Health Matters

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone and Cortisol Levels in Athletes and Sedentary Subjects at Rest and Exhaustion: Effects of Magnesium Supplementation

http://www.springerlink.com/content/c13762u7x0m3h147/

(R)-Lipoic Acid Restores Arterial Health in Aged Animals
Breaking News
By VRP Staff
In a recent animal study, (R)-lipoic acid significantly restored the impaired, age-related decline in arterial function.

Healthy arteries are in a state of vasorelaxation, where the blood vessel walls are less stiff and experience a lower degree of tension. As arteries age, they experience a decline in vasorelaxation. This decline is thought to be due to the accumulation of excessive ceramide, a group of amides that are formed when a fatty acid links to a long-chain base.

In the current study, researchers thought that the ceramide accumulation that causes arteries to stiffen might be due to the age-related loss of glutathione in the cells lining the blood vessel walls.

Researchers gave old rats (R)-alpha-lipoic acid (LA), an agent known to induce glutathione synthesis. The scientists then measured vasorelaxation, glutathione and ceramide levels in the animal’s aortic endothelial cells.

Before the old rodents were given the (R)-lipoic acid, vasorelaxation was decreased. Prior to treatment, glutathione levels in cells lining the aorta were more than 30 percent lower and ceramide levels were three-fold higher compared to young rats. When the old animals were given (R)-lipoic acid, however, vasorelaxation improved and levels of glutathione rose. Ceramide levels also fell in the animals given (R)-lipoic acid.

The researchers concluded, “Decreased endothelial glutathione was partly responsible for the age-related loss of vascular endothelial function and lipoic acid might be therapeutically evaluated to treat endothelial dysfunction.”

Reference:

Smith AR, Visioli F, Frei B, Hagen TM. Lipoic acid significantly restores, in rats, the age-related decline in vasomotion. Br J Pharmacol. 2008 Feb 25. Published online ahead of print.

Drinking Water Filter - Undercounter, FLUORIDE PLUS

Unfortunately in Vancouver, and I've seen nothing like these anywhere else in the world!
Pls let me know if you know of any. Fluoride is very difficult to remove and before seeing this product I had thought reverse osmosis was the ONLy way.. but that is expensive, consumes a LOt of energy, and slow, and removes ALL beneficial minerals, trace elements etc as well

Seaweed - contains Fucoidan

Stem Cell Enhancement
Fucoidan’s Novel Role in Tissue Repair and Heart Health

...In adults, stem cells and progenitor cells help to repair the body, replenishing specialized cells and maintaining the normal turnover in regenerative organs, such as blood, skin or intestinal tissues. Stem cells mobilize to a diseased or injured site where they repair or replace damaged tissue. Remarkably, this means they have the ability to reverse disease and injury. After a heart attack, for example, stem cells can replace damaged heart muscle with new muscle cells...

A caution to eating a lot of any seaweed where its source is unknown
Brown seaweed is also very good at soaking up heavy metals in the ocean, and some forms are actually used for this!.. It may also naturally seem to contain or mop up arsenic(one of the "heavy metals")

It does have many benefits.. pity we pollute the ocean without any thought!

Brain Regeneration

...synergy between acetyl carnitine arginate and acetyl carnitine in regrowing neurites and dendrites...

In addition, acetyl carnitine arginate protects neurons against the toxicity caused by the presence of beta amyloid plaque found in old brain cells.5 Beta amyloid production is strongly implicated in the development of Alzheimer’s disease and is found in great abundance in Alzheimer’s brains

...the buildup of lipofuscin, another oxidized protein found in all older cells, was reduced in brain cells when acetyl carnitine was fed to rats ...

...acetyl carnitine increases serotonin and dopamine output in rat brains...

Conclusion

Acetyl carnitine increases the effects of nerve growth factor 100 times when in NGF’s presence. It increases the expression of nerve growth factor receptor sites, which nerve growth factor acts on to regrow neurites and dendrites. Acetyl carnitine arginate mimics the effects of nerve growth factor itself. The two supplements act synergistically.

Uridine is another supplement that has been shown to regrow neurites and dendrites during growth and development stages in vivo orally. It has been shown to stimulate neurite-dendrite outgrowth in older animals, too, while improving their mental abilities.

Gotu kola improves cognition in older animals while stimulating neurite-dendrite growth and out branching in key areas of the brain because of the presence of several active principals called asiaticosides. It improves cognition and outgrowth in both older animals and also during the growth and development stages of younger animals