes.”

So, what do you think? Interesting how these foods that actually look like body components, relate to them! It is also worth noting that health is supported by eating the right foods… naturally, without chemicals, additives, and processing. Natural food… natural health!

Lipitor Ads Spark Congressional Probe

Look at what Dr. Joseph Mercola writes about cholesterol in the above linked article, “Some 30 years ago, hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol) was an affliction of middle-aged men with cholesterol over 300 plus other risk factors, such as smoking and obesity. Since then, the massive fear about this non-disease has been created largely by the drug companies. They have done this while simultaneously manipulating the definition of high cholesterol by controlling the government panels that are responsible for the definitions. This combination has led to absolutely spectacular profits of tens of billions of dollars, as their reward for their effective market manipulation. By 1984 anyone (male or female) with cholesterol over 200 could receive the dreaded diagnosis and a prescription for pills. Then it was moved down to 180. Today, we’re down to recommended levels of less than 100 and drugs are prescribed to children as young as 10 years old.”

Notice how the “target number” keeps dropping? The ONLY way a normal person can achieve such drastically LOW (un-natural) numbers is with an artificial, pharmaceutical drug! The drug companies have well known personalities and actors, and some “manufactured” personalities, pushing their drugs to us via commercials. Again, Dr. Mercola points this out in this statement, “Lipitor has been running a series of ads in which a kindly ‘doctor,’ Robert Jarvik, inventor of the artificial heart, tells viewers about the benefits of the cholesterol-lowering medication Lipitor. These ads, and their use of celebrity endorsers such as Jarvik, are now being investigated by Congress for potentially misleading viewers. In the ads, Dr. Jarvik appears to be giving medical advice, but he has never obtained a license to practice or prescribe medicine. Critics of the drug industry claim that such ads emotionally manipulate viewers and under-emphasize the potential side effects of drugs. The congressional probe focuses on the Lipitor ads, but will likely examine others, such as actress Sally Field’s endorsement of the osteoporosis drug Boniva.”

Statins, like Lipitor, which the kindly Dr. Jarvik is pushing on the air, is actually BAD for those concerned with their heart… again, Dr. Mercola says, “Statins such as Lipitor are a particularly bad choice for diabetics, but they are a poor treatment even if your only worry is your heart health. Now, statins do lower LDL (bad) cholesterol very well. The problem is they lower it too well, because cholesterol is still a necessary and natural chemical that your body needs. Cholesterol:

* Waterproofs your cell walls
* Helps repair cells
* Is vital for digesting fats, regulating hormone levels, and neurological function

Despite cholesterol’s infamous reputation, having too little of it in your body is as dangerous, if not more so, than too much. Therefore, the result of taking statin drugs can be numerous dangerous side effects, including:

* Muscle pain and weakness (most likely due to the depletion of Co-Q10)
* Dizziness and cognitive impairment,
* Depression
* Pancreatitis
* Increased cancer risk
* Heart failure

The last one is rather counter to the whole supposed point of cholesterol-lowering drugs, don’t you think? And there is this additional evidence that it more than doubles your risk of stroke if you are diabetic, in return for no benefits whatsoever — unless you enjoy anything on this list; these are the possible consequences of taking statins in strong doses or for a lengthy period of time:

* Depression of mental acuity
* Anemia
* Acidosis
* Frequent fevers
* Cataracts”

So, this points out that more than ever we need to maintain a critical eye toward the claims of drug pushing doctors, organizations, and commercials. THINK FOR YOURSELF! Even President Bush said in his last State of the Union message, “We must trust patients and doctors to make medical decisions and empower them with better information and better options.”

