Move Over, Tomatoes! Oregano's Now No. 1 in Antioxidant Activity

We once believed that fruits and vegetables were the richest source of antioxidants.  However, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has now reported herbs to be an even more abundant source that could provide potential anticancer benefits when supplementing a balanced diet.

According to USDA findings, herbs have higher antioxidant activity than fruits, vegetables and some spices, including garlic. We believe that fresh herbs should be consumed on a daily basis like other foods, and recommend their use as a flavor source instead of salt and artificial chemicals. 

In the government report, the herbs found to have the highest antioxidant activity belonged to the oregano family. In general, oregano’s antioxidant effects were from three to 20 times higher than the other herbs studied. The most active antioxidant in oregano was rosmarinic acid, a natural compound that has a phenolic, or ring-like structure.  Other herbs also appear to pack a significant antioxidant punch. Among the more familiar, ranked in order, are dill, garden thyme, rosemary and peppermint. 

In comparison to the antioxidant activities of fruits and vegetables, the potency of oregano is great: 30 times greater than potatoes, 12 times more than oranges and four times that of  blueberries.  And if it’s true that "an apple a day keeps the doctor away," it should be noted that one tablespoon of fresh oregano contains the same antioxidant activity as one medium-sized apple. 

Herbs can be consumed in a variety of ways. Potent antioxidant teas can be made when herbs are steeped in hot water. Others use concentrated herbal oils available in health- food stories.  The most common way to use herbs is to add them directly to food to provide flavor.  To ensure that you are obtaining the utmost in antioxidant capacity, use fresh herbs over the dried variety. 

Antioxidants have become synonymous with good health. They are a class of compounds thought to prevent certain types of chemical damage caused by an excess of free radicals, charged molecules generated by a variety of sources, including pesticides, smoking and exhaust fumes. By neutralizing free radicals, antioxidants help in preventing cancer, heart disease and stroke, researchers believe. 

Scientists have begun to formally study the health benefits of herbs, which typically come from the leaves of plants, and spices, which come from their bark, stem and seeds. Both have been used for thousands of years to flavor foods and treat illness.  Many modern-day medications used to treat everything from arthritis to heart disease have been derived from compounds originally found in herbs and spices. 
 

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Water, Water Everywhere, 
But is There Any Drop That's Safe to Drink?

Eight glasses of water a day is necessary to obtain optimal health.  Pregnant women may require even more.  To that standard recommendation, however, must now be added  a note of caution: It isn’t just the quantity of the water we drink that should concern us, but the quality as well.

Millions of Americans have been drinking tap water contaminated with chemical byproducts from chlorine. Chlorine is commonly used to disinfect drinking water by removing harmful bacteria.  However, chlorine can also combine with farm and lawn runoff to form compounds such as chloroform that can cause illness. 

Some nationwide watersheds have been permanently closed due to contamination by methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE).  MTBE, once originally used to provide for "cleaner" burning gasoline, leaks from service station tanks and quickly disperses into nearby drinking water. However, it wasn’t until the last decade that water supplies began to be tested for this odorless and colorless compound.

Both chlorine byproducts and MTBE increased health risks in the offspring of pregnant women, including miscarriage, neural tube defects and reduced fetal size.  But we are all at risk, as many of these compounds are known carcinogens.

The drinking water report, issued by the Environmental Work Group and the Public Interest Research Group states, "By failing to clean up rivers and reservoirs that provide drinking water for hundreds of millions of Americans, (the Environmental Protection Agency) and the Congress have forced water utilities to chlorinate water that is contaminated with animal waste, sewage, fertilizer, algae and sediment." 

The EPA already has decided that some chlorine byproducts pose health risks and instituted stricter standards. The agency also began requiring a reduction by one-fifth of the allowable level of trihalomethanes, another chemical produced by adding chlorine to dirty water. EPA studies showed that reducing the level of trihalomethanes might mean 2,332 fewer cases of bladder cancer per year, down from its estimate of 9,300 annual cases attributed to this chemical.

We can all reduce our exposure to potential water risks through simple measures such as purchasing a home charcoal filter. Check with your local water company or the EPA Web site to see if your local water passes the contamination test. 

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New research, originating in Great Britain, has provided further proof that cellular phones can change brain metabolism. According to these latest findings, radiation from a cell phone can trigger chemical processes in the brain that may be harmful. Prolonged mobile-phone use could lead to problems ranging from headaches to tumors.  In the short term, radiation from these devices may disturb the normal brain waves produced during sleep. 

Stress proteins are manufactured in the brain when people are exposed to radio frequency signals from mobile phones.  These stress proteins are genetically controlled, and may also be released when the brain temperature increases.

In an unpublished study, two Swedish professors found that people who had used analog mobile phones for up to 10 years had a 26% higher risk of brain cancer than a control group of patients who did not use the devices. However, the study is based largely on a previous generation of analog mobile phones, many of which were installed in cars with aerials on the roof, and which emitted signals continuously, unlike the latest digital phones. 

Last year, a British government-sponsored scientific inquiry concluded that while there was no evidence of a danger to health, it would be wise to discourage children from using mobile phones, because they were more susceptible to radiation.  While cellular phones are a great convenience and safety device, you should consider using an ear-piece extension that allows the phone to be kept at a safe distance while in use. 

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In Third-world countries, drug companies do not have a financial incentive to produce costly pharmaceuticals to treat certain health problems. Fortunately an inexpensive vitamin may easily treat one problem.  Vitamin A may prevent stunted growth in kids exposed to infectious diseases such as malaria and HIV.  In the study published in the journal Pediatrics, vitamin A promoted growth and weight gain in children in the developing world exposed to a variety of diseases.

In the study, researchers followed 554 Tanzanian children aged 6 months to 5 years for up to 12 months. All had been hospitalized for pneumonia and were treated with two doses of vitamin A while in the hospital, with most administered two more doses four months later. The researchers found that after four months, HIV-infected babies who got vitamin A supplements had grown an average of one inch more than babies who received the placebo treatment.  Also, the children in the vitamin A group gained an average of one pound more than those in the placebo group. The supplements also eliminated the risk of stunted growth from prolonged bouts of diarrhea. 

The researchers say vitamin A supplements could be a cheap and effective method of preventing both vitamin deficiency and growth retardation, which are serious public-health problems in the developing world.

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Alzheimer's is a devastating neurological disease that robs its victims of their independence and memory.  Those afflicted with this devastating disease may have difficulty remembering recent events, names and faces.  They lose the ability to care for themselves and require assistance with feeding, bathing, and dressing.  Sometimes dangerous situations can arise if Alzheimer's patients are left alone. Some have been known to wander off or leave gas stoves burning with disastrous results. 

While some progress has been made in research and treatment, the cause of Alzheimer’s is still not entirely clear.  It is believed that excess free-radical oxidation, along with exposure to heavy metals such as aluminum and mercury, may play a role. 

A major stumbling block to finding effective medications for Alzheimer's is the blood-brain barrier. This safety net shields our brains from infections, medications and other foreign agents. Now, Italian scientists may have found a way to deliver medications through this blood-brain barrier. When vitamin C is chemically attached to certain drugs, it allows them to penetrate the barrier and reach target cells within the brain. 

At the present time, studies using medication chemically attached to vitamin C have been limited to the lab bench and to mice.  Human studies are still years away.  However, taking an Alzheimer's medication with a vitamin C tablet is unlikely to have any effect on brain absorption of the medication. 

If you are concerned about the possibility of developing Alzheimer's, new genetic testing may be on the horizon.  You can also ask our doctors about our in-depth investigation and treatment of toxic heavy metals that may contribute to brain aging and degeneration. 

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