If you ARE concerned about your cholesterol, what would be a good approach to heading off problems? Dr. Mercola gives this advice, “Make no mistake, Lipitor completely fails to treat the underlying problems causing your high levels of cholesterol. Statins are non-specific inhibitors of a number of very important liver enzymes, including the enzyme that causes your liver to make cholesterol when it is stimulated by high insulin levels. A far more sensible treatment therefore, is to simply shut down the enzyme that makes cholesterol by reducing your insulin and leptin levels, which is the underlying cause of your high cholesterol. By eliminating sugar and most grains, you won’t cause this important enzyme to be blocked, and you also will not block other vital coenzymes such as CoQ10. This is also exactly what you should be doing if you are diabetic. To normalize your cholesterol level naturally, and keep your diabetes under control at the same time, these three primary strategies work well 99 percent of the time if properly implemented:

* Exercise daily
* Eat a low grain, low sugar diet
* Take a high quality omega-3 supplement

The omega-3 fats in krill oil or fish oil will influence your HDL cholesterol levels far more safely and effectively than taking a pill — and for a small fraction of the cost.”

Amen, Brother!

A traditional, classical naturopath specializes in wellness. That is to say, teaching clients how applying natural lifestyle approaches can act to facilitate the body’s own natural healing and health building potential. The traditional naturopath does not undertake to “diagnose” or “treat diseases,” but rather recognizes that the majority of sub-health conditions are cumulative lifestyle effects, and that the underlying cause of what we call “disease” (or, “dis-ease”) is improper diet, unhealthy habits, and environmental factors which cause biological imbalances leading to a weakening of the bodies’ natural defenses and subsequent breakdown in health. The practice of Traditional Naturopathy is not considered the practice of medicine and is currently legal in all 50 states.

The practice of Traditional Naturopathy is recognized as a common occupation at the Federal level (U.S. Congress 1928, 1929, 1930 and 30 Federal Court rulings between 1958 and 1978) and as such it is a profession protected under the 14th and 9th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Several states have also made this stipulation either by statute or in the Courts.

All disease (dis-ease) is a “lack of ease” or lack of homeostasis in the body. What Allopathic (medical) doctors call diseases are only symptoms of a greater underlying problem. Disease is nothing more than a manifestation of our bodies trying to correct imbalances. These Imbalances are due to faulty nutritional patterns, improper rest, stress management and other lifestyle considerations which over time can result in a weakening of the body. By the time disease appears on the scene it is very late in the game!

Our body tells us early on when there is a problem and we can either respond to these “messages” or try to suppress the symptoms the body uses to tell us there is a problem. You can take Tylenol, or other drugs, to suppress the symptoms and they will help for a while but, unless the underlying problem is corrected, eventually the symptoms will no longer be suppressed by these drugs and one will need to take stronger and stronger drugs to quiet the body’s message.

Eventually, if the underlying problem has not been addressed, the body will begin to break down structurally. It is at this time modern medicine is finally capable of diagnosing something is really wrong and offer interventions to fix the structure, but still medical doctors fail to address the underlying problem.

Naturopathy concentrates on identifying destructive aspects of the lifestyle in the early phases, when lifestyle changes can occur to bring long-term benefit. Before symptoms manifest and long before a diagnosis can be rendered, these destructive aspects of our lifestyle can be identified and corrected. Once corrected, the body automatically begins to correct itself. Diagnosing disease and illness is totally unnecessary to correcting the underlying problems which result in disease and illness.

A true healer does not waste his time concentrating on naming diseases but rather on identifying those underlying factors, which if not addressed, will eventually result in the manifestation of disease and illness. These factors can be identified and corrected long before it is even possible to make any diagnosis. Even after a diagnosis is made, the same concepts of healing used by Traditional Naturopaths are equally effective, because once balance is restored the body automatically heals itself!

A true, traditional Naturopath (or “Classical” Naturopath) does not seek to “practice medicine.” If a person is in an automobile accident, he does not, and should not, seek out a Naturopath! He needs a medical doctor and a hospital to address his injuries. Rather, a person who is not injured, but is interested in optimizing his current state of health and wellness, should seek out a Traditional Naturopath. This individual can be taught lifestyle methods that will enhance his, or her, personal health.

An “MD” (Medical Doctor) uses techniques and practices such as chemicals, drugs, surgery and other therapies designed to address the codified symptomology of disease. An “ND” (Doctor of Naturopathy) is a professional that has earned a degree in alternative and complimentary methods that do not involve drugs, surgery, or any invasive methods. They are simply teachers of natural health and wellness practices